Category Archives: Features

My Week: Rex Gowar

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This week the FWA takes a winter break and travels to the sunshine of Buenos Aires

Reuters’ Rex Gowar on interviewing a stunning lioness, the English theatre of football and 15 red cards

MONDAY FEBRUARY 20

As I started this new “challenge”, I couldn’t help thinking of the contrast in temperatures with what I’d seen on the box on Sunday – Gus Poyet and my old amigo Mauricio Taricco all wrapped up on the B&HA bench at Anfield while we’re sweating down here in the higher 30s Celsius.

Started with a routine check of Latin American websites to see where the weekend story was outside the main leagues in Argentina, Brazil and Mexico. It turned out to be Peru. The first weekend of the championship was chaotic with the professional players on strike and teams fielding their junior sides or none at all while the conflict between the players’ union and the league clubs over their wage debts raged on.

A couple of other stories cropped up so I was mostly stuck to the laptop at home, in the kitchen where I get the most light, accompanied by a good Malbec in the evening.

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 21

More on Peru and the effect of the players’ strike on the national side preparing to meet Tunisia in a friendly in Rades as part of their preparations for the next round of World Cup qualifiers in June — followed by the Copa Libertadores at night.

Three nights a week of Libertadores group stage matches involves a lot of juggling – whether to stay up late for a wrap of the action or do a reaction piece the next morning. Sod’s Law is that the night I decide not to stay up for the late match is when five payers are sent-off or the crowd causes some sort of mayhem.

WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 22

The interference of other sports meant I had to move away from football today but it was a sacrifice I made in the name of professionalism. Went to see Las Leonas (lionesses), Argentina’s world champion women’s hockey team – most of them would not be out of place on a catwalk – begin their preparations for the Olympic Games where they will be one of Britain’s chief rivals for the gold medal. Did an interview with one of them and then headed for the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club -where all the courts are clay – for the Buenos Aires Open, Argentina’s ATP tournament. Reuters wants copy on the semi-finals and final so I just sat in the sun and enjoyed a Franco-Swiss second round match.

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 23

As the demand from editors for Olympic-related copy increases, I was involved in planning a feature on Brazil’s obsession with the football gold medal, the one major title to have escaped them so far. This year they won’t have holders Argentina to contend with as they did not qualify but Uruguay go back for the first time since winning the second of their golds in 1928. The story will be written by one of the Reuters reporters in Sao Paulo – in English which is a relief. I cover the Brazilian League with the help of a young Rio reporter who sends me his copy in Portuguese and I put it into English, a routine weekend task when the 27 state championships end and the Brasileirao (big Brazilian) national first division kicks-off in May.

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 24

This is the day I stand the best chance of taking off but I couldn’t help getting back to the Leonas for another interview. Professionalism shines through.

The Friday routine, though, is to meet with three colleagues, and sometimes more, for lunch at a grill in the Palermo barrio called La Dorita. We happen, since the middle of last year, to all be supporters of second division sides, three of us River Plate and one Huracan, both relegated last June. And the restaurant – I’m not sure why the others chose it before I came back to Buenos Aires in 2009 – is a haven of arch-rivals Boca Juniors bedecked with blue and yellow memorabilia including a framed shirt signed by Martin Palermo.

We are two from Reuters, one ex-Reuters now working in radio as a tennis specialist and one ex-DPA now at sports daily Ole and the topics – women and futbol. Early last year the three of us who are River fans decided to write a book about JJ Lopez, a great former midfielder who was the coach we thought would prevent us from the drop. As, after defeat by Boca in April, it became increasingly likely we would be relegated, we let the plan drift away so losing what had been a regular lunch topic.

This Friday, we talked about English football and another old friend, Ossie Ardiles, got two mentions. First because he is a former player of Huracan and fan Federico Coronado spoke proudly about Huracan FC London, a Sunday League team who came to Buenos Aires on tour last year.

Then Luis Ampuero of Reuters said what he didn’t like about English football was the tactical rigidity and lack of spontaneity of the kind you get from players like Ardiles and Sergio Aguero “whose goals nearly always come from a jinking run”. On the other hand, he said, Argentina had the often chaotic organisation of the game and the violence of fans that England had cured. “Really,” he said, and brought his hands together in an arc, “football in the two countries is not so different.” He added: “I love the setting of the matches in England, it’s like theatre.”

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 25

Covered the tennis semi-finals and Cruyff’s appointment as a consultant of Guadalajara, a surprise story that cropped up late at night (we are two hours ahead of Mexico), while keeping an eye on the Argentine league programme. Referees dished out 15 red cards on the previous two weekends ( in 20 matches) in a clampdown on players’ general poor behavior announced before the Clausura championship started on February 10.

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 26

An all-Spanish tennis final in Buenos Aires, a new colonialism? David Ferrer beat last year’s winner Nicolas Almagro. There were no red cards in the five matches on Friday and Saturday, but Sunday’s four games produced four so the chances are that with one game to go on Monday night we’re looking at an improvement.

FWA Q&A: Matt Law

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Matt Law of the Daily Express on mopping the ceiling, sleeping on a bench and an enjoyable Killing…

Your first ever newspaper?
The Tamworth Herald.

Have you ever worked in a profession other than journalism?
I was a paper-boy and also once volunteered to clean the school for extra cash, but I was sacked for mopping the ceiling.

What was your finest achievement playing football?
Err, scoring a hat-trick in my last-ever game of five-a-side for the Tamworth Herald before leaving the paper. I realise this is not a particularly ‘fine achievement’.

Most memorable match covered?
Brigg Town versus Tamworth. At that point I knew I was in for the long haul.

The one moment in football you would put on a DVD?
Dalian Atkinson’s goal for Aston Villa against Wimbledon when he went around everybody, chipped the keeper and celebrated with an umbrella.

Best stadium?
Villa Park. Obviously.

…and the worst?
St Andrews. Obviously.

Your best ever scoop?
I like to think I played some part in the Twitter revolution by tweeting Theo Walcott had been left out of the England World Cup squad about five hours before it was announced. I went to the hairdresser and switched my phone off after tweeting it and came out with a new haircut and about 2000 new followers inside an hour!

Your personal new-tech disaster?
Touch wood, I’ve been lucky with my laptop. I’ve dropped my phone down the toilet by
accident if that counts?

Biggest mistake?
Leaving my phone anywhere near John Cross is usually pretty bad. I return to find I have sent a host of text messages off to people I then owe an explanation to.

Have you ever been mistaken for anyone else?
My near-namesake Matt Lawton. I have been congratulated and abused for stories he has written. I obviously protest more to the abuse.

Most media friendly manager?
Harry Redknapp – the only Barclays Premier League manager who has ever left me a (non-abusive) voicemail.

Best ever player?
Paul ‘god’ McGrath.

Best ever teams (club and international)?
The current Barcelona and Spanish teams are pretty special.

Best pre-match grub?
Arsenal.

Best meal had on your travels?
The restaurant Da Greco in Barcelona is superb and not too expensive.

…and the worst?
I always struggle in Eastern Europe.

Best hotel stayed in?
The Schloss Elmau during the 2008 European Championship in Austria and Switzerland.

