Search: ' midlands'

While the east midlands mourns a great manager, Brian Clough's native region has lost a great player. Harry Pearson  traces a legend's goalscoring career

It was during the 1986 World Cup. England had got off to a pathetic start and in the ITV studio Mick Channon was lamenting the inability of English players to “get by people”. “The Brazilians do it,” he burbled. “The French do it. The Danes do it…” From off camera came an unmistakable whine: “Even educated fleas do it.” Brian Clough may have won titles and European Cups, but the queasy, humiliated expression that remark put on Channon’s medieval mug will likely live longer in my memory than any of them. To anyone who grew up on Teesside the tone, if not the accent (Clough’s peculiar vocal style was all his own) was unmistakable. Funny undoubtedly, but also scornful, the humorous equivalent of a slap in the face.

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A new season, a new feature: each issue we pick outa match that helps us take the temperature of the game today. Where better to start than League Two? Al Needham reports

There are three important things you need to know about Mansfield. The first important thing is that Mansfield is one of those almost mythical places – a mining town that still displays signs of life. When you make the journey by train, you can see enormous pit wheels sunk into the ground, in memoriam of former colliery sites, and fear the worst. But no – there’s a very nice retail estate directly opposite the local club’s ground, thoughtfully designed to blend in with the dull, corrugated barns that are the west and north stands of Field Mill. Imagine Southend wrenched from its moorings and planted deep into the heart of the English countryside. That’s Mansfield.

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A century of football history has been needlessly cast aside for some, while for others the reorganisation of the non-League game is long overdue. John Carter reports

 T he glum knot of red-and-black-clad fans huddled in the main stand intrigued spectators at the Isthmian League play-off game between Bedford and St Albans. Could they be rossoneri supporters nostalgic for the atmosphere of the San Siro while visiting relatives in the south midlands? In fact the gloomy little group were from Lewes, in Bedford to watch their own team take on the hometown Eagles. Unfortunately the players were back at Lewes’s ground beating Kingstonian. Until late the previous day Isthmian League of­ficials insisted the Rooks would indeed be playing Bedford, contrary to all other indicators. It took a Football Association announcement to override their stubbornness and correct the error. To date there’s been no word of any apology from league officials.

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As the final stage of the absurd reinvention of Wimbledon in Milton Keynes moves closer, Ian Pollock points the finger at those who failed to protect football in south-west London

It’s nearly two years since the Football Association’s infamous three-man commission approved the move of Wimbledon Football Club from south-west London to Milton Keynes. After staggering around like a zombie in a graveyard for most of that time, the club now appear to have overcome the main hurdles to establishing themselves in their new home and springing back to life. The acceptance by creditors on March 18 of a company voluntary arrangement means that WFC may finally come out of administration on April 6, subject to final approval by the Football League.

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Dear WSC
Following the recent kerfuffle between Ashley Cole, Nicolas Anelka et al at High­bury, most commentators seemed to agree that Cole was as much to blame as Anelka and deserved to walk too. Obviously Cole’s reputation is now goi­ng before him, but surely in this case Cole had every right to pick up the ball and return it to the centre circle in his own time? What none of the so-called “ex­perts” ever cares to mention in these cases is that once a goal has been scored, the scored-against team has possession of the ball and should not expect to have to deal with a full-on assault from the opposing team’s front line (everyone seemed to conveniently miss Robbie Fowler’s rugby tackle during the same incident). If they waste time returning it, the ref can show a yellow card and add on a few seconds accordingly – simple. OK, Cole raised an arm, but didn’t we all when someone tried to grab our ball? No, in this case the referee was ab­solutely right and for once the video panel also saw sense. I think it was Eusebio who started this trend for grabbing balls out of nets in the 1966 World Cup against North Korea and the sooner FIFA send out a directive banning such blatant gamesmanship the better for all concerned.
Martin D Ling (not the Os manager), Bethnal Green

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