For the first time in three years, the publication of the Championship fixtures later this month will be something to look at with spectating in mind rather than plotting life for the coming 40-odd weeks.
For the first time in three years, Saturdays will be mine (as well as the other obscure days and times Sky deign to move our games to).
And for the first time three years, a Watford goal will be something I can openly celebrate rather than frantically start typing or sitting on my hands.
As I explained a little while ago, after three seasons of covering every move of my club, from the top to the bottom and all that falls in between, I’m stepping away from the Watford Observer to go back to working in PR in the UK holiday sector.
And today is my last working day for the WO.
So I wanted to say thank you, and acknowledge all the very kind comments, messages, emails, tweets and everything else that has come my way, particularly since I shared I was leaving but also throughout these last three years.
Although they are less fun to read, I’m also grateful for the criticism, outright disagreement, negative feedback and usually anonymous personal abuse.
When you do this sort of job, without interaction you have no idea if anyone is paying any attention.
The good stuff made me happy, the bad stuff kept me on my toes.
- Mattie Pollock exclusive interview pt1
- Mattie Pollock exclusive interview pt2
- Mattie Pollock exclusive interview pt3
In all, Watford played 148 games over my three years: 48 wins, 42 draws, and 58 losses. They scored 183 goals and conceded 191.
There have been more successful, glamorous and joyous spells at Vicarage Road, but none of us can pick or choose what supporting our team is going to throw at us.
Moreover, those of us who support Watford – or any team – will rarely agree on everything. The beauty of that is being able to hold polar opposite opinions while sharing and debating them with good grace.
Next season, I’m looking forward to going to some games with my sons, getting in the away end a few times on the road, and watching the Hornets like the fan I always have been: before, during and after these three years of writing about them.
The best way of signing off, I thought, was to do what I always attempted to do over these last 36 months – answer the questions that fellow Watford fans wanted to ask.
Below are a selection of some of the questions sent to me by supporters via social media – if I didn’t answer yours, or you didn’t get to ask one, then if you see me at a Watford game, just come up and say hello.
You’ll get an answer and a chat – and if nothing else, you’ll make my two lads cringe even more than they have done if they’ve been with me when a fellow fan has approached me over the last three years!
If you were to have a dream curry night dinner party, and could invite one Watford player, one Watford manager and one other guest, who are you inviting, and what dishes are you serving them?
I think it would have to be the two greatest, Graham Taylor and Luther Blissett. And then, for sheer mischief, Jeff Powell of the Daily Mail – he was a huge critic of Watford and their style of play during those first glory years. It wouldn’t matter what I served then as it would be spicy.
Are you a red or black shorts guy?
Well firstly, I’m an XXXL shorts guy these days. But I’m also old school, I prefer red.
The obvious really: your desert island meal (curry naturally) of choice including main, rice dish, choice of naan and side?
Chicken jalfrezi, mushroom rice, egg naan (there’s an omelette on the bread) and sag bhaji.
What is your favourite away ground and why?
For the atmosphere and tradition, Anfield. As a journalist, West Brom takes some beating: I’ve seen executive areas less luxurious than the press lounge at The Hawthorns.
All time Watford FC XI that you’ve seen play - old school 4-4-2 formation please?
In goal: Coton
Back four: Gibbs, McClelland, Hoedt, Robinson
Midfield pair: Capoue, Abdi
Wingers: Barnes, Deulofeu
Front two: Pedro, Blissett
Who would be your dream Watford 5-a-side team?
Totally different to the regular 11-a-side team above: Kevin Miller, Ryan Andrews, Andy Hessenthaler, Yaser Asprilla, Matej Vydra. Incredible amount of energy in that quintet, the ability to get up and down the pitch, pace all over the place, skill and trickery, and the keeper with probably the best reactions.
What's the strangest situation that reporting on WFC has put you in?
When I was working for the club, I got locked in the stand at Burnley. It was an evening game and we lost, I was still working in the press box and the lights went out. I managed to get to the bottom of the stand, and attracted the attention of a steward who got me out. That took so long the car park was locked up when I got to it, so I had to go back to the ground to get the same steward to find someone who could let my car out.
Which Indian restaurant is your favourite in Watford?
I really like the Shapla on Longspring at the top of St Albans Road, but I believe that’s about to change hands. Namaste on St Albans Road is very authentic home cooking, and I’m a big fan of the Raj Garden (though I know that’s Bushey, strictly speaking).
Who has been your favourite WFC player in recent times?
