GREAT GREALISH; BEST DE BRUYNE

Kevin De Bruyne broke the Premier League assist record after setting up a goal in Manchester City's 4-1 victory at Southampton on Saturday 8th April. Frank Lampard and Wayne Rooney previously shared the title. The 31-year-old entered the match at St Mary's with 13 Premier League assists to his name this season, at least three more than any other player in the division. He set up his 99th goal in a 4-1 win over Liverpool last weekend. De Bruyne has now joined the 100 club for assists after curling a perfectly-weighted delivery to goal machine Erling Braut Haaland who headed home the opening goal on the stroke of half time. The Belgium international was also involved in two of City's three goals after the break, albeit not getting an assist on these occasions – firstly feeding Jack Grealish who eventually placed a rebound beyond Gavin Bazunu before City's No.17 won a penalty in the final 15 minutes which was calmy converted by substitute Julian Alvarez. 

De Bruyne's latest assist has seen him become the quickest player in Premier League history to set up 100 goals in the competition, doing so after 237 appearances. The playmaker has comfortably surpassed the previous record-holder Cesc Fabregas, who required 56 more matches to reached a century of English top-flight assists for Arsenal. De Bruyne has also become just the fifth player to register a century of Premier League assists, and has moved to within two of former Chelsea and Man City midfielder Frank Lampard (102) who sits fourth on the all-time assist list. The Citizens star is also just three behind Wayne Rooney (103) in third, while Ryan Giggs (162) and Fabregas (111) take up the top two positions. The two-time Premier League Player of the Year is widely regarded as one of the greatest playmakers in the modern era and has been a key cog in Pep Guardiola's machine over the years, winning four top-flight titles in the last five seasons. The Belgian and his City teammates are still in the race to retain the Premier League title this term, with their latest victory over Southampton moving them to within five points of leaders Arsenal, who face Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday.

THE DOLL'S HOUSE

In its heyday,  the Park Avenue sporting complex in Bradford hosted cricket, rugby union and rugby league as well as football. The Bradford football club had its home there but was better known as Bradford (Park Avenue) to avoid confusion with rivals Bradford City. Bradford PA were members of the Football League from 1908 to 1970 and were famously members of the Southern League (yes the Southern League!) before joining the Football League. Their Park Avenue ground also famously had the 'Doll's House' in one of its corners (pictured), which was similar to The Cottage at Fulham's Craven Cottage home. Less well known is that Bradford PA were the only League side to have their record attendance recorded in a war-time fixture. You wouldn't have thought large attendances would have been allowed in the war years but on Saturday 8th April 1944, 32,810 crammed into their Park Avenue ground for a War cup-tie against Blackpool. The great attraction - Stanley Matthews was playing for the opposition.

The original Cottage was built in 1780, by William Craven, the sixth Baron Craven and was located close to where the Johnny Haynes Stand is now. At the time, the surrounding areas were woods which made up part of Anne Bolyne's hunting grounds.

The Cottage was lived in by Edward Bulwer-Lytton (who wrote The Last Days of Pompeii) and other somewhat notable (and moneyed) persons until it was destroyed by fire in May 1888. Fulham has had 8 previous grounds before settling in at Craven Cottage for good. Therefore, The Cottagers have had 12 grounds overall (including a temporary stay at Loftus Road, meaning that only their former 'landlords' and rivals QPR, have had more home grounds (14) in British football. Of particular note, was Ranelagh House, Fulham's palatial home from 1886 to 1888.

Craven Cottage has been Fulham FC's  home ground since 1896. The ground's capacity is 22,384; although the record attendance is 49,335, for a game against Millwall in 1938. Next to Bishoip's Park on the banks of the River Thames, it was originally a royal hunting lodge and has a history dating back over 300 years.

The stadium has also been used by the USA, Australia, Ireland and Canada's men teamand was formerly the home ground for England's Rugby League team. Read this previous Craven Cottage story.

https://www.blogger.com/blog/post/edit/3994718670252035536/3121284435369460743

Alan Shearer, in 1988, after having made two substitute appearances in the League for Southampton made his starting debut for the Saints against Arsenal at the Dell and at 17 years 240 days of age became the youngest player to score a hat-trick in the top flight. Southampton won 4-2.

In 1988, a 17-year-old  240 days Shearer scored three goals on his first senior start for Southampton in a 4-2 win over Arsenal at The Dell,  thus becoming the youngest player – at 17 years, 240 days – to score a hat-trick in the top division, breaking Jimmy Greaves' 30-year–old record.

