Racing towards years end and into the window of doubt!

As we race towards years end, the EPL is again very much in focus as those very well paid footballers literally turn up several times in a few days. Starting with the Liverpool v Newcastle match on Friday night, most sides will play twice in the five days up to Wednesday 4th January. One thing we can all count on at this time of the year, are the regular 'turn up' results that go with the holiday period. One  particular illustration comes to mind and according to the Guardian, Fulham beat Ipswich 10-1 at home on Boxing Day 1963, then lost 2-4 at Ipswich 2 days later! Perhaps it is the unusual frequency that teams have to play but there will be upsets. A quick scan of the past weeks results show some unexpected outcomes....seven out of the ten fixtures resulted in draws, Citeh, Arsenal and Chelsea all dropping points unexpectedly.

Tuesday, 27 December 2011

Barclays Premier League

Arsenal 1-1 Wolverhampton |

Norwich 0-2 Tottenham |

Swansea 1-1 QPR |

Monday, 26 December 2011

Barclays Premier League

Bolton 0-2 Newcastle |

Chelsea 1-1 Fulham |

Liverpool 1-1 Blackburn |

Man Utd 5-0 Wigan |

Stoke 0-0 Aston Villa |

Sunderland 1-1 Everton |

West Brom 0-0 Man City |

Such is the mind-set of our UEFA overlords that they believe we need a 'transfer window' twice a year. Here disruption and horse trading are allowed to take place with regard to the loan and transfer of footballers. Personally, I hate it. This is because it allows agents to push speculation through the media. My own side Spurs suffered particularly in the June 2011 window as Chelsea attempted to prise Luka Modric from their grasp.....this in spite of said player having recently signed a 6 year contract!

Listening recently to the tv football commentators  I was surprised to hear their take on the propects of the three recently promoted sides. QPR, Norwich and Swansea. All three of these sides have made a good fist of promotion so far, although as it was pointed out, they are now in the bottom half of the table. Apparently, only QPR new owner Malaysian entrepreneur Tony Fernandes has the cash to go into the transfer market to recruit new players for the new year....expect them to spend big. The value of staying in the EPL is worth a lot. Last year Man Utd made £60.4million in TV money alone, while at the lower end Blackpool still made £39.1million.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/manchester-united/8533559/Manchester-United-top-60-million-in-Premier-League-earnings.html
One slightly surprising player move will probably see Arsenal legend Thiery Henry come back to them on a loan deal, before returning to his New York club later in the year. Personally, I think this will be a good move for Wenger with little downside...the club using the usual Macdonalds 'get out clause' because even if he fails to shine, he will only be at the Emirates for a 'short time only'. It will be interesting to see what transpires for Henry. My feeling is that he will help take some of the focus / reliance away from RVP.
I also expect a few out of favour strikers to play an increasing important role in the second half of the season. Man United are already seeing the benefits of playing Berbatov. Torres will also fire again for Chelsea, while Defoe will have a big say in Spurs push for a top four spot. VDV's elastic band hamstring's will ensure Defoe gets loads of playing time (and hopefully goals) in the next few months. It seems a shame that Tevez will be lost to the EPL while Roman Pavlyuchenko looks set to accept a move to is ready to accept a move to Anzhi Makhachkala and all their petro-dollars. Man Citeh are unlikely to go into the transfer market other than unloading Tevez, while neighbours United appear to need reinforcements but are reminicent of Monty Pythons 'Black Knight' in denying the impact of multiple injury set-backs............

King Arthur:(Mancini) [after Arthur's cut off both of the Black Knight's arms] Look, you stupid Bastard. You've got no arms left.
Black Knight: (Ferguson)Yes I have.
King Arthur: :(Mancini)*Look*!
Black Knight: (Ferguson)It's just a flesh wound.

Key games of the week appear to be Blackburn's trip to United where manager Steve Kean may be asked to say goodbye. Citeh have a tricky trip to MON's Sunderland.....Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool will all be wanting a return to winning ways after dropping points in draws last week. Next Tuesday Citeh entertain Liverpool while the next night United go to the Geordies.
As 2011 finishes we realise it is all still to play for....we are barely at the half-way point. Bring on EPL 2012....my resolution is to not stop talking about it!