…and the worst?
A low was having to sleep on a bench in a shopping centre during the same tournament. I was moved on like a tramp by the police.

Favourite football writer?
Paul Hayward.

Favourite radio/TV commentator?
Graeme Souness is excellent on Sky’s Champions League coverage and tells it exactly how it is.

If you could introduce one change to improve PR between football clubs and football
writers what would it be?
Tell the truth.

One sporting event outside football you would love to experience?
I would love to go to Augusta to watch the Masters.

Last book read?
I’ve just started The Hippopotamus by Stephen Fry.

Favourite current TV programme?
I’ve discovered The Killing quite late.

Your most prized football memorabilia?
I don’t really keep anything.

What advice would you give to any budding football writer?
Be prepared to do anything, anytime, anywhere. It’s usually worth it.

FWA Q&A: Malcolm Brodie MBE

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Malcolm Brodie MBE of the Belfast Telegraph on the best of Best…the wrong result…and covering 14 World Cup finals…

Your first ever newspaper?
Briefly, Portadown News, County Armagh .and then Belfast Telegraph for almost five decades

Have you ever worked in a profession other than journalism?
No, I was trained and worked in all aspects of journalism before specialising in sport; then appointed sports editor and football correspondent to create and develop a sports department whose reporters and columnists were given a global canvas for coverage of Irish and main international events.

What was your finest achievement playing football?
Deciding as a young schoolboy I wasn’t good enough to become an established player so opted to enter journalism which would, perhaps, retain my fanatical interest in football. A fortunate step which I never regret– if only you could turn back the clock!.

Most memorable match covered?
Difficult to answer as there have been many glory days with Northern Ireland and the Republic. My choice must be England’s 1966 World Cup win over West Germany at Wembley. An unforgettable day – and night at the Royal Garden Hotel. That scene flashes through my memory every time I walk past Bobby Moore’s statue at the national stadium..

The one moment in football you would put on a DVD?
George Best’s scintillating performance when Northern Ireland defeated Scotland 1-0 in a 1968 Euro qualifier. Although Dave Clements scored the goal Best’s genius won the day with the finest individual display of artistry ever seen at Windsor Park. He was the ultimate superstar.

Best stadium…and the worst?
Olympic Stadium, Rome and the Kombetar Quemal, Tirana circa 1965.

Your best ever scoop?
Guadalajara World Cup Mexico,1986. I had just completed an interview with Northern Ireland manager Billy Bingham before the final Group game against Brazil when he remarked: “By the way I’m going out to manage in Saudi Arabia.” Just like that – a throwaway line. He intended doubling the jobs. A quick look at the watch confirmed it was well past the morning paper’s edition times. The Telegraph, as an evening newspaper, a diminishing breed these days, therefore had a free early run.

Your personal new tech disaster?
Impossible to list them all but I operated on the theory one failure to get a lap top connection meant lifting the telephone and dictating. That kept the blood pressure normal.

Biggest mistake?
Missing a goal answering a phone call and filling the wrong result at the end. It was corrected almost instantly but the damage had been done – my thanks to the speed of the PA wire.

Have you ever been mistaken for anybody else?
No, but I’ve been often called a name by irate punters which questioned the marital status of my parents.

Most media friendly manager?
Peter Doherty (Northern Ireland) 1951-62. His man-management technique and motivational skills could not be surpassed. Couldn’t stand phoneys or cheats.

Best ever player?
Pele.

Best ever teams (club and international)?
Club – Barcelona 2011 edging Real Madrid of the Sixties; international – Brazil’s 1970 World Cup squad who took the crown from Ferenc Puskas and his 1956 Hungarians.

Best pre-match grub?
Never sample any.

Best meals on my travels and the worst?
Winston Churchill Restaurant, Mexico City and National Hotel, Albania,1965 circa.

Best hotel stayed in?
International Sheraton, Perth, Western Australia.

…and the worst?
Metropole Moscow, circa 1985.

Favourite football writer?
Henry Winter (Daily Telegraph), logical successor to the late Geoffrey Green (The Times).

Favourite radio/TV commentator?
Radio: Alan Green (BBC); Television – John Motson (BBC) like the Master, David Coleman, a voice of authority.

If you could introduce one change to improve PR between football clubs and football writers what would it be?
A request for greater transparency, easier access to players and an assurance that club officials and players will pay media the courtesy of returning calls. That is an El Dorado….I must stop dreaming it just won’t happen!

One sporting event outside football you would like to experience?
An England Ashes win over Australia in either in Melbourne or Sydney. To be at either venue on the decisive day must be something special.

Last book read?
My Trade by Andrew Marr.

Favourite current TV programme?
Nothing specific, any documentary suffices.

Your most prized football memorabilia?
A miniature World Cup Trophy together with scroll from FIFA to mark covering 14 World Cup Finals; the inaugural Doug Gardiner Memorial Award from the British Sports Journalists Association for services to the profession; the MBE from The Queen; honorary doctorate from the University of Ulster; Gold Medal signifying Life Membership of the Irish Football Association.

What advice would you give to any budding football writer?
Learn all technical aspects in the new digital era including radio and television; closely study all the football rules and regulations. Present your own assessments in match reports, discard the quotes scenario unless it benefits your story. Stand by your own judgment, do your homework on every project and learn. With the laws of libel – work on the theory “if in doubt leave out.” Being a crusader can by a costly business if you don’t get the facts correct.

Thanks for inviting me to participate.

Malcolm Brodie MBE is a Life Member of the Football Writers’ Association

My Week: Paul Camillin

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Brighton & Hove Albion’s head of media, Paul Camillin, on putting Des Lynam straight…running out of bacon butties…and being hit for six…

MONDAY FEBRUARY 13
For most of the supporters the focus is on this Sunday’s FA Cup fifth round tie at Liverpool, but for Gus Poyet and the Brighton & Hove Albion players the Tuesday night visit of Millwall to the Amex is the top priority (at least until 9.45pm on Tuesday). It’s an early start to the week at the Amex and after writing Gus’s notes with him for Tuesday’s match programme, it’s off to the regular pre-match press conference with the manager and two players. If there are any players who have a link with the opponents, they’re usually put up for the various media to speak to, but with no obvious candidates, it’s skipper Gordon Greer and Adam El-Abd. No surprises for either of them, although after the Suarez-Evra saga the previous Saturday, Gus gets one question as to whether he is expecting any handshake problems at the Amex the following evening. Gus – who has stood up for his compatriot throughout the whole affair – tells the press he is pleased that Luis Suarez and Liverpool have apologised after the events at Old Trafford, and that he thinks that should draw a line under the whole saga.

Monday evening sees the airing of a piece on Albion midfielder Gary Dicker, currently recovering from a broken leg suffered in the autumn. BBC London’s Late Kick Off team has been filming the Irishman throughout his recovery and rehabilitation, and Chris Slegg’s piece is an intriguing insight into the lot of a player suffering from a long-term injury. These regional programmes across the BBC network are an excellent part of the Beeb’s coverage of the Football League, along with the Football League Show, the local radio coverage (expertly done at Brighton by Johnny Cantor and his team at BBC Sussex) and the brilliant BBC Sport Online coverage; hopefully the BBC cuts will not see this affected next season, as the TV and internet deal really has raised the profile of the Football League.

