IT ALL KICKS OFF TUESDAY

https://facupfactfile.wordpress.com/mentions/facupfactfile/ 

It is that time of season when the FA Cup sets up multi features and facts. The work has been done in the above link, a wonderful source of facts and figures around the various FA Cup entrants. For an anorak like me, with time on my hand, its a blessing! (Well I think so!). 

The first tie is between Woodford Town FC and London Colney FC in the Extra Preliminary Round and then it all kicks off on Tuesday. Northwich Victoria play in their 140th year and the last time the FA Cup started as early as September 1st was in 1945-6 season when there were 4 "Extra Preliminary" ties.

It has been 30 days only between tne previous season's final and the beginning of the new season's cup competition-the shortest ever gap.

Tie 83 has Hashtag Utd whom you will know is the "youngest" club in the competition, having only been founded in 2016. They have appeared in previous blogs.

Local to me is Shelley Community Football Club who make their debut away against Wythenshawe Amateurs, both from Step 6. This might be the longest "syllabled tie. 

Tie 73 is affected by Covid where AFC Sudbury from the Isthmian League (Step 4) has a walk over with opponents Burton Park Wanderers (United Counties L Step 6) suffering from the "infection".

Tie 51 involved Loughborough University (united Counties) playing Carlton Town (Northern Prem).

The shortest syllables might be Cribbs (from the Western league) v Newent Town (from the Hellenic) and Daisy Hill v Colne, Quorn v Melton Town whilst Avro v Bootle gets close.

Most successful "minor" clubs in previous FA Cups at this stage are: 

Quarter-finals: Chatham Town (1888-9) reached this pinnacle but it was on;y Round 31 They met WBA and lost 1-10, having beaten Nottingham Forest in the previous round, before that South Shore (Blackpool?) Crusaders, Clapton, London Caledonians and the Old Wykehamists, in the "qualifying rounds". Northwich Victoria (1883-4) were founding members of the Second Division in 1892. They lost in the Q-f  to Blackburn Olympic 1-9. They previously had beaten Brentwood in the Round of 16 3-0, got a bye prior to that, beat Davenham 5-1 in R2 and The Druids 1-0 in R1

Round 4 Worcester City, Bishop Auckland, Harlow Town, 

Round 3 Southall, Ashington, Clapton (from the Essex Senior League) first entered the cup in 1879-80 and made the Third Round in 1925-6, one of four non-league clubs to achieve this. They lost to Swindon Town in R3 2-3 having beaten Ilford 1-0 in R2, Norwich City 3-1 in R1. During this year teams from the top two divisions were exempt from the cup until the Third Round. 

Clapton Orient (not the same club) made better progress that season reaching the last 8 that is Rd 6 being beaten by Mancheter City 1-6. City went on to beat Manchester Utd 3-0 in the semi and then lose the final to Bolton W 1-0

Desborough Town v Penrith both celebrate their 100th year of playing in the cup.

ECCENTRIC COACHES; EL LOCO AND THE BLOKE THIS MORNING

Recently, I was asked if I would referee a Hepworth United junior game (or two). 30 minutes per half; two games at U10, against a local club that wears maroon and sky blue. I am obsessed with the colours and wonder how they came to be paired up. Any one know?

The lads/lassies "A" game went nicely, the score doesn't matter, the B game was a belter 3-3.

The opposition "lead" coach for both games was a gentleman of mature years...could be almost as old as me, in kit and he was obviously a man who knew his football. I didn't ask too much about his playing career, but he was helpful and despite not thanking me afterwards directly for refereeing the game, it was an event less morning APART from him shouting "PASS IT" every time his young lads got the ball. No direction of where to pass it, little positive encouragement and occasionally a raised voice of frustration, when things didn't go too well. The persistent noise was awful but I guess that's the way he encourages his young players, who were mostly pleasant boys and girls, despite the verbal battering. 

If he had been playing blow football, I think he would have blown away not only the ball, but the players and goals, probably the pitch. So with that noise ringing in my ears, I thought about eccentric coaches and Marcelo Bielsa came to mind. 

I have to say Bielsa is NOT like the man on the touchline. So I found this link to prove it and leave you to make up your own mind. But he is called "El Loco" and this came about after he was confronted by a gang of "ultras", and matched them with a hand grenade...pin poised!

With twelve clubs to his portfolio and 665 matches his win % is 46. The list is: Newell's Old Boys (2 seasons), Atlas (2 years), America (1 year), Velez Stansfield (1 year), Espanyol 3 months), Argentina 6 years), Chile 4 years), Athletic Bilbao (2 years), Marseille (1 year), Lazio (2 days), Lille (7 months), Leeds (June 2018).

The documentary is on Sky Sports on Wednesday 10.30pm You could get this on demand if you knew how to. (please don't say you can't afford it)

https://www.skysports.com/football/story-telling/11715/12022980/bielsa-el-loco-leeds-watch-the-documentary-on-sky-sports-football-on-demand 

THIS IS THE TRAILER

https://www.skysports.com/watch/video/sports/football/12010958/bielsa-el-loco-leeds

SHERIFF OF LONDON CHARITY SHIELD

The FA Community Shield is being played today at Wembley. Premier League winners, Liverpool, play the FA Cup Winners, Arsenal. The Community Shield or what was known as the Sheriff of London's Charity Shield, has been played for since the 1908-9 season and you will read that any revenue, gate receipts and programme sales will go to FA Charity partners linked to the 124 clubs.