Friday, 30 December 2011

Barclays Premier League

Liverpool v Newcastle, 19:45

Saturday, 31 December 2011

Barclays Premier League

Man Utd v Blackburn, 12:45

Arsenal v QPR, 15:00

Bolton v Wolverhampton, 15:00

Chelsea v Aston Villa, 15:00

Norwich v Fulham, 15:00

Stoke v Wigan, 15:00

Swansea v Tottenham, 15:00

Sunday, 1 January 2012

Barclays Premier League

West Brom v Everton, 12:30

Sunderland v Man City, 15:00

Monday, 2 January 2012

Barclays Premier League

Aston Villa v Swansea, 15:00

Blackburn v Stoke, 15:00

QPR v Norwich, 15:00

Wolverhampton v Chelsea, 15:00

Fulham v Arsenal, 17:30

Tuesday, 3 January 2012

Barclays Premier League

Tottenham v West Brom, 19:45

Wigan v Sunderland, 19:45

Man City v Liverpool, 20:00

Wednesday, 4 January 2012

Barclays Premier League

Everton v Bolton, 20:00

Newcastle v Man Utd, 20:00

Pos	Club	P	W	D	L	F	A	GD	Pts
1	Man City	18	14	3	1	52	13	38	45
2	Man Utd	18	14	3	1	47	14	33	45
3	Tottenham	16	11	2	3	31	19	14	35
4	Chelsea	18	10	4	4	35	21	16	34
5	Arsenal	17	10	2	5	33	25	8	32
6	Liverpool	18	8	7	3	21	14	7	31
7	Newcastle	18	8	6	4	25	22	3	30
8	Stoke City	17	7	3	7	18	28	-10	24
9	West Brom	18	6	4	8	19	26	-7	22
10	Everton	17	6	3	8	18	20	-2	21
11	Norwich	17	5	6	6	27	31	-4	21
12	Aston Villa	17	4	7	6	19	23	-4	19
13	Fulham	18	4	7	7	19	24	-5	19
14	Sunderland	18	4	6	8	21	21	0	18
15	Swansea	17	4	6	7	16	21	-5	18
16	QPR	17	4	4	9	17	31	-14	16
17	Wolves	17	4	3	10	18	31	-13	15
18	Wigan	18	3	5	10	15	35	-20	14
19	Bolton	18	4	0	14	22	41	-19	12
20	Blackburn	18	2	5	11	25	39	-14	11

EPL geographical balance is out of whack

Something that has concerned me for a while is the reality that the EPL has become geographically unbalanced over the past few years. A quick glance at the two maps below shows just how distorted it has become.

 

http://www.tankedup-imaging.com/css_dev/premiership.html

http://www.myfootygrounds.co.uk/AreaMap.asp?view=ENGLAND

Probably the most glaring gap in terms of EPL geographical presence is the complete absence of sides from Yorkshire in the top league. Yorkshiremen may be annoying, opinionated, self obsessed and Boycottlike in the worst way but I feel they ought to be represented in the top flight. Prior to the re-badging of the old First Division, Yorkshire had a healthy sprinkling of sides who were regularly up in the top division. Leeds United, Sheffield Wednesday and United, Bradford City, Huddersfield were all in there while Barnsley played in the EPL in the late nineties. More recently Hull City graced the EPL for a few seasons but some even doubt that Hull is a Yorkshire side at all! Of all the absences in this group, that of Leeds United is probably the most glaring. Financial problems did send the club down to League Two at one stage but even the most rabid hater of the club probably now harbours a sneeking hope that they will again grace the top competition, this writer included. I lived up there for four years and without doubt found it one of the most intimidating places to go even as a neutral! Their rivalry with Manchester United is one of the genuine club hatreds going around and has now been on hold too long.

While there has been a strong historical presence from the south coast, at the moment we see Brighton, Porthsmouth, Southampton all playing Championship football. The latter is leading the competition at the moment so the south coast may again be up there at the top quite soon.

London has five clubs in the EPL at this time.....this is historically quite typical....Arsenal Chelsea and Spurs have been in the EPL since its change-over while Fulham and QPR are present participants who have flirted historically between the top two divisions. West Ham are presently out as are Crystal Palace and Charlton. Leyton Orient played top flight for a season while the joint prayers of the other Football clubs seem to be keeping 'no one likes us' Millwall out at the moment.

The Midlands is represented by Aston Villa, Stoke City,WBA and Wolves. The underwhelming mediocrity of the regions EPL performance cannot be overstated even when the likes of Leicester, Birmingham are up occasionally doing their stuff. As a bottom line the Midlands can at least point to it's superiority over Yorkshire teams ....4-0 at the moment!

The North East has two EPL clubs Newcastle and Sunderland. Despite a lack of trophies the area is undoubtedly passionate....add Middlesboro if they come back up and you have a region with top line support.

It is the North West that at present dominates the EPL. True they lost Blackpool and Burnley in recent years but Man Utd and Citeh, Everton and Liverpool, Bolton, Blackburn and Wigan all have an EPL place. Even Preston can claim top flight history as can Oldham.

Why then is it important that the EPL has clubs from all over? The best argument really is for balance. Even having a Welsh side Swansea in the EPL has its merits. The promotion one day of Cardiff City will add a whole new dimension to the competition but that can be dealt with when it occurs. The EPL is a competition plugged in to the world media nowdays, so some would argue regionalism is less important because so many outsiders now follow the game. There was at one stage quite a strong push to make it a British competition with Glasgow Celtic and Rangers taking part. However UEFA politics precluded this when those sides were rich and there is even less chance now they are financially struggling.

