The Stoketshirts.co.uk blog

The Munich air disaster cast a dark shadow over England’s 1958 campaign. To lose such brilliant young players was a tragic loss.  

However, sympathy should be limited when you consider that, despite being allowed a squad of 22, England chose to take 20…leaving two spaces vacant. Sympathy decreases further when you bear in mind that Stanley Matthews and Nat Lofthouse were left behind. Stan, despite being 43 was still at the peak of his powers and sent fear through opposition defences. Lofthouse was also in great form having scored two to beat Man Utd  in the FA cup Final. A barnstorming centre forward, the Lion of Vienna  frightened opposition defences. Stan crossing to Lofthouse could be a formidable weapon, yet they were ignored. 

So why didn’t they make the squad? WELL, one theory was that Lofthouse being a physical centre forward didn’t present an appropriate image for the FA. As for Stan, in 1950 after England’s exit Stan had been fascinated by other teams play…especially the South American sides, and decided to stay in Brazil to watch and learn. The FA blazers resented this and warned him he’d have to pay a heavy price for such gross insubordination. That would explain it partly BUT, if that was the case, why was he in the squad for 1954?   In short, we don’t know for certain why we chose to take a squad two men short….omitting our two most potent attacking force in the process and treating the tournament with contempt. WE can only speculate in exasperated disgust.

The baflling omissions of 1958 show that despite a snazzy website and encouraging females and ethnic minorities into the game the English FA have a damaging legacy of detached stuffiness to shake off.

The notion that sport and politics can exist seperately is but an idealists  dream.  At the 1974 World Cup  East Germany played West Germany for the only time. Being hosts and having a side full of stars, West Germany had started the competition among the favourites. Despite winning the first two games their public was unhappy with their form. This unease was exacerbated by Holland’s style and what seemed an inexorable march to the trophy.

Facing West Germany meant a huge security operation. The only East Germans allowed to travel were high ranking members of the communist party who, like the players were rarely out of sight of armed stasi guards. The East German regime feared huge numbers of defectors to the West.

The game itself was as dramatic as the scenario was intense. Sparwasser scored a late winner for the East which led to huge ructions in the West camp. Back at the hotel the West German players drank in the  bar and a huge row ensued. Franz Beckenbauer did a captains job and settled everyone then went up to Helmut Schoen’s room for a chat. Beckenbauer saw Schoen lying on his bed sweating profusely in a zombie like state having had a panic attack. Beckenbauer simply told him what changes were to be made. Schoen had little option but to agree.

The victory was used as propoganda by the East German government. Propoganda so blunt and forceful that Sparwasser admitted in later years that he wished with all his heart he’d never scored it.

West Germany, of course, went on to win the trophy defeating the Dutch in the final.  But every tournament has it’s own twists and turns and East v West in 1974 was a truly great World Cup story.

The quarter finals are by any historical measure a good performance for England and the problem is that some  people seem unable to get their heads around that. Our record since 66 isn’t great. In the last 44 years we have reached a World Cup semi a Euro semi and several World Cup quarter finals. In the same period Holland have reached two WC finals and a semi and won the European championship. Bulgaria have reached a WC semi. Sweden have got to a WC semi and a Euro semi. Poland have reached a WC semi and finished 3rd in 1974. Soviet Union reached two Euro Finals. Belgium have reached a Euro final and a WC semi. Turkey have reached a World Cup semi and a Euro semi.  And, of course, Greece were European champions. That’s only looking at the middle ranking sides from Europe. In 2008 and 2002 the Germans were considered to be poor yet still reached the final of those competitions.

So since 66* our record, when compared to other European football nations, gives new meaning to the word average. Yet people got annoyed because, for example, we’d never ‘win anything with Sven.’ Its unlikely we’ll win a competition whoever the manager is! We’d all love to but  actually expecting England to win a tournament is wishful thinking. There’s no great tradition to justify that sort of demand. In a tournament, if we get through the group we’ve fulfilled expectancy. Personally, I always look at getting through the group then take it from there. Usually as soon as we face a side with genuine aspirations to win the tournament we get knocked out.  1990  was great fun but, with all respect, Belgium and Cameroon weren’t contenders to lift the trophy.