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/3994718670252035536/5541439880786031251?hl=en-GB

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/3994718670252035536/6925375629504396284 

Manchester United have won this match 17 times with 4 shared  and the holders are Manchester City who beat Liverpool last season 5-4 on pens after a 1-1 draw. City have won this 6 times.

Liverpool have won it 10 times and shared 5, whilst Arsenal have won 14 and shared 1 "Shield".

A selected "English Professional" side won it in 1913, 1923, 1924 and 1929. The English Amateurs won it in 1925, 1926 and the England FIFA World Cup team won it in 1950 when they played the FA Canadian Tour XI as a warm up match before they went on to "greater things". The World Cup team won 4-2.

In 1961 when Tottenham Hotspur won the Double, the FA XI played them in the Charity Shield game, with Spurs winning 3-2.

And do you know the result?

GARETH BARRY

 

Gareth Barry retires to his palatial pile in Cheshire. Have a look below, don't be jealous!! The house has 30 acres, 13 stables, 7 bedrooms, a tennis court and footy goals, as well an "aircraft hangar and a swimming pool. Worth £4.5m but a drop in the pool for a man with his salary.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/5430936/everton-gareth-barry-seven-bedroom-mansion-stables-4-5m/

Barry has been a model professional through his career, which lasted 653 Premier League games, making him the longest serving player in the PL, with 22 years at the top level. He acquired 123 yellow cards and sent off six times.

Born in Hastings, he is 39 years old and leaves behind him a career with Brighton & HA as a junior then went to Aston Villa for 411 games in 11 years. He rejected Liverpool for Manchester City staying there for 5 years, winning the FA Cup 2011 and the League 2012. He was released at 33 years old.

Then he went to Everton for 155 apps; was their Player of the Season and Players' Player in  2015-16.

He was then at WBA until 2019 and in total won 53 England caps in Kevin Keegan's era (mainly). Not a great goal scorer, he managed 3 international goals. Below, Gareth young and older.

AND as a test, name 7 top flight footballers with a "tt" in their surname.

2020-1 FA CUP EARLY DAYS

Park View FC has to be next in the Blog because they come from Tottenham and play in the Spartan South Midlands League Div 1. They are due to play Hashtag United in the Extra Preliminary Qualifying Round of the FA Cup, hosting them at the New River Stadium, Wood Green. The club is a member of the Middlesex FA and is a member of the Ghana Football Society, but supports a mixed diversity of members. The motto: "Gye Nyame" means "Fear nothing except God".

He is the God of the Akan people and is omnipotent and knows all and sees all.

The first FA Extra Preliminary Round tie is to be played on August 31st 2020 at Woodford Town FC v London Colney FC at 7.45pm. The rest of the round play on September 1st.

The Preliminary Round is on September 12th and the Qualifying Rounds continue on Tuesday Sept 22nd, October 3rd,  Tuesday October 13th (midweek) and then the 24th.

The First Rd Proper is on November 7th, next rounds follow on the 28th November, 9th January, 23rd Jan and the 5th Rd is on Wednesday 10th February, another midweek round Quarters on March 20th. 

Semi-finals April 17th; the Final 15th May.

366 clubs start off the journey to Wembley and there are 20 debut clubs including:

Alfold FC and Billingshurst FC (founded in 1891), 

both I would call "my local village clubs" that were a stone's throw of my home village in West Sussex. What progress these clubs have made to be high enough up the pyramid to qualify for the honour of playing in the FA Cup. I would love to see them play Penistone Church or Shelley FC, local now to me. There will have to be a few victories en route for that to happen.

Bovey Tracy and Helston Athletic FC qualify and will interest a reader of mine and Troy Deeney's original club, Chelmsley Town, near Solihull, will be in Troy's heart no doubt.

Hashtag United, founded in 2016 playing in the Essex Senior League, are there also; the club formed by You Tuber Spencer Owen when he was at Reading University, (they are Step 10 in the Eastern Counties League D1 South)....see previous blogs.

What about New Salamis FC, who won the FA Sunday Cup in 2016, a mixture of Greek Cypriots from North-east London.

and then  there is Leicester Nivarna v Oadby Town. a local derby for another reader in the East Midlands (or Switzerland).

The NEW modernised logo!

RAP, GRIME.DONS AND HASHTAG

Don Strapzy is the UK Rap and Grim Artist. I have a vague idea of what all this means-but you will know. It's news worthy. The club was founded in 2014 and the members herald from Lewisham in South-east London.

His football club, SE Dons FC plays in the Lewisham Sunday Football League, with 175, 000 subscriptions and with 10,000 replica shirt sales. Large crowds of over a 1,000 will turn up to watch their games, with the major % as black supporters; there is a minority made up from interested and loyal whites. Tourists make up the rest, who turn up to see their music stars support and play.

Swanley T is the "Club Hooligan"

Flips is the Management

Ally is the Team Physio

Their next fixture is dated on 13th September at 3.30pm at a local Bromley FC v FC Bickley. The link below takes you to a recent "pre-season" friendly match v the famous "Metrogas". I warn you it is lengthy, BUT the first bit is amusing and really you should watch all of it for amusement. 