TUESDAY FEBRUARY 14
Millwall are the visitors to the Amex, and before kick-off both clubs sign up to the government’s anti-homophobia charter – which has also been signed by all 20 Barclays Premier League clubs. At Brighton & Hove, because the city has a large gay population, fans are often subjected to a raft of homophobic abuse on an all-too-regular basis; ranging from the boring and banal “does your boyfriend know your here” or “we can see you holding hands” right through to much more graphic and vile abuse. Many of those visiting fans, who sing along in the name of banter, don’t realise that homophobic abuse is against the law. Sussex Police together with the club are committed to tackling this problem and over the course of the season have have ejected or arrested a number of ringleaders – but I’m sorry to say the anti-homophobia movement remains a long way behind football’s anti-racism work, which has proved such a success since its launch over 20 years ago. Homophobic abuse is too easily passed off as harmless banter, and to be successful it needs buy in from the authorities and all 92 clubs, to educate players and fans that homophobic abuse is not only against the law, but totally unacceptable in modern society. On the pitch, a late equaliser by Kazenga LuaLua secures a point in an entertaining 2-2 draw, as the team maintains their unbeaten start to 2012. Sadly, after their club signed up to the charter pre-match, a section of Millwall’s following let down the South London club: seven men are arrested, for various offences including homophobic chanting.

WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 15
There’s an early morning call and request from the local BBC station Radio Sussex for someone from the club to go onto the breakfast show to speak about the club signing the anti-homophobia charter – and we are happy to oblige. Later in the day, Des Lynam, one of Albion’s most famous fans checks in with us to check out some facts for a piece he is writing ahead of the FA Cup match. The former Match of the Day front man had interviewed Gus for his weekly column in the Daily Telegraph the previous Thursday, and is on the phone to touch base after the weekend win at Leeds United and the game with Millwall.

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 16
Another early start, and a busy day as all the daily papers converge on the weekly press call at the Amex to look ahead to the weekend’s game against Liverpool at Anfield – and because the game is on the Sunday, there are also the Sunday papers to cater for, with a separate player and media briefing session with Gus to give them some fresh stories for the day of the match. We have so many media men in the building that we run out of bacon butties, and have to send an urgent request to the kitchens for more… well we can’t have the press going hungry! Liverpudlian duo Craig Noone and Alan Navarro speak to the daily papers. Nooney’s story was told several times ahead of the Carling Cup meeting between the two clubs: during his days spent working as a roofer while playing part-time at Southport, the Seagulls winger worked on the roof of Steven Gerrard’s house. However, Nav’s tale is a new one: he grew up six doors from Anfield, where mum Maria still lives, and he played in the age group beneath Gerrard – however less than a year ago his career was in the balance following a second serious knee injury. He speaks glowingly of Liverpool and the positive affect of Gerard Houllier during his time at the club; he also tells the media how he expects the Suarez saga to blow over and denies the twitter rumours (largely put about by the rest of the Albion squad) that the Anfield cat escaped from his family’s house!

Along with Gus, Albion’s wing wizard Will Buckley is put forward for the Sundays to speak to, and the club’s match-winner against Newcastle in the fourth round also chats to Kelly Cates – the daughter of Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish – for ESPN’s pre-match coverage. Kelly catches the eye of the Amex ground staff, who are more than happy to oblige when asked to set up a goal net as a back drop for the interview – but only on the proviso that she will pose for a picture after she’s interviewed Will.

FRIDAY FEBRUARY 17
[Well earned] day off.

SATURDAY FEBRUARY 18
Albion’s media department, along with other members of the Albion board and admin staff, set off for Merseyside early on Saturday morning. We are fortunate to have tickets for the Everton v Blackpool game at Goodison Park, via our Everton-supporting managing director Ken Brown. So after checking into the hotel it’s nice just to sit back, relax and simply watch a game of football for a change; but in all honesty it’s all over after six minutes as Everton storm into a 2-0 lead. After the game we head into the city for dinner, and get a first glimpse of the regenerated centre, with a fabulous array of shops, restaurants and bars.

SUNDAY FEBRUARY 19
Whatever the result this afternoon, Albion know they are in the draw for the sixth round for the first time since 1986 and only the fourth time in the club’s history – due to the quarter-final draw taking place 20 minutes before kick-off. That makes for a busy pre-match period. Typically, we get the teams an hour before kick-off, and after getting the team news out via the website, twitter and other channels, it’s time to do the same with the news of the FA Cup draw. Albion (or Liverpool) are ball number one – and for the third round in a row, the Seagulls are the first tie drawn! The prize for winning the fifth-round tie is a home draw against Stoke City.

There is just enough time to take our seats before the evocative sight and sound of the Kop joining in with You’ll Never Walk Alone. It’s the ultimate pre-match anthem, unmatched in football, and it’s great to see the 6000 Albion fans getting involved by holding their scarves aloft in the away end.

The first 43 minutes aside, in which Kazenga LuaLua cancels out Martin Skrtel’s opener with a thunderous effort in front of the Kop – the game is one to forget for the Seagulls, who suffer at the hands of a rampant Liverpool, with Suarez virtually unplayable, and even upstaging the excellent Steven Gerrard. The Red machine is in full effect, but the score does flatter Liverpool a touch; even Kenny Dalglish admits so much in his post-match press conference, and his comments are more affording to the Seagulls than his post-match remarks earlier in the season. However Gus does not pull any punches, and in typical honest fashion he tells the media his team were average at best and says the mistakes made by his side were comical.

Nonetheless, after such a disappointing and heavy defeat it is easy to forget just what Gus and his team have achieved in such a short space of time: going from League One relegation battlers to an established Championship side, with a chance making the end-of-season play-offs… that quest continues at Hull City on Wednesday night.

Unforgettable

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The Times football editor Tony Evans on a memorable trip to Gabon for the African Cup of Nations final…

By CHRISTOPHER DAVIES

THERE WILL never be a trip to beat Istanbul, May, 2005 when Tony Evans saw his beloved Liverpool win their first Champions League final.

But Libreville, February 2012, will be a close second in the Evans memoirs. He may not have seen Steven Gerrard lift European football’s most sought after trophy in Gabon but in Turkey Evans didn’t have to wear the same clothes for 36 hours, endure squeaky bum time as his plane circled over Libreville airport for an hour with the fuel gauge almost on red alert, try to outrun a security guard half his age and weight plus eating bush pig. In many respects Istanbul could not compete with Libreville.

The final of the African Cup of Nations provided one of football’s most truly remarkable stories as Zambia, 63 places below their rivals in the FIFA rankings, beat the Ivory Coast 8-7 on penalties 19 years after a plane crash 500 yards off the Gabon coast killed the entire Zambia squad. The football gods determined a wonderful story that eclipsed football though Evans’ magical mystery tour on his first visit to Africa was an unforgettable sideshow to Zambia’s heroics.

