4-5 The First word
Thanks for buying it and welcome to the 7th issue of On To
Victory the Yeovil Town fanzine, brought to you by the Northern Greens.
This issue has been beset with problems namely a nice computer virus. Every
effort has been made to make sure OTV is up to scratch but please forgive any
small errors– if the official site can get away with it so can we!
Like the club on the pitch OTV went from strength to strength last
season, from just about selling 200 in August to easily selling 500 in April.
Not only have we strengthened our relationship with the fans, but also we now
feel that we have a good relationship with the club itself—as seen in the
interviews with players, and most importantly giving our profits back to the
club in the form of kit, ball and goal sponsorship. OTV has so far achieved
what we set out to do, that’s due in part to the number of contributors that
help make the fanzine worth reading - even if they do submit articles extremely
close to the deadline! As vital though is your support and hopefully we can
still tempt you to part with your one pound coins throughout this season so
hopefully YTFC and OTV can enjoy another season.
You’d think with loads of time between the end of last season and the
beginning of this one, I would have found enough time to go on holiday during
the boring summer months. Free holidays however don’t come along often
particularly to a skint graduate and despite it clashing with the first
historic week of the season the offer from my girlfriend’s parents was to good
to miss. So as thousands of you baked in the Rochdale sun (typical the only
time I’m not in Manchester, my team play and its bloody boiling) I sat in an
Irish bar in the middle of Turkey watching Soccer Saturday. Nothing could
distract me from the fantastic result but nothing can get close to being there.
I think I was more jealous when Jon Brier text me that he had his first
football league pie rather than witnessing the first ever league goal! We may have
lost to Luton but for 2 hours at least I would have gladly swapped places with
anyone, despite the beautiful location I was spending my holiday in. I managed
to catch the last half hour of the Carlisle game on the BBC websites getting a
little excited when anything flashed up only for it to say ‘86 minutes a
defensive throw-in by Williams’. No matter how many miles away though, when it
says ‘2 mins Pluck booked for tackle’ you know exactly what’s happened! I was
away for just a week and relying on the 3 games via T.V, text and the net was
hard enough, I now really appreciate what those who live abroad full time go
through week in week out. Mac from Oz,
Simon from Amsterdam and the Turkish Glover each give differing aspects on what
its like to be exiled abroad in this issue. With a bit of luck and with some
help from Mr Mastercard I should make it to a fair few games in the upcoming
weeks Orient, Northampton, Macclesfield, York, Donny, Mansfield etc. Whilst I
overdose on watching the lads, I will have great respect and admiration for the
exiled Glovers across the world especially when Locky steps up to take a
defensive throw in.
Macca, from a Yeovil Town legend that helped as much as anyone in our
promotion to the promised land in May to judas, traitor, b*****d whatever
expletive you can think in July. On our pre-season trip to Belgium Macca spoke
to us at every game and was clearly appreciative of our efforts saying ‘if
Yeovil played in Australia on a Monday night you’d still be there with your
flags and all that… I love it’. I was well chuffed by what Macca had said to us
and remember thinking that those who call him arrogant and cocky have got him
wrong. That same night after a few beers (Belgium brews can do strange things)
I got into a debate about Macca and proudly declared ‘mark my words Macca will
stay he knows what a good thing YTFC are at the moment’. Whilst you may be
cursing me for tempting fate I do remember whilst under the influence saying
Gall will be unstoppable this season and be top scorer – so far so good so I’m
not always wrong! As we all know Macca will be wearing red ‘n’ white hoops not
green ‘n’ white this season. I was pretty much a lone defender of Macca at the
time, if only cause some bitter Yeovil fans took it upon themselves to argue
that he wasn’t actually that good, no right foot, inconsistent, arrogant etc..
Forget what you think personally about Macca no-one could say that he wasn’t one of the most skillful and
creative talents seen at Huish Park if not for years in our history. I think it
was odd that he was labeled inconsistent when every single opposition manager
voted him as the best player in the Conference – this meaning that he must have
impressed every manager in at least one if not two of the two games against
them. His quality should not be in question and I will bet with any fan that in
the future he will make it at a higher level. His eventual transfer to
Doncaster (not what Mr Denos had promised him) was a sad end to a distinguished
time at Yeovil and I was left with the feeling of regret. Regret that we had
lost a quality player, regret that the situation couldn’t be resolved and the
regret in what Macca must have felt when he realized that he was merely moving
to more of the same. Macca has quickly established himself at Donny and will no
doubt be all geared up come September 16th as much as some Yeovil
fans no doubt up for some abuse. It’s got nothing to do with it being Macca I
don’t believe in booing and abusing past players I’d much rather put effort
into getting behind and supporting our own players. I would think it makes just
as much of a point to completely ignore Macca and sing the name whoever is
occupying the left midfield slot, somehow though I think I may be in the
minority in that respect.
It could be you! - Gav and Gally have signed some Belgium postcards.
We’ve put the postcards in random
fanzines and there's a 100-1 chance that
you could have this unique prize!
Remember OTV welcomes all contributions no matter how big or small on
Yeovil or football in general. Even if you’ve just got an idea for an article,
or agree/disagree on anything in the fanzine we want to hear from you just
email us on ontovictoryfanzine@yahoo.co.uk
Enjoy the Issue
Seb
6 The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
GOOD
Kevin Gall.
Roy O’Brien.
Darren Way.
Greg Heald (Leyton O).
Brian Reid (Northampton).
Lees free kick at Rochdale.
Away support and atmosphere @ Rochdale.
Away turnout @ Orient.
The Coach and Horses pub @ Orient.
Hugo making amends since the Luton game.
Plenty of new flags including OTV’s very own.
That Tonks did the dirty on Stockport and Carlton. Palmer who moaned
about the agent - what goes around comes around!
The marquee at Huish -could well be ugly though by February.
Ticket prices at Huish - fair and good value.
Good enough - Trialists Jake Edwards and Jamie Gosling.
Paul Terry looked class at Daggers lets hope he can do the same here.
Beating Wolves.
The Beer in Belgium.
We realized early on that this is a tough league and that anyone can
beat anyone.
Reserve team football.
The owner of an internet café in Turkey knowing that Yeovil beat
Carlisle 3-0 after seeing my shirt.
BAD
Kirk Jackson - deserves our patience though.
No smoking at Huish - the clubs greatest supporter Brian Moore stood
like a naughty schoolboy in the corner
of the main stand. Northampton.
The maths used to work out the attendance v Carlisle
No song for Roy O’Brien he deserves one.
The ref booking Super Gav for diving v Northampton.
Hugo’s defending at Luton.
Gav’s shot at goal @ Orient
moments before they scored their 1st.
The refereeing as usual.
Defending from set-pieces in pre-season.
Deflated atmosphere at Orient.
Tom White getting injured again.
Jermaine Johnson getting injured for the reserves.
UGLY
Carlisle’s tackling.
Macca going to Donny.
Gav’s ankle at Lokeren.
Roddy Collins suit.
Our finishing v Orient and Northampton.
Mr Denos - no one knows what he looks like but if his judgment is
anything to go by he is one ugly git!
The stewards at Carlisle home game - OTT.
The TV gantry in the Bartlett Stand.
Pluckys plucking someone in the first minute v Carlisle - funny though.
Tony Thorpes elbows.
The entrance to Luton’s away end.
The 2 Celtic fans in the Yeovil end at Orient—good singers though!
7 - 11 On the Piss in Belgium
The whole thing started early, very early as myself, Jon Brier and Chris
Riley met at Manchester Airport at 5:00 one Friday morning destined for a
flight to Brussels. Sticking out like a sore thumb amidst the suited
businessmen we stood new tops and all excited but at the same time bloody tired
and questioning why we would do this to ourselves just to watch a few
pre-season games (never the most exciting at the best of times!) and have a few
beers – the next few days would soon make us realize why.
Arriving
in Brussels seemed to invigorate us all and we sorted ourselves with a train to
our base for the trip - Antwerp. Straight away we realized we were in a foreign
country as the train was not only cheap, clean, easy to use but actually got us
to our destination on time. The journey wasn’t without its problems though as
Badger informs us by text that the Lokeren game is off! The rest of the journey
is spent asking what to do instead and how can you possibly have a waterlogged
pitch in July!
Before
the trip I was continuously told Belgium is boring, I can only say that they
obviously haven’t been there, its architecture alone is enough to impress
anyone (even me a culture vulture I am not) when even its train station
impresses you know things must be pretty special. Belgium’s public transport is
obviously impressive cause everyone is so scared to drive on the roads - as we
soon found out in the taxi to our Hotel – Chris was looking worried that he
hadn’t got travel insurance! Hotel Cammorporte was well situated and had a bar
right below it which we soon checked out. This was our first taste of a beer
called Rodenback which we soon changed to a ‘Glen Roader’ after already
sampling a ‘Linvoy’ Primus, it’s a cheery based beer IMO alcoholic cheeryade
though the other lads loved it and had the first of many. Our other roommate Will Ranner soon arrived
and as if by magic so did the news from Badger that the game was back on.
The
match had been rearranged to a place called Zelzate - a district of Genk (about
30 minutes away from Antwerp), our belief in the good public transport system
led us to think it wouldn’t be a problem and the train to jounery to Genk gave
us no indication to what would unfold. Arriving in Genk we looked at the local
map - Zelzate appeared a little further than first thought and we had narrowly
missed the last bus. Not the end of the world we thought, we’ll just get a
taxi. Getting a taxi on the other hand was the hard part, despite being stood
under a sign in big letters TAXI outside a train station no one came for over
half an hour – we were starting to get worried. When a taxi did eventually come
we enquired how much to Zelzate to which the driver laughed and said at least
40 euros (about £30) or more it was the ‘or more’ bit that worried us and we
decided we needed to rethink and let him go. Stuck in the middle of Belgium
with kick off fast approaching and no way of getting to the ground – Shit! We
decided we hadn’t come all this way for nothing so we’d get a taxi and sod the
cost, which we did ( although our meager budgets were telling us otherwise). On
the way at last…no not quite, there was a debate about where the actual ground
was as the football club’s ground which was hosting the event had recently merged and it could have been
one of 2 grounds 20 miles apart. We had to choose so we stuck with Zelzate
after a brief conversation with a bemused Badger! Fingers well and truly
crossed. The taxi driver was a top man and despite supporting just about
everyone - Man Utd, Arsenal, Barcelona, Juventus … managed to get us to Zelzate
but he wasn’t sure where exactly the ground was. Down a few windy lanes and we
caught a glimpse of the team coach—we’d found it! We had arrived and in the end
it cost us 35 euros – we didn’t care just getting there was enough.
The
match was as entertaining as pre-season matches normally are but Lee J got
involved in a bit of handbags a couple of times and Plucky well and truly
plucked Lokerens leading striker - an Iclenadic international, making the game
more interesting. The toilet facilities led to some interesting images, firstly
the players had to use the same outdoor urinal as the supporters just outside
the changing rooms. Even more bizarre was sight was a open urinal literally
feet from the corner flag, Pete L of course had to relieve himself somewhere
and can be seen doing so in the picture. Some Yeovil fans obviously unaware of
the change of venue arrived just before half time only to be greeted by the
already merry contingent ‘its nice to know you here’. We met Simon from
Amsterdam who answered the tricky question of how exactly we were going to get
back to Antwerp by offering us a lift on his way back to Holland – we were so
elated at getting there we hadn’t thought how we were getting back! The long
day had taken its toll for the old git Mr Brier who went home earlier whilst
me, Will and Chris went for a pizza and for dessert ended up eating cherry
sweets off some birds leg. Apparently the custom for girls on their hen nights
in Belgium stick sweets to various parts of the body and sell to strangers the
opportunity to eat them off needless to say Mr Ranner indulged in a bit of
that, don’t tell me girlfriend so did I!
Being
sensible the night before meant a nice easy morning and we had a bit of a
wonder round Antwerp admiring yet more nice architecture and also the many,
many dogs which seem to be the ultimate fashion accessory to any cosmopolitan
Belgian citizen. The sensible among us realized that with Dogs inevitably comes
dog mess and I soon assumed the role of pavement checker! With no Yeovil
fixture we had all day to check out the local culture and cuisines, however we
decided a short trip to Holland to watch the Intertoto cup match between Willem
II and FC Wiss. The Lancasters and their reserved Youth Hostel crew joined us
and after again being impressed by the trains we ended up in Holland. Being in
Holland we found ourselves in a “coffee” shop and some sampled Morocco’s finest
espressos and cappuccinos! It took a while to find the stadium, due to not
having a clue where we were going, and also the strength of the Dutch coffee!
Willem II stadium is very impressive - think of Huish but bigger, all enclosed
and also with a 10ft deep moat round the pitch. The game was entertaining;
Willem II winning 2-1 with a dubious penalty. Luckily we met up with an Irish
bloke - Paul from Cork and with his help managed to get back to the train
station for the last train. Good job otherwise we would have been in a right
mess. A nice sing song (in which a few new ones were created) on the way back
followed and before we knew it we were back on the beer in Antwerp.
Everything
stays open until you leave basically, so after sampling a few of Belgium's
finest ales we found ourselves eating a pizza at 4.30 in the morning. We were
later to find out that in the Karaoke bar across the road only a hour before
was some of the club staff including Sir Gary himself – certainly a missed
opportunity. Will rued another missed opportunity he got turned down by a nice
Dutch bird because he was too drunk! We eventually found our way back to the
hotel only to realize we would be up in another 3 hours for our trip to
Germany!
