Enckelman vows to put blunder behind him

Peter Enckelman will long be remembered for his bizarre and costly blunder in the Birmingham derby, but the Aston Villa goalkeeper today insisted he just wants to bury the memory by getting back out on the pitch.

Goalkeeping errors always look bad, and Enckelman’s almost ranks up there with Gary Sprake who, playing for Leeds in 1970s, threw the ball into his own net against Liverpool.

Then, the Liverpool fans immediately burst into a rendition of ‘Careless Hands’, but it was careless feet as far as Enckelman was concerned.

His moment of footballing horror came when he let Olof Mellberg’s throw-in roll under his boot and referee David Elleray ruled it had got a touch on the way into the net.

Enckelman said on Aston Villa’s official website, www.avfc.co.uk: “It was a freak accident, but I did not touch the ball.

“I want to get out there. I’m already looking forward to getting out there and working again. First of all on the training field, then on Sunday playing the game against Everton.

“I can understand the fans’ disappointment and I am sorry for my mistake. I’m not out to prove any points, all I’m hoping to do is do my job, give 100% and hopefully come off after 90 minutes with three points in the bag.”

Explaining the incident, which saw Villa’s hopes of a fightback collapse and Birmingham eventually win the game 3-0, he added: “I just wanted to control it quickly and get on with things.

“We were chasing the game and I wanted to get play going quickly. The next thing I know, the ball’s going underneath my foot and into the goal.

“What happened was a freak accident. I could go out and receive 100 throw-ins and that wouldn’t happen again.

“At the time, all you realise is that it’s gone into the goal. Obviously it should have been a corner, but the referees given it and it was 2-0 then. But I’m convinced I didn’t touch it.”

Villa manager Graham Taylor claimed the Finnish goalkeeper did not know the rules of the game, saying: “His head-in-hand reaction gave the impression that he had touched it.”

But Enckelman denied that today, adding: “I know the rules – a throw-in cannot go straight in.”

More seriously, after his error Enckelman was goaded and slapped by a Birmingham fan during one of three pitch invasions at St Andrew’s.

Enckelman said: “Unfortunately one of them came up and slapped me around the ears.

“There is nothing I can do about it. All I can do is leave it to the stewards and police and let them deal with it.”

Villa boss Taylor admitted he and the players will shoulder the blame for the 3-0 defeat in the first league derby between the bitter rivals for 16 years.

He said: “There’s bound to be a backlash. It would be silly for me to think people are going to go home and be quite happy.

“Whatever they will do it’s going to read 3-0 and no one’s going to explain how the goals happened.

“Football is results-oriented, so to have a result like this against your local rivals, especially after so many years, couldn’t be worse.

“The Villa fans have given the Birmingham fans stick for 16 years so they are not going to like it if they get some in return now, and so they are obviously going to blame myself and the players.”

Taylor also warned that Enckelman will never be allowed to forget his own goal.

He added: “We now have to follow a rule I have made throughout my career and allow yourself 24 hours to sulk or be miserable and then get on with it, and that must apply especially to Peter Enckelman.

“He’s very, very low and it’s always going to live with him and he’s always going to be reminded of it in this city.”