MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : FOUR FOUR TWO – OCTOBER 2004

Various stars from Barcelona are the cover stars of this edition of Four Four Two, as the club are at the beginning of a revival after a few lean years at the start of the century.

Steve McManaman is the subject of this Month’s Cash For Questions, where he urges Wayne Rooney to stay at Everton, and reveals his first footballing hero was Bob Latchford.

Brian Clough uses his column to suggest that Trevor Brooking should replace Sven Goran-Eriksson after a sex scandal involving the Swede. Clough died before this magazine hit the shelves.

Lloyd Dyer of West Brom and Alan Blayney of Southampton are the subject’s of this month’s The Boy’s A Bit Special. Blayney reveals he doesn’t share Antti Niemi’s love of Metallica and Iron Maiden.

Robbie Savage uses his column to talk about his excitement about the forthcoming World Cup Qualifier between England and Wales at Old Trafford. It would be a match he wouldn’t take part in as he was suspended after his red card against Northern Ireland the previous month. He never played for Wales again.

Lawrie McMenemy is subject to a Q and A where he reveals that he’s not much of a drinker.

New Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech is also subject to a Q and A, where he reveals that Arsenal were interested in signing him in 2002. Eventually, in 2015, he would sign for Arsenal.

Cover stars Barcelona get 15 pages of coverage, as they return to the Champions League after a season in the UEFA Cup, after a turbulent period at the start of the century. That month, they would give a debut to an unknown teenager called Lionel Messi.

There are three pages dedicated to a round table discussion between fans of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland ahead of the 2006 World Cup Qualifiers, where England, Wales and Northern Ireland were all the the same group.

Gilberto Silva of Arsenal reveals a dark secret to Four Four Two ……… he plays the Mandolin.

Pete Winkleman is interviewed as MK Dons begin their first season in Milton Keynes, having stolen Wimbledon’s place in the Football League.

Elswhere in the Football League, there is a full page feature on Nick Barmby, as he has signed for his local club Hull City.

In Scotland, there is turmoil at Hearts as the club plans to sell Tynecastle and play home games at Murrayfield.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : SHOOT 1.2.1986

Craig Johnston of Liverpool is the cover star ahead of a big week of cup football, but it will be revealed inside that he could be ending his season at the World Cup in Mexico.

Terry Gibson gets a double page interview after having an eventful year where his house and car suffered a series of attacks from a female fan who wanted to try and stop him from leaving Coventry.

Trevor Brooking tries to predict the outcome of the 4th Round of the FA Cup, tipping wins for Liverpool, Manchester United and Everton.

In Scotland, Shoot predicts a cup exit for Rangers in the tie of the round away to Hearts.

Shoot does a feature on Hung Quec Dang, who won Bobby Charlton Soccer Schools Competition to be invited to train with Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Juventus and Aston Villa.

As the World Cup nears, Shoot does a “Focus On …..” with Bobby Robson, where he reveals that his favourite singers are Frank Sinatra, Neil Diamond and Shirley Bassey.

As you turn the page, there is another Robson, this time Bryan, who suggests that Craig Johnston, an Australian eligible for England, should be in England’s World Cup squad, while adding that Scotland and Northern Ireland might also be interested in getting his services, as he was eligible for all three countries due to having a UK passport.

There is a third Robson, Stewart, who got mentioned in Bryan’s column, suggesting he might be a star for Bobby at Euro 88.

Staying with the World Cup preparations, Scotland manager Alex Ferguson hits back at suggestions that his role with the national side is having a negative impact on Aberdeen, as he tries to do two jobs at once.

West Ham are getting cheered on from Yorkshire, as Mervyn Day tells Shoot he is pleased to see West Ham’s upturn in results this season.

Anthony Smith of Anglesey wins Jimmy Greaves Letter Of The Week for suggesting Don Revie should return to Leeds as manager, while Padraic Moran of Kilkenny suggests Liverpool should drop Ian Rush.

Gerry Forrest gets a full page feature, as he comes to terms with making his top flight debut at the age of 29, after making a move from Rotheram United to Southampton.

In transfer rumours, Everton want to sign Nick Pickering, Luton want to sign Brian McClair, and Sammy McIlroy wants to leave Manchester City in order to get games for the forthcoming World Cup.