I’m certainly not saying we shouldn’t try to win tournaments I’m just saying that we should keep our hopes in perspective. But 44 years never stops me dreaming!!

*our record before 66 wasn’t great…Bela Horizonte anyone?

Sweet snack

Albert Camus once said “All that I know most surely about morality and obligations I owe to football.” I’m sure many of us have also learnt life lessons through our wonderful game. In 1978 I learnt about timezones. You see, despite 1978 being the year that Grange Hill started and Boney M told us about blarting near The Rivers of Babylon, it was also my first World Cup…..and that meant the challenges of a timezone……………….. Argentina’s matches kicked off at 11pm which created a problem. How could I persuade my parents to let me stay up and watch it? In the build up to the tournament I asked them repeatedly and the answer each time was an increasingly resounding “Don’t be so bloody stupid you aren’t staying up until after midnight to watch a game of football it isn’t even England playing etc”

Of course, the idea of being in bed while a World Cup match is happening on the telly was preposterous. So I decided to force myself to stay awake until 11, wait until they were both asleep in bed and sneak downstairs for the feast of football. I had to be quiet to avoid the mandatory within an inch of my life thrashing if caught.

In the second phase of the competition Argentina faced  Brazil. Being fed stories of Pele, Garrincha and Di Stefano this one would be well worth sneaking downstairs for. The ticker tape blew and all seemed well with the world. It was surely going to display the glorious pride and fury of South American football. Well, the fury anyway!! Argentina v Brazil 1978 was a staggering show of violence! Within seconds of kick off Luque, whose brother had burned to death in a car crash a few days before, had violently hacked Batista and Brazil weren’t taking that lying down. They could hack a bit themselves and replied in kind. The game was little more than a vicious brawl. At half time, and getting increasingly cocky about not being caught downstairs, I decided that what would really bring samba skills to the fore was a lemon curd sandwich. For me not the players. I constructed the aforementioned snack and looked for a plate. For some reaason (the words ‘for some reason’ are often a prelude to a ridicuous incident) I decided to use a metal plate. As I took the clanking plate from the cupboard one of the cats, pleased with late night company, brushed against my leg startling me. I let out a loud cry of shock and knocked the metal plate off the worktop and onto the tiled floor. For a split second I watched in fascinated terror. The plate landed on the floor on it’s side and bounced several times CLANK CLANK CLANK, CLANKETY PHUQQING CLANK. I was terrified. It was obvious that mum and dad, or both, will have heard that din and would inevitably dash downstairs to see whats happening and administer a good belting.   And, worst of all, I’d have to miss the second half of the violence. I cowered in the kitchen and waited. And waited. Five minutes passed and it was coming to the start of the second half. Miraculously, nobody heard. I continued watching the violence uninterrupted and enjoyed the lemon curd sandwich.

That the clanking went unheard, and I remained alive, can only be described as a miracle. It was the miracle of the World Cup. Once every four years there is a magical month full of wondrous mystery. SO, if you find yourself metamorphosising into a giraffe in the next month don’t be alarmed….it’s just another World Cup miracle!!      But whatever miracles happen we’ll still go out on a penno shootout.

In recent years it has been exciting to watch Australia come to prominence in football.   I’ve never known this country as ecstatic as it was on reaching the second round last time.   Finally, after years of administrative haggling, football finally had the profile it deserves.   It also brought the realisation that football, and the World Cup in particular, provided a stage bigger than anything previously experienced.  

This is my home and a place I love dearly so while I can’t quite say I support Australia I do honestly wish them well.  Until they play England anyway!   A good campaign for the national team is good for the game here which, obviously, is good for any football fan.   Each time I walk through my beloved Brisbane the profile of the World Cup is growing. Shopfronts proudly displaying the green and gold and bars advertising live TV showings are more prominent each day.  How many are prepared to stay open until 4.30am to show some matches remains to be seen!!

In the coming weeks England will be overran with the national flag. St Georges crosses everywhere. On the cars, hanging on shopfronts, in pubs and clubs. Even the odd dentist waiting room may be adorned with a red cross on a white background.

