Now That's What I Call Progress - Issue 5 - Blackpool FC Fanzine

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WE’LL BE BACK

A NEW BLACKPOOL FC FANZINE FOR A NEW ERA Issue 5 • april & may 2020 • £2 Inside this Issue… armand gnanduillet, football genius away fans rated · my first blackpool match

EDITORIAL by Jane Stuart Welcome to Issue 5, an online-only version of Now That’s What I Call Progress. Football content is more important than ever in the absence of football itself, so the fanzine will continue to be available at www.issuu.com/blackpooljane. Issues 1-4 are also available here and, if this format proves to be well-supported, we will look to continue it going forward. Hard copy has proved by far the more popular format to date but the world is changing now, forcing adjustments to how we work and communicate. The hard copy will continue as and when the printers are back up and running and we are back at the football and in the pubs. In the meantime I hope you enjoy reading this issue online.

Subscriptions for hard copy fanzines for the 2020/21 season are now available for a discounted price of £15 for the next five issues. Please email jane@janestuart.co.uk for details of how to subscribe.

We are also seeking advertisers for next season. If you would like to promote your business to fellow Seasiders please email me at the above address. Adverts start at £50 and we can design the copy for you. If you enjoy this fanzine we would really appreciate your support to keep producing content.

Lee and I are hosting a weekly livestream on Lee Charles TV on YouTube at 3pm every Saturday. This keeps the football routine going on a Saturday and is a great way of keeping in touch with fellow Seasiders and football fans from around the world (we have had ‘visitors’ from Thailand, the US, France and Italy in recent weeks). We keep viewers up to date with the goings on in world football, including league postponements, Belarusian football, mental health, football fixes on TV (Sunderland Til I Die, The English Game) and alternative football (including brick football (Lego) and FIFA competitions (Ultimate QuaranTeam and the StayInTerToto Cup)). Come and join us in the live chat session from 3pm every Saturday and let us know how you are getting on in lockdown. It would be great to hear from you.

Meanwhile, read on, enjoy Issue 5 and, most importantly, stay safe, fellow Seasiders. UTMP.

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DOWN MEMORY LANE Blackpool v Clapton Orient - September 7th 1907 A BRILLIANT VICTORY Blackpool’s 5-0 Game

What a change! Twelve months ago, at Bloomfield Road, Blackpool gave an exhibition against Clapton Orient that was simply appalling in its weakness and which naturally led to a heavy defeat.

On Saturday, against the same team, Blackpool's display was sound, nay brilliant, and the result was a substantial and encouraging victory for the whole eleven by no fewer than five goals to none.

It is three or four seasons since Blackpool scored such a decisive and well-deserved victory, and the credit for the performance must be given in primarily to the forwards.

It was quite a pleasure to see the attack making for the goal with some definite object in view, and shooting strongly for the net when there was the slightest opening. For two or three years past, Blackpool supporters have had to endure a forward line that could be so called only through courtesy and through the mere accident of position. They were mostly a set of aimless wanderers, whose efforts at scoring would generally make a fourth form school-boy blush.

But, this year, Blackpool seems to have an attack that is something more than a mere name. Last Monday, at Stockport, they played splendidly in the open, but did not meet with their reward in the way of goals. On Saturday, however, they had their fill against Clapton, whom they trounced in the manner that delighted those spectators who retained an unpleasant memory of last year's game.

“It's not a defeat, but a slaughter,” said a Clapton pressman towards the close of the game. “We rather fancied Orient’s chances, but you're a good deal the best team that we met yet.” This is a decidedly encouraging tribute, considering that Clapton's opponents, so far, have been Hull City and Barnsley. They were looking forward to a least one point at Blackpool.

But they were hopelessly outplayed. The excellent forward work that was in evidence against Hull and Barnsley was never seen and the defence was but a shaky reed against Blackpool’s sprightly attack. Blackpool proved their overwhelming superiority by getting the ball into the net eight times during the game - three times without any reward - while Clapton had not the consolation of a solitary point.

Beyond all possible shadow of doubt, Blackpool fully deserved those five goals as just a recognition of their whole-hearted play. If they can keep up this form during the season, there ought not to be much fear and trembling in the hearts of the directors in April next. Such form will land Blackpool nearer the top than the bottom of the League.

The day was not what one you would call ideal for football. It was rather more suitable for cricket rather than for the winter pastimes, for the sun shone brightly and made the atmosphere rather too warm for violent exercise, and there was hardly a breath of wind to temper the heat. Spectators, however, could hardly have desired better conditions, and they showed their appreciation both of the day and Blackpool’s promising work at Stockport and in the trial games by turning up to the

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DOWN MEMORY LANE extent of four to five thousand. To state that they were delighted with Blackpool's play is putting it mildly.

Blackpool had the same team as at Stockport, though Grundy, who again deputised for Kirby at outside right, was so ill that under ordinary circumstances he would not have played. The Orient had one change from their regular eleven, Gates, coming in for Oliver at inside left.

The players were

Blackpool: Tillotson, goal; Crewdson and Scott, backs; Threlfall, Parkinson and Clarke, halfbacks; W. A. Grundy, Whittingham, Owers, King and Ringley, forwards.

Clapton: W. Whittaker, goal; Henderson and Stewart, backs; Buchanan, Shelley, and Thacker, half-backs; Leigh, Bell, Martin, Gates and J. Whitaker, forwards.

Referee: Mr Armitt, Leek.

Blackpool were not long in expressing their opinions, so to speak. Within three minutes of the start King cleverly accepted a pass from Parkinson and, without making any elaborate preparation, he promptly drove the ball low and hard into the net, well out of Whittaker’s reach. Unfortunately the referee’s whistle went just as King shot and the goal was disallowed on a rather fine point as to off-side.

Then to keep up the excitement, Whittingham worked along the right wing and beat both Thacker and Stewart and closed a plucky effort by again finding the net. When about six yards from the goal, however, the ball bounced against his wrist and the free kick fell to Clapton instead of a goal to Blackpool.

The game had only been going about ten minutes, however, when Blackpool managed to score a point against which the referee could find no objection. The ball was centred well by Brindley and was met by Whittingham, who sent it high into the net, completely out of Whitaker’s reach - a very good goal.

Clapton began to find their feet after this reverse, until there was a most exciting melee in the Blackpool goal-mouth. A centre by Bell struck the crossbar and, when the ball was returned into the goal-mouth by Whittaker, it was kept bobbing around from head to head in a most tantalising manner. At length, however, Parkinson relieved a critical situation with a strong kick and Blackpool were soon at work again in front of Whittaker.

A pretty run along with the left by King and Brindley saw the latter pass back to his partner, who, after a short run, drove in at a terrific rate. Whittaker just managed to stop the ball by falling at fulllength, but he presented Whittingham with an opening that was very promptly accepted; and Blackpool stood two up before the game was half an hour old.

Blackpool continued to play with fine spirit and determination and they were always ready to shoot. Parkinson drove the ball into the net from twenty five yards range, but the referee had just previously signalled a foul and the goal could not count. Blackpool harried the Clapton defence right up to the interval, and added to their lead from a penalty kick, given for a foul up on either

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DOWN MEMORY LANE Owers or Whittingham almost under the Clapton cross-bar. Scott took the kick and sent the ball straight against Whittaker, but he met the rebound and made no mistake the second time, even though he overbalanced himself and came down heavily on his head.

