Book reviews

For 100 years, Bradford City battled boardroom conservatism, economic decline and rival clubs of two codes – and won.  Mike Harrison wonders when Leeds will notice

For a city with a metropolitan population of nearly half a million (more than Manchester and nearly twice the size of Newcastle), Bradford has rarely come close to fulfilling its potential as a football centre. In some ways the figure is misleading, including as it does the rural suburbs of Ilkley, Addingham, Menston and Burley. In addition, Bradford has had a growing Asian population since the 1960s, working in what remained of the wool industry. Very few have become regulars at Valley Parade, even though the ground lies in the heart of their community. While that does not reflect well on the club’s efforts to draw them in, it does help to explain why City, even in the Premier League, struggle with a relatively modest fan base.

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Oxford United have shirked their responsibilty on reprimanding a player convicted of a racial offence, reports James Beard

A promising young footballer was recently con­victed of a racial offence. The case involves a footballer at a Second Division club and, al­though it touches on issues which have been at the centre of public debate, has received scant media attention. It deserves more.

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Rangers have joined Celtic in admitting they want to leave the Scottish Premier League. Gary Oliver thinks it can't happen soon enough

The new Premier League season had barely begun when BBC Scotland breathlessly announced that Ran­gers and Celtic intend to quit Scottish football, the pair ganging up with soul mates from abroad within two years. For viewers who had just switched over to Friday Sportscene from Channel 4, and who felt they had heard this one before, it was perhaps appropriate that the story was broken straight after Eurotrash.

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Britain's Asians are vastly under-represented in professional football. Peter Briley and Laura Manning report on an emerging footballing community 

There is not one professional first team foot­baller from Britain’s 2.3 million Asian com­munity. It is widely agreed that the main factors contributing to this absence have included the lack of Asian parental acceptance of football as a legitimate profession, the fear of racism within the game and, most importantly, scouts short-sightedly disregarding Asian areas and leagues.

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The two Sheffield clubs share a long history of mediocrity. That makes their relationship all the more fraught, says Gary Armstrong

It cannot easily be argued that footballing success is the reason for the large number of fans in Sheffield who flock to watch both United and Wednesday. Historically neither side has been superior to the other for very long, and neither has won an FA Cup or League championship for over 50 years.

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