Yet as much as he fondly remembers that game 30 years ago, Shearer will never forget the way boss Chris Nicholl kept his feet firmly on the ground. “Chris came up to me straight after the game and said, ‘I’ll see you tomorrow — you are back in to clean all the kit and the boots!’. “That was his way of bringing me back down to earth. I still went out for a few drinks that night with friends in Southampton. I wasn’t actually old enough to drink but I still managed to have a sneaky one or two! But I only went to a couple of bars because I had to be up early the next morning to go back to The Dell and clean all the c**p up!”

BUTCH-bless him! and "Starsky"

On the 4th April 2018, Ray Wilkins' death, at 61 years old, was fully covered on radio and tv and many moments were published in his obituaries in various papers, here are a few:

Suited as he was to the Italian "game" he was accused of slowing the game down and passing sideways too much, a manner that earned him a nickname of "the crab".
Tommy Docherty announced that "he can't run, he can't tackle and he can't head the ball". The only time he goes forward is for the coin toss.
He became a cult figure when he featured in "Tango" orange drink. "The big fella run in from the left and he gives him a good slappin," "Super taste sensation, smashing drink. Lovely".
Due to his penchant for flamboyant and colourful and sometimes effeminate outfits his father ironically named him "Butch".
He also was often photographed for teeny-bopper magazines along with "good looking team mate", Gary Stanley-they were known as Starsky and Butch.

In 1974 when made captain at Chelsea at 18 years old the responsibility was too much and led to a dependency on Valium, which he took before games to help him sleep.
As a practical joker and with considerable intelligence, his favourite trick was to nail Bryan Robson's boots to the changing room floor.
When he was at Rangers, his manager, Graham Souness was player manager and a bit of a hot head. When he came on as a sub with ten minutes ago,  Wilkins arranged for the team not to pass to Souness. Souness went off on one when he got the team into the changing room at the end of the game.
Wilkins was appointed MBE in 1993.
His spell in Italy allowed him to learn to speak Italian which helped him much later during his pundit career.
As he got older, balder and fatter, he was mercilessly teased about his resemblance to Uncle Fester in The Addams Family tv series.
Actually he was on steroids for 30 years, hoping to treat his colitis.
He developed alcoholism, blamed on the illness. He had a troubled final few years, including time in the Priory. Bless him.

Gary Stanley (born 4 March 1954) played as a midfield for Chelsea (109 times), Everton (52), Swansea City (72x), Portsmouth (47x) and Bristol City (10x) and briefly for Waterlooville. He also played in the NASL with Fort Lauderdale Strikers and in the MISL (Indoors) with Wichita Wings. Now lives in Burton-on-Trent aged 69.

EARNEST "NUDGER" NEEDHAM

 

Ernest Needham (21 January 1873 – 8 March 1936) was an English footballer and cricketer, appearing in sixteen international football matches for his country, captaining the side in 1901.

He was an outstanding left half who played for Sheffield United from 1891 until 1910,  totalling 554 matches and 65 goals. He captained their team from 1895 to 1905 and was instrumental in their promotion campaign of 1892–93. Under his leadership, he helped the Blades achieve promotion to Division One in 1893 and then helped them to the Division One title in the 1897-98 season and the FA Cup in 1899 and 1902.

He played first-class cricket for Derbyshire from 1901 to 1912.

Needham was born at Newbould Moor, Chesterfield. Having previously played as a forward for Waverley F.C. and Staveley Wanderers, Needham agreed to sign for United when they met his club, Staveley, on 10 February 1891, in a fixture. Needham made his debut for The Blades on 5 September 1891, in a pre-season game against Woolwich Arsenal. Originally a right winger, injuries during his first season saw him move to left half.

Short yet solidly built and blessed with immense stamina, he was fast, resolute and brave. His consistently accomplished and energetic displays made him the star of the side and won him the title, 'the prince of half backs'. Writer Alfred Gibson made the following comments about Needham in 1906: "There is one thing which has made Earnest Needham stand out of the common run of halves; he is neither a constructive nor a destructive half-back alone; he is both at once. One moment you will see him falling back to the defence of his own goal, or checking the speedy rush of his wing; the next, he is up with his forwards, feeding them to a nicety, and always making the best of every opening. Where he gets his pace from is a mystery. He never seems to be racing, yet he must be moving at racing pace; he never seems to be exhausted, yet in a big game he is practically doing three men's work."

A fine shot, Needham possessed great ball control: "This is one of the secrets of his greatness for very seldom when he has the ball is he deprived of it, whilst the accuracy of his wing passes, and the telling force of his punches straight across the field to an unprotected wing, spell danger to any kind of defence."