The Blackpool goal had one narrow escape just before the interval, for Bell raced past Scott and centred from the goal-line. Tillotson tried to reach the ball, but it curled away from him and left Threlfall and J. Whittaker to fight for its possession. Threlfall succeeded very cleverly, first heading the ball out of Whittaker’s reach and then kicking away; but if he had failed Blackpool would almost certainly have had their lead reduced. As it was, they were three up at the change of ends.

In the second half, Owers quickly added to Blackpool’s strong lead, for he went through on his own, and when challenged about twenty five yards from goal, he shot hard and true. Whittaker might have saved, but the ball seemed to turn away from him and enter the net near the post.

It was only occasionally that the Clapton forwards were troublesome. Once, however, Clarke nearly turned a centre from Whittaker through his own goal, Tillotson just saving; and again, Whittaker and Gates both missed fair opportunities from Bell’s centres.

Blackpool's shooting, on the other hand, left little to be desired. King twice brought Whittaker down with low, hard drives that were finely directed, and Owers beat him completely, for the fifth time, from a well judged pass by Grundy. King ought to have added a sixth after he beat both the backs, but he got so close up to Whittaker that, in his anxiety not to shoot at the goalkeeper, he missed the ball as well.

So, Blackpool, how to be ‘content’ with a victory of five clear goals. With such an excellent result on their first league appearance at home, there is no necessity for criticism. The good work more than atoned for the few mistakes that remained; and one could not help but admire the earnestness of the whole team. The defence was very steady. The only thing about their work that might have been improved was the placing of the ball to the forwards. Sometimes they kicked so hard that the ball went to the Clapton backs instead of to the Blackpool forwards.

The forward work was a big surprise to those who were not acquainted with the team’s doings in the practice games. There is a better understanding amongst them than there was at any time amongst the forwards last season; and, individually, they are cleverer footballers.

Owers and Whittingham created a very favourable impression by their neat footwork and their shooting, and both were thorough triers. King and Brindley also made a very satisfactory wing and they will do still better before the season gets much older. The only forward who did not reach the form of which we know he is capable was W. A. Grundy, but there was ample excuse for him. He was not in a condition for playing football. As soon as Kirby is ready to take his place it will be Grundy’s best policy to desert football altogether for a month or two until he gets thoroughly sound. Blackpool values his services very highly, and there is no one more popular with the players themselves; but it would be better to take a rest rather than to run the risk of serious breakdown.

Result : Blackpool 5 - 0 Clapton Orient (Blackpool scorers Whittingham 2, Owers 2 & Scott) (from the Blackpool Times)

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FIXTURE CARDS

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AWAY FANS by Steve Fisher Firstly, can I pass on my personal congratulations and best wishes to our new manager (or is it head coach…and what’s the difference anyway??) Neil Critchley. To me, the package of excellent coaching skills, drive, enthusiasm and connections at one of the best clubs in the world is a pretty heady combination and I am genuinely excited at this appointment. Welcome to the seaside pal - and may your candy floss never congeal! And to Simon Sadler, I simply say ‘thank you’ – you’re clearly a man of your word and the Tangerine Army owe you a big debt of gratitude! Never has our motto of ‘Progress’ been more apt.

On the back of the lift this appointment brought, I can’t tell you how disappointed I was when the Mighty Pool vs Sunderland game was called off recently. I had a hotel booked, a night out with Brooksie and some good pals lined up and was tingling with anticipation. Even though we are midtable and there’s probably nothing to play for in the most literal sense, there’s nothing quite like a big away following to get the blood pumping. The Mackems were bringing over 4,000 down and, unlike last time they did so during the boycott, they were going to face a full stadium, a new manager and a fired-up team. I was gutted to miss out on a great occasion.

This got me thinking about away fans. Now it’s hard to say that I like them exactly, but they’re a bit like Jimmy Carr on Eight Out of Ten Cats: bloody irritating, but it wouldn’t be the same without him.

But who are my favourite away fans? Well, being a scientific sort, I thought I’d analyse them using a mathematical formula:

Rating = 4n + 8r +5s + 6i + 7a – 5v (this formula is valid – trust me, I’m an academic).

Where: n = number of away fans that turn up; r = rivalry rating (from my personal viewpoint); s = songs (I do like fans that sing quirky songs); i = inflatables (who doesn’t like an inflatable in a football ground? This also includes fans turning up in fancy dress); a = atmosphere (when they’re around) and v = violence (I like passion, but don’t like to see violence around football, so this is a negative).

Using this rating, my top 20 fans are:

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

Crystal Palace

Newcastle United

Sunderland

Manchester City

Grimsby Town (stick with me here)

Preston North End (PKE)

Burnley

Birmingham City

Liverpool

Sheffield United

Manchester United

Barnsley

Bolton Wanderers

West Ham United

Wolverhampton Wanderers

16.

17.

18.

19.

20.

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Huddersfield Town

Leeds United

Stoke City

Sheffield Wednesday

Bradford City

AWAY FANS by Steve Fisher I thought about including a category for topless fans in the rain but, as a) they’re all blokes and b) only Newcastle scored any points in this category, I decided to leave it out.

Now there are some oddities in here, like Barnsley being above Leeds, but Brooksie and I have a mate called Karl, who is a Barnsley fan (which is odd as otherwise he’s a thoroughly nice chap) and we’ve had many a good day out watching this fixture. He gives us such grief if we lose that this match really matters to me. Their fans also made me chuckle one year by standing on the old Gene Kelly stand in the rain, singing “I’d rather be in Rotherham with a roof”.

I also have a sad confession that there’s nothing that makes me chuckle more than fancy dress and particularly inflatables in football grounds… for anyone that doesn‘t remember the craze on inflatable anything that began in the 80’s, I think the instigators were Man City, who started taking inflatable bananas to matches. They had a player called Imre Varadi who became known as Imre Banana. Week in and week out, the Kippax end would be a sea of waving bananas!

This soon caught on (well it would really) at other clubs. My high Grimsby rating is largely due to their love of Harry the Haddock.

They used to turn up in reasonable numbers and the away end would be a happy sea of waving fish…

Grimsby’s love of inflatables carries on to this very day and in 2017 they were banned from taking inflatables to Barnet as they had brought ‘hundreds’ to the ground the previous year. Any team that has the following announcement in their programme gets my full respect: “Please note that we have been informed by Barnet that inflatables will not be allowed into the ground on the day of the fixture.”

Other teams have dabbled in this area – I believe Stoke took inflatable Pink Panthers to Maine Road in retaliation for a banana invasion one year.

Oldham fans had inflatable dogs and, of course, West Ham had inflatable hammers.

Lincoln fans took (how can I put this?) inflatable ‘appendages’ to Notts County one year, after County’s owner Alan Hardy accidentally posted a picture of his on social media…

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AWAY FANS by Steve Fisher We had inflatable Blackpool Towers for a short while, but it never really took off - I suspect that was just some bloke from South Shore selling off old stock saying “You can be the first – everyone will want one!” I myself took an inflatable fried egg to Wembley, with the rather tangerine-coloured yolk painted with the Pool badge and “Come on you Pool!” proudly emblazoned around the outside..

