Jeepers Keepers: Martin Lipton's verdict on the goalies vying for England's No1 spot

By Martin Lipton in Mirror Football Blog

Published 23:00 07/10/09

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The contenders
Robert Green
Age 29
Caps 7
Debut v Colombia May 2005

David James 
Age 39 
Caps 48
Debut v Mexico March 1997

Paul Robinson
Age 29
Caps 41
Debut v Australia February 2003

Ben Foster
Age 26
Caps 2
Debut v Spain February 2007

Joe Hart 
Age 22
Caps 1
Debut v Trinidad and Tobago June 2008

Decision-making
Green: Seems to know when to come or stay and rarely caught in no man’s land. Solid and reliable. 8

James: Been around the block so many times and uses that experience well. Outstanding club form. 8

Robinson: The bad days have helped him hone his abilities but having to do too much work for Blackburn. 7

Foster: Suffering a crisis of confidence at the moment and not trusting his own judgement as he would like. 6

Hart: Looks nervous and hesitant and that gives off the wrong vibes to his defenders. 5

Shot-stopping:
Green: Not a man for the flashy saves but unusual to see him beaten by one he should stop. 7

James: Can make world-class stops seem easy. Still a brilliant athlete even at his advanced age. 8

Robinson: Will stop anything to his left but struggled to his right, especially down low where he seems slow to react. 6

Foster: Either brilliant or the opposite, depending on the day. Made match-winning, sensational stop against Arsenal. 7

Hart: Can be sloppy, as demonstrated at Burnley on Saturday. Must become more certain in his handling. 5

Kicking
Green: Has made the odd rick but basically reliable and able to launch the ball a long way. 8

James: Fantastic striker of the ball, as true as anybody. Has learned the hard way not to take risks.  8

Robinson: Will always be linked with that nightmare in Zagreb but actually a solid kicker. 7

Foster: Looked brilliant at Watford but struggled already this season and paid the price in a United shirt. 6

Hart: Has been twitchy on occasions but normally sufficiently sound enough for defenders to stay calm. 7

Penalties
Green: Saved three on the bounce at the start of the 2007-08 season and fancies himself to make a big one. 9

James: Didn’t get a hand on any of Portugal’s in 2004 and has never saved one on England duty. 7

Robinson: Like James, was helpless against Portugal in 2006 but did save one against Spain in 2004 friendly. 7

Foster: Top class spot-kick stopper and uses all the tricks at his disposal, including that DVD against Spurs last year. 9

Hart: As good at scoring them as saving them and plenty of England under-21 practice this summer. 8

Gaffe-factor
Green: Calm, unflappable temperament is a plus and rarely makes big blunders, to give his defenders confidence. 8

James: Forget the “Calamity“ label, James is normally a class act. But history suggests a susceptibility. 7

Robinson: Made too many mistakes under Steve McClaren and eventually paid the price. Better now but hard to forget. 6

Foster: Ask any United fan - or Fergie - and the answer is clear. Making too many errors and needs to sort himself out. 5

Hart: Seems far too nervous and all the little errors add up to too many bigger ones. Too soon for him now. 5 

Total
Green: 40
James: 38
Robinson: 33
Foster: 33
Hart: 30

Who do you think should start on goal for England? Let us know by leaving a comment below

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