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The Prince of Half-Backs - Ernest Needham As Sheffield United captain he led the club to the first division championship in 1898 as well as runners-up spots in 1897 & 1900. He lifted the FA Cup for the Blades in 1899 & 1902 as well as being a losing finalist in 1901. He represented England 16 times included one occassion as captain - a 6-0 win over Wales at St James’ Park in Newcastle. He marked his captaincy with a goal.  He also played first class cricket for Derbyshire & he even wrote a book Association Football by Ernest Needham. What a guy - a true club legend.

The Prince of Half-Backs - Ernest Needham

As Sheffield United captain he led the club to the first division championship in 1898 as well as runners-up spots in 1897 & 1900. He lifted the FA Cup for the Blades in 1899 & 1902 as well as being a losing finalist in 1901.

He represented England 16 times included one occassion as captain - a 6-0 win over Wales at St James’ Park in Newcastle. He marked his captaincy with a goal. 

He also played first class cricket for Derbyshire & he even wrote a book Association Football by Ernest Needham. What a guy - a true club legend.


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Five of the Best - More Great Footballers


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1966 World Cup Cigar Bands

1966 World Cup Cigar Bands


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British Football’s Floodlit Firsts

On this day, the 26th October, in 1955, two simultaneous floodlit firsts took place, the first time in British football history that two such games had been played on the same day. So perhaps it’s fitting given my fascination with floodlit football that we recap a few floodlit firsts of British football.

London v Frankfurt first floodlit game at WembleyFootball League v Scottish League 1955 Hillsborough

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Groundhop Week - 165 Grounds: 165 Hours

There’s something about football that brings out the eccentric side of people and makes them do crazy things all for the love of the game.

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Arthur Wharton - Footballing Royalty

Arthur Wharton the first professional black footballerOn Tuesday 29th March England will play Ghana at Wembley in the first meeting between the two countries. The game will  honour the memory and achievements of Arthur Wharton, the World’s first black professional footballer.

Wharton was born 1865 in Jamestown, Gold Coast, current day Ghana. His father was a Methodist priest from Grenada and his mother was a member of the Fante royal house. In 1882 he left for England to train as a missionary and it was whilst at college in Darlington that his talent for sports shone through. He soon gave up his studies to become a full-time athlete.

He was a very talented individual indeed, in 1886 he became the first man to run the 100 yards dash in ten seconds and in 1887 set the fastest time for cycling between Preston and Blackburn. But it was in football that he was to make his name. 

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English Football - Consecutive Seasons

Have you ever wondered which clubs have spent the most consecutive seasons in each of the four professional English football divisions?

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The Football Association Centenary 1863-1963 - Part 1

The Football Association was founded on October 26th 1863 at the Freemason’s Tavern in London as the first and therefore the oldest governing body in football. A number of games were arranged in 1963 to commemorate the FA’s centenary year with the pick of these being a showpiece friendly held at Wembley between England and a FIFA XI that took to the field as the Rest of The World.

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England Wartime & Victory Internationals

I’ve previously written a few words about Sheffield United football legend Jimmy Hagan here on footysphere. More recently he’s been the subject of an excellent article on Les Rosbifs. Notwithstanding his amazing managerial record the one thing that stands out about his career for me is his fabulous scoring record for England in the wartime & victory Internationals held between 1939 and 1946. He managed to bag 13 goals in 16 appearances and wondering whether this was the best strike rate achieved by any England player during this period I began to have a look into these unofficial international matches & the players who represented their country.

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England Manager Flowchart This is brilliant. You can check out more laugh out loud football comics on the excellent Things Fall Apart by C. Anderson Have a hoot exploring the hilarious comics but here’s a couple of football-related items to loosen up those chuckle muscles. Things Form A Graph Football Happens In Australia Too (with thanks to our tumblr buddy Odd Soccer for the tip)

England Manager Flowchart

This is brilliant. You can check out more laugh out loud football comics on the excellent Things Fall Apart by C. Anderson

Have a hoot exploring the hilarious comics but here’s a couple of football-related items to loosen up those chuckle muscles.

(with thanks to our tumblr buddy Odd Soccer for the tip)


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Vintage Wartime Footage - England v Scotland at Wembley 1944

There’s a some beautiful old football footage on the Imperial War Museum website. Three clips are available. The first is silent footage of an Arsenal v Chelsea game in 1917 whilst the second is a newsreel item on women’s football in 1918.

The third clip is of a wartime international played between England and Scotland at Wembley Stadium in 1944. Eighty thousand including the King, Queen and Princess Elizabeth turned out to watch the game. The commentator announced in his clipped tones ..

”.. most of the Londoners here at Wembley Stadium had spent a stormy night with the Luftwaffe; but it would take more than a few hundred nazi bombers to keep a Londoner from the big match ..”

then went on to say ..