Sadly, it got trapped in a seat and the yolk was well and truly on me…

Some clubs made it high on the list due to their songs. I love Palace’s fans, who came to Bloomfield Road in 2010 and just sang. I went home humming their song “Cos we support the Palace, the Palace, the Palace, and that’s the way we like it, we like it, we like it, woooaoh, woooaoh!”. They lost out a bit on numbers, but for sheer passion and atmosphere they topped my list.

I like eccentric songs too. Stoke singing the Tom Jones classic Delilah is something to behold. It’s not that they sing it particularly - but that they sing it all the way through! The first time I heard this, I caught “..I saw your lamp from your window..” coming from the away end and wondered if I was hearing things…but as 3,000 fans bellowed “My, my my, Delilah” I realised I wasn’t. Fantastic!

I love to hear the classics like ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’, which always makes my hair stand on end; Leeds singing ‘Marching On Together’ and Birmingham’s 'Keep Right On To The End Of The Road’; but I also like any silly songs like Man United’s ’12 Cantonas of Christmas’ (with each gift being Eric Cantona) and Chelsea’s 'One Man Went to Mow’, both sung all the way down to one, with everyone in on the last chorus!

PKE and Burnley should logically top my list, but whilst the passion is high, their support is never that huge nor vocal, so they lost out on valuable points there.

Now I think we’ve got amazing away support. I love our fans in full voice, with ‘The Best Trip’, ‘Woke Up This Morning” and “Just Can’t Get Enough” being personal favourites. I recall the night at Birmingham in the play-off semi in 2012 when we were the loudest, proudest fans in the land – wonderful! I also like the silly songs – The Wayne Gill tribute “He’s got no hair but we don’t care…”, “Day Trippers Go Home..” and the occasional “EIEIEIO” season (dependent on us pushing for promotion, of course) always being good for a giggle. But my all-time favourite was some time in the 1980’s when Burnley’s manager was banned for drink-driving and came out of the tunnel to be greeted by 4,000 Pool fans singing ‘You must have come in a taxi.’ I chuckled all the way home that day…

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WEMBLEY STARS QUIZ by Ant Lord To celebrate exactly ten years since the finest Pool hour in my lifetime, here’s a fun little quiz. I’ve looked at the players who were part of the Wembley teams from 2007, 2010 and 2012. For each one, I’ve listed some of the clubs that they represented over the years (not necessarily in the correct order). Your job is to work out who each one is. Good luck!

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

BLACKPOOL, Preston N.E., Southampton.

Leeds United, Celtic, BLACKPOOL.

QPR, Northampton Town, BLACKPOOL.

Wrexham, BLACKPOOL, Coventry City.

Sunderland, Aston Villa, BLACKPOOL.

BLACKPOOL, Bournemouth, Coventry City, Fleetwood Town.

Nottingham Forest, BLACKPOOL, Real Sociedad.

Everton, Sligo Rovers, BLACKPOOL.

Swansea City, BLACKPOOL, Rangers.

Rangers, Norwich City, BLACKPOOL.

Birmingham City, BLACKPOOL, Leicester City.

BLACKPOOL, Hull City, Derby County.

Millwall, BLACKPOOL, Sabadell.

Oldham Athletic, BLACKPOOL, Lincoln City.

BLACKPOOL, Huddersfield Town, Fleetwood Town.

Answers on page 28.

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The Blackpool FC Former Players Association are keen to contact the following former Blackpool players. If you are in contact with any of the following, please invite them to contact John Cross on 07984 940879 or at johndcross53@gmail.com.

Bangura – Al

Bednar - Roman

Betts – Micky

Bissell – Stephen

Bouazza - Hameur

Boyack – Steven

Boyce - Emmerson

Brandon – Chris

Burke – David

Charnock – Phil

Cywka - Tomas

Dean – Brian

Demontagnac - Ishmel

Dickens – Matt

Edwards – Paul

Evans – Tony

Farley - John

Fernandez – Victor

Finnigan – Trevor

Fisher – Les

Futacs - Marko

Garvey – Steven

Gayle – Mark

Gobern – Lewis

Gow - Alan

Gregson – John

Gulliver - Phil

Halsall – Alan

Hennigan - Mick

Illic – Sasa

Kingson – Richard

Lawson – Ian

McAlister – Tom

McGinley – Pat

Mahon – Alan

Maley – Mark

Matias – Pedro

Moore – Neil

Orr – Bradley

Owens – Graeme

Pascoe – Colin

Priest – Phil

Quinn – Pat

Rachel – Adam

Reed – John

Saxton - Bobby

Sendall – Richard

Shaw – Matt

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Sinclair – Brian

Sluzarski – Bartosz

Smith – Malcolm

Steele – Simon

Stringfellow – Ian

Sturridge – Simon

Symons – Paul

Thompson – David

Tynan - Bobby

Warrender – Danny

Williams – Gary

ACADEMY ACADEMY ACADEMY by Insider If you buy this fanzine at the ground pre-match then, on one hand, I hope this article isn’t too out of date, but on the other hand, I hope that it is and that some of things talked about are now happening.

It’s not so long ago that Blackpool fans thought an academy was an independent, state funded school or a music venue in Manchester. Then along came Simon Sadler (he knows what we’re after) and, when he set out his vision for his custodianship of Blackpool, he said:

“I’d also hope we’d have new training facilities, like we should already have, an academy to develop our own players coming through and for the stadium to look a bit tidier than it looks now.”

So that was a good start and then, lo and behold, we appoint a manager whose previous job was Head Coach at Liverpool’s academy.

So what do we know about football academies and how can they benefit Blackpool FC?

The most successful academies do still produce home grown talent. Manchester United graduates played more Premier League minutes than graduates of any other club in the 2018/19 season: 27,395 minutes with 20 players, not all for United of course (Liverpool were 7th on the list).

United also have that incredible statistic as at December 2019 whereby, in the last 81 years and 4,000 consecutive games, they have had an academy graduate in the starting line-up.

Football academies are the common name for the youth system attached to a professional football club. The majority of football clubs have programmes geared towards the development of youth players and in some cases are called a Centre of Excellence (where have we heard that one before...?).

The academy system we have currently came about after a drastic overhaul in 2011 at the instigation of the Premier League and their ‘Elite Player Performance Plan’ (EPPP).

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We now have 4 tier category system, with 1 being the highest;

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Changes to scouting which allows Category 1 clubs to recruit throughout the country (there was previously a strict catchment area);

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A compensation scheme that was introduced to ensure smaller clubs received relative compensation for youth players moving to a larger club.

Blackpool FC currently have a Category 3 academy, which is defined by the EFL in very simple terms as:

“This is a development environment where Academy Players are provided with professional coaching and development opportunities”.

League 1 and 2 clubs typically have Category 3 academies, with a few exceptions (Ipswich, Bolton, Crewe, Coventry and Colchester).

There is a very detailed document provided by the EFL for players and parents which is available via the EFL website.

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ACADEMY ACADEMY ACADEMY by Insider A couple of bits and pieces that took my interest.

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The facilities required to meet Category 2 and 3 requirements are more or less the same.

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A sufficient number of grass pitches of the appropriate sizes (as required by the Rules relating to Games Programmes and with goals sized as required) to enable the Club to play all its matches and fulfil its commitments under these rules as regards coaching.

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A designated area for the coaching of goalkeepers.

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For Category 3 access to one floodlit artificial pitch (which need not be at the principal venue).

