In this era of foreign superstars illuminating a global Premier League, there is something refreshing about a homespun hero such as Craig Gardner, toiling in the region in which he was raised, local enough to know the name of the young fan, Rui Roper, to whom he handed his shirt after celebrating West Bromwich Albion’s winning goal in the derby against his first club. But Gardner recognised that more important than any local bragging rights is the platform for stability this victory can bring.
Gardner had not been slow to point out that West Brom have proved capable of finishing above Aston Villa in recent years but as he basked in the afterglow of his first goal for the club, the Solihull-born midfielder reasoned this was a means to an end more than a parochial triumph.
The pressure on Alan Irvine, the West Brom manager, was intensified by the dismissal of Kieran Richardson a quarter of the way into this intriguing derby, when the Villa midfielder was sent off for lunging recklessly into Stéphane Sessègnon. A fourth successive home defeat from such an advantageous position would have tested the notoriously thin patience of Jeremy Peace, the West Brom chairman, who 12 months ago this weekend dismissed Steve Clarke.
Yet Gardner as much as anyone knows the importance of stability and so when he ran to the touchline and slapped hands with Irvine, his celebration reflected the club’s opportunity to consolidate as much as his personal gratification.
“It wasn’t pre-planned at all,” said Gardner, who spent most of his three years at Sunderland craving a return to the West Midlands after he had 18 months with Birmingham following his graduation through the Villa ranks. “The whole team are behind him: he’s a great person, a great manager and a great tactician, and you saw that today. We worked hard, we had a game plan and I’m just pleased for him. It was a big day for us.
“We knew if we won the derby it would catapult us up the league, get everyone back onside, get the fans back onside, because we need the fans, we need everyone at the club.”
There was no danger of the 28-year-old “Bluenose” stoically avoiding celebrating his first goal against Villa but that was a secondary consideration. “Yes, that’s important, but it’s a great day for West Brom.”
The frequent changes of the teams’ shapes during this game was an analyst’s dream but the one that reaped the greatest dividend was when Irvine, looking to capitalise on the man advantage, switched to a 4-2-1-3 formation by introducing Saido Berahino. When the leading scorer crossed and neither Brad Guzan nor Alan Hutton could clear under pressure from Brown Ideye and Sessègnon, Gardner rammed home the rebound.
Whether West Brom would have been seeking a sixth manager in four years had Villa continued their revival now appears a moot point. But there is a law of diminishing returns from changing managers too often as immediate impetus is seldom sustained and the turnover of players and plans undermines development.
Irvine, accepting he was “fairly biased”, said: “It’s proven that if you get constant change, things don’t settle down. Stability is something that every club is striving for. Whether I’m the right man for that remains to be seen but I’m sure it’s what the chairman and the board would want. I’m sure they don’t make changes lightly.”
Villa face suspensions for Richardson, Tom Cleverley and Alan Hutton, so it is timely Fabian Delph and Ron Vlaar, two of their best players, started their returns from injury on Saturday. Paul Lambert would like to finish top of the Midlands but has bigger fish in mind. “You want bragging rights, don’t you?” the Villa manager said. “If we can do that, great but the important thing is to finish up as high as we can. If we can keep playing as we are and get the injured lads back we will have a good year.”
Man of the match Joleon Lescott (West Brom)
