Free-kick magician Twine in fine company

Scott Twine's free-kick against Watford was his sixth goal of the season

When Scott Twine lashed home City's equaliser at Vicarage Road in the last game before the international break, it cemented his position as the most prolific free-kick taker in the EFL over the past seven years.

It got me thinking how many other dead-ball specialists I could recall in my 58 years of supporting the club.

While he didn't earn his reputation with us [he only played 12 games in 1973-74], I was minded to recall the late Ernie Hunt who earned notoriety when playing for Coventry in 1970 with the famous 'donkey kick' set up for him by Willie Carr and, fortunately, captured by the Match of the Day cameras in the days when not every game was covered.

Such was the audacity of the manoeuvre the FA immediately outlawed it!

Roll the clock forward a few years and with City in the top flight the fans had the pleasure of seeing the late Norman 'Bite Your Legs' Hunter gracing the Ashton Gate turf. Yes, he could tackle but he could also strike a ball with venom.

He only scored four goals in his three seasons at the club and one free-kick sticks in the memory from September 1978 when his rocket shot into the roof of the net gave the Everton goalkeeper no chance. As striking as the shot was, the fact his boot also flew off in the direction of the goal made it all the more memorable.

From 1984-89, Alan Walsh made almost 300 appearances for the club and became the Robins' fifth highest scorer of all time with 99 goals. Many of those were free-kicks struck with aplomb and the same could be said of defenders Darren Barnard and Mickey Bell in subsequent years.

These days free-kicks, Twine apart, appear less blood-and-thunder powerfully-struck efforts and more an opportunity to demonstrate what has been rehearsed on the training ground.

I have to go back to the 2008 Championship play-off semi-final first leg at Selhurst Park and that precision passing routine which saw the ball find its way to Louis Carey to score the opening goal. In the second leg of that fixture my mind has just recalled a more traditional powerful effort from Michael McIndoe which secured City's place in the play-off final.

Meanwhile, it was good to see former City starlet Alex Scott actually make the bench for England's game against Albania. He seemed to get poster boy attention in the build-up to England's two games but didn't get a kick.

England coach Thomas Tuchel's record cannot be questioned but why, for the game against Serbia, could he not have included Scott on the bench rather than have an extra goalkeeper?

Furthermore, what was there to learn about what 35-year-old Jordan Henderson is capable of when bringing him on ahead of other younger players who are even closer to selection than the Guernsey Grealish?