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Pitches need to be adequately maintained.

Just looking at the older groups, EFL clubs can sign young players on a two-year scholarship agreement from the age of 16, a condition of which is they have to undertake an education programme. Under 16 assessment trials usually take place in February half term holidays in front of lots of scouts from different clubs, giving players the opportunity to join a different club if they are not being retained (the one-hour travelling restriction is lifted after u/16 level).

At the end of u/18 apprenticeship, players that are not offered a further registration can attend assessment trials to be viewed by scouts from professional and non-league clubs.

Do academy players get paid?

Whilst Category 1 and 2 academies can register players from 9 years old, they do not receive wages, although parents can receive financial help for travel and schooling. Youth players (u/18s) do get paid and wages are typically around £4-7k per season.

Pro-contracts can be offered to players in their u/16 year from the 31st December. (Tony Weston?)

However they do not commence payment until the age of 17 and that is of course when the most talented youngsters will start to earn serious money. It is reported that Raheem Stirling was on £30k pw at 17. Compare that to a first year professional at Blackpool, who is more likely to be on about £300pw.

So where does that leave Blackpool FC? At the beginning of the article I mentioned Simon Sadler’s vision and this appears to being endorsed by Ben Mansford. A new training ground is in the pipeline, which presumably will be the base for the academy, hopefully with facilities for family and supporters to watch competitive matches.

With the advent of that, I’m guessing the club will look towards achieving Category 2 status.

Maintaining a Category 2 status academy means a big commitment from the Club but there is funding available circa £0.5m from the PL.

Currently the u/18s don’t train with the first team, which isn’t ideal. This needs to change.

We now have a manager with an academy background, which should make an apprenticeship at BFC a far more attractive proposition. We do, however, need to establish a far better career path for our academy graduates through competitive football at either reserve team or u/23 level.

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A SEASON TO REMEMBER: 1970/71 by Rob Frowen As many Seasiders fans will be eminently aware, this spring marks exactly fifty years since Blackpool FC returned to the ‘Big Time’ and achieved promotion to top flight football in dramatic style. A number of local events were scheduled to take place to commemorate this notable 1970 achievement but the Coronavirus pandemic has well and truly scuppered everything.

So instead, let’s take this opportunity to recall some of the more memorable matches of that great season. I was fortunate enough to attend all 42 league matches in the 1969/70 season and some of my memories are as vivid today as they ever were.

The season began pretty badly for the Pool, with just three wins in the first ten league matches – whilst scoring a miserly total of only nine goals. Most notable (for me anyway) of those ten was the match at Queens Park Rangers on a Tuesday evening in late August.

My mate and I travelled south by rail and we were chuffed to see that the Blackpool team were serendipitously on the same train as us! Not only that, but several of the players invited us to sit with them. I recall saying glowingly at the time “I’m not bothered how we get on tonight after all this...”. As it turned out, it was just as well, because we proceeded to get hammered 6-1 at Loftus Road.

The season improved somewhat for Pool after that dismal start and by Christmas we found ourselves in a half-decent league position to perhaps launch a serious promotion challenge in the second half of the season.

A fantastic, exciting 3-2 victory at Birmingham City on Boxing Day was followed by two matches against Arsenal in the FA Cup. The replay at Bloomfield Road will be etched forever in the memories of all who were there on that chilly evening. Two nil down at half time and we were seemingly well out of the Cup. Then the amazing comeback. Alan Suddick, Fred Pickering and Mickey Burns famously scored in the second half for a stunning 3-2 comeback.

In between the cup ties, we travelled to Watford on 10th January. When we arrived we saw that the Vicarage Road playing surface was under several inches of snow and we feared that this long trip south was going to be for nothing. Soon afterwards, I recall a group of ground staff wandering over to us clutching a number of shovels. We were politely asked if we could please help to clear the pitch! We naturally did so and the match eventually went ahead. We won the match 1-0, courtesy of Fred Pickering again...and, as a reward for our sterling efforts, we all received freebie tickets to sit in their best stand.

We’ve always kind of regarded this victory as our own tiny contribution to the season’s ultimate success!

Following the Watford episode, Blackpool lost only one more match (excluding the final match at Oxford United, which effectively became a dead rubber), with Craven, Pickering and Burns in particular scoring freely.

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A SEASON TO REMEMBER: 1970/71 by Rob Frowen There are many more matches from 1969/70 that I’m sure many Seasiders fans will readily recall: from Alan Suddick’s classic ‘bender’ early on in the home match against Cardiff which would help to cement his ‘King’ status, to Johnny Johnston’s winning goal against Oxford United in his only start of the season. And then there was the high drama at Swindon on Tuesday 7th April in front of a County Ground packed with 28,500 spectators.

Town were also well in contention for that second promotion spot but a superb Mickey Burns equaliser and a priceless point edged Pool ever-closer to achieving the dream. And six days later that dream came true...and at Deepdale!

The excitement had reached fever pitch on the evening of 13th April 1970 against our big rivals from ‘down the A583’.

A win for Blackpool and we would ‘be there’ whilst, at the same time, PNE would be relegated to Division 3. It was an epic climax and pure story book stuff! I guess it’s hardly necessary to state the result but I will do in the event that any Preston fans may be reading. A Fred Pickering hat trick and a comfortable 3-0 victory in front of a massive 34,000 spectators tells the glorious story. The deafening echo of “Blackpool, Blackpool” from all four sides towards the final whistle will remain with me for ever.

The immortal team that evening was Thomson, Armfield, Bentley, McPhee, James, Hatton, Burns, Craven, Pickering, Suddick and Hutchison. Every player was chaired from the field by ecstatic Blackpool fans. I think I helped Tommy Hutchison off. Manager Les Shannon was also rightly taking the plaudits from the Sea of Tangerine that had engulfed the pitch – we had completely taken over Deepdale!

The final match at Oxford a few days later became something of a non-event. But I simply had to go to keep up my ‘unbeaten’ record! We lost 2-0 in a lifeless and devoid of incident match – Pool’s first defeat away from Bloomfield Road since November. In fact, my sole abiding memory at the Manor Ground was witnessing Fred Pickering, on exiting the players tunnel at the start, stop at the touchline and proceeding to finish off his cigarette!

And I’m sure Fred wasn’t the only Pool player who was feeling more than a little demob happy that afternoon. We actually saw all the players leaving a pub in Banbury at lunchtime prior to the match which I guess tells its own story!

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BLOOMFIELD ROAD by Peter Duerden

BLOOMFIELD ROAD by Peter Duerden

ARMAND GNANDUILLET : FOOTBALL GENIUS by Mitch Cook’s Left Foot As I write this, I, like many of you reading this, am facing the prospect of not seeing friends and family for a long time. I'm also trying not to think about how some people might not see friends and family again ever.

If you think that's a slightly morbid tone to strike, then I'm sorry, I have news for you: it’s going to get even worse in the next paragraph. Are you ready? Brace yourself with a shot of whatever spirit you panic bought and buckle up. Ok...? Now, read on.

We might not see Armand Gnanduillet again in a tangerine shirt.

I told you it was bad.

There haven’t, if we are brutally honest, been too many week in, week out thrills since the homecoming. We’ve had a particularly stodgy set of players and there are times over the last year when wondering what Armand will do next has been somewhere alongside ‘wondering when they’ll fix the advertising board the Fleetwood fans smashed’ or ‘timing how long Larry can keep his his arms folded whilst doing nothing else’ as a highlight of the game.

