James Hamilton on Sport History and Psychology
Or rather, three, in order of length: Denis Law brings an end to an auld sang with a backheel: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRgAW_lvplo] Terrible music accompanies England out of the 1970 World Cup and out of the footballing daylight for two generations: And where the light was brightest: Brazil v England, 1970:
This site has been an attempt in part to discover if there is a market, or an audience, for sports blogging/writing at the same level as exists for literature, science and history. I’ve come to the conclusion that there isn’t (MTMG has about 100 regular readers, who visit on average once per week, although the…
One of my favourite pieces of “Edwardian” (in this case merely pre-Great War) football films was taken at an FA Cup tie of 1912 between Manchester United and West Ham. It’s been a regular victim of the Youtube Copyright Wars, in which the latest poster appears to be playing the role of kamikaze. Nonetheless, whilst…
Jamie Jackson’s review of English youth coaching and Sir Trevor Brooking’s attempts to save us from ourselves makes essential, if overwhelmingly depressing, reading: Brazil continues to produce a ceaseless line of top-class players and one of them who lit up the Premiership, Juninho, said this after watching an FA youth coaching session in England: ‘This…
I’m very fond of Coventry. My organization holds the majority of its seminars there, and after south east England, the friendliness of the locals takes getting used to. Youtube member Deanocity3 gives us this combination of two Pathe films featuring the Sky Blues, one from 1955, one from 1962. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGp1itE6GMI] And he’s appended film to…
Holland’s route one football proves no match for Revie’s silky England as veteran striker Peters scores twice for his country: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oe13b3wH19U] Bamber Gascoigne leads studio discussion after the 2-0 win.
Chris Sutton spent much of the last season suffering from that other modern footballer’s injury, blurred eyesight. Now he has announced his retirement from the game. Some of his more important matches, starting of course with Norwich City’s away win in the UEFA Cup against Bayern Munich: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N-FebBxbGXY] Winning the Premiership alongside Dalglish, Shearer and…
Derby County vs Nottingham Forest 1979: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G2A4U-i726k] It says something for the social progress we’ve had in the UK in the last twenty years that of the companies advertising at the Baseball ground that day – Unipart, Servis, Carling Lager – it’s Carling who have gone from strength to strength (2% to 4.7% in the…
More from the dark days of 30 years ago: the 1972 European Cup Final. Ajax knock the long ball up to the big man in the mixer: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8MPNS0nurIA]
During the 1970s, Tottenham Hotspur made up for the lack of close season income by letting White Hart Lane to the government, who used it as a gaol for communists and other political undesirables. Don’t believe me? Here’s the video to prove it: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5_pcERq1p_0]