However, it wasn’t always like this. In 1986 England’s tournament came belatedly to life when Gary Lineker beat Poland 3-0. This bought much needed relief to the country and despite the sluggish start England qualified for the second round. This sent me into a litte bout of Word Cup fever….not that I’ve ever been lacking in that condition!! To demonstrate to Lineker and co that the nation was well and truly behind them I lovingly placed an England flag in the bedroom window.

Younger people reading might find this hard to believe but there was a time when football wasn’t fashionable. In fact, football supporters were pariahs, regarded with disgust and contempt. Walking down a street wearing a football shirt could result in people crossing the road to avoid you and if fathers found out their teenage daughters were dating a football fan it could signal a sudden halt to blossoming love. I remember starting work in 1985 and telling one of my colleagues I was a Stoke fan and attended matches and she nearly dropped her sponge. She shook her head and told me she was surprised because I’d “Seemed such a nice lad”. In the mid 80s football was not something the nation could easily hold close to it’s heart.

So the flag in the bedroom window was far from joining in with a trend. It was regarded with confusion!! People would walk past the house and glance up and notice it then stand for several seconds with big question marks over their heads. It was viewed as a quirky teenage eccentricity and just one of those odd things you do when you lack total sanity.

So in the coming weeks, the country will be taken over by the flags. Some of the flyers may not be commmitted fans and in many respects it could be seen a johnny come lately action to those of us for whom football has always been a fashionable passion. But it symbolises that the game has survived and now thrives and, contrary some peoples views, it’s always been possible to be a passionate England fan without feeling the need to smash somebody’s face in. So lets embrace it.

4 days 11 hours 55 minutesto go, where’s that bloody flag??

In 1982 three British teams qualified. For Scotland at this time qualifying was the norm. England reaching it was a relief after two failed attempts. The real eyebrow raiser was the involvement of the charming Billy Bingham, and his Northern Ireland team.

Little was expected of Northern Ireland. The resilience shown in the 0-0 draw with Yugoslavia was tempered by throwing a precious lead away to draw 1-1 with Honduras. To progress victory against Honduras was deemed essential as the final game was against hosts Spain. Nobody could have expected their game against Spain to conjure one of the most dramatic gripping games in the history of the competition.

Watching the grace of Xavi Iniesta and Torres gliding around the stadiums of Europe can be misleading. Spain weren’t always so graceful. In fact in 1982 their team was downright nasty. A horrible combination of diving and off the ball hacks accompanied by laboured unproductive play. An uneventful first half finished goalless then in the 47th minute the unthinkable happened. Billy Hamilton crossed for NI, the hapless Arconada parried weakly and Gerry Armstrong gratefully drove into the empty net. Amazingly Norn iron were leading.

Their problem was scoring 2 minutes into the half meant having to hold on for 43!!  Spains attacking gained momentuim. The unfortunately named Ufarte had two shots stopped by Jennings. In the 62nd minute NI had Mal Dongahy sent off for an innocuous shove on Camacho. Hanging on for 30 minutes with 10 men? Surely it can’t be done!!

Wave upon wave of attacks beseiged the Norn Ireland penalty area. The desperation of the defending was balanced by the calm cool calculated keeping of Pat Jennings. Jennings delivered a performance that epitomised grace under pressure, collecting cross after cross and blocking shot after shot. Outside there was a huge thunderstorm and the norm back then would be to turn electrical appliances off BUT there was now way we were turning this off!

Eventually the final whistle blew and NI had completed their incredible achievement. An example of players becoming more than the sum of their parts. NI v Spain 1982 was one of the truly great World Cup stories.

The 2010 World Cup in less than a week away.   In South Africa the cast is assembling for the greatest show on earth.  For football supporters here in Australia it means a month of late nights early mornings and self inflicted fatigue.    

I have lived in Australia for just over fourteen years.  The first timezone tournament was Euro 96.  Gazza’s goal against Scotland was a particularly memorable middle of the night mental!!     One benefit is that there are fewer distractions in the middle of the night.   Less chance of a phone call or a knock at the door.    My family and I were visiting the UK during  Euro 2008 and it felt odd to be watching an international tournament while it was  light outside.    Most football supporters here  have adapted to the nocturnal aspect of our passion BUT it is still strange to leave the house at 2am to go to the pub and watch a match!   Being English, and therefore an England supporter, the subject of how to celebrate a World Cup win when the final finishes at 7am isn’t a problem unfortunately.  A more relevant poser is how to get through the day when we’ve just endured our usual penalty shootout pain.  But we’ll keep hoping and dreaming.  And hoping and dreaming…..