Big Armand is, in my opinion, a football genius. A maverick with (a rare quality in the modern game) his own style of play. He’s one part height and power, one part languid and powder puff, occasionally explosive and occasionally hopeless. He’s capable of 8ft leaps and shoulder charges that leave the opposition crumpled but equally capable of watching the ball sail overhead with little more than a glance in its geÅneral direction and a look of gallic disinterest.

To some, that’s infuriating. They see a player wasting his potential; a player who, if he attacked everything with a snarling relish, could be unplayable. To me, I see a player who has worked out his chief weapon is unpredictability.

To play against Armand must be a nightmare. He drifts, he wanders, he occasionally sprints like his life depends on it. He isn’t lazy, he covers a huge amount of ground, you just don’t always notice him doing it as, for such a big fella, he moves around likes he’s got carpet slippers on.

He sometimes plays like a carthorse, but other times a nimble ballerina. He’s totally unorthodox and for a defender that is disorientating.

He’s also possessed of deceptively silken touch. Yes, sometimes the ball bounces off him like he’s made of concrete, but watch when his back is to goal and someone is running for him. The weight he puts on the ball is often perfect and the angles he sometimes conjures are mindaltering. His vision is very good, his brain quick.

There’s the dribbles. Sometimes he looks like he should never attempt it again, staggering to a corner before tumbling to the ground like a felled tree. However, every now and again, he just ghosts past two or three and, on rare occasions, will belt it in one of the corners.

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ARMAND GNANDUILLET : FOOTBALL GENIUS by Mitch Cook’s Left Foot My absolute favourite goals are headers. I love how crosses so often come to nothing but, from time to time, you can see what is going to happen a split second before it does. For each aerial challenge he ignores, there’s another moment where he charges onto a Feeney cross and plants it, unstoppably, into the back of the net. I loved Dave Bamber, I loved John Murphy and I love Armand. I like a player who scores headers.

I love how he thrives on confidence, how he wears his heart on his sleeve and a goal puts a real strut in his step. I like how he is visibly lifted by the North Stand singing his name. I like his air of total calm before a game as if he really doesn’t care either way. I like the way he seems like a decent lad. When the young keeper had to come on and replace Alnwick, it was Armand who came over and put his arm around him and made him smile. When Joe Nuttall was having one of the worst games I’ve ever seen a pro have at Rotherham, it was Armand who put his arm around him and spoke in his ear.

He gets pushed and shoved and elbowed all the time, but he never lashes out. He’s just too cool. I like the way that when he gets knocked over in the box or he misses a chance, his incredulity is expressed with the flair of a mime artist, slow motion gestures and eye popping expressions of confusion or anguish. He plays like he knows it’s theatre and he enjoys playing his role.

Most of all, I like his spirit. I like that he’s not actually that good, except when he is. I like that he never, ever gives up. He just keeps on going, he doesn’t care if he’s just hit the corner flag, he doesn’t care if he’s mistimed his last jump or miscontrolled the last pass. He shows again. He trots back to his position and hits reset and is ready to go once more.

He is Armand and we could all take a leaf out of his book. He’s untroubled by failure, knowing that the next success is only just round the corner. Never fearful, never doubtful. Just soldiering on regardless. Life is a journey and there’s no point worrying about what went wrong or what might happen. Just keep going and doing your thing, whatever they say. Let’s all be a bit more Armand.

He’s everything that so many of our best modern players have been. Flawed, imperfect but full of character. Unloved elsewhere, but somehow touched by whatever magic comes with the tangerine shirt.

He’s my favourite Blackpool player, my favourite player full stop and, for a long time, I never imagined having another favourite player. Some of you won’t agree. You probably think Messi is great or something. You simply don’t understand his genius.

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You can read more from Mitch Cook’s Left Foot at www.mclfoot.blogspot.com.

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BST: FOOTBALL’S PLACE IN TIMES OF CRISIS by Christine Seddon These are strange and frightening times. Pandemic is a scary word whenever you hear it, but the scenes in Northern Italy at the moment as one of the world’s biggest nations struggles to cope would give anyone pause for thought.

One word that many politicians are using freely at the moment is ‘community’. Quite rightly, they argue that we will get through these difficulties more easily together than apart. And, although football clubs may not seem high on the list of priorities for us to worry about, they do nevertheless deserve some thought at this difficult time.

The best football clubs are very much at the heart of their community. One only has to look at our good friends at Everton to see this; their reaction to the recent troubles has been to redouble their efforts to provide support to the neediest in their local community (and in Walton, Kirkdale, Crosby and Bootle, that is VERY needy). They do so by facilitating initiatives like Foodbanks and set an example that other clubs would do well to follow.

Of course, the clubs have to survive themselves in order to fulfil that role - and the suspension of elite football in Europe has sharply emphasised just how vulnerable some clubs are when the normal lines of revenue are cut off. Senior figures at clubs like Rochdale and Accrington have warned us all of the possible consequences for them.

Clubs as disparate as Sligo Rovers and Barnet are already in trouble, with the latter at the time of writing preparing to lay off all their non-footballing staff as their money runs out.

They will probably not be the only clubs who are on the edge of a financial precipice at the moment.

BST have been very critical of the footballing authorities in the past, but much of what they are doing at the moment seems sensible. What happens vis a vis the 2019/20 season is of less interest to Blackpool fans than most, but the clear determination to see this season through - however long that takes - is at least a very clear and equitable stance. It means that those clubs who do have a lot at stake - and currently on hold - at least know where they stand.

In the same vein, the EFL’s financial support package for clubs is very welcome. Although £50 million only goes so far, the statement of intent that underlies it is very important.

When the game is able to resume - and on what basis - remains to be settled, but at least there seems to be a broad consensus about the direction of travel.

Of course, it is not only clubs who suffer. Anyone who travels away from home to watch the club using public transport will know that the overnight suspension of matches causes many fans significant financial issues. Train tickets are suddenly invalid, hotel bookings need to be cancelled, ticket money spent is suddenly ‘dead money’.

In this regard, the Football Supporters Association (FSA) continues to lobby hard at the national level, and have won some significant battles. Train operators have agreed to relax

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BST: FOOTBALL’S PLACE IN TIMES OF CRISIS by Christine Seddon their rules on changing of tickets and the issuing of refunds. These are not major issues in the overall scheme of things, but they will make a big difference to club supporters who have already made financial commitments in pursuit of their love for their club.

There remains much to do. It is possible that football might be able to resume relatively quickly on a ‘behind closed doors’ basis, but that also throws up challenges in making sure that supporters are able to have greater access to live internet streams in order to be able to follow games remotely. And of course all the key stakeholders in the game are wrestling with the implications for future seasons if the current one is significantly delayed.

Some of the big decisions - like the delay of Euro 2020 by one year - have already been taken. But if (for argument’s sake) the current season ends 4/5/6 months late, then the way the football cycle works in the run up to what is already going to be a unique season in 2022/23 requires careful thought to ensure that the interests of clubs, broadcasters and supporters are properly balanced. Again, there is a big role for the FSA in these discussions - and BST are well-placed to influence them, with our strong representation at regional and national levels.

