FLETCHER MOSS RANGERS

This sounds like a local lads club and indeed it is, but the Fletcher Moss Rangers have 17 teams, sadly no women's teams at the moment, but in South Manchester the club is developing its reputation.

now a community club, they were formed in 1986 and have supplied players such as Wes Brown, Danny Welback, Ravel Morrison, Cameron Borthwick-Jackson and Tyler Blackett. Most recently it has been Marcus Rashford who has made the headlines at Old Trafford. He plays for England U16 and U18 and has made the headlines in the past few weeks. BTW this badge looks a lot like City's!

 Marcus has scored twice on his debut in the Europa cup against the "mathematical" Midtjylland from Denmark, (see previous blog on the way the club runs). At 18 years old he also scored twice in three minutes to help the Red Devils beat Arsenal 3-2 at the weekend.

He is the youngest ever scorer for United in European Competition beating a record held by the legendry George Best. He is also the third youngest scorer for United in the PL behind Racheda, Welbeck and Lingard. Jesse Lingard having come from Fletcher Moss Rangers FC too.

The South Manchester club are held together by chairman and lorry driver Rob Jamieson, who gives his time voluntary to keep the club afloat. With the number of starlets making their way to United, the club should be in fine fettle but it needs financing to help build a club house and 3G pitches.

With the conveyor belt being so lucrative, I cannot see United not wanting to develop the Academy at FMRFC!

A COMBINATION AND AN ALLIANCE

'After drawing your attention to the birth of Manchester United, Newton Heath began their existence playing in the Football Alliance. The Football League had formed in 1888 with 12 teams from the Midlands and North. The Football Alliance started in 1889 in competition, surviving for three seasons only, as the central organisation was poor and teams did not fulfil fixtures. Travelling, cancellations and finances provided obstacles.

12 clubs joined the Alliance as a rival to the Football League with teams mainly from the North West and Midlands. Original members were: Birmingham St Georges, Newton Heath, Grimsby Town, Long Eaton Rangers, Nottingham Forest, Crewe Alexandra, Darwen, Bootle, Small Heath, Sunderland Albion The Wednesday (Sheffield) and Walsall Town Swifts.

The Wednesday, Stoke and Nottingham Forest were champions in those first three seasons.

By 1892, the Football League and Alliance merged to form two Football League divisions. Stoke had already joined the FLeague in 1890-1 followed by Darwen in 1891-2. 

The Football Combination, not to be confused with the more well known "reserve" division titled the Football Combination in the south, was formed in 1888-9 and lasted for one season before folding and starting again in 1890-91 until 1911.

In its second incarnation the Combination included Burton Swifts, Chester, Denton, Derby St Luke's, Gorton Villa, Hyde, Leek, Macclesfield Town, Northwich Victoria, Stafford County, Witton and Wrexham.

Five of these early members ended up in the Football League and you should be able to work those out fairly easily. Glossop North End, who joined the Combination later also went to the FLeague. 

Gradually more Welsh teams and FL reserves sides joined the Combination such as Everton Reserves who were the Combination champions for seven years out of the first ten or so seasons. By 1911, only Wrexham Reserves of the original clubs survived. Since 1912, other new local leagues were formed to accommodate the clubs jettisoned as the Combination was disbanded.

By 1890, Chester, Denton, Derby St Luke's, Gorton Villa, Hyde, Leek, Macclesfield Town, Northwich Victoria, Stafford County, Witton and Wrexham were in the league. A few of these were linked to present day clubs.

For those of you not comfortable your English and Welsh geography, these teams lurked in the Greater Manchester and North Wales region bordering Cheshire.

By the time the Combination folded in 1911, Whitchurch had joined and became Champions, Bangor and Oswestry United had also joined in, as well as other teams from the North-west area and only Wrexham's reserves from the original founder members supported the Combination.

And then I discover this blog from Australia........

http://gottfriedfuchs.blogspot.com.au/2013/05/the-football-combination-1888.html

MAN'S BEST FRIEND SAVES UNITED

In 1878, Manchester United football club was formed in a suburb of Manchester. Well in those days they came under the name of Newton Heath Lancashire and Yorkshire Railway FC and they were not very good. They entered the FA Cup and refused to play extra time after a 2-2 draw with Fleetwood Rangers and hence they were disqualified. They then were admitted to the top tier of the football league in 1892 finishing last, so they had to play a "test match" against Small Heath (later to become Birmingham City) who were second division champions. They won.

The following year they were last again and were the first first division team to lose a "test match", this time against Liverpool and so became the first club to be relegated.

By 1901 the club was in debt to the tune of £3000 (a bit like now) and decided to hold a bazaar to raise money. Close rivals Manchester City had the generosity to donate money to the appeal but the event hardly raised a penny once the cost of hiring the hall was taken into account.

Newton Heaths's captain, Harry Stafford, took his dog, Major, along to St Jame's Hall in the city, with a collection box attached to its neck. The dog ran away and was found on March 1st by local Brewer John Henry Davies, who liked the dog. He heard the sad tale of Newton Heath's financial predicament and persuaded two other businessmen to invest in the club, so by 1902, they changed the name of the club to Manchester United and the rest is history.

