Search: ' Supporters Direct'

Charles Morris interviews John Bowler, chairman of the club which, in these uncertain times, many see as an example to the rest, Crewe Alexandra

Nine years ago Crewe Alexandra lost a Third Division play-off final at Wembley on penalties to York City. Today, Crewe are enjoying their fifth consecutive sea­son in the First Division, while York flounder near the bottom of the Third, having only just been saved from bankruptcy and oblivion. The contrasting fortunes of these two small clubs could not be more marked, and fans of York, Bury, Swindon and other clubs now fear­ing for their futures must wonder what particular magic Crewe worked that escaped their own directors.

Read more…

Cambridge United's terrible season might have been even worse, but for the LDV Vans Trophy. Andrew Bennett gives thanks for a much maligned competition

As far as the family of cup competitions goes, it would be fair to say that the LDV Vans Trophy is the runt of the litter. But for the supporters and staff of Cambridge United, it has been nothing short of a life­line in a season spent tossing on the choppy seas of relegation. And not even a decisive and bubble-bursting 4-1 defeat at the hands of Blackpool in the final could spoil the occasion as a welcome, if all too temporary, relief from all the ills of a season that has lurched from the merely dismal to the disastrous.

Read more…

There are no shortage of suitors for Sepp Blatter's seat at FIFA. Alan Duncan profiles the interest from Africa

Long since giving up the 400 metres, at which he was Cameroon champion, the 55-year-old Confederation of African Football president Issa Hayatou still bears the edgy look of a man wary of being caught off guard by the sound of a starting pistol. In his 14 years at the helm of CAF, Hayatou has made few false starts but now faces an uphill struggle if he is to land the highest office in world football.

Read more…

Darlington's chairman is going to unfounded lengths in a bid to break free from football. Jon Lymer reports

It used to be said that the north east was a hot­bed of football talent. These days it’s equal­ly true to say that it is a hotbed of eccentric foot­ball chairmen. In recent times the region has enjoyed a series of revelations about its chairmen, including brothel visits, cocaine abuse, High Court action and even (if you stretch the geographical parameters a bit) an alien abduction or two. But the prime mover throughout all this fuss has been Darlington’s convicted safecracker-cum-business magnate, George Reynolds.

Read more…

This month marks the 40th anniversary of Accrington Stanley's controversial ejection from the Football League. Mike Gent explains what went wrong

“Probably the most famous football team in the land” is how a Lancashire County Council web­site describes Accrington Stanley. A contentious claim, but there is no doubt that the Stanley’s continued no­toriety stems not from the club’s modest playing record but from a series of off-pitch calamities which culminated in their departure from the Football League in March 1962. Since then, the spectre of Ac­crington Stanley has been regularly invoked whenever football clubs sink towards bankruptcy.

Read more…