Kenyon brokered Bamford transfer
STRIKER Patrick Bamford’s £6million transfer from Chelsea to Middlesbrough had the intriguing element of former Stamford Bridge chief executive Peter Kenyon negotiating the deal on behalf of the buying club.
Kenyon acts now as a special adviser to Middlesbrough owner Steve Gibson, is a regular in the Riverside boardroom and sits next to Gibson in the directors’ box at matches.
His inside knowledge of Chelsea personnel made him the obvious choice within the Boro set-up to talk to Chelsea about Bamford.
The working relationship between Gibson and Kenyon began after they became friends through both having houses in the same area of St Helier on the tax haven of Jersey.
Kenyon, former chief executive of Manchester United as well as Chelsea, has been working as a football consultant since quitting as European boss of talent management company Creative Artists Agency in 2011. His exit followed strategic differences. Other clubs Kenyon has advised include Atletico Madrid.
AN ACCLAIMED mural of Burnley manager Sean Dyche celebrating the club’s latest promotion to the top flight was painted on a wall in the town (right) by graffiti artist Paul Jones. The work was so popular that the council postponed knocking down the structure to make way for a new medical centre. But this has now been done, although the council have saved the bricks from the Dyche mural to distribute to Burnley fans. SKY SPORTS lead cricket presenter David Gower appears resigned to being usurped from one- day cricket duties by Ian Ward, whether hosting from the venue or in the Sky studios. Gower has agreed to take part in an eight-date, question-and-answer theatre tour called the Holy Bail with fellow former England captain Chris Cowdrey during England’s ODI matches in the West Indies in March. DAMIAN
COLLINS, publicity-loving chairman of the Culture, Media and Sport select committee, has become one of the country’s best-known backbench MPs due to him calling sporting leaders to account. But he is not well known enough to avoid the latest press release from his overworked committee office calling him Damian Green. Heads will roll. RIO FERDINAND has withdrawn from making one of the keynote speeches at the Football Writers’ Association tribute night to Wayne Rooney at the Savoy Hotel on Sunday — leaving the organisers ‘deeply disappointed and upset’.
Ferdinand, who agreed months ago to talk about former team-mate Rooney’s glittering career at Manchester United, is said to have conflicting work commitments in Canada involving Electronic Arts, which he could not change.
A spokesman for Ferdinand said the clash of dates had only just been discovered due to an administrative mistake. Rooney, who was said to be ‘philosophical’ about Ferdinand’s no-show, has asked close family friend Darren Fletcher to replace Rio and the West Brom captain and former United midfielder agreed immediately. MALCOLM
CLARKE — fans’ representative on the FA Council — was understandably ‘irritated and upset’ after being heckled by his fellow councillors while speaking out on governance issues. Clarke has a reputation for making long-winded speeches. But he made the point — while under attack from the blazers — that the council is his only forum, as fans’ representatives do not have a seat on the professional or amateur game committees.