More about the Football Alliance tomorrow. Bet you can't wait!

PARALYMPICS HOPES

David Cantoni won't mean much to you but in Western Australia he is the state's Paralympic Football coach and he has named a medal, annually awarded to the most outstanding State footballer with a disability. 

Chris Barty, a former wheelchair basketball player, with cerebral palsy, turned to soccer in 2011 and plays in goal for Joodana Blues and the State. He held the medal after leading his Paralympic team to its first national championships in 2012 and was named goalkeeper of the tournament. He made his international debut in April 2012 in the AFC Dream Asia Celebral Palsy tournament in Abu Dhabi.

The national team was founded in 1998 and competed in the 2000 Paralympics. They also take part in the CPISRA Intercontinental Cup and go by the name of Pararoos!                     

Not yet at this high standard is Brent Dingle, a mild sufferer of cerebral palsy, who would like to compete at the higher level. Living in Ayr, Queensland, his parents fly him to Brisbane every few weeks to play football with other disabled footballers in the city's Paralympic Football Programme. The grade 4 pupil, who attends a local primary school, clearly gains much from this interaction, so his parents are running a scheme to bring more disabled youngsters together locally and of course they have to pay for his regular flights to Brisbane.

Local organisations have got together to hold a "fitness boot camp" over the recent weekend and they raised $900 to fund a programme for the Ayr disabled footballers.

Meanwhile, the British Paralympic Football team is preparing itself for the Rio Paralympics having come fifth in their qualifying tournament, the World Championships, in 2015.

There have been other blogs on disability football which you can access by using the search box.

THE FIFA MUSEUM

It's a long way round the world, but where ever you are these days FIFA news can be accessed. The BBC has various news items relating to FIFA! Good and bad FIFA may be, but here is a little good that will interest you. Use the BBC link below and enjoy a visit to the FIFA Museum in Switzerland. It will absorb 4 minutes of your relaxed time.

Select www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football for Richard Conway's short tour OR this may get you there to the official website;

https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=www.fifamuseum.com&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en-gb&client=safari

 and look for the article on the Museum.

I HAVE THE MORETON BAY BUG

If you have a taste for the sea then the Moreton Bay bug is something you should experience. The bay sits adjacent to Brisbane, the seas are nutritious and sub tropical and the bugs enormous. The picky below shows one of the beauties in it's natural state and then prepared for the lunch table. It is about the size of plate!

A friend of mine today tucked into a bug or two and clearly enjoyed the experience. He did admit to setting the plate off with chips and various dressings too. Quite rightly he chose to taste the bug which is a popular snack in Queensland. 

Moreton Bay is a town on the Queensland coast that supports a successful North Premier League Queensland football team. The league is run by Football Queensland and is a top tier state competition at level 2 in the national pyramid. There. are between 12-14 teams competing annually, depending on who has been able to gather funds to support their venture. The top teams have play offs after playing each other twice through the season and Moreton Bay United were Premiers in 2015, and made the National Premier League semis.

4 teams are located in Brisbane, Northern Fury play in Townsville, FNQ Heat in Cairns, Palm Beach Sharks play on the Gold Coast, there is Redlands, SWQ Thunder are at Toowoomba, Western Pride play in Ipswich, and there is the Sunshine Coast team.

Five teams have UK coaches with Paul Arnison heading the Sunshine Coast squad. Paul, started at Everton as a youth, had several years with Newcastle United (UK) reserves, spent time at Hartlepool, Carlisle (2003-8), Bradford City, Darlington before dropping into non-league football and then emigrating.

He had some success in England with an FA Trophy win in 2011 with Darlington, a runners up with Carlisle as well as seeing them I nto a Conference play off in 2004-5 and then an FL Division 2 title. He also helped the 'Pool to a Third Division Runners up in 2002-3.

FENG SHUI FOR CHANGING ROOMS

'We visited the MCG two days ago and we were shown the inner workings of the magnificent stadium on an official tour. It's not really Lords though but impressive nevertheless and of course very "new". The canteen and changing rooms for the players were drab but functional and since AFL teams have to cram themselves into their relevant dressing rooms, these were like warehouses, impersonal but did leave space for a footy ball to be pumped around at warm up. 

For me they didn't give the cricketer much comfort, a bit like prisoners waiting to fight the lions in the Roman Colosseum; a ramp up to the pitch wide enough for a truck to pass down. The canteen was just as bleak and didn't look as though they did cucumber sandwiches or China cups.

Now I can understand the psychology of providing those facilities for the away team, but not for the home team! Feng shui has a lot to answer for, even in sports' pavilions.

The Millenium Stadium at Cardiff had a bad luck dressing room to the south of the tunnel. For 12 years, teams from the unlucky south lost major finals. In came the local Feng shui man with incense, bells and a Phoenix sun mural by Andrew Vicari to drive away the curse. It worked and Stoke City beat Brentford in a Division 2 play 2-0 the next time round.

