This is a charming book written with a lot of passion and empathy for his friends, family and all those who he comes in contact with.
The book follows Mat’s 2014/15 season from the start in July 2014 for the game between Bangor City and Stjarnan in a Europa League First Qualifying Round Second Leg to April 2015 and Dagenham & Redbridge playing Accrington Stanley in DivisionTwo.
There are many unusual stops in ths journey for a Southampton based fan, including the Faroes, Cyprus, Sri Lanka, Wales and many other more local destinations.
We all dream of unusual football outcomes but Mat seems to achieve his in often fascinating and definately not conventional ways. Throughout the book though there is a growing love for Accrinton Stanley who although many hours away from home give him the warm feeling of belonging.
You can support different teams for many reasons and due to changing times in your life and Mat shows this in his book and retains loyalty to Salisbury, Southampton and Accrington.
If Matt writes another book I will be in the queue to buy it.
nutmeg: The Scottish Football Periodical June 2021
Wow, what a find. This publication came of interest to me through reading a Daniel Gray book. I was lucky to get it given to me as a yearly subsciption of £35 (you can pay £10 per issue). This is a quaterly magazine, but what a magazine, packed with 196 pages of superb journalism of all sorts of Scottish Football
At £35 I thought, a bit steep for four magazines, but when it arrived its value was soon realised. This is equivalent to a Scottish Football Fanzine on steroids, a years supply of an upmarket weekend newspaper sports supplement or an Itanian daily football paper, or four standard paperback books and so much more.
I am limiting myself to an article a day to make it last and have so far become an expert of Scottish football reorganisation, a passionate fan of Partick Thistle, followed Rangers revival through the dark years, re-lived the demise of the Saturday evening football paper and why the Qatar World Cup should be boycotted. As someone from south of the border I didn’t realise the depth of the game in Scotland. This magazine is reducing my aimless trawling on my phone and giving me back some good thoughtful writing to read.
Saturday Bloody Saturday: Written by Alastair Campbell and Paul Fletcher
First Published in Great Britain 2018 by Weidenfield & Nicilson
I usually read a novel between the many football books but this time I achieved the best of both worlds by reading a football novel.
It turned out to be worthwhile and very readable. We never get to know which top level football team the story is about but we certainly get to know the characters in the team, the Chairman and his scheming lieutenant, the young apprentice about to break into the team, the new top money signing and the other menbers of the playing and support staff.
Most of all the central character is Charlie Gordon the seasoned manager who is struggling with life and getting results that will lift the team from a drift downwards. He is not helped by his understudy who eyes the top post and sees it within his grasp. Will Chalie Gordon get the League results or a prestigious cup run that will it secure his position for now, will the players respond. many of whom have their own personal battles to conquer.
Running paralell to this is a political story that includes an IRA cell who are waiting instructions to assasinate a senior politician. You also get an insight to these individuals and their lives which may or may not cross over with the football team in some way.
I know I enjoyed the book as I was keen to read more and finish it.
Worth the time for anybody with a football interest especially with holiday time on your hands.
The last day of the football season on June 5th !! and I had the opportunity to watch one of the last Abacus Central Midland Football League Division One Central games of the season, either the home game at Holbrook St Michael or Kilburn. Both of these villages are just off and straddling the A38 in Derbyshire within 6 miles of each other. I chose Holbrook St Michael as it sounded the most interesting.
I set off following Google maps and eventually arrived in the pretty village of Holbrook St Michael but could not see the ground. Parked up looking at a phone screen with prescription sun glasses is not easy but I saw a playing field on the map about a mile away at Holbrook and set off again. Sure enough I arrived at a football ground with a few minutes left to kick off. The car park looked quite full but I could see no activity on the pitch through a small opening in a wire fence. Walking round the perimeter I passed the bowling green where at least 50 people were playing or watching and then found an entrance to the deserted football ground.
My thoughts were that this could be another game that had been cancelled because one club couldn’t get a team together in the current climate in the same way that a Glapwell game against Newark was cancelled by their opposition a few weeks ago.
However not to be beaten I thought I would go to Kilburn and headed off to soon find the village. But now I drove round that village three times until I finally found a small hidden drive next to the Jade Garden Chinese takeaway.