Ian Rush uses his column to hit back at Brian Clough, after the Nottingham Forest manager accused Liverpool of being moaners after a recent draw between the two teams.

Motherwell get a Club Profile, while Aston Villa manager Graham Turner defends his record in the transfer market, having spent relatively big money on Paul Elliott, Simon Stainrod, Steve Hodge and Andy Gray.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : SHOOT – 8.5.1993

Paul Ince, accompanied by the headline “JUST CHAMPION!” is the cover star of Shoot, as Manchester United have just won their first league title in 26 years.

The title success must have come too late for Shoot’s printing deadlines, as there was no features about it in the magazine.

On the inside cover, there is a poster of three of Juventus stars – Roberto Baggio, Gianluca Vialli and Roberto Baggio. Curiously, Baggio was pictured in action for Italy.

In news, Brian Clough has announced his retirement, and Shoot prints various tributes from players and managers.

Crystal Palace returned a lot of their allocation of tickets for the FA Cup Final, with Chairman Ron Noades requesting that the FA redistribute them equally to fans of the two finalists, Arsenal and Sheffield Wednesday.

Marco Van Basten has said that Manchester United are equipped to dominate European football for years to come, adding that the prospect of them playing in the following season’s European Cup is “An exciting prospect, but also a frightening one”

Coca-Cola’s official statistics pack for the Coca-Cola Cup (League Cup) Final listed Sheffield Wednesday’s Chris Bart-Williams as Chris Bart-Simpson.

Cyrille Regis could be heading back to West Brom after being free transferred by Aston Villa.

There are rumours of departures at Manchester City, with Niall Quinn (Porto), David White (Aston Villa) and Keith Curle (Sheffield Wednesday) all attracting interest from other clubs.

Manager Peter Reid could also be on the move, as his friendship with Liverpool Chairman David Moores could make him a candidate for the manager’s job at Anfield if Graeme Souness is sacked. Reid was sacked by City in August after a poor start to the following season.

Aston Villa Chairman Doug Ellis has refused to allow Villa Park to be used to host a testimonial game for the club’s European Cup winning manager Tony Barton. Barton died in August that year.

Liverpool and Leeds began the season at Wembley in the Charity Shield, and endured miserable seasons. Shoot gives two pages looking at where it went wrong for them both.

Colin Cooper has told Milwall he doesn’t want to be sold. He was that summer, to Nottingham Forest.

Ally McCoist, already scored 50 goals this season, gets a double page tribute.

Stoke City, promoted from the Second Division (Third Tier) get a feature, where they already have ambitions of reaching the Premier League. They wouldn’t achieve it until 2008.

Grantley Dicks of Bath City gets a feature, mostly about his disciplinary record which matches that of his brother Julian.

Jimmy Greaves letters sees him admit he was wrong that Eric Cantona would be a bad signing for Manchester United, and announce he will be co-hosting (with Ian St John, of course) a show called Sporting Questions, a sporting version of Question Time.

In foreign news, Andy Herzog has a curious goalscoring motivation – his uncle sends his Austrian cakes when he scores, and dog food when he doesn’t. Marco Van Basten has given AC Milan a boost by returning in time for the title run-in, while in Spain, Sevilla’s two Diegos – Simeone and Maradona are in trouble for not attending a Spanish FA disciplinary hearing after a brawl against Cadiz. Both players were believed to be on holiday.

The was also a competition to win a VHS of 501 German Goals.

Peter Ndlovu gets a two page feature, focusing on his travels to play for Zimbabwe in World Cup and African Nations Cup Qualifiers.

Mark Hughes gets a double page feature, with tributes from team-mates and opponents, having become the 10th player to score 100 goals for Manchester United. He would have another milestone coming up, having just won his 49th cap for Wales.

Scotland have suffered their biggest defeat in 18 years and are certain to miss their first World Cup since 1970. Staying in Scotland, Jimmy Nicholl has announced his retirement from playing to concentrate on managing Raith Rovers. Nicholl had been linked with the Northern Ireland manager’s job, as Billy Bingham was expected to retirement in the summer of 1993.

Bingham did retire in November 1993, and Nicholl was interviewed for the post but was unsuccessful. He tried again in 2004, and was again unsuccessful.

