Ironic to think they were such a rarity back then.I can remember two very distinctly from around that period and they were both very good players .Albert Johanson of Leeds Utd(Dirty Leeds as my Derby Co. supporting uncle always calls them with relish) and Clyde Best(George’s identical twin brother) who graced West Ham’s colours.

Ignore this @hunnybunny.

Here is a fairly ancient football question for you @brianN. Apologies if I have asked it before. In my 1970/71 football stickers album, which covered Division One (then the top flight of course) and the best players from Division Two, and which had in the region of 350 stickers, there was only 1 (one) black player. Who…[Read more]

That’s everything. It has to be one of those.

Allergic to glass?

She couldn’t stand the ukelele?

No offense taken @briann . Of course, I have no idea what you are talking about. Football games from 75 years ago?

Can’t imagine rude or offensive scenarios going through your head Mrs Bunny

Unlike The Fall not quite a full alphabet from the boys(not surprising given 30+ studio albums v 7).No X so we go staight to Y or as @desperate-dan would say “Why???”https://youtu.be/JkhrOjLD1f0?si=oe_ksnpZFrfuWf0f

Let’s be honest England were absolutely heist during this time period.Humiliated by the USA in 50 (no offence @catsnbirds) and not even getting out of the group stage .Only slightly better in 54 where they squeaked through the group but were gubbed in the qfinal by Uruguay.Think the motto’Not as good as they think they are’ applies(and still…[Read more]

However, 7-1 remains England’s heaviest ever defeat and they were also thumped 6-3 by Hungary at Wembley around that time. It is true that World Cup Finals rarely have any opportunity for upsets. Although there have been some unexpected teams in the semis (e.g. South Korea) it never extends to the finals themselves.

The mists of time make it hard to be objective and the 8-3 was misleading as W.Germany put out their B side in the group match.The Germans as ever were crafty being the first to use detatchable studs so they didn’t have to change boots in adverse weather.There were also allegations of amphetemines being injected which believe it or not wasn’t…[Read more]

Some say that the Hungary team in 1954 was the greatest team never to win. And guess what?  They were also undone by the Germans in the Final. Given that Hungary had put 8 goals past Germany at the group stage (and 7 past England two months before), this was the greatest Final upset there has ever been.

The only team that came close to that Brazil team was the Holland side. of 74 under Rinus Michels playing fantastic ‘total football’.Sadly they never won  a World Cup beaten by a Teutonic tactical masterclass in the final.Krol,Haan,Neeskens,Van Hanagem, Cruyff,Rep,Rensenbrink etc.

Not quite as good as Tostao,Gerson,Rivelino,Pele,Jairzinho,Carlos…[Read more]

Keep going @hunnybunny you’re getting there.

I remember watching this live in 1970. We didn’t have a TV set then so ended up watching it at the local National Children’s Home. Why we had to go to a nearby orphanage to watch the World Cup Final is a complicated story. It would have been like for most people at that time, in black and white.

This was the pinnacle of Brazil’s brilliance. It…[Read more]

Someone mentioned that great French poet Cantona a while back and I came across one of his quotes yesterday when looking something up about Pele.He compares the great man’s pass to Carlos Alberto in the World Cup final 1970 to the early poems of Rimbaud.It really is a thing of beauty ,so casual,almost a ‘no look’ pass to no one in particular…but…[Read more]