The trip started badly…and got worse. Evans said: “I had ordered a cab to take me to Heathrow at 4.30am. When the car hadn’t arrived after 15 minutes I flagged down a black cab to take me to the airport which cost me £70. I was just walking into the terminal when my phone rang. It was the driver saying ‘I’m outside your house.’

“I replied ‘well I’m outside Heathrow.’ It was claimed the delay was due to an accident or something. Yeh, right.

“Heathrow was manic and by the time I reached check-in I had to be fast-tracked through or else I would have missed the plane to Paris.”

The breathless Evans just made the flight but the plane sat on the runway for an hour. “I was now worried about missing the connecting flight to Libreville because time was always going to be tight in Paris. Luckily that flight to Gabon was delayed for an hour and a half.”

Evans relaxed and enjoyed the flight to Libreville, hopeful all the early problems were behind him. In fact they had barely started.

He said: “We were above Libreville airport when the pilot announced that a plane had broken down on the runway, yes runway singular. ‘Don’t worry, I still have 90 minutes’ fuel left,’ he said. ‘We may as well circle round to see if they can remove the broken down plane.’

“After an hour and five minutes we were beginning to become a little concerned. I was wondering where the nearest airport was. With 15 minutes to go until the fuel ran out the pilot was able to land the plane though he did come down with unseemly haste.”

Evans then had his first experience of an African airport where, some might say, the chaos is part of the fun.

“I arrived at the carousel and the baggage started to come through.”

You have probably guessed what happened next. Or rather, what didn’t happen.

“My suitcase wasn’t there. I reported it missing only to be told by the woman that they knew in advance it would not be on the flight as it hadn’t been loaded.

“She said: ‘Don’t worry, we’ll get it to you tomorrow.’ Pause. ‘Tomorrow night.’”

By then Evans had been in the same clothes for 14 hours and the clock was ticking. Buying alternative clothes in Libreville is easier said than done. There was some good news, however. “The hotel was excellent,” he said. “It used to be owned by the Libyan Sovereign Wealth Fund and apparently it was a shambles. After the fall of Gaddafi it was taken over by someone else and had air conditioning, it was fine. No Sky Sports though, just Canal Plus.”

After a welcome shower, a good night’s sleep and another shower Evans reluctantly put on yesterday’s clothes.

“The organisers took a few of us to a resort just north of Libreville which was very nice. It was about 30 degrees and those lucky enough to have their cases went swimming. I just sweated before taking a walk in the jungle to get a sense of the wildlife. Then off we went to the game.”

As a guest of the Organising Committee, Evans was taken on a tour of the media centre “which was as good as any I’ve seen” and then thought he’d be directed towards the VIP section. Evans was rather concerned about meeting dignitaries wearing by then 36-hours-old clothes. He need not have worried.

“Instead of corporate hospitality I was taken to the cheap seats. That wasn’t a particular problem apart from the fact I had to file my report. I’d told them in advance I’d need facilities to do that and was assured that where I’d be sitting it would be all right.” It wasn’t.

Writing with a lap-top on your knees is not too unusual for football writers in far flung places, all part and parcel of the job. When he tried to get a line via his dongle Evans was unsuccessful.

“I had to go to the media centre to file and after some confusion they found someone to take me. Problem was, he didn’t know where the media centre was. I’m telling him where it is and he doesn’t believe me. I ended up leaving him because I had 10 minutes in which to file. I’m normally the man in the office who screams at people if they are late filing so I couldn’t be late with my copy and people saying ‘oh he couldn’t do it under pressure.’

“The guy who was with me originally spotted me and as I was running towards the media centre he was chasing after me. He was in his twenties and a very lean African. I’m a 50-something and just slightly overweight, carrying a lap-top bag. There were police and troops with guns around trying to stop me getting through.”

Not for the first time abroad a cry of “Her Majesty’s working press” and flashing a press card did the trick. “I managed to file before the deadline,” said Evans with understandable professional pride. He watched the penalty shootout and filed his rewrite for the second edition. Mission accomplished except by now the clothes he’d been wearing for the best part of two days were almost crying for freedom.

At midnight and work finished Evans wandered to the car park to be taken back to the hotel which was 10 miles away. A police escort maybe? Either way, should be back in 15 minutes.

Make that two and a half hours. “I have never seen traffic like it,” said Evans. “There were cars going the wrong way, pick-up trucks were swamped with people jumping on the back, the Highway Code as we know it has not reached Libreville. Many people had walked 10 miles and more to see the game which says everything about the Africans’ love of football.”

Evans eventually reached his hotel at 2.30 – “and 30 minutes later my bag showed up.”

Monday was a free day and the freshly-clothed Evans side-stepped the opportunity to meet local ministers at a buffet function. “Talking to government officials about economics and the regeneration of Gabon are worthy topics but being a football man I ducked out. I took the chance to see a bit of the real Libreville to try some local dishes…

Vegetarians and vegans look away now.

“…such as bush pig, wild boar and gazelle…it was great. “ The unusual delicacies were washed down with a bottle or two of the local beer, Regab. “While it’s not the sort of thing you’ll find me drinking in the Cask or the other fine beer drinking establishments I frequent in London and Liverpool, it certainly filled a hole.”

It also proved to be a memorable trip for Mrs Evans who, for Valentines Day, was given a wood-carved gorilla and some Gabonese salad bowls.

Tony Evans is the author of Far Foreign Land – Pride and Passion the Liverpool Way

My Week: Alex Pearce

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Reading defender Alex Pearce on a wasted journey, a missing Russian and wearing tights on Saturday night…

Monday February 6

Normally Monday is a day when the physio treats the players for any knocks, bumps and bruises they have collected during Saturday’s game. Today is different. There’s nothing to recover from except a long coach journey up north to Doncaster on Friday and a long journey back home again the next day. The game was called off because of a frozen pitch.

There was an inspection on Friday and we were told the match was on so we set off as usual at 1.30 pm after training and made the long journey by coach to our hotel. We were just about getting up on Saturday morning when a message came through at 10.30 am to say the game was off. I was rooming with Andy Griffin as my usual room-mate, Hal Robson Kanu, didn’t travel due to the injury he is currently unfortunately ruled out with.

We were both so disappointed to hear that he game was called off – a feeling felt by the whole team as the news of the postponement travelled around the hotel. We gathered our things and boarded the coach for the long journey home, which was made a tiny bit better by the Wagamama’s takeaway that a few of the lads had picked up on our way to the coach.

If it’s annoying for us players it is surely even worse for our supporters. Reading have a loyal away following and fans will have paid £20 to get on an official coach leaving from the ground at 9.15 am and paid around £22 for a ticket. It was great to hear later that several of the travelling fans diverted to West Bromwich to watch our former players Shane Long and Gylfi Sigurdsson in action.

Most of the players were pretty certain it was going to be off but our Irish international striker Noel Hunt wasn’t too unhappy because he was able to catch up on a few films during the journeys. He was also amused to see Sky Sports News giving the latest score as 0-0 and took a photo on his phone that he later tweeted to his followers on the social networking site Twitter. I can’t believe he’s got almost 17,000 followers on that thing. I don’t have a Twitter account myself, but I know a few of the Reading lads do.