Shoot announces the result of a recent Teletext poll to reveal Britain’s Most Fervent Derby. The winner was Rangers v Celtic with 18%, beating Newcastle v Sunderland (12%)

Linfield v Glentoran polled 2%.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : SHOOT – 27.12.1980

Santa Claus of North Pole United in the cover star of Shoot, as the first Christmas of the 1980s approaches.

Except, that it’s not Santa Claus, it’s a footballer dressed up as him. All will be revealed on page 2.

Out mystery Santa is someone who enjoys dressing up in red and white, Tony Woodcock of Arsenal.

Shoot gets in the Christmas spirit by suggesting presents for various football personalities, with a razor for bearded Aston Villa player Dennis Mortimer, while Watford chairman Elton John is suggested a piano with a TV screen so that he can watch Watford matches while he is on tour. I’m not sure that has actually been invented. I might just try and copyright that.

Shoot reviews the first-half of the English league season, with Liverpool and Aston Villa level on points at the top, with Liverpool looking to become the first team since the 1930s to win 3 titles in a row, while Aston Villa are looking for their first title in 71 years.

Eamonn McCabe, Sports Photographer Of The Year, gets a double page spread showing his favourite photos from 1980, while there is a competition to win a camera.

Ray Clemence uses his column to look back at the year, with the high of Liverpool winning the league and a low of England’s group exit at the European Championship.

There is a double page photo collage of Wales and England’s recent World Cup Qualifiers, with the headline “Spain – Here We Come”.

Wales didn’t make it to Spain, and England just about qualified.

Liverpool’s reserve team gets a full page feature, asking four of their players – Ian Rush, Howard Gayle, Steve Ogrizovic and Richard Money – what it’s like to play for Liverpool’s reserves.

Liverpool’s title rivals Aston Villa are featured on the next page, looking at their “Dunfermline connection”, as two players from the Fife town, Allan Evans and Ken McNaught, playing their part in Villa’s title bid.

In news, Graham Gooch is training with West Ham to keep himself fit during Cricket’s off-season.

Shoot does a feature on “Forgotten Heroes”, the players who are struggling to get first team action in 1980.

Dundee get a team poster while Phil Neal gets a player profile. His favourite music is Michael Jackson, Gerry Rafferty and ELO.

There is a joint interview with Peter McCloy (Rangers) and Pat Bonner (Celtic) about what it’s like to play in goal for an Old Firm team.

Staying in Scotland, Gordon McQueen uses his column to look back at 1980, and reveals that a clairvoyant that a great 1981 has been predicted for him.

Aston Villa travel to Brighton over Christmas, and John Gregory of Brighton, a former Villa player, tells Shoot that the club deserves success.

In South America, Uruguay were hosting a tournament to celebrate 50 years since the first World Cup, involving all former winners. England declined the option as it would have involved postponing league games over Christmas. Meanwhile, Shoot does a joint interview with Diego Maradona and Alfredo Di Stefano.

Clive Allen uses his column to state that he is looking forward to Crystal Palace’s trip to Southampton, mainly for the opportunity to meet Kevin Keegan.

John Chiedozie of Leyton Orient is profiled, with his manager describing his as “England’s best winger”

Unfortunately for Ron Greenwood, he was already declared himself for Nigeria.

Andy Gray writes in his column about how injuries have benefitted Wolves, as it has presented first-team opportunities to some of their promising youngsters.

Manchester United get featured, with Shoot focusing on the fanaticism of their fans, suggesting that girls born in Manchester are likely to be called Louise (after Lou Macari) or Samantha (after Sammy McIlroy)

Shoot does a double page spread on players they predict to be “England’s Superstars Of The 1980s”, listing players such as Craig Johnston, Gary Shaw, Steve McMahon, Remi Moses, Sammy Lee, Gary Mabbutt, Peter Beardsley and Adrian Heath to make an impact in the upcoming decade.

There is a photo compilation of the biggest footballing moments of 1980, while there is a calendar for 1981.

With 18 months to go, the countdown to the 1982 World Cup is already underway, with Spanish clubs spending a combined £50m modernising their stadiums to host games, with Shoot giving a club by club breakdown.

Peter Shilton uses his column to champion Terry Butcher’s cause for a place in the England team, and reveals he’s always been a fan of Tottenham due to the way they played football in the 60s.

Derek Johnston’s column recalls Andy Cameron’s stand-up routine at the Player Of The Year Awards where he made fun of players of every club, including his beloved Rangers.