All of the above does seem far removed from many of the worries that we all currently have. But one day, in the (hopefully) not too distant future, we will be able to resume a more normal lifestyle and things like football will come back closer to the centre of our lives. And at BST we will continue to put our best foot forward to make sure we are ready for that wonderful moment when it comes.

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SUPPORTERS LIAISON OFFICER by Steve Rowland When the Coronavirus pandemic finally wanes, we’re going to need a new Homecoming Saturday! It’s strange to reflect that only a year ago we had just returned to Bloomfield Road in our thousands after four years of boycotting the ground – and now in unprecedented circumstances we’re all staying away from the place for quite a different reason. It won’t be four years this time, but there is no indication as to when league football might resume.

The silver lining (if there is one) is that we Blackpool fans are practised at finding other things to do on a Saturday afternoon – and some of them are still permitted under social distancing guidelines. For supporters of other clubs it must have come as a bigger jolt to the system. My fear is that a protracted suspension of activities and revenues might send some clubs to the wall. My hope is that the majority will rise to the challenge of being truly community-oriented in circumstances that surely demand such a reaction.

As SLO, I was getting regular briefings about Coronavirus right up until that Friday when all the professional leagues announced their suspension of games. Since then, not a word.

It’s all a bit eerie. My programme notes for the postponed Sunderland match contained the standard sensible advice at the time: wash your hands frequently and thoroughly, perhaps stay away from large social events (like football matches) if you have a known respiratory medical condition, phone 111 and self-isolate if you develop the fever, dry cough and breathing difficulties which are the key symptoms of Covid-19. Since then, events have moved with frightening speed and impositions are in place to try and slow the spread and the peak of the pandemic in the UK. As I write this piece (on Saturday 21st March) there are still only five confirmed cases in Blackpool. By the time you’re reading it, who knows what the story will be.

Given we’ve got this enforced hiatus, there’s a chance to reflect on how far we’ve come in the last few months as a club reborn. My primary concern, naturally, is with the match day experience for all Seasiders (and visiting) fans – and I hope that has improved in significant ways over the course of the season: whether that be the quality and range of pies and drinks on offer, the friendlier stewarding, the coaches to away games, the lines of merchandise in the club shop, the array of flags on permanent display in the ground, better use of space under the concourses, live beamback. There is still a long list of pending improvements but all these things have to be prioritised and funded and I hope it’s clear to everyone that we’re after continuous improvement and long-term sustainability in everything we do,

The beamback showing of the Fleetwood game at the beginning of March appears to have been a huge success. I could have gone to the Highbury stadium but opted to sample the atmosphere in the Stanley Matthews Lounge instead where, for £10 including a free pie and pint, hundreds of Blackpool fans who hadn’t been able to get tickets to go to the actual game could watch the progress of Neil Critchley’s first match in charge in the warmth and comfort of what was in effect a very noisy tangerine fanzone. I’m sure the club would be willing to offer the option again. There are a couple of controlling factors

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SUPPORTERS LIAISON OFFICER by Steve Rowland however, the most significant of which is that beamback can only be offered once the club has sold out of its away allocation for a game – as happened with Fleetwood but is rarely the case in League One. Once we’ve been promoted to the Championship (which I like to think is a question of when, not if) and as the fan base grows in response to success on the field, then beamback might become a more regular feature at Bloomfield Road.

It’s also worth mentioning that the club held its second structured dialogue meeting with representatives of fans’ groups at the beginning of March. Ben Mansford, Brett Gerrity and Linton Brown discussed openly with representatives on issues ranging from season ticket pricing to safe standing, half-time entertainment, club merchandise, fan investment in infrastructure projects, young Seasiders/family stand and anniversary events. The full minutes are available to be read or downloaded on the club website and links were posted on social media, including Facebook and Twitter – just search @BFCSLO.

Representation is sometimes a tricky issue. If you feel you are not represented but would like to be, I suggest you consider signing up to a democratic fans’ group – there are several options out there – or form your own regional group to help exiled Seasiders in your part of the country/world feel more connected, especially in these challenging times.

Alternatively, as Supporters’ Liaison Officer, I have a ‘virtual’ open door to any fan who wishes to converse about any aspect of being a supporter of Blackpool FC and I have regular weekly meetings with the directors to progress issues. You can reach me via twitter: @BFCSLO, via email: slo@blackpoolfc.co.uk and on Facebook: Blackpool FC Supporters’ Liaison Officer.

Stay healthy, stay tangerine!

23

MY FIRST BLACKPOOL MATCH by Peter Duerden Blackpool v Portsmouth, 3rd November 1973 At the age of 10 I was a pupil at Devonshire Road Junior School in Blackpool. Our school football team wasn’t the best by a long stretch.

In fact, I only remember us beating Waterloo and Baines all season.

However, one day our sports master, Mr Mills, told the team we were going to Bloomfield Road on Saturday to watch Blackpool play against Portsmouth in Division Two.

I had never been to a football match before so had no idea at all what to expect. There was no social media in those days; your weekly football fix was by way of watching Grandstand or World of Sport on Saturday afternoon and, if you were allowed, watching Match Of The Day later on Saturday night. Living in a busy newspaper shop at the time allowed me to spend Sunday morning absorbing the scores, match reports and league tables from a selection of all the newspapers.

The match day experience was to be something new and, unknown to me, was to be the start of a lifelong relationship with BLACKPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB. As we all know, there have been plenty of ups and downs along the way….

We sat in the tiny North West stand situated in the corner between the Kop and the West Stand. One of my team mates with me that day was Dave ‘Watty’ Watson and to this day we are both still following the Pool.

The teams lined up as follows : Blackpool: Burridge, Curtis, Hatton, Alcock, James, Suddaby, Burns, Suddick, Dyson, Bentley, Walsh. Sub: Parker

Portsmouth: Milkins, Roberts, Collins, Piper, Stephenson, Hand, Marinello, Kellard, Davies, Mellows, Foggo. Sub: Lewis

The Seasiders bombarded the visitors’ goal from kick-off and were altogether too lively for a hesitant Pompey rearguard.

Blackpool showed that their great display at Bristol City the previous week was no seven-day wonder and built up a 2-0 first-half lead.

While they were a threat in attack all day, the defence were also in fine form, with Peter Suddaby taking care of Portsmouth’s leading goalscorer Ron Davies.

Up front, meanwhile, Mickey Walsh had a field day against Pompey’s helpless backline.

Pool were just two places above Portsmouth in the table before the start of the game.

The away side paraded their expensive signings Alan Stephenson (ex-West Ham), Peter Marinello (exArsenal) and Ron Davies (ex-Southampton) in their lineup and fielded an unchanged side for the third successive game.

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MY FIRST BLACKPOOL MATCH by Peter Duerden Blackpool, meanwhile, fielded the same side that beat Bristol City 1-0 away from home last Saturday, leaving John Burridge in goal, Bill Bentley in midfield and Keith Dyson at centre forward.

The Seasiders were awarded an early free kick which Suddick floated into the box, but a flick by Burns was cleared by the Portsmouth defence.

At the other end of the pitch, Portsmouth looked to break quickly and Piper thumped in a hard leftfooted shot which Burridge dived to his right to save well.

With just 18 minutes on the clock, Pool took the lead as Alan Suddick slammed home a free kick with one of his special “banana” efforts, bending his shot neatly into the corner.

