[08 MAY 00] COVENTRY CITY NEWS
Oggy Thanks Fans For Memories
Coventry
City's veteran keeper Steve Ogrizovic has thanked the Highfield Road
faithful for the ovation he received at the end of Saturday's game.
The
stalwart left the field to tumultuous applause after playing in his
601st and final match for the Sky Blues.
The
42-year-old, who will retire at the end of this season, was selected
by manager Gordon Strachan as a thank-you gesture for his 16 years of
service to the club.
And
after playing in the 4-1 thrashing of Sheffield Wednesday the big
keeper admitted his last ever professional game had been an emotional
experience.
He
said:
"I've
had a fantastic career at this club and couldn't have wished for a
better send-off.
"To
top it all, when I came into the dressing room afterwards I found
that my former club Shrewsbury Town had stopped up against the odds
- perhaps they've picked up a bit of the Coventry magic.
"It
was a very emotional day for me. I was very apprehensive before the
game and the one thing I wanted was for the team to get a win.
"It
was a great gesture of the manager to name me in the side but I
didn't want to let anybody down."
And
the keeper, who was amongst the FA Cup winning Sky Blue heroes of
1987, believes his career shows that constantly moving clubs is not
the way to achieve respect.
He
said:
"People
say there is no loyalty in football but this is the reward you get
for showing it.
"I
couldn't believe the reaction of the supporters, they were
absolutely fantastic and I'd like to thank them and the players for
a great day.
"People
have asked me if I feel different now I've retired but to be honest
it hasn't really dawned on me yet.
"That
will only happen when the side report back for pre-season training -
they will all be out there running around preparing for a new
campaign while I will be coaching."
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