There is also a feature on managers such as Dave Sexton, Brian Clough, Ron Saunders and Lawrie McMenemy who have all went on to bigger things despite experiencing the sack early in their career.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : FOOTBALL MONTHLY – MAY 1982

Kenny Dalglish is the cover star of Football Monthly as the 1982 World Cup approaches, a tournament he will be playing in for Scotland.

There are rumours that the management duo of Brian Clough and Peter Taylor might be breaking up, with Taylor wanting to become a manager in his own right.

Arnold Muhren gets profiled as one of the best foreign players in England, while English players could be set for moves to Italy after the Italian FA passed a rule to allow teams to have two foreign players in Serie A.

Barry Davies writes a column where he praises Bobby Robson, describing him as a future England manager, while another columnist praises Stewart Robson of Arsenal, predicting he could be playing top flight football for 20 years.

In Northern Ireland, John Jameson of Glentoran is profiled, revealing that his middle name is Charles, and that he is named in tribute to John Charles.

In Scotland, Ruud Krol of Holland expects them to get to the Second Phased of the World Cup, with the Dutch having recently face Scotland in a friendly.

EDINBLOG 2017

After a one year absence, I was back at the Edinburgh Festival.

I didn’t go last year as I went to the European Championship in France instead.

Not going to lie, August 2016 was unbearable, as I follow a lot of performers and venues on Social Media and all they did was post about Edinburgh. It was like hearing about a party you weren’t at.

I decided to go over for the opening weekend. There’s no bad time to go, it’s brilliant all month. From experience, the festival is at it’s best in the middle as you can find them just getting warmed up at the start and winding down at the end.

As I say, there is no bad time to go, and I began to count down from the moment I had the trip booked.

Part of the countdown is getting the programme and circling through it. Lots and lots of circling.

It’s not essential, but it does help if you plan what you want to see in advance. So, I created a database (stop laughing) and plotted my schedule of what I wanted to see.

However, I got lazy and forgot to book them in advance, so I would be gambling on purchasing them on my first day.

Thankfully, it wasn’t too bad. I got all I wanted, albeit having to rearrange the days I saw them to what was planned.

There was a mildly amusing (I’m downgrading it in order to manage expectations) moment when I asked the woman at the counter if Grainne Maguire’s free lunchtime show was ticketed and she replied “Grainne with a fada?”.

I thought her computer was case sensitive but it turned out she was asking if I was wanting to see Grainne Maguire’s other show she was doing.

I went to see What Has The News Ever Done For Me? hosted by Grainne Maguire, where a panel of comedians put forward a case as to why their light hearted news story of choice is the most important story in the world.

The show was ok, but I imagine it will get better throughout the month. What we did learn is that Maguire’s knowledge of Scottish politics is that Labour Leader Kezia Dugdale has a new girlfriend, with Maguire revealing that she once bought a dress because Dugdale wore it.

We also had people loitering outside, unsure if they wanted to see the show. They disappeared before the end of the show.

Despite a year away, I still hadn’t lost the knack of politely declining flyers and apologetically replying “I’m fine thanks”, a phrase I would say quite a lot over the weekend.

On my first day there, the weather didn’t disappoint. When I say it didn’t disappoint, I mean, I expected rain and got lots of it.

I went for a walk to Potterow where building work meant that the BBC’s location had been moved to nearby George Heriot’s School.

I only applied for one show, Steve Wright In The Afternoon on my first day there, and was unsuccessful.

While heading back from Potterow, The Scotsman were selling copies where you get a free goody bag. This include free sun cream …… as the rain continued to fall. Even the Newspaper Sellers in Edinburgh think they’re comedians.

As I headed into Edinburgh from the Airport, I browsed through the listings in Metro and saw an event which caught my eye called Fringe By The Sea, a counter event in North Berwick, a 30 minute train journey away.

KT Tunstall was playing on the Monday while I was there, but it was sold out.

Another concert I was unaware of until I arrived was Madness performing at Falkirk Stadium on the first day I arrived. Falkirk is only 30 minutes from Edinburgh by train.

No point crying over what I missed out on.

On the Friday teatime I went to see What Bowie Did Next looking at what David Bowie did when he entered heaven.

