RICHARD BUTCHER (2002-MAY 2005, SEPTEMBER 2005-OCTOBER 2005 AND 2009-PRESENT)

SIGNED FROM KETTERING TOWN, OLDHAM ATHLETIC (LOAN) AND NOTTS COUNTY

Back in the days before Kettering Town was full of racists and a Chairman who talks about as much sense as a man with a closed up gimp mask, the Poppies and the Imps did actually get on. They faced in other in friendlies a few times and were generally friendly to each other. However, the Poppies were far from happy with the Imps due to a technicality.

Keith Alexander had been tracking Kettering's Butcher for some time and when the news came that Kettering couldn't pay their players anymore due to financial difficulties, Alexander took full advantage of a legal technicality, meaning that as long as Butcher gave Kettering a 14 day notice, he was free to leave Rockingham Road.

Butcher quickly linked up with the Imps and although he wasn't spectacular, he formed a decent midfielder partnership with Peter Gain, just as well they got on because Keith certainly liked  playing just them in midfield. A few decent goals here established him as a regular first team member. However, it wasn't until the following season saw him become arguably City's most valuable midfielder as he scored stunning goal after stunning goal.

He seemed to be having his own personal goal of the season competition and scored what has been my personal favourite goal watching City, a 40 yard screamer against Mansfield in the second minute to give City a memorable victory.

Everything seemed to be going well for Butcher until an injury kept him out for several months and despite returnning straight to the first team when he recovered, he wasn't the same player and the few goals he did score weren't stunners. Having said that, he did score a decent lofted effort in the away leg at Huddersfield in the Playoffs.

Another year later and he'd had another decent season, but still wasn't a brilliant player. He did  score now and then but wasn't as impressive as he had been before his injury. This continued for Butcher but he was helpless at City failed in the Playoffs three times before he announced he was leaving in the summer of 2005, trying his hand at going into League One with Oldham Athletic. His time there was considerable less successful as he was made a hate figure amongst the Oldham fans and he returned to Sincil Bank on loan for a month, scoring a brilliant volley against Orient before returning.

He left Oldham to go to Peterborough and then onto Notts County. Despite scoring one goal every four games for the Magpies, he was against singled out as one the reasons that they were regularly seen towards the bottom of the table. He was released at the end of last season and Peter Jackson wasted no time in snapping him up.

Four months into the new season and Butcher isn't making waves, his performances have become, for a lazy of a better word, passionless. He has since been dropped from the first team. However,as time goes on he will be better remembered for his first two seasons with City and those stunning goals that he scored.

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