HE played in the Premier League and was capped more than 30 times by England.
But Kieron Dyer has never experienced the sensation he felt after Ryan Boot’s stoppage-time penalty save for Chesterfield on Tuesday night.
The Spireites coach and former Newcastle United man was so caught up in the emotion of the moment like many in the crowd of 8,661 at the SMH Group Stadium that he jumped up and got light-headed.
He told the Derbyshire Times: “Our bench went absolutely crazy, so crazy that I had head rush and started getting dizzy and I had to sit back down,
Chesterfield get the fans off their seats in the thrilling win over Grimsby Town. Picture by Brian Eyreplaceholder image
Chesterfield get the fans off their seats in the thrilling win over Grimsby Town. Picture by Brian Eyre
"I’ve never experienced that before in my whole career, including playing.
"The elation I felt and the relief. It was overwhelming.”
When the euphoria had died down after the 2-1 win, assistant manager Gary Roberts jokingly reminded Dyer of an altogether different spot kick experience for Boot earlier this season.
It came in the Vertu Trophy against Liverpool U21s when he was only to keep out only one of 12 penalties as the Spireites lost 11-10 on spot-kicks.
Chesterfield first team coach Kieron Dyer. Photo by Pete Norton/Getty Imagesplaceholder image
Chesterfield first team coach Kieron Dyer. Photo by Pete Norton/Getty Images
Mind you, he did score one at the other end.
“Neither of the keepers couldn’t really get anywhere near the penalties that night,” smiled Dyer.
"Ryan was obviously saving it for the most important games coming up and fair credit to him. He has been such a great pro for a keeper who hasn’t played all season and he was always there for Zach (Hemming), warming up with him, encouraging him, giving him tips. There were even times after games he was helping with the kit, putting boots in the skip.
"On the flip side of that you could see how ecstatic Zach was when he made the save against Grimsby.”
After a run of three shut-outs and two penalty saves since getting into the team, Boot looks a shoo-in for another start at Fleetwood on Saturday.
Added Dyer: “The gaffer tells all our players, stay patient because in football things can change in a heartbeat. Ryan has come in and been brilliant."
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