It wasn’t awful, but it wasn’t something i’d preach about to others. There were some fluffed lines, but they weren’t disastrous due to some quick thinking and audience interaction, and we did get to see Jimi Hendrix as portrayed by Jim Broadbent.

Friday accidentally became a themed day of dead people as my next show starred Margaret Thatcher. Well, probably someone in costume as her.

Thatcher Queen Of Game Shows is the follow-up to Thatcher Queen Of Sho, where Maggie now hosts a Game Show where plebs battle it out for benefits.

As I queued outside, Thatcher came out to inform the crowd that the show was delayed due to technical issues, blaming them on Theresa May.

She even apologised for the delay. That was very uncharacteristic for her. She didn’t apologise for the rain though.

The show pitted Skivers against Strivers. I was sat in the Skivers section, as we were treated to Angela Merkel rapping and Nicola Sturgeon in puppet form. Seriously, go see it.

Saturday morning was spent visiting Grassmarket and walking around the general Princes Street area, before catching some football as Edinburgh City took on Montrose,

By Saturday teatime, Edinburgh was now bathed in sunshine and that free sun cream was coming in handy, as I headed to Pleasance to see Matt Forde with a show titled that it was hastily rewritten.

He covers Politics and, i’m not sure if you’ve noticed recently, but Politics is fucked up these days.

You don’t have to be into Politics to enjoy the show, as he talks about loving the way Paul Nuttall says “Fisheries” and not much else about him.

Sunday morning was spent looking for bargains in the charity shops near Potterow and visiting Royal Mile Market as Edinburgh got treated to more rain.

By this point, The Scotsman were now giving out ponchos to anyone who bought it.

I’d left a gap on Monday for KT Tunstall, but i’d resigned myself to not going, so I set about getting tickets for Monday.

I purchased one for The Damned United. I’d hoped to see James Acaster but he was sold out, so Monday night was still free.

On Sunday teatime I went to see a show called Ringo starring Alexander Fox, about his obsession with Ringo Starr.

His accent when impersonating Starr sounded a bit Yorkshire, but a quick audio montage during the show revealed that Ringo’s accent goes all over the place.

Fox stated that he couldn’t afford an agent of flyers as he spent all his budget on a drum kit to perform on stage during the show.

However, I saw Flyerers for his show on the Monday, so he must have had a good weekend.

On the Sunday evening, I went to see Whose Line Is It Anyway? which was worth it to see Phill Jupitus do Bollywood.

I toyed with the idea of getting up early on Monday to walk Arthur’s Seat, but slept in. Try again in 2018.

I walked around Edinburgh on Monday morning, really realising how much I miss going to MacAulay and Co on weekday mornings, with the show having been cancelled by BBC Scotland in 2015.

So, what to do on Monday night?

Monday lunchtime was a free show called Circled In the Radio Times by John Osborne about inheriting his Grandad’s old editions of Radio Times and being able to pinpoint the exact moment he stopped watching Eastenders. It involved a Mitchell family feud.

Monday teatime was spent watching a stage version of The Damned United.

We even got a programme. Well, a sheet listing the cast, but i’m counting it as a programme.

It was very sweary, with some of Brian Clough’s mannerisms being spot on.

I wouldn’t say it’s the best play about Brian Cough at this year’s Fringe, but it’s in the top one.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t run for 44 days.

Warning, it’s very sweary.

Monday night was spent seeing Fred MacAulay at The Stand.

I’ve been a fan for a while but never got round to seeing as I usually went to his BBC show for free so didn’t feel the need to.

He observed his level of fame as being people know his name but don’t know his name and shared his fear that he might be related to Donald Trump.

So, that was it, my Edinburgh was over for another year and I flew back to Belfast on Tuesday morning.

One downside is that when you go, there will be some acts you miss. Here are some i’d suggest if you are heading over that I would have loved to have seen but they weren’t on when I was there :

Fred MacAulay In Conversation

Iain Connell

Limmy

Live At The Pleasance

Mark Watson

In Conversation With Amy MacDonald

Mr Laurel and Mr Hardy

So that is me, until August 2018 when it will be uphill walks, apologising to flyerers, rain, and most importantly, a good time.

Edinblog 2015

Edinblog 2014

Edinblog 2013

Edinblog 2012

Edinblog 2011

Edinblog 2010

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : SHOOT – 4.10.1986

Mark Hughes, in the early months of his first season at Barcelona, is the cover star of this week’s edition of Shoot.