Note the DONMASKS, the pre-season pitch! the use of language, the chippy commentary is excellent, the names of players, motivation and the usual instructions from the coaching staff and the knee.

The club is followed by many celebs (which is why they draw crowds) just in case Declan Rice is watching....and others.

https://www.sedons.com/

The club hopes to emulate Hashtag United, which started as a Sunday League club and now plays in the Eastern Counties League Division One South (Step 10). I have done them before....

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/3994718670252035536/8589197329276267474

NUMBERS ON SHIRTS; NUMBERS ON SCOREBOARD

What a day it was on August 25th 1928, the opening day of the new season, when Arsenal and Chelsea made history by wearing numbers on the back of their shirts, for their first league games of the season. Arsenal were at Hillsborough in a Division 1 game but lost 3-2, in front of 23,684. 

On the same day, numbers were also worn, when another London club, Chelsea, in Division 2, played Swansea Town and won 4-0 in front of 47,264, all of whom knew who was who.

The original numbering system was set assuming the goalkeeper was number 1 and then it followed the 2-3-5 system, set by the first "official" football formation. Early days had a line up of 1-1-9....don't ask!  In 1954, Switzerland's World Cup squad were given numbers for the whole of the tournament, for the first time.                  

In 1958, the Brazilian squad forgot to include Pele, who eventually was given the number 10 by an "administrator", setting a trend. Goalkeeper Gilmar had number 3.

In 1974  the Argentinan squad were numbered alphabetically, so goalkeeper Fillol wore 12, 5 and then 7, in three consecutive tournaments. Maradona insisted on wearing 10 (like Pele?) There's more here:  

https://oldschoolfootball.co.uk/blogs/news/evolution-of-the-football-shirt-number

Above is Chilean, Zamorano at Inter Milan, who got the "ump" because Ronaldo was given the number 9 shirt, so he added a small + between his 1 and 8. Fair enough.

Not so fortunate on this day, were Rotherham United who met Bradford City at Valley Parade and were hammered 11-1 on the opening day of the season. Still the record score for each club. 

Forty years ago the West Indies played a one day floodlit match v Essex CCC at Stamford Bridge. More of that tomorrow. Rain is affecting match at Southampton today BUT NOT Jimmy Anderson's record achievement.

A RETURN AFTER A LAY OFF

  3d (three pence, thruppence) was the cost of this Manchester United match day programme to celebrate the return to Old Trafford for United. This followed their ground share deal at Maine Road, when bomb damage during the Second World War left United homeless for three seasons. On 24th August 1949, a crowd of 41,748 turned up to see United beat local rivals Bolton Wanderers 3-0 at Old Trafford. By the end of the season United came 4th in the First Division, having a record of:  P42 W18 D 14 L 10 Goals For 69 Against 44.

 On the same day in 1968, fire broke out when Nottingham Forest played the eventual champions, Leeds Utd. With a crowd of over 31,000, nobody was injured and the game was abandoned at 1-1 fof course.

After this disaster, Forest ground shared with Notts County (you know why it's Nottingham Forest but Notts County, don't you?) for 6 games which resulted in:

Lost 2-3 to WBA, Drew 0-0 Coventry C, Drew 3-3 Stoke C, Lost 2-4 Newcastle Utd, lost 1-2 Ipswich, drew 0-0 with Wolves.

The "replayed fixture in February v Leeds Utd ended in a defeat 0-2. 

In March, Forest played the 6 "lost" games: at Home v QPR won 1-0, West Ham lost 0-1, Southampton won 1-0, WBA won 3-0, Man City won 1-0 and Man Utd lost 0-1 on March 31st. Results that kept them in the First Division.

Forest's season's results were: P42, W10, D13, L19, F45, A57. placing them 18th.

THE MOST SUCCESSFUL CLUB IN GERMANY

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deloitte_Football_Money_League 

https://www2.deloitte.com/uk/en/pages/sports-business-group/articles/deloitte-football-money-league.html

These links will lead you to a ranking table that reveals the top money earning football clubs in Europe.

I am interested in the status of FC Bayern Munich who tonight play Paris St-Germain in the European Cup Final, much re-arranged etc due to Covid. Totals come from earning by February, describing the season just finished. Rank order are: TOP Barcelona, Real Madrid, Man Utd, 4th Bayern Munich, PSG, Man  City, 7th Liverpool 8 Tottenham H 9 Chelsea 10th Juventus.

Founded in February 1900 Bayern Munich is sited in Bavaria and was founded by Franz Joseph, a German photographer. A game at their ground in 1901. 

They were National Champions first in 1932 and won the Bundesliga at its inception in 1963 and 8 consecutive titles since 2013. Overall 30 titles in a record. They also hold record number of wins for three other national trophies.

During the mid-1970s there was the great era of Franz Beckenbauer and co. winning the European Cup between 1974-6 consecutively and the UEFA Champions League 2001, 2013.

also 

FIFA Club World Champions 2013, European Cup Winners Cup 1966-7, UEFA Super Cup 2013 and two Inter-Continental Cups 1976, 2001.

Past players will be jogged in your memory: Neuer, van Bommel, Maier, Muller, Breitner, Hoeness (jailed for tax evasion!), Rummenigge, Matthuas, Kahn, Schweinsteiger.

