AS there's obviously something of the knight about Newcastle United at the moment, how about Sir Clive Woodward for the next manager? Just about everyone else has been tipped, other than Gazza, who is just starting to sip a fresh brew in his Boston tea party.

One of the tackier tabloids even tipped George Graham. "Geordie George" screamed the large print, although it looked like a clear case of someone thinking of a good headline and asking the reporter to invent a story to go with it.

Swapping one knight for another might at least offer the pretence of respectability in a sport which prefers to swim with the sewer rats, as again underlined by the sacking of Sir Bobby by a man not fit to lace his boots.

Even to someone with a marginal interest in football it has been obvious for a year that prolonging Robson's career beyond his 70th birthday was bound to end in tears.

He must have shed a few because he still cherished the dream of bringing some silverware to St James' Park, and therein lies the real sadness of his shabby departure.

Yet he remained totally dignified after being shown the door, underlining that in his own special way he has outlived his usefulness to a game which no longer acknowledges dignity as a desirable commodity.

SO WHY does Woodward wish to get involved in football? He has always been a bit wacky and it's not totally surprising that he should walk away on realising that not everyone would fall automatically into line with his plans for rebuilding his all-conquering World Cup winners.

But it's disappointing to find that he wants to cash in on his friendship with Southampton chairman Rupert Lowe, who so despicably blamed the press after sacking his manager two games into the season.

Presumably Woodward wants to be a Saint as well as a Sir, but he is not going to become the new manager. He will initially accept a lesser role with a view to moving up to something much grander.

Perhaps success has given him delusions, but it's sad how quickly the glory of Sydney last November has faded with Lawrence Dallaglio becoming the fifth player with England captaincy experience to retire from international duty just before Woodward dropped his bombshell.

So now the scene is set for the Newcastle duo of Rob Andrew and Jonny Wilkinson to take over.

With coaches of the quality of Andy Robinson to support him, Andrew would be the ideal England manager, but the timing is far from ideal.

He is contracted to the Falcons until 2007 and faces a big season, having just recruited players with 283 international caps between them with a view to making an impact in the top tier of European competition.

Andrew was badly let down by the Twickenham hierarchy a couple of years ago when he was commissioned to draw up a blueprint into the future structure of the game, which was then ignored.

But that was more a reflection of the level of inertia in the corridors of power than of Andrew's ability, and he is certain to be among the top three candidates to take over from Woodward.

Nor is the timing perfect for Jonny to take on the captaincy as he continues to feel his way back after his operation. But the signs are that he is fine, and while he might still be young he is a couple of years older than Will Carling when he took over the captaincy at the start of a long period of success.

IF CLIVE Woodward was worth a knighthood, the time cannot be far away before we start referring to Dame Kelly Holmes. The look of astonishment in her eyes as she won the Olympic 800 metres will remain the enduring image of the Athens Games, and after that her perfect tactics, coupled with her new-found finishing kick, made the 1,500 metres victory almost a formality.

When Ann Packer won the 800 metres at Tokyo in 1964, David Coleman's commentary included the memorable phrase "what a consolation" following the failure of her fiance Robbie Brightwell in the 400 metres. It could equally have applied this time following Paula Radcliffe's failure as she was considered the one banker for athletics gold.

Thanks to Kelly and the sprint relay squad we won three, and what a bonus the relay men provided.

The one thing for which they could be relied upon in the past was to drop the baton, but this time they had rehearsed religiously and it was their superior hand-overs which saw them topple the apparently invincible Americans.

For the surprise as well as the sheer drama, their victory just shades that of the coxless four as the supreme moment of the Games. But Dame Kelly's double is what we will still remember in 20 years' time.

She is also the figurehead we need to utilise if we are to get the public behind the 2012 London Olympic bid.