The unofficial AFC Rushden & Diamonds messageboard

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/chrisbevan/2 ... owner.html

Interesting article. Quality player imo.

When I read that yesterday, this is the bit that surprised me. If it's true that he wasn't getting paid before he left us then that was around the time we played Oxford Unitedin the play offs in May 2010 and a year before the Club folded. Do you think this is true and KC wasn't paying some of the players?


"Learning how to nurse his injuries led to decent spells as a full-time footballer with Weymouth, Grays and Rushden in the Blue Square Bet Premier, but with them came more evidence of how fragile a football career can be - all three clubs had severe financial problems which meant Downer often wasn't paid on time, if at all.

Those experiences led him to turn part-time in the summer of 2010 and join Sutton.

"I was tired of being at the mercy of chairmen who might not be running the club properly," he explains. "I didn't get paid for three months at Rushden before they went bust. We were not on Premier League wages and I needed the money to live on.

"Around that time in 2010 I found out my girlfriend and I were expecting our little girl and I wanted to rely on myself. I thought I'd go part-time and learn how to do something else.

"It made sense because I am not sick of football, just of the people who mess you around."

I thought exactly the same. If that was the case then it makes JE's achievement of guiding us to the play offs even more impressive!

I agree, Dave.

I also seem to recall that somebody posted that he had seen on Facebook and/or Twitter around the time of the two play off matches against Oxford United that there were a few references to players being unhappy at the lack of incentive bonuses for the Club making these matches. Perhaps this was the start of our troubles. Certainly I felt that many of the players in the match at Oxford played as if they didn't care whether we won or not. :evil:

Jefferson Louis. Jefferson ****ing Louis. :evil: :evil:

Great read and wish him all the best. Never forget his goal against Gateshead, great determination and scoring the eigth!

Downer and another ex-Diamond Sam Page are playing for Sutton right now. 0-0 currently.

Did anyone see the FA Cup draw? Nice that Tamworth got Everton at Goodison Park. Hopefully Nabil will get a run out.

Did Sam Page actually sign for us? Seem to recall watching him in a Hillier Cup match against Northampton Spencer(?).

Played on non-contract terms and scored in what I think was his only game.

BartonRaz wrote:Played on non-contract terms and scored in what I think was his only game.

It was the above game played in January 2008. He looked useful. Jon Challinor scored with a long range thunderbolt in the same game which we won 4-2 aet.