Anzhi Makhachkala FC in 2013, played European matches at the FC Saturn Ramenskoye stadium, to which they were banished following a ban at their own ground for previous misdemeanours. They provided leather armchairs for their opponents to sit in before and during half time. This was to soften their opponents, the chairs were meant to create lethargy and calm.

At the Emirates even Arsene has been at it by placing a large wooden cupboard set in the middle of the away dressing room so that most of the room had a blind spot, when the manager was giving his final speech. When anything was placed on top of the block, nobody could see across the room.

When Argentina played Peru in the 1929 Copa America, they were winning 2-0 at half time when a Peruvian official locked them in their dressing. This trick didn't work as the Argies, ever resourceful, climbed out of a window and got back to the pitch for the second half, scoring almost immediately.

John Beck was well known for his tricks and he designed a small , cramped, L shaped away dressing rooms so that players couldn't contact each other easily, flat kick in balls, cold water in the showers and dodgy heating. Cheating? The article below tells of more examples of his gamesmanship.

www.dailymail.co.uk › article-2449842. 

Below, John Beck, master of the dark arts.

Even at White hart Lane, the away changing room is much smaller and less well equipped that the home team's. And why not! It sometimes helps.

AUSSIES GOT THERE FiRST

Records of Australians playing a form of football date back to 1829, but of course football in its basic form has been played in England since the Romans invaded.

St Kilda might claim to have the earliest evidence of a match when the local Grammar School took on Melbourne GS in April 1858. 

A record of Aussie Rules football was written on the 7th August 1858 at Melbourne Cricket Ground, as it was then, between the boys from Melbourne Grammar School and their school rivals, Scotch College. Tom Wills, a local well known cricketer, wanted to encourage the young boys to keep fit in winter and this seemed a very good way of doing it. Wills had grown up amongst Aborigines and had seen their game played with a round ball, known as Marn Grook. Below is a game played in Richmond paddock in 1860 with the mob game in full swing.

The Scotch headmaster, Thomas Smith and John Macadam helped organise the game that had 40 a side, few rules, no boundaries and goals that were half a mile apart. The game latest over three days 7th August, 21 of August and the 4th of September and there were plenty of fights.

In the end the game was drawn1-1 and since then the two schools have competed for what might be regarded as the longest played continuous football match, with the Cordner-Egglestone Football Cup as the trophy. This picture shows a footy match at the MCG.

At the MCG, the cricketers established the ten simple rules for the game on the 17May 1859 and that year Castlemaine (remember the beer?), Geelong and Melbourne University became regular opponents. The English FA codified their "football" laws in 1863. In Australia, a Foot-ball Challenge cup was played for in 1861, a decade before the FA Cup was started.

Other references to Aussie Rules may be found on 12.2.16, 22.6.15 and 17.3.15 blogs.

Here is Wills and the chaps in play.

WALTZING MATILDAS

I promised Eleni that I would do a piece on Womens' Soccer in Australia. We met at the ticket booth for Movin' Melvin Brown, who was performing at the Adelaide Fringe, singing and dancing his way through Otis Redding's life and music. She was charming, checking tickets and clearly enjoyed her soccer. Melvin was "different".

She told me that she played for Adelaide Ladies FC. The Reds, Adelaide ladies nickname, play in the Australian W-League, a league founded in 2008. Only 8 teams play in this ladder but many more women play in smaller competitions. At present Adeaide are fifth in the ladder with 13 points from 12 games. Melbourne City have won 12 in 12 matches and are top.

In order to make a point, she told me that over the weekend Melbourne City Ladies, the W-League champions, were In Abu Dhabi meeting Manchester City Ladies, their sister club. The English won 3-0, but the point was the meeting of the two clubs,who shared training in the luxury of the New York University Sports facility in Abu Dhabi. A good test for both teams.

Melbourne took 15 players on their mini tour with two outsiders coming from Sydney Wanderers' (Keelin Winters) and Seattle Reign's (Rosie Corsie) to boost their numbers.

The first official game took place in September 1921 between North and South Brisbane teams. 10,000 turned up to see the spectacle, a game that many decided more suited to Australia's women than AFL. The women's first international was against New Zealand in 1922 at Miranda, NSW, ending in a 2-2 draw.

The national team has had much success in world tournaments. Originally known as the Socceroos, the women now like to be called the Matilda's.

WE ALWAYS NEED A SECOND CHANCE

It is a quickie today but a goodie. With the news that the FA Cup committee may be considering scrapping cup replays, the BBC has put together a charming video of those goals that wouldn't have happened without a replay. Of course there are plenty of great goals in extra time and of course in normal time, but let's be nostalgic and wallow in these little crackers.

http://www.bbc.com/sport/football/35588745

Without replays the bigger clubs will benefit by not having a fixtures overload. Cup replays and European games clashing has always been an issue. Of course there is no winter break. But why do our clubs struggle in Europe? 

Replays are a massive financial gain for lower clubs who either dream of bringing a big club back to theirs or enjoying a day out at one of the big stadia. 

The FA claims they will re-distribute sponsors' money to smaller clubs to help their financial problems, who in the past have relied heavily on the windfalls of the Cup.