Head Coach: Hans-Dieter Flick since 2019! NO its not "Allo, Allo". Btw Pep was in charge 2013-16

The club has run at a profit for the past 27 years and donates largely to charities both national and abroad. It also supports other sports' club such as; basketball club, bowling (indoor), chess, handball, referees and table tennis.

TELEVISED FOOTBALL

The first televised live football came from Highbury in 1937 (the link below tells more). On 9th April, 1938 the international between England and Scotland was televised as was the Huddersfield Town v Preston NE FA Cup Final, but there were more in the stadium than watching on tv sets.

It was obvious that the Football Association and the Football League would put barriers between the clubs and TV, protecting their "investments".

The first live World Cup in the UK was shown in 1954. 

By the 1960-1, 26 live league games were allowed, the first Blackpool v Bolton Wanderes on September 10th 1960, I watched on a "grainy" black and white small screen. Then Anglian TV invested in Match of the Week so I had to suffer that on Sunday's in the East Anglian region for 4 years.

On this day, August 22nd, in 1964 was the debut of Match of the Day on BBC1, showing Liverpool v Arsenal entertaining an audience of less than 100,000 in Black and White. 

 The first colour broadcast was on 15th November 1969 from Anfield against West Ham with a 2-0 win to the home side. Very few people had colour sets and much of the commentary was referring to "black and white". The classic John Motson's commentary, amongst many, was "For those of you watching in black and white, Spurs are in the all yellow strip".

The 1970 FA Cup Final replay between Chelsea and Leeds Utd at Old Trafford attracted  28.5 million, becoming the 6th most watched in British TV. Apparently greater than Charles and Di's wedding 1981 and the Apollo 13 splash down in 1970. 

The Premier League' second day, in 1992, with Sky TV rights, featured Nottingham Forest v Liverpool on Sunday 16th August.

23rd April 2007 Jacqui Oatley was the first female to commentate when Fulham played Blackburn Rovers.

On January 31st 2010, at the Emirates, Arsenal lost 1-3 to Manchester United at the World's first live 3D sports' event. Sky experimented this broadcast in 9 pubs. 

There's more about the history of televised football below: 

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/3994718670252035536/3378353036536939074

BATH TIME

 https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/3994718670252035536/2802877017271538951

It's all about Bath today and I have written before about the football teams in the Roman city. On the other hand Alexander Thynn (he preferred the "tin" sounding end to his surname not Thynne...Tine, at the age of 87, died recently and he, as you know, was the 7th Marquess of Bath, the man who owned Longleat, was an artist and author, had a harem of what he called "wifelets", had £157m on the Rich List, went to Ludgrove Prep School (a particularly posh junior school) and then to Eton. He joined the Lifeguards-not the seaside ones, studied at Christchurch College, Oxford and was a member of the Bullingham Club-reputed for its fruity dinners and diners. He appeared on TV quite a bit with "Time Team", "Animal Park" and "Longleat", when he wasn't shacked up with any/all of his ladies.

I was talking to another Bath person, recently, who doesn't have many of the qualities of the Marquess, but who daughter has just been accepted at Bath Unversity and she is delighted to be joining a place of further education that ranks 6th in the UK table of universities. The university supports Team Bath, a football club that is boosted by students and grants from the university coffers and allows outsiders (as you will have read in the link) to sign on. 

Read more about what they university provides.....https://www.teambath.com/sport/football/

There is also a link up with Bath City FC with whom they ground share, Twerton Park, a neat home for two adventurous clubs.

As a club that is not "Limited", it is not able to get promotion to the Football League nor play in the FA Cup, which is a bit of shame, but there you are. The club had won promotion from the Western League through the Southern League and into the Conference South in 2008; two steps away from the Football League. In 2002-3 they became the first university side to get to the 1st Round Proper of the FA Cup since 1880 and they achieved this again in 2007-8 and 2008-9...but not since.

Bath City FC  was founded in 1889 and is now known as AFC Bath, playing in the National League South, missing election to the Football League twice by votes in 1978 and 1985.

Oh, by the way I spent the first night of my marriage in Bath, so I have a lot to thank Bath for.

CLUMBER HAS A NUMBER OF MEMORIES

Yesterday I was taken to Clumber Park, to meet a man who scored a goal at Wembley and his wife. I can remember seeing the goal but I am not going to embelish on the occasion, just to preseve his modesty. It was the Varsity Match 1970, Cambridge University v Oxford University, a crowd of 10,000+ and the winning goal...1-0! So, quite important.

We met in the Dukeries near Worksop, in Nottinghamshire, the town where our present England Cricket captain was educated. It's Robin Hood country, but I couldn't find any international archers. It's where George Best comes from...not THE GB, but a goalkeeper who played for Blackpool and who started his career way back with the local Town side. 

And we shall not forget local lads, Chris Wood and England manager Graham Taylor ("do I not like that") who come from the same town. 

Clumber Park was a Army Training Centre for the First World War and the estate was owned by the Seventh Duke of Newcastle (yes, I know); Henry Pelham Archibald Pelham (yes I know) Clinton. This is just one person, by the way..

Don't ignore Worksop's Henry Haslam who was the outside-left and captain in the Great Britain Olympic team that won Gold in Paris in 1900. 

