The Archive

A day after the FA Cup final, the next game at Wembley is the conclusion of the Conference play-offs. Considering the hype and disappointment of the first game, how does the battle for League status fare? Cameron Carter writes

For the past seven years, Wembley has meant nothing more than a building site quite near Neasden and a not-bad place to get a South Indian curry. Now, suddenly, Wembley is back on the popular consciousness map and has regained its third syllable. All up the Metropolitan Line, families are singing: “Wemberlee, Wemberlee, We’re the mighty Morecambe and we’re off to Wemberlee.” In no sense could you fault the veracity of the song. As one soul they disembark at Wembley Park and amble to the new stadium.

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In a matter of months he went from being seen as English football’s big managerial hope on the international stage to being a load of rubbish – more or less literally. Graham Dunbar looks back

For followers of the national team unconvinced by Steve McClaren, some comfort can be taken from the example of Mike Walker, a man who proved it is possible to go from England contender to managerial pariah in less than a year. Walker’s career path once seemed to be following that of Alf Ramsey: reaching the top after taking a small East Anglian club to unimagined heights. Eventually, he would more closely resemble Paulie Walnuts from The Sopranos: sharp-suited and well groomed, with a sideline in waste management.

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Relegation is always seen as a financial blow as well as a football disaster, but parachute payments are giving sides an edge in their new divisions and some teams may even be better off. Tom Green explains

Your tears have dried. The echoes of abusive comments at your team’s woeful defence have faded. Your season ticket has, in all probability, been renewed. But, if your team are relegated, how much will it cost them in the coming year?

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Does money talk loudest in the Championship? Csaba Abrahall
reviews the 2006-07 season in what should surely be called Division Two

Derby’s play-off victory averted the worst-case scenario, but the season was none the less a worrying one for the majority, as only West Brom’s failure to prevail at Wembley prevented all three of the sides relegated from the Premiership in 2006 securing an immediate return. With parachute payments set to rocket, Championship clubs without a recent top-flight history could be forgiven for questioning whether striving for success against such financially advantaged competitors is worth all the bother.

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Was League One completely unpredictable? Huw Richards reviews the 2006-07 season in what should surely be called Divisions Two

There may be somebody, somewhere who predicted this division’s outcome. If they had money on it, they’ll be very happy. Not many saw it coming. Of the teams promoted only Bristol City picked up any votes to go up in WSC’s pre-season predictions. Between them Scunthorpe and Blackpool got 12 votes for relegation. But that’s League One – wild, unpredictable and more fun than you might expect. While the yo-yo was back in fashion elsewhere, none of seven League One new entries returned whence they came.

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