sherm

Jess and myself had taken a four day break to the lake district, as the team didn't have a game until two weeks into November, but as always, duty called and I still managed to get some work done. While we were there, I received a phone call from BBC FiveLive. They were trying to get celebrity footballers and managers to give them their favourite European Championship moments for their website, but I was surprised to be asked. I thought about it, and in the end, I had to give them a choice of two. The first one I picked was Marco Van Basten 's hat-trick against England in 1988. It's still the best, most complete performance I've seen by a centre forward in the European Championships, in fact i8n any game, and the hat-trick was just sublime, a real thing of beauty. The second one I picked seemed to surprise the bloke on the phone, as I think he thought that because I was Scottish I wouldn't like it. But Gascoigne's goal against Scotland was awesome. Everybody said he was a spent force, but for one of the finest England midfielder's ever to come up with the goods was a sweet victory, and as a man who played in the same position I could really embrace that goal. It was even better watching in real life, as I was actually playing in that game myself. Not good at the time but what a goal. Once I had finished the call, I made my mind up to make sure I checked what other people had thought

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I had enjoyed my break away with Jess, and I looked forward to every minute I got to spend with her. She made me happy, and hopefully I made her feel the same way. I had to think about other things too though, as I prepared the side for the visit of Newcastle to Vicarage Road. This game was the complete contrast of our game against United, as neither side was able to penetrate the other's defence. Both 'keepers had very little to do, and it looked like they would settle for a 0-0 draw, but in the second minute of stoppage time, a win was secured, Jurado picking the ball up and playing a lovely one-two with Saivet before he fired home past Shay Given to give us the three points. It was a good win in the end, although whether we deserved it or not is a different matter, but the sign of a good side is winning games that you don't deserve

sherm

Many people tell me that I would have won a lot more than the 24 caps I did for Scotland if I had not gotten injured. There is no way that I can say whether that is right or wrong but I like to think it's true. I also like to think that people thought of me as a good player, a real tenacious player. The one thing that did get to me though was that I never really got to prove myself in the Premiership. I felt I was good enough to play in that league, and I really felt I would have proved myself at the highest level, but the fact that I never got that chance at Villa really got to me. It still eats me inside even now. That is why I want to make it as a manager in the Premiership, making myself a legend in the eyes of many, and getting rid of that seed of doubt

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Our next two games were both away, but as they were both in London and short journeys from Watford, it wasn't too bad and meant we could leave on the morning of each match. The first of these games was a trip to Upton Park to face West Ham, who had improved as a side recently, so I was preparing for a tough test. When George McCartney headed home after 18 minutes, it looked just like that would be the right theory, but it was blown out of all proportion by one man, as Finnish midfielder Mika Vayrynen stole the show with a fabulous hat-trick. His first came just two minutes after we fell behind, Mika curling home from the edge of the box. It took us three more minutes to get into the lead, as Henri Saivet broke through from the defence to collect Vayrynen's pass and fire past Robert Green. We went in at half time two goals clear, as Mika headed home Seitaridis' cross on 36 minutes, before he completed the hat-trick with a sublime free-kick less than ten minutes into the second half, sealing a terrific 4-1 win and maintaining our superb start to the season.

The second of our trips to London saw us visit Stuart Pearce's Charlton, who sat in 14th in the table and looked like they were coping well with life in the Premiership. They were not too bad a side, but I was extremely confident of another win for the team. The performance wasn't scintillating, and we weren't out of this world, but we were professional and we got the job done. Second half goals from Henri Saivet and Mohammed Shawky, his first for the club, sent us well on the way and took us (temporarily) to second in the table

sherm

October 2009 Summary

(Premiership unless stated)

Watford 1-0 Newcastle
Jurado (90)

West Ham 1-4 Watford
McCartney (18) : Vayrynen (20,36,53) Saivet (23)

Charlton 0-2 Watford
Saivet (49) Shawky (65)

sherm

287 career games, with 113 goals. I believe that is a good record for a midfielder, and I just wish I could have proven myself at a higher level. I feel I have proven myself as a manager, although I know that until I win another trophy with the club I will never have stepped up to that level of top class managers. The best Scottish manager ever is Sir Alex Ferguson. If I can emulate him, or even half of what hes done, then I think I can call myself a good manager. I'd managed over 100 games for Watford now, and had won more than 50%. I think that's a good record personally.