His fellow cover star Kerry Dixon is fighting back at critics who criticised his performance in England’s recent friendly defeat against Sweden.

Dixon will be on your TV screens at the weekend as his Chelsea team take on Manchester United, with United goalkeeper wanting revenge for the previous season’s defeat to Chelsea at Old Trafford during the title run-in. The previous season’s meeting was between two teams at the top, this time around it’s between teams in the bottom half.

In news, John Wark is wanted by Hearts, Aberdeen and Norwich, while Mickey Thomas is wanted by Wichita Wings in North America.

One man who did move was Kevin Richardson, who moved from Everton to Watford, and got a phone call from Elton John welcoming him to the club, and believed it was a wind-up from his former Everton team-mates.

Everton supporters with a tenner spare could join their Fan Club, advertised in this edition.

There were plans for a testimonial for Pat Jennings before the end of 1986 at Windsor Park between an All-Star British XI to take on a European XI.

In the editor’s column, editor Peter Stewart rubbishes the idea of a proposed “Super League”, pointing to the success of smaller clubs such as Wimbledon, Oxford and Charlton.

The same column also praises Luton Town for their ban on away supporters at Kenilworth Road, as they aim to combat hooliganism.

Brian Clough tells Shoot that he doesn’t want Forest star Franz Carr to get an England call-up, because his former club Blackburn will be due a payment as part of the transfer arrangement.

Talking of England, they’ve been invited to a tournament of former World Cup winners in Brazil in 1989 to commemorate 75 years of football in Brazil. England were paired in the same group as Brazil and Uruguay.

It was a tournament that Enzo Bearzot, Italy’s 1982 World Cup winning manager, won’t be taking part in, having just resigned from his role as national team manager.

Mark Wright is on the comeback trail after an injury during Southampton’s FA Cup Semi-Final against Liverpool which ruled him out of the World Cup in Mexico. He talks to Shoot about his experiences coming back from injury.

In Glasgow, it is young players that are the talk of the town, with Shoot doing a feature on breakthrough stars Tony Shepherd (Celtic), Ian Durrant and Derek Ferguson (Rangers)

Another (relative) youngster making a mark was 32 year old Wolves manager Brian Little, who gets a double page spread in what Shoot describe as “Football’s hardest job”

Cover star Mark Hughes gets a double page feature, where he lists his favourite things. Since you ask, his favourite bands are The Jam and U2.

Also getting a double page profile are Derby County, who Shoot describe as “on the march”, and so it proved as they got promoted to Division One in 1987.

The magazine ends with Charlie Nicholas uses his column to urge Scotland fans to stand by newly appointed manager Andy Roxburgh after a disappointing start to their Euro 88 Qualifying campaign.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : SHOOT – 12.10.1985

Norman Whiteside, still only twenty years old, is this week’s cover star, as Shoot reveals what he is really like.

As you open the magazine, there is a double page article called Tottenham Scotspur, focusing on the lack of Scottish talent at White Hart Lane, with only youngster Ally Dick being on the books.

Dick is described as a name for tomorrow, but his tomorrow would be outside the UK, most notably at Ajax, where he was a substitute in the 1988 European Cup Winners Cup Final.

Shoot suggests Scottish talent who Spurs should sign, such as Paul McStay, Maurice Malpas, Jim Leighton (who would end up across North London at Arsenal for a short loan spell in 1991) and Richard Gough, who would sign for Spurs the following summer.

In news, Kevin Keegan has quit England to live in Spain so he can play Golf all year round.

Ian Rush uses his column to reveal that new Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish is much tougher than his predecessors Joe Fagin and Bob Paisley.

The FAI invoked a UEFA rule to stop RTE showing live coverage of top flight games in England on a Saturday afternoon, to stop viewers in Northern Ireland watching it instead of attending games at Irish League clubs. Their own domestic league, League Of Ireland, would have been unaffected due to playing on Sundays.

Having suggested possible signings for Spurs earlier, Shoot report that Spurs are looking at signing either Alvin Martin or Steve Bruce.

Bryan Robson uses his column to appeal to referees to stop allowing goalkeepers to move before a penalty kick is taken.

Charlie Nicholas recent goal against Coventry gets a double page photo collage.