Darting down there I was confronted by a very full carpark and had to go back out into the main street where there were no parking spaces but eventually found one on a newish housing estate a brisk walk away. I finally walked into the ground 25 minutes after the start where someone was standing with a program. I tried to buy one off him but was soon told that the program was his and I needed to go to the kiosk where I bought the last program for £1 and a coffee for the same price. As the coffee was being made I watched the game and saw Kilburn take the lead at the far end.
The gound is compact with a children’s play area at one end. The playing area is fenced off but surrounded by Hawthorn bushes that were in full bloom with the rolling countryside beyond. The day had beautiful blue skies with some rolling cotton wool clouds that were motionless in the still wind.
The pitch sloped from side to side away from what looked like a good sized club house and was bumpy with good long grass cover. There looked like a crowd of about 40 who were dressed to enjoy the sun.
Kilburn 3 Woodhouse Colts 4
This was a mid table end of the season game that Kilburn needed to beat Woodhouse by 17 goals to pass them on goal difference in the league table.
As I said earlier I just caught the first goal when a Kilburn player found some space to smash a ball to the right of the goalkeeper to take the lead. This was doubled shortly after when a game of pin ball in the goal was greeted by shouts of goal by the Kilburn players and the linesman, provided by Woodhouse corageously signalled it had crossed the line.
So two nil at half time and 15 more to score to overtake Woodhouse.
A headed goal at the re-start for Woodhouse put paid to any silly results but Kilburn scored again quickly when their lively and most dangerous forward, No,9 ran on to a through ball and ckeekily chiped it over the diving goalkeeper. It was then the Woodhouse number nine’s turn to get in on the act with an audacious lob over the keeper. The Woodhouse defence now seemed to take an iron grip on the game and hit long balls to each wing, especially the left, for their forwards to run onto and cause havoc. It was no surprise that they equalised through number 12 who powered a shot along the floor to see it bounce over the diving keeper and into the net. Woodhouse were now fully in charge and had a goal disallowed for a foul on the goalkeeper in amongst a group of players.
The drinks break midway through the half was welcomed by all but it did not stop the pattern of play and Woodhouse were ahead through their No.14 and never looked like relinquishing the lead until the end of play.
An exciting game to end the season a little spoilt by the grumbles of some players towards the referee who was doing his best on a very hot, tiring, end of season day. Thank you Kilburn for you hospitality I would like to visit again when the clubhouse is fully open and a game in normal seasonal football weather.
When I sat down later at home I looked up the results and found that Holbrook St Michael Development did play at home and lost one nil to Cromford and Wirksworth and that the ground I visited, only just over a mile away was Holbrook Sports. Amazing to find two such teams so close together and surviving. It also showed that I must do more planning before I set off but at the end of the day I think I was fortunate to see A SEVEN GOAL THRILLER. It also proved that I should have researched my journey more carefully before starting. The plus point is that I now have two new teams to watch in the coming seasons and I know where their grounds are,
I wrote a blog back on 15th December 2020 when I excitedly explained the renaissance of Glapwell F.C. With the second level of The Central Midlands League resuming to finnish their season I was able last Saturday to visit Hall Corner and see what was going on.
It was great to re-enter this ground that I had not been to for over ten years. When I last visited it was an evening game which is now impossible because there are no longer any floodlights, taken down some time ago due to vandalism and safety.
I was met with a young boy explaining the new rules at this publically owned arena and asking to sign in through the app. A bucket was on the ground in which people had left contributions if they wished.
There is a sadness in the delapidated areas but a feeling of going places in the friendliness, enthusiasm of the helpers, the tidiness and the playing standard, more of that later.
Glapwell FC may have more than battles on the field to contend with in the future. They have already won battle number one in re-forming and are trying hard through their on pitch efforts to win a promotion. They may be thwarted to rise through the pyramid system because of their ground. They will need to have floodlights in the future and with planning permission being granted to build 62 houses on part of the next door Glapwell Nuursery and 65 other new homes near by may face complaints about those lights being a nuisance. There could also be objections to increased fans arriving and leaving by car in an area that is faced with a major increase in traffic flow in the area resulting from the new housing.