After 551 appearances, including 464 FL games and 49 FA Cup ties, Needham retired from football. His final game for United came on 22 January 1910 against Bolton Wanderers, and with Needham having played in every season in the Football League that United had played, it marked the end of a golden era for the Blades that they have never since matched.

Although Needham was missed by his "native" club  Derby County, his nephew George Wright Needham did play a few games for The Rams. Needham made his debut for England v Scotland in April 1894. He was an England regular for many years and the first Sheffield United player to captain England. He represented England 16 times, and the Football League ten times. 

Cricket career: Needham was a left-hand batsman who played 340 innings in 186 first-class matches. He scored 6550 runs at 20.15, including seven centuries with a top score of 159. He was an occasional wicket-keeper, and as a right-arm medium pace bowler bowled 21 overs without taking a wicket. Before playing for Derbyshire, Needham is recorded playing in a match for Liverpool and District against Cambridge University in 1898. He made his debut for Derbyshire in June 1901 against a South African team, and scored 57 in his first innings but was out for a duck in the second. He played regularly every season until 1911. In 1903 he made his first century against Hampshire. He scored 47 in his one innings in the game at Chesterfield in 1904 when visitors Essex set an unwanted record by losing despite amassing 597 in their first innings. In 1907 Needham scored 119 against Hampshire and in 1908 scored three centuries. He scored 104 against Worcestershire and in one match against Essex scored 107 and 104, although this was not enough to stave off defeat. In 1910 he made his top score of 159 against Leicestershire and in 1911 he made 103 against Notts. In 1912 he played only three games for Derbyshire.

Needham wrote a ninety-page brochure titled "Association Football" which was published in 1901. From practical experience, Needham offered his own opinions on tactics and formation. It was well received upon publication. One periodical described it as a "valuable book by a practical expert."

On 7 April 1894, 21-year old Sheffield United midfielder Ernest "Nudger" Needham made the first of his 16 appearances for the English national team - the most England caps of any Sheffield United player. His national team debut came in a 2-2 draw against Scotland at Celtic Park, Glasgow before a crowd of 45,107.

All of his 16 caps were in competitive matches in the British Home Championship. He captained the side once, in the 18 March 1901 match against Wales, which England won 6-0, including one goal from Needham - only one of the three he scored for England over the course of his national team career.

No, I Don't Know What The Nickname Means!!!

DUNCAN'S DEBUT

April 4th 1953 saw the debut for Manchester United by Duncan Edwards, regarded at the time as one of the great prospects for English football. At 16 years and 185 days, it was an "age" record that held until Michael Owen beat it in 1998. Edwards played against Cardiff City, in the First Division at Old Trafford and two years later made his debut for England against Scotland on April 2nd 1955. He was the youngest in the 20th Cenutry to represent his country.

After two years he played for Manchester United in the FA Youth Cup. his team winning the trophy.

Overall he played for United 177 times, scored 21 goals and for England he won 18 caps and scored 5 goals. Obviously not a prolific scorer, but a massive influence on the pitch. How many players have you known like him.

He died in the Munich Air Crash in 1958. A tragedy.

He was born in Brierly Hill in the Midlands, on 1st October 1936.

The video has a whole lot of clips from Man U and England matches where Edwards features.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYf6qNISSs8

BARROW CARRIES A FEW PROBLEMS BUT NOT ALL

12th October 2019 Put yourself in the position of the fans of National League side, Dover Athletic, as they set off on their journey to Barrow in Furness - a trip that goes from one corner of England to the other. It's just the 371 miles, and takes in excess of six hours -- and that's before you factor in crucial pit stops. You can imagine there would be more than a few weary eyes by the time the cars and coaches pulled into Barrow's Holker Street ground. The Dover fans would just have got settled down with a pie and a pint before, at 1:43 p.m, 77 minutes before the scheduled kickoff time, Barrow announced the game had been called off. Rain? Snow? Fog? Nope... the Dover squad was stuck on a train due to problems on the mainline and couldn't get off. It became clear just after midday that the Dover squad were going to struggle to make it for 3 p.m. and despite hopes of delaying the kickoff, there was no way to save the game. The furious Barrow club was left with no choice but to postpone the match. 

On 3rd April 2013, Ebbsfleet United had a nightmare journey to Barrow for a Conference match. The team coach left Kent at 10.45am on the morning of the match (Wednesday 3rd April 2013) for a 7.45pm kick off in Cumbria. They were soon delayed by an accident on the M25 and then a serious delay on the M6, when a lorry shed its load of baked beans. Ebbsfleet finally arrived at the ground at 8.40pm with kick off being put back to 9.15. The visitors scored first after 41 minutes and Barrow equalised with 77 gone. Nathan Elder was red-carded with a few minutes to go, and then it was back on the coach and a 300-mile plus journey home for Ebbsfleet. The joys of being a footballer!