I was looking for another win with the visit of 6th placed Blackburn to Vicarage Road. They were a good side, and I had been impressed with what Mark Hughes had done for them. In this game however, they didn't play that great, they almost seemed sluggish and lethargic, and we probably should have gone in at half time ahead rather than goalless, but we did take the lead in the second half, Henri Saivet's volley putting us in front just before the hour mark. That should have been that, and we should have gone on to easily win the game, but in the end we had to settle for a point, as Matt Debyshire's cross found Lee Martin's boot and flew past Kuszczak a minute into stoppage time and gave the visitors a point they never deserved

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It was nice to spend time with Jess outside of football, as she had no interest in it. She just wants to know about me, and talk about us, and she recognises that I like to keep the football stuff away from her. I like that, and she likes it. I never thought I'd get close to another woman after Emma, but Jess has just made me feel like a new man again. Do I love her? I don't think so, but I know that I can do, given time

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The Midlands beckoned for our net test in the league, and with Birmingham struggling at the moment I wanted the team to make the most of it and send them to another defeat. When Henri Saivet put us into a 19th minute lead, I was sure we could do that, but I have to give credit to Steve Bruce's side, they really turned it on after that, and raced into a 3-1 lead. Gary McSheffrey equalised, he reacted quickest and slammed home the rebound of Kapo's shot, while Franck Queudrue's free-kick put them 2-1 ahead just after the hour. McSheffrey's second put the game beyond doubt, but Riki did get us a second in the injury time, but the home side held on and claimed three points, which they probably did deserve actually.

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We needed to bounce back from the Birmingham defeat, and with Fulham making their way to Watford for our Premier League game I knew we could do it against them. I never expected to beat them as convincingly as we did though, as we ran out with a 6-1 win. Daniel Sturridge gave us a 37th minute lead, and despite Garry Bocaly's 40th minute equaliser we dominated the second half with five unanswered strikes. Saivet put us back in front, before Sturridge completed his hat-trick with two goals, while Riki and Mika Vayrynen sealed the win. We had looked phenomenal in the match, and we got ourselves right back on track after a draw and defeat in the previous two game, with a win with which I was delighted with.

My golfing was still becoming a nice exercise for me to relax, and with my improvement I enjoyed it too. Alan Brazil had started improving, so we were having competitive games which proved to be a lot of fun, although we didn't play for money (knowing my luck, I'd lose those games) but with both the football and my personal life going well, I was looking forward to every day that was coming my way

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It had been nice to spend Christmas with Jess, instead of alone like I had recently, and it was even nicer to have my parents round for Christmas, for the first time in a hell of a long time we spent the day together. It was a lovely day, and Shaun even managed to get an appearance in, and all round it was a great day. With a game on Boxing day, I needed to make sure I got the requisite amount of sleep, and I was tucked up in bed by midnight while everybody else celebrated a little longer

With 2010 soon to be drawing to a conclusion, I wanted to finish on a high note in our remaining two games. They were both trips to the North, and the first saw us pay a visit to the Reebok Stadium and Bolton, a side who were really struggling down the bottom end of the Premiership, so I expected a comfortable three points to send me home with a belated Boxing day present. This looked like wishful thinking when Nicky Hunt put the visitors in front with a scruffy 6 yard shot, but as usual our fighting qualities shone through and we went in at half time in front, Jermaine Pennant's free-kick and Henri Saivet's stunning volley sending our travelling supporters into raptures. Daniel Sturridge sealed the game with a third after 77 minutes, but Havard Nordtveit soured the game four minutes from time with an idiotic tackle which earnt him a red card and a severe warning from me, but his dismissal made no difference and we held on for three points

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The 29th of the month brought another trip North, this time to Merseyside as we faced Everton, a side who had managed to find a recent run of form. It was a game I expected to be tough, but we started much the better, forcing Vincent Enyeama into three or four good saves, but we couldn't find the goal and went in half time all square. The home side played better in the second half, but we probably just shaded it and deserved at least a point, so I was at a loss to explain how we got nothing, thanks to Andy van der Meyde's 78th minute strike, whihc sent his team up to tenth and sent us to a defeat there was no way that we deserved.

sherm

December 2009 Summary

(Premiership unless stated)

Watford 1-1 Blackburn
Saivet (57) : Martin (O.G 90)

Birmingham 3-2 Watford
McSheffrey (29,70) Quedrue (61) : Saivet (19) Riki (90)

Watford 6-1 Fulham
Sturridge (37,56,71) Saivet (53) Riki (76) Vayrynen (90) : Bocaly (40)

Bolton 1-3 Watford
Hunt (18) : Pennant (39) Saivet (45) Sturridge (77)

Everton 1-0 Watford
van der Meyde (78)

sherm

It was nice to be able to see the New Year in with a few drinks, seeing as how the first game of the month wasn't till the 3rd. I didn't go too mad though, and still had quite a subdued night. I even managed to get up and go for an early round of golf on New Year's day, meeting Alan at the course and having a football talk of epic proportions. He basically told me that the first couple of months after the turn of the year are where teams make themselves into legends or failures, and he said if we were to keep up the position we were in at the moment, we would need to be at our best. It was sound advice from a man who had been in the game for years, and I kept in my head

