The Archive

Wednesday 1 The start of Real Madrid's Champions League semi with Borussia Dortmund is held up for seventy-five minutes after one of the goalposts is damaged by Real fans jumping on the adjacent perimeter fencing. Dortmund lose the match 2-0 but may lodge an official complaint with UEFA that could lead to the tie being replayed. In the other game, Juventus beat Monaco 4-1.

Thursday 2 Chelsea are lucky to escape with a 1-0 defeat at Vicenza in the first leg of their Cup-Winners Cup semi final. "We can blame a bit of tiredness. You are never at your best five days after a cup final," says Gianluca loftily. Wembley Stadium has been bought by the English National Stadium Trust backed by the FA. Rebuilding work will start after the 1999 FA Cup Final and might even include proper toilets.

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Dear WSC
Villa Park, Tuesday March 17th. Villa v Atletico Madrid, UEFA Cup quarter final 2nd leg. After half an hour, Bosnich lies down behind a couple of defenders and Caminero makes it 2-0 on aggregate. The new electronic scoreboards stop urging us to get behind the team, and instead inform us that home shirts are now available in the club shop at 50 per cent off… Dark, dark humour indeed.
Bruce Smith, via email

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Obsessing over your team will only lead to trouble

Nothing gladdens the heart of a news editor more than a series of stories in a short space of time which can be neatly and instantly conflated into a Trend. On the weekend of March 28th-29th, football provided such an opportunity with the death of Fulham fan Matthew Fox outside Gillingham’s Priestfield stadium, the attempted assault on referee Gary Willard at Oakwell and a rather less threatening one-man pitch invasion at Goodison Park. An actual attack on a referee at a rugby league match and the felling of a linesman at Fratton Park earlier in the season were also roped to confirm the alarming new (or rather, old) development.

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The Football Task Force pleas for change, reports Matthew Brown

It is easy to be cynical about the Football Task Force. Whatever it comes up with, we know this government of cosy partnerships is hardly going to shake the corporate hand one minute then beat it on the knuckles the next, just because it does nasty things to football fans and their clubs.

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Jon Wainright takes a look at the flashy Chester City chairman, who may soon have to abandon his Aston Martin.

Distinguishing features Generally described as a Manchester based property dealer, but that could mean anything. Mark, a portly, balding, bespectacled chap in his late thirties, drives an Aston Martin and likes to be seen at away games with glamourous female company. Whether these poor women prefer swanky restaurants to Belle Vue and the McCain Stadium, Scarborough on a cold Tuesday night is open to debate.

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