Search: 'Forest Green Rovers'

Massed ranks of WSC writers and interviewees reflect on the best and worst of 2000

Jim Rosenthal
Ups
– Premier League highlights acquired by ITV
– Cardiff losing at Gillingham to ensure Oxford United avoid relegation
– Playing for the Cookham Dean Parents against 12-year-old son Tom (lost 8-7)

Downs
– Hearing the country I had backed to win Euro 2000 (Italy) had lost in the final in extra time. They were still leading with two minutes to go when I boarded a flight home after the French grand prix.
– Oxford United’s owner Firoz Kassam telling the fans after the Luton game to “piss off” unless they gave him their support. The club’s “saviour” is taking us into the fast lane out of the League.
– Sitting in the stadiums of Florence, Rome and Turin and hearing the racist abuse directed at black players of Manchester United, Arsenal and England

Hope for 2001
– It stops raining and English clubs go all the way in the Champions League.

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Wednesday 2 “There was nothing kick and rush about that,” says Martin O’Neill as a Matt Elliott goal takes Leicester to the Worthington final at the expense of Villa. “We had our chance and we choked,” says John Gregory, who also claims that Leicester are about to take Stan Collymore off his hands, though the clubs are yet to agree on a fee. Swindon, eight points adrift at the bottom of the First, call in the administrators. They are currently losing £25,000 a week. “I believe we’ll be the first of many,” says chairman Cliff Puffett. The football authorities lobby the government to bring in restrictions on the number of non-EU players used by English clubs to two per team. “A Premiership team without one player from the UK sends out the wrong signals,” says the PFA’s Gordon Taylor. Ears burning, Gianluca Vialli says: “A quota might protect young English players but clubs won’t be able to compete in Europe if we stop some non-EU players joining us.”

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Cris Freddi looks back at players whose England caps may have owed more than a little to their club's place at the top of the league

Let’s make it clear from the start: these are exceptions. It’s more than likely that a player who helps his club to the top spot deserves a chance with England. But one or two seem to have been dragged up by those around them – or were found out at international level. Names and pack drill follow.

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Dear WSC
I’m stunned. Whilst channel hopping for some late night smut, I came across none other than Garth Crooks hosting an in-depth politico-chat show, Des-patch Box.I sat transfixed as Garth, a man whose normal journalistic beat leads him to doing humourous pieces on the shopping trips of the Reggae Boyz or Graham Kelly’s musical tastes, spent air-time slapping down Austin Mitchell’s views on the strong pound, summarizing the extradiction of Pin-ochet and probing into why the Welsh Secretary resigned.I first of all dismissed his presence on such a programme as a fluke, poor Garth being pressed into service when a Paxman clone went down with lumbago, chucked a copy of the Independent and told to get in front of the camera. But no! Garth gave a much more measured display than he ever did for Man Utd. At the end of the show he astound-ed me by announcing that he’d be back next Thursday.As a mere lad when Garth was in his prime for Spurs, I remember Tony Galvin being championed by the Topical Times as a major intellectual force because he had a degree in Russian. Shoot! thought Chris Hughton a real academic because he read the Guardian rather than the Mirror. But now know who was the true colossus of culture – Garth Crooks.I can only wonder at what Mark Falco and Gary Brook are doing now – teaching juris-prudence at Oxford and developing new forms of antibiotics, perhaps?
James Kerr, York

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Sunday 1 Forest go back to the top of the First Division after thrashing Middlesbrough 4-0. Spurs widen the gap between themselves and the trapdoor after an Allan Nielsen goal is enough to beat Bolton.

Tuesday 3 Villa escape with a 1-0 defeat away to Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Cup, the only goal a penalty from Christian Vieri. Atletico could be fined by UEFA after Mark Bosnich has objects thrown at him by home fans, mostly batteries (from radios, not cars). Stan Collymore claims to have been racially abused by Liverpool's Steve Harkness during and after the clubs' League match and may now take a complaint to the FA. Sheffield Utd chairman Mike Macdonald reacts tetchily to Nigel Spackman's decision to step down, saying "I was never 100 per cent sold on him. And it looks as though I may have been proved right." Woooh. Lou Macari is favourite to take over but then the bookies have always liked him. Doncaster draw their lowest crowd ever, 739, for the 2-0 defeat against Barnet that leaves them 11 points adrift at the bottom.

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