To me the map of locations for EPL clubs is unbalanced and hopefully will one day put itself right bringing those happy Yorkshire folk back into the circle. I can't wait:)

The EPL race just went up a gear

As is so often the way there is nothing like a bit of adversity to focus people on the main game. Man Utd and Man City both exited the Champions League this week and suddenly the world has changed. This has already been an interesting season in England. Witness the fact that all but one of the top sides have suffered a good hiding. For City going out of the ECL is their first failure of the season. We might remind ourselves that they were the team that won 5-1 at Spurs and 6-1 at United. Spurs themselves hammered Liverpool 4-0, while Arsenal won 5-3 at Chelsea. To round off the lop sided big team matches, Arsenal were themselves embarrassed at Old Trafford 8-2.
Roberto Maccini does seem up unto this point to have spent his middle eastern paymasters money well. Of course he didn't originally spend the cash on Tevez or Adebayor ....his role was more involved in their subsequent alienation. The tricky job of keeping warehoused players happy is a thankless one. City do indeed have seem to have more than two players per position. What will really hurt the Manchester clubs will be the drop down to the Europa League as a result of their ECL exit. The plethora of Channel 5 jokes on the net will really only be understood in England the rest of the anglo-phile football world will see the joke sail over their heads like a centre backs wayward shot.
Of course in England a failure to make the top four condemns sides the afore mentioned Europa League and exposure on a Thursday to the joys of transmission on Channel 5. My gooner buddy Robert O'Connor joyfully published this ditty today and it shows the embarrassment felt by the Manchester duo playing in just the Europa League for the rest of the season.
A little bit of Tevez out the door. A little bit of Vidic on the floor. A little a bit of Nasri on the side. A little bit of Rooney shooting wide. A little bit of Mario having a laugh. A little bit of Nani on his arse...Ladies and Gentleman - Channel Number Five.
TV money has indeed distorted the way football is perceived across Britain and Europe. At home, previously, winning the FA Cup or League Cup was perceived as a plus for most teams. Bus top parades through localities a major form of celebration. Today things seem to have shifted. The top six or seven clubs seem to be continually preoccupied with 'next season' rather than this. Of course in England a failure to make the top four condemns sides the afore mentioned Europa League. Ask the top teams fans would you rather win a cup or qualify for the ECL and many will pick the latter. This writer being in the minority preferring cup glory to cash flow. Perhaps the best argument for the former is one that says you can't attract or keep the best players without ongoing ECL qualifiaction. It is hard to argue with this financial reality.
As we head into another EPL weekend we see the following match-ups.

Barclays Premier League

Arsenal v Everton, 15:00

Bolton v Aston Villa, 15:00

Liverpool v QPR, 15:00

Man Utd v Wolverhampton, 15:00

Norwich v Newcastle, 15:00

Swansea v Fulham, 15:00

West Brom v Wigan, 15:00

Sunday, 11 December 2011

Barclays Premier League

Sunderland v Blackburn, 13:30

Stoke v Tottenham, 16:00

Monday, 12 December 2011

Barclays Premier League

Chelsea v Man City, 20:00 

The key fixture being between Villas-Boas's Chelsea and Mancini's Citeh. Points will be dropped here! A win for the former closing up the title race while a win for the Sky Blues will possibly bring day light between them and the rest especially now that Vidic is out for the season with a knee injury. Spurs face the physical and aerial challenge away to Stoke while Liverpool and Arsenal should take maximum points from QPR and Everton. The Geordies, desperate to keep up have a tricky away game to Norwich. Indeed with less ECL distractions the race for the EPL has just gone up at least one gear.

