Roar of applause for Dickov

SIGNING OFF . . . Athletic players form a guard of honour for manager Paul Dickov after he appeared in his last game as a professional footballer.

PAUL Dickov was given a guard of honour at Boundary Park after making his last appearance as a professional footballer.

The Athletic manager came on as a 74th-minute substitute in the 2-1 loss to MK Dons on Saturday, after almost constant calls from the home faithful for his introduction.

Following the full-time whistle and a pitch invasion by supporters both sets of players formed a guard of honour in the tunnel as Dickov re-emerged to a rousing response from the stands.

“It was good to get on the pitch at the end and the fans were superb with me, but now my playing days are over, I am fully focused on being the manager of this football club,” said the Scot.

Dickov, who played for the likes of Arsenal, Manchester City and Blackburn in the top-flight and represented his country 10 times, refused to single out one career highlight.

He added: “At the risk of sounding corny, the best part of my career was waking up every morning knowing I was a professional footballer.

“You can talk about debuts, international caps and my goal for City at Wembley (in the play-off final win over Gillingham in 1999), but just living it on a daily basis was the best job in the world.”