Mike Gibson - Where does he rank in your all time top City goalkeepers?

[3 Peaps In A PodCast]

 

[REDPJ]

For me, at or very near the top. One of the very best keepers to play for City.

[fatchers]

Without doubt one of the very best. Fearless diving at opponents forwards feet to get the ball. Too brave for his own good sometimes but a safe pair of hands , at a time when keepers actually caught the ball. 

[Peter Coles]

40 minutes ago, fatchers said:

Without doubt one of the very best. Fearless diving at opponents forwards feet to get the ball. Too brave for his own good sometimes but a safe pair of hands , at a time when keepers actually caught the ball. 

No. 1

[Red]

Back then rules were so different, you had to be a solid keeper and expect bumps. Most keepers of today would not handle it. But Gibbo was a natural and commanded his area. So i would rate him highly.

 

[cidered abroad]

My nearest to Gibbo is Tony Cook. Whether Cook or Gibson is number one is difficult to say. Both were so consistent over a ten year period that I won't make a choice.

PS. They may, in some peoples opinions, not be the most talented keepers since early 1950's. For example Jan Muller, but I base my choices on players who had a decent portion of their career with City. 

[Offside]

Before my time so I never saw him play, but he was my dad’s favourite City keeper. 

[Red Shadow]

The keeper when I first started going as a kid. The thing he used to do with the crossbar when the team ran out towards the East End as I stood behind the net clinging to the railings endeared him to me so, for me, the best.

[3 Peaps In A PodCast]

27 minutes ago, Red Shadow said:

The keeper when I first started going as a kid. The thing he used to do with the crossbar when the team ran out towards the East End as I stood behind the net clinging to the railings endeared him to me so, for me, the best.

Watch the clip on twitter to hear him talking about that…

[chinapig]

48 minutes ago, cidered abroad said:

My nearest to Gibbo is Tony Cook. Whether Cook or Gibson is number one is difficult to say. Both were so consistent over a ten year period that I won't make a choice.

PS. They may, in some peoples opinions, not be the most talented keepers since early 1950's. For example Jan Muller, but I base my choices on players who had a decent portion of their career with City. 

I'd love to have a Jan Moller type keeper now. Huge guy who totally dominated his penalty area.

Otherwise Gibson would be my number one.

[stephenkibby.]

I don't know if Gibbo was the best keeper that has played for City in my years of watching, but without a doubt my favourite.

He seemed short for a keeper even back then,but was fearless and as a kid i was shocked when he was beaten.

Had a real affinity with the supporters, we ****** loved him.

[REDOXO]

If you’re under 60 you don’t remember Gibbo! 

Edited April 12, 2022 by REDOXO

[Sir Geoff]

Gibbo was the first City keeper I watched. Ranks as number one for me 

[HomerRed]

1 hour ago, Red Shadow said:

The keeper when I first started going as a kid. The thing he used to do with the crossbar when the team ran out towards the East End as I stood behind the net clinging to the railings endeared him to me so, for me, the best.

Same here. Real rapport with the fans.

Agree with the comments about his bravery. 

I can only add one trivia note. Occasionally he wore a blue top instead of the standard green of that era. My heart sank when he did that. We always lost. 

[GrahamC]

1 hour ago, Offside said:

Before my time so I never saw him play, but he was my dad’s favourite City keeper. 

Exactly the same, my old man (81 now, still going) was a big fan.

[Davefevs]

2 hours ago, chinapig said:

I'd love to have a Jan Moller type keeper now. Huge guy who totally dominated his penalty area.

Otherwise Gibson would be my number one.

Moller for me.

John Shaw was the first City keeper I saw, I was too young for Gibson, or Cashley.

Really liked Keith Waugh too, and in recent years Niki Maenpaa.  Only saw Basso a couple of times, and Welch was decent too.

But Moller no1.

[NcnsBcfc]

Loved Jan Moller, but in more recent times Sieb Dysktra (albeit he was only on loan) was very good as well.

Strange really when you consider the promotion teams of the last 45+ years, that the keepers haven't been more of the standout players.

Basso always got a lot of press, but for me with him it was more about personality; than actual skill levels.

Edited April 12, 2022 by NcnsBcfc

[southside]

10 hours ago, Red Shadow said:

The keeper when I first started going as a kid. The thing he used to do with the crossbar when the team ran out towards the East End as I stood behind the net clinging to the railings endeared him to me so, for me, the best.