We
had previously arranged a lift with Robin who had a people carrier, bloody good
job really as the trains were 5 hours each way and nearly 60Euros for a return
– a bit of Railtrack creeping into the continent. On the way we passed a sign
for Herefords twin-town (as seen in the photo) but nothing was to prepare us
for what greeted us in Oberhausen. Will Ranner described it on Ciderspace and I
don’t think I could better it
“Entering
Oberhausen is like walking through a hard rock vortex into 1985. The fashions,
the STUPENDOUS MULLETS, the bratwurst and DON'T MENTION THE WAR - I JUST
DID BUT I THINK I GOT AWAY WITH IT!
The
first question we were asked on arrival was "Are you hooligans?" and
a teenage lad with severe acne asked to swap my brand new Glovers shirt for a
T-Shirt proudly declaring 'I support White Power'. It's nice to see that
fascism is alive and well in this corner of Germany! All kinds of people were
looking to swap shirts, badges and scarves. It's a shame we didn't take more
with us. Next time. We also saw an Oberhausen player kissing a dog. You really
had to be there.
Oberhausen
were having an open day to celebrate the start of the season and there were
lots of interesting MULLETS on show. Voller MULLETS, staight MULLETS,
ugly MULLETS, shell suit MULLETS and the all time Belgiqn beer
tour favourite, the denim jacket with patches MULLET. There was also a
rather over friendly AC-DC fan named Marc, who sported a fetching leather
waistcoat complete with tassles! Super Gav Williams sat with us in the first
half but too many mullets and drunken Germans led him to seek sanctuary on the
team bench for the second half.
By
this stage we had mentioned the 1939-1945 conflict several times. Did I mention
the MULLETS? Particularly the Oberhausen coach who sported an absolute
beauty!
“Came
for the MULLETS, we only came for the MULLETS, we only came for
the MULLETS!”
Mullets
aside, praise must go to Oberhausen for holding the open day - great beer and
food, a chance to meet the players and buy merchandise, bouncy castles for the
kids all finished off with a footy match against foreign opposition, Yeovil
should really look at doing something similar.
Back
in Belgium we meet up again with the Lancasters and took great advantage of the
unlimited opening hours and we ended up taking a detour through the red light
district. Amid the rubble-strewn streets stood window after window of beautiful
women and the odd transvestite – we son got back to normality and most of us
called it a night. Not Mr Ranner who was
supported by a lighter holding Pete Lancaster during his no doubt
excellent rendition of Sweet Caroline.
The
previous nights adventure meant we were a bit weary the next morning which was
soon rectified by yet another pizza and a Bollocke Blonde (IMO the best ever
beer; smooth, tasty and bloody strong!). Pizza turned out to be the staple diet
of a Yeovil fan abroad and I think by the end of the trip I had won the pizza
eating league chomping down 8 to my nearest challenger Will who had 6 – so much
for sampling the local cuisine! We noticed a familiar face bundle past, it
turned out to be Dylan who had been staying in Brussels and due to the change
of venue and the difficulty of getting to Oberhausen hadn’t yet seen Yeovil
play on the tour – dedication. On route to the bus station we saw yet more dogs
but yet the most bizarre sight 2 Greyhounds in the Belgium equivalent of
Dixons, hillarous! We ended up meeting the Lancasters for a few beers before
the we got the bus out to Wuustwezel at about 5pm with the journey taking
around 45 minutes on a burning hot bus. Said heat made the boys quite thirsty
and by the time the game kicked off quite a few of the local beverages had been
dispatched. The locals all seemed friendly and they even had some lads from
Feyenoord down (Rotterdam is just across the border) who were all friendly
despite some initial worries about their intentions towards us. On had a very
detailed picture of the De Kuip stadium, Rotterdam tattooed across his entire
back. The first half was tight with Antwerp showing their class despite having
the lead singer of Status Quo up front! Myself and Will spent the second half
talking to some of the Antwerp and Feyenoord fans and swapping scarves and
e-mail addresses. Those guys really like their English football and seem very
knowledgeable. They were genuinely impressed with the standard of our play and
the numbers we had taken on a Monday night (about 40-50 this time). We saw very
little football, but a lot of the bar. A quick interview with the Welsh wizards
followed before what should have been a routine bus trip back to Antwerp.
However the copious amount of alcohol and our determination to enjoy the final
night made the journey extremely entertaining. The bus rocked all the way back
to town, with some particularly good Oom Pah Pah, Blur (Darren Way), 2
Unlimited (Gareee) and the Entertainer (stolen from Willem II). We went to a
bar by the bus station where the beer was cheap and the conversation flowed
with quite a few of the lads sticking around, the barmaid was top and her name
was Nimeke (which rhymes with Lineker) and she was very friendly and courteous
like all Antwerp residents we encountered, even keeping the bar open after
closing time. With all the alcohol consumed it was inevitable something would
go wrong, it did - we lost Dylan who had decided not to go back to Brussels and
should have been staying at our hotel! The night ended once again in the
karaoke bar, which it has to be said featured a disgraceful performance from
Jon Brier and that was that for myself and Will as we departed the next day.
The tour to Belgium was better than I ever expected, the actual football
was secondary to enjoying ourselves with other Yeovil fans in places we had
never heard off or could barely find. Before my trip I had the impression that
Belgium was ‘boring’ I hold my head in shame now, nothing could be further from
the truth. Anywhere that sells ridiculous strong but tasty beer (Carlsberg
special brew it is not) at a cheap price til whatever time you want cannot be
boring in my book. Roll on next year, I’m already dreaming of Sweden but
wherever it is I will be following Yeovil over land and sea and so should you
be!
12 - 13 Brendon Owen
It's 32 degrees in the
shade; the sun is blazing from a cloudless sky. The ice-cubes are melting at a
rate of knots in my gin & tonic. The book I am reading is fascinating but
I'm finding it difficult to roll over on the padded sun-lounger without loosing
my page. How much longer is this hell to
continue? Where are the icy cold blasts
ripping round the Bartlett Stand? The pelting rain that stings the face and runs
down the neck? The new park and ride to the Council offices in the freezing
cold? I want them - now.
Having said that the pre-season has had its
moments for me. I happened to be mooching about Huish Park one morning when a
gaggle of press reporters and photographers with three T.V. camera teams in tow
pulled up in the car park. Ever a nosy
parker I hung around and watched. One of
the photographers was known to me so I sidled up to him and inquired as to
their purpose at the club. He thought
Yeovil were going to unveil a new player and they were to capture the moment of
him signing a contract. Intrigued as to who this mystery player might be I
asked if I could tag along with him, carry his camera bag or something. He was quite happy so we entered with the
others and climbed the stairs. My adventure could have finished as soon as it
began, for at the entrance to the inner sanctum sat a lady at a desk. I thought
she must be vetting the press passes but to my surprise she ushered us all
along the corridor to the supporter's bar at the far end (Remember when you
could get a drink in there? Happy days!)
Rows of chairs had been set up, facing a table with another row of
chairs. Yes this certainly looked like a
'present the new boy to the press occasion'.
Coffee and tea facilities were laid out with a nice selection of
biscuits. With a handful of bourbons and a black coffee I was well in, chatting
with the HTV and BBC lads. The consensus of opinion was that it was not a new
player signing today but Gary Johnson himself, renewing his contract. The doors
opened and a party stepped into the room.
John Fry, Gary Johnson and the club Solicitor (oh and Fat Harry). Ignoring all others Gary strode across and
shook my hand and asked how I was. This caused all the press guys to swivel and
wonder who the hell I was. Great
fun! I stayed for the contract signing
and if I'd been a little pushier I reckon I could have got in on the official
photos, holding Gary's pen or keeping the contract steady. I like to be useful you know.
A few afternoons later I was once again to
be found up at the club. I was
purchasing a mouse mat or something, well any excuse. It was big-wigs day up at Huish Park, Greg
Dyke, Director General of the BBC was there to sign an agreement for a
designated BBC line for broadcasting Yeovil games. Even Geoff Twentyman was
there! Once again I passed security at
the top of the stairs and before I knew it Gary Johnson had introduced me to
the man himself. Handshakes and a chat
about the club and then Greg asked me for my autograph! Honest.
Ok so it was on the inside cover of a copy of 'Yeovil 'til I Die!',
which, incidentally, I hope he reads on his chauffeur driven return to
London. I'm expecting a call any day now
with an offer to turn the book into a play for prime time T.V. That would go down a storm in the Hereford
area I'm sure.
All this celebrity stuff
put me in mind of the lad who gets in to all the big sporting events, like
posing in the England kit with the team for the National Anthem. Didn't he also walk out to the wicket as a
batsman in a Test match? It just shows
that if you have the gall (no not Kevin) and the bluff it is possible to get
right inside and be involved with what's going on. I'll try and get on the podium at the end of
next season and see if I can get to lift the 3rd Division Trophy!
Brendon Owen. 20th July 2003.
14 - 15 Coatsey
AS any politician, journalist or traffic warden will tell you, the actions of a minority in their profession can have serious implications on the majority. It does not take much to give a dog a bad name - so, welcome aboard football agents to the country's most hated list. Ex-England boss Graham Taylor once said he would like to line all agents up against a wall and shoot them and we all know what our very own Gary Johnson thinks of certain members of this profession, following the sagas surrounding Michael McIndoe and Anthony Tonkin's moves away from Huish Park. Agents are often portrayed as the blood-sucking parasites that live off players and wander around with brown envelopes bulging out of their cheap suit pockets. The recent actions of the infamous Steve Denos and Bernie Mandic, who took a £2 million cut from Harry Kewell's £5 million switch from Leeds United to Liverpool, do little to remove this stereotype. But surely they cannot all be like that. Can they? No is the simple answer. Good agents are very good; bad agents are very bad. Our latest terrace hero Hugo Rodrigues came via an agent. Using his international web of footballing contacts, Gary Johnson put out the word that he was after a defender, the giant's CV arrived on the gaffer's desk via an agent and a star was born. Also, during the pre-season tour of Belgium and Germany, Gary arranged for his trusted agents to send players to play in a trial match. Players from across Europe and Africa turned up to allow Yeovil Town to put them through their paces - could anyone have imagined that happening a few years ago? It happened because we are lucky enough to have a manager who knows who he can trust and who he cannot. Remember Boycey from Only Fools & Horses? The guy who could sell a car with an engine full of sawdust or a satellite dish that only picked up Spanish television, but who had the gift of the gab to make you believe you were getting the bargain of the century? That is what an untrustworthy football agent is like. My own experience of agents has not left a pretty picture in my mind. When you add to that some of the tales that circulate the footballing grapevine you can add manipulation, bullying and lying to the list of charges leveled against agents. One such story - and I shall omit the names of the people involved as I am not sure OTV's budget will stretch to a lawsuit - was of a player who was being pestered by an agent all summer, after a very successful season, about joining his list of clients. The player politely said he was not interested and asked the agent to stop making his approaches. When the player suffered a serious injury at the start of the next season, the agent contacted him again saying 'See, if you had come with me, you would never have got injured.' When you hear stories like that you almost want to offer to load Mr Taylor's shotgun. Fortunately, not all agents are as depraved as this nameless fiend. No doubt agents have families to feed and mortgages to pay and no one begrudges them their cut of the profits. It is the tactics some of the tainted few use to get their income that has done possibly irreparable damage to the honest majority. Whether you consider them dream makers or breakers, there will always be a place for agents in football. No manager can say they would rather live without them and, as with many other of life's essentials, you have to take the rough with the smooth. Michael McIndoe was by no means the first player to be led astray by an agent and he certainly will not be the last. Let's just hope that no more players will allow themselves to be swayed by an agent that promises Heaven but delivers a living Hell. 16 Pete Lancaster
The Euro Bunny has returned
hence from the tour and what jolly japes went on! "What happens on the
tour stays on the tour" said the editor in chief. I think that applies to those
who disgrace themselves I guess. Mind you can get a lot for fifty Euros!
Jaywalking is illegal in
Belgium. The princely sum of 25 Euros for dodging the traffic is met with
disdain by the local cops (if you see any), and how our Timmy escaped without
penalty baffles me! Still no one got caught. I simply obeyed the little red
man!
The lads are probably still
recovering from Mullet mania from the sausage sizzle at ze Oberhausen.
Skinheads, rockers and questionable tracksuits were aplenty as Yeovil took on
the Germans at Mudford Rec!
Indeed the short on top and
long at the back cut rules and David Hasselhoff is the equivalent of Garfy
Gates over there! Still I gave that a miss as I didn't want to pay ninety Euros
to visit a training pitch!
One of the star turns on
the tour was Worker. What a guy! In Lokeren (a quite town) old Works marched in
and yelled "Five Stella's" to a bemused bar man. The locals sussed
out we were cool and were OK. Rodge then took us on a jaunt to Zelzate and we
only went on the wrong side of the road once! The local constabulary probably
thought we were let out for the day...well kind of!
It was a must to visit
Tilburg in the Netherlands for a coffee (?) at the cafe (!) and then to see the
mighty Willem II beat the 1900 FC Wil (Switzerland) in the Intertoto 2-1. Crowd
participation was a must and on the train back to Antwerpen we brewed up the
Oompah song (which served us well).
Following the 2-1 defeat to
Royal Antwerp we and our new Belgian friends the Chuckle Brothers had a
sing-a-long on the bus back. Even the local alcoholic joined in!
"I do not know what
the mullet is but I will sing" said our suitably barneted friend Chuckle
One as we sung "We only came for the mullets" conducted ably by that
good squire and gentleman John Brier.