Tuesday February 7

The players are still wondering how far our supporters got before Saturday’s postponement and how much they will be out of pocket. I suppose it depends where they were before the coach turned back whether they get a refund on the fare. Many cannot make the same trip in midweek because of their jobs but we think Doncaster may refund tickets that are not wanted.

The postponement was a real shame for our new signings Jason Roberts, Tomasz Cywka and Matthew Connolly, who were all hoping to get some time on the pitch as they settle in to the club. It also meant that the three new lads will have to wait until the next away game to perform their ‘songs’ to the squad and staff.

It’s a tradition at Reading that new players have to stand on a chair and sing a song of their choice in front of everyone during the pre-match meal. It’s a very funny occasion that gets everyone in good spirits and is great for team camaraderie. I remember when it was my turn to do this…I played it safe and went for an Oasis song. I’m looking forward to hearing what Jason, Tomasz and Matthew come up with. They’ve got a bit longer to practise now so the pressure’s on.

With eight wins from 11 league games we are top of the Championship form table and we were hoping to keep the momentum going but instead it was all a bit of a waste and all we can do now is start preparing for our next game, at home to Coventry.

Tuesday morning is also when a couple of players are nominated to meet local newspaper reporters to answer their questions. This gives them a story or two for their midweek editions. They are informal affairs and the reporters are usually pretty fair to us, although Ian Harte has been known to moan at them about his match ratings.

Wednesday February 8

We are all eagerly awaiting the chance to meet our new owner sometime this week. A 29-year-old Russian billionaire’s son named Anton Zingarevich has agreed to buy 51 per cent of the club’s shares for £25 million and we have heard that he is likely to fly into the UK to see us. The deal will not be completed until March but it seems his money has allowed our boss Brian McDermott to bring some new players in and keep hold of key performers instead of selling them to raise cash.

Our Mali international winger Jimmy Kebe has signed a new contract after holding out for a long while and that’s good news. He says it is because the club is now showing ambition and not because he was offered more money. We were all really pleased to see Jimmy sign and at least it will stop my team-mate Jay Tabb winding him up. Before Jimmy signed Tabby would greet him every morning at training with the comment “You still here then Jim?”

I did a question and answer session with our programme editor recently about the people we would invite to a dinner party. It’s just a bit of fun for one of the features in the match-day programme. One question was who we would get to do the washing up and I nominated Jimmy. Among my guests were Roger Federer, Noel Gallagher, Lady Gaga and Peter Kay. Dream on!!

We normally get Wednesdays off which is great as it gives us a chance to rest and recover. I usually pop down to the local swimming pool and stretch off in the water or do a light session in the gym. Today I followed that up with a Nando’s takeaway. I’ve seen that Reading are auctioning a Nando’s Date with Noel on eBay. What a great idea. All the money raised goes to charity so hopefully it will raise lots of cash, though you’d have to pay ME to go to Nando’s with Noel! (Just kidding, he’s doing wonderful things with his charity work.)

Thursday February 9

It’s the big press conference of the week, although the use of “big” is probably misleading. Basically it’s a chance for the media to get material for their preview pieces in advance of the Saturday game, but there are usually only three reporters in attendance and that’s the same today.

Matt Sadler from the Reading Evening Post surprises everybody by announcing that he is leaving the paper to work in the media department at Wycombe Wanderers. I suppose it’s good news for the reporters who cover Wycombe that they will now be dealing with a “proper” journalist who understands the way things work for the media.

Tim Dellor is there for Radio Berkshire, warming everyone up on a cold day by recounting tales of the time he was coach to the Greek national cricket team. I am never sure whether Tim is a cricket coach who does some local radio work or a radio journalist who does some cricket coaching.

Meridian TV has sent a cameraman but not a reporter so our Head of Communications Craig Mortimer-Zikha steps in to ask the questions. There’s also local freelance, Brian Roach, hoping for the day when a Reading manager reveals that he is about to take over from Sir Alex at Manchester United, or Arsenal. It never happens!

Our gaffer always attends and today there are three players there, too. Noel Hunt because he has been nominated for a PFA Player in the Community Award, Joseph Mills because he has just signed a new contract and Jem Karacan because he hadn’t done it for a while and it’s his turn.

Because of the frozen pitches at Hogwood we then go off to train on the artificial pitch at the Sir John Madejski Academy, a school named after our chairman which is most famous for educating my favourite comedian Ricky Gervais. I saw him live when he did his “Science” tour. He’s very funny.

Friday February 10

Friday is when we work on set pieces designed with the specific opposition in mind. We work on our set-up defending corners, attacking corners, on free-kicks and similar situations. The gaffer will have talked us through the team beforehand so that we can prepare together for the game.

He has a real problem keeping all the players happy because everyone wants to be in the side and that’s impossible. Our goalkeeping situation at Reading is a good example of the manager’s task. Earlier in the season we had four keepers who could all justify a claim for the starting spot. How could he keep them all happy? The situation was eased when Ben Hamer moved to Charlton on a permanent basis and Alex McCarthy went on loan to Leeds and now to Ipswich. That leaves Aussie international Adam Federici as the first choice keeper and our great Dane Mikkel Andersen on the bench.

We are fortunate at Reading because we have a real team ethic and the lads not in the side always support those who are. There are still rumours about loan signings coming in but the gaffer has slammed the door shut on media claims that he was trying to sign Owen Hargeaves, saying it’s just not true.

Another day when training is disrupted by the weather. Frozen pitches at Hogwood force us to train elsewhere. It’s not ideal but we get what we need to done. The sessions on Fridays are usually light as we prepare for the weekend’s game.

Fridays for me involve training, pasta (lots of), sleep (again, lots of) and little else.

Saturday February 11

Today sees us host Coventry who are bottom of the table. After an easy morning and a pre-match meal of more pasta I leave for the ground, with Powerade in good supply. I enjoy the drive to stadium as it’s the time when I start to really get my game face on and begin psyching myself up mentally. I put some music on (Drake’s my artist of choice at the moment) and get in the zone. By the time that I arrive at the stadium a few Good Luck texts have come through but then it’s phone off and time to focus.

Today some games in the Championship are postponed because of the weather and most of the games in Divisions One and Two are also off. Undersoil heating at the Madejski Stadium means our game is never in doubt and the roads around the stadium have been gritted to make them safe for the public.

I notice Doncaster’s away game is off so their players will soon start to forget what it’s like to play in a competitive match. I really miss not playing, even in the summer when we’re off, so I’d be disappointed if I was a Donnie player.

For the first 20 minutes Coventry more than match our reshuffled side. Injuries meant that Matt Connolly made his debut at right-back after joining from QPR and Joseph Mills played on the left side of midfield instead of his usual full-back position. With Jimmy Kebe and Mikele Leigertwood making their first appearances after recovering from injuries we start slowly.

Eventually goals from Jimmy and Jason Roberts see us to a 2-0 win and leave us in seventh place in the Championship table with a game in hand over some of those above us. So now it is nine wins in the last 12, form that we’re very proud of. Federici made three wonder saves in the second-half to show why he emerged on top of that pile of goalkeepers. Personally I felt I had a decent game and as a defender it is always good news when the team keeps a clean sheet.