He also played for the famous Upton Park FC. This was a team that was founded in 1866 and played in the first FA Cup competition 1871-2. In 1884 they met the great Preston North End in the last 16 of the Cup and drew away 1-1. Upton Park then complained that Preston's team included players who were being paid. Preston were disqualified and Upton Park went on to lose to eventual cup winners, Blackburn Rovers, 0-3 in the quarter-finals. 

Haslam's father was the estate manager at the Duke of Newcastle's estate and Henry was educated at Uppingham School, which by the way, also has a finger in the historical pie of football. Henry is recorded as having played for Worksop Town, Tonbridge Angels in Kent, Tunbridge Wells, mainly for Upton Park (with whom he toured in 1900-1), Barnet and West Norwood.

The Olympics were purely amateur and as UPFC only played friendlies, they represented Great Britain in the football tournament. The team included players from Crouch End Vampires, Chelmsford, Ilford and Bridgport FC. As a demonstration sport UPFC played the USFSA XI of France with a 4-0 win.

 

Above: Upton Park FC 1900. (played in the first FA Cup competition too). Henry with ball.

The club was responsible for two major law changes in Association Football: in 1870, they supported the new "handling the ball" law which stopped players from being to catch the ball and a year later in making the goalkeeper a specific position on the field.

Most famous players from Upton Park FC include Charles Alcock later the President of the FA and Alfred Stair and Segar Bastard (yes) both official referees as well as having other honours to their name.

Henry served in the First World War with the West Yorkshire Rgt 1915-20. Following this, he was convicted of shoplifting in 1926, given 12 months and hard labour and then in 1937 committed a similar crime. He died in 1942 aged 63.

and previously

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/3994718670252035536/8102454346735673787

ABANDONED FOOTBALLS-PENALTY-MANDY BARKER-MARINE POLLUTION-REG HARRISON

Why research a blog for today when the BBC and others have come up wth this artistic work based on footballs lost around the world? Then there are ideas from others inspirational photographs, including the impact of the game around the world, goalposts and past Olympic Sites; All in the aim to highlight marine pollution in some cases by country.

Mandy Barker has a motive for this series of photographs including 769 washed footballs and it is all explained in the links from this:.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/bbcthree/article/da81027d-93bf-4e3b-8a72-4476052f7ecb

But I've got another subject that I have been alerted to by my Derbyshire branch! Thank you, Chris!

Reg Harrison, the oldest surviving FA Cup Winner from Derby County FC 1946.

https://www.facebook.com/DerbyCountyOfficial/videos/10154081773085797/

Reg suffers from dementia, so his daughter has plenty of stimulants on his walls to remind him of his "glorious" past. The 1946 FA Cup Final against Charlton Athletic will be centre piece in the memory wall.

Reg, born 22 May 1923 at Normaton started his footballing career playing for non-league Derby Corinthians as a youth. 97 years old in May and surviving pneumonia during the lockdown, Reg is the oldest living FA Cup winner and he took on this honour when team mate Jim Bullions died in 2014. They were the two youngest in the team in 1946. It was back to basics in those days with a mile and a half walk to the training ground for Reg and changing for training sessions in an old railway carriage, then running to a suitably distanced, named village and back, decided by the manager, Stuart MacMillan! Presumably there would be a ball involved somewhere.

The post final parade in the city was arranged with deckchairs on an open truck owned by Offilers Beer Company. Reg had a hundred tickets for the final which no doubt helped him pay his way!

His girlfriend, when war broke out, was Win (whom he married in 1945) who with a friend would cycle to Newark, on a tandem to meet up with her future husband, an 80 mile round trip. No explanation of what her mate did once in Newark!  They celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary in March 2015.

During the war he guested for Sheffield Utd, Notts County, Charlton Ath and Hartlepool United.

Reg played for Derby County from 1944-55, making 281 apps and scoring 59 goals. He then joined Boston United in the Midlands League and in 1955-6 went to Derby's Baseball ground in an FA Cup tie 2nd Round, which Boston won 1-6. In Rd 4 they met Spurs and lost 4-0. Spurs lost the semi-final to Manchester City 1-0. City won the Cup in 1956. 

Reg played and managed at Long Eaton United from 1958-62 and after that he managed at Wilmorton and Alveston FC and at Alfreton Town FC. He continued to work in the Community for the Derbyshire County Council and retired at 63 years old, when he was given the Freedom of the City in 2018.

OOO I DO LIKE TO BE BESIDE THE SEASIDE

 The history of Scarbrough Football Club, one of the oldest clubs in the country and founded in 1879 from the local cricket club, is fairly complicated and at present a modern club Scarborough Athletic FC represents the seaside town. From 1898 the club played at Seamer Road, which later, in 1988, became the McCain Stadium following investment from the food company. This lasted until 2007.

The club emerged from the liquidation of Scarborough FC, with finances unable to retain their home, the McCain Stadium, where they had played since. The club financed by the local supporters'  "Seadog Trust", now plays in the Northern Premier League, at the Town's Sports' Village at Flamingo Land. This after 128 years of history, the club retains the colours, nickname, club motto and logo.

The club's journey has been complicated following the "liquidation", ground sharing for 10 seasons with local "resort" club, Bridlington and then finding their home in Flamingo Land in 2017-18!

On this day in 1987, Scarborough Town FC had been promoted to the English Football League, Fourth Division, as it was known then. (This Division became known as Div 3 once the Premier League was formed.)