The F.A Cup saw us face a side who beat us in December, as Steve Bruce's Birmingham came to Vicarage Road. This time, there was a different side, as I made 8 changes for the tie. It turned out to be a better performance than the League game, and it was two of the changes that scored, as Abdesslam Benjelloun's first half goal and a second half strike from Tomas Pekhart sent us through to the fourth round. It was nice to go through, and although cup competitions were not always good, the F.A Cup had a real spark about it and made everybody light up when it was third round time

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I hadn't managed to make any new additions to the squad, for the simple fact that I felt I didn't actually need to at this particular moment in time. I was happy with the 24 man squad I had, and was quite happy to wait until the summer to sign anybody. I think the team were pleased with this, and it sent them into our next game against Arsenal brimming with confidence. This was shattered within just three minutes, as Thomas Rosicky fird home a left footed thunderbolt to put his team ahead. This woke us up, and fittingly it was on loan Spurs striker Daniel Sturridge who levelled things up, using his pace and slotting underneath Fabianski. It didn't take long to fall back behind, Kolo Toure's thumping header sending the three time Champions in front, and that turned out to be the winning goal. We could not find the equaliser, no matter what and how hard we tried, it would not come, and we had to take defeat on the chin, although it was disappointing

sherm

After the dissapointment of defeat to Arsenal, I was looking for the team to pick themselves up as we travveled up to Manchester for an away game at Eastlands against Man City. Saivet picked up a slight strain before kick off, and with a few important games to come over the next few weeks I was not going to risk our star striker, so Riki's partner upfront was Mika Aaritalo. We started slowly, very slowly in fact, and we paid a heavy price for that as Emile Mpenza headed his side in front on 27 minutes. Even this didn't wake us up, and we were just as bad for the remaining 18 minutes of the half. The team felt my wrath in the dressing room at half time, and they responded brilliantly, as they dominated the second half. We had good chances, with Aaritalo, Riki, Shawky and Pekhart all missing very good chances to level the game, and once again, just as against Arsenal, we could not find the equaliser, and we succumbed to our second successive defeat

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I had been disappointed with the defeats, but the face we still sat in the top four was something I had to be proud of. I took Jess to dinner that night, and we had all the usual niceties, enjoying ourselves, having a nice meal, but it was on the way home she dropped the bombshell. She said that she felt we should get a house together, a new house, get me out of the one I'm in now and away from all the memories of Emma. I didn't give her an answer straightaway, but promised her that I would think about it. I mean, we had been together for over a year, and we were growing closer all the time, so maybe she was right. Maybe it was time to move into our own place

Jess' proposal was still weighing on my mind as we welcomed Tottenham to Vicarage Road for our tie in the 4th round of the F.A Cup. It had been put forward to 12.45 for live television coverage, and the BBC anticipated a decent game, as did both sets of supporters. After ten minutes of the match, the visiting supporters were the happiest, with Javier Saviola having given them a fourth minute lead, but we were soon back level, as Tomas Pekhart headed home McAnuff's cross on 21 minutes, but from then on in, it was quite a dull game. The best chances fell for us, although Spurs had some good chances, but neither side the breakthrough and we would be heading to White Hart Lane for the replay, a game I could have done without to be honest, but still, it meant we were still in the competition

sherm

Our next test saw Derby our visitors, and as they sat 17th in the table I fully expected a win, particularly after three league defeats on the bounce. I wanted the boys to start well, and they certainly did that, Jermaine Pennant volleying us in front after 84 seconds, when he capitalized on a Claude Davis mistake. We were two clear before the half hour mark, Henri Saivet beating the high line of the Derby defence and rounding Bywater before slotting calmly into the empty net. We had to wait until half an hour into the second half to seal the points, Lee Martin's 74th minute free-kick curling into the top corner, before a Kristajic own goal three minutes later put us four goals clear. That was fine and all well and good, but the thing that upset me was the fact we conceded twice in the last seven minutes so that the scoreline flattered the visitors, but three points is three points and we got back on track

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I had been invited to take part in a celebrity golf challenge, which saw pairs of celebrities take on members of the public for charity. My partner was going to be Alan Brazil, but he couldn't make it due to his radio commitments, so I asked the organisers to pick a partner for me. Imagine my surprise when I got a phone call telling me I had a partner, who turned out to be former England cricketer Ian Botham. Beefy was good at golf, so I was pleased to have a legend as my partner.

My good mood at having Botham as my partner rubbed off on the team, as we travelled up to Teeside to face Roy Keane's Sunderland. This was one game I did expect a tough test in, but in the end we were not tested at all, as we ran out with a comfortable 3-0 victory. Two goals in four first half minutes from Mika Vayrynen and Jermaine Pennant sent us on our way, while Mika Aaritalo's goal ten minutes into the second half secured the points and sent us into third place in the Premiership.