When Saturday Comes | The half decent football magazine

Nation’s grace

While the tournament was not an unqualified success, Zambia’s continental title win was poignant and triumphant in ways that could have never have been expected, writes Paul Giess

With so many of Africa’s major footballing nations not qualifying for this year’s Cup of Nations, the big story of the group stages was the unexpected success of co-hosts Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. Both qualified for the knockout rounds with a game to spare and both did it in dramatic style.

Sunday, April 1st, 2012 - The Archive

Tax return

The assumption that Rangers are integral to Scottish football is both flawed and patronising, argues Dianne Millen

While the announcement of Rangers’ administration on February 14 was initially an amusing distraction from compulsory romance for fans of other clubs, it did not take long for the souffle of schadenfreude to subside into tedium. The days of semi-obsessive coverage that ensued were perhaps understandable in a media market where the most banal acts of the so-called “Glasgow Giants” are reported exhaustively.

Sunday, April 1st, 2012 - Book reviews

Fake ID

The rules which determine international eligibility must be looked into, argues Steve Menary

Equatorial Guinea’s run to the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations augurs badly for the credibility of future international tournaments. Only five players in the co-hosts’ squad were born in the country. Nine came from Spain, Equatorial Guinea’s former colonial rulers, but players such as Thierry Fidjeu and Narcisse Ekanga – the perpetrator of a shocking dive regularly revisited on YouTube – seemingly have no links to Equatorial Guinea at all.

Sunday, April 1st, 2012 - The Archive

Brought to account

Rangers are more worried about losing their previous titles than winning this season’s SPL, writes Alex Anderson

First Minister Alex Salmond spoke to Sir David Frost on Al Jazeera on the need to keep Rangers going. While visiting Scotland, prime minister David Cameron made a painfully opportunistic plea that the club should not disappear. By the time Sir Alex of Govan demanded the club be saved, the sponsors pledged their continued support and the next fixture became a 50,000 Ibrox sell-out, it was difficult to imagine why Rangers had lurched into administration at all.

Sunday, April 1st, 2012 - Book reviews

Notes on a scandal

Cameron Carter analyses the different reactions to football’s many controversies

Just as there must statistically be teatime programmes on the BBC that do not feature Alex Jones or John Barrowman, so we must assume that there are gay footballers out there somewhere in the universe. In Britain’s Gay Footballers (BBC3, January 30), Amal Fashanu, niece of Justin, daughter of John, quested for a gay man among the 4,000 professional players registered in the UK.

Sunday, April 1st, 2012 - The Archive

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Nation’s grace

While the tournament was not an unqualified success, Zambia’s continental title win was poignant and triumphant in ways that could have never have been expected, writes Paul Giess

Tax return

The assumption that Rangers are integral to Scottish football is both flawed and patronising, argues Dianne Millen

Fake ID

The rules which determine international eligibility must be looked into, argues Steve Menary

Brought to account

Rangers are more worried about losing their previous titles than winning this season’s SPL, writes Alex Anderson

Notes on a scandal

Cameron Carter analyses the different reactions to football’s many controversies