Elevenses - Kevin Davies goes down in history

Published: 13 Oct 2010 - 11:09:11

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Is 20 minutes in an England shirt at Wembley something you can dine out on for eternity? For Kevin Davies' sake let's hope so.

The 'Beast of Bolton' came on for Peter Crouch last night and immediately set about putting himself about.

After 15 minutes of frantic scurrying he did what he does best...enter the book for dangerous use of the elbow while challenging for a header.

Soon after he threw a boot at a cross and came pretty close to scoring...and to knocking the Montenegro goalkeeper into the middle of next season. Thankfully, and sensibly, the referee kept his red card in his pocket.

But Davies' England adventure wasn't quite over. There were press duties to fulfill and he put in a superb performance to Sky Sports cameras.

"It was brilliant. From the first moment I arrived, I've enjoyed every minute," Davies said.

"I worked really hard in training trying to make an impression and I think I did that after the manager threw me on for the last 20 minutes to try and win the game. We didn't quite do that but I'm delighted to win a cap."

With that the oldest England debutant for 60 years was done for the night and presumably back home to a proud wife carrying a Montenegro shirt and an England cap in his bag.

But Elevenses can't help but question the whole point of the Davies exercise. Did Fabio Capello really expect him to come on and score the winner, or was he just trying to make the point that this England team is not a closed shop for the big boys?

And if he never picks him again, which Elevenses would suggest is fairly likely, what exactly has been achieved here?

With Andy Carroll waiting in the wings it all seems like a bit of a waste of time. And it feels a lot like something Graham Taylor might have done.

Any chance we could have an England cap too?