There is a strong local campaign and petition to stop the sale of land close to the ground spearheaded by Tom Kirkham that is underway.
We, the undersigned, petition Bolsover District Council to protect the wildlife and mature trees at the top of Park Ave in Glapwell from development. We ask the council to stop its sale until covenants can be added to the land to keep it as a green, open public space respecting its status as a Bolsover District community asset. The land is one of the few areas of Glapwell that links the village back to its heritage and the old Glapwell Hall. The trees on the land are some of the oldest in the district and they are home to protected species such as bats. The land is much loved by local residents as a space for peace and relaxation.
You can understand all councils looking to sell any asset with their budgets being squeezed by reduced central goverment spending and more tasks being delegated to them from above. Austerity by the back door contiues to blight local representatives everywhere.
Back to the football.
It was a grey overcast day with a few spots of rain in the air and a cool 8 degrees that meant I went straight to get a hot coffee and a chat with an enthusiastic official.
The ground slopes from one end to the other, the grass cover was thick and lush and overall the facilities are much better than most teams of this level.
Glapwell’s opponents Thorne Colliery are believed to have been in existance for nearly 100 years. Based near Doncaster they have played their football in and around South Yorkshire, North Notts, and North Derbyshire for all of that time.
Glapwell FC 6 Thorne Colliery Development Team 0
Glapwell were into their stride from the kick off and with a very lively and skillfull front line it was of no surprise that they took the lead on 8 minutes through Curtis Birchall who from 8 meters out stroked the ball to the right of the diving goalkeepers hand.
Some 7 minutes later it was 2 nil, the goal scored by Chaz Brtadwell after some neat interpassing. On cue a further 7 minutes and it was three nil, Grant Mitchell only having to slide the ball home after a three man passing move..
Thorne steadily came back into the game and started to press having their best phase of the half. They looked unlucky not to be given a penalty but went in at half time well behind. Glapwell’s dominance was achieved by a neat inter passing game as against Thorne trying to beat their man through dribbling with the ball.
Hope all’s well Olly.
The referee turned the players round quickly but there was enough time for the Thorne manager to vociforously put over his feelings and plans for play in the second half.
However with Glapwell now playing down hill it took them only 10 minutes to increase their lead when a corner from Ben Coperstake was met by a thunderous header from Stephan Brown at the far post. This was somewhat dubious as the ball seemed to curve out of play before coming back on to Brown’s head.
A few minutes later Ben Coperstake was upended by the Thorne goalkeeper who received a yellow card and the resulting penalty was stroked home by Chaz Bradwell sending the keeper the wrong way.
The sixth goal for Glapwell came on 62 minutes when Grant Mitchell jinked past two defenders and drove a deflected ball along the ground into the corner of the net.
Glapwell brought on a young substitute Olly Marshall but within 2 minutes he suffered a very painfull leg injury. The pain on his face as he walked round the pitch to the bench was not good to see.
Glapwell did not have a substitute to replace him and played out the rest of the game with ten men for their 6 nil win that lifted them to second in the table.
My man of the match was Glapwell’s number nine Ben Coperstake who was playing out on the right and was unplayable with speedy nuns and accurate crossing and passing that had the Thorne defence in disaray.
I felt sorry for the young Thorne goalkeeper who although letting in 6 goals looked to have the potential to play at a higher level.
Really enjoyed the game and coming to Glapwell. I will be there again next season whatever league they are playing in.
The Beautiful Game – A Journey Through Latin American Football
Written by Chris Taylor
The paperback edition was published by Phoenix in 1999, an imprint of Orion Books Ltd.
I decided not to read some of the older books I have on my shelves, I’m really glad I didn’t listen to myself.
This is the best book I have read for some time for many reasons.
Chris Taylor’s writing style welcomes you in and keeps you hooked as he takes you on as the title says ‘A Journey Through Latin American Football’. He could have focused on the big two of Brazil and Argentina but be prepared for a trip into Nigaragua, Chile, Bolivia et al. There is even a section about the South American football scene in London.
As he says early on ‘In most of Latin America, football is one of the foremost expressions of a country’s culture’. ‘The other factor, the passion of the supporters is also relative’.