We soon established our
hang out as Ninecke's (rhymes with Lineker’s) bar. A lovely Dutch lass from
Breda she. The lads were made welcome and Will was his usual charming lounge
lizard self! Timmy and I went in this bar at 6am on arriving and people were
still drinking beer!
Mr Ranner wooed the ladies
with some early morning Elvis in the Karaoke bar and I saluted him with my
lighter held aloft! He had woken up after falling asleep in another bar!
Still nice pizza eh Will?!
So I see Macca has gone to
hotshots Donny. Good move mate. Who recommended them then? I hope you will be
happy there and oh I nearly forgot, Doncaster fans make the most of him because
he'll be off soon. I hear Sir Alex hasn't replaced that Beckham bloke yet.
17 Tim Lancaster
TIM LANCASTER looks at several of the more interesting places that Yeovil Town have played over the years, we may have visited new grounds recently, but for now do you remember… Lancashire outfit Chorley never maintained their GM Vauxhall Conference status for as long a period as modern day rivals Southport or Morecambe, however Victory Park was in many ways just as good a ground as that of either 'The Sandgrounders' or 'The Shrimpers'. Chorley, close to Preston, came into the Conference via the Northern Premier League in 1988/89. Victory Park had an impressive seated stand (Pictured) not unlike the construction at Cheltenham Town that still stands in the Football League today. Behind both goals there were significant areas of covered standing. The home end was situated behind the main turnstile block, adorned in the clubs colours of black and white, and was a deep, terraced structure with a series of concrete supports that provided an obstacle as far as viewing was concerned. At the other end of the ground stood a steep covered area some fifteen steps in depth that had been developed into the cinder bank that once existed. This area of modern terracing ran about one third of the area behind the goal. The area opposite the main stand was still gravel and cinder banking, with a few crush barriers dotted about on an uncovered terrace. Surrounded by small redbrick terraced houses Victory Park was not unlike Hilton Park, Leigh in it's atmosphere, although nowhere near as large. Yeovil made two visits to Victory Park between 1988/89 and 1989/90 winning the first 3-2 on April 22nd 1989 courtesy of goals from Andy Wallace (Pen), Mickey Spencer and Guy Whittingham, and losing the next game by a similar scoreline (Robbie Carroll and Peter Conning) on September 23rd 1989. Relegated that season with Farnborough Town and Enfield 'The Magpies' dropped back into the NPL and now play in division one of The Unibond
League.
19 - 21 Jeremy Gear
TIM LANCASTER looks at several of the more interesting places that Yeovil Town have played over the years, we may have visited new grounds recently, but for now do you remember… Lancashire outfit Chorley never maintained their GM Vauxhall Conference status for as long a period as modern day rivals Southport or Morecambe, however Victory Park was in many ways just as good a ground as that of either 'The Sandgrounders' or 'The Shrimpers'. Chorley, close to Preston, came into the Conference via the Northern Premier League in 1988/89. Victory Park had an impressive seated stand (Pictured) not unlike the construction at Cheltenham Town that still stands in the Football League today. Behind both goals there were significant areas of covered standing. The home end was situated behind the main turnstile block, adorned in the clubs colours of black and white, and was a deep, terraced structure with a series of concrete supports that provided an obstacle as far as viewing was concerned. At the other end of the ground stood a steep covered area some fifteen steps in depth that had been developed into the cinder bank that once existed. This area of modern terracing ran about one third of the area behind the goal. The area opposite the main stand was still gravel and cinder banking, with a few crush barriers dotted about on an uncovered terrace. Surrounded by small redbrick terraced houses Victory Park was not unlike Hilton Park, Leigh in it's atmosphere, although nowhere near as large. Yeovil made two visits to Victory Park between 1988/89 and 1989/90 winning the first 3-2 on April 22nd 1989 courtesy of goals from Andy Wallace (Pen), Mickey Spencer and Guy Whittingham, and losing the next game by a similar scoreline (Robbie Carroll and Peter Conning) on September 23rd 1989. Relegated that season with Farnborough Town and Enfield 'The Magpies' dropped back into the NPL and now play in division one of The Unibond
League.
22 - 23 Mac from Oz
Don't know about all of you, but this off-season has been the worst in living memory. It took me until the end of May to get over the celebrations of a fantastic championship season. Then I had my local Grand Final over here where my second team Perth Glory won the National championship: another few days of over indulgence. But then the realisation that I still had another 9 weeks to go before we played our first LEAGUE match, well actually 66 days, the depression just absorbed me. I went off my food (not a bad thing) but worse still couldn't stomach an ale. It seemed to peak on Saturday nights. I would just sit in front of my computer screen starring at Google with no enthusiasm to "surf the net”. I can remember back in the "good old days" the summer months I spent in God's country in my youth. The off season would take a similar pattern every year. Once that final whistle went it was up the pub to map out the next few weeks social activities. A few weeks later we would await with bated breath the outcome of the football leagues "re-election" vote. Don't know why we even bothered looking back on it. We could have won the league, had a great run in the cup beating a couple of league sides in the process but couldn't beat the likes of Hartlepool in the votes (sorry Hartlepool you just sprang to mind first). By now we are into June. The festivals will be beginning soon. Remember the days when we turned into week-end hippies and trudged off to the Isle of Wight, Bath (well called the Bath festival but held in Shepton Mallet) and other various parts of the country. And then closer to home. The Helyar Arms out Coker use to have their folk festival. Summer nights out there were always good times. Now we are into July. Where are we going for our summer holidays??? Must get them in before the pre-season friendlies start. Exotic places like Sidmouth, Looe, and Watchet spring to mind. Well they all had plenty of pubs. What more do you want? I mean, as a supporter you had to do your "pre-season" training. Couldn't get out of condition, let yourself go etc. Then the fixture list would come out. I used to really get pissed off if we played away from home first up. Meant you had to wait ANOTHER week to get to see them. In those days coaches didn't run to all away matches. So now its August and only a few weeks to go to that all important "first home league match" and wouldn't you believe it.....................we lose! So the off-season is a really though time for us football fans, unless you’re NOT like me and you actually "have a life". The more successful you are the previous season the longer the off season seems to last. But it's all about to come to an end. As I write this there is only 43 hours to kick-off at Rochdale. I'm also going to be an even more informed fan than last season. Yeovil FC aren't the only ones who splashed out a bit of money over the last few months to improve their performance. I bought myself a new computer and got "Broadband connected". Its that fast I'll know we've scored before you will on the terraces. Bloody marvellous this new fangled technology. Enjoy the new season, just wish I could be there
to share the moment.
24 - 25 Van Pistelrooy
Betting on football is an emotional roller
coaster and should only be for the hardened few who can cope with the ecstasy
and agony of it all. It can make a Yeovil victory even sweeter and a 2-2 draw
with Gravesend feel like life isn't worth living.
OTV approached me to write a column on betting, mainly due to a large win I had
last season where Yeovil and Man Utd title wins netted me a cool £1500.
Therefore I was seen to be the right chap to inform readers of my experiences
of betting with Yeovil Town FC. But before you all mob me as I enter the
marquee at the next home game for a pint and a top tip - it hasn't been all
money, money, money.
Two poor starts from the Glovers and the Red Devils saw me nearly in tears as
it appeared I had blown a week's wages and it was still only August. Luckily
Van Nistelrooy and Kirk van Jacksonrooy et al went goal crazy and the rest was
history.
25th January and the table topping Glovers travel north to Manor Park to play a
struggling Nuneaton team. 6/5 the odds on a Yeovil win. Yes please. £50 on town
will net me £60 - easy money….or so you'd think. 600+ Glovers arrive to
discover that Gary Johnson's slick passing game would have to be carried out on
a field used the previous week for a ploughing competition. 1-1 it finishes,
£50 wasted, and a certain Chester striker scores a last minute winner. I'm not
happy. But I am more than happy a month or so down the line as town win their
sixth game on the bounce by beating our welsh friends 4-0.
The opportunity to bet on Yeovil has dramatically increased over the last few
years, with the rise of the internet and having bookies in the ground like at
Stevenage and Rushden. Our famous 2-1 victory over the Annies a few years back
was especially nice as I had £5 at 4-1 on Wazza to score first. What wasn't
especially nice was that I had to walk through the irate Rushden ‘Burberry
Massive’ to collect my winnings after the game.
Now we are in the football league even more bookies offer a wide variety of
bets on the Glovers. You can bet on whether you think Yeovil will win from
behind at The Vetch, or whether Gall and co. will put more than three goals
past Steve Perrin in the FA Cup 1st round. I wouldn't advise the latter bet -
Perrin always seems to play like Pat Jennings on heat against us.
Accumulators are always good fun, both over the course of the season and
involving a series of matches. A friend of mine a few years back lost out on £15,000
as his £1 16 team accumulator was let down by one match. He got all 15 others
right from the Arsenal winning at Chelsea, Yeovil winning against Kettering and
Swanage beating Sutton Bingham in a mid week friendly, but Rangers failed to
see off Hearts at Ibrox. It's a mugs game.
When you bet on Yeovil you can sometimes find yourself in the strange position
that you want the other team to score. This happened twice last season with a
friend of mine. He must have been the only person in the Westland Stand not
laughing when Junior Agogo famously missed from a yard out in our 0-0
draw with Barnet at the end of last year. He had put £10 at 9-1 on Agogo
to score first. Yes that's the same Junior 'two goals since Christmas' Agogo
that Ray 'Kevin Gall is useless' Greydon snapped up for a bargain £100,000! My
friend was also in the position of wanting Hereford to score against us in the
Trophy last season. He had Yeovil to win 2-1, so when Ben Smith pulled one back
for the bulls he was slightly happy. Cheering on Hereford - one of gambling's
many negatives!
For those Internet users I recommend www.bet365.com which is a well set out
site that offers a wide variety of odds for all Yeovil games. Many firms still
offer generous odds as they are not informed as well as us fans. For the first
3 games of the season they offered great odds on Critts scoring first. I had a
fiver on him at 33-1 at Rochdale so I wasn't too pleased by his attempted
conversion early on in the game. Critts can still be backed at around 8-1 to
score at any time during most games, which is a steal especially if he's on
penalty duty. Big Hugo, Plucky and Lockwood are also priced at around 33-1 to
notch first - worth keeping an eye out for.
After our great start to the season our odds have shortened dramatically and
after the Carlisle game we were around 5-1. I just wish I had put £100 on
Yeovil to win the league at 14-1 at the end of last season like a mate of mine.
Like many other Ciderspace readers I did however manage to get £10 on Kevin Gall
to win the Golden Boot at 16-1. Keep it up Kev! Mind you at this rate he will
have scored 30 by November and will be on his way to Chelski to partner Raul up
front!
Good luck…
Sparksy
26 - James Churchill
I don't know how it’s been for you, but the summer has really dragged this year! Don't get me wrong the weather has been good, I've been away several times and I've got sun-burnt and resemble a lobster rather than the normal polar bear shade that I have for most of the year, but this summer, of all summers, has really dragged because it’s the biggest season of all time for us Glovers. I’ve been studying the fixture list since it came out in June, looking at all the heady trips we have in store now that we have hit the 'big time': places like Huddersfield, Hull and Bristol Rovers. I've been absorbing every piece of information, speculation and rumour concerning the squad, looking on Ciderspace to get the slightest snippet of news, talking to everyone on how we will do, even speaking to strangers who notice the YTFC sticker in the car on what they think - but its not enough, I want the season to start and I want it to start now! Okay, I'm writing this on the eve of MY first pre-season friendly (Chippenham). I feel like that time when you first started seeing a girl who you hadn’t seen for a couple of nights and were on your way round to her house and you just couldn’t wait to see her! But lets face it, pre-season friendlies suck. It doesn’t matter what the result: win, lose or draw it can never really give you a good gauge on how well the boys will play when it kicks off for real. If you play a lot of friendlies some say that the squad will be burnt out and others will state that the side are ready and fit and will hit the ground running. I don't know, you tell me? There is only so much info to take in and it made me think what it must be like to be supporting Chel'ski' at the moment: It would be easier to compile the players who are NOT on the Russian shopping list at the moment rather than list the ones that are. How does that make their fans feel? Excited, or a little dubious perhaps? Its all very well assembling a squad of world class players by raiding the Russian's piggy bank. But surely its better to see your side mature through youth academies, to read about your shrewd manager (arise Sir Gary!) wheeling, dealing and promoting your football club as a great place to be, whilst keeping a beady eye on the bank account, and THEN watch your team win things! I know its easy for me to say that’s what’s happened at Yeovil because it’s slightly more common for it to happen at the level we are at. But within the next ten years wouldn’t it be great to see a side came into the Premiership with a squad that was assembled with a mix of home grown players and players that didn’t break transfer records. Incidentally, does anyone know of another trade apart from soccer where a company would pay another company for an employee? Weird, is it not? Better still, wouldn’t it be great if our beloved Town could do it? Well, why not, keep hold of Sir Gary and come 2013/14 season we could be giving Arsenal and Man Utd a run for their money in our 20,000 all-seater...maybe I am getting a little carried away! Must be all that sun I've been getting lately- it really has been a long summer! 27 - 38 Season Preview
BURY
Bury have certainly had
troubles off the pitch in recent years but on the pitch Andy Preece, their
player-manager, led them to the play-offs last season, depsite limited
resources.Bournemouth dispatched them in the semis on route to the second
divsion, and Bury could well rue the missed chance. Bury are still in no
posistion to turn down offers or offer good contracts and as a result top socer
Jon Newby and inspritaional defender Michael Nelson are one of many to leave
for pastures new. Bury do have excting players in the form of George Clegg, a
left sided midfielder, and in the young pacy striker Dave Nugnet, their very
own version of Wayne Rooney. Bury have shown they have spirit to get even this
far,this coupled with admirable leadership of Preece should see them safe from
harm but nothing more. OTV Predicts – Lower Half
CAMBRIDGE
How did you do last season? We started off the season
superbly and maintained this right up until just before Christmas. We had a
very small squad though and, due to numerous other reasons, we eventually dropped away. The formation
change to 3-5-2 was disastrous and never worked but, to be honest, the genuine
reason was simply the size of our squad and age of our team.