Below Ronnie Radford, a local joiner, celebrates after scoring the winner, a third yarder, for Hereford United against the Toon, to make it 2-1. 

A big goal in a big replay in 1972 after a 2-2 draw at St James' Park. The draw away was a brilliant result and the Bulls deserved to have a stab at Newcastle on their own patch. Extra time and pens at St James' would have knocked the magic out of the tie. The Toon may not have thought the same!

SWEET ADELAIDE

If you happen to be writing a blog overlooking the Adelaide Oval, it would be churlish not to mention this brilliant city, with its cricket stadium, tennis courts and rowing on the River Torrens.

Not so important, probably, to city locals are Adelaide United, an Hyundai A League team, one of ten, competing in the top division of Australian Soccer. 

Founded in 2003, United have been in the A league for 11 seasons and have been "Premiers" once. They won the league but didn't win the final play offs. The club uses the Hindmarsh Stadium, a multi purpose ground owned by the city, which holds around 16.500 fans. The stadium is sponsored by Coopers' Brewery. 

Probably the club's greatest achievement was to qualify in 2008-9 for the FIFA World Club Cup.

In January 2011, United broke the record for the highest score in an A League match when they beat North Queensland Fury 8-1. In that game two players scored hat tricks, Marcos Flores and Sergio van Dijk. This is also a record for the Australian Football Federation. 

Flores started his career in Argentina with the highly respectable Newells Old Boys. He has been round the block a bit and turned out 31 times for United in 2010-11. Van Dijk is of Indonesian origin and played for his country three times.

In 2014, United beat Perth Glory 1-0 to win the FFA Cup. The club holds the record for the fastest goal scored in the AL in 13 seconds by Louis Bains.

Their manager is Guillermo Amor who started his career at Benidorm and played for Barcelona over 300 times and for Spain nearly 40 times at the height of his career, including a European Championship and a World Cup.

He then went to Fiorentina, Villareal and amazingly to Livingstone in Scotland where he concluded his playing career with three games in 2003.

Unkted play Melbourne Victory away this weekend and lying 3rd in the division at the moment should make them favourites to win this tie.

PIRATES OF THE BUNDESLIGA

Watching the Melbourne derby over the weekend, I thought both teams provided an entertaining spectacle until of course the hooligans took over. After struggling yesterday to get a link between the Irish colonising Victoria and the Dublin riots of 1995, I thought it relevant to tell you about the German club FC St. Pauli, based in the Reeperbahn, Hamburg's red light district. Yes, a place where ladies of the night operate.

St Pauli is a genuinely KULT club, with left leaning politics at its heart, social activism prominent, such as raising money for charity, for example the Viva con Aqua de Sankt Pauli, that helps finance development schemes in Cuba and Rwanda. It bans hooliganism, has a large number of female fans and its ground is known as "Das Freudenhaus Der Liga" literally the house of joy, or in some eyes the brothel! Of course the club supports gay rites.

Founded originally in 1899 the club played in the German league from 1910 and has found itself competing successfully in the Bundesliga in recent years. Like many European clubs, it supports a multitude of teams and sports under the club banner. It is a truly community club.

In the 1980s a part of the docks near the ground became news worthy because some working class houses were due to be demolished by the local authorities. Squatters moved in and a mosaic of characters from punk rockers to eco-warriors adopted St. Pauli as their club. The team runs onto the pitch to the tune of AC/DCs Hell's Bells and they play the opposing team's anthem too. When the home team scores a goal Blur's Song 2 is played over the tannoys.

The club and the crowd respect fair play and greets the opposition supporters as guests. No anti-banners are allowed and if the opposing crowd sings anti-St. Pauli songs they are met with applause and sarcasm.

The club flag is the skull and cross bones respecting Hamburg's famous pirate Klaus Stortebeker!

WHEN IRISH EYES ARE SMILING

Port Fairy a small town in Victoria State does not conjure up much evidence of playing the Globe's greatest game, but there is a link and it is with the Irish to supply the tag. 

In 1843, two Irish Protestant settlers, James Atkinson and William Rutledge each purchased over 5,000 acres of land in the Victoria state and named the township Belfast. Atkinson planned the  town which became the largest privately owned town in Australia . Irish immigrants were encouraged to join them and evidence of their influence is still found in the settlement today. 

Rutledge made his money in exporting wool and gold, importing a variety of goods to serve his local clientele. Rutledge's business didn't have total success and he often fell out with the local settlers as he went bankrupt and many of the settlers suffered. One way and another "Billy" rebuilt his fortune, he was part of many institutions in Belfast and was charming enough to be forgiven by most. He died in 1876 and the town was renamed Port Fairy in 1887. 

The tenuous link is with a football match played on February 15 1995 and today is the anniversary of the disastrous international between Terry Venables' England and Jack Charlton's Republic of Ireland  at Landsdowne Road. 1-0 down and being played off the park by the Irish, after only 30 minutes the English looked doomed.