Where would football be without culture and passion which Latin Americans have in bucketfuls but Chris explains that corruption, economics, money, politics, drugs, racism, the clubs, fans and the fabulous skills of some of the world’s greats have their place.
As in many other places in the world it was the British who brought football to many of these countries and the local have set about creating their own style which has rivalled and often passed the European domination of Football.
The history is inspiring rather than dull and the competition between countries and clubs is expertly covered but it is people that shine through the pages. What is special is that although over 20 years old it is still relevant today.
Chris, a great book, thank you, I hope others will enjoy.
I didn’t think I would be watching any more football this season but some leagues lower than step 7 have restarted to complete their season and spectators are able to attend if it is a public park.
So I was all set to visit Glapwell and checked their Twitter feed an hour before kick off to find that their opponents had cried off because they couldn’t raise a full team. A frantic look at other games within my now constrained travelling time to find Ripley Town F.C were at home to Clifton All Whites Development Team only 30 minutes away.
The ground at Greenwich Park was easy to find alongside the A610 and was an open area next to a skate board park. Being the first of May a cricket match was in progress just beyond an adjacent football pitch.
The weather was disappointing for May in that although dry it was overcast with heavy dark clouds and a cold chill was in the air. The pitch was very undulating and reminded me of past Sunday League pitches I have known and loved. The goal mouths were bare of grass but a nice strip of dandelions and daisies ran down one side.
Ripley Town FC
There has been a football team named Ripley in the town for over 130 years although there have been many restarts, mergers and reorganisation. Ripley Town F.C. currently play in the Central Midlands League Division 1 South.
Clifton All Whites Development Team
Clifton All Whites have been going 1963 starting as a youth team in Nottingham, originally named Thistledown Rovers and in 1973 formed a senior team. They have played their football in and around Nottinghamshire and Derbyshire. The club is a community club with men’s and women’s teams of varying ages.
Ripley Town 2 Clifton All Whites Development 2
Ripley started the game most promisingly but a dull game was brought to life 7 minutes before half time when The All Whitles number 7, James Itokun, who had mafe some mazy runs which ran into cul de sacs, stooped to head home a great right wing cross.
The second half quickly started with just a quick 5 minute turn round. The dullness of the first half disapeared as Ripley pressed to equalise, which they did through Jason Whitehead. The All Whites now came back into the game strongly to go ahead through Ben Cooke. During this period of play they had a goal disalowed and a penalty saved by Ripley’s keeper diving to his left. However it ended all square with Alex Crossley getting the equalising goal. It was an enjoyable second half only dampened by some unnecessary swearing at the referee by an All Whites defender.
Soup instead of chips
With no food available at Ripley I could not have any ‘chips’ so I took a flask of soup instead. It must be because I have been used to non organic tomato soup all of my life that this just did not have the flavour I expected. At least it was hot on a cold day.
On Saturday I watched the last 16 round of the FA Vase online between Warrington Rylands and West Aukland. Not very remarkable you will say but for me in two ways.
Firstly because this game should not have been taking place because West Aukland had been comprehensively beaten and eliminated from the competition by North Ferriby in the previous round 4-0. However an administrative error by the North Ferriby team that had failed to register a sending off of one of their players in December meant he should have not played in the tie. So the FA took sanction on North Ferriby and it was West Aukland who were reinstated to play Rylands.
The game was however dull and did not live up to what it should have been. Rylands were by far the better team while West Aukland seemed almost embarrassed to be there. Perhaps they were not prepared only finding out in midweek that they were playing. Rylands took the lead but a scrappy equaliser brought West Aukland level but at the end of the 90 minutes they had nothing to offer against Rylands perfect penalties. North Ferriby must be licking their wounds as they would definitely have been sterner opposition.
Rylands have now beaten two teams in a row from the North East on penalties and fate has now paired them at home against another, Hebburn Town, in the quarter finals.
The second reason for the tie being remarkable for me is that although not a supporter of either team I was able to watch the tie. I hope that the streaming of games will continue post Covid.