They met Wolverhampton Wanderers, who were "slumming it" in the lower end of the Football League and their supporters were not doing them any favours. Over excited about a trip to the seaside and no doubt sun struck, the lads filed the local pubs and bars, got "pissed" and caused havoc. Damage was done, the kick off was delayed and one fan fell off the roof of the main stand.. No sympathy. 

On May 8th 1999, Scarborough were fighting relegation from the Football League, hoping to grab a point or more from Peterborough United on the final day of the season. They drew 1-1 and hoped that would do the job. A slightly delayed finish to relegation rivals' Carlisle United's game against Plymouth Argyle. You couldn't make it up....two clubs just about the furthest apart in the country. 

Well, another long distance event took place when Carlisle's goalkeeper, on loan, Jimmy Glass, left his goal area to help out at the the other end, at a corner. Glass took the risk and smashed the hopes of Scarborough by scoring the goal that made it a 2-1 win, which kept Carlisle in the Football League, just as the Scarborough fans were bouncing around on their home turf. Scarborough went down to the Conference, 12 years after leaving it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KejwqhLDeOs

TOM FORSYTH-JAWS ON THE FIELD, GENTLE OFF IT

Above is Tom Forsyth, sometimes known as Tam, in his Rangers shirt. He played firstly for Motherwell from 1967 for 5 years. In 150 apps for them, he scored 17 goals. 

From October 1972, he was a stalwart centre half at Rangers for 10 years. He played 182 times for the 'Gers and scored a "remarkable" 2 goals.  His most memorable goal will be the winning goal in the 1973 Scottish Cup Final v Celtic notched from 6 inches. The moment is captured here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Id0DRC_PruQ 

In his career with Rangers he won 3 Scottish League championships, 4 Scottish Cups, 2 League Cups including Domestic Trebles in 1975/6 and 1977/8. Mind you it is Scotland!

He played for the national side 22 times and was captain v Switzerland in 1976, appearing in the World Cup in 1978, playing in all three group games.

After Rangers, he managed Dunfermline in 1982 for less than a year but then was a valuable assistant at Morton, Motherwell and Hearts. 

Tom was born in January 1949 and died this week on August 14th 2020.

Probably Tom's finest moment is the tackle on Mick Channon 1976 at Hampden Pk. It preserved a 2-1 win for the Scots.

https://bellacaledonia.org.uk/2020/08/15/remembering-tam-forysth/

AND just an extra, who were the footballing WINNERS of the BBC Sports Personality of the Year?

1966, 1990, 1998, 2001, 2009

CONAN DOYLE AND COGSWELL

 Arthur Cogswell was born in 1858 in Peterborough, lived in Southsea from 1882 and died in 1934 in Portsmouth, a city he had much responsibilty for helping rebuild. From the 1870s, he designed local cinemas, pubs including "The Pompey" next door to Fratton Park, the Club's Tudor Pavilion offices and dressing rooms, local shops, a library and housing. 

The Brickwood Pub (below), near to the stadium, was named after the local Brewery owner, John Brickwood, Cogswell's friend. It was also one of his designs.

In April 1898 Portsmouth FC was sited on Portsea Island, an "isthmus" (which gives you the opportunity to sort out what this means) and it is the only stadium not on the mainland island of Britain. The stadium sits on an old potato field in Milton. The photo below shows its low lying site.

The "Pavilion" shown below, at Fratton Park, in Frogmore Road was designed by Cogswell in 1905.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=IbycRPUeT6c

 

In 1925, the Grand Stand and club pavilion was cleared to make way for an "Archibald Leitch" (below) Stand in Frogmore Road, one of many of his great grandstands in UK Football Leagues which may be found at Highbury, Ayresome Park, Anfield, Bramall Lane, Craven Cottage, Glasgow Rangers to name a few.

Cogswell was founder of the Portsmouth Amateur FC, whose goalkeeper was A.C.Smith, who will mean nothing to you but with some careful detection, you will decipher that this man was actually Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (below), who played in goal for the club. He also turned out at cricket occasionally for the MCC (1st class), The Authors' XI which included AA Milne, JM Barrie and PG Woodhouse and as an occasional bowler, Doyle once bowled out WG Grace, his one 1st Class wicket!

He also boxed, played golf at Crowborough Beacon GC and entered the English Amateur Billiard Championships in 1913.

JACK LESLIE

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/jack-leslie-campaign 

I don't need to say much more than the above video and website does. Jack Leslie should have been the first of England's black footballers to play for the international team. It was not until 1978 that Viv Andreson was given that "honour". Marvellous.

Jack Leslie was born on 17th August, 1900, in Canning Town to a Jamaican dad and English mum, Jack was called up in 1927 to play against Ireland, but when the FA noticed that he was black he was "uninvited". England drew 0-0 at Windsor Park on 22nd October, they lost to Scotland and Wales too.

Jack played for Barking Town at first, then moved to Third Division Plymouth Argyle in 1921-2, where he appeared 401 times and scored 137 goals in 14 years. Between 1921-2 and 1926-7, Argyle came 2nd in Div 3 South six seasons' in a row but did not get promoted. 