Up stepped the English supporters who started a riot and threw seats and other debris onto the Irish crowd in the tier below. I remember it well, squirming in front of my television as events unfolded. Although the English players appealed to the hooligans to stop, they were in danger of being hurt themselves and captain David Platt narrowly missed being hit by a lump of wood. The players were led off the field by the ref and the game abandoned. 

In their next game after this Irish debacle, England thrashed a Hong Kong Invitation XI away 1-0.

Despite this embarrassment, UEFA allowed England to host the European Championships the following year and actually things went quite well for them. Well, as well as can be expected.

 

NOT A VALENTINE'S TREAT

On the 19th December 2015, I made reference to Derek Dooley of Sheffield Wednesday, losing a leg having been one of our great goal scorers. On Valentine's Day 1953, he was in the form of his life and playing for The Owls in the First Division. In the previous season he had scored 46 times in 30 matches helping the Wednesday to a Second Divison championship by scoring nearly half their goals. 

Dooley had started his career at Sheffield YMCA, then played for Lincoln City in 1946 twice. joining Wednesday next. In two years he scored 61 goals in 62 games.

After 20 games in the First Division he had continued his form with16 goals. Against Preston, Wednesday had lost 1-0 after a Tom Finney goal, but worse to come was that Dooley was taken to hospital at the Preston Royal Infirmary with a double break of his right shinbone.

He sustained the injury colliding at Deepdale, with Preston's goalkeeper George Thompson. After the leg was reset and plastered he left hospital but complained  and a nurse, whom Dooley had playfully asked to sign his plaster cast, noticed that he couldn't feel his toes. The cast was removed and a small scratch on his leg revealed Gas gangrene had set in, which probably entered the abrasion from the soil. An anti-gangrene serum was driven to the hospital that day but it was too late and his leg had to be amputated above the knee four days later. 

When he recovered, Dooley was only 23 years old and he worked at the ground, acted as a journalist,  scouting for talent, handling the switchboard at a club director's bakery, coaching the youth team and running the club lottery. He also helps developed the new Hillsborough over 8 years.

Determined not to be regarded as an invalid, Dooley went on to manage Wednesday in 1971 but fell out with the club when he was sacked in 1973. 

In 1974 he crossed the city and saw the development of Bramall Lane becoming chairman in 1999, when he saw the Blades to return to the Premier League in 2006 and oversaw what was arguably the club's best period in the top flight.

He eventually retired with a Testimonial match between the two city clubs attracting 55,000 supporters who joined in to support him. He was the subject of Eamonn Andrews' "This is Your Life", a ring road in Sheffield was named after him, there is a flagstone dedicated to him at the City Hall "Walk of Fame", he was honoured with the MBE in 2003, Paul Vanstone sculptured a statue of Dooley at Bramall Lane in 2010 and the Wednesday Junior Academy at Crookes bears his name. He died on the 5th March 2008 at 78 years old.

THE PARROT HAS BEEN SICK IN THE PAST.

In The State of Victoria, Australia, I have seen pigeons, seagulls, sparrows and magpies, all similar to British native birds but after centuries of evolution, slightly different. Unlike any British native bird, the Rosella parrot is a beauty which lives happily in suburban gardens, along with its rather less flamboyant neighbours. On a warm "Autumnal" day like today, the Rosellas flit amongst the glorious colours of Australia's garden flowers and despite the fact that they gorge themselves on left out bird food they are certainly not sick.

The footballers' phrase "I'm as sick as a parrot" appears to have been in use since 1978, when it is claimed that Phil Thompson first used the phrase after losing a League Cup Final replay. Some say he shortened an old Scouse phrase, " as sick as a parrot with a rubber beak".

Private Eye magazine used the phrase around the same time and the OEDictionary included a definition too.

When John Bond died in 2012, the Daily Telegraph and various fans forums from Southampton and Norwich City credited him with inventing the term. "Sick as a dog" seems more appropriate. 

The association between parrots and gloom may be traced back to 1682 when the Restoration dramatist Aphra Behn made reference in the comedy "The False Count", in which the maid tells her mistress that she "is as melancholy as a sick parrot". 

I personally haven't read Behn's work but have watched Monty Python broadcast of the "Dead Parrot Sketch" in 1969 when a parrot lying on the bottom of its cage suddenly became world famous.

Having caught up on all the most recent "Archers" episodes through BBC radio podcasts today, I am hoping to keep up to date with the exciting Premier League this weekend and also catch the result of the Hepworth United under 12s league game, assuming that the English weather doesn't scupper the fixture. If it does cause another cancellation, the lads will be as sick as parrots, no doubt.

SO CLOSE TO DERBY AND YET SO FAR

The sight of Geelong's Aussie Rules Football Ground floodlights at Kardinia Park meant we were on Port Phillip Bay and already enjoying the first part of our Australian tour. What better then, than to find out that Melbourne City FC are playing Melbourne Victory in the local derby tomorrow? Victory are current champions and have held the A League title three times since the league was founded in 2004. The first Melbourne Derby took place on October 8th 2010, in front of nearly 26,000 at the AAMI sponsored stadium. Heart won 2-1. We should go.....no chance!

