Wayne Routledge retires

[cranesparkeagle]

Just heard on radio Routledge has hung up his boots at the age of 36. Does make me feel old when I can remember him as a very talented teenage winger who probably left us to soon,(thanks Spurs.) Had ten good years at Swansea. Wish you luck Wayne whatever comes next

[norwoodeagle]

A very good interview with Wayne on Palace TV. A telling point is where he identifies first working with Brendan Rogers at Swansea as the time when he started to think about the technical and tactical parts of football. This was some 6 years after his Palace debut. Was that a reflection of our poor coaching set up at the time or a r3flection of English football generally.

[beef]

I really liked him. Shame he didn’t stay for a bit longer because it didn’t really work out at Spurs. I imagine we weren’t paying him much at the time

[Dave Hedgehog]

Remember his debut, swamped in a vast pair of shorts and baggy shirt, tiny little kid with quick feet.

He must have been 16/17, some thug cleaned him out and a bloke near me shouted: Leave him alone you paedophile! Which I still find funny.

In the latter part of his time at Palace, I remember him getting a lot of undue criticism from our fans for losing the ball and end product. We weren't always patient with him.

Some interesting young players around that time - Julian Gray, Ben Watson, Tom Soares, Bostock was coming through as well.

But Wayne was that electrifying kind of winger that foreshadowed the emergence of Moses and Zaha, distinctly Palace-style players. Being roughly the same age as him at the time, making his debut and coming through, it was very exciting to see a local lad scampering around at such a young age.

Hopefully he'll pop up at Selhurst for a reunion.

[Sick Bucket]

Yeah makes me feel old too, I always had a softspot for him as well, he left under a bit of a cloud though, think he took his shirt off at SP and threw it on the floor after being subbed, always a bad move infront of your own fans.

[desperado]

I remember sitting in the Main Stand watching him in Youth Cup games all those years ago

Vociferously supported by who I assumed was his mum he always looked smaller than his 5' 7" but usually the stand out player on the pitch

Good luck to him in whatever he does next

[alf]

He came through the Palace and Croydon youth sides with my son. Best wishes and good luck for the future Wayne.

[omph]

Originally Posted by norwoodeagle

A very good interview with Wayne on Palace TV. A telling point is where he identifies first working with Brendan Rogers at Swansea as the time when he started to think about the technical and tactical parts of football. This was some 6 years after his Palace debut. Was that a reflection of our poor coaching set up at the time or a r3flection of English football generally.

Think it was pretty general in all likelihood - Rodgers was a fairly stand out coach at that point from memory. If you take 2010/11 as a starting point the managers in the lower reaches of the PL included this lot

Steve Kean
Martin O'Neill
Sam
Pulis
Mark Hughes
Mick McCarthy
Avram Grant
Owen Coyle
Roy
Bruce
Nigel Pearson

All pretty old school when you think about it. Some good coaches in there no doubt but it all feels very different to today.

[A Wooden Fish On Wheels]

Oh yes! It's been a few years but...

"Not another Wayne f-cking Routledge thread"

[A Wooden Fish On Wheels]

My best memories of Wayne are his inability to get the ball over the head of the first man at corners, especially when it really mattered, and him removing his shirt and stamping on it on two separate occasions after being subbed and getting some stick from the fans. Oh yes, and not forgetting the time that he offered the Block J Family Stand out for a fight.

[AJ]

When he came on the scene he looked a real top talent but for a winger he never seemed to score enough goals and I think that is why he probably didn't hit his full potential, the other reason was going to Spuds were he was ruined(he only played 5 games in 3 years).
Either way a good career and all the best to him in the future.

[hughff]

Originally Posted by beef

I really liked him. Shame he didn’t stay for a bit longer because it didn’t really work out at Spurs. I imagine we weren’t paying him much at the time

I remember him being one of the first names on the team sheet. Spurs is a bit of a graveyard for talent.

[hughff]

Originally Posted by Dave Hedgehog

Remember his debut, swamped in a vast pair of shorts and baggy shirt, tiny little kid with quick feet.

He must have been 16/17, some thug cleaned him out and a bloke near me shouted: Leave him alone you paedophile! Which I still find funny.

In the latter part of his time at Palace, I remember him getting a lot of undue criticism from our fans for losing the ball and end product. We weren't always patient with him.

Some interesting young players around that time - Julian Gray, Ben Watson, Tom Soares, Bostock was coming through as well.

But Wayne was that electrifying kind of winger that foreshadowed the emergence of Moses and Zaha, distinctly Palace-style players. Being roughly the same age as him at the time, making his debut and coming through, it was very exciting to see a local lad scampering around at such a young age.

Hopefully he'll pop up at Selhurst for a reunion.

Zaha still gets the same from some quarters.

[99percent]

Always liked him, good luck Wayne

[Palace Bear]

I loved Wayne as a player for us.
I was gutted when he left.
Was a bit angry like a petulant child for a while but when it didn’t work out at Spurs for him felt sorry for him got over it and was pleased to see him go on to have a long career in football.

[SOUTHGATE EAGLE]

Nothing against him but can't bring myself to care. He left us the second he could. Had a good innings, tho.

[Dorking .Eagle]

Remember his mum used to travel on the away coach I used to go on, she was very outspoken about Simon Jordan putting all sorts of pressure on him to extend his contract.

I vaguely remember Jordan being quite vocal in the papers about having bought his mums house and expecting him to sign an extension in return.

You kind of get a related understanding why John Bostock buggered off at the first opportunity when there was a better offer.

[9Freedman9]

Couldn’t give a toss about WR. Many more players who have retired and are deserving of a thread over this prick.

[A Wooden Fish On Wheels]

He chose more money, rather than actually playing football when he left us, and was out of the picture for what should have been his finest years.

Eventually he started playing regular football again but only when he was in the twilight of his career.

Still... he'll have a fatter bank account than he might have had, so... meh!

[Levski]

I always liked him, he just sometimes had that ability to make a chance out of nothing. I still have memories of him shooting for goal that would have have made it 3-1 at home in that horrible Southampton game. We would have stayed up in the Prem for the first time ever... I was convinced that effort was going in but it somehow just drifted wide. Then came disaster. Bad day, but I guess I should let it go now!