Joao Pedro – he could do pretty much anything, and as he’s shown at Brighton, with better players around him he has so much to offer.
The most eventful player signing you’ve experienced/reported on? Whether it did or didn’t happen?
Probably the second coming of Emmanuel Dennis. It felt very last-minute but had been rumoured for a while. I got the impression Valerien Ismael wasn’t overly keen either. Then meeting the player . . . well, he had an unusual way about him. Not unpleasant, but very softly spoken at times and I was never quite sure if I believed anything he said.
Best player you have seen playing at Watford in each category?
Skill – John Barnes
Finishing – Paul Wilkinson
Captaincy – Pat Rice
Goalkeeper – Tony Coton
Defender – John McClelland
Midfielder – Etienne Capoue
Attacker – Luther Blissett
Generally nice, decent guy – Tom Cleverley
Worst manager/head coach to deal with and why?
Of the five I’ve worked with, I’ve been very lucky as they were all decent and helpful. The most difficult was probably Valerian Ismael, but only because he was quite deep and it was hard to get to know him. Having said that, when we played at Blackburn recently he spotted me after the game and made the point of having a chat, and I’ve stayed good friends with his coach, Dean Whitehead.
Best player you know that Watford ‘nearly’ signed but never made it across the dotted line?
I think, had we managed to get Charlie Taylor on loan in January, the second half of the season might have been a bit better.
Who's the player you found the most difficult to handle in an interview and wouldn't want to do it again?
Yaser Asprilla was hard work. He wasn’t very keen and slumped in the chair like a spoilt child, and wouldn’t look at me to start with! Needing to use a translator didn’t help us, either. But I’ve got sons older than Yaser, so I drew on that and tried to lighten the mood and dropped the tension a bit by throwing in a few fun early questions. He relaxed, started laughing and smiling, and by the end he was very engaging. The first few minutes were as close as I’ve ever come to an interviewee either saying nothing or walking out though.
As a journalist, do you feel the current situation around social media and podcasts where everyone has an opinion and typically that opinion needs to be controversial to be heard, is a good situation to be in? Is objective reporting dying?
I think there is room for every type of outlet – club channels, newspapers and their websites, podcasts, bloggers . . . everything. The simple thing is we all have a choice. If you don’t like a podcast, don’t listen to it. If you think a social media account is unduly outspoken, don’t follow it. Consume what you enjoy, and ignore anything you don’t like.
Which player interview has been your favourite and why?
It has to be Dan Gosling. It was explosive stuff that allowed fans to get an idea of what life had been like behind the scenes during the 21/22 relegation season. It was tremendous credit to Dan that he told it exactly like it was, but having got to know him it’s no surprise because he is a proper, honest professional. That interview also, I think, helped show other players I could be trusted to represent them fairly, and it gave WO readers an idea of the depth of content I was aiming to provide.
Who has been the rudest player/manager you’ve spoken too at Watford?
I can’t recall anyone being downright rude, but the excuses, chirping and general bitterness from Nathan Jones after we’d walked all over his Luton team at Vicarage Road was so sad it made a great day even better.
Who’s the most likeable and dislikeable blokes you’ve met through the club?
Gianmarco Ceresa, whose role is ‘team manager’ at the club (basically, looks after the players and staff, acts as translator when required, makes things runs smoothly), is one of the nicest, happiest people I’ve met. I’ll be seeing him for a cuppa before the summer is out. As for dislikeable, the fan sat behind the press bench at Kenilworth Road when we lost 3-0, who spent the afternoon trying to bait the Watford media team before turning his attention to me.
What was your best ever away day curry? Maybe name a top 3?
If you’re going to the game at Norwich next season, then head for Roti (19 Finkelgate, about a 10-minute walk from Carrow Road). That was the best curry I had at an away game. Honourable mentions for Indus (Sheffield) and Spice Island (Cardiff).
Given your closer proximity to the club than many fans, what’s one things fans should be more concerned by and one thing they should worry less about?
There are no fires burning that I can see but the fans can't. If I were to highlight something that concerns me its the repeated poor second half to seasons. It's gone beyond coincidence, and it needs attention as it will cripple any head coach and squad until it's fixed. One thing fans maybe don't realise is there are a lot of very good people working at Watford who care very much about it – just because you don’t always see or hear about them doesn’t mean they aren’t there.
Do you think you’ll ever work for the WO or the club again?
Being honest, I can’t see me doing either again. I am 54 and I’ve chosen to leave for the betterment of my health and life. Covering a club, or working for one, in the way I think it needs to be done is something my heart would tell me to do forever; my head has nagged me for six months to call it a day; my body has been dropping hints, and it’s the latter which convinced me.