My Saturday night plans depend on the result. It’s a great feeling after a win, and I usually go for a nice meal with my family to celebrate. Today I’m off home to put my feet up and ice my ankle. Don’t worry, it’s just precautionary. I got a little knock to it during the game but it’s nothing serious. The recovery tights go on as I wait for Match of the Day and the Football League Show to begin.

Sunday February 12

Normally a day of rest but the vagaries of the fixture list and television demands mean we can’t take it too easy. Because of the Doncaster postponement we had played just once in a fortnight. Now we have three games in seven days.

Having seen off Coventry yesterday we have to travel up to Derby tomorrow for a Tuesday night game. It’s still so cold outside so fingers crossed it won’t affect our travels or the game. Then we entertain Burnley on Friday night in a match that is being shown live on TV. Playing so many games in such a short space of time means that players cannot recover from minor knocks in the same way they could with a week between matches.

That’s where the squad will come into play and some of the players who have been on the fringes will start to get their chance. The manager might decide he needs fresh legs anyway so we could also see some changes that have not been forced on him. It’s perfectly true that players prefer to play rather than train, but three games in seven days is tough on the body and I have no doubt that the 11 who play in the third game will be different from the side that started the first.

As a player you always want your team to win, but there is a downside to that. If you miss a game or two because of injury the lads might have a couple of good wins. The manager will stick with a winning side and you just have to sit on the bench and be patient as you wait for a chance to get back in the side. I have been fortunate enough to be a regular this season alongside Kaspars Gorkss, but one thing I know for sure – in football you can never take anything for granted.

Today is all about sitting in the warm and watching the games on TV, perhaps with a nice roast dinner if I’m lucky. Tomorrow we head to Derby so our attention will turn to that tough fixture at Pride Park, one I’m looking forward to.

P.S. Still no sign of Anton Zingarevich

P.P.S The ankle is fine today.

Alex Pearce is a centre-back aged 23. He was spotted by Reading at 12 and came through the Academy ranks to sign pro in 2006. He made his first team debut in January 2007.This season he has made 30 starts for the Royals, scoring three goals.

You’re Banned

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Tony Hudd was given a life ban by Gillingham for something he did not write…the extraordinary story of how a reporter carried on working with a little help from his friends.

By CHRISTOPHER DAVIES

IT IS believed to be the longest ban a writer covering English football has endured. In 1998 Gillingham chairman Paul Scally imposed a life ban on Tony Hudd who covered the club for the Kent Messenger Group. What makes Hudd’s ban even more puzzling – and personal – is that the article that prompted the footballing divorce was not written by him. In fact, Hudd was out of the country on holiday when it was published. How innocent can you be?

Banning football writers from pre-match press conferences at the training ground or from the stadium is one of the less appetising aspects of what Pele called the beautiful game. English football leads the way with this dubious practice with clubs flexing their muscles over things as trivial as headlines which journalists do not write. Mostly reporters are shown the red card for simply being critical of a club. Not for writing anything libellous but something the manager or chairman does not like. Accuracy is no yardstick for whether a football writer should have continued access. Never let the truth get in the way of a good ban.

It is not the job of a journalist to be a cheerleader or public relations officer for clubs but freedom of speech too often means we can write what we want as long as the club like it. If parliament took that stance there would be no lobby reporters.

One reporter was banned by a London club for breaking the news they were going to sign a certain striker. “Not true,” they said, their argument weakened somewhat when the player joined them. “But it wasn’t true at the time,” claimed the club which merely underlines the Mystic Meg skills of FWA members.

A club banned their local paper when it reported the FA Cup, which they had won the previous season, was accidentally damaged at a supporters evening. Was it true? Yes but the club were embarrassed so the paper were banned. Another local paper printed details of a club’s stadium extension plans that were on the council’s web site but that did not prevent a banning order. I was banned by a chairman after he unsuccessfully tried to sue the paper I was working for about a true diary item in the paper written by a colleague.

One of the top clubs in England have more papers banned than can attend press conferences – only four, who must be wondering what they have done right, are allowed entry. The FWA have tried to set up some sort of arbitration body to rule on such bans but ultimately clubs have the right to dictate who enters their grounds.

Hudd was the chief football writer covering Gillingham at the Kent Messenger Group and the now defunct Kent Evening Post ran an interview with Tony Pulis, the manager at the time.

He said: “I was on holiday in the United States and a colleague did an interview with Pulis. He asked him who had the more difficult job, the manager or the chairman. Pulis replied that it was the manager.”

Which unfortunately did not go down well with Scally, the chairman. Hudd said: “There was a ban because the chairman took umbrage with what Pulis had said.”

Hudd was banned for an article he had not written with the offending words not those of a journalist but the manager. Innocent can still be guilty in the occasionally mad world of football writing. Hudd said: “The chairman contacted the paper to say we were banned which of course affected me

“The following year there was a high profile court case after Pulis was sacked for allegedly gross misconduct. I was asked by Pulis if I would appear as a witness and with the paper’s permission, I agreed. Of course that fanned the flames. It became very personal.”

The case, which Pulis had brought against Scally, was settled out of court so Hudd was never called to give evidence. But he remained banned. Very banned, his suspension extended to the afterlife. Yes, the afterlife “so I can’t come back to haunt them…I’m told that if he ever sells the club there will be a clause in the contract saying I am still banned.”

Hudd, a long-serving member of the FWA national committee, regarded the ban as a challenge rather than punishment.

He said: “It was never going to beat me. I had to come up with a back page piece five nights a week and no ban was going to stop me from doing my job.”

Hudd wore various disguises to gain entry to Priestfield including false beards, moustaches and glasses. “You name it, I wore it. I was caught twice after being seen on CCTV and was escorted out of the ground. It was ‘You are Tony Hudd, would you come this way…you’re out.’

“Despite this, we covered every Gillingham game one way or the other.”

The paper paid a retainer to a local homeowner whose property overlooked the ground so photographers could shoot from the rooftop but the club put advertisement hoardings up to block their view of the pitch. It takes more than that to stop the snappers who just found a higher vantage point on a ladder.

Hudd said: “Can I emphasise the point to all budding football writers that you must treat such restrictions as a challenge. It’s the only way to respond. I shall forever be in the debt of national and regional football writers who rallied around so splendidly in support. Birmingham City were the only away club to refuse me accreditation because, they said, the press box was full [David Gold was Scally’s best man at his most recent wedding].

“Visiting journalists would help me out with quotes from press conferences. Peter Taylor, who I’d known for years since his days at Dartford, took over from Pulis. I telephoned Taylor but he apologised and told me that he could not speak to me. The sad thing is, I was far from being the first and only reporter to be banned by a club. Other writers who had found themselves in a similar position rallied round to help, the camaraderie was tremendous. I shall never forget the support I received.”

The Kent Messenger Group have since had their ban lifted but Hudd will remain persona non grata at Priestfield. “I regard the ban as a badge of honour,” said Hudd whose situation took a sinister twist when the new breed of internet hooligans posted death threats against him.