Cover star Norman Whiteside gets a double page spread, where he is described as a tough guy with a soft centre, and reveals that he misses Gordon McQueen in the dressing room, who he describes as almost as funny as Jimmy Cricket.

Shoot goes behind the scenes at Aberdeen, where manager Alex Ferguson says the basis of their success (prophetically, considering his future success at Manchester United) is young players brought through the club. He also describes cook Belle Morrison as his bets signing.

When this magazine went to print, there was no coverage of English football on TV (contradicting the earlier story about RTE) meaning no games were filmed. The impact was felt abroad, as Scandinavian fans were now deserting English clubs for Italian and West German sides, with both league now being broadcast there instead.

Brian Clough uses his column to reveal that he’ll miss recently departed Southampton manager Lawrie McMenemy supplying him with strawberries whenever his side visits The Dell, and expresses his opposition to the idea of groundsharing in England.

Lee Chapman of Sheffield Wednesday has a simple ambition for this season, to get more goals than stitches.

Tommy Cannon, described as “The suave half of Cannon and Ball”, gets a full page feature having just joined the board at Rochdale. The story is accompanied by a picture of him posing in a Rochdale kit.

Frank McGarvey, enjoying a successful second spell at St Mirren, tells Shoot he regrets not staying at Liverpool longer.

Steve Hodge, a recent Aston Villa signing, tells Shoot he has joined “A team of the future”. Aston Villa were relegated in 1987, by which point Hodge had left to sign for Tottenham Hotspur.

Charlton Athletic get a feature, as they are forced to moved out of The Valley due to it not being considered safe, and are playing their first match at Selhurst Park. Charlton wouldn’t play at The Valley again until 1992.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : SHOOT – 28.12.1985

Nothing says Christmas quite like Charlie Nicholas holding a crown, and that’s what Shoot readers were treated to as they tucked into their turkey in 1985.

As you open the magazine, Ian Rush writes that he hopes 1986 will be a better year for him than 1985, and saying that Wales players failed Mike England in 1985, while also criticising the FAW for playing their vital World Cup qualifier against Scotland at Cardiff rather than Wrexham.

Shoot columnist Jimmy Greaves gets a double page interview, but it’s not football he’s discussing, it’s his predictions for other sports in 1986.

Cover star Charlie Nicholas writes that he is lacking in Christmas Spirit for the fixture computer as Arsenal face Liverpool and Manchester United over the festive period, with Nicholas pointing out that he has been on the losing side in his five games against United for Arsenal.

Nicholas is also pictured visiting Selfridges.

Another top flight player is pictured dressed as Santa. The clues are that he is 25, plays for a club in the North of England and has less than ten international caps. It is revealed later in the magazine that it is Gary Lineker.

In world news, Brazilian star Eder is linked with a move to Spurs, Gerard Houllier is praised for PSGs unbeaten start in France, and Holland have been offered lucrative friendlies in the summer of 1986 which will earn them more money than if they had reached Mexico.

In Uruguay, legendary manager Luis Cubilla has been jailed for attacking a referee who gave a penalty against his team.

Brian Clough is the subject of a “Focus On ….” feature, where he reveals his favourite musician is Frank Sinatra.

Shoot does a double page feature on transfers that almost happened, such as Jim Bett to Southampton, Bryan Robson to Everton and Charlie Nicholas to Manchester United.

Nicholas decided against signing for Untied after meeting Ron Atkinson, who he says talks about himself too much.

There is a double page spread featuring all the results in the qualifiers for the 1986 World Cup.

Shoot does a full page profile of Oxford United manager Maurice Evans, who has been given Robert Maxwell’s seal of approval after being predicted to be the first manager sacked at the start of the season.

Led by European Cup winner Peter Withe, Sheffield United get a feature and a team poster as they aim for promotion to the top flight.

Glenn Hoddle has been making the most of his spare time by spending it in the recording studio, where Shoot joined him, stating that he is determined to become good at Guitar. He would have a Top 20 hit in 1987 as part of Glenn and Chris, alongside Chris Waddle.

Peter Shilton gets a full page profile, with quotes of what other football personalities say about him. Bobby Robson describes him as the greatest goalkeeper of all time.

Alex Ferguson of Scotland and Aberdeen gets a double page profile looking at what makes him tick. He had recently turned down a move to Inter Milan.