What are your hopes and
ambitions for the coming season? Well, opinions vary on this. A few think we'll
really struggle, others think we'll just 'plod along' and others think we can
mount a serious challenge.
Who have you signed and let
go?
We've lost Youngs, Riza and Scully from last season's squad and we've signed
Justin Walker, a midfielder from Exter, and Mark Venus, an ageing but maybe a
very important centre-back. Our skipper Wanless has now left the club on a free
transfer to join Oxford Utd and we've signed left-back Stuart Bimson from
Lincoln City on a 2yr deal.
Players we should look out
for? Well, the whole Division are aware of our flying winger Shane Tudor and
our leading goalscorer Dave Kitson, who hit 25/26 goals last season. Also watch
out for our lightning fast centre-back from West Ham, Steve Angus. He's sure to
join a bigger club soon. Very promising and a highly-rated player.
What do you know about
Yeovil and how do you think we’ll do? Well, we all know Gary
Johnson. He's a good manager and a very nice bloke. I think you look like a decent
team and could be bound for the play-offs. Certainly top-half
OTV Predicts – Will find the losses of
Youngs, Riza, Scully and Wanless hard. Mid-table
CHELTENHAM
How did you do last season? It took a while to get
going and ultimately we paid for our poor start, being relegated on the final
day.
What are your hopes and
ambitions for the coming season? We can take heart from the fact that Hartlepool
and Rushden were the top two this season and, on paper, the squad is stronger
now than when we went up, although the striking positions may be a cause for
concern. I expect the Robins to be looking for automatic promotion this
season.
Players we should look out
for? Key players will be Martin Devaney and John Finnigan. Finnigan is a
real midfield dynamo, who can run all day and has skills to match. Devaney was
inspired on the right of midfield this season after taking a few years to reach
his peak, and may operate either there or possibly up front depending on how
the hunt for strikers goes.
What do you know about
Yeovil and how do you think we’ll do? I would say that the gap
from the Conference to Division 3 isn't that big, but the key is consistency.
Defenses are generally better, and the strikers will be more likely to punish
mistakes. That said, I expect Yeovil to do very well, and should certainly
claim at least a play-off spot and possibly even challenge for a top 3
position.
OTV Predicts – Bobby Gould enough said
will find it harder than expected. Mid-table
Keith Iles
www.cheltrobins.com
HUDDERSFIELD
How did you do last season? Awful. Deservedly relegated after a year of mismanagement both on and off the field.
What are your hopes and ambitions for the coming season? Immediate hope is for financial stability. Promotion is the hope but mid-table is probably a more realistic expectation.
Who have you signed and let go? Gone are last season's top scorer Martin Smith (Northampton), Adie Moses (Crewe) while Simon Baldry, Thomas Heary, Eddie Youds Kenny Irons and Kevin Sharp have all been released. New signings include Bury's Jon Newby, Oldham's Tony Carss, Rotherham's Ian Gray, former Huddersfield favourite Rob Edwards from Chesterfield and Coventry's Lee Fowler.
Players we should look out for? Hopefully new striker Jon Newby will form a good partnership with Andy Booth.
What you know about Yeovil and how do you think we will do? Only that you won the Conference in some style and could continue your momentum with another promotion push this season.
How did you do last season? Terribly poor compared to
what was expected of us. Molby got sacked and when Taylor came in we looked as
though we had turned the corner, but too many inconsistent displays and late
minute errors cost us goals and valuable points. Finished 13th and it was where
we deserved to finish as well.
What are your the hopes for
the coming season? Ask any normal Hull fan and they will say that they
are not going to be too optimistic this season. However I do not believe that
for one moment. I reckon that deep down 90% of us expect to get automatic
promotion and about 50% of these also expect the championship.
Who have you signed and let
go?
This season we have brought in more promising players, but the most notable
change is that we have brought in two big strikers, Ben Burgess and Danny
Allsopp; we’ve always lacked strength up front, but not this season it seems.
Other signings include two full backs, Thelwell and Dawson. Price, an energetic
midfielder and from the latter half of last season Joseph, a centre back.
Players to look out for? The player we will have our
eye on is Stuart Green, who is tipped as one of the most talented midfielders
in the division. Most will agree he is a big talent, however last season he had
a row with the manager and cleared off on-loan to his home-city, Carlisle.
No-one knows the exact details of the row, but after Stuart watching City beat
Carlisle on their own turf 1-5, he shortly declared he wasn’t getting on very
well at Carlisle, and that they couldn’t afford him. He was back at the
end of the season after
pissing off both Hull and Carlisle fans, and shortly after confessed his
‘mistakes’
Keith Brown & Andrew
Smith
OTV Predicts – Great squad, stadium,
support surely about time. Champions.
LEYTON ORIENT
How did you do last season? Rubbish! We had high hopes, but the players
we had didn't click properly. We looked like we’d solved it at one point and
make a late gatecrash of the play-offs, but then we sold our captain to
Sheffield Wednesday and lost 5 on the trot. We since picked it up again and
have made some very shrewd signings.
What are your hopes and
ambitions for the coming season? The man at the top, Barry Hearn, has told
everyone that it's promotion or failure, to do what's expected of them with no
exceptions. The current managerial twosome of Paul Brush and Martin Ling are in
the last year of their contracts, so it's playing for the right to carry on and
get the job done. Everyone expects what we've been looking forward to for the
last 8 years now and we do have a good team per player, it's just finding the
form now.
Players we should look out? Chris Tate! He looks like he's wearing the
wrong wig, but he's brilliant and does a great job up front. Wayne Purser, a tricky winger who became the
first Orient player ever to score a hat-trick on his debut last season. Wants to
take players on given the chance. Justin
Miller, a young centre back who looks a cut above most in this division after
we signed him from Ipswich following a very successful loan spell.
James Orient ExpressNet
OTV Predicts – Relegation dog-fight
LINCOLN
Lincoln achieved a lot last
year despite having very little thanks to the efforts of former Northwich boss,
Keith Alexander. He used his Non-League contacts to make an number of signings
including giant Ben Futcher who some Yeovil fans may remember was at
Stalybridge with his Dad as boss a few season ago. Despite being expected to
struggle and also being criticised for their long ball tactics, by fans and
opposition managers alike, they ended the season with a visit to the Millennium
stadium and just 90 minutes from Division 2, only to lose to Bournemouth.
Lincoln have been written off before and who’s to say they won’t prove their
doubters wrong again, though perhaps a repeat performance is unlikely. OTV
Predicts – Mid-table
MANSFIELD
How did you do last season? Well, we got relegated
last season from division two, and dumped back into the familiar surroundings
(for us anyway!), of Division three. The manager (Keith Curle), is putting a
brave outlook, saying we should get promoted again, at the first attempt.
What are you hopes and
ambitions for this season? In truth, anything less than the play offs will be
seen as a failure by our supporters. Seeing as it took us 10 years to get out
of the third in the first place, whose to say we'll be better prepared if we
went straight back up??
Players we should look out
for? The two wide men, Wayne Cordon and Liam Lawrence, both deserve to be
playing at a higher level, given space they can destroy teams all
afternoon.
What you know about Yeovil
and how you think we’ll do? Your fantastic
attendances in the conference for one, and that can only be good for the third
division. I heard your manager giving it the old, we'll beat most teams in the
third division, let's hope he doesn't fall flat on his face, it won't be a walkover,
but there isn't much difference in the bottom teams in the third, to most teams
in the conference.
Michael Editor
DejaVu
OTV predicts – Challenging for the play-offs
OXFORD
How did you do last season? We finished 8th, one point
off the play-offs, which we were just 4 minutes away from joining until
Lincoln's late bastard equaliser against Torquay. Our highest position was
third and we spent most of the season in or around the play-off zone.
What are your hopes for the
coming season? Anything less than automatic promotion would be considered a
disappointment after last season. We have been in serious (almost terminal)
decline for several seasons while we were trying to get the new ground built,
and our first season at the Kassam Stadium saw us almost join you in the
Conference (thank heavens for Halifax!), but the slide has been arrested and we
will now hopefully rise back up the league to Division One, which is where many
fans see as the club's rightful position. Kassam is not the kind of chairman to
plough shitloads of money into buying new players, but he has ensured that
United finances are solid and with the new guidelines about wages not exceeding
60% of turnover the club certainly won't have to shed any players to meet them.
Players we should look out
for
Depends when we play you. Our rising star is Jamie Brooks, but he was out all
last season after contracting Gillame-Barre syndrome (a la Markus Babbel) in
the close season. He came close to dying, but eventually recovered and started
light training. He should be fit enough to resume first team action around
Christmas. Otherwise, well, they're all superstars of course! OTV Predicts – Ian Atkins knows what
we wants an whilst it may not be pretty could be effective – Play-offs
How did you do last season?
Badly,
very badly, only the cup run made the season anything.
ROCHDALE
OTV Predicts – Alan Buckley will take
time to mould his side and could well get dragged into a Relegation dog fight.
SCUNTHORPE
How did you do last season? Slow start, good finish (5th). Could have
took automatic promotion but had to settle for the lottery of the play-offs,
which we lost.
Players we should look out
for Peter Beagrie (obviously), and some extremely
talented youngsters like Nathan Stanton, Matty Sparrow and Cliff Byrne (if he
signs). Our goalie Tommy Evans recently made his debut for Northern Ireland
B.
OTV Predicts – After numerous play-off
scraps expect the Irons to get promoted.
SOUTHEND
How did you do last season? Last season: was hugely
disappointing for us Shrimpers, for the sixth or seventh season in succession.
For the fifth year in a row we finished outside the top ten of the Third
Division despite, structure-wise, being well-equipped to do much better. We
haven't finished in the top ten of any division since we were promoted to the
old Second (now First) Division back in 1990/1. Many people harp on about the
glory days, but it is behind us now and we must concentrate on rising slowly.
Last year's 17th was diabolical, and manager Rob Newman (ex-Norwich City
player) was rightly sacked in March.
What are your hopes for
this season? We're looking to get into the play-offs, realistically. Our new boss is
Steve Wignall, ex-gaffer of our rivals Colchester United, and he has signed
wisely, getting the likes of Mark Gower (£25,000 from Barnet), and also Mark Warren (ex-Colchester), Jamie
Stuart (ex-Charlton) and Jimmy Corbett (ex-Blackburn) on free's. The squad is
looking good, and with a decent youth set-up and a few more signings (we
released 2/3s of our squad at the end of last year) we could challenge for a
top five place with a bit of luck. But rebuilding takes time, and Wignall has
won the fans over to give him that.
Players to look out for? Based on last year, Leon
Cort, a massive central defender, brother of Carl at Newcastle United, finished
up as about fourth top-scorer last season, and is a real colossus at the back.
Other than him there's Tesfaye Bramble, brother of Newcastle's Titus (notice a
theme?) who was top-scorer two years ago and second last campaign. He blows hot
and cold, but when he's on fire he's one of the best in the Division. All the
players reckon last year's captain, Kevin Maher, once a trainee at Tottenham
Hotspur, is the best player in the division ability-wise.
What do you know about
Yeovil? We are expecting big things from the Conference champions. Unlike
Boston you won't start at a disadvantage points-wise and in a bit of turmoil
staff-wise, so I fully expect you to finish in the top half.
SWANSEA
How did you do last season? Put basically, we missed
out on relegation last season with a win over Hull in the final game of the
season (4-2). Brian Flynn joined as manager last season taking over from Nick
Cusack, who was player manager, and managed to place us bottom of the table.
Luckily Brian Flynn and his contacts ensured plenty of loan players which
allowed for our survival.
Players to look out for? Martinez, Leon Britton, Lee
Trundle, Thomas, Johnrose. Britton and Martinez were loan signings last season
and were influential in the swans survival.
OTV Predicts – Lee Trundle to be best buy of the division, and the Swans
to surprise many and get promoted. Promotion
TORQUAY
How did you do last season? It ended in disappointment
but overall was extremely pleasing. After a stunning start when we were joint
leaders for a while, we hit a bad run in October and then in the new year we
continually struggled to beat the lower teams. This, coupled with a small squad
hit by injuries and suspensions, meant that the team fell just short of the
play-offs in 9th place.
What are your hopes for the coming season? Hopefully the squad can
continue to build on last season and make a strong promotion push, but
realistically there are at least 9 or 10 sides in better shape than us at the
moment so the top half is a attainable target.
Players we should look out for? Players to watch out for include the
G-Force strike partnership of David Graham and Martin Gritton and the midfield
partnership of Alex Russell and Jason Fowler. Graham started the season in
stunning form but was hit by an injury and suspension and never re-discovered
his best form. Martin Gritton is renowned for always giving 110% and chipped in
consistently with goals to finish the season as top scorer on 16. Russell and
Fowler combine in midfield to produce some wonderful skill and creative
brilliance, with Russell noted for his long-range shooting and Jason for his
great passing and eye for a good ball.