Ironically Pulis, the catalyst for Huddgate, remains an idol at Priestfield. In the FA Cup third round last month Gillingham were drawn to play Stoke City. Pulis, unusually for a visiting manager, was given a standing ovation by both sets of supporters but the Welshman had to conduct his post-match press conference by the side of the pitch because he was banned by Scally from entering anywhere but the dressing-room.

For Hudd there was a happy ending because the paper opened another title that covered Charlton, the team he supported as a boy.

My Week: Jim White

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The Daily Telegraph’s Jim White on taking the Piers…a burglary and the other Jim White

Monday January 30
I’m in the stately surrounds of Warrington Town Hall for the Gary Speed inquest. Sombre is barely adequate as an adjective to describe the mood. The Speed family are here looking bereft, drawn and above all utterly bewildered. There’s a huge media presence, too, reflecting the interest the case generated. The public affection unleashed on his passing demonstrated there is a real thirst for answers.

But those hoping for clarity are unlucky. As the coroner Mr Nicholas Rheinberg delivers a narrative verdict, we are no nearer finding explanation as to why a man apparently with so much to live for chose to take his own life. He left no note, an extensive trawl of his computer and mobile phone by the police uncovered no apparent motive, none of those closest to him detected any change in his demeanour in his final hours. He had no history of mental health issues. When Mr Rheinberg asks his widow Louise if she can think of anything that might have provoked her husband into killing himself she can only slowly shake her head and tearfully whisper “no”.

One thing is certain, however: none of the lurid internet stories that filled the information vacuum immediately after his death had any connection to the truth. In a week in which the likes of Joey Barton and Stan Collymore have been championing new media’s superiority over old, it was a sobering reminder that standards of reporting are wildly different out there on the web. Irresponsible some newspapers might be, but not even the most scurrilous red top would repeat some of the stories that spun round social media in the wake of his death without doing the most rudimentary of checks. As Anthony Haylock, Speed’s brother-in-law, put it when he re-tweeted the following: “So, Gary Speed wasn’t gay, wasn’t having an affair and wasn’t facing tabloid exposure. Nice work Twitter.”

Mind you, the fact that the original message was sent by Piers Morgan, a man who made a lucrative career from low-grade tittle tattle, demonstrates that even in a case like this the moral high ground is seldom easily identified.

Tuesday January 31
t is transfer deadline day. Or, as Sky Sports News likes to call it: Jim White Day. My namesake, the silver haired Sky newsreader, has made something of a name for himself turning up the excitement dial to hysterical as the transfer window closes. And as he has done so, he has inadvertently made a name for me too. This morning my phone is already blinking with alerts to the several dozen who are now signed up to follow me on Twitter in the mistaken belief that I am that Jim White. I hope they’re not disappointed when none of the tweets they will subsequently receive from me are written in capital letters and concluded by half a dozen exclamation marks.

Plus, there is a text from an old girlfriend reading: “You’re famous! Check out page 45 of the Guardian”. And there indeed is a profile of Jim White. Though I have to wonder what sort of impression I must have made on her if she cheerily accepted the piece’s description of a “shouty Scotsman” as me.

But then, when it comes to the relative status of Jim Whites (and let’s be honest, both of us trail way behind Whirlwind Jimmy) I was long ago made aware of where I stand. Back in 1999, I was doing some work at STV just after the other JW had transferred to Sky. My then sports editor at the Guardian rang the switchboard in Glasgow in an attempt to track me down. When he asked to be put through to Jim White he was told by the lady on switchboard: “Well, we do have a Jim White in the building. But I have to tell you, he’s no’ the famous one.”

Wednesday February 1
In the office writing a column where I am distracted by the news that, ahead of their Super Bowl appearance, the New York Giants and New England Patriots have sold 8,000 tickets to enable fans to attend a press conference. Apparently the fans will sit in the stands and listen as the event is broadcast on the giant screens. It is an idea that no doubt will soon be borrowed by Barclays Premier League clubs, ever anxious to find new ways to buff up their bottom line. Though obviously at Old Trafford, half those fans hoping to attend the manager’s press briefing can expect to learn when they turn up that they have, in fact, been banned.

Thursday February 2
These days sports reporters need all the skills of the legal correspondent. I’m at Southwark Crown Court to watch Harry Redknapp give evidence in his tax case, and the public benches are packed with football writers struggling to get to grips with the requirements of not prejudicing a trial. How much easier it would be were we in a position to mock poor witness evidence or mark the prosecuting counsel out of ten for his cross examination performance. Instead we can make no comment at all, obliged simply report the facts. A struggle for some of us I can tell you.

Still, I can reveal that at one point the phone went off in the pocket of the bloke sitting next to me in the public gallery. It took him an age to find it and switch it off, giving the entire court the opportunity to be serenaded by several choruses of “Glory Glory Tottenham Hotspur”. Lucky he wasn’t in the jury.

Plus, of all the evidence I hear today, this is the observation that sticks in the mind. It comes from Mick McGuire, who, when working for the PFA, used to negotiate Redknapp’s managerial contracts for him. He is talking about the time when he told his client that he was due a pay-off of £130,000 when he first walked out on Portsmouth. However, Redknapp replied that he didn’t want it. Was this unusual? McGuire is asked.

“Let’s put it this way,” he says. “In 22 years negotiating contracts, I never came across anyone in football who turned down any money they were legally entitled to.”

Friday February 3
Am woken up at six by my wife telling me we’ve been burgled. My laptop has been whipped off the kitchen table, together with mobiles, wallets and her bag. After contacting the police, the insurance and credit card companies, I dash off to London Colney for Arsene Wenger’s press conference with a creaking old laptop removed from a cupboard under my arm. I’m looking forward to hearing him discuss the threatened boycott by disillusioned Arsenal fans who intend to put rubbish bags on their seats during the forthcoming game with Blackburn. The good thing about Wenger is he never shies from a question, always addresses all concerns. He is, in short, good copy.

But when I arrive at Arsenal’s training base I discover that his press conference is already over. It was shifted to 9.30 o’clock this morning. Didn’t I get the email? asks an Arsenal press officer. Well, no I didn’t. But if you happen to be at a car boot sale this weekend and you pick up a newish Sony Vaio with a picture of the lesser Jim White on the wallpaper and an email from Arsenal in its inbox, perhaps you could forward it to me.

Saturday February 4
It’s my day off but I end up transfixed by Twitter. Joey Barton is adding further weight to his bold promotion of new media by giving – via several tweets this morning – his unflinching opinion of John Terry. It is pointed out to him – by Stan Collymore among many others – that the law prevents comment on a live court case. Given that with over a million followers he has more people reading him than several national newspapers, it is suggested maybe he ought to observe the rules of sub judice and not pass potentially prejudicial observation. Barton takes offence at these warnings, seeing it as a freedom of expression issue. He is damned if he will be silenced, he angrily announces more than once, quoting George Orwell in his defence.

By coincidence, at an event this week I chat with Matthew Syed, the erudite Times columnist who has been recently appointed as Barton’s ghost-writer for his autobiography. Maybe – in order to facilitate a rapid improvement in the situation – Syed could donate part of his planet-sized brain to his new collaborator.