Ten teams take part in the league. Melbourne CIty FC founded in 2009 were once known as Melbourne Heart and changed their name in 2014. Melbourne Victory were founded in 2004 and have coach Kevin Muscat to guide them in front of consistently the largest crowds in the Hyundai A League.

Brisbane Roar (then Queensland Lions), Newcastle Jets, Adelaide United and Perth Glory existed as teams before the A League was formed. Add to these Central Coast Mariners, Sydney FC, Western Sydney Wanderers and New Zealand's Wellington Phoenix, then we have the complete make up of the A League.

I am not sure how successful this Antipodean league is going to be. It has been chugging along quietly for a number of years now but I cannot see any more big cities contributing teams and apart from building a pyramid, perhaps with Geelong and Noosa coming somewhere on the lower scale, the league is not going to take the world of soccer by storm. Here is the A League trophy, typically described tongue in cheek by the Aussies as the "Lavatory Seat".

YOU'LL NOT SEE NOTHING LIKE THE MIGHTY QUINN.

It is sometimes a challenge to keep up to date with this blog, especially when travelling. I might refer to Wifi access, a lack of sensible amounts of electricity coming out the walls, a lack of ideas, too many foreign attractions deflecting me such as Chinese New Year. But today, having published the Ashbourne game late, I found an abundance of ideas in Hong Kong especially at Stanley Bay and in the Daily Mail at the airport (Business Lounge, naturally).

We went to Stanley Bay today with good friends who live in the region. While the ladies shopped, the chaps spent some HK dollars in the Smugglers' Inn, (actually I didn't, Gerrit paid), a British pub overlooking the sandy beach and calm sea. There were plenty of healthy snacks, such as potatoes and tomatoes in liquid form, loaded with vitamin C and to fulfil the five a day requirement we had health giving lagery beer. It looked as though a few ex-pats frequented the pub and there was a photo of their football team on show, a bunch of lads who must have done something special at a recent Phuket FC Tournament. Sounds a bit like a jolly pre-season tour to me! 

Outside the pub my travelling partner claims he saw Nial Quinn taking in a view of the bay. He said it was, I wasn't sure, but "Niall" was a big lad and had bandy legs, so he could well have been a old footballer or just suffering with rickets. "Niall" was too big to sidle up to and politely ask if he was the famous Irish hero.

As coincidences go, Martin Samuel writes today in the Daily Mail that with only 0.73% of the Chinese population speaking English, our pioneer footballers, thinking that they might join the rapidly growing Chinese League, may have communication issues. Mind you, since football is a universal language the lads might let their feet do the talking. 

Not all the Super League clubs are based in the well known and attractive cities, if you can call Beijing's pollution attractive. Chingqing Lifan have only been in existence under this name since 1995. They play way out south-west in Sichuan province which is hardly the centre of the universe. The climate there is not conducive to tiki taka and there is not a lot to do for a young player, making his way in the sport. The Lifan group make motorcycles but two wheels are not much help with thousands of miles to travel to fixtures.

With many hours a day of spare time to kill and sometimes a full day or more, boredom could be a problem. Travelling to away matches, to Chingqing or Yanbian Fude in Yanji, another small city in the north of the country, will certainly eat up the hours, but such journeys are exhausting, as I am finding out. Now where's the Prosecco?

MY OWN PANCAKE DAY

This blog is a day or too late due to wifi circumstances not under my control. Today's menu consists of a glass of Prosecco, a winter beef stew in a small dish and two bits of cake courtesy of the Business Class Lounge, Cathay Pacific, Heathrow Terminal 3.

Not a pancake in sight nor a traditional game of Shrove Tuesday-Ash Wednesday football. I have written about this at length before, (see December 22nd) because it is where the dignified game of soccer has its roots. The "mob" game as it was known still exists in Ashbourne Derbyshire, Workington Cumbria and Kirkwall in Orkney, Scotland. They all have slightly different rules but the result is the same-get a ball shaped thing or a 'ba as the Scots pronounce it, through the opposition goal, which is a milestone at each end of the town.

The game goes through rivers and houses have to board up their windows to prevent damage. There are casualties also, as the Kirkwall Game will reveal.

The Derby match has been played since 1667 at least, although records were lost in a fire. Famous game openers, "turning up the ball", have been Prince Charles, Brian Clough, Sir Stanley Matthews and this year a local who has reached 100 years. See the photo on Bill Milward who played in the game when he was a lad.

The game lasts for two days and starts at 2pm lasting till 10 at night.

SILLY GOALS

I thought that you might like to see some silly goals scored during football matches from a variety of countries.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K5loeV-_4og

The beach ball apparently with a Liverpool club crest on it, was thrown onto the pitch by a young Scouser. It doesn't feature in this lot but some serious "own goals" do and you can have a chuckle.

Have a look at these:-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=khQ1blfwh64

On December 17th, 1955, with Arsenal leading 4-0 against Blackpool, at Highbury, a spectator blew a whistle and Arsenal full-back, Dennis Evans, stopped play in possession of the ball. Thinking the game was over, he smashed it into his own net to celebrate a convincing win. Unfortunately the ref had shouted play on, so the hapless defender notched an own goal. The ref soon blew for full time and the Gunners won, but only by 4-1.