” .. the noise made by London’s anti-aircraft guns the night before was nothing compared to the hullabaloo that went up when England scored  ..”


as England ran out 6-2 winners. The England scorers were Jimmy Hagan (2), Horatio Carter, Tommy Lawton, Joe Mercer and an own goal by Macaulay. Jock Dodds scored the two Scotland goals.

Hagan, Carter & Lawton were the three outstanding English goalscorers in the wartime period. Sheffield United’s Hagan netted thirteen times in sixteen appearances, Carter of Sunderland hit eighteen in seventeen games and Chelsea legend Tommy Lawton managed a magnificent twenty-four goals in twenty-three wartime appearances for England.



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reblogged from biffafootie
Non-League Day - 04.09.10 - Support your local team

Reasons to visit your local non-league team

  • Knowledgeable fans who love their football: not afraid to tell their players, the opponents and officials what they think of them - you’re bound to find one who agrees with you too.
  • Experience a unique closeness to the action: see the whites of the players’ eyes, feel the crunch of their tackles and hear the crack of their shots
  • Get value for your money: thrills and spills, a match programme, raffle ticket, a cuppa. pint or glass of house white, chat and banter won’t even cost you a Bobby Moore
  • Marvel at the green baize: admire a playing surface - paid for, this year, by the fans - that sorts out the deft from the donkeys
  • Join the half-time rush for refreshments: enjoy a warm welcome at the bar, but beware of the burger van’s industrial strength condiments and pneumatic dispensers
  • Accessible owners: see the directors through the boardroom windows and watch how warmly they greet fans and matchday volunteers
  • Leave the ground richer than when you came in: whether it’s from watching a game to warm the heart, making new friends or winning the Golden Goal cash prize

biffafootie:

Website now up with fixtures. There is a team near you playing on Saturday 4th September and it won’t cost a lot to see them.


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We’re not Brazil - we’re Northern Ireland Mural in east Belfast commemorating Northern Ireland beating England at home during the 125th anniversary of the team in 2005.

We’re not Brazil - we’re Northern Ireland

Mural in east Belfast commemorating Northern Ireland beating England at home during the 125th anniversary of the team in 2005.


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Match of the Century England v Hungary 1953

Match of the Century

England v Hungary 1953

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England refuse tactical advice and get walloped 6-3 George Raynor (pictured above) has been mentioned previously here on footysphere. He is the most successful English international manager of all-time; not with England but with Sweden. On the eve of tonight’s England match with Hungary it’s worth mentioning some advice he gave to the English FA back in 1953. Raynor was in charge of the Swedish team that travelled to Budapest in November of 1953. The Hungarians at this time were known as the Golden Team and history has proven them to be one of the finest international sides of all-time. Between 1949 and 1956 the Hungarians were unbeatable at home but Raynor did his homework and his tactics ensured that the Swedes left with a creditable 2-2 draw under their belts. One of only four times that the Hungarians failed to win in Budapest during this era. Ten days after the draw with Sweden the Hungarians travelled to Wembley for a showdown with England who were undefeated at home to continental opposition. Raynor tried to give the English some sound tactical advice. Man-marking Nandor Hidegkuti was he claimed the key to stopping the Hungarians. His advice met with opposition and by all accounts he was told, “Can you really expect Stanley Matthews to track back?” Of course Hidegkuti wasn’t man-marked and he went on to score a hattrick as Hungary demolished England 6-3 in what became known as the Match of the Century. Exporting International Managers Englishmen in Swedish Football

England refuse tactical advice and get walloped 6-3

George Raynor (pictured above) has been mentioned previously here on footysphere. He is the most successful English international manager of all-time; not with England but with Sweden. On the eve of tonight’s England match with Hungary it’s worth mentioning some advice he gave to the English FA back in 1953.

Raynor was in charge of the Swedish team that travelled to Budapest in November of 1953. The Hungarians at this time were known as the Golden Team and history has proven them to be one of the finest international sides of all-time. Between 1949 and 1956 the Hungarians were unbeatable at home but Raynor did his homework and his tactics ensured that the Swedes left with a creditable 2-2 draw under their belts. One of only four times that the Hungarians failed to win in Budapest during this era.

Ten days after the draw with Sweden the Hungarians travelled to Wembley for a showdown with England who were undefeated at home to continental opposition. Raynor tried to give the English some sound tactical advice. Man-marking Nandor Hidegkuti was he claimed the key to stopping the Hungarians. His advice met with opposition and by all accounts he was told, “Can you really expect Stanley Matthews to track back?”

Of course Hidegkuti wasn’t man-marked and he went on to score a hattrick as Hungary demolished England 6-3 in what became known as the Match of the Century.