Dear WSC,
There have been suggestions that some African footballers are actually several years older than they claim to be. But there may be a case closer to home. It may be the strain of shouldering Preston’s promotion bid almost single-handed or the fact that he’s endured over a decade of underachievement as an Everton fan, but David Nugent is the oldest-looking 22-year-old I’ve ever seen. With his sunken, haggard features, he looks like he’s been transported into 2007 from some time in the 1930s. But now he’s hanging around with the worldly sophisticates in the England squad, it can only be a matter of time before he gets a makeover. In fact, that might make a nice feature for Icon, Jamie Redknapp’s splendid magazine for millionaire footballers.
David Senior, via email
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Stories
Scunthorpe’s promotion from the last regional Third Division. By Geoff Wallis
The long-term significance
This season sounded the death knell of the two regional divisions that had occupied the third tier of English league football since the early 1920s. The top division of the Southern League had been absorbed into the Football League as the Third Division for the 1920-21 season, adding the suffix (South) when its northern counterpart, drawn from a variety of minor leagues, was formed a year later. Only one team from each Third Division was promoted each season, while the bottom club in both sections had to apply for re-election. For 1958-59 the two regional sections were merged, with the top and bottom halves forming new Third and Fourth Divisions respectively, thus introducing the delights of Tyneside to Torquay United fans and the hotspots of Colchester to their Bury counterparts.
There's only one manager Fergie hasn't seen the back of, even if he got the better of him in the League Cup in October. Charles Morris looks at the remarkable Dario Gradi of Crewe
This autumn has witnessed a celebration of that rare phenomenon in English football – longevity among managers. The press went misty-eyed over Arsène Wenger’s ten years at Arsenal and the Carling Cup tie between Crewe Alexandra and Manchester United provided an opportunity to wax lyrical about their respective 65-year-old managers, Dario Gradi and Sir Alex Ferguson. The game preceded Ferguson’s 20th anniversary at Old Trafford, while Gradi, with 23 years at Gresty Road, is the Scot’s only counterpart in the English professional game to have been in situ at one club for longer.
As Everton desperately search for investment, they have ended up pinning their hopes on someone with no real interest in or like for football. Richard Knights looks at their desperate situation
If Evertonians thought the nadir had been reached in the final match of last season with that 5-1 drubbing by Manchester City, they hadn’t reckoned with the close-season implosion and an unseemly all-out civil war between directors Bill Kenwright and Paul Gregg.
Dear WSC
I enjoyed the articles on the links between football and rap (WSC 204). One important connection has been overlooked, however. In a slightly surreal interview on Liverpool’s official site from 2001, Dr Dre reveals himself as a fan of the (his words) “cool cats in red”. At the time of the interview, Dre’s Liverpool favourite was Michael Owen, though he says he was first attracted to the Reds by John Barnes. “He was bad,” Dre explains. “Kinda reminded me of Magic Johnson.” He goes on to describe Robbie Fowler and Jamie Redknapp as “old school” and Czech midfielder Patrik Berger as “the bomb”. How long will it be before Eminem admits that Tomas Repka is a role model?
Sam Beckwith, Prague, Czech Republic