Same for me, Gibbo, Gibbo.......

[cidered abroad]

8 hours ago, HomerRed said:

Same here. Real rapport with the fans.

Agree with the comments about his bravery. 

I can only add one trivia note. Occasionally he wore a blue top instead of the standard green of that era. My heart sank when he did that. We always lost. 

@HomerRed

In those days, the keepers were only allowed to wear four colours.

GREEN; which was the standard because only one side in the League wore green shirts - Plymouth Argyle.

RED / BLUE / WHITE; White was never seen until Peter Shilton wore it for Leicester City in the early 1970's.

So when any side wearing RED played against Argyle, the only one used was BLUE

Also in those far off times, in FA Cup matches, both sides, in the case of a colour clash, had to change shirt colours. Many teams used white shirts as their second colour, so clubs tossed a coin to be able to use white shirts. The losers had to find another colour.

In the 1950's it happened three times with City.

1954 at home to Rotherham and Accrington Stanley 1958, away and the reply at home. For those games City wore Rovers Blue/White Quarters.

In 1959 against Blackpool home and replay away aginst Blackpool, a set of kit from Cardiff City

Nobody got uptight about City wearing blue shirts. City's change colours were normally White but in the early 1950's they used BLUE as first change for League games. Both City and Rovers had reserve teams in the Football Combination and the Western League. Rovers Western League side wore RED and White quarters. I never saw their First or Combination teams play so don't know if they wore white as a change or the red/white quarters.

Here endeth the Prehistoric history lesson!

[The Dolman Pragmatist]

Great keeper, but too short to go higher in the game.  What was he, 5’ 9”?  Even Frank Fielding was taller than that…

[Floatn Over]

We’ve had some good keepers and of course it was a different era but Gibbo always top IMO.  The diving at forwards feet sticks in my mind, coming out the other side with the ball, don’t see that much these days but of course the game was different then.

[ralphindevon]

8 hours ago, Davefevs said:

Moller for me.

John Shaw was the first City keeper I saw, I was too young for Gibson, or Cashley.

Really liked Keith Waugh too, and in recent years Niki Maenpaa.  Only saw Basso a couple of times, and Welch was decent too.

But Moller no1.

This pretty much mirrors my thoughts. I did see a Cashley a few times though.

I also rarely saw Basso and a few of the times I did he made mistakes that cost goals but I know he was a favourite with many.

Jan Moller was, along with Mick Hartford, a beacon of light in a dark time. Sadly for us neither player stayed for long.

A shout out for John Shaw who was with us through promotion to the top and 3 relegations to the bottom. No wonder his hair fell out.

[ashton_fan]

Jan Moller is the stand-out for me. I saw Gibbo for his last couple of seasons, he had a great temperament and was reliable but his lack of height probably stopped him from being a top keeper, Moller had it all.

[East End Old Boy]

11 hours ago, Red Shadow said:

The keeper when I first started going as a kid. The thing he used to do with the crossbar when the team ran out towards the East End as I stood behind the net clinging to the railings endeared him to me so, for me, the best.

That’s one of my first and is a lasting memory of watching City, the team running out and was he going to do it? “Gibbo, Gibbo….. Gibbo Gibbo Gibbo!”

If it had been raining, as much water would come off the goal posts and net as the Alan Walsh shot which hit the post against Forest! 

Wonderful memories! 

[GrahamC]

Great to see all the praise for Moller who only played 48 times for us when we were in an awful spell but is rightly remembered as being top notch.

I go all the way back to every keeper post Gibson, so Cashley onwards & despite his short spell with us would still pick Moller as the best, you don’t play in a European Cup final (when it was a proper competition) by luck.

Think the criticism of Basso is harsh, he was a very different type of goalkeeper (Swedes & Brazilians play football very differently) but he was an inspirational figure.

Cashley was brilliant in the promotion season but found the top flight a struggle, indeed Shaw had a far better time of it there.

Like Fevs I really liked Maenpaa but his injury record wasn’t the best.

I’d probably go Moller, Cashley, Shaw as my top 3.

[beaverface]

2 hours ago, cidered abroad said:

@HomerRed

In those days, the keepers were only allowed to wear four colours.

GREEN; which was the standard because only one side in the League wore green shirts - Plymouth Argyle.

RED / BLUE / WHITE; White was never seen until Peter Shilton wore it for Leicester City in the early 1970's.

