On this day in 1970, Dave Watson made his debut for the Lads.
Bought by Alan Brown for the princely sum of £100,000 (about £1.3m in today’s money), the second greatest centre half the world has ever seen actually arrived from Rotherham as a centre forward, having appeared in that position in recently previous seasons. Dave was already 24 when he arrived, having begun six years earlier at Notts County, and in a 1-1 draw at Watford, he made his scoring debut up top alongside Billy Hughes. There was something about him that told us we had something special, even in those early days as a striker, and that was underlined in his home debut when he sprayed a ball out to the right only to see Bobby Kerr wasn’t there – so he chased over and won the ball himself.
After a couple of seasons with Big Dave as a decent forward, we were decidedly mid-table, Alan Brown left us “by mutual consent”, caretaker Billy Elliott decided to give the Lad a go at the back - and the rest is history. His part in that season’s FA Cup campaign is the stuff of legends, and his goal against Luton in the quarter final summed him up – he didn’t head it, he volleyed it with his head, but more of that later. If Niall Quinn is our best in the air up front, Dave Watson matched that at the back. As a “mobile twin tower” at Wembley, he and Ritchie Pitt snuffed out the fearsome Leeds attack of Clarke and Jones to write us, and themselves, into the history books. It also propelled him into the England team as a second division player, the start of an eight year international career that brought 65 caps and four goals. Corner kicks were greeted with chants of “Watson, Watson” much the way Hurley had been greeted on such occasions. Of course, his prowess brought attention from the top teams of the era, and it was no surprise when, after 33 goals in 212 games, he moved to Man City for £175,000 with Jeff Clarke coming the other way. Four years and a solitary trophy (League Cup) later he was off to Werder Bremen for a short and fairly unsuccessful stay – sent off in his second game, he was banned for eight weeks and was back in England with Southampton only five months later – one of a certain ex-Guardsman’s Old Boys.
After three years on the south coast, he showed his fondness for the red and white by moving to Stoke and winning the last of his England caps, then had the summer of ’83 at Vancouver Whitecaps before signing for Derby. The following summer was spent in the rather warmer climes of Fort Lauderdale before he returned to where it had all begun – Notts County, as player-coach – to wind down his professional career. 810 games and 80 goals, but there was still time for a spell at Kettering Town before hanging up his boots after his 40th birthday.
Dave will always be remembered as one of our greatest defenders, and those of us of a certain vintage can only dream of what might have been had Charlie Hurley been a couple of years younger – those two certainly fill the central defensive spots in many Sunderland fans’ best eleven.
In recent years, however, Dave has joined that ever-increasing band of former players suffering from Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (ETC), brought about by the repeated heading of a football – not so much in games, but in concentrated training sessions. Dave’s wife Penny has highlighted the impact this condition is having on the game’s former stars (think Gordon McQueen, Bill Gates, Jeff Astle, Nobby Stiles, Joe Kinnear, and Charlie Hurley, to name but a few) and has been instrumental in getting this issue out in the open. She welcomed the creation of the Brian Health Fund by the PFA and the Premier League, although it took many years for this to happen. This should help players like Dave, and their families, with some practical support. You can also read about how ETC affects lives in No Brainer, written by Mike Amos alongside Judith Gates, widow of Bill.
Physically, Dave is as fit as possible and regular walks with a Sunderland supporting neighbour keep it that way, but the mental decline is another matter. His daughter Gemma has been working on a film telling her dad’s story, and that will be completed in the New Year now that funding for a two-week UK shoot has been secured. Watch out for it, watch it, and ask yer dad about Big Dave Watson.
