62-cap international was cruelly robbed of Ipswich Town chance – Charlton Athletic & Bolton Wanderers witnessed his class.

When Ipswich Town ran out of defensive cover at the start of the 2005–06 season, they were relieved to be able to bring in an experienced defender on loan as a substitute.

Lazio first welcomed Mark Fish to Europe in 1996, but he only stayed in Rome for a year before joining Bolton Wanderers in the Premier League.

Bolton were relegated at the end of his first season, but he remained until 2000, becoming a cult hero among fans. However, the club was unable to reach an agreement on a new contract with him, and he left for Charlton Athletic in 2000 for £700,000, leaving a bad taste in his mouth due to a disagreement with the Trotters’ manager, Sam Allardyce. He remained with Charlton for the following five years, making more than 100 games.

Mark Fish looked like an excellent choice for Ipswich to loan

At the start of the 2005-06 season, Ipswich Town required defensive coverage. They were among the favourites to win promotion after finishing third in the Championship the previous season, and their season began with a 1-0 victory over Cardiff City.

However, when defender Jason De Vos was injured, they required immediate cover, and Fish, who had recently become available, suited the bill. This was, after all, a man who had made over 200 Premier League and Championship appearances for Bolton and Charlton but had fallen out of favour at The Valley, appearing only seven times for Charlton during the 2004-05 season.

He was also a successful international player, winning the 1996 African Cup of Nations with South Africa and made 62 appearances for his country.

Fish’s Ipswich debut turned out to be the end of his playing career

Fish made his Ipswich debut just a day after the club announced his arrival, travelling back to London to face Queens Park Rangers. However, his Ipswich debut was his only appearance in an Ipswich shirt, and it did not even last 90 minutes. QPR had already taken the lead just before halftime when Fish clashed with QPR striker Paul Furlong. Rangers added a second goal shortly after, leading 2-0 at the break, but Fish did not return for the second half. Rangers won the match 2-1.

Fish’s injury proved to be career-ending. He’d suffered a severe cruciate ligament injury, effectively ending his loan with Ipswich, and after announcing his retirement from the game in August 2005, an attempt to return to the game in South Africa with Jomo Cosmos, the club where he’d begun his career, in 2007 failed due to insufficient fitness levels. Ipswich may possibly have paid for Fish’s horrific injury, which terminated his career. They began the 2005-06 season as favourites for promotion back to the Premier League, but finished 15th in the table, 19 points from a play-off spot. Football is a game of tiny margins, and this proved to be a loan that didn’t do anybody any good.

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