What you know about Yeovil and how you think we will do? The impression
I have of Yeovil is that of a large club finally on the right track. I honestly
think Yeovil will go straight up in their first season in the football league.
Steve Mumford
OTV Predicts – Great going forward
should see them challenging for the Play-offs
YORK CITY
York City are lucky to even
be in Division 3 after the trials and tribulations they have suffered recently
as Daley Mayall tells all
‘Season 2003/04 is supposed
to be the final one at Bootham Crescent for York City FC, if former Chairman
Douglas Craig gets his wish to see them forced out to ground share with York
City Knights RL at Huntington on the outskirts of the City. In 1999, Craig and
fellow directors formed Bootham Crescent Holdings and separated the ground from
the club "to protect its assets". Fast forward to Dec 2001, and BCH
decide to sell the club, and subsequently the ground THEY now own to property
developers. Persimmon Homes have a planning application to build 93 homes at BC
currently lodged at the Council, but the 'Friends of Bootham Crescent' -
a supporters' group formed to protect BC until a viable alternative becomes
available to the club, are calling on the council to reject the submission due
to a record number of objections. The ground at Huntington does not currently
meet the criteria laid down by the Football League. This saga re. City's future
home is currently ongoing.....
How did you do on the pitch
last season? The club exceeded our expectations and finished in the top ten,
hitting 3rd with 6 games to go before fading badly.
What are your hopes for
this season? Terry Dolan's services were dispensed with by the club's board members
(appointed by the Supporters' Trust) along with a few players on high wages,
and Chris Brass, inspirational captain and player of the year last season, was
appointed player/manager with Lee Nogan given a player/coaching role. Brass
& Nogan's promise that they would try and play football to progress rather
than the 'hoof it and see' fayre served under Dolan's leadership, means that
things may not turn out so bad. I'd gladly settle for a top ten spot again in
Chris' first season while he 'finds his feet'. Anything better would be a
bonus.
Who have you signed and let
go?
David Dunning, a free from Blackburn looks a very good prospect in midfield.
Mitch Ward’s experience could prove vital among the youngish squad we have. Our
achilles heel could be down the left-side. Two left-sided players (Cowan and
Potter) were dispensed with without being replaced as I write.
DALEY MAYALL, Editor, York
City Fanzine 'Ginner's Left Foot'
OTV Predicts – A tough season for the
youngest boss and for York fans successes off the pitch could be just as
important.
...And finally what about
us?
Yeovil have been tipped to
do very well ever since we won the league back in April and there is no
doubting the potential that exists in the squad. Kevin Gall will give numerous
defences the run around this season and will definitely feature in the top
scorers list. Lee Johnson banished all his doubters towards the end of last
season and will flourish in this league. Going forward we will punish teams,
the only fear is the more physical nature of the 3rd division. Our skilful play
and neat passing may find its match against the likes of Oxford and Lincoln for
example. That aside there is the quality and just as important the team spirit
about for the Glovers to make an impact on this league and hopefully we can
make the play-offs, or even better. If we do finish out of the top 7 its by no
means a failure and finding our feet this time around will no doubt make us
stronger second time around and we could well do a Rushden in 2004/2005 season.
36 – 38 HOW TO SURVIVE IN
DIVISION 3
I have been asked by the editor
of this wonderful organ (that’s the fanzine, not the fancy thing with pipes
playing at a church near you) to give Yeovil fans advice on how to survive life
in Division Three. Now I suspect many Yeovil fans would rather run the risk of
entrusting Michael Jackson with their kids for a couple of weeks, than take
advice of a Rushden fan – but after a couple of successful seasons in what’s
known in some quarters as the ‘Turd Division’, I think I can give you lot a few
tips on how to adapt to life in the promised land. So here is a step by step
guide on how to survive in Division Three:
Buy an alarm clock!
I know that some Yeovil
fans still prefer to wake each morning to the sound of a cockerel crowing
outside, but this is an unreliable method of being woken up early, especially
if foxes are prevalent in the area. Division Three is truly the most national
league in British football, where one week you may travel to Scotland
(Carlisle), the next Wales (Swansea), then there are the remote wastelands that
makes up North East England (Darlo), and of course your near neighbours (but
for everyone else a bloody long way to go) – Torquay. There are numerous long
trips in Division Three which means lots of early starts.
Don’t be afraid to add to
the squad.
When Rushden entered
Division Three Brian Talbot decided to keep faith in the squad that won the
Conference and made few new signings. However he quickly found out that some
players couldn’t bridge the gap. Many Conference fans like to support the myth
that Division Three is no better than the Conference, but although the gap is
not huge like the jump from Division One to the Premier League, there is still
a noticeable gap. Most Conference teams are well organised, as are most
Division Three sides and as a result there isn’t a huge difference between the
quality of defending in the two leagues. However many Division Three teams are
sharper attacking units than what you will be used to in the Conference,
something which is helped by a better quality of pitches. As there is a gap,
some players who coped well enough at Conference level will struggle to make
the gap, and will need replacing. The Rushden players who stood out for us in
the Conference easily bridged the gap into League football, many of the more
mediocre members of our squad are now no longer with us. If Gary Johnson allows
sentiment to settle in and keep faith with players who struggle at first in
this vital season for you, then you will end up wasting valuable points.
Start saving!
Supporting a Division Three
is a lot more expensive than supporting a Conference team. Some league clubs
charge far more than what you are used to in the Conference. Last season the
worst offender was Barry ‘I’m a prick’ Hearn who usually puts away fans into
Orient’s crumbling main stand and charges them £16.50 for the privilege. The
norm for terracing is around £11-£13, with seating varying from around £13-£17.
More and more Football League grounds only provide seating for away fans, and
be wary of clubs like Scunthorpe who charge home fans less for better
facilities and views.
Don’t worry if you have
claustrophobia
If being in small, tightly
packed spaces brings you out in a cold sweat then Division Three should hold no
fears, as many clubs have far bigger grounds than they actually need. The worse
culprits are Darlo whose convicted criminal chairman has just built them a 25k
capacity ground, despite the fact last season their crowds often fell below the
3000 mark. Bury have a 12k capacity ground but can see their crowds dip to
around 2000 if things aren’t going well, and Huddersfield’s ground is still to
achieve a sell out attendance.
Also the stories about the
atmosphere at Football League games being superb is a myth, the only grounds
Rushden have visited in the Football League where the atmosphere really was
rocking were Plymouth, Swansea and Hull. Hull have since moved and the
atmosphere is meant to be much more subdued at the Kingston Communications
Stadium, than the decaying but atmospheric Boothferry Park. However visiting
the Vetch is like a trip to how football used to be, lots of big terraces and
an intimidating and noisy home support. When 4000 or so Welshmen along the side
of the pitch in their big terrace all start singing at the top of their voices
it’s a truly impressive sight (and sound).
Be wary of trouble.
Yeovil haven’t got much of
a reputation for trouble but at certain away days you still need to keep your
wits about you. Swansea and Hull are where you will have to be most careful, but
nearly every club has a firm of some sort. Certain pubs should be avoided,
especially if your male and between the ages of 16 and 40. Macclesfield
however, is safer than a nuclear bunker. On the other hand if you’re a hoolie
you will have a great time, until you get battered by Hull’s Silver Cod Crew.
Expect away fans.
There is far more of a
culture of travelling away in the Football League and the amount of away fans
you will see at Huish Park will rise dramatically – especially this season as
large numbers of fans will want to cross another new ground of their list.
However some things never change – Kidderminster and Macclesfield’s away
support is still useless. Kiddy apparently took 38 fans to Halifax a couple of
seasons ago.
The referees are no better.
Any Yeovil fans expecting
to see a better quality of officials in the Third Division will be
disappointed, there are some absolute stinkers.
Far better media coverage
The quality of national
media coverage for teams in the Third Division is far better than that of the
Conference. You get to see your goals each week on Sky Sports and Nationwide
League extra, and many Sunday newspapers have reports from every league game.
The Daily Mail’s sports coverage is reliably shite at all levels though.
The FA Cup isn’t the same
There is something special
about reaching the first round of the FA Cup when you’re a non-league club, but
when you are a league club its just not the same. If you beat a Second Division
club in round two then no one will care, but if say Morecambe knocked out
Tranmere then it would be all over the papers.
Enjoy yourselves!
Sure you will miss some
things about the Conference, but the Football League is undoubtedly the place
to be. Where would you rather be playing? In front of 400 at a wind swept Leigh
RMI, or watching your team run out in front of 15,000 fans at Hull’s stunning
new ground.
Thanks to Adam - Editor of
Rushin & Rantin.
39 - 42 Simon Amsterdam
The 2003 Title Run-in, by
an Amsterdam Exile
Most of you are lucky to
live in Yeovil. Honest. I never thought I’d be saying that, given
how much I’ve enjoyed living in various other places around the world. You’re lucky because you can see the Glovers
every other week. I hardly ever get to
see them, but when I do, boy is it an effort!
Yes I know it’s my fault. If I
wanted to see the boys every week I could move back. I’m just saying I enjoy my life where I am
but wish I could see Yeovil Town every week as well. But until we have affordable teleportation
technology, I’ll have to make do with seeing them every now and then.
Anyway, I’ve been a YTFC
supporter since I were a wee nipper, and here’s a few words about last season’s
historic title win, and the run-in from an Exile’s point of view.
I live in Amsterdam. Moved
here just over a year ago from London, where I’d been for many years. In fact I moved here the day after the F.A.
Trophy Final, oh glorious day. I delayed
my start in my new job til May 13th. I took the train back down to
London after the game, went to Heathrow, met my girlfriend who had my suitcase,
said goodbye, got on the plane, arrived here in Amsterdam at midnight and went
to work in my new job the next morning!
Since I now work in a sports-obsessed ad agency making ads for Nike, the
people here (sort-of) understood my behaviour…
When I lived in London, I
got to see a handful of games a year, at least in the ICIS league days, there
were quite a few opposition clubs near London.
And, while we’re talking about those days, do you remember being able to
watch YTFC from behind the goal we attacked in the first half, then move round
to the other end at half-time? [J]. Now,
I was clearly going to see even fewer games.
I knew we were improving and we’d almost gone up in the last couple of
years, but I’d hardly planned on our best season ever by a (West) country-mile
in the year that I moved abroad!!
Short aside….I know it’s a
cliché, but it’s weird to think how we ever survived before email and the
internet. I’m in constant contact with
my mates in the UK every day, and I’m on Ciderspace every day for updates,
match reports etc. We do get BBC 1 &
2 out here, but annoyingly, on Ceefax we only get the BBC TV Schedules. So, if
I miss Final Score, I don’t get to find out the Conference results until I get
back to work on the Monday and log on again.
(And special thanks to those in control at Five-Live who make it so they
rarely give Conference updates).
Anyway, I managed to fly
over every few weeks, and combined some of those weekend trips to see my family
in Surrey and girlfriend in London with a few Glovers away days, but the more
the season progressed, the more I realise we had a real chance of making
history this year. But, as I’m sure many
others did, I had my doubts. I’d been
through hope and disappointment and didn’t want to get over-optimistic. We were bound to have a bad patch at some
stage in the season, weren’t we? (It never did come J )
As we got towards
Easter, there were still several teams
in it (it’s funny looking back to think it was close for so long – my memory
now seems to tell me that we were miles ahead for ages), and of course there
was that nightmare run-in. So I booked
flights for the last 4 games….it couldn’t be over any earlier could it? Could it….?
The closer we got to the end, all the other teams kept slipping up. Suddenly the gap was getting bigger, and
there were fewer games left to close it.
Saturday 5th
April. 5 games to go. Telford at home.
Donny had lost midweek to
Scarborough, and so, almost out of nowhere, there was suddenly a strong
possibility that we could clinch the title there and then, if we won and
Chester didn’t. With this in mind, my
Yeovil mates in London went down to the game and of course taunted me, but it
was just too expensive for me. Even
though I’m one of Easyjet’s best customers (!), I usually book my tickets way
in advance, when they’re relatively cheap.
Not so for last-minute-they-might-now-suddenly-win-the-title
bookings. So I didn’t go. And this is hard to admit – I was hoping for
a Chester victory. There, I said
it. But I’d already spent a lot of money
on flights and plans for the run-in – they couldn’t go and now do it without me
could they? We ended up winning (3-0)
of course, and so did Chester. We’d
basically won the title bar goal-difference, which meant that I was 99.999%
certain we’d clinch it now, but, importantly - as I reminded my mates -
technically the party couldn’t start until I arrived next week. J
Saturday 12th
April. 4 games to go. Away at Doncaster.
I’ll remember this day for
as long as I live.
I took a train on my own up
to Doncaster for the late Kick-Off – stupidly, my mates had a softball game
they were apparently committed to (come on – all those days skiving off school,
and all those sickies off work – have you learnt nothing?!!?). This is the only game I think I’ve ever been
early for – you could only buy tickets on the day, so I made damn sure I wasn’t
coming all this way from Holland for nothing!!
Not much more to say about this game, and this historic day, that you
won’t already know, but suffice to say that I’d waited years and years and I
have to truthfully say that until very very recently I thought it would never
happen. We revelled in being the famous
giantkillers. It’s romantic. It’s got grass-roots, support-the-small-teams
credibility. All rubbish I know, but
it’s how we justified our place in football, and I just always thought it would
never change. That we’d never make that
jump to ‘proper’ football. So today was
like a fairy story – you didn’t really think it was real. We’d been promoted to the League before the
game, thumped our main rivals at their own ground, live on TV. Unbelievable.