So when any side wearing RED played against Argyle, the only one used was BLUE

Also in those far off times, in FA Cup matches, both sides, in the case of a colour clash, had to change shirt colours. Many teams used white shirts as their second colour, so clubs tossed a coin to be able to use white shirts. The losers had to find another colour.

In the 1950's it happened three times with City.

1954 at home to Rotherham and Accrington Stanley 1958, away and the reply at home. For those games City wore Rovers Blue/White Quarters.

In 1959 against Blackpool home and replay away aginst Blackpool, a set of kit from Cardiff City

Nobody got uptight about City wearing blue shirts. City's change colours were normally White but in the early 1950's they used BLUE as first change for League games. Both City and Rovers had reserve teams in the Football Combination and the Western League. Rovers Western League side wore RED and White quarters. I never saw their First or Combination teams play so don't know if they wore white as a change or the red/white quarters.

Here endeth the Prehistoric history lesson!

Loved reading that, and it's made me think of a couple of questions:

- In the 70's when I was growing up, the keeper shirts always seemed to be green or yellow. Was Yellow another option back then?

- I knew that City borrowed the Rovers kit for a few games, but has it happened the other way around? Have Rovers every played in City's kit?

[Ciderhead433]

He was the goalie when I first started watching City in 67 so he's my favourite.

 

[slartibartfast]

Numero uno !

[Super]

Probably go for Marinovic just over David James.

[Davefevs]

1 hour ago, Super said:

Probably go for Marinovic just over David James.

Not Frank Fielding

[RoystonFoote'snephew]

Had it not have been for injuries that robbed us of his services I suspect that Billy Mercer might have proved our best. Of those that I saw that played a reasonable number of games I'd go for a top 6  in order of Moller, Gibson, Basso, Maanpaa, Cashley and Shaw. 

Gibbo was the 1st keeper I saw and rapport with the fans and his bravery at the feet of forwards was inspiring. The only mistake I can recall to memory was the Frank Worthington shot he let squirm under his body for a Huddersfield win en route to their promotion to the 1st Division. 

Basso was the keeper I thought improved most in his time with us, particularly his kicking, something which Frankie Fielding never managed. 

[2015]

What about Goalkeeper back ups we've had?
Chris Weale, Mike Stowell, Stuart Naylor, Ronnie Sinclair, Luke Steele, Dean Gerken how would they rank as back ups? At least 2 or 3 of them had memorable moments in a City shirt

[PHILINFRANCE]

2 hours ago, beaverface said:

Loved reading that, and it's made me think of a couple of questions:

- In the 70's when I was growing up, the keeper shirts always seemed to be green or yellow. Was Yellow another option back then?

- I knew that City borrowed the Rovers kit for a few games, but has it happened the other way around? Have Rovers every played in City's kit?

I believe Mansfield once borrowed Rovers' away kit .

On the subject of yellow goalkeepers' shirts, I seem to recall the late, great Gary Sprake, who played for Leeds and threw the ball in to his own net against Liverpool, used to wear a yellow shirt when playing for Wales.

[Ivorguy]

It was also said Gibson had one mistake per game in him.  I don’t think that is a criticism though!

For me Anderson is tops

 

 

 

 

[downendcity]

Heard he made a fortune during the first lockdown selling all the toilet rolls he collected during each match back in the day.

[NcnsBcfc]

2 hours ago, Ivorguy said:

It was also said Gibson had one mistake per game in him.  I don’t think that is a criticism though!

For me Anderson is tops

 

 

 

 

Bo Anderson?

[Sheltons Army]

1 minute ago, NcnsBcfc said:

Bo Anderson?

Weebles wobble but they don’t fall down , especially short ones 

 

We’ve had about 30 keepers better than Bo

[Royz]

"Gibson was better than Yashin"

[ashton_fan]

7 hours ago, beaverface said:

Loved reading that, and it's made me think of a couple of questions:

- In the 70's when I was growing up, the keeper shirts always seemed to be green or yellow. Was Yellow another option back then?

- I knew that City borrowed the Rovers kit for a few games, but has it happened the other way around? Have Rovers every played in City's kit?

Yellow used to be reserved for international matches, not sure when the rules changed

[Ivorguy]

2 hours ago, Sheltons Army said:

Weebles wobble but they don’t fall down , especially short ones 

 

We’ve had about 30 keepers better than Bo

 NO.  Bob Anderson. Over 100 appearances in 1950s!

