9th February 2001
Ole Caught in Poverty Trap! 
Stuart Crowther

IN THE WEEK THAT NICK COLGAN signed a lucrative 3-year extension to his contract at Easter Road, the man he replaced as Hibs No.1, Icelandic international Ole Gottskalksson, is caught up in a cash row that even makes penny-pinching Tynecastle look like millionaires row.

Gottskalksson has become something of a hero at Brentford, whom he joined last Summer after failing to regain his first-team place from Colgan.  Ole is a firm favourite at his new club, in spite of the more erratic nature of some of his goalkeeping coming to the fore from time to time!  If Gottskalksson thought cash was a little tight at Easter Road, he is certainly finding it so at his new club as chairman Ron Noades has gone on a series of thrift measures that include the players having to wash their own kit, after being kicked out of the training ground at Godstone to make way for Crystal Palace.

Ole Gottskalksson at Hibs (sns)

That is bad enough for Ole, but now he is reported to be furious that Noades has broken a pre-contract agreement that he would have the services of a goalkeeping coach.  Former Fulham goalkeeper Jim Stannard had been coaching both Gottskalksson and his deputy Paul Smith this season, making a 60-mile round trip twice a week but only charging Brentford £75 - one days pay - for doing the job.

Noades however has decided to axe the goalkeeping coach - and that is said to have infuriated Icelandic international Gottskalksson - so much indeed that Hibs.Net understands Ole has decided to pay Stannard from his own pocket!  Fear of reprisals against players at Brentford has made it difficult for any player to openly speak out, but one player told the Hounslow Chronicle: "The lads feel he is just being very petty now and it is sad, because when he was interested it was great.  We all want the supporters to know that we are stronger than ever as a unit and we will keep on battling for them.

"It is bad though when people like Ole are attracted to the club and given certain promises, which the chairman is now failing to keep."

"It is bad though when people like Ole are attracted to the club and given certain promises, which the chairman is now failing to keep.  We are not talking about a fortune here.  Jim is costing £75 and is even doing one of the days for nothing.  He's just about covering his petrol."

It is not the first time Noades has infuriated his players, as another player told the local newspaper: "We were going to stay in a hotel before the Swansea game but when he heard about it he said 'no way'.  So the lads had a chat and we decided to pay for it ourselves so we could prepare properly.  When he heard about it he backed down and offered to pay, but then the game was postponed."  Brentford also sold their leading scorer Andy Scott to Oxford for £150,000 without the agreement of their caretaker boss Ray Lewington, who refused to comment on the cuts being made by his chairman.

Such has been the impact of Gottskalksson since joining Brentford, there has been some interest reportedly shown in the former Hibee favourite from bigger clubs in England, with fees around the £1m being mentioned.  Given the current situation Ole finds himself in, it is not difficult to imagine that he would be disagreeable to moving on.