General Football News News Archives

This year’s playoff semi-finals for the Conference were as unexpected as they were exciting, and there wasn’t even a hint of a penalty shoot-out and Exeter City and Cambridge United make their respective preparations for Wembley in just under a fortnight’s time.

The games always looked too close to call with Torquay slight favourites to progress from one game but in indifferent form while Cambridge were assumed to be too strong for a mercurial Burton side who, on their day, have the run of any team in the Conference.

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One down, three to go. Last night Torquay got the better of the Westcountry derby, tonight sees Nigel Clough’s young pretenders take on old hand Jimmy Quinn’s Cambridge. Burton are closer than they’ve ever been to league football wle Cambridge are back on song after several seasons in the doldrums.

So let Soccerlens put jumpers for goalposts and take pot shots in the park in the second of our semi-final previews.

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It might not quite be Manchester United versus Chelsea in the Champions League final, but there’s just as much at stake for the four teams competing for the second spot in the Football League, and for at least three of them it’s a chance to reverse the pain of relegation to the non-league pyramid.

Come next Tuesday night we’ll know who’ll be walking out at Wembley on May 18th but before then there’s four tense games, starting tonight (Thursday) at St. James Park where Exeter City take on Torquay United.

So, let Soccerlens plant its non-league studs against your shin pads and guide you through the Westcountry derby, before returning tomorrow for a bit of afters with a preview of Burton vs Cambridge.

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The teams for the Blue Square Premier playoffs had already been decided ahead of the final day of the season but, although the final fixtures would just shakedown the final playoff pairings, there was still a decent smattering of last-day drama.

The expected pairings for the playoffs before kick-off were Torquay taking on Nigel Clough’s Burton Albion and Exeter City facing Cambridge United but, with typical footballing predictability, conventional wisdom went out the window.

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A couple of weeks ago the Blue Square Premier looked to be moving towards several thrilling last-day games but, surprisingly, after Tuesday night, the final weekend is a lot more sedate.

The play-off places are now all settled after Exeter’s 4-1 victory over Stafford and Stevenage’s slip up to Northwich Victoria left Boro four points off Burton in 5th. It’s quite a comedown for the Hertfordshire side who were flying high until Mark Stimson left for Gillingham in the autumn. Assuming high-profile manager Peter Taylor stays on, he’ll have to do some serious regrouping over the summer.

There’s still a small bit of shaking out to do in the top five as to who will play who. Torquay look to have second place all but sown up and a point at home to Crawley on Saturday will be enough to confirm the runner-up spot. Even if they lose, Cambridge need to win away to Northwich by at least three clear goals to overtake them.

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The football league is taking on a distinctly nostalgic tinge. Two seasons after football’s most famous milk drinkers, Accrington Stanley, won promotion to the football league the familiar name of Aldershot Town has fought its way out of the non-league pyramid and into League Two, sixteen years after the original Aldershot FC went bust.

Of course neither Stanley nor the Shots are the same team. Both reformed as a new club at a much lower level after going out of business midway through the season. For Stanley supporters, who saw their club fold in 1962, it was a long journey back. Aldershot’s return has been shorter, but on that fateful day back in 1992, Shots fans just wanted to keep a team to support.

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While Colchester United prepare for the life in League One and Dagenham struggling at the wrong end of League 2, one club in Essex is on up the up. Chelmsford City won the Ryman Premier with a 1-1 draw against Ramsgate at last weekend and, with a strong set of players and decent cash behind them for non-league level, look a good bet for challenge at the top of the Blue Square South.

It’s a return, of sorts, to the glory days for Chelmsford, who were Southern League Champions in 1946, 1968, and 1972. But the 1,588 fans who turned up to watch City clinch promotion might want to take a quick look at the recent history of near neighbours Canvey Island before they get too carried away. It’s not just the geographical proximity that connects the two clubs - Chelmsford’s current manager Jeff King was, until recently, manager and main financial backer for Canvey before deciding he’d had enough of dwindling crowds for an average-to-middling conference side.