Here's Dennis and his own goalie, Jack Kelsey, at Highbury, a little too close to his own goal for comfort.

OLDIES AND GOALIES.

Following on from the strenuous but exhilarating experience of Walking Football, I read that Barry Richardson at 46, is almost old enough to play in our nets. The cut off is 50 and I am keeping an eye on his progress to see if he might fill our goal, once we enter the Sheffield FA WF League.

Barry stepped out to tend goal at Plymouth Argyle recently when, as sub he had to fulfil his commitment for Wycombe Wanderers. This momentous occasion meant that Barry became the third oldest English league player. Neil McBain holds the record, when at New Brighton, a league side at the time, he helped out in an injury crisis in 1948 at 51 years old.

Sir Stanley Matthews, of course, comes second when at 50 he danced down the right wing for Stoke City in 1965. Dave Bessant was 55 when he sat on the bench for Stevenage in 2014, but he was not summoned.

Barry made his mark after 15 minutes of the match and kept a clean sheet (not easy at 46) the only one at Home Park this season so far. This was his first official outing since breaking a leg in 2005.

Wycombe are cash strapped and do not run a reserve side, so resources run a bit thin. First choice keeper Matt Ingram had been sold to QPR in the recent transfer window, so the "Chairboys" could reduce some of their debt. Second choice keeper Alex Lynch had been recalled from a loan and he suffered an injury early in the game. A youth goalkeeper ready to make his debut, broke a finger n training so up steps Barry. 

Despite his apparent success, Wycombe have signed another keeper on loan.

RUGBY or DINNER? I KNOW WHICH IS THE WINNER

I suspect that dinner will be the winner tonight. Scotland's rugby XV who have barely scored a try at home against England in the past 14 years, are entertaining their closest rivals at Murrayfield this evening. The TV schedule demands an early evening kick off and although most of the crowd will have been drinking all day, that matters nothing to the rugby fraternity, who will pocket the dosh paid out by the television companies and let the drunks have fun. 

On the subject of drunks, I have a pre-drinks' dinner date at 6.30, so my better half will not be impressed if go missing around that time of the evening. The rugby is 40 minutes a half, so there is not chance of watching it through to the bitter end. By the time the match is wrapped up, I shall be onto the puddings.

Football matches (soccer) are 45 minutes per half. Why the difference? When Ebenezer Cobb Morley published the first set of FA laws on December 5th 1863, there was no mention of timings or numbers of players. The officials at the first ever FA meeting used the model of the Sheffield Rules as a guide line, although Sheffield also had no reference to timings or size of teams.

The first known match of 90 minutes duration was an inter city challenge between Sheffield and London, at Battersea Park on March 31st 1866. Nobody can explain why 45 minutes each half was decided, but it may have been due to the departure of the next convenient train north.

By 1871 the laws stipulated that FA Cup matches should be an hour and a half long and since then it has been set in stone.

Peter Seddon in "Football Talk", suggests that the clock face has a lot to do with selecting multiples in sport, as in tennis, 15,30,40 (errr should be 45 of course, but laziness might have changed this?) Convinced?

Arsene Wenger notes that matches have key periods and certainly the first 15 and last 15 minutes of a game are crucial. 8 European Cup Finals have been won in the final 15 minutes and two more have seen decisive equalisers scored with less than 15 to go, setting up extra time.

As many will note, football is a game of six sixths. The famous clock end, Highbury c. 1966. The match v Leeds was called off! Have a look at this www.whoateallthepies.tv › arsenal › the-...

JPT-TODAY THE SECOND COAT

One step from Wembley and the Cod Army take on the Tykes, tonight at 7.45. What a reward for one of these Division One teams, who have spent the past few months in mediocrity, now suddenly they have that famous venue beckoning. It's a dream come true for the players and of course, for their backroom staff, sponsors and most importantly fans! The JPT competition suddenly becomes a worthwhile tournament, when the final is so close and you can almost smell the Wembley turf.

Barnsley are 12th in the division having made a remarkable comeback in the past weeks, so much so that Lee Johnson has been nominated as Manager of the Month. The Tykes have played 28, won 12 and drawn 3, clawing their way from the edge of relegation.

Barnsley have previously been to Wembley for the 1999-00 play off, losing to Ipswich, in what was the last play off before the redevelopment of the national stadium. They then were promoted in 2005-6 to the Premier League defeating Swansea at the Millenium Stadium and in 2008 lost an FA Cup semi-final, after a momentous run beating Liverpool and Chelsea on the way, to Cardiff 0-1 at Wembley. The badge shows a collier and a glass blower.

Fleetwood are less secure with 27 played and 7 wins and 7 draws, lurking 21st in the division, with a threat of dropping down the Division Two. This extra match will not be a distraction though!

Fleetwood have home advantage at Highbury Stadium and Barnsley travel to the north west coastline with a 1-1 draw behind them from the first leg, so no advantage really. I saw the first match and it was average!