A League......time to revisit a few decisions for FFA

Someone once asked me what I thought Frank Lowy would bring to our game once he agreed to become involved again in 2003. With some thought I told them that there were two important but not necessarily related  things that would see the man take football in Australia to a new level. First that he seemed to possess a strength that some might undersestimate. He had been a member of the Golani Brigade in Israel. This was an army group whose main purpose was to physically train to one day run with equipment up the Golan Heights and then overpower entrenched Syrian forces. For anyone struggling to gain a mental picture of this task think running up from Emu Plains to the top of overarching Blue Mountains. Needless to say Lowy was used to fughting battles others thought might be hopeless.....In this case turning Australias significant but minority based 'soccer culture' to a more general appeal 'football league' resembling those similar leagues throughout the world....now we would be thinking MLS, J League and K league.
The second point I made about Lowy was one that that made him perculiarly different to most of the 'faces' involved in the NSL in decades before. Frank Lowy, as a billionairre, had no need or driving desire to make money out of the A League, despite being elected to the prime position in 2003. To me this was a key factor that made him different, stewardship of Australian football was seen by Lowy as a role where his plan was for the good of all stakeholders in the sport. The three pronged approach of setting up the A League, getting Australian qualification for the 2006 World Cup and a bid for a future hosting of that competition.
Looking back on his efforts I would rate them as an eight and half out of ten. True to his word he seems to have avoided taking personal gain from the sport. As a  matter of fact he has helped in the past five years with the continued funding for some of the franchises in the A League....how much I don't know. There I said it, I used the F word. Franchise. To me if anywhere, it is in the establishment, choice of location and basis chosen for franchises that Lowy's A League has underperformed.
Two points I would make on this topic. First, the change undertaken to bring Australia the A League, involved marketing people rebranding the sport. They listened to ordinary Aussies and reported back that to become a main-stream sport Soccer needed to move away from ethnic based clubs and in the process reclaim the name 'Football' from the various nationwide pretenders to the title, AFL, League and Union. Recent history shows that this path was embraced with a non-ethnic....territory based model emerging. The one team per city / region idea was one of the base elements of the new eight side A League competition. Unfortunately, taking such a path meant that the old NSL was dead and few, if any of it's good aspects preserved. The old sides of the competition did not go away completely but played on in the various state league competions across Australia. Sydney Olympic, Sydney United and Marconi three of those in NSW. By abandoning these clubs completely our national competion is probably the poorer because we now have a 'disconnect' between the A League and the State competions where these clubs still play.
This takes me onto my second point on the A League and the way forward.  Any second Sydney side should be in the Western Suburbs. Unfortunately, the FFA ignored reality and not only failed to foster relations with existing Western Sydney clubs but planned to base any expansion side out of Homebush! What could they be thinking? The NRL proves every year that this stadium / venue is not a week to week proposition for a club side. Why would a new football team want to play in a massive 3/4 empty stadium? This view can be backed up by a story from the old NSL days. Marconi and Sydney United both had sides in the NSL. So what you may say. Well the west not only provided these two National Soccer clubs but they are almost in the same suburb! You can see one stadium from the other! Absurd but even more incredibly no one seemed to acknowledge this...was it because few Sydney, NSW or Australia based people ever went out there to disover this fact? To me expansion of the A League will require talks with these old school participants of the game. Italians and Croatians and others in Bossley Park could put together a strong club using one of their existing stadiums. Nearly a decade has passed since the schism  left the old NSL people disconeected from the national game. Here is an opportunity that could bring these elements back to the mainstram and in the process strengthen our National competion, the A League. Frank Lowy probably realises that some welcoming back into the fold is necessary. An A League side based in Bossley Park or Blacktown would deliver a very strong football area back into the fold....time to revisit a few hasty decisions for FFA?

http://maps.google.com.au/maps?hl=en&cp=21&gs_id=k&xhr=t&q=sydney+united+stadium&qscrl=1&nord=1&rlz=1T4SKPB_enAU386AU386&gs_sm=&gs_upl=&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.,cf.osb&ion=1&biw=1280&bih=673&wrapid=tljp1322972785912037&um=1&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=wl

Hackney Marshes football.....funny old game but deadly serious!

