Search: 'Marlow'
Shop
Stories
Cameron Carter has had unhappy experiences of following football on licenced premises
Since BSkyB lured us into their gloomed interiors in 1992, pubs have become stand-ins for the old football grounds, somewhere we can still stand or wander about the place and drink lager. Some of the time, the noise and body warmth mimic the atmosphere of a live game, but there are too many reminders that, actually, you are merely in a pub – and not your favourite one – watching television.
Dave Kitson’s criticism of the FA Cup made headlines, but Roger Titford believes the striker’s comments were misinterpreted and that what needs to change is how the competition’s prize money is handed out
“We’re not going to win the FA Cup. I don’t give two shits about it to be honest,” said Dave Kitson, ahead of Reading’s third-round tie at Spurs. It is a typically blunt opinion that has divided fans both locally and nationally. Those of us with tickets set off leaden-heartedly for the “small” game – but we can’t say we were not warned. It’s been club policy for three years to focus solely on the league. Yet we got a 2-2 draw, where our regulars lost 6-4 the week before.
In an extract from his new history of German football, Tor!, Uli Hesse-Lichtenberger recalls the sensation of the 1971 Bundesliga bribery scandal
Despite his name, the German-born Spaniard Horst Gregorio Canellas was not a Cosa Nostra don but an importer of bananas. Legend has it he supplied the DFB (German FA) headquarters. He had a raspy voice worthy of Al Pacino and was a chain-smoker, despite persistent asthma problems. He had also been the president of Kickers Offenbach since 1964.