When King, who made his fortune in the mobile home business, resigned in 2006 he took the majority of the squad - and financial clout - with him and the Islanders were forced to resign from the non-league top-flight and regroup in the Isthmian Division One North in order to survive. Meanwhile Chelmsford must have thought all their Christmases had come at once when King decamped to their doorstep with a Conference-standard squad of players all looking for a team in Essex.

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There was a sense of history in the air at Wembley this weekend. Not history being made, but the history of the two clubs taking to the field. In the pink and chocolate shirts, Corinthian-Casuals: a club that plays strictly to the amateur code and the inspiration behind one of Brazil’s most famous names. In the blue and yellow, AFC Wimbledon: a relative newcomer in the literal sense to the football pyramid, but one with plenty of history and memories in their previous incarnation.

The occasion was a celebration of Corinthians 125th anniversary, although by happy coincidence, it also falls on the 20th anniversary of one of the greatest FA Cup upsets of all time: Wimbledon’s victory over Liverpool. You couldn’t get a more fitting venue than the home of English football.

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9 April 2008

For Immediate Release For further information, contact:
Lisa Cherubini
703.477.6590
executivedirector@cuginisoccer.com

U.S. Soccer School Affiliates with Italian Powerhouse ACF Fiorentina

Great Falls, VA - AC Cugini Scuola Calcio President Fabio Diletti has announced that Cugini was accepted by world-renowned Italian professional club ACF Fiorentina as an affiliated Fiorentina scuola calcio (soccer school). This affiliation makes Cugini the only Fiorentina soccer school in North America.

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The 2008 Emirates Cup kicks of on 2nd August this year in preparation for the 2008/2009 season.

The tournament will mark Ranieri’s return to London as Juventus take on hosts Arsenal along with Hamburg and Real Madrid. The competition is played in a Group format with three points for a win, one for a draw and an additional point for each goal scored.

Inter Milan were amongst the entrants in the 2007 edition, but the Nerazzurri finished at the bottom of the pack after defeats against Valencia and winners Arsenal.

Emirates Cup schedule:

August 2:
Real Madrid v Hamburg – 2pm
Arsenal v Juventus – 4.15pm

August 3:
Juventus v Hamburg – 2pm
Arsenal v Real Madrid – 4.15pm

It’s a good sign for Arsenal and for English football (not to mention the capital of world football) that such illustrious sides with rich traditions will play part in a friendly tournament at the Emirates.

Just as teams in the Championship are stuttering as the finish line for the prize of Premiership football gets ever closer, so the contenders for the playoffs in the Blue Square Premier are also doing their hardest to avoid a top five finish, with just half a dozen games to go.

Aldershot have no such worries. Victory at Ebbsfleet tonight will confirm them as champions and bring football back to the town for the first time since 1992, when the original Shots went bust and resigned from the league. It’s been a long journey back to the football league and after last season’s indifferent mid-table finish, many Shots fans could have been forgiven for wondering if they’d be playing non-league football for at least another couple of seasons.

But behind the Shots, teams from 2nd down to 6th all seem to be suffering from a bad case of stage fright and the play-offs may not be decided until the final day of the season, making this one of the most exciting finishes in the Conference for several years. And things are no different at the bottom end of the table with two teams seemingly destined for the drop both hitting a rich vein of form at just the right time.

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With Aldershot’s promotion all but confirmed from the Blue Square Premier, the race is on to see who’ll drop down, and there’s a strong possibility Harchester United could take their place in the non-league top flight. But anybody looking for Harchester on the map will be hard pressed to find it. Harchester, you see, doesn’t yet exist in the real world but if the efforts of one John Batchelor are successful, it won’t be long before a soap opera literally becomes part of football.

The name Harchester United may sound familiar to Sky One viewers. The name John Batchelor will probably only be familiar to hardcore racing enthusiasts and York City supporters. Both are equally flamboyant and tend to take fans on a swift rollercoaster before leaving a mess behind them. This mess looks likely to end up at the gates of Mansfield Town.