With a lack of local football to watch I have turned to the weekly (Sundays) Non League Football Paper for some of my fix but they too are struggling to keep a broad range of interest. They only have the National League and the final rounnds of the Vase and Trophy to repoprt on, some intersting pen pics of clubs and players and a League Table section that gets more aged by the week.
Last weeks issue 18th April 2021 there was a very good full analysis of the FA restructuring of the pyramid system which is now going ahead for the 2021/22 season. Over 220 clubs will move sideways or upwards and as well as the changes there will also be a need for extra upward moves to plug the holes left by those teams who have folded. With cosultation and applications it will take to at least May17th for the final positions to be confirmed which seems a long time and again not giving some teams time to recruit players to their new level and ensure they have the ground, administration and finances in place for the new horizon.
The Non-League Football Paper
We shouldn’t despair of the Paper though as they are trying hard to keep interest going and are in my view doing a fine job despite the situation. To have kept going since 1999 they must be doing some thing good.
There is also an on line version you can subscribe to but it feels great to be able to have a paper format for £1.50 after spending too much time trawling the internet for news and sport.
The most recent reference to any circulation figures I can find was an internet comment by ‘The Telegraph’ on 28th May 2019 that said “With a cumulative monthly circulation of more than 80000, the NLP is Britain’s biggest-selling sports publication.”
During normal times my favourite part of the paper is the two pages showing the lower league tables where you can contrast and compare how all of those locally strange named teams you have visited are doing over two facing pages, without having to keep going into one league at a time on the internet.
I wouldn’t advise you to watch this doccumentary I would suggest you watch it twice or more.
Although it explores Jack Charlton’s life and a final battle with alzheimer’s (Like his brother and many other footballers and sports peolple) it concentrates mainly on his phenominal decade long career as Manager of The Republic of Ireland’s national football team.
Having had a fantastic playing career with Leeds and England, winning the World Cup in 1966, he went on into football management initially with Middlesborough and in 1985 was invited to be the Irish national Manager. His initial lack of response gave no indication of the succees in two World Cups and a EUropean Championship that would follow. The matches are all doccumented with some great clips but it is the special relationship that Jack developed with the Irish people that shines through. It is so sad that in his later years he could not remember this.
Past Presidents and Taoiseach’s praise him for his raising the moral and spirit of the country but it falls to clips of Larry Mullen, drummer with U2 to put in context of how Jack Charlton’s success with the team amazinly increased the belief of the peolple of Ireland that they were as a country able to stand up to and with any other country on earth. This new belief was at a time of great troubles and decline and paved the way for the new self confident Ireland of today.
Jack Charlton chose and worked with a band of British Isles born footballers with Irish ancestors who also caught the mood and took their chance to prove themselves. Niall Quinn and Parick Bonner give great background stories, David O’Leary explains why he was overlooked but was there to slot home a World Cup second round penalty shoot out deciding goal. Andy Townsend (Executive Producer of the doccumentary) reads out some of the notes that Jack Charlton kept throughout his career that are cleverly shown on a 3D board throughout the 97 minutes.
But it is the story and relationship with Paul McGrath that gives me the tingling moments. Paul explains what it was to be different in Ireland and how you had to fight to overcome the predjudice in a very closed society which was felt by many and led to some of the emigration. Having watched Paul in his Aston Villa career I already admired a man who was a top footballer despite his demons, no wander he is idolised wherever he played.
The Charlton family raidiate love for Jack, his wife and son and the rest of the family show that in their support and care for him.
On a personal note I did not realise that I watched the end of his Republic of Ireland career on 13th December 1995 when I was able to get two tickets for the European Championship play off between the Republic of Ireland and The Netherlands at Anfield for my son and I. The Netherlands won two nil in what I remember as a one sided game. Having found a parking space near the ground we were intrigued to watch a black Mercedes pull up opposite us and four men get out, go round to the boot, change out of their very good clothes into orange t shirts, boiler suits with orange hard hats and march off to the ground. I was also aske inside the gound by a Dutchman ‘what is this Bovril’, how do you exlpain! Jack Charlton resigned the next day.
This is a great doccumentary which transformed my undestanding of a great man, deffinately in the same class as Bobby Robson. Jack’s wife asks why didn’t he become a ‘Sir’ and I have to say, a complete mystery.
payonthegate 