My celebrations had to be fairly non-alcoholic, however. I was running the London Marathon (for the
first time) the next morning! J
Saturday 19th
April. 3 games to go. Burton at home.
I’d had to explain to my
parents that although I was flying ‘home’ (ie. their adopted home in Surrey)
for Easter weekend, I’d actually be spending most of it travelling around
watching Yeovil Town!! Hired a car and
drove down to Somerset, met up with a few friends. A fabulous game, 6-1, absolute Fantasy
Football. It was also my 20 year school
reunion in Yeovil that night, so I was in a real party mood. But, funnily enough, I don’t think it had
sunk in yet, even now.
Easter Monday 21st
April. 2 games to go. Dagenham & Redbridge away.
By now, it was like playing
for fun. Another 4-0 win, although I
think the result flattered us, for once.
I’d shelled out a load of money on flying over to see these games, and
it was nice of the boys to put on a good show for me. ;) I was so happy that, on my drive back into
London, I pulled over and phoned Alan Green on 606. When the operators heard that I’d flown over
from Amsterdam to go and see Yeovil at Dagenham, they said I’d definitely get
on-air! Alan Green also seemed amazed I’d come over especially for this
game. Funny that; they’re football fans
right? Don’t they realize when history is being made and what it means for the
fans?
Saturday 26th
April. Last game. Chester at home.
Just a few days later, back
on the plane and driving down the A303.
This time, I took my girlfriend of 3 years to her first ever football
match. She doesn’t know how lucky she
is. J I did tell her that this is not a
typical atmosphere. It’s not always a
party like this. You’re witnessing
history in the making. Well, it was, as
you all know, an historic day. I took so
many photos, almost got hoarse from singing, bought stupid giant foam hands, a
silly jester’s hat, a Champions flag and every piece of newspaper article and
memorabilia I could get my hands on. The
bag was full of Yeovil Town stuff!! I
just didn’t want to leave.
So, that was my 2003
Conference Title run-in. Obviously I
couldn’t see the open-top bus through the town, but never mind, I’d been there
for the games. It seemed silly at the time
to a lot of people for me to spend a lot of money flying and back and forth and
driving all over the place every few days, just to see some football matches
for a non-league team. People think
you’re mad to do this for a Conference team, yet people do it all the time for
Premiership teams. I read that when
Berkovic played for West Ham, there’d be a group of people flying over from
Israel every week to see him play. It
just happens that this is my team, the team I’d supported since I was a kid –
OK, I’d not gone to as many games as many fans, but I’d not always lived in the
town. I don’t regret a penny of it. You can’t buy emotion like there was at those
closing games. I hope the manager and
players realize what it means to some of the fans (I suspect they do now). I had the advantage of being able to drive a
couple of hours down the road to the pre-season games in Belgium, and as I
write, we’ve won 2 out of 2, and sitting pretty on top of Division 3. It’s never been better. Oh, and it still hasn’t really sunk in. Will it ever?
Simon Amsterdam
43 - 44 Jon Hartley
A summer without football can be a very dull place to be. In non-World Cup or European Championships years, it can be difficult to fill you time with anything constructive. Personally, I turn to another great love, music. Journey’s to homes of the great unwashed, like Glastonbury (Pilton) and Reading or Leeds Festivals are not uncommon. Other hedonistic quests include seeking the perfect beer garden and the best beach. However this year I decided that I would improve my cultural status by putting my nose in a book and get reading. So which literary masterpieces did I choose to fill those long sun filled summerdays? Would I be caught up in Potter mania and wisk myself of to Hogwarts? Or possibly see if I could get mentally readjusted by reading the classic Catch 22? Fortunately my decision was easy, lets stick with football. In fact they were two very different views of clubs in contrasting situations. Tim Parks A Season with Verona follows the ups but mostly downs of Hellas Verona as they battled to stave off relegation from Italy’s football elite. The other is a little closer to home with read that has kept must Yeovil fans gripped during the post season, Yeovil till I die: A Ciderspace Odyssey by our own Brendon Owen. Yeovil till I die encapsulates our historic Conference winning season, something that I’m sure we will not forget but will remind us of the finer points. So how do the pair stand as a good read and would I recommend them? Lets start with the continental counterpart from Tim Parks. Tim draws out the essence of his adopted home in true style. A Hellas fan and citizen of Verona for 30 years, he really does know about Italian football and this knowledge shines throughout the book. Don’t be fooled in to thinking that you too need to be an Italian football addict to understand, as quite frankly Tim will ‘Anglo-fy’ this for you. You will be taken on a extraordinary visceral tour of a country, its sights and multiple personas in order to find the real Italy. So much so that this book can also be found in the travel section of all good book shops(and some rubbish ones as well!), but this is far from a travel book and has football at heart. Bringing together Italian life, politics and ideals, only increases the enjoyment of this book. Did you know that football can help you get elected to government? In Italy it can. From Bari to Udine and from Rome to Naples the book will take you to every Hellas Verona game in the 2000/01 season. On this journey you will meet the characters of the club from the ‘presidente’ down to the controversial members of the brigate gialloblù, Verona’s fanatical following. Italian football is unique, but to be a football fan is universal, a point that is made apparent in the books message. On the brink of relegation, it is impossible not to feel strong empathy to Hellas and the inhabitants of the Bentegodi Stadium. Hellas are a club in Italy that everyone loves to hate, due to the historic temperament of the city. However for all it fault’s Tim Parks engages the reader to come away wishing the club well. As we all know relegation is a nasty business and a fate that I only wish on a few clubs and Hellas are certainly not one of them. A Season with Verona offers a personal view surrounding a wide variety of issues within the game, Italy and beyond. While I have never watched Verona or ever taken the arduous bus journey to Bari, by reading this book I am so much closer to understanding what it must be like. Some antics will make you laugh and some will make you want to shout in disgust, as this book does not want to paint over the ugly cracks in Italian football. So for the warts and all view of a national obsession A Season with Verona is a fantastic book and comes highly recommended. Having introduced the heavy weight from Italy, how does our debutant local contender compare? Weighing in at nearly 300 pages lighter, our own Brendon Owen’s Yeovil Till I Die: A Ciderspace Odyssey still packs a hefty punch. Unlike A Season with Verona this book does not need to do is to get under the skin of a nation, its football and its politics. Brendon was able to keep it a lot simpler, Yeovil’s Conference winning season. Brendon has been able to bring a fans perspective to this incredible occasion for the Glovers. Having been through the same emotions myself this book is a pleasure to read. From page to page the memories come flooding back in to view as Brendon puts in to words what we were all thinking and feeling. I can envisage a time in the future where the events of last season will not be so fresh in my mind; this book will be the first place I will turn to. For me, one of the great aspects of this book is the personal touch. Brendon does not just write about the matches themselves but how his life interacts with going to watch football. Last season was a memorable one for Brendon in more that just a football way, which is brought in the book for us all to experience with him. He let us in to his life as we learn of his change in job and goings on in his family (one that explains his absence from Rochdale). These additions bring a more human factor that we can relate to and I for one appreciate it as part of the book. All in all I’ve enjoyed both books and would certainly recommend them. They cover similar subjects from different angles. One is written by a proven author of international stature, the other by a talented new comer but both have a lot to offer. So to while away those long journeys to new far away locations like Carlisle and Darlington pick up these books to help you through. JON HARTLEY
46 – Phil Harris
It is the end of the
season, Yeovil are supreme champions, the summer with dreams of the third
division and league football. Now that the formalities of the end of season
have taken place, I have folded my Yeovil shirt away, washed my scarf (never
wash during the months of August-May could bring bad luck!!) pop my hat back on
the Yeovil town shelf (full of Glovers bits ‘n’ pieces) and waved goodbye to
Jinxavitus What to do over the summer
months?
Well it all started with
changing my home page on the internet. All season it is, of course, Ciderspace.
A friend of mine suggested Celebdaq on the BBC website. I do not subscribe to
Hello ,OK or any other trivial nonsense mag but this silly Celebdaq thing
caught my interest. Who is Beyonce? Who is this geezer Justin Timberlake?? Well
suffice to say I put all my money on Keanu Reeves.. after all David (You’ll
never play for Yeovil) Beckham is never going to leave Man U (whoever they
are!!) is he.
I put money on all sorts of
no hopes (Stevenage didn’t even have a listing!! And as for Whymouth). But it
is true to say I watched the celebs with an interest I never want to repeat.
TIZ A DISEASE I TELL YA!!
I have also discovered the
Earthquake site ( 6 on the Richter scale is 1 million tons of TNT… 9 is 31
billion Crikey).. the KFC website ( for a private tour that I never did) and
the Bentley site , again for a private tour, I wanted to sing OHHHH DARYLL
CLARE you went to Chester City and you won f*** all. But I refrained.
The only Great thing to
happen was my brother coming back from New Zealand having missed the entire
season ( apart from frequent text message updates etc.). For a lad who’s
followed the Glovers since he was seven , you couldn’t have planned a round the
world trip at the wrong time of your life, could you, really!!!
By the way I have become a
multi millionaire. If you have succumbed to this dreadful piece of celebdaq
trash then don’t worry HELP IS AT HAND.The MIGHTY GLOVERS are back.
Oh and my home page is back
to Ciderspace. I hope yours is or you may get JUNKAVITUS….. nasty!!
PHIL HARRIS
47 - 51 Ground guides
16/09 DONCASTER
How to get there: From the North - follow the A638 towards Doncaster town centre, past the Doncaster Railway Station (Trafford Way). Go straight over the next two roundabouts, and turn left at the third onto the A18, Carr House Road. Follow this road for two miles, and then turn right at the large roundabout onto the A638 Bawtry Road. The ground is on your right. From The South - Exit the M18 at junction 3, and follow the A6182 towards Doncaster for approx. 3 miles. At the roundabout with the A18, turn right into Carr House Road. Follow this road for two miles, and then turn right at the large roundabout onto the A638 Bawtry Road. The ground is on your right. The best bet for parking is actually at the ground.
Pre-Match: Doncaster is a little light on the Pub front and the Grand St Ledger Hotel and the Park Hotel are the only pubs near the ground. The Grand St Ledger is on the corner of the last round about before you reach the ground. The Park Hotel is visible from the ground to the right of the main stand and does half decent food. There is a McDonalds a short walk behind the away terrace as well for those food connoisseurs.
Stadium: Away supporters are allocated the Town End of the ground, entrance in the left corner of the ground if you looking at the main stand from the outside. Never had the food there from the portable cabin as soon as you walk in but the Bovril’s good.
20/09 MANSFIELD
How to get there: Exit the M1 at junction 27. At the roundabout, take the third exit onto the A608 (Hucknall/.Mansfield). Go straight over two roundabouts, following signs to "Mansfield A611" and at the third roundabout turn left onto the A611. Continue for 3.8 miles to a set of traffic lights at a T-junction. Here, turn left onto the A60 Nottingham Road. Travel for around 1 mile towards Mansfield Town Centre. Once you have gone past the KFC on the left-hand side, keep in the nearside lane, and go through the set of traffic lights. At the next set of traffic lights, with the church on the right-hand side, turn left into Quarry Lane, and the ground is on your right hand side. There is a car park next to the ground, with a £1 parking fee, although this may rise in the near future. There are plans to extend it, as it gets full early on. There are plenty of Retail Parks around the ground, but be careful, security firms have took over the running of the car parks, and will fine anyone parking for more than two hours. There is plenty of street parking within a mile radius, so that is your best bet.
Pre-Match: The place for away fans to have a pre match pint is the Early Doors, which is directly down some steps, at the back of the away end, you can't miss it. It is totally away fan friendly on match days, and you won't get any bother in there. If you fancy a pint and a meal, you will need to walk around 500 yards back up the road with KFC on it, to the Talbot, or the pub opposite, which keeps changing its name!, otherwise, there are plenty of fast food outlets on the various retail parks. The town centre is about a 10 minute walk and is well signposted, be careful though, most of the town centre pubs are full of home supporters about an hour and a half before kick off, but if you visit the main ones in the market square, like Yates's and Weatherspoons, you'll not encounter any problems.
The Stadium: The away end is on Quarry Lane itself, It'll cost you a full £14 Adults and £7 concessions. The ground is an all seater affair, with three sides recently developed and looking mighty fine, whilst the other is a old looking stand, that seats any excess away fans, and seats 500. The away end itself will squeeze 1900 in, and is directly behind one of the goals.
Michael ‘Déjà vu’ fanzine
04/10 CHELTENHAM
How to get there: Glovers fans heading for Cheltenham should follow the M5 north to Junction 11. Take the A40 towards Cheltenham, going straight over the first roundabout and left at the second. At the top of the hill, take the 2nd exit at the large square-shaped roundabout, and continue straight ahead at the next. Turn right at the mini-roundabout, and take the 1st exit at each of the next two. Continue straight ahead, and straight over the set of traffic lights, before joining the left-hand lane and bearing left. Straight ahead at the roundabout is the 3rd exit, and the first road on the right is Whaddon Road, at which point the floodlights should be visible. Parking will be on-street as the club car park is now only for season ticket holders. (Park before reaching Whaddon Road, as the Whaddon estate is not the most salubrious). Alternatively, the club operates a park and ride scheme from Cheltenham Racecourse, which is signposted from the motorway; free buses travel both before and after the match.
