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The Archive

Articles from When Saturday Comes. All 27 years of WSC are in the process of being added. This may take a while.

 

Not listening

Brendan Fatchett, the former station manager of Teamtalk 252, says football clubs have become too greedy in their demands over radio rights

While a great deal of attention has been paid to football’s problems with television, many fans may not have considered whether they are getting a good deal from radio broadcasters. Is there enough competition, or are we on the verge of finding too many sporting rights in the hands of too few broadcasters?

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Colonel of truth

Football can bring out the best in people. Is this really the motive of Libya's notorious leader? Alan Duncan discusses a potentially unfounded change of tack

Seen from the outside, it’s an intrigue that could perhaps be adapted to an Austin Powers movie. After decades of championing international terrorism, Dr Evil and his cloned son finally decide to go down the straight and narrow. They shock the world through their new-found sense of tolerance and magnanimity of spirit rather than their erstwhile moral depravity. The reason for such a drastic transformation? The sudden realisation that football can provide them with the unlimited access to the fame and power they have long failed to achieve through criminal deeds.

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Wedding ding-dongs

With several new and reformed clubs in the English and Scottish Leagues, Ian Plenderleith finds their sites offering goat sacrifices, laughable claims of sportsmanship and matrimony on the cheap

Scottish League newcomer FC Gretna’s web presence is minimal, but any parsimonious, football-minded elopers may be excited by the chance of holding their wedding reception in the club’s salubrious bar for free. “Make your Wedding Day both special and different,” the club’s official site promises. “We also offer the use of our facilities to pre­pare your own food.” It is too modest to men­tion the incentive of a free glance out the win­dow at Gretna v Albion Rovers while doing the conga.

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Outsiders

While fan violence may well be on the decrease, Mark Rowe says little can be read into the latest batch of arrest figures for the season just gone

In what is becoming a pre-season tradition, the government and police recently unveiled football arrest figures for 2001-02 and pro­claimed their policies are kicking hooligans out. Their headlines this time: arrests for foot­ball-related offences associated with Foot­ball League matches down by 30 per cent in the last ten years, despite bigger crowds; Premier League arrests also down; far fewer arrests at in­ternationals; the vast majority of matches troub­le-free.

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The Pontoon Stand

Tony Butcher pays tribute to one of the east coast's scariest spots

Now what is the professional footballer’s favourite phrase to describe the joy of playing in the Premiership? “No disrespect to the likes of Grimsby but…” It isn’t just the name, it’s the ground, the small, cold, but above all old Blundell Park, the home of the Mariners since 1899.

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