Summary
Overview
Richard Shaw, former Crystal Palace and Coventry City defender, joins the podcast to discuss his 587-game career, including the infamous Eric Cantona incident, two FA Cup final appearances, playing through relegation battles, and his experiences with managers like Steve Coppell, Big Ron Atkinson, and Gordon Strachan. Shaw shares stories about his humble beginnings as an apprentice who worked as a cleaner, the 9-0 loss to Liverpool, England call-up, and his testimonial that drew 25,000 fans.
Early Career and The Shoe People Revelation
The episode opens with correspondence about unusual football club ownership, specifically Jim Driscoll who owned Stourbridge FC after creating the children's show The Shoe People. The hosts are amazed to learn the show was broadcast in 52 countries and sold 25 million books, generating substantial wealth from an unexpected source. This leads into a discussion about celebrity football ownership in the 90s and how the wealth required to own clubs has changed dramatically since then.
- Jim Driscoll owned Stourbridge FC in the early to mid-90s after creating The Shoe People cartoon
- The Shoe People was broadcast in 52 countries and was the first Western series shown in the former Soviet Union
- The show sold 25 million books, generating significant wealth
- In the 90s there were rumors of celebrities like Oasis buying Man City and Robbie Williams buying Port Vale
" 25 million books. Wow. That is insane. Pound a book? That was a big thing in the 90s. Like, English things that you don't really consider being big being actually huge in these kind of former Soviet blocs. "
Richard Shaw's Apprenticeship: Cleaning Boots and Working Three Jobs
Shaw describes his grueling early career as a Palace apprentice, where discipline and hard work were paramount. He worked as a cleaner from 4-6am before training, sometimes getting home at 1am after reserve matches and then waking at 3:30am for his cleaning job. The apprentices were taught strict discipline through cleaning duties, with Maurice Truitt inspecting skirting boards for dust. This formative experience shaped Shaw's professional attitude throughout his career.
- Shaw earned more money as a cleaner than as a Crystal Palace apprentice
- He worked 4-6am cleaning shifts, then took three trains to Mitcham for training
- After away reserve matches, he'd get home at 1am, sleep 2.5 hours, then go straight to his cleaning job
- Maurice Truitt would inspect apprentices' cleaning work, checking skirting boards for dust
- Shaw's first contract was about £90 per week, making him worse off than as an apprentice due to tax
" I literally woke up at half past three every single morning, and I worked from four to six as a cleaner before my job at Palace. And then, so you go into Palace, and presumably you're cleaning up there. Cleaning up there as well. I was a top, top cleaner. I was very good at it, and I was earning more money as a cleaner than what I was at Crystal Palace. "
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