At a guess I 'd say I've been involved in the great game for about 47 years, as a player, supporter and coach. I can still remember the first goal I ever scored over at South Marsh and how in the same game I also managed to lift the ball over the bar for a yard out! Yes, Hackney Marshes was the melting pot of talent on a Saturday, Sunday and weekdays for schools like mine, Lauriston Road Primary. At one time the marshes had pitches numbering over 110 and not surprisingly if you wanted goal-nets  you put them up yourself. If you could play at the marshes you could play anywhere. In the 1960's they were home to the famous 'cattle shed' changing rooms .....if Hackney copped the monicker 'arm pit' of Europe then the cattle sheds were a hell hole of mud, cold showers and freezing dressing rooms with no locks, lights or working toilets. Outside the dressing rooms were toughs of freezing cold water with brisssle on the side for boot cleaning. Funny enough, I tended to go looking for another game on a Sunday after playing the day before. Basically, spare players would sticking their heads into the various dressing rooms at ten to eleven on a Sunday morning, the conversation going...."Anyone need a player?".......no! ...."anyone need a player?".......no! ...."anyone need a player?".......no!
anyone need...whoosh a football shirt would land on your face and you would be dragged in and be told who you were for the day....."you're Johnny Smith and don't get yourself booked or sent off......no you don't have to pay to play......you don't want to play in goal do you?....I thought not"
Really I can't ever remember a game at the marshes being called off...snow, ice, torrential rain. The closest I ever came was one time when it was foggy. So foggy that standing on the half way line you could only just see the goals at either end. This particular Sunday morning I was ill with a stomach upset, we only had 8 players while the other team had 9. Sure enough in a 3-3 draw I scored from 25 yards....the referee pointing for a goal kick to be taken......an effin Goal kick....referee you must be joking! Desperate I pleaded but the fog and a lack of nets on the goals left no evidence of a score. Without really thinking about it I ran to their goalkeeper who was standing stony faced about to take the goal-kick. What else could I do? Yes .....I was willing to beg. In what seemed like seconds I had appealed to him as a player....as scoring debutant then finally I said...."look keeper we must be mad to be here it's freezing fukin cold, the marshes looks like set from the ripper and I have got the worst diarrhea you have ever seen and you are gonna let this idiot disallow my goal?" Somehow I got through to him and he picked the ball up, threw it to the ref and siad "It was a goal".
Not that playing at the marshes was always such fun. When we about 17 we had a side in a mens division....not a real problem just part of the learning curve you might say. This particular game saw us up against a pub team who happened to have centre forward who was 18 stone, six foot eight and a bully! This particular Brutus spent his whole time threatening and kicking our players. Terrifyingly I actually shirtfronted him by mistake and knocked him over, only the referees insistance that 'surely' I wouldn't of done it on purpose, calmed the brute down. There he was striding around the pitch making everyone scared to go near him. Then, just outside our box they won a free kick and we proceeded to form a wall. Mr Bully came and stood right it front of us his shadow darkening our view.....that was until our particular popeye arrived. Davie Hutchinson was as wide as he was tall! Just as the freekick was going to be taken he took one step out of the wall and kicked the bully right up the arse! Yes, aimed his muddy football-booted toe right up the relaxed jacksy of the bully. In what seemed like glorious slow motion the bully collapsed screaming to the floor. Davie had by now taken a step back into the waiting wall. The bully was crying, screaming and curled into the foetal position lying in the Hackney Marsh mud. The referee calmly walked up and without even looking at the bully informed the wall that if anyone came any closer than the ten he would have to book someone. Getting to his feet the bully looked for his attacker. That someone who had inserted their toe further up his arse than any doctors examination before this! Davie, a foot smaller, calmly and quietly put his hand up saying" It was me, you're a fucking bully and the next time you foul someone I will be personally knocking you out!" After what seemed an age, we all still being in the wall watched  him turn and limp off to the side-line.
Across the years I played for many 'pub teams' over the marshes, Strathspey, only won one game and that on forfeit in the last match of the season. Duke of Devonshire, in the bully match. Hoxton Athetic, the Jolly Farmers Pub owned by Arsenal' Peter Storey...the Brownswood Tavern in Green Lanes and Queensbridge Trucks. All these teams played either in the Hackney & Leyton League or the East London Sunday League.
Typical of most Sunday sides kicking off at 11 o'clock many often started games short of the full eleven. You actually got 15 minutes grace and you could start the game with seven players the rest to come on afterwards. One match with the Brownswood had this very situation...we knew the others were coming but we only had six on the pitch....in another two minutes we would have to forfeit. Then to my lasting shame I had an idea to get the game going. Norman, a heavily crippled West Indian bloke who was four foot two and used a crutch was our ever present team supporter. Somehow I pursuaded him to pull a shirt on and to come a yard onto the pitch! Only a yard but now we had seven. These were no politically correct times, no health and safety only a referee looking to make sure he would get him game fee. After five hectic minutes where Norman literally hugged the touch line our reinforcements arrived and we had a full team. To applause and relief all round Norman left the field.
Playing / coaching at the marshes wasn't always what it seemed. Two of my cousins had had a few problems with substance abuse and asked me if I could coach their side on a Sunday. I had my badge and thought why not it would be good to see them playing again. Questions. It is important to ask questions! Of course I was surprised a month in to find just who I was coaching / training......a whole side of recovering drug addicts! After the initial shock I grew into the role and we had a great time. Apparently the squad had sworn to each other that turning up on the Sunday morning was sign that they had all got through the night. In that season there was only one player who failed to turn up on the Sunday....it was truly uplifting and part of what was the great Hackney Marshes football experience for me and thousands of others.

https://www.facebook.com/#!/groups/108224895934072/ We played football at Hackney Marshes when it had over 100 pitches!

Harry and Van Der Vaart

Sometimes it is just better to say what you feel through making a cartoon!
http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/12524805/harry-and-van-der-vaart?page=1

There is no game like a Derby! Spurs v Arsenal.

Monday morning 2am here in oz, the alarm goes off and the house is awake. Short prayer thanking the gods of Foxtel and we are ready to tune in to 'the derby' Tottenham v Arsenal. This is the game that brings both sets of supporters to life.....twice a season, everything is on the line.
My dad Sid took me to a reserve game against Arsenal in 1963 where legend Bobby Smith was trying to get some fitness. All I remember was that he sat on the ball and burst it!
Yes, this is a fixture with which I have a long association. The first League derby I went to was at Highbury on 8th Mar1966.....45 years ago:) My late cousin Peter Speed had taken me. It was a night match and the crowd was 51,000. We were standing in the clock-end with the Spurs fans. Me, being a small eleven year old, my cousin stood the whole game with me on his shoulders!  On a cold evening with mist swirling around the floodlights I fell in love that night with the excitment. This for me would always be 'the derby' game.

