MANUEL Lanzini and Stewart Downing became the first footballers in Kenna League history to be part of a cash-plus-player deal, it has emerged.
Two managerial debutants unwittingly made the transaction at last month’s transfer window to set a new precedent, which has left one of them is left with egg on his face.
Attending his maiden transfer night the Two Goals One Cup manager rung the changes releasing five players including the 1.5-points-per-week Lanzini.
The So Good They Named Him Twice manager couldn’t make the window so released the 2.75-points-per-week Stewart Downing and bid via broadcasting app Periscope.
While So Good signed Lanzini for £8m, Two Goals picked up Downing for twelve.
They have effectively conducted the league’s first cash-plus-player deal – Lanzini plus £4m for Downing.
Since then ‘makeweight’ Lanzini has pulled up his socks to score at 2.7-points-per-week.
Downing has slowed considerably to an average of 1.9.
“Well, well. This is troubling,” said the Two Goals One Cup manager this morning outside the club’s Rimmer’s Way stadium.
Downing: his sorrows
For Kenna veterans, it was little surprise to see Stewart Downing become the first player take part in such an arrangement.
Managers under pressure or looking for quick wins at transfer windows regularly use Downing as a scapegoat.
In just over five years, the winger has been signed on 10 separate occasions by Kenna managers.
That includes a term when he was unavailable in the second tier, and another when his August employer naffed off around the world for a few months without bothering to conduct any transfer business for the rest of season.
It’s also not the first record Downing’s set. In the 2013/14 season he is believed to have become the first player to appear for three different clubs.
- August 2011 – bought by Newington Reds for £16m
- February 2012 – sold to Hairy Fadjeetas for £0.5m
- August 2012 – bought by Pikey Scum for £8m
- October 2012 – released as a free agent by Pikey Scum
- February 2013 – bought by Woking for £6.5m
- August 2013 – bought by Newington Reds for £0.5m
- October 2013 – bought by Judean Peoples’ Front
- February 2014 – bought by Northern Monkeys for £0.5m
- August 2014 – bought by Still Don’t Know Yet for £4m
- August 2016 – bought by So Good They Named Him Twice for £0.5m
- October 2016 – bought by Two Goals One Cup for a cash-plus-player Manuel Lanzini-plus-£4m deal
Narcozep Cup group stage – after two rounds
Kenna table – week 12
Full scores and tables can be downloaded from The Rub.
