Thommo is a legend now

BACK in the mid-nineties one of the most exciting players in the English Premiership was Southampton's Matt Le Tissier.

Saturday, May 03, 2008

Of course, with a talent such as his, it was no surprise that vultures from the more fashionable clubs in England circled the south-east in the hope that they could prise Le Tissier away from the Dell.

However, year after year, he declined the opportunity to move away and in the end finished his career as a one club man, with no medals and a handful of England caps.

Had he gone to Chelsea or Arsenal, just two clubs that professed an interest in dragging Le Tiss out of his comfort zone, then there is little doubt that he would have got the international recognition that many felt he deserved, and he certainly would have won a medal or two.

While in some quarters Le Tissier was praised for his loyalty, others criticised him for showing a lack of ambition, preferring to be the big fish in a small pond.

For Le Tissier, read Stephen Carson. On his day, the Coleraine winger is one of the best players in the Irish League and in the first half at least today, he showed why he is also one of the most coveted.

Glentoran among others have been doing all they can over the past couple of years to take him to east Belfast € a move that would surely be successful for all concerned € but Carson chose to remain true to the Bannsiders.

Again, whether his reasons for that are through loyalty or a wish to stick with what he knows, only the former Glasgow Rangers man himself can answer. For 45 minutes Carson must have felt that some of those critics had been answered.

He was immense in the opening period of the final leaving the Linfield defence for dead on a number of occasions and it was from his superbly delivered corner that led to Coleraine taking a deserved lead through Paddy McLaughlin.

Carson must have been thinking that all of those years of toil by the Bann, sticking by his team when at one point it looked as though they might go under, were finally going to be worth it.

An Irish Cup winners medal glistened in the Windsor Park sunshine, ready to be collected if Marty Quinn's side could just turn in more of the same in the second half. But while one of local football's best wingers was the star turn in the first half, the Irish League's best striker picked up the mantle after the break.

Two moments of absolute magic from Northern Ireland international Peter Thompson turned the game on its head and suddenly after half-time when it looked as though a record-breaking treble-double would be slipping from their grasp, the blue and white ribbons were being joined by a red one.

Thompson had hardly had a kick in the game as Coleraine's hard-working defence kept him and the dangerous Glenn Ferguson at bay.

After the break though, he proved that just one sniff of goal is all he needs to find the net.

Coleraine gave him two and he took them with aplomb.

Thompson's finishing was breathless and any argument over who is top of the pops in terms of our local goal-getters disappeared in a flash.

Indeed, not only is he the local game's hottest striker, he is also up there as one of the best... ever.

At just 24 years old Thompson's goals have taken him to legendary status among the Linfield faithful and one can only imagine how many he will end up with should he remain in the blue jersey € or red as it was today.

Like Carson, the Braniel-man is also being looked at by bigger teams, however, those chasing him are of a bigger reputation than Glentoran. Teams across the water are looking at taking Thompson to a higher plane and he has already stated that he would love to play in England or Scotland, if the move is right for him and Linfield Football Club.

But he has also stated that should that ambition not be realised then he would be more than happy to see out his days at Windsor Park. Should that be the case, then Linfield can look forward to even more silver-laden days like this.