The following year I returned to Highbury again and on a bright September Saturday afternoon watched from the North Bank as my side were hammered 4-0! Regardless of the competition this game always meant a lot to everyone. I lived on an estate made up of 300 flats and it was true to say that the kids there were roughly split 50 / 50 in their support...there were very few glory hunters back then supporting sides located  in the cold harsh north.
In 1968 we were drawn in a two legged League Cup semi-final the first being at Highbury. The two legs were a fortnight apart and it was necessary to get tickets for the games. What did we do? Set out @ 5.00am to queue up with thousand of supporters stretching right around the ground ....first at Highbury and the week later the same at White Hart Lane. Tickets secured we were treated to a great two matches losing 1-0 in the first and only managing a 1-1 draw at home. As is often the way in football Arsenal managed to miss out when clear favourites losing to tiny Swindon at Wembley 3-1, Don Rogers the hero.
Even though I 'd not seen the great Spurs double side other than in the FA Cup final on TV, I knew that we were the only club to achieve the League/ Cup double in modern times. It was pretty distressing then to realise that in season 1970-71 Arsenal had the chance to emulate our achievement and half of this at White Hart Lane!  On the Monday I was desperately hoping my boys would stop them from becoming champions at at our place. It was a school day with a 7.30 evening kick off. Even my school had realised what an important day it was and allowed a group of us to leave at 2.00pm to go to the game. For some reason the game wasn't made all ticket and even though we set out mid-afternoon, Tottenham was packed when we got there, so much so that the queues were out along Tottenham High Road. There we stood for half an hour the queue hardly moving. Eventually we saw that people were walking past the queue and cutting in further up. We jumped out and joined the surge into the Park Lane. For some reason I had worn my heavy crombie coat to the game and as we closed in on the gate the crush became unbelievable. Yards from the turnstile, scarf strangling me and coat being like a straight-jacket I told my mate I had to give up and escape the crowd. We were devastated. Somehow, as we wandered further down the lane, we came across a turnstile with just a tiny queue paid our money and we were in! Oh what a night. There we were in our end, the Park Lane but Arsenal had been allocated half of it. The game was a frenzy but in spite of pressing their goal continually we couldn't score. Then it happened, they scored through a Ray Kennedy header and there we were in the middle of a massive Arsenal celebration winning the league at our ground:(
On the following Saturday I went out to watch the Arsenal / Liverpool final as a neutral. Charlie George did his part to win it for the gunners and they had won the double.

Not all the games betwen these two sides are rememered for the result. When we played at Highbury the season before the kids from round our way, Arsenal and Spurs had walked almost the whole way back to London Fields after the game. The little low decker 236 bus had been so packed on the way home we decided to walk. It's hard to imagine rival rival supporters going to games together nowdays but that's what we did back in 1970...only splitting up at the ground. This particular night walk was memorable for a very sad reason. One of the Arsenal supporters, Steven Long, 16 was to die tragically two days later. He crashed his motor scooter into a lamp post in Bethnal Geen and was killed instantly. For all of us the lasting memory was walking home with him from Highbury that night.
Tottenham / Arsenal matches are like some perpetual conflict going on in Valhalla. Regardless of league position they are unpredictable. In March 1987 we played them in the League Cup semi-final. Back then there were replays and this tie went to a third match at White Hart Lane. To Tottenham's lasting embarrassment they went off too early! Leading 1-0 with a few minutes left the announcer started giving details of where /when  the Spurs fans could purchase their cup final tickets! Of course this was a fatal mistake and in last minute Arsenal equalised and then wen on to win in extra time.....fail!
This game can have all the highs and lows of life. One year (Dec 78) at an all ticket Tottenham / Arsenal match me and a mate got tickets for the Park Lane end which had been allocated to the gunners fans. What made things worse was that it was the game that they hammered us 5-0, Liam Brady running riot. There we stood as the Arsenal celebrated each goal....eventually we went to the police and asked if could be let out and into the Spurs area. They said no! You knew you had tickets for the wrong end but still came in. Worse still, the Arsenal fans around us heard what was said and we spent the rest of the game very uncomfortably trying to avoid eye contact with anyone.

What comes around goes around they say and in April 83 we absolutely smashed them at our place also by 5-0! A tiny Spurs player named Terry Gibson terrorised them throughout and it was probably one of my top derby experiences.

The FA Cup semi -finals of 91 and 93 also provided the extreme emotion reserved for derbies in this case with the stakes being an FA Cup final place. The elation and devastation here remain in the memory for all true supporters of these clubs.
As I share this Spurs / Arseanal blog, it really came home to me that two of my longest and best friends are no longer here to share banter. Johnny Burnham and Tony Fuller were two fantastic people I grew up with.....went to many derbies with ....and miss every day:)
All this said, it is the last match you played that gives the bragging rights. After a long long period of failing to beat Arsenal we have started to even up the record. We won at their place in 2010 with a great comeback 3-2 win and drew the return at WHL 3-3, so for last season  we came out well.
The game on Sunday sees many pundits making Spurs favourites after Arsenal's patchy start to the season. I wouldn't take a lot of notice of the betting. It really is in the balance and I see it as a 50/50 proposition. Regardless of the outcome I'm sure I will be hearing from both sets of supporters during and after the game. Come On You Spurs!

http://www.topspurs.com/thfc-arsenal.htm

Fly on the wall...Celtic v Rangers Cup final 1980......everyone on the pitch!