As captain, his team won promotion in 1929-30, in a season, when he played in 41 games and scored 21 goals to help the Argyle into Division Two. He played his last game in December 1934, scoring in a 3-1 win over Fulham, soon an eye injury ended his career. Moving to London, he was given a job at local club West Ham by Ron Greenwood and this was to clean boots for the squad including the 1966 World Cup trio! 

He ended his career playing at Truro City, ran a pub in Truro; he died in 1988.

VERY POSH MIKE

 I heard the news today that Mike Tyson (Yes, the boxer) is a Peterborough United Fan. No explanation, except that he and his entourage turned up at London Road for a game against West Ham and he and a dozen mates were paraded on the pitch at half time, presumably once somebody in the club noticed he was there. Mike trained in a local gym and ate at Rony Choudhury's Indian restaurant, all 12 of them. Mike demolished the vegan curry.

While in the area he made friends with local pigeon breeder, Darren Peters, in East Heckington, Lincs, a "sport" Mike follows by breeding the little blighters. This was one of Mike's bucket items on his UK tour. Tyson was the youngest ever World Heavyweight Champion and is famed for bankruptcy, prison and biting an opponent's ear. 

Other clubs' stars: a selection of clubs for my chums:

Derby-Tim Brooke Taylor, Everton-Paul McCartney, Forest-Stuart Broad, Hartlepool-Meat Loaf 

Spurs- Bernard Bresslaw, West Brom- Lenny Henry, Southampton-Chris Packham,

Birmingham-Jasper Carrot, Huddersfield-Patrick Stewart, Arsenal-Ronnie Biggs

Barnsley-Parky, Palace-Roy Hudd, Villa-Ian Lavender (and the Prince), Accrington S-David Lloyd

https://www.cfclassics.co/fans/lists/celebs/celebrity-football-fans.htm

THREE DOZEN GOALS-0

 You will know that the greatest football result lies in Arbroath where the local team beat Bon Accord 36-0, in a Scottish FA Cup tie. 18 miles away on the same day, Dundee Harp beat Aberdeen Rovers in the Scottish Cup 1st Rd winning 35-0, although the ref thought it was 37.

I presume you know where the island of St Helena is? It is the second oldest UK  overseas' territory after Bermuda, 5 miles by 2 miles in size with a population of 4,500 approx. way south in the Atlantic. 

Napolean was occupied there in 1502, when it was under the control of the Portuguese.

Between May and November on the only pitch (Francis Plain) on the island, football takes place in a seniors' league (8 teams) and a juniors' league. 

The following teams compete: Axis, Rovers, Saints, Wirebirds, Harts, Lakers and Crystal Rangers. The reason for my venturing into the Atlantic Ocean is that recently Rovers beat Crystal Rangers 36-0, a record score for the island and one that equals the Scottish FA Cup result from 12th September 1885 noted above. Rico Benjamin scored 15.

  

As not yet a member of FIFA, the St Helena FA was founded in 1920, but did venture to Britain to play in the Inter Island Games in June 2019. The lads played a friendly against Holyhead Hotspurs Reserves, winning 2-0 and lost to local Ynys Mon FC 2-7. In the tournament hosted by Anglesey (an island of course), they lost to Shetland 1-6, Guernsey 0-9 and the Western Islands 1-2. But it is all down to experience.

Back to the Bon Accord Football team, only founded in 1884, had links with the Orion Cricket Club. One sport creates another.

"Bon Accord" refers to the storming of Aberdeen Castle during the Wars of Independence. 

Arbroath FC was only 7 years old at the time of the tie, but they over ran the Bon Accord lads and were 15-0 up at half time.  There was no mercy shown, apart from the referee David Stormont, who disallowed 5 goals for a variety of reasons. The Arbroath goalie, Jim Milne Snr, did not touch the ball in play and spent most of the afternoon sheltering under an umbrella.

18 year old John Petrie scored 13 goals. Previously Arbroath had scored 9 goals in Rd 2 beating Forfar Athletic, then met Dundee East End winning 7-1 in Rd 2, then they met Hibernians and lost 3-5. Overall, Arbroath totalled 55 goals in their Cup run.

Back in St Helena, the islanders are hoping to feature in the Guernsey International Islands Games from July 3-9th 2021. They just need finances.

In other sports, the island supports the SH Turf Club with the Deadwood Horses event, run each year, since 1818.

They send teams to the Commonwealth Games, there is the IIGA mentioned before, International Cricket played in Africa in the "World Cricket League" in 2012 and a Cape Town to St Helena, Yacht Race, the Governer's Cup. 

And of course, Baden Powell, the founder of the scout movement and an Old Carthusian (Charterhouse Old Boy) visited the island during his 1937 tour.

THE LONELY ONE

https://play.acast.com/s/footballpreviewshow/thelonelyone-thelifeofagoalkeeper 

The link above will take you to a podcast (ACAST) called "Gameday" which dates back many months. Each episode deals with an aspect of the game. Worth having a look/listen if you fancy being inspired by Mark Hughes on scoring goals, being educated by Leeds United, Kenny Dalglish and many more. Give it a go, listen to David James, Peter Shilton and others on the "loneliness" of the position and the effects that playing in goal may have on one's  "mental health".

Here's Shay Given:    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCuvvvvfQqU

Truly bonkers are these from relatively recent history:

Rene Higuita of Colombia 1990, the "scorpion kick" at Wembley

Hugo Gatti- Argentina 1966 El Loco!

