Lee Philpott
We all knew John Beck’s rigidly enforced straightforward style of play didn’t suit certain players, but most of them knuckled under and got on with the job. Lee Philpott, a left winger of such ability that he later made a considerable mark on the Premier League, got on with it to tremendous effect.
Capable of leaving defenders on their backsides with a drop of the shoulder and nimble footwork, Lee nevertheless did as he was told and whipped the ball into the middle at the earliest opportunity. How many goals he created that way for the Dublin-Taylor-Claridge strike force we may never know, but it was an awful lot.
A master of the art of crossing, he was also adept at stealing late into the box and often took time off from creating goals to notch them himself. No U’s supporter will ever forget the magnificent right-foot volley that helped to beat Bristol City 5-1 in February 1990 – one of the greatest goals ever seen at the Abbey Stadium – and his record of twenty-four goals from 180-plus appearances speaks for itself.
Released from Peterborough in 1989, Lee had arrived in Cambridge as a hard-working nineteen-year-old trialist, soon earning a contract and playing a starring role in the Beck revolution.
He was denied the chance to play at the top level by United’s 1992 play-off loss to Leicester, but he was soon on his way to Filbert Street for a fee of £350,000, leaving a grateful Amber Army with wonderful memories.
We all knew John Beck’s rigidly enforced straightforward style of play didn’t suit certain players, but most of them knuckled under and got on with the job. Lee Philpott, a left winger of such ability that he later made a considerable mark on the Premier League, got on with it to tremendous effect.
Capable of leaving defenders on their backsides with a drop of the shoulder and nimble footwork, Lee nevertheless did as he was told and whipped the ball into the middle at the earliest opportunity. How many goals he created that way for the Dublin-Taylor-Claridge strike force we may never know, but it was an awful lot.
A master of the art of crossing, he was also adept at stealing late into the box and often took time off from creating goals to notch them himself. No U’s supporter will ever forget the magnificent right-foot volley that helped to beat Bristol City 5-1 in February 1990 – one of the greatest goals ever seen at the Abbey Stadium – and his record of twenty-four goals from 180-plus appearances speaks for itself.
Released from Peterborough in 1989, Lee had arrived in Cambridge as a hard-working nineteen-year-old trialist, soon earning a contract and playing a starring role in the Beck revolution.
He was denied the chance to play at the top level by United’s 1992 play-off loss to Leicester, but he was soon on his way to Filbert Street for a fee of £350,000, leaving a grateful Amber Army with wonderful memories.