Pompey hit back and Piper clipped a firm right-footer inches over the Blackpool bar.

To their credit, the visitors refused to give up and for a 10-minute spell seized control of midfield and forced Blackpool back.

But Blackpool at last broke the spell and, after a swift break initiated by Curtis and Suddick, Dyson narrowly failed to connect with a chance in the six-yard box.

Burns eventually put Blackpool three up with a beautifullytaken goal after perhaps Blackpool’s finest move of the game.

Bill Bentley started it by cutting out a Portsmouth attack and setting up a Blackpool raid which was carried on neatly by Suddick, Dyson and Walsh to Burns on the left and the winger cooly smacked home a left footer.

A fine save by Milkins kept a Burns rocket from putting Blackpool four up after 75 minutes.

With three minutes left, Burns latched onto a Dyson pass to thump home the fourth, before Alcock scored Blackpool’s fifth after 88 minutes.

“This was the best we have played at home this season,” said Blackpool manager Harry Potts. “We really looked like a team”.

“The only other time we came near to this was in the friendly against Manchester City in the first half when we really turned it on.”

He added: “For the first 20 minutes especially the lads were great, shoving the ball about and playing really well.

“I thought we let it slip a little after half time but we came back strongly and took our goals very well.

The third goal was beautifully worked.”

But Potts was disappointed with the attendance, adding: “It’s a shame the crowd was only 6,000 or so to see such a good performance, but that’s football.”

Final Score : Blackpool 5-0 Portsmouth (Suddick, Walsh, Burns 2, Alcock) Attendance: 6,535 So 47 years on, myself and Watty still share the same love and passion for our football club. Perhaps we were spoilt in our first match with a 5-0 win, a ‘banana' free-kick from The King and a goal from my first soccer hero Mickey Walsh, a true centre forward.

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THE MAN WITH THE MISSING ’T’ by icywaves This is about the life and times of Blackpool’s former and much maligned goalkeeper, Richard Paul Franck Kingson. He was born in Accra in Ghana on June 13th 1978. The surname on his UEFA registration is Kingston. The different spelling of his surname is due to irregularities on his identity documents and in Ghana he is affectionately known as the man who got the T off his surname. The Ghanaian FA stated that his name was Kingston even though his shirt showed his name correctly as Kingson as confirmed by himself.

His goalkeeping career started at his local Accra club called Great Olympics before leaving his native country in 1996 to pursue a career in Turkey where he played for six clubs making a grand total of 106 appearances, including 27 for Galatasaray. Ultimately he became a naturalised citizen of Turkey and took the name Faruk Gursoy coming from Faruk Suren and Ergun Gursoy. He now holds both Ghanaian and Turkish passports. In 2005 he failed a drug test and was suspended for six months. He left Turkey in 2007 when he went on loan to Hammarby in Sweden where he played 11 games.

At the start of the 2007-08 season he was signed by Steve Bruce for Birmingham City and after a couple of Carling Cup appearances he made his Premier League debut on November 24th at home to Portsmouth and ended up on the losing side by 2-0. This followed the sacking of Steve Bruce and Eric Black was in charge for that one game. At the end of the season Birmingham were relegated and co-owner, David Sullivan, blamed it on Bruce’s poor signings and branded Kingson ‘a complete waste of space’. Kingson was very disappointed and angered by the unfairness of Sullivan’s remarks saying: “An older person, in his position, has to speak maturely. He has the responsibility as co-owner to speak well and set an example to younger people.” His contract was cancelled by mutual consent at the end of the season even though there was still a year to run.

In September 2008 he was signed again by Steve Bruce but this time for Wigan Athletic.

After one FA Cup appearance he came on as a sub in the Premier League following an injury to Chris Kirkland on May 9th 2009 against West Brom. He saved a penalty in this match but the rebound was scored and Wigan lost 3-1. Kingson went on to make a further three appearances at the end of that season. In the final game he kept a clean sheet and ended up on the winning side for the first time against Portsmouth. He was released by Wigan at the end of his contract in June 2010.

Then in September Ian Holloway signed him for Blackpool. He made his debut for us on November 10 th when Holloway infamously decided to play a reserve team away to Aston Villa where unsurprisingly we lost 3-2. The following game away to West Ham Matt Gilks was injured so Kingson came on at half time and kept a clean sheet as the game ended up goalless.

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THE MAN WITH THE MISSING ’T’ by icywaves He went on to play in a further 19 games, keeping three clean sheets and ending up on the winning side five times. He was dropped to the bench for the 5-3 defeat at Everton, when Paul Rachubka was preferred. He went off injured in the home games against Sunderland and Chelsea to be replaced respectively by Rachubka and Mark Halstead (making his only Premier League appearance). Kingson’s last featured in the home game against Arsenal which we lost 3-1. Gilks came back from injury after that so Kingson was the substitute for the last six games and the last we saw of him was on the bench in the final game at Old Trafford. After the end of the season he was released.

He was then out of the game for two seasons before he signed a one year contact in July 2013 with Cypriot club Doxa Katokopias, where he played ten games. In the following January he went back to Turkey, where he played for Balikesirspor on a two and a half year deal and made just 13 appearances.

At the end of his career in 2015, Kingson went back to Accra to play for Great Olympics again. His dream was to play for Asante Kotoko but he never achieved this before his retirement in 2016.

He has been the goalkeeping coach for the Ghana national team for the last three years.

Kingson had a glittering international career with Ghana, having represented them 90 times, making him Ghana’s second most capped player. He was even the captain in a number of internationals. Kingson was called up by Ghana for four major tournaments – the 2006 World Cup, the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations, the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2010 World Cup.

Kingson made his international debut in January 1998 in a friendly at home to Mozambique which was a goalless draw. In the 2006 World Cup Finals he played in all four games as Ghana lost to Italy but beat Czech Republic and the USA to progress to the round of 16 knock out where they lost to Brazil. In the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations held in Ghana, Kingson played in all five games as they beat Guinea, Namibia and Morocco in the group games and Nigeria in the quarter finals. They eventually lost to Cameroon in the semi-finals but he was named as the goalkeeper of the tournament. Later that year in a friendly against Tanzania he actually scored the equalising goal in 1-1 draw.

In the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, once again Kingson played in all five games and was even the captain. He played in group games against Ivory Coast and Burkina Faso as well as the quarter final against Angola, the semi-final against Nigeria and then the final against Egypt which Ghana lost. Once again he was named goalkeeper of the tournament.

In the 2010 World Cup Finals, Kingson played in all five games. Ghana beat Serbia 1-0 then, after a Kingson mistake, they drew 1-1 with Australia and finally lost 1-0 to Germany but still qualified for the knockout stage. In the round of 16 they beat the USA 2-1 after extra time and Kingson was voted Man of the Match. In the quarter finals they played Uruguay when infamously Luis Suarez was sent off for handling the ball on the goalline.

Sadly Asamoah Gyan missed the resulting penalty and Ghana lost on penalties.

Whilst signed on with Blackpool, Kingson actually played against England at Wembley in a friendly which ended up in a 1-1 draw.

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THE MAN WITH THE MISSING ’T’ by icywaves His final international was in June 2011 in a 2-1 friendly defeat away to South Korea.

