Worst Watford Xi Of All Time?

Play off final winner Jordan Stewart

 

Interestingly Jordan Stewart was the only player to appear in every game in the 2005/6 promotion season.
Little known fact: We've never been promoted to the top flight or won a cup semi final without at least 1 player with Jamaican heritage in the side.
1982 promotion: Blissett and Barnes both born in Jamaica
1984 FA cup semi final winners: Barnes
2000 promotion: Jamaican international Micah Hyde
2006 promotion Jamaican internationals: King and Doyley, Jamaican heritage: Young and Stewart (and possibly Mahon)
2015 promotion: Jamaican heritage: Deeney (and possibly McGugan and Dyer)
Jamaican International: Doyley
2019 FA cup semi final winners: Jamaican international: Mariappa
Jamaican heritage: Deeney (won and scored equalising penalty)
Gray (assisted winning goal)
Four of our homegrown England Internationals: Barnes, Blissett, Young and James who has Jamaican heritage and spent part of his childhood in Jamaica. The only other homegrown England international I can think of is Tony Currie who came to us from Chelsea schoolboys and was with us for 1 season. There's only 3 million people in Jamaica so its quite amazing what the island has given to our club.

 

I thought he had a decent game and season

 

Some harsh choices in there. Millen, Ward, Holebas were all very good for us. Holebas may be moody but he's far from the worst left back we've had, in fact I'd say he's been one of the best.

Agree with you on Kabba and Success, though. Kabba was at a time of scattergun signings and most were either obscure, crap or both.

 

Keith Millen was a hugely important signing, alongside Colin Foster, in improving the defence to enable us to avoid relegation in 1994.

 

I always thought Millen was a decent solid defender for us back then

 

Neither Holebas or Jordan Stewart deserve to be in our worst ever eleven as some of you have suggested, in fact I would go even further and say they both would be closer to our best ever eleven.

I know that many on here have a dislike for these guys, but that cannot, or at least, should not be, the reason for including them in your worst ever WFC team, because they have both been good players for WFC, and this thread is about the players whose footballing ability is bad.

Therefore no matter how much you dislike them as people, you should not base your decision on who you think our "Worst Watford XI" players are on your personal animosity for the men, but on their footballing ability alone.

 

Agreed. Great defender.

 

Agreed. Some have been nominated simply because they happened to be the boo-boys in often good seasons for us, like Jordan Stewart for example. Never understand the need to have a boo-boy whether in good seasons or bad.

As for some of the others, eg. Bobby Svarc, Albert McClenaghan (not McGettigan), they only ever played once so didn't really have much chance to show how good (or bad) they really were. After all, Ross Jenkins Mk.1 was awful for over a season when he first signed for us.

I think we should only suggest players who had over 1o appearances for us. Within that parameter, Nathan Ellington is first on my team sheet, whereas Devon White isn't. The latter always tried hard but wasn't much good, the former didn't even seem to try and as a result, wasn't very good at all! So he deserves the place.

 

He peaked at the right time too. We didnt concede in 4.5 hours of play off semi and final. He was the least good player in our starting 11 but we had a helluva team that year including 2 future England internationals.

 

Ross Jenkins was woeful until GT turned up. That's why Arthur Horsfield was signed, and Keith Mercer was our first choice centre forward.

I think on the ten first team appearances - it's a sensible benchmark. We should also exclude loanees. On that basis I nominate Jamie Hand. You cant fault his application and determination, but he really was not good enough to be a championship first choice midfielder. But you have to remember the dire straits the club were in at the time. So perhaps, we should only include players from seasons when we were half decent?

 

I know I know, and I certainly don't dislike him as a person. Genuinely thought he was a dreadful footballer. Had pace and power, that was it. Distinctly remember several times he would dribble diagonally up to the halfway line and run it straight out of play, it was a joke.

Side note: voice of reason seems to be a deleted user now?

 

Good idea but doesn't that take out 80% of our history!

 

Yes and no, I agree we shouldn't include loanees, I would also suggest that we only include players who made a certain number of starts as there's no point in saying X, Y & Z were crap in the two sub appearances they made. I would say a minimum of 20 appearances as that means just under half a season.

 

Half agree with that. I don't like Holebas but he's been pretty decent for us but Jordan Stewart was very poor. Played every game as we literally had nobody else

 

I can't specifically remember Jordan Stewart being poor, no more than just another left back we had over the 2000s decade. However he played a lot in our 05/06 promotion season, he was also in Leicester's promotion season of 02/03, playing nearly every game, he can't have been too bad as a Championship level player.

 

Agreed. Steve Harrison was probably the worst LB I can remember in a Watford shirt at Championship level. Paul Mayo may have been worse.....

 

I'd have Danny Drinkwater, Danny Rose and Andros Townsend in there for their appalling non-contributions on loan.

Maybe Matthew Briggs too.

 

That’s a bit harsh. I always much preferred Keith Pritchett but GT saw fit to give Harrison a lot of playing time, so that’s alright by me.

 

Harrison was poor. GT wanted him along for his personality more than his ability. The fact that he effectively lost his place back to Pritchett and then a converted winger in Rostron was down to his lack of ability. His crossing and passing was awful.

 

Jordan Stewart wasn't bad at all, he was just the favourite Boo Boy for many of our supporters, I never knew why myself?

 

Had a 50p head though.

 

Already mentioned but Jamie Moralee was truly awful, made worse as he was quite a big transfer spend at the time, starter for me.

If loans are in then Samba Diakati (?) has to be up there.

 

Hands down, Perry Digweed in goal. Truly awful.

 

Looks like theres a few cases for GK

Suckling
Meola
Digweed
Plumley

Just to add a few suggestions from here

 

Mick Walker was not up to much. Andy Rankin was the Michel Angelo to Micks Dulux paints. In recent times I would say Pantilimon was poor. Not sure if he reached the twenty appearances.

 

Perry Digweed or Simon Shepherd for me in goal.

Others have said Chris Day but I'll always forgive him for his clean sheet against Liverpool when we won 1.0