BANKS BACKS ROBINSON TO BOUNCE BACK

Robinson - fresh start.

England legend Gordon Banks has backed Paul Robinson to bounce back with his fresh start at Blackburn following disappointment last season for club and country.

Robinson was dropped from the Tottenham side and lost his place as first-choice England goalkeeper but is back in Fabio Capello's squad for this week's friendly against Czech Republic.

Banks believes David James is the in-form stopper and deserves the number one jersey at the moment, but the 1966 World Cup winner said: "I was a bit disappointed in the way Paul Robinson was treated. He had a couple of off games but I didn't think he deserved to get dropped because he'd been playing reasonably well until then.

"The finger is always pointed at goalkeepers when they make a mistake and I think that's harsh when other players in front have probably made worse ones."

Robinson's confidence appeared to be affected by his air kick against Croatia when a bobble deceived him.

"It affected his confidence," added Banks at the launch of the New Football Pools.

"He's got the talent, given the chance he'll probably come back to form. You have to push it out of your mind.

"That's what my coach said to me back in my early days at Chesterfield. If you make a mistake you've got to get your concentration back straight away because there'll be another shot or header coming in a few seconds.

"It's not easy but he's got to completely forget about the errors he's made. But it's a new season."

Banks also feels Manchester United youngster Ben Foster is a long-term option for England.

"The one I like, he looked a good goalkeeper, is Foster at Manchester United," he added.

"He actually played a game for England and to me looked good. If he gets Premier League football I think he's the one we should be looking out for."