How short are football fans’ memories compared to cricket fans

[marmite]

6 hours ago, Ivorguy said:

It was also said Gibson had one mistake per game in him.  I don’t think that is a criticism though!

For me Anderson is tops

 

 

 

 

Bob Anderson was the first GK I saw when I started watching City. I was only about 8 but he seemed about 7 ft tall. My earliest memories are of him and Tony Cook in goal. Proper footballs in those days too, especially when wet!!  Gibbo probably my No.1 though.

[cidered abroad]

11 hours ago, beaverface said:

Loved reading that, and it's made me think of a couple of questions:

- In the 70's when I was growing up, the keeper shirts always seemed to be green or yellow. Was Yellow another option back then?

- I knew that City borrowed the Rovers kit for a few games, but has it happened the other way around? Have Rovers every played in City's kit?

The seventies was the beginning of relaxing these rules. In the 1950 and 1960 decades, only the international goalkeepers wore Yellow.

As for whether Rovers used City kit, I am not aware they did but maybe they did. Any visiting Gas know?

[cidered abroad]

6 hours ago, Royz said:

"Gibson was better than Yashin"

I don't know. I saw Yashin at Wembley playing for Rest of the World v England in the FA Centenary game. He was awesome in size, quick reactions and his all black kit.

But I wonder if he could post a letter as efficiently as Gibbo.

 

[Bangkok Red]

On 13/04/2022 at 01:11, 3 Peaps In A PodCast said:

Mike Gibson - Where does he rank in your all time top City goalkeepers?

It's very close between Mile Gibson and Jan Moller as best all time goalkeeper. Gibby was a tremendous keeper but his kicking wasn't the best. He could barely reach the half way line from a goal kick and a lot less when kicking into the wind.

I would therefore give Moller the edge because he didn't have any weaknesses. For those who haven't seen him, he was a giant of a goalkeeper and really intimidated forwards in one-on-one situations.

 

[Waconda]

On 13/04/2022 at 00:07, Davefevs said:

Moller for me.

John Shaw was the first City keeper I saw, I was too young for Gibson, or Cashley.

Really liked Keith Waugh too, and in recent years Niki Maenpaa.  Only saw Basso a couple of times, and Welch was decent too.

But Moller no1.

Moller, Waugh and Maenpaa in that order for me.

[JBFC II]

21 hours ago, 2015 said:

What about Goalkeeper back ups we've had?
Chris Weale, Mike Stowell, Stuart Naylor, Ronnie Sinclair, Luke Steele, Dean Gerken how would they rank as back ups? At least 2 or 3 of them had memorable moments in a City shirt

None of them come close to Dave Richards. 
 

Never conceded a goal for us, and won the title playing a key role. City legend in my eyes

[The Dolman Pragmatist]

17 hours ago, Royz said:

"Gibson was better than Yashin"

“Crowe is better than Eusebio”

[PHILINFRANCE]

17 hours ago, marmite said:

Proper footballs in those days too, especially when wet!!  Gibbo probably my No.1 though.

I remember vaguely, back in the 1960s when I was aged about 5 or 6, going for a walk in Eastville Park one rainy afternoon with my father, where a men’s football match was being played.

The match ball was kicked out and rolled in my direction.

My natural reaction was to run to kick the ball back, but, despite kicking with all my might, the ball was so hard it barely moved and I started crying as my foot hurt so much.

[NcnsBcfc]

21 hours ago, Sheltons Army said:

Weebles wobble but they don’t fall down , especially short ones 

 

We’ve had about 30 keepers better than Bo

Closer to 50 i reckon

[Lorenzos Only Goal]

On 13/04/2022 at 00:07, Davefevs said:

Moller for me.

John Shaw was the first City keeper I saw, I was too young for Gibson, or Cashley.

Really liked Keith Waugh too, and in recent years Niki Maenpaa.  Only saw Basso a couple of times, and Welch was decent too.

But Moller no1.

For me he was way before my time never seen him play so cant judge, but Keith Welch I always liked he was my first keeper.
 

On 13/04/2022 at 11:52, Davefevs said:

Not Frank Fielding

Frank gave me one of my best recent'ish games of football I liked him.  2-1 away to the posh Al-Abd got sent off like a tosser Frank he saved everything.