Saturday afternoon hospitality diners at the Rochdale v Altrincham FA Trophy Quarter Final tie saw the man, who played 117 times in the football league for Rochdale AFC and was part of the team that played at Wembley in the Play Off Final defeat to Stockport County, namely Simon Ramsden, his responses from questions conducted by Martin Culshaw were:
At the age of 15 you joined your boyhood club Sunderland before signing professional terms at the age of 18. That must have been a dream come true to sign for the club you supported growing up? “Going from being a season ticket holder on the terraces to signing for the Club as a professional is something that will live with me forever. Not many people get to say they played professionally for the club they grew up supporting”
You spent a season on loan at Notts County playing 34 times in the Black and White of Notts County. Did it feel wrong to be wearing those colours? “Well its funny because I joined Notts County who play in black and white. Grimsby, who play in Black and white. So when I joined Rochdale I thought great they play in Blue then my second season they bring out the Centenary kit which was black and white! Then I played for Gateshead before I retired-Black and white”
Joking aside, what is the rivalry like up there between Sunderland and Newcastle? “It’s serious. You don’t realise how much we hate each other. If you could see under my clothes the tattoos I’ve got, that would explain how I feel about them”
Your only appearance for the Black Cats came in 2004 when you came on as a late substitute in a 2-1 FA Cup win at Ipswich. Is that something that you will cherish forever as not everybody gets to pull on the shirt of their team? “I wish I’d played more but that one game playing for the Club I love, I will cherish forever. I suppose it was bad timing as Sunderland were doing well in the Premier League at the time and there were two or three players ahead of me in my position”
In 2004 you signed at Grimsby and spent 18 months at Blundell Park before a call came in January 2006 from Steve Parkin to join up here at Spotland. How did the move come about and what was it about Rochdale that made you want to sign? “I knew Steve as he was a part time coach at Notts County when I was there. I’d fallen down the pecking order at Grimsby so Steve enquired with my agent as to my availability and I was happy to come here as I was told I’d get game time and that was the case”
We’ve had a few players recently that played under Steve Parkin, what were your thoughts about him as a manager? “He was tough but that’s what managers should be like. My problem was I fell out with Parky towards the end of his time and I wasn’t playing”
Just less than 12 months later and Steve Parkin left the Club with then youth team manager Keith Hill taking over, initially on an interim basis. What were the players reactions to Keith stepping up from the youth team to take over? “It was like a breath of fresh air. As I say I’d had a fall out with Steve but Keith gave everybody a fresh start and I was back in the side. The training felt brilliant, the atmosphere around the dressing room was brilliant”
That first half a season under Keith we had some great results, 7-2 at Stockport, 5-0 here against MK Dons & also against Macclesfield and a 4-0 win at your former club Grimsby with you scoring twice? “When Keith took over we were near the relegation zone but he got us up the table and we just missed out on the play offs. It was strange as I wasn’t known for my goalscoring but about two weeks after I left Grimsby we played them and I scored an overhead kick. Anybody that knows me knows that must have been a fluke and then I scored twice next time we played them too! I only scored six for the Club and three were against Grimsby”
Keith’s first full season in charge was one to remember with Dale finishing 5th and making the play offs. A 1-2 defeat in the first leg at Darlington meant it was all or nothing in the return leg here and when Clark Keltie scored in the first half, many of a Rochdale persuasion might have been forgiven for giving up but the players certainly didn’t? “I’m not sure, there was just something about that day that everybody in the ground knew that despite going behind, we would score. Even after David Perkins was sent off we knew we had it in us to get the job done. The atmosphere that day was unbelievable”
The game ended 3-3 on aggregate and the dreaded penalty shootout. Had it already been decided who was taking the spot kicks? “I’m not sure who was down to take them. Tom Kennedy was a certainty and he put his in the top corner. I don’t think Ben Muirhead was down to take one but obviously he did and the rest is history”
Did you fancy one? “I don’t think I was high on the list if I’m honest”
What was the feeling like when Ben Muirhead smashed in the winning spot kick? “The feeling of elation was huge. We just couldn’t wait for the final then”
I suppose one of the biggest talking points from a Rochdale perspective was the sending off of David Perkins in the semi final as he was pivotal to how we played and losing him for the final at Wembley was a massive blow? “He was a big player for us and yeah he was always going to be a big miss”
So if I remember rightly you’d been right back all season but Keith opted to change things with Perkins missing and employed you in central midfield with Nathan D’Laryea, who had only started three games all season, coming in at right back. In hindsight, was that a mistake by the manager? “Keith had decisions to make. It was me or John Doolan. I think the gaffer thought about the size of the pitch at Wembley and how hard it was going to be. In hindsight, would he have done anything different? I’m not sure. We gave it a good go and on another day the result might have been different”
How was it from a personal point of view to walking out at Wembley and how did you take in the whole day? “To play at the National Stadium, even though it was the new Wembley was amazing. I remember the rain that day. It chucked it down and everybody looked like drowned rats”
That squad of players, looking back now had some fantastic players in it, Glenn Murray, Chris Dagnall, Adam Le Fondre, Tom Kennedy, Gary Jones? “When you look at the players that came through Rochdale at that time that went on to have unbelievable careers. There’s one on the TV now (pointing to the TV on opposite side of room that was showing FA Cup football) Glenn Murray. What a career he went on to have. Grant Holt, Rickie Lambert, Adam Le Fondre. I could name so many more but I couldn’t point out who was the best player in those squads”
The following season, Keith guided us once again to the playoffs but we couldn’t quite emulate the 2007/8 team and lost to Gillingham in the semi finals. Can you put your finger on why we fell short that season? “We’d had very good season and just missed out on automatic promotion. Gillingham were a really good side and it was a close contest”
That playoff game at the Priestfield Stadium would be you last in a Dale shirt as you joined Bradford City in the Summer. Was that your decision to end your time at Spotland? “Yes. The play off defeat kind of signalled the end for a number of players having missed out twice. If we’d gone up then I think the squad would have stayed together. I got a call from Stuart McCall at Bradford to go and have a chat and just looking around that place with 20,000 fans in there most games it was a no brainer for me to go. I was made club Captain too, it was a great opportunity for me”
After a couple of seasons at Valley Parade you headed North of the Border and joined Motherwell in the Scottish Premier League. How was that as career move and sampling a different countries top flight and in your third season at Motherwell you tasted European football in the Champions League & Europa League? “Stuart McCall had gone up to Motherwell and rang me knowing I was out of contract and offered me the chance to play up there. My first game was in the Champions League against Panathinaikos. I’d gone from playing like Macclesfield six weeks earlier to playing in the Champions League. We were lucky as Rangers weren’t in the top flight so Motherwell finishing second behind Celtic was almost the norm”
Your final game for the Scottish side came at the end of that season when you were part of the Scottish Division 1 play off game. Is that where the bottom of the Premier League plays the top of Division 1 with the winner playing in the top flight so Rangers were on their way back up after being relegated? “Yeah the Scottish League have a strange way that the bottom of the division above play off against the second team in the division below. We played Rangers and luckily beat them over two legs”
You ended your career playing in the National League with a fairly local side for you in Gateshead? “Yeah it was strange. The stadium at Gateshead is in the middle of a running track with about 400 fans so it was alike a friendly every game”
What does Simon Ramsden do these days since hanging up the boots? “I run a fitness company now that trains Personal Trainers so it’s very rewarding. I’m up at 4:30am every day but I love it giving something back to the community”
Later at half time, Simon and daughter pulled out the winning ticket for the 50/50 draw at half time during the FA Trophy winning tie against Altrincham-all in all, a fantastic day at the Crown Oil Arena.