In a changing world there are still aspiring journalists out there. It's something in us and not about money. What's the best bit of advice you've been given as a journalist?
Build relationships by going out, meeting people and earning trust. There isn’t a shortcut to doing the legwork. In the old days, you’d talk about growing your contacts book. Nowadays it’s the contacts in your phone. If you get to a point where someone gives you their number and is happy for you to call them, then you’ve crossed the bridge of trust.
Who is your favourite French Watford player?
Etienne Capoue – surely one of the most gifted to play for us?
What was your best interaction with either a player or staff at the club in this spell with the Wobby?
I interviewed Jake Livermore and what was supposed to be a 15-minute sit-down turned into an hour. Some of his answers brought up his battle to improve his mental health, and we realised we had a lot of common ground. After sharing a few stories from our pasts we ended up getting a bit emotional, and hugging it out. From then on we stayed in touch, and would check in on each other. He’s a very kind, empathetic and genuine person.
Have you ever confirmed a transfer but it falls through?
No, I don’t think I have. But I have the ghosts of a lot of transfer stories sitting in my lap-top where the deal didn’t happen. I think I wrote three versions of a piece about Martial Godo in January and ended up using none of them.
What will you miss the most / least?
I’ll miss having a reason to write. Being able to sit down, compose something that you hope represents your own views but also captures the general mood in a balanced way, and then seeing people enjoy reading it (or not!) is extremely satisfying. I won’t miss long drives home after defeats.
Most media-savvy and media-incompetent head coaches?
Slaven Bilic was very good with the media: knew how to get his point across, knew when to say something or nothing, had a great sense of humour, but also that glare which told you that your question was heading into undesirable territory. From my days working at the club, the late Gianluca Vialli was a dreadful timekeeper, which made him no friends on press conference day, and he was also keen to ban anyone who wrote anything he didn’t like.
Are there any other members of the fourth estate that you met in press boxes/conferences that were marvellous/obnoxious/annoying/brilliant?
Obviously, I was brought up by one of the best in Oli Phillips. In more recent times, Ian Abrahams (or Moose as he’s known from TalkSport) and his ‘great to catch up with’ videos have been, er . . . entertaining. Simon Oxley at BBC 3 Counties is a very, very decent bloke and an excellent commentator.
Are Watford going up this season?
You can get 12/1 with the bookmakers, and we’re right in the middle of the betting. That seems fair, given last season and the teams coming up/down. Personally, I can’t see automatic promotion being achievable, but a top-six place and a shot at the play-offs? Possibly.
Which Watford player did you think was going to be amazing and wasn’t and which player started terribly for you but turned it around?
Talking just over the last three years, I’m not sure anyone can fall so far short of expectations as Daniel Jebbison. In the other direction, Mattie Pollock’s debut was the stuff of nightmares and I thought he was leaving (without having been given a chance) in January 2024. To see him have a good season was great because he is a genuinely nice bloke.
How many hours have you spent twiddling your fingers on transfer deadline day?
I think I blogged on six deadline days, for about 15 hours each time. So that’s 90 hours. I think there was proper activity for a total of about two hours. That means I padded, waffled and filibustered for 88 hours…
Is there anything that stands out as your favourite memory? Similarly, is there anything that stands out as your least favourite?
The 4-0 derby win over Luton. That was one of the few times where I allowed myself proper celebrations in the press box. And then the 3-0 derby loss at Luton, where not only did we surrender but I got stick from some knuckle-draggers sat behind the press box.
Which WFC Head Coach, this century, do you believe to be the best?
Having managed the club up until 2001, Graham Taylor sneaks in – and I doubt we will ever see a better man in charge. Assuming you meant from the dozens of others since, I thought Nigel Pearson did a great job and might have kept us up but for the pandemic.
What’s your biggest regret over the last three years and what was your best moment?
I will always be regretful and frustrated that I didn’t get a chance to interview Gino Pozzo. Not for my own vanity or ego, but simply because I think we could have worked together to help him help fans understand his aims, thoughts and motivation. It's very difficult to find the point of balance when you can only see one side of the scales. I know he’s not keen on being interviewed but for him, the club and the fans, I think it would have been a good idea to at least give it a try. The best moment was the day I started the job back in 2022: it was always something I wanted to do – cover my team home and away – and I thought the chance had passed me by.
With that, time to shut the lap-top down for the final time.
Thanks again, see you next season – and come on you ‘orns . . .
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