Bill Bridge: English-only approach likely to leave FA scratching around for candidates

There was much satisfaction in the shires and mires when the FA declared, without caveat, that the next manager of the national side would indeed be English, assuring both the mindless majority and those in this trade who give the impression of caring, that the days of "Johnny Foreigner" were over, that Fabio Capello's successor would indeed be "one of us".

How bleak that promise now looks with Capello having confirmed that he will step down after the European Championships in 2012, presuming that England qualify which, on the basis of their first two serious matches since the World Cup, seems a probability.

With Capello gone, all the FA would have to do would be to call in the best of English coaches, grill them to ensure they had no skeletons under their bed or delicious young women in it, and make their choice.

What has been confirmed – as if the FA could not have foreseen it coming – is that there is barely a choice.

The outstanding candidates are Harry Redknapp and Roy Hodgson and the first thing that will strike the FA is that both men will be 64 when Capello goes and both, given their demanding roles down the years, could be forgiven for looking ahead to comfortable retirement rather than four years or so of being pilloried by every football follower in the land. And there are other worries.

Redknapp also has a date in court when his financial arrangements, not least those with Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs, will be laid bare.

The results of that hearing may over-ride the success he has had as manager across a sheaf of clubs but particularly at Tottenham.

Hodgson has the benefit of having being exposed to the football culture of several countries and to have enjoyed success on his travels but his detractors point out that he has just one reasonable season in the English game – last season's marathon effort with Fulham. Maybe his fortunes at Anfield may turn public and FA opinion his way; maybe not.

If Redknapp and Hodgson are passed over for whatever reason, the next two in line for the job would be Steve Bruce, whose managerial career thus far has hardly been weighed down by silverware, and 'Big Sam' Allardyce, whose hump-it-forward-as-quick-as-you-can style of playing is unlikely to have endeared him to the purists in the FA's Technical Department.

After that we are down to the young lads, with Ian Holloway and Simon Grayson having their names thrown into the debate despite their lack of experience in the Premier League, let alone the football world beyond England.

The prospects are grim but then they have been since our leading clubs turned away from English managers and brought in mercenaries from all over the world, some of whom succeeded, most of whom didn't but all of whom meant a door was closed to the next generation of home-breds.

Our chances of finding another Alf Ramsey, Bill Nicholson, Malcolm Allison or Bobby Robson were drastically reduced. The FA did not see that coming either.

IT was strange being on the outside looking in as this year's edition of cycling's Tour of Britain swung into action over the weekend. For the first time since the start of the modern annual event it does not visit Yorkshire, one of the strongholds of the sport in this country, and spent only Saturday in the North of England.

The omission of Yorkshire from the schedule has nothing to do with cycling politics, lack of interest among the public or any sense that the region has perhaps been fully exposed to the benefits of hosting a stage.

As ever, the reason is lolly. For some years it has been the policy of the organisers to place their stages in areas where they had financial and logistical support from local authorities and government-funded agencies whose priorities included boosting tourism and generally raising the profile of specific regions.

In these hard times, local authorities have to be careful with the pennies and it seems bodies like Yorkshire Forward are on their last legs.

So we will have to do without our annual fix, the opportunity to see some of the best professionals in the business pounding their way up Holme Moss, across the Humber Bridge or over the rolling Wolds.

We will also miss Hugh Porter's wonderful commentary, in the finest Wolverhampton accent, as the riders approach the climax of each stage.

But don't worry; the Tour will be back when the good times roll again.

OVER the next four days there will be many making their way to Headingley Carnegie in the hope of seeing something we thought had gone forever.

It could be that if Yorkshire beat Kent and other results go their way the County Championship pennant could be coming home and the beauty of that for the traditionalists will be that it will have been achieved by what is basically a Yorkshire-grown team.

The contribution of Jacques Rudolph during his time with Yorkshire has been immense but him apart this team is a credit to Yorkshire Schools and the Academy for producing such a crop of talented cricketers.

and another thing...

OUR sporting sensibilities will be furiously assailed over the next couple of months as the Murdoch Empire tries to persuade us that a meeting of two pugilistic mediocrities in Manchester on November 13 is a viable world heavyweight title fight.

David Haye, who holds a third of the title, against awesomely inept former Olympic champion Audley Harrison.

Since beating the gargantuan Nikolay Valuev and following up with a meaningless success against John Ruiz, a fighter who was not so much washed up as thrown out with the dishwater, Haye has posed and pranced while avoiding the two men against either of whom he could either prove himself a real champion or fail gloriously in the attempt.

The Klitschko brothers hold the remaining belts which supposedly indicate heavyweight superiority but their efforts to persuade Haye into the ring have repeatedly foundered. He would rather fight another nobody and pocket another sizeable cheque.

Not a penny of the profits from this meeting will come from this quarter.