In his personal life, he is the brother of Laryea Kingston who also played for Ghana. And he is married to Adelaide Tawiah. In 2012 a controversy arose when Kingson’s wife during a prayer deliverance in a church in Nigeria confessed that she used spirits to destroy Kingson’s career and render him impotent. Kingson defended his wife saying that it was not she who spoke but a spirit that spoke through her.

All in all he has led a very chequered life but will never be forgotten (and probably not forgiven) by most Blackpool fans (including myself) for his unfortunate contribution to our Premier League adventure.

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Can you help one of our readers out?

In Hogarths in Blackpool there is a photograph on the wall which says Blackpool FC 1908-09 in the corner. It looks a bit odd to me in that the colours and the badge don’t look right. I took a photo of it and I was just wondering if you could include this to ask any readers if they knew anything about it.

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WEMBLEY STARS QUIZ - ANSWERS 1. Brett Ormerod. 2. Stephen Crainey. 3. Ian Evatt. 4. Andrew Morrell. 5. Kevin Phillips. 6. Claus Jorgensen. 7. David Vaughan. 8. Seamus Coleman. 9. Stephen Dobbie. 10. Matt Gilks. 11. DJ Campbell. 12. Tom Ince. 13. Angel Martinez. 14. Neal Eardley. 15. Keith Southern.

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EXILE IN FOCUS: Barrie Street I saw my first Blackpool match at the age of ten. 73 years later I remain an avid Tangerine fan. Living in Vancouver, Canada, for 50 years has not lessened my support for BFC.

Growing up in Blackpool, I attended Arnold House (at the same time as Jimmy Armfield) before beginning work at the Borough Treasurer’s Office and then on to Alsager Training College in Cheshire before spending two years teaching at the former Claremont Boys’ School.

There I coached the Under-12 football team which won the Blackpool Championship. The team contained two outstanding players in Paul Douglas (who signed on for Wolves) and Mick Prior. I played cricket and football for NALGO as well as for the Blackpool Men’s field hockey team.

What memories I still possess of Matthews, Mortensen, Johnston, Perry and a host of other international stars who donned the tangerine and white. The highlight of my youth was going to the F.A. Cup Final at Wembley in 1953 as an exuberant 17-year-old. Blackpool of course won 4-3 with a first-ever Cup Final hat-trick by Mortensen.

I often visited Sir Stanley Matthews’ home on St. Annes Road for his autograph. Stan recalled my visits when he travelled to Vancouver in his 70th year. Being that I was a marathon runner at that time, I asked if he would like to run the following day.

What a thrill to run with him. He was amazingly fit even at that age.

Crowds were big at Bloomfield Road in the Fifties. Perhaps the most thrilling match was in ’55 for the visit of the mighty Wolves, with such stars as Billy Wright. Wolves arrived at the top of the then First Division and unbeaten, but goals from Matthews and Mortensen gave the Pool a 2-1 victory and propelled them to the top of the table. A Blackpool attendance record was set at 38,098. The ground was closed one hour before kick-off and traffic for miles around came to a standstill. I seem to recall that the first ever match at Bloomers was played in 1901.

One of my highlights of Bloomfield Road occurred in my early twenties. During this period I was the captain of the town’s field hockey team and was anxious to be in the best shape possible.

I contacted Ron Stuart – who was Blackpool’s manager at the time - and asked if I could train there in the evenings. He readily agreed. I trained in an empty stadium and often ran along the sideline imagining that I was Stanley Matthews dribbling down the wing. Speaking of managers, if I were to choose the best managers of our team over the course of my life, I would select Joe Smith (in the ‘40’s/50’s and Ian Holloway (2009 – 2012).

Adapting to football - or soccer as it is call here in Canada – was very difficult for a sandgrown’un, as my heart remained in Blackpool. However, I became a fan of the Vancouver Whitecaps for whom former Blackpool stars Alan Ball, John Craven and Tony Waiters played at one time. Ball became the youngest member of England’s World Cup Championship team in 1966.

At every possible opportunity, I scour the media for news of BFC and was rewarded recently to watch the Gillingham match on TV – only the third time I have seen Blackpool play in 50 years! I was thrilled to watch the Premier League play-off games nearly ten years ago. What would I give to watch a match at Bloomfield Road!

I am very fortunate to have a friend of several decades, Howard Carter in Poulton, who keeps me up to date with Blackpool, with programmes from games and articles from the Gazette. He even sent me a Blackpool scarf.

I would be delighted to hear from former friends in Blackpool, members of the Claremont team or anyone I ever met in the town of my birth – at barriestreet@shaw.ca.

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TH’OWD FELLAH I was cogitating t’other day abart pre-season friendlies and ‘ow things ‘ave changed overt th’years.

Nar then, when a pre-season tour is announced it’s usually to somewhere wharm like, Spain, Portugal and th’like. Mind you this Carnival virus may put paid to a lot of them if it don’t clear up soon. When I were a lad things were so different, we all stood together, home and away fans with the odd argument but nowt serious, whereas now it seems to be a hullabaloo after th’matches and we are all kept apart.

I liked thow’d days, and remember one such pre-season trip tuth’ land of song and male voice choirs.

It were pretty low key and a good trip. In those far off days we used t’ave someone that led th’shouting, Give us a B, Give us an L, give us an A and so on until we all finished on Blackpool. Eee it were a gradely, standing there wi me pipe and flat ‘at on having consumed a few of the local beers and joining in wit’ th’lads. Th’ole trip were goin’ well and we’d played one or two local teams, and had some decent banter wi th’locals. Our next game were to be on Anglesey in a small village, “You can’t miss it Boyo,” said one guy. “it’s name is bigger than th’village”. We was quite flummoxed when we realised who it were we was playing, how would we ask for directions if we got lost?

It were a bit nesh when, we arrived in th’village of Llanfairpwllgwyngyllgogerychwyrndrobwllllantysiliogogogoch and unfortunately went to Isaf when we should have been at uchaf. I’ll explain Isaf means the lower part whereas uchaf is the upper part. Eventually we found our way to uchaf up th‘ill via th’pubs and staggered onto th’ground, just in time for th’ kick off. Our cheer leaderwere ready and then th’opposition started their chant, which took flippin’ages. So to get to the nub of the story, I came up with a poem which goes something like this:

Llanfair pg is a long word to remember, It’s 58 characters in length, Anyone learning it fully of course, has to have stamina and strength.

One day they decided to have some cheerleaders, for their local football team, So, as the game started, the cheerleaders parted, with pro’s you would hear in a dream.

Give us an L the cheerleaders shouted, and the crowd replied to the call.

But no one had worked out the time it would take, to work through the letters, at all.

The game was extended before it had ended, so the crowd could finish the chorus’ Some of them left cos they were quite bereft, and didn’t want, really, to bore us.

The last letter, an h, had everyone jumping for joy as they knew it was supper, But it wasn’t to be, they had added the rest, Uchaf, which means higher or upper.

Well the team and the fans had all had quite enough of this idea which was hatched one October The cheerleaders were sacked, the beer was unpacked, and the team ended up less than sober.

Any hows it’s tea time and Nora’s getting fidgety. I’m coming my little Platypus. Si thi after th’Carnival virus has gone, so long as I’m still ‘ere!!

Footnote: a single F in Welsh is pronounced v as in very, w = oo as in room, y = i as in ink, ch= clear your throat. Ll place tongue on roof of mouth & blow through the sides of your tongue. Now try the word ☺ .

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