One of the many marvellous aspects of our game is the global unity it generates.  So next Friday when South Africa play Mexico think of us watching at midnight.  And we’ll think of those watching over breakfast in San Salvador!!!

Summertime for Stokies – perfect shirts for perfect T shirt weather

With the World Cup, The Potters Holidays and Father’s day on the near horizon we have put together a couple of designs that any Stoke City & England supporter will be proud to wear.

First up we have:-

MADE IN STOKE – ON – TRENT ENGLAND

Made in Stoke - on - Trent Design

All self respecting Stokies do the “tip it over and see where it’s made” action when handling pottery. Sir Stanley Matthews was renowned for this on his frequent travels abroad. With this design there’s no need for people to tip you over because they will know exactly where you were born.

So what better way to declare your roots on the beach (or for the World Cup) this summer than this simple, does-what-it says-on-the-tin design.

A distinctive “maker’s stamp” declaring where you’re from – almost down to street level. The St. George roundel in the background  and the unmistakable symbol of Stoke – the bottle kiln in the middle.

100% Potteries – like the best ceramics!

The shirts are displayed below and on this weblink

All are available at www.Stoketshirts.co.uk
 

Next up is:-

Stoke – on – Trent SCFC – ENGLAND

 

Stoke - on - Trent England SCFC St George's Cross Design

Club or Country? The dilemma every proud football fan faces – what is more important – especially when selecting your attire for the game down the pub this summer. Or maybe the same issue when picking your holiday attire?

Take the indecision away from the situation with this specially created design with Summer and the World Cup on the horizon. A distinctive “maker’s stamp” design declaring where you’re from and who you support – club AND Country. The St. George roundel in the background  and the initials SCFC in the quarters.

Leave your comments with your thoughts.

The Artbay in Fenton is holding a “Spirit of ’66” exhibition which runs from May 22nd. to May 29th.
The exhibition is to celebrate the incredible feeling of togetherness, which comes along for every major football tournament.

Gordon Banks will be creating a piece of Art very shortly at the Artbay and this piece will be auctioned for his Safe Hands charity fund which, over the last 10 years, has raised more than £150,000 for sick children at the University Hospital of North Staffordshire.

He will also be involved in judging and presenting the winners of a children’s art competition that is being organised to coincide with exhibition.

Under-16s are being asked to produce a piece of artwork reflecting the feeling of camaraderie, charity and goodwill surrounding international sporting tournaments.

A shortlist of 10 entries will be framed and put on display in the gallery and all the young artists will be invited to meet Gordon at the gallery on Friday, May 28.

Closing date for the exhibition is Friday May 21st.

A panel of judges including local artists and Gordon will then choose a winner who will receive a prize of a perspex/acrylic print of their work worth £300.

More info here

http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/new….il/article.html
and here
http://www.creativestoke.co.uk/80430/info.php?p=3

All submitted pieces will be available to view throughout the week-long exhibition in binders.

10 winners will have their pieces framed and shown alongside the other exhibitors’ works and will be invited, with a guest, to the gallery on Friday 28th May to meet Gordon Banks and receive their prize. One, overall winner will be announced on the night and will receive the top prize of a perspex print of their artwork signed by Gordon.

Requirements. Artist must be aged 16 or under. The size of the submitted work must be A3. There are no restrictions on media. Entries will be judged on the degree to which the artist has captured “The Spirit of ’66” in his/her piece and the artistic quality of his/her piece, commensurate with age. All pieces must be received by the gallery no later than Friday 21st of May. The judging panel’s decisions are final.

This got me thinking (which as you may know is dangerous). Gordon Banks football career finished in the mid 70’s. During the next few years did Gordon study art?

The prominence of an artist, who has managed to rise to fame while keeping his identity hidden is goes under the name of Banksy!!

Our depiction of Gordon is shown below and this was proudly modelled by the great man himself.