Sometimes you just happen to be in the wrong place at a particular time. One such occassion for me was the 1980 Scottich Cup Final at Hampden Park, beween Celtic and Rangers. The infamous riot on the pitch.
I must immediately say that I was with the Celtic fans on the day but it all started so calmly My mates were from Johnstone, a suburb of Glasgow and I'd been up quite a few times to see the boys play. They had been telling me about Steve Archibald as a player who was leaving Aberdeen to come to Spurs that year.
On this particular Saturday afternoon we had been in the pub for a few and as we came out the group divided into two. There waiting for us were two buses, one for the Celtic fans and one for the Rangers. We had all been together beforehand but now it was time to go to Hampden. Our bus was packed. All local Johnstone boys who traveled all over during the season to follow the team....we got a match ticket and a ride to and from the ground. As we went, the songs began, all Irish Republican to a tee. Broad Black Brimmer...about an old trench coat. Fields of Athenry and another very Scottish one telling the story of a Celtic keeper John Thomson, killed while playing in 1931 against.....Rangers!
The pope was pretty popular in the songs and for some idiotic reason I shouted f..k the pope at the end of one of them. Silence decended immediately as all around looked at me. Fortunately my mate just pointed and said "ah he's joking" and the party went on with even more passionate renditions of songs I knew nothing about.
Having left the Rangers bus back in Johnstone things were very well organised by the police on the day. The Celtic and Rangers buses were required to approach Hampden by opposite routes. We never came within 200 yards of a Rngers supporter as we made our way off the bus and to the ground. The eighties were certainly a time of trouble at football in Britain. However, I found out as we alighted from the double decker why it was that so many scots got arrested at football. Pissing in the street! Yes, the police were arresting blokes for having a leak in the street....public indecency after drinking beforehand.
Entering Hampden was certainly a new experience for me as an outsider. It was an old stadium that desperately needed an upgrade. We stood right on the half way line next to the fence in what was a completely open side of the ground. To our left were the massed legions of Celtic fans. Green and white to a man. Strangely to me the silk banners and flags were old Irish! To my right were the blue and white supporters of Rangers also massed with hundreds of flags. To my surprise these fans waved British union flags. There was a distinct lack of 'scotishness' about the whole thing....instead both sets of supporters seemed to be something else for the day! We were right on the fence and during the game were exchanging friendly comments with the Rangers fans on the other side. There was no obvious aggreassion where we were and I mentally booked relief that the fanatics seemed to be at either end:) Celtic scored to win 1-0 in what was a scrappy game. Our boys were jubilant if a bit intoxicated. Then it happened. Just as the trophy was going to be presented. It went off. A young Celtic supporter, clad in green, ran to the Rangers goal, produced a ball and fired a shot into their net. He then celebrated briefly in front of them. Big mistake. It was a slight too far. He misjudged the distance and over the fencing came a posse of Rangers supporters. He was outflanked and they swept around to engulf him. Shocked our group on the half way line started to shout as a hordes of Rangers fans came on. "They are spoiling it for us!"........."It is our day.....we have won and they are coming on". In response the whole Celtic end emptied onto the pitch! Rangers then did the same.
As history will atest masses of supporters from both teams started to run onto the pitch. We stood there watching but suddenly the Rangers fans the other side of the fence started to throw bricks and bottles over at us. A champagne bottle wizzed past our heads and Hampden became a war zone! Self preservation kicked in for me and I tried to drag the boys away. 'You've won, you've won I shouted but somehow I seemed to be the only sober one there and the rest refused to move as a massive slow motion riot played out in front of us. About ten police on horses were charging end to end trying to bring order. An unflattering parody from the scots of the Wembley  'white horse final of 1923. Later, I read that when it started to go off there were only 20 police inside the ground. The head of police Iain McKie said "I'd watched it from the tunnel. Can't remember who I was with, but there wasn't many of us. They say there was 400-500 officers on duty that day. Well, I can tell you that the vast majority of them were outside the stadium by the time the match was over. There was nothing unusual about that. It was standard procedure. Most of the trouble at Old Firm matches took place outside the ground; fighting, urinating in gardens, all sorts".
Eventually we started back up the stairs and out of the ground. My thoughts shifted briefly to the English Cup being played that day, West Ham v Arsenal. I bet that was a bit calmer.
Outside the ground we returned to the buses with the Celtic fans. Of course the policing was great outside.....that is where all the police were...... we quickly made our gettaway in double decker safety.
Arriving back in Johnstone we all went back to the pub to celebrate. We had to get rid of all our scarves because you weren't to wear 'colours' in pubs on a Saturday....few fans then actually wore club shirts. Fortunately, when everyone, Rangers and Celtic fans were back together people were calm and normality returned. That evening, after the game, we all went off to a party, together!

Further reading:
http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/rangersfc/Tom-English-looks-back-at.6282400.jp
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Thomson_(footballer)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G5hL6UbstyE


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Arsenal: When the succession plan starts to unravel.