Pre-match: The club bar still welcomes away fans, and the usual away pubs are about a five minute walk back towards the town centre (one is the Sudeley Arms, the other is virtually next door but the name escapes me). Food isn't easy to come by outside the ground without going all the way into town, but there is a chip shop about 150 yards further up Whaddon Road past the away entrance. The Cat & Fiddle pub opposite is best avoided as there has been occasional trouble there (although usually provoked by other teams).
The Stadium: Whaddon Road has changed a little since Yeovil's last
visit, with a new 2,000 seater stand opposite our old main stand, of which up
to about a third can be allocated to away teams, along with the Whaddon Road
terrace, which is still as decrepit as ever, although it does boast a new
turnstile block which incorporates toilets and refreshments. Capacity is now a
mighty 7,300(!) The home terrace now has a roof, which helps focus the noise
and makes a good atmosphere. It's £15 to sit and £13 to stand, with reductions
for concessions, and further reductions for under-16s. Ground photos and a
layout plan are on my website, so feel free to appropriate those as necessary.
Keith @ www.cheltrobins.co.uk
11/10 OXFORD
How to get there: The ground is to the south of the city, on the outskirts between Sandford on Thames and Blackbird Leys. It is well signposted from the ring road (follow the brown football signs) although parking can be a problem - there is a free car park with about 1500 spaces right by the ground, but this is often full by around 2ish. There is some parking along Grenoble Road (the road theground is on) but it is restricted and the traffic wardens are shit-hot round there.
The stadium: The away end doesn't exist as such, as currently we only have three sides. Away supporters are housed in the west (open) end of the North Stand. Entry is by ticket only (no cash on the turnstyles) and there is a ticket office adjacent to the away entrance although I would advise purchasing tickets in advance as you save something like £3 or £3.50 on matchday prices. Last season it was £14 in advance and £17 on the day, but I think they may have gone up by about 50p for next season. The ground is all-seater and all seats are uncovered with unrestricted views. The North Stand is single-tier but rises fairly high so there are excellent views from the back. Food, drinks (inc bottled Carlsberg) and matchday programmes are sold in the concourse, but there have been problems with supply and demand in the past with pasties and such running out sometimes even before half-time, although that should have been resolved now. There are also catering outlets in the car parks.
Pre-match: There is a pub right next to the ground, at the west end, called the Priory and ?, which is away fan friendly but only sells lager and draught flow beer. It often gets quite packed before a game. Otherwise the nearest decent pub for away fans is about a 15 minute walk away in the village of Sandford on Thames, called the Catherine Wheel, and this has Brakspears on tap (as well as pool, Sky TV, and decent, reasonably cheap, food. Fans can also
Take advantage of the restaurant at the ground which last season cost £10 for a two-course meal, but I think that the prices have gone up for next season (although to be fair it was excellent value for money ‘cos the food was top notch, and it could easily stand a modest rise without too much fuss). The stadium: The away end doesn't exist as such, as currently we
only have three sides. Away supporters are housed in the west (open) end of the
North Stand. Entry is by ticket only (no cash on the turnstyles) and there is a
ticket office adjacent to the away entrance although I would advise purchasing
tickets in advance as you save something like £3 or £3.50 on matchday prices.
Last season it was £14 in advance and £17 on the day, but I think they may have
gone up by about 50p for next season.
The ground is all-seater and all seats are uncovered with unrestricted
views. The North Stand is single-tier but rises fairly high so there are
excellent views from the back. Food,
drinks (inc bottled Carlsberg) and matchday programmes are sold in the
concourse, but there have been problems with supply and demand in the past with
pasties and such running out sometimes even before half-time, although that
should have been resolved now. There are
also catering outlets in the car parks.
Martin @ www.rageonline.co.uk
25/10 CAMBRIDGE
How to get there: From The M11 - Exit the M11 at junction 11 and
take the A1309 towards Cambridge. Continue along the A1309, and then take the
right exit onto the A603. Turn left at the second roundabout onto the A1134 and
the ground is located about a mile along this road, on your right hand side. From
The A14 - Leave the A14 at the junction with the A1303 and then follow the
A1303 towards Cambridge. Go straight over two roundabouts, and through two set
of lights, passing Cambridge airport, a large car sales and a park and ride.
Once you pass the second roundabout, start looking for a car park in one of the
back streets, as you should be able to see the flood lights from here.
Pre-match: Of the pubs relatively close to the ground The Greyhound
is the one most frequented by visiting supporters. It's a five minute dash or a
ten minute stroll away, under the railway bridge and across Coldhams Common.
The Stadium: This ground is a typical lower league stadium. It appears
to be in the middle of the housing estate, and has no road access to two of the
four stands. The away fans are now [20th Nov 2002] situated in the corner of
the west stand that runs along the side of the pitch and also in the new 1,200
all seater south stand (depending on the expected number of away supporters -
in other words, to be guaranteed the better facilities its always best to buy
lots of tickets in advance!). The facilities in the new stand are far better
than any that can be found in any other part of the ground, with excellent,
unobstructed views and cleaner, more spacious toilets to boot! To find the away
turnstiles, walk down the A1303, past the main entrance. When you get opposite
the 'Pipashi' restaurant, you need to turn left, walking along a foot path,
that crosses a field! At this point, you should be walking along the back of a
stand. The away fans are located in far end of this stand. The food is not bad,
but the service is very slow. so expect to queue for about 15-20 minutes
52 - 53 Stadium Review
It is the turn of
Yorkshire’s current biggest club Leeds United to have their stadium reviewed
for OTV. It is also my local premiership as it is located about 3 miles from my
house. Elland Road can be very striking at first sight if approaching on the
motorway as it is situated adjacent to the M621 just one junction away from the
city centre. The most obvious feature of this ground is the massive modern East
Stand (or Lurpak Stand), which stands head and shoulders above the rest of the
stadium. The other 3 sides are enclosed at the same lower level, which includes
the Revie Stand where the hardcore of the Leeds faithful congregate.
Away fans are situated at
the opposite end of the ground in the South Stand and depending on the amount
of away fans will depend on exactly where you will sit. For clubs with smaller followings
a corner of the South Stand is allocated which holds about 1,800 seats. For
Yeovil fans larger accommodation would be required, so the whole end behind the
goal would be released and Leeds fans would take the corner. This flexibility
allows Leeds to make the most of the space that they have.
At a 40,000 capacity Elland
Road is not a small ground however it does feel that way inside as legroom is
not the greatest at this stadium. It gives that air that the 40,000 have been
crammed in to the smallest space possible. Thankfully the times that I have
been to Elland Road I have had an unrestricted view and for most away fans this
will be the case. Home fans in the upper tier of the Revie Stand may not have
this luxury, as there are a few pillars. For the best view in the house must be
found in the East Stand that provides excellent viewing where ever you are.
A plus point for this
stadium is its ability to holds in a great atmosphere, in fact the first game I
saw there was the loudest crowd that season at any premiership ground. Leeds
fans are passionate and when they can be motivated can make a major racket. It
is unfortunate that they have to do it in such dire surroundings. Apart from
the very impressive East Stand, the rest of Elland Road is looking very shabby
indeed. Situated on what can only be described as wasteland next to the
motorway, it is safe to say that the stadium has seen better days. Abandoned
warehouses are found with in the stadium grounds and the hospitality area is
found in a marquee next to the bus park. All in all it isn’t the most
attractive of places to be.
This is not likely to get
any better as the clubs proposed move to a new stadium on the east side of of
the city seems to be under threat due to finances. The crisis seems to have hit
Leeds more than just on the field. Which means that you have the opportunity to
visit Elland Road for sometime to come.
If you are visiting the
ground there are several way to do it. By car is convenient due to the
proximity to the M621, however on a match day this can be nightmare so beware.
Parking can also a little problem if there is no space in the main car park as
this will mean leaving it in the less than desirable areas of Holbeck, Beeston
or Middleton. Alternatively there are many special bus services to Elland Road
which can be caught from the city centre. The easiest place to jump on is the
‘dark arches’ (now known as Granary Wharf) next to the Train Station.
As a city Leeds has a lot
to offer in terms of nightlife. With many bars and clubs in the Corn Exchange
and Calls area of the city centre. For a slightly out of town feel go to
Headlingley (take the number 1 or 95 buses) where a good cross section of bars
and pubs can be found many of which have 1 am licences. In summer time the beer
garden at the Original Oak cannot be beaten.
Overall a trip to Elland
Road and Leeds has a lot to offer with a great atmosphere held within. The flip
side of the coin is a decaying stadium in need of work. This is a stadium,
which is a sad sight in parts but still worth a visit before the club raises
some funds and moves out of town. Get it before it is gone!
54 – 55 Turkish Glover
You are probably wondering what the hell is a
Yeovil fan doing coaching Youth football in Turkey? Well I will try and
condense the answer in as few words as possible. I used to coach part time at
AFC Bournemouth with the centre of Excellence and Soccer schools. I was then
made redundant from my main job as a Marketing Executive and used the time to
pass my coaching exams in the end gaining an FA Licence. I was then offered
work for the United States Soccer Academy in New York, I went there but it went
belly up – a story in itself! I then met a Turkish girl, she moved back to
Antalya in Turkey and was soon offered a job coaching the youth team at
Antalyaspor.
So what about Turkey? The biggest problem here
is of course the language barrier, however with lessons and the fact that
Football is a international language it became easy for the players to
understand we I required from them. The second problem is the bloody heat here,
to counter this we coach from 7.00am until 11.00am and then from 6.00pm until
9.00pm. In between these times we will look at players dietary requirements and
growth spurts. Mostly the diet is not a problem, as the normal diet here is
fresh vegetables and rice, and fruit is cheap and readily available. Players
discipline is not a problem off the pitch, they are all Muslim so do not touch
alcohol, and respect what their hojam (teacher) ask of them.
One of the biggest problems faced is the
player’s parents, as most of the players are from very poor families and the
parents see their sons as the road to riches. Telling them at the six monthly
returns, that their sons are not going to make it can be very hard to do. Often
the players accept the decision with a shrug of the shoulders but the parents
end up in tears as their dreams of riches disappear.
Discipline, may be in abundance off the pitch
but can be a real problem on it, as the Turkish mentality of wining at all cost
means a serious lack of discipline. This can range from everything to blatant
diving, to spitting which isn’t really considered a major crime here. However I
won’t stand for it and some of the players have became very disillusioned with
me when I took them off in a match if they deliberately dived or punched,
kicked or spat at an opponent.
Travelling to matches can also be a pain
sometimes, with lots of matches or tournaments taking places in cities that
require 6 or 7 hours in a Dolmush. For those who have been to Turkey and
travelled in one you will know what I mean.
These are small mini busses with all the comfort of a 1980’s Safeway
coach from Yeovil Bus station! The first tournament I had to go to was in
Ankarra - we left at midnight in a dolmush
travelled through the night, arrived at 9.00am we played our first game
at 11.00am lost 5-1. We played the second game at 3.00pm lost 7-0 and were
eliminated. We then had to travel all the way back to Antalya arriving back at
1.00 the next morning! The highlight of the day was a weird conversation with
some of the team about an English player called Atkinson. In my tired and
confused state I though they meant "Big Ron" and introduced their
basic English to "early doors” much to my personal amusement. However not
until I was lying in bed the next morning
I realized they meant Dalian Atkinson, who had spent a season here at
Besiktas?
Turkey also has its perks, for example each club
is entitled to 10 tickets for internationals at reduced prices....so don’t tell
the FA but there will be at least one England fan in Istanbul for the Turkey v
England match in October. I have even thought of being brave and have a Turkish
flag with "biz sevyorum Yeovil Town"
printed on it.
I still miss the Glovers though, and get back a
couple of times a season to watch them. My dad keeps me updated on what is
going on, and of course Ciderspace which is a god send to us exiled Glovers
throughout the world.
To all Glovers at home and throughout the World,
keep the faith and Up the Greens.
MICHAEL
56 - 59 Welsh Wizards
The Welsh Wizards Kevin
Gall and Gavin Williams spoke to OTV after the Royal Antwerp game. Thanks to
both players for taking the time to speak to OTV and for being so approachable
and entertaining. Whilst doing the interview it was clear, thorough Kev and
Gavs interaction and their answers, that the players of Yeovil Town FC have a
team spirit to be proud of and coupled with their talent this should take us
far this season.
PRE SEASON
What’s the dreaded
pre-season been like?
Kevin - Well so far we’ve done
loads of football, with 15 minutes of running every so often – it doesn’t sound
hard but that was really hard…
Gav - I had to sit next to
Gally from Yeovil to Belgium that was hard!
Its quite unusual to do
loads of football work isn’t it?
G - The gaffer is obviously
more concerned with the technical side of it , we work with the ball more and
we get our fitness from that…
K - I think its much better
than running round a pitch 20 times
G - Players get pissed off
with that.
K – Its not easy though and
you can see in these games we are ready and with the games to come well get
better.
How was the operation Kev?
K - After I had the operation I didn’t do
nothing for 3/4 weeks, I couldn’t move, couldn’t walk really. I didn’t have
crutches but was I was walking really cramped over. I gradually had to get back
into it, walking for a week or so and then had to ease myself into some
running. Feel much better for it though.
Gav, you now find yourself
in a similar position…
G – I’ve not been on
crutches before, never even missed more than two games in a row with injury so
its unfortunate and frustrating. The worst part is when the lads are training
I’m stuck in the hotel.
THE TOUR
What’s it like coming
abroad and playing foreign teams?