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Exeter City’s somewhat shaky run of form has seen them drop five points off the playoff race. But if their 3-1 loss at relegation-threatened Weymouth caused fans to fret at the widening gap between City and 5th place, of just as much concern has been the news that Exeter are much more in debt than supporters had originally believed.

Following their FA Cup tie and replay against Manchester United in 2005, the club soon came out of their Creditors Voluntary Agreement leading to the general perception that Exeter were debt-free. But this week came the news that the club still owe around £300,000 in historic debts.

The revelation may have caused some fans to stop and re-check the balance books, but it’s to the current regime’s credit that not only have they reduced the post CVA debt from £1 million to the current figure, but, compared to previous boards, that they’ve also told the fans about the debt in the first place.

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With CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying also taking place this week, the Champions Cup squads were left without some of their more talented young players. However, the show must go on, and the more experienced players took to the pitch once again to defend their club’s honor in the second leg of the quarter finals.

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As the non-league season gears up for its climax so, inevitably, do the lawyers, as the annual courtroom battles begin that could have a significant say on the relegation places in the Blue Square Premier. From a point of business-as-usual two weeks ago, suddenly the teams scraping over the final two relegation scraps from the non-league top tier are watching the situations at Grays and Halifax with interest, with the latter team throwing another twist into the battle for the bottom four.

Halifax have struggled both on and off the pitch in recent years with debts constantly hanging over the club. The Shaymen entered into administration at the end of the 2001/02 season when they were relegated from the football league for the second time in ten years, and are still paying off the CVA they entered into when they came out of administration.

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Anybody looking for evidence that the Blue Square Premier is nearer to a proper fifth tier of English football than the top level of non-league only need take a look at the teams battling relegation.

All the main contenders are part-time and at least two have undergone major financial trauma recently, showing the difficulties of not only to competing part-time in the Blue Square Premier, but also the cost of chasing the dream of league football.

While the race for the play-offs could see any 4 of nine teams compete for a game at Wembley, the relegation places are a little less frantic, with three teams practically down and a further three squabbling to avoid the final place.
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Game of the Month: Central Coast 3-0 Newcastle Jets
Overcoming all the odds, we took the Jets to piece in front of a packed Bluetongue after extra time.

Player of the Month: Danny Vukovic
Tried to deliver justice in the Grand Final, despite the best efforts of Mark Shield. We’re behind you!

Goal of the Month: Sash Petrovski v Newcastle Jets
His rifling effort into the top corner sent Central Coast to the Grand Final after a quick counter attack.

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Hasta El Gol Siempre’s Sam Kelly takes an early look at the start of Argentina’s football season - namely the 2008 Clausura and the Copa Libertadores.

The 2008 Torneo Clausura is three weeks old, and already Argentina’s got a club at the top of the league table who haven’t been there for a little while. Estudiantes de La Plata, the champions of the 2006 Apertura, have made a good start to life under new manager Roberto Sensini, winning all three of their games, but joining them on maximum points are a side who’d lately become all but lost to mid-table: Vélez Sársfield.

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Images courtesy of Oscar R. Amoia.

One of the great things about the Internet is that the world has become a smaller place. If you view my blog and world football site, I state that the whole world is united by a ball. For me, it means something very personal.

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Oxford United’s relegation from the football league in 2006 was a boon to pub quiz writers. A disastrous season meant they were now the only English team to win a major domestic honour to be playing non-league football, while simultaneously being replaced in the league by Accrington Stanley, a team they’d replaced in 1962 when Stanley went bust. Quizzers may be scratching their heads. Oxford fans will just be asking one question: how?

One would not have anticipated the club sinking so low since their Milk Cup win of 1986 but the 2007/08 season has seen new depths plumbed. Despite starting this season as a tip for promotion back to the league, Oxford are currently 12th having just put together their first back-to-back wins since August.

There’s no one reason why the U’s have dropped so far but, as with most other clubs going through difficult times, Oxford’s is an all too familiar tale of heavy debts and controversial owners taking their toll both on and off the field.

