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Ian Plenderleith looks back to the late 1970s, when Lincolnshire buzzed with football enthusiasm – for Nottingham Forest

Where is Lincolnshire? It’s the second biggest county in England after Yorkshire, but you’d be sur­prised how few people know the answer. Even some of the people who actually live there. A similar sense of bafflement can be seen etched on the face of anyone who might be asked the following: name three pro­fessional football clubs in Lin­coln­shire? And what have they ever won?

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Clive Charles, one of the most sought after coaches in the US, says he benefited from leaving Britain. Mike Woitalla reports 

British coaches in American soccer are as easy to find as fast-food restaurants on Main Street. In a nation long dependent on foreign teachers, who more likely to dominate the tutorial corps than expatriates from a land of the same language?

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Update on clubs in crisis

The crisis at Port Vale took a an unexpected twist over the holiday period, when controversial director Charles Machin resigned amid an acrimonious exchange of views with chairman and major shareholder Bill Bell, hith­erto seen as a staunch ally. Vale had al­ready made headlines this season thanks to Mach­in’s bizarre demand of man­ager Brian Horton that he fill in regular questionnaires on each player, and had also ad­mitted they were using their yellow away strip more fre­quently because they could not afford to replace the home kit if it wore out. Other festering sores include the ungracious sacking of John Rudge in 1999 (and legal aftermath) and the club’s long-standing failure to complete the Lorne Street Stand at Vale Park.

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Everton takeover hits difficulties. Neil Wolstenholme reports

A year has passed since Bill Kenwright an­nounced his consortium, True Blue Hold­ings, had reached agreement to acquire Peter John­son’s 68 per cent stake in Everton for a knockdown £20 million. Joy was unconfined as Ever­ton, in­spired by Don Hutch­­ison, routed Sun­der­land 5-0 on Boxing Day at a sold-out Goodison Park.

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The sports minister reopens the debate on safe standing

There used to be a sign over the stairs leading out of the away end at Upton Park urging supporters to “Remember Ibrox” and leave without pushing. It seemed pretty rich, back in the Eighties, when spectators would struggle to get out of that tangle of unforgiving fences and barriers in one piece.

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