K - This team, Antwerp, were
good today. It was really good experience for the boys. If we play as well as
we’ve done over here against Rochdale we’ll beat them 5-0. These teams are much
better than those in the 3rd division. We’ve drawn against 2 very
good sides only just lost to a great side today – if they were crap they
wouldn’t be connected to Man Utd. We’ve also got some great games when we get
back as well in Wolves and Preston, they’ve got international players in their
teams. It is great preparation.
Has there been many pranks?
K laughing –
Absolutely loads. My telly got pinched from my room on the first day and it was
Gav. Mine and Jackos bed got turned over, all our stuff was all over the room,
Roy got involved as well so we had to get him back. So I pinched his telly,
I’ve had it for a day, I’ve hidden in my room and he can’t find it. Then
someone, well 2 people have done Maccas and Gavs room today, that was bad…
G – I found all my laces
screwed up in a bottle of water.
K – There’s been a few and
there will be a few more.
G - A lot of telly
pinching…
Not with your leg though
Gav?
K laughing – Yeah
alright, believe me he has!
Anyone done the bosses yet?
K & G laughing – NO!
That sort of thing is
obviously a great sign of team spirit?
K - Its brilliant, even
though we are professional its all a good laugh…
G - …everyone knows when to
have a laugh and when to be serious.
K - Anything someone does
everybody takes the mickey out of, like Roys hair! (Both laugh) or
Jonnos new haircut - terrible.
What about Darren Way he
needs his haircut?
K - No comment (laughing)
On the subject of haircuts
the Mullets on display in Germany got us thinking. If you had to have a mullet
would it be; a Rudi Voller curly one, or a Chris Waddle shaven on sides long at
the back?
K – I would say Rudi
Voller…anything apart from Roy O’Brien’s hair – terrible mullet!
As well as the mullets the
fans have also been impressed by the huge numbers of Dogs in Antwerp, they
almost seem to be a fashion accessory – What’s your favourite dog?
K – Yeah I’ve noticed that
everyone that walks has got a dog – I didn’t really think about it till you
said it. My mum and dad have got a Staffordshire bull terrier, so it’s got to
be a staff.
G – Yeah, I’m with Gally on
that one.
WALES
Had any stick from the
England semi-pro boys?
G - Yeah, but not about the
result they were all taking the mickey out of the pitch at Merthyr (Gav and
Kevin’s home town), its usually brilliant, yet when they played England it was
terrible. We had go at some people they
let us down!
Kev, tell us about the
Under 21s?
K - Its great experience for
me I’ve got 9 caps. We’ve only won 1 since I’ve played and I think its 1 in 27
in total. You play against the best young players in the world, like Italy they
had players from Roma that sort of thing.
Is there much interaction
with the full squad?
K - Cause you stay at the
same hotel you get to know them. I’m good friends with Gary Speed from my time
at Newcastle. There are a few from Merthyr as well Mark Pembridge, Steve
Jenkins, and Jason Bowen, I always mix with them. You mix with all the big
players as well like Giggsy and Bellamy.
You mentioned Gary Speed at
Newcastle, have you got any other friends still from your time there?
K - My best mate up there
was Shoala Ameobi, I still speak to him all the time and I saw him in the
summer, he’s brilliant. I speak to a few of the young lads trying to get in the
first team like Brian Kerr, Cauldwell now on loan at Coventry, I’ll still keep
in touch with them. The boy who scored the 2 goals for Burscough last season
Wright, he was at Newcastle with me and I still speak to him.
Gav, you may not have mixed
in such famous circles but you came 2nd in the Goal of the season a
couple of season ago?
G - Trevor Sinclair won it
but I came second with my goal for Hereford v Swindon. Gally said it’s the best
goal he has ever seen.
K laughing - No I
really do, he’s got it on video and every time I go to his house he puts it on
– its broke cause he puts it on so much!
FREE TIME
Do you play Championship
Manager after training?
K – Yeah, all the time .
G laughing - But he’s shit at it.
K laughing – No, I must say I’m very
good at it as I’m Man Utd and they’ve got the best team.
Have you ever bought
yourself?
K - I haven’t actually cause
I’m crap on it…
G - Yeah but he always
cheats and put all his marks up to 20 out of 20!
Are you ever Yeovil?
K - I was but got relegated
in the first season!
What about ISS on the
Playstation?
K – I’m good at that as
well, Gav thinks he’s great but I’ve battered him every single time and he’s
crap. We should have a match in front of everyone to prove it.
G laughing – We are
both good, if any fan wants to bring it on in a doubles match let them we’ll
batter anyone!
TOP PLAYERS
If Yeovil could sign anyone
who would you want to play with?
K - Alan Shearer no doubt,
he’s unbelievable. I don’t think many people believe me when I say it but every
single day in training he never misses the target he always scores. Probably
Ronaldo and Henry as well, any one of them 3 would be nice…
G laughing …any good forward really!
K - I was gonna say Gav
until he said that, cheers!
G – Zidane, he just walks
about doing tricks and that, it would be brilliant.
Who’s the best player
you’ve ever played on the same pitch as?
K – Eric Cantona, when I was
in the reserves at Newcastle. He was outrageous, the best player I’ve ever seen.
You’ve got your Maradonna’s and your Cryuff’s but in my time he’s the best, he
was just immense, so good it was scary.
G - Roy Keane when Hereford
played Man Utd in a friendly, it was only a friendly but he was brilliant.
THIS SEASON
Kev, You looking forward to
going back to Rovers?
K - I cant wait there’s a
lot of stuff that went on there a lot of things people don’t know about, like I
said in my Western Gazzete interviews a lot of crap went on and I’d rather
forget it. It’s football and it happens, and yes I am looking forward to going
back (grinning)
G - Game I’m looking forward
to the most is Swansea away being a Cardiff fan…
K - …the away one is round
Christmas time. I had the Swansea game when I was at Rovers at the same time
last year. All my friends play for Swansea including my best friend Andrew
Mumford, but I like Cardiff cause I used to play for them as a kid. I’m not
like Gav, he’s a proper fan but all the lads at Cardiff are brilliant like
Robbie Earnshaw. Sam Hammnan (Cardiff’s enigmatic Chairman) always stays at the
hotel when Wales plays an international – he’s mad he really is. I did the
‘ayatollah’ celebration {the Cardiff fans celebration in honour of their
Chairman) last season because my agent used to play for Swansea so we took the
mickey out of him.
G laughing - That could be the goal
celebration at Swansea.
K laughing - Right in
front of the north bank that would be interesting.
How do you think we could
this season?
G – A top 7 finish hopefully
but even if we finish in the top half we would still had had a successful
season.
K – We’ve set our standards
so high we will be disappointed if we don’t get into the top half at least,
especially with players like Macca and Plucky with their sort personality.
Thanks again to Gav and Kev
and if anyone thinks they are as half as good as myself at ISS Pro Evolution 2
email us at ontovictoryfanzine@yahoo.co.uk and we may be able to put the lads
to test in the future.
60 - 61 YTFC TV
OTV can exclusively reveal
that YTFC have followed in the footsteps of Man Utd’s MUTV by launching YTTV, a
new 24-hour digital channel devoted to Yeovil Town FC. DAN BRITTON carried a
highly illegal midnight raid on the new station’s headquarters in order to
bring you a copy of the schedule for the opening weekend.
Documentary featuring
YTFC’s historic FA Cup exploits.
11.30am The Terry and Gary
Show
The skipper and the gaffer
host their daily chat show. (Not to be confused with the Terry and Gabby Show,
the zero-rating Channel 5 show.)
12.30pm Home & Away
Long running soap. Kevin Gall rounds off a fine display with a
goal.
1.00pm Dream Team
Terry Skiverton reprises
his role as the first team coach of Harchester Utd. In this latest episode Skivo stands in the
background.
1.30pm Doctors
Soap. Gilesy and Skivo get a progress check on
their road to fitness. Meanwhile Mac
decides it may be time for a change.
2.00pm Dream Team
Next instalment of the Sky
One football soap. Terry points from the dugout while looking perplexed.
2.30pm Home & Away
Long running soap. Kevin Gall rounds off a fine display with
another goal.
3.00pm The Match
Live coverage of today’s
game.
6.00pm (I Think) I’m a
Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here
The successful reality show
returns with Michael McIndoe and Anthony Tonkin.
7.00pm You’ve Been Framed
Documentary on the transfer
saga of Michael McIndoe. With Den
Stevos.
7.30pm Big Brother
The team mates announce
their nominations for eviction from Huish Park.
8.00pm Take the High Road
The continuing story of
Michael McIndoe.
8.30pm Pop Idol
Featuring karaoke coverage
from the FA Trophy victory ride home (as seen in Skivo and Jono’s Trophy
Adventure) and Kirk Jackson’s welcome to YTFC.
9.00pm Only Fools &
Horses
Repeat of the Christmas 2002 episode. Starring Abdelhalim Elkholti as Gary and Rob
Cousins as Trigger. Gary is kidnapped
from France in the back of a lorry and brought to England, where he is greeted
by a cockney he can’t understand.
10.00pm Seven
Film. Saturday night
offering starring Adam Stansfield.
1.00am – 7.am The Match
Extra
Highlights, reaction and
analysis of today’s game.
SUNDAY
Documentary charting YTFC’s
108-year battle to gain entry to the Football League. Like the original 100 year war, it didn’t
lasted 100 years, but that sounds better.
11.30am Dream Team
Soap. In his biggest
storyline yet Skivo tells the lads it’s time for training.
12.00pm The Politics Show
Jeremy Vine interviews Nick
Crittenden about his conversion from a right winger to a left winger and back
again, and again…
1.00pm Tom White and the
Seven Dwarfs
Tom White takes the lead
role in this pantomime. Also stars Gary
Johnson, Darren Way, Andy Lindegaard and Lee Johnson.
2.30pm YTFC Chart Show
Music show featuring
performances by Lisa Stansfield and They Might Be Giants (starring Hugo
Rodrigues and the Jolly Green Giant).
3.00pm The Great Escape
Feature film charting Jamie
Gosling’s recent transfer from Bath City.
6.00pm Strike It Plucky
Game show.
6.30pm Groundforce
The team check on the
progress of the Huish Park pitch. With
Charlie Dimmock, or is it Ray Parlour?
7.00pm Casualty
A trip to Dorchester sees
Adam Stansfield go off injured.
8.00pm Footballer’s Mothers
A change to the original
schedule, replacing Footballer’s Wives – well, they’re nearly all too young to
have wives.
9.00pm Auf Wiedersehen, Pet
Drama. In a special episode for Bristol Rovers fans,
the loveable brickies provide the opposition to YTFC so that Kevin Gall can
score. (He only scores against brickies,
plumbers and plasterers you know!).
10.00pm 3
The popular BBC drama 24
is back, this time with a new name to reflect the change in Abdou Elkholti’s
squad number.
11.00pm Crimewatch
Nick Ross and Fiona Bruce
investigate the frequent disappearance of Hereford’s best players to Somerset.
12.00am Late night fax in
Graham Roberts hosts YTTV’s
late night interactive show. The master
of the fax machine will no doubt receive messages by the sack.
1.00am – 7.00am News
All the latest news
straight from the club’s official website, www.ytfc.net. The remaining 5 hours and 59 minutes after
you realise there is no news on the site will be taken up by last season’s
highlights.
62 The Last Word
So, the rollercoaster ride of the football league has just begun and it is hard to explain how I feel about it. The professionalism that has been shown by Gary and the boys (he who moved to Donny not included) to get us to this point has been nothing less than astonishing and I thank them for it. Even during the recent Carling Cup defeat at Luton it was evident that the team would not give up and roll over. The reaction to this was great support from the fans singing to the final whistle. This is what happens when your can prove yourself to the fans and earn their respect. This earning of respect and trust has to come on and off the field from the club to the fans. While there have been times in our recent history that the fans have not felt this respect from the club, I do feel that times are changing. Off the field, over the last year or so, I have noticed that many of the wishes of the fans are being heard. Two great examples would be the voting on the shirts and the club crest. This dialogue with the fans may not be perfect at the moment, however it is improving all the time, which we should be thankful for. I know that there are areas of concern that keep cropping up in conversation between all Yeovil fans that I meet and talk to. The supporters’ bar at Huish Park is one that is always close to the top of the list. With the recent addition of the marquee it is evident that the club is making some strides toward providing a place for fans to congregate before and after matches. It may not be a perfect solution however the alternative could have been so much worse. Another area of concern is the state of the www.ytfc.net which without a doubt needs more than a little overhaul. It is true to say in this day in age, a website is a very public face of a football club and where so many gain information. At this point I think that it is only providing a very basic service that has been bettered by Ciderspace. While this is by no means a competition, it highlights the work that needs to be done. With promotion to the football league there was the option to join the Premium TV network of sites that is commonplace to most clubs. It is my understanding that Yeovil decided not to take up this option. So I am left to trust that the site will be radically overhauled independently. With this in mind I was encouraged to see the site has been upgraded to now allow limited purchases from the club shop. This is certainly a step in the right direction, and it is with little progressions like this that I feel that the future will be rosy one. I completely understand the
main aim for the season is cementing our place in the football league. Finances
will be pushed into more football areas of the club rather than bars and
websites, which is quite right considering the circumstances. So I find myself
having to be patient for these improvements to be made. Some years ago I might
not have been so understanding, but recent success has led to greater trust in
the powers that be at YTFC. The promises that have been made to us have been
met (if not a little extended to get there), so I see no reason why these other
off the field matters should not join suit. As long as communication between
the club and the fans is a priority on these topics, I’m sure that they will be
resolved in time. We may just have to grin and bare it for a little while longer.