Rob Burch
Burch was a good goalkeeper; there is no getting away from that. He arrived as part of Peter Jackson’s so-called Magnificent Seven and, in truth, he was the only one who came close to living up to the billing. Tall, commanding and generally reliable, he offered a level of assurance behind a defence that often needed it, and on ability alone, he looked like someone who could give us a few strong years. The problem was never really him; it was the situation. Alan Marriott had to make way, and Marriott was not just any player; he was a long-serving figure edging towards a testimonial, someone supporters had a real connection with. That inevitably coloured how Burch was viewed, which was a little unfair given he did little wrong once he got the shirt.
He held his place through Jackson’s tenure and into the period that followed, picking up Player of the Season in 2008/09, but when the manager departed, it felt like a natural break point. Burch saw out the season under Sutton and then chose to move on, rejecting a new deal and joining Notts County on a free transfer in June 2010. Perhaps he sensed the direction things were heading, but the move did not work out as hoped, and after just 15 league appearances across two seasons, he was moved on again.
He was 27 when he left us, you’d think with a good ten years left in him, but his time at County ended his career. He went into coaching and, to be fair, he’s done well. He was a coach at Spurs under Ange Postecoglou, before moving to the US to coach Colorado Rapids.
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