The stadium shows signs of much investment and the club has bought a large hotel in Blackpool, for its youth team to "lodge in" and have spent £6m on their new training facilities at Poolfoot Farm where there are 18 training pitches.

Fleetwood club has been to Wembley twice before; 1985 in the FA Vase and then in 2014 in the League Two play off which they won 1-0 over Burton Albion, which sent them to League One.
In 2011-12 the club sold Jamie Vardy to Leicester for £1.7 million (a record non-league sale) after he had helped the club win the Conference and rise to the Football League.

The winners will meet Oxford United, who have had a brilliant cup season so far, at Wembley, on April 3rd. Can't wait.
http://baileyfootballblog.blogspot.co.uk/2014/05/fleetwood-needed-mak-as-play-off.html

CREW CUT

Following on from an embarrassing draw with Crewe Alexandra in the 4th Round of the FA Cup, the previous Saturday, on the 3rd February 1960, Tottenham Hotspur scored a 13-2 victory over their Fourth Division upstarts. Lying 16th in the division, 83 places below Spurs, Alexandra produced a momentous effort in the first game, holding the First Division leaders 2-2. It was a bit of a whipping in the replay with Les Allen, an inside left, scoring 5, Bobby Smith, the bustling centre forward 4, Cliff Jones 3 and Tommy Harmer 1. After 30 minutes the score was 6-1, 10-1 by half time and well, you know the rest. Over 64,000 came to White Hart Lane.

By the way, Crewe beat Burscough 3-1 away in the 1st Rd proper, then Stockport County 2-0 at home after a replay, and Workington Town (then in the league) at home 2-0 in Round 3. 

Spurs lost to eventual Cup Finalists, Blackburn Rovers, in the next round, 1-3 and coincidentally, they met Crewe Alexandra again in the following season's 4th Round cup tie, winning 5-1.

Crewe had disposed of Rochdale 1-2 away after a replay, then Halifax Town 3-0 at home after a draw and then Chelsea at Stamford Bridge 1-2 in the 3rd Rd.

They went on to do the Double that year, beating Leicester City 2-0 at Wembley, as I keep reminding you.

EL JURASSICO; NO OLD FOSSILS ALLOWED-except Barry!

It is "El Jurassico" on the Dorset coast tonight. 19.45 ko at Poole Town's stadium v Weymouth FC. The Tatnam Ground is sited next to Upton Lake and that leads into Poole Harbour and then the sea!
This is a Southern League Premier fixture, with the next local derby being on 28th March. Poole are 2nd in the division, having played 29 matches with 57 points, whereas local rivals, Weymouth have played 30 and got 50 points lying 4th. So it really is a double header tonight.

The Dolphins were founded in 1880 and played local league football, then county and now sit resplendent in the pyramid. They have plans to move to a porpoise (joke) built stadium, something to match the Bob Lucas Stadium at Weymouth.

El Jurassico? Any self-respecting geographer/geologist will be familiar with this title for a unique coastline, including Durdle Door and Chesil Beach; it is the Jurassic Coastline, of World Heritage fame. A coastline that reflects the formation of landforms duing the Jurassic Period and since. (if that confuses you then watch Jurassic Park)

Both towns benefit from the attractions forded by the Jurassic Coast and if you haven't been there, then you should not miss it.

No really, an ammonite in the hand is worth an Evening with Barry Fry!

IN FOR A PENNY, IN FOR A CENT

Lady Karren Brady, a Tory peer, knows her stuff and she has held her position in male-dominated business with considerable success. She is on the board of West Ham United and married to Canadian footballer, Paul Peschisolido. Her letter to professional football clubs concerning the Britain Stronger in Europe Campaign makes the following points.

She argues that cutting ourselves off from Europe will have a serious effect on the footballing economy and others.

• As 2016 first transfer deadline nears, football clubs are searching the global  transfer market for bargains or special deals.
• Being in the EU allows players in the EU freedom of movement, with no visas or special work permits necessary. Being in the EU allows clubs to secure the top talent from across the continent.
• There are 200 or more players in the Premier League who have benefited from this freedom. A majority of European stars presently with our clubs would not meet automatic non-EU visa criteria and might well have to leave Great Britain to ply their trade on the continent.
• Football fans also benefit, as the single market brings cheaper air travel. EU action to cut "roaming charges" has reduced fees on phone calls from abroad by 73% and by 2017 these will be reduced entirely. Fans can keep abreast of footballing news at no extra cost and stay in contact with the global game.
• The EU helps other sporting groups and individuals. There are schemes to promote sport in schools and also amongst the minorities and people with disabilities. Under the Erasmus programme anyone in Britain with a local football project can get money for the EU...I guess it won't happen at the drop of a hat, but it is possible!
• The Homeless World Cup and the Football League's Social Inclusion initiatives have benefited from such schemes and there are many others.
• Staying in the EU will enable Britain to gain knowledge and experience from various country's best practice. For example, benefiting from studies on match fixing and the action against doping.
• Britain's standards are the best in the world and this has been enhanced with backing from her European neighbours' experiences.