John Bailey gets a profile, having left Everton for Newcastle. Bailey was seen as a joker at Goodison where he arranged for a Kissogram for manager Howard Kendall.

Bryan Robson’s column discusses United’s signing of John Sivebeak, having got glowing reports from Frank Stapleton and Kevin Moran, who faced him in a recent international.

Also writing about a new signing is Paul McStay, who is delighted that Mark McGee has signed for Celtic.

Manchester United’s explosive start to the season brought back memories of Leeds going 29 games unbeaten at the start of 1973-1974, and Leeds stars of that era share their memories.

Alan McDonald is interviewed, where he reveals that he turned down Manchester United, Liverpool and Everton to join QPR, hits back at England fans who suggested that their draw with Northern Ireland was a fix, and reveals that he feels he is far from guaranteed a place in Northern Ireland’s World Cup squad.

West Ham’s forward duo of Tony Cottee and Frank McAvennie are profiled, where it is revealed that their partnership only came together due to injury.

Scotland fans got a double page photo collage from their side’s World Cup Play-Off win against Australia, with Graeme Souness being interviewed over the page, stating that it was Scotland’s best chance to get past the group stages for the first time.

Ian Greaves gets interviewed, having recently turned down the chance to manage West Brom in order to stay at Mansfield.

Chelsea and Manchester United are keeping an eye on Brian McClair, who has just handed in a transfer request at Celtic after being dropped to make way for Mark McGhee, while Colin Gibson hopes his recent move to Manchester United will get him a place in England’s World Cup squad.

Seamus McDonagh was £900 out of pocket when he played for Republic of Ireland in a recent match against Denmark, after flying in from America (where he plays his club football) at his own expense, and his match fee not covering it.

The magazine ends with a profile of Steve McMahon. His favourite singers are Rod Stewart and Bruce Springsteen.

MAGAZINE ARCHIVE : SHOOT – 14.7.1979

Match action from England’s recent visit to Sweden is the cover of Shoot, as they try to fill in the gap during the pre-season of 1979.

In news, Brian Clough has drawn praise from pundits in the Soviet Union after Nottingham Forest’s European Cup win, and Northern Ireland have announced a tour of Australia for the summer of 1980.

Pierce O’Leary of Shamrock Rovers was linked with a move to Coventry City, potentially, the first League Of Ireland player to move to an English club for a six figure fee. Staying in Dublin, Pele was a surprise visitor to Dublin for the friendly between Republic of Ireland and Argentina.

Distillery were facing expulsion from the Irish League if they couldn’t have a new ground by the start of the 1980-1981 season.

And finally, Coventry City became the first Football League team to visit the Faroe Islands, beating a local team 6-0.

The volume of British players in the US meant the NASL got a page of coverage, the lead story being that George Best had went missing for a week.

Gordon McQueen, writing a column, expresses his concern that the games between England and Scotland could be banned due to crowd violence, expressing his anger at a Scottish fan who invaded the pitch with his side 1-0 up, causing a delay. England went on to win the game 3-1.

McQueen also spoke about an 18 year old called Diego Maradona, who faced Scotland and was described by McQueen as “Another Pele in the making”, but was disappointed at the lack of TV coverage of the game, due to a dispute with the BBC.

In letters, a Shrewsbury Town fan complains about the lack of acknowledgement given to boss Graham Turner for his success at the club. A reader from Perth wrote in to complain about the BBC being biased towards Rangers.

A young manager starting out in the game is 32 year old Howard Kendall, and his appointment at Blackburn Rovers gets 2/3 of a page coverage.

RC Strasbourg get a full page profile, with a team poster on the other side.

To fill up space with no football, we get a full page of footballers on holiday, including a picture of Phil Neal throwing Phil Thompson into a swimming pool.

Part 8 of Shoot’s review of the 1978-1979 season reveals that Barcelona want Bobby Robson to be their manager. It only took 17 years for them to get him.

Derek Johnstone’s Scottish football column is accompanied by a picture of him playing video games with his wife.

Wigan Athletic, having just completed their first season as a league club, feature in an article asking if they will “Do a Wimbledon” – Wimbledon (promoted to the Football League in 1977) got promoted in their second season.

Wigan did indeed “Do a Wimbledon” in terms that they reached the top flight (in 27 years compared to Wimbledon’s 9) and won the FA Cup (took them 35 years compared to Wimbledon’s 11)