Graham Taylor Documentary: “Do I Not Like That – The Final Chapter”

The documentary “Do I Not Like That – The Final Chapter” follows Graham Taylor, and his disastrous attempt to lead England through qualification to World Cup ‘94.

The documentary is now infamous for all kinds of reasons. Taylor’s use of the phrase “Do I not like that”. Phil Neal emerging as the ultimate Yes Man. Ronald Koeman escaping a red card and then destroying us with a free kic. San Marino putting one past us after seven seconds. And of course the swearing, which seemed like a big deal in 1994, but now barely registers.

The documentary is available on YouTube in 14 parts, which I’ve embedded sequentially below so you can watch online:

Hard to know what to think fifteen years later. I was young at the time and had fallen in love with football (and the England team) as a result of our performances at Italia ‘90. I couldn’t wait to see England play in a World Cup again, and it seemed to me that Graham Taylor was to blame for that not happening. I remember being very very angry, and this documentary did nothing to change my mind.

But watching now I mostly feel sympathy for Graham Taylor. He made some poor decisions, and had no clue about public relations and how to present himself to the media. But he was also desperately unlucky, dealing with injuries to key players like Alan Shearer, Stuart Pearce and Paul Gascoigne, a fair bit of injustice in the Holland game and a hostile press that couldn’t wait to see him fail.

If I was desperate for England to qualify, then I can’t even begin to imagine how Taylor was feeling.

Still… part of me wonders if maybe the results might have been better if the camera hadn’t been there. Here’s what Taylor told The Guardian in 2006 when asked if he regretted the documentary:

Q: If you had your time again would you take part in that Channel 4 documentary?

Taylor: That was planned in the event of England qualifying for the 1994 World Cup. In effect it was to show what the England manager’s job was other than when internationals were going on. A decision to go ahead was made six months beforehand. I made the decision and then we lost to Norway and Poland, which opened up the possibility we may not qualify and changed the angle of the documentary.

So as with Euro 2008, the failure to qualify seems to have its roots in an arrogant assumption that we definitely would.