Confessions of a Lower League Legend
by Peter Swan with Andrew Collomosse
John Blake, £17.99
Reviewed by Terry Staunton
From WSC 267 May 2009
A foreword by Sky’s Helen Chamberlain and further front-loaded testimonials from Gary Speed, Phil “The Power” Taylor and more leave the reader in little doubt that Peter Swan is a “larger than life” character. He goes on to tell us so himself many times, and employs the phrase “joker in the pack” almost as frequently.
The Remarkable Life and Death of Leigh Richmond Roose, Football's First Play Boy
by Spencer Vignes
Tempus, £9.99
Reviewed by Harry Pearson
From WSC 249 November 2007
While those with even a passing interest in cricket can probably name a dozen Edwardian players without recourse to Wisden, I suspect that even the die-hard football fan finds the era before the First World War a good deal less familiar. Because while cricket regards the years that spawned Frank Woolley, Jack Hobbs and Victor Trumper as its “golden age”, to most people football doesn’t really seem to get going until the 1930s.
In his home town of Burton Mark Rowe discovers the FA's latest "white elephant"
My home town of Burton upon Trent has few claims to fame. It once had two teams in the League. I was at junior school with the younger sister of Garry Stanley, who played for Chelsea. Last season Burton Albion took Manchester United to an FA Cup third-round replay. You can still see the commemorative scarves at the Pirelli Stadium, no doubt complying with all intellectual property laws, half in United colours, half in Burton’s yellow and black.
Dear WSC
While it was an otherwise fairly accurate piece culminating in stating what many of us believe (WSC 232), which is that Neil Warnock is an “offensive gobshite”, Pete Green lets himself down by recycling that old rubbish about Warnock spending his career “picking up ailing clubs off the floor and setting them back on their feet”. Not quite true. In the late Nineties, Stan Ternent guided Bury Football Club from the then Division Three to Division One with successive promotions, and kept us up in Division One while luminaries such as Manchester City were relegated from it (oh how we laughed when we beat them at Maine Road in the process), before buggering off to Burnley and leaving us to the mercy of the “Red Adair” of lower-league football. Warnock’s tenure at Gigg Lane started off in patronising fashion, referring to us as “a smashing little club”. He flooded the team with under-performers he had dragged with him from his previous clubs, turned up at Gigg Lane wearing a Sheffield United club tie while we were paying his wages, got us relegated to Division Two, then skulked off to Bramall Lane, taking some of our better players with him and paying peanuts for them into the bargain. Bury were then relegated to the bottom division, went into administration and nearly out of business. So please spare us the revisionist history about Warnock. If the truth be known, Stan was the Man who turned the Shakers around – Warnock destroyed his work. And yes, I will be looking for Sheffield United to be humiliated in every match they play next season
Howard Cover, Liverpool
Saturday 1 “I think it is asking Chelsea a question,” says Sir Alex as Man Utd close to within seven points with a 2‑1 win at Bolton after the leaders are held 0‑0 at Birmingham (“The objective is to chase the game for 90 minutes and we didn’t,” says José). Spurs’ lead in fourth place is cut to two points by their loss 3‑1 at Newcastle while Arsenal thrash Villa 5‑0 with two-goal Thierry Henry starring again. “All I can say is that I want him to stay,” says Arsène, referring to Barcelona’s interest. Portsmouth’s 3‑1 win at Fulham – “We are hitting form like we did this time a year ago,” says Harry – takes them level with West Brom, who suffer a sixth defeat in seven games, 2‑0 to Liverpool. With Watford losing at Palace last night and Leeds going down 1‑0 at Hull, Sheffield United go seven points clear in the Championship’s runner‑up spot with a 1‑1 draw at Stoke. In League One, a 1‑0 defeat of Barnsley takes Huddersfield level with second-placed Brentford, who draw 1‑1 at Colchester. Forest are just five points off the play-offs after a fifth win in seven post‑Megson matches, 3‑1 at Chesterfield. Long‑time League Two leaders Wycombe are now four points outside a promotion spot following a 3‑1 home defeat by Bristol Rovers. Rushden move off the foot through a 1‑0 victory over Torquay, who are now bottom. Gretna become the first third-level club to reach the Scottish Cup final, with a 3‑0 win against Dundee.