Jose Chilavert-Paraguay 1998 a freek kick and penalty kick specialist

Jorge Campos- Mexico was only 5'8" but made up for his lack height with very bright jerseys

Jens Lehmann-Germany 1998 who would have a "wee" against the goalpost and once stole a spectators spectacles.

and the greatest of all Willy "Fatty" Foulkes, a beast of a goalie, whom I have exposed before. Below he looks like a forward confronting a "floored" goalkeeper, but Willie is actually the GK for the stripes (Sheffield Utd) v Tottenham in the 1901 Cup Final (2-2 draw and then 3-1 win for Spurs). 

6'4" and 22 stone Foulkes transfered to Chelsea, their first ever goalkeeper. (overall he helped win 2 FA Cups, 1 League title and 1 England cap v Wales at Bramall Lane, on March 29th 1897, a 4-0 win, so he kept a clean sheet and he had the privilege of playing with G.O.Smith, the famous Old Carthusian! Culture Shock) and the legendary Steve Bloomer. Fatty also played county cricket for Derbyshire in 1900. In retirement he spent his time on Blackpool beach charging a "Penny a go to Beat the Goalkeeper". It was not a happy time of his life.

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/3994718670252035536/1232242491551975623

IF HE WERE ABLE, HE WOULD RECOMMEND THE PODCAST.

DIRECT FROM THE CORNER

 Not an FA Cup winners' corner flag!

Taken for granted, the corner flag on a pole is a necessity to any game of football. It marks out the extremities of the pitch and has done that since 1863 when the laws were set by the FA.

Included also, were flags on poles planted four yards either side of the goal posts, on the goal line (as you would see in Aussie Rules) but only 5 feet high, as now. The central poles marked the goal and the side poles were there to help award a "rouge" which was a like a try.

If the ball didn't go through the goal but was touched down through the side gaps then this counted as a "rouge", worth a "point" and the number of points came into play when there was a tie on goals. The rouge was established by the Etonians in their own game.

In 1868 the Sheffield Rules got rid of the "rouge" opting instead for a goal kick or a corner kick when the ball went out of play behind the goal line. The FA bowed to the Sheffield Rules in 1872 and adopted the corner and flag, also marking a quadrant one yard in radius set in 1875.

Some times there are flags place one yard off the touchline at the half way line to help the referee with "where is the half way line" decisions!

Clubs that have won the FA Cup are entitled to have a triangular flag on their poles. Otherwise it is a square flag allowed to blow in the wind. I'm not sure anyone takes any notice of this!

I am sure that when there was a corner the majority of the ball had to be inside the quadrant? Now the ball overlaps the line of the quadrant by centimetres!

The small markings on the goal line and touchline to make sure defending players don't encroach closer than 10 yards at a corner are measured from the quadrant line of course.

Corners were regarded as "indirect" until June 1924, so direct goals could not be scored direct from a corner until then. Along came Billy Alston of St Bernards FC, who scored the first legal "direct from a corner goal" in August 1924. 

What about W.H. (Billy) Smith of Huddersfield Town, who scored direct from a corner kick against Arsenal? In August 1924, in the Football League; the flood gates were open! 

Town won 4-0 and later won the League Championship. Smith made 574 apps for Town and scored 126 goals, one directly...well you know that....

Smith got himself sent off for fighting against a Stoke player in a league match and this caused him to be banned from played in the 1920 FA Cup Final; Town lost 1-0 to Aston Villa.

In the 1922 FA Cup Final at Stamford Bridge, Billy scored twice against Preston NE, one a disputed penalty, won by Smith, whom newsreel confirmed, was fouled outside the penalty area. Smith also scored twice in his last game ever v Sheffield Utd in February 1934. 

He then player-managed at Rochdale for a while, 1934-5. 

Born in Tantobie, County Durham in 1895, he died in 1951, from cancer following an "injury" in the game, which resulted in a leg amputation. His son, Conway, played at Town between 1945-51 and his grandson, Robert, played in the last ever game at Leeds Road in 1994. 

Billy also played for England three times between 1922-8. Both Billy and Conway are recorded as scoring 100 goals each in their career.

Willie Davies scored for Cardiff City in the final minute of the FA Cup Rd 4 tie against Leicester City in March 1925, making it 2-1. Cardiff went on the lose in the final to Sheffield Utd.

Thank heavens, the corner post is a flexible thing and not the solid wooden specimen of past seasons, some were square and with dangerous edges! Tosh Chamberlain, a bandy legged Fulham left winger, was renowned for sometimes kicking the flag pole when taking a corner and there have been others who push the post on an angle to allow a full bodied approach, or even pull the pole out of the ground. Referees would stop play and put the flag back into the perpendicular.

Tosh was a real character who postponed his wedding so that he could play for Fulham against Newcastle Utd in a 4th Round FA Cup tie, in which he scored a hat trick but Fulham lost 4-5! he played almost his entire career at Fulham and went to Dover and then Gravesend before he retired.

When Barry Fry was manager of Birmingham City in 1993 he had not won more than two games in fifteen during his first 3 months. Finding that a local "Romany" family had cursed the ground way back, he had the curse removed, by getting a local Romany to pee on each corner post and without taking the "piss", his team began to gain success, winning the next 7 out of 10.