Marsh Mellow On Future

Disgraced pundit talks to the The Onion Bag

Marsh: Happier times

Thamesmead

Toon Army: Sick joke

The removal men left late on Friday evening after having delivered the final possessions of Rodney Marsh to his new top floor (luxury pent house as he insists on calling it) council flat in Thamesmead south east London. "It's not exactly Isleworth," he says, a whimsical smile creeping across his face, "but I'll tell you what, Thamesmead is up and coming. Soon this place will be worth a fortune."

Since Marsh was sacked by Sky for the now infamous "Toon Army" gag he told live to an audience of hundreds on the never popular Sky Sports phone in show "You're On Sky Sports", he has been forced to scale down and moved across the city while he considers his future.

Buster

The first items to be unpacked were his photos, which now adorn the mantelpiece in his tiny living room. Pictures of the former QPR and Man City favorite next to giants of the stage and screen such as Jim Davidson and Bernard Manning, plus fellow ex-sportsmen, footballer Frank Worthington, tennis star Buster Motrum and the like, gently vibrate to the beat of the excessively loud hip hop music from the flat downstairs.

On his brand new coffee table, flat packed from Argos, he has scattered (perhaps for my benefit) nearly a dozen letters of support and good wishes for his plight. Among the names on the correspondence are old friends of Marsh's, Margaret Thatcher, and of course Big Ron Atkinson.

Swollen

"I've been overwhelmed by the response from my fans." He says, his chest swelling with pride. "You might say engulfed."

As he speaks he is sitting in a poorly stuffed armchair looking through the French windows opening out to the his tiny balcony (rooftop terrace as he calls it) overlooking the greyscale landscape. Between the other high rises, you can just make out the Thames... on a good day. This rarely capped England international cuts a forlorn figure.

Tide

On the future, Marsh is uncertain. "I've had a couple of offers. Craig Bellamy says he needs a new public relations officer, and Talksport radio want me to do a late night phone in show with Ron Atkinson."

But Marsh is in no rush to decide. "Lets wait 'till things settle down. The waters are choppy and the tide is still high. Once this whole Tsunami thing has blown over I'll pop my head out and see how much damage is done."

Duffman