Brooking appointment a welcome development The FA does occasionally get things right, though. The appointment of Trevor Brooking to oversee the development of football in this country is long overdue and needs to be commended. I'll declare an interest straightaway. Having worked with Trevor for BBC Radio since he retired nearly 20 years ago, I can't think of a better ambassador for the game and his profession. Some of football's Mr Nice Guys are in fact less impressive than you might think, especially when dealing with the public who sometimes want a piece of you when it's not convenient. Not Trevor Brooking.The man's a gem. No request for an autograph is ever spurned, he always smiles for the tongue-tied fan when a photograph is requested with him, and this imbiber of soft drinks is regularly first in the queue to buy something stronger for broadcasting colleagues who'll never carry their years with the same grace as Trevor. A working day is better for having him for company. He is quick to laugh, loves the usual rash hyperbole we indulge in - "that's a bit harsh," he'll chuckle kindly - and even reacted calmly whenever he played for the media before international matches in the past decade. Trevor's reward for having been a peerless footballer with a wonderfully equable temperament would be to spend a lot of time either in mid-air or on the floor, courtesy of unscrupulous opponents who got to him as soon as they could. Never did he moan or play the showpony. One day he decided he'd leave the derring-do to younger team-mates who had more to prove than he did and a national footballing treasure was saved. But if you think that Trevor Brooking is just a soft touch who has never fought for anything in his life, be warned. Just because you're kind and accessible doesn't mean you haven't got steel in your soul. By common consent he was an outstanding success as chairman of Sport England and his trenchant views on funding, drugs and the proper strategies brought him into conflict with certain politicians who mistakenly had taken him for such a soft touch. That's why Trevor didn't end up with the knighthood that usually arrives after the Sport England chairman hands over the keys to the drinks cabinet. Trevor is equally strong-minded about the way football should be played. Those of us at the BBC who have been lucky enough to listen to his views after a game in the hotel can testify to that. He gets very upset about poor passing skills and young players not working hard enough on their techniques, instead of spending too much time with their agents. Trevor will relish the chance to carry through his opinions into practice. Anyone who saw him going through the agonies on the touchline during his spell as West Ham's caretaker manager this year will no longer doubt his passion for football and those of a certain age will remember a gloriously fluent footballer whose standards of behaviour adorned the game for almost 20 years. Graham Gooch, great cricketer and West Ham fanatic, knows a thing or two about football. His two heroes in sport are Bobby Moore and Trevor Brooking. Gooch likes style allied to effectiveness in sport. Trevor Brooking's appointment as the FA's director of footballing development should carry both those hallmarks. | 