I'll start immediately by saying that I see Arsene Wenger as one of the top three coaches in the world, currently  working.  Apart from SAF he'd probably be my number 2 .....ahead of the special one. Why then does it appear that Arsenal seem to have lost that aura of brilliance they had for so long? The obvious answer would be to point to the recent departure of Cesc and Nasri. Losing two world class players would tax even the best. Yes, but no, this is only part of the story.
We all know that Arsenal have walked a financial tightrope since building and moving to the Emirates, from Highbury.  A new stadium which cost £390 million, plus the cost of associated infrastructure...... £470 million all up. They played their first competitive Emirates game on 19 August 2006 but in truth had been seriously budgeting for several years before then. Arsenal were fortunate to have Wenger who had world class contacts particularly in Europe. Since 1996 he had continually blended his established stars with an assembly line of low cost young French players. True, he had inherited a bed rock team including Adams; Bould; Winterburn; Bergkamp; Dixon and Keown but quickly brought in Petite, Vierra and a young Anelka. The glory of the unbeaten season 2003-4 saw Arsenal at it's peak.....Henry, Pires, Ljungberg and Campbell made up a great side. Since then things have been tougher for Wenger. No trophies since the FA Cup win in 2005 has put pressure on everyone connected with the Emirates not least the supporters. The frugal transfer market strategy of the club has been widely applauded  and criticised......depending upon who you are. Wenger must be almost unique among coaches and managers in his disciplined approach to transfers. Here is a man with a deep insight into the tightrope the club has walked for nearly 10 years. It is hard to imagine (bar SAF) a coach who would not have demanded cash to buy success. For Wenger the line of succession has generally come from the steady flow of youngsters gradually graded into the first team squad.
What has happened to alter this putting him under such pressure?  Firstly, Cesc was always going to go.....Arsene was buying time right to the end. No, the real shock came when upstarts Manchester City managed to prise an 'in contract' Nasri away from them. In July, Wenger had insisted that he would not have to sell either Nasri or Fabregas Wenger said: "Samir's situation is clear for me. He stays. We are in a [financial] position where we can say 'No', and we will … Imagine the worst situation, that we lose Fábregas and Nasri; you cannot convince people that you are ambitious after that."
The 22m that Arsenal received for Nasri is more than the 15.8m they originally paid for him but this transfer is a signal about much more than money. Arsene Wenger has now said that he doesn’t want another replay of the Nasri saga and intends to try and tie Robin van Persie, Thomas Vermaelen and Theo Walcott down to new contracts this season, as they will all have just 12 months remaining next summer. It looks like the horse has bolted .....even Arsenal will now struggle to rid themselves of the 'selling club tag'. This at a time when rivals Tottenham held out to keep Luka Modric from the clutches of Chelsea in spite 40m of oil money.....a line in the sand indeed. Perhaps worse of all for the club, the new generation have not yet stepped up as they did in the past decade. This is the point, they not only failed to hold Nasri but the new crop are struggling, prompting 'transfer window' last minute buys, Gervinho; Mertesacker; Arteta and Benayoun, reasonable at 28m but still leaving some doubt on the quality of the squad to compete......especially with long term absentee Wilshire. The massive reverse up at Old Trafford is an overt sign of the problems Wenger faces to be competitive on a comparative shoestring. On a deeper level the question is now being posed on how far have Arsenal declined....is it terminal? An early test comes on Sunday against Spurs who for the first time in a generation may be ready to slip past the gunners.....surely not the succession plan Arsene Wenger had in mind!

The danger of pass pass and no movement seen today v Wigan

Our first half displays against both Liverpool and Wigan were a joy to watch. High intensity, one touch passing and movement into space. Without the ball we worked hard as a team to regain possession ....we were a credit to BC's vision of how it should be played....Barcelona in white. The occasional choice of a dribble made us difficult to handle. However, we have now seen the downside of when the movement stops. Against Wigan VDV's lack of stamina began to hurt while Sandro was running on empty after 70 minutes. Mr Connector Parker found himself with considerably less outlets for his passes and a one eyed Ade didn't really want the ball. Perhaps the classic instance of us being found out / wanting to only pass and not move, was the 5-3 reverse to Man Utd all those years back. In that game we also stopped the movement and they ran over the top of us.

Credit to Harry for the good stuff so far but he will need to ring the changes even earlier if we are not allow beaten sides to come back in the way ten man Wigan did today.

What is it like to support a Jekyll and Hyde football team? Welcome to Tottenham Hotspur! Watched a fantastic first half an hour against Wigan where we scored two but could have had five. The opposition again made our job easier by getting a player sent off but we failed to go on with it second half conceding a goal and holding on for a 2-1 win. The real problem for Spurs is that they get bored and as in the game against Liverpool actually stopped going forward with the purpose of scoring. That said, we definately seemed to have bought well with Ade and Parker. However I feel we need to play two up front and Defoe(sick yesterday) will be a good foil for the ex-Arsenal man. VDV simply lacks the stamina to play a full game in the EPL and again went off on the hour.Still three wins from three games puts a better gloss on the season so far and next weeks clash with the gooners will be interesting. COYS......Come On You Spurs!