Many a match has had a delayed kick off because of the late arrival of the visiting team - back in 1961 a nightmare journey led to an abandoned Football League match between Barrow and Gillingham. The rearranged match on October 9th resulted in a 7-0 win for the home team. Due to travel problems, Gillingham arrived at the stadium at 5.30 pm - the time the game was due to kick-off. They had to change hurriedly, and due to their rushed preparation, were losing 7-0 when the game was "abandoned" due to poor light. The Football League declared that the result should stand. Billy Jervis played his one and only Football League game for Gillingham. If the match had been declared null and void due to the abandonment his one league appearance would have been deleted from the record books.

However the prize for the craziest kick off time must surely go to Barcelona when they entertained Sevilla in a Spanish La Liga fixture in September 2005. The match was scheduled for Wednesday 3rd September, the day they had to release many of their international players to their countries for a weekend of international fixtures. Not wishing to play with a weakened team Barcelona tried to get the date brought forward to the Tuesday, without success, but what they did control was the kick off time. So they decided to kick off on the Wednesday at 12.05am - 5 minutes past midnight - in the hope that all their star players could play, get a reasonable night's sleep and then leave to join their international squads on the Wednesday morning as the rules required. That ploy wasn't a complete success as far as team selection was concerned but the match was a success. Attracted by the novelty of the fixture, cheaper tickets and free snacks an amazing 80,237 turned up at the Nou Camp to witness a 1-1 draw.

Television dictated the earliest kick-off in Premier League history on Sunday October 2nd 2005 at the City of Manchester Stadium, when Manchester City were desperate for TV income. Their match against Everton was screened on PPV (pay per view) TV and kicked off at 11.15 on the Sunday morning in front of a 42,681 crowd. 

TV also dictated the kick-off time of the 2008 Champions League Final between Manchester United and Chelsea in Moscow. Armchair fans saw the match kick off at 7.45pm which was perfect for the British and western European TV audience. But the match was played in Moscow and 7.45 for us was 10.45pm local time in Russia! When extra time was over and the penalties were taken it was 1.30 am in Moscow, and the cup still had to be presented!

But TV couldn't be blamed for the earliest kick off in senior football in England - it happened in 1892! Football League side Burton Swifts were double-booked on Saturday 1st October 1892 - a Second Division match at Crewe Alexandra and a home FA Cup Preliminary Round match against Singers of Coventry (a forerunner of Coventry City). They solved the problem by bringing forward the cup tie to the previous Wednesday - with an 8am kick off, yes that's 8 o'clock in the morning! Swifts won 3-0 although there is no record of the attendance!

ROVERS v COUNTY-THE 203 MINUTE MATCH (MARCH 30th 1946)

OK a few days late, but give me some credit for finding this blog, written a while ago, but not published. The motto means "Courage and Faith", the motto for the United States Army 1st Cavalry Regiment Unit, much needed when you read below! It is for the 30th March 1946: Stockport County v Doncaster Rovers Division Three North Cup replay at Stockport's Edgeley Park. 

The match lasted 3 hours and 23 minutes, setting a world record in the process.The teams had earlier played to a 2-2 draw at Doncaster, requiring the replay. The hosts struck first with a 5th minute penalty kick from Ken Shaw, but Rovers fought back to take a 2-1 lead into the break. In the second half, Shaw was again the hero for Stockport, scoring the equalizer in the 72d minute. After 90 minutes, the teams were tied at 2-2 and neither side was able to score in 30 minutes of extra time. Under the rules at the time, the match then went into a golden goal period, so that the first team to score would win the match. But neither team was able to find the back of the net. 

The match went on for so long that several spectators went home for tea, then returned to find the match still going. Stockport thought they had the winner when Les Crocker put the ball in the goal in the 173rd minute, but the referee called a foul and disallowed the goal. Reportedly, even a few Doncaster players were upset at the call, which meant they had to play on.Eventually, the match was called off close to 7:00 pm because it was too dark to play (Edgeley Park would not get floodlights for another ten years). The players were so tired that many of them dropped to the pitch at the whistle and removed their shoes instantly. The match lasted 203 minutes, which remains a world record.
When the teams met again in a second replay, the following week, they played from the beginning instead of picking up where the previous replay had left off. That time, Doncaster left no room for another marathon match, rolling to a 4-0 win in regulation time!