November issue available now online
The new WSC is out now, available to order from the WSC shop.
Inside
Newcastle fans take Direct action | The revival of Kettering Town | Watford: A model community club? | Life asa stadium manager | Tribute to Kevin Beattie | What’s going on Charlton? | Storm over season tickets | The super club in Belarus | In praise of small crowds | Sweden’s original derby
Plus
England’s waning European power | New film sheds light on gay players | Bolton walk financial tightrope | Ry Keane makes more headlines | EFL cross the streams | Battle of the Wicks | Non-League comforts | Focus on Ludek Miklosko | Denmark’s scratch squad splits the country | When Bursaspor leapfrogged the big three | Merthyr’s return from financial ruin | Readers survey results
Kettering Town 1 Leiston 2 Rebuilding the Poppies
Cazzo piccolo. It is Italian for “little dick”. And it is certainly not an insult you would expect to hear on a sunny afternoon in Burton Latimer. Yet in a dinky, three-rows-deep stand at Latimer Park, a stone’s throw from the Weetabix factory which has produced breakfast biscuits since the 1930s, these are the very words that will fill the air more than once during Kettering Town’s meeting with Leiston. Buy now to read the full article
On the job Working at a stadium
Last season was the first in a decade where my life has not been dictated by the fixture list. This isn’t because I’ve fallen out of love with the game. Quite the opposite – I’ve enjoyed watching more football than I have for some time. Before a recent change of career I worked for two Premier League clubs, most recently as venue manager. Buy now to read the full article
Different worlds Non-League stadiums
As well as drawing attention to the world of football that exists beyond the Premier League and the EFL, one of the virtues of Non League Day, which will take place on October 13, is that it throws a spotlight on non-League football grounds. These invariably followed the same template as their Premier League and Football League peers, albeit on a miniaturised scale, before the advent of all-seat stadiums. The main difference was one of perception, which largely was due to the lack of coverage given to non-League football. Buy now to read the full article
Missing a Beat Kevin Beattie
How did someone rated by Bobby Robson as the finest English player he’d ever seen only end up with nine caps for his country? For Kevin Beattie, it was a mixture of bad luck and bad decisions, only some of which were his own. Beattie’s commanding presence as a centre-half was in marked contrast to the erratic directions that his life sometimes took, just as the cheery demeanour of his later years wasn’t what you might expect from someone who was dealt more than a few bum hands of fate. Buy now to read the full article
Availability
WSC is the only nationally available independent football magazine in the UK, and you can get it monthly for a very reasonable £3.50. You should be able to find a copy in your local newsagent, otherwise outlets that stock WSC include WH Smith, mainline train stations plus selected Tescos. If you’re having trouble finding the magazine, you could do one of the following:
1. Subscribe now and also get access to the complete digital archive
2. Buy the latest issue direct from WSC
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4. Email us
5. Ask your local newsagent to order it for you
Kettering photo by Paul Thompson, FC United photo by Colin McPherson, Venue Manager illustration by Adam Doughty