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I have written on this site before about the rise of Salisbury City football club.

As well as the remarkable achievements of the first team in the Blue Square Premier League, the City reserve team are quietly achieving a season which has the potential to be record breaking. They play in the Suburban League, a league for reserve teams of the Nationwide Football Conference, Ryman (Isthmian) Football League, British Gas Southern Football League, Combined Counties League, Spartan South Midlands, Hellenic Football League and the Wessex League.

Their record in league and cup games this season reads Played 26, Won 26. This may not be big news in the football world but it got me thinking. Has a team ever won every match in a season? What is the longest winning streak in professional or semi-professional football? Do Salisbury City reserves have a chance of getting in the Guinness Book of World Records?

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As we approach the business end of the season the race for success is really starting to hot up with a whole host of clubs all in with a shout of glory!

It’s just a shame I am talking about the Championship as opposed to what has been labelled ‘the greatest league in the world’, the Premier League.

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In case you didn’t catch the USA Womens football star Lorrie Fair conducting a webchat on Tuesday, following her high profile move to Chelsea in England, here is a transcript of the event.

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Lorrie Fair has 123 caps for the full USA women’s national team. She is a 29 year-old midfielder, who at the age of 20 was the youngest member of the USA World cup winning team in 1999.

On 1st February this year Lorrie signed as a player for Chelsea in the English women’s Premier League, becoming the first American to play in that league. At 1.00 pm EST/ 10.00 am PST on Tuesday 12th February Lorrie will be conducting a web chat at www.chelseafc.com/america in which she will share her experiences of playing in England, and discuss what she hopes to accomplish as the first worldwide star to play in the English league.

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Game of the Month: Central Coast 2-0 Wellington Phoenix

The match which finally decided the final A-League standings ended in success after a confident performance from Mariners.

Player of the Month: Adam Kwasnik
Two goals in four games ensured the midfielder returned to the starting line up.

Goal of the Month: Adam Kwasnik V Newcastle Jets
Outstanding finish from the young midfielder, cutting inside from the wing, past two defenders, and then drilling the ball home.

It was a peculiar month for the Mariners, one full of mixed emotions, and from it all, there was just a single meagre win for the yellow and navy.

Thankfully however, that single win made all the difference in the business end of the A-League title chase.

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Argentinian great Diego Maradona has apologised to English fans for his infamous ‘Hand of God’ goal during the 1986 World Cup quarter-finals. In an interview to the The Sun newspaper, the football legend was quoted as saying:

If I could apologise and go back and change history I would.

But many doubt the need for such an apology after a gap of 22 years. The English fans would never forget Maradona’s public hatred of the fans of the ‘Three Lions’ and how he brought in professional hooligans from Argentina to Mexico in his own chartered flight to violently subdue the noisy fans of England. Maybe the diminutive magician from the back streets of Buenos Aires finally realises that his talent has not been truly recognised by a sport-loving country like England which takes nationalistic pride very seriously.

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Yesterday, I received this email:

Dear Ahmed,

The MyFootballClub Team

What? In 7 days I am going to own a football club? Awesome!

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Towards the end of 2006, certain pundits and magazines were proclaiming the birth of Sir Alex Ferguson’s third (for some, fourth) great team stemming from his 20-year tenure at Manchester United.

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Things are quickly turning from bad to worse to full-on intolerable with Barcelona and Ronaldinho, the rumors of him leaving the club for AC Milan are picking up speed. Ronaldinho hasn’t been in World Player of the Year form this season, and he’s falling further and further out of Frank Rijkaard’s good graces, with a recent reported blow-up from manager to player on the latter’s lack of effort potentially being the breaking point.

You’d like to think that, instead of letting him continue to sulk on the sidelines and allow the situation get to the point of no return before too long, Barca would do the smart thing for both sides involved, and take the big money to let someone else have to worry about him.

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Four Manchester United fans who were involved in altercations with Roma fans before the Champions League clash between the two sides last week had lengthy jail terms handed down to them on Friday by Italian courts.

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