Sunday February 5
At Stamford Bridge for Chelsea’s game with Manchester United. John Terry walks through the press room and stops for a chat with several reporters. Nobody mentions Barton’s Tweeting. Or indeed the court case. But we do learn that he is injured and that Chelsea will be without not only him but also Frank Lampard and Ashley Cole. It is a long, long time since all three of the nation’s favourite footballers have been missing from the blues line up and most in the press room predict an easy victory for Manchester United.

It doesn’t quite work out like that. Chelsea sprint into a three goal lead, the sparky Juan Mata looking particularly threatening. To recover their position as title challengers, United are obliged to launch the most scintillating comeback of the season. It is orchestrated by the immaculate passing of Paul Scholes, who comes on as substitute midway through the second half. Much of the pre-match discussion in the press room had been about the weather and the number of layers being worn to keep out the chill. As if to a fancy dress party on a wintry theme, the Mirror’s John Cross has come dressed as a duvet. I am wearing thermals and a jumper so thick it could double as a bullet-proof vest. Yet I am still freezing. I cannot help noticing that Scholes trots on to the pitch wearing short sleeves and eschewing all hint of glove, high-necked under-shirt or David Luiz-style tights. Clearly in Salford they mock the very concept of winter. And snigger at those who dress accordingly.

Behind the scenes at Match of the Day

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PAUL ARMSTRONG, editor of Match of the Day, takes us behind the scenes of a British institution…

Why Fulham went from last to first…how to squeeze 10 goals into 10 minutes…and glad to have Sir Alex back…

When does the planning for MotD start and what does this entail?
Our planning starts as soon as the fixtures come out in June, often while we’re working on a World Cup or European Championship. Sky and ESPN pick their weekend live fixtures, we send multi-camera Outside Broadcasts to three Saturday 3 pm games, and we send commentators to every weekend game. Pre-season sees either new titles commissioned, or the tweaking of the existing ones. Having to remove that iconic opening shot of Bobby Moore after West Ham were relegated was a bit of a wrench last summer.

Who decides which commentators will be at which games?
My immediate boss, Andrew Clement, who is also an Outside Broadcast director, allocates the commentators. We have a group of four or five lead commentators who travel to World Cups and Euros, and there’s a careful effort to allocate them an even share of the major Barclays Premier League clashes across the season. We then have a small group of trusted freelancers and guest voices from 5 Live to cover the rest of the games across a weekend. The beauty of Barclays Premier League coverage in recent years is that every game has multi-camera coverage and a commentator on site, so any game can lead the
show.

Do you draw up a rough schedule of order of games?
We don’t construct a running order in earnest until all the games are over. As the season evolves, the title race tends to lead, followed by the relegation battle, then the race for Europe. Mid-table encounters tend to end up later in the show, in the same way as they may not feature on FWA members’ back pages too often. That said, there are times when unexpected games promote themselves up the running order – we led with Wolves 2 Villa 3, followed by Fulham 5 Newcastle 2 the other week – and Blackpool led the show several times last season, simply because they’d caught the imagination and been involved in open, entertaining games. The beauty of the modern MotD format is that we can show at least a few minutes of every game with commentary. The old beef – which I often shared as a Middlesbrough fan – about a team only featuring for a minute in a single-camera round-up, is well and truly redundant. The new complaint is “we’re always on last”, the heartfelt, and mathematically impossible, cry of something like sixteen sets of Barclays Premier League fans.

You have feeds of games coming into the studio on Saturday afternoon…do you try to keen an eye on all of them? How many monitor the matches?
Yes, our production office has all the games coming in live on screens. The pundits concentrate on a pre-allocated 3pm kick-off each, and while we sometimes miss the nuances, we’ve become pretty adept at watching seven monitors at once. Staggered kick-offs may not suit the fans, but are actually quite good news for us. We can watch a game at 12.45, some more at 3pm, then another at 5.30 on the average Saturday. The resulting running order may be subjective, but at least it’s based on a reasonable overview. Each game has a designated producer making notes in the videotape area, then editing that game. Between them and the commentator at each game, you hope as the
programme editor, to be alerted to anything noteworthy from all the games. As the editor, you then decide on an order, how long each edit should be, and how much time to allocate to analysis. The show goes out live, so with the videotape durations being exact, the live chat sections are sometimes adjusted on the hoof. The action always has to come first, is pre-edited, and comprises at least 80 per cent of any given show. So, if you see a pundit trying to summarise the last game of the show in 15 seconds, it’s usually my fault, not theirs.

When do Gary Lineker and whoever else is on the show arrive?
Now we’re based in Salford, Gary gets a train up from London to be at the studio in time for the 3pm kick-offs. At least one of the two pundits (Hansen and Lawrenson from Southport, and Shearer from Newcastle) travel in for the early game, and they all watch the 3pm kick-offs and late game, then stay until we’re off air just before midnight.

Do you note down the time and who is involved in controversial incidents?
Yes, as above, there are big timecode readers in the VT area and the production office, so we should all be on the same wavelength if we need to find something.

Do Gary, Alan Shearer, Alan Hansen and Mark Lawrenson talk the incidents through before the show starts?
The pundits spend most of the evening fine-tuning their video analysis sequences with the producers, so should know what’s coming, but we don’t rehearse the actual chat sequences. Gary knows the themes of the analysis, and has seen the matches too, but largely improvises the questions, and often asks a supplementary based on whatever the pundits have just said. The hope is that it all looks reasonably spontaneous, as indeed it is. The only words which are pre-scripted are Gary’s links, which he writes himself within a running order structure determined by the editor.

At what time do you finalise the running order?
It’s usually in some kind of order after the 3pm games. The advent of the 5.30 game in recent years has made our lives a little more complicated, in that you can’t finalise the running order until that’s over, and you have to factor in the need to change durations accordingly. The Fulham v Arsenal game a few weeks ago was drifting along as a 0-1 at fourth or fifth in the running order, until Fulham scored twice at the death and it rocketed to first and a longer duration. You then have to tweak the rest of the programme to work out where, say, you can include a top six graphic without giving away the other scores. That is the ultimate crime for the hardy (and vociferous) band of viewers who manage to carry off the great Likely Lads challenge and avoid the results all day.

Who has the final decision?
The editor’s decision is final. Though he reserves the right to umm and aah, and consult, before making that decision. The Twitter era has made us ever more aware of how seriously (too seriously in some cases) fans take our subjective assessment of the editorial pecking order, so we do try to come up with an order we can justify retrospectively.

Is there a maximum time you can give any one game?
There’s a 10-minute match action limit on the Sunday live games. That presented a bit of a challenge to MotD2 this season in the cases of Manchester United 8 Arsenal 2 and United 1 City 6, but the producers concerned somehow squeezed all the goals and major incidents in.

What is your worst case scenario nightmare as kick-off for MotD approaches?
Editorially, that we may have missed something which will make huge headlines the following day. That’s one of the reasons we almost always transmit live – Sir Bobby Robson turned down a return to the England job late one Saturday evening, so Gary was able to speak live to him on the phone. Patrice Evra’s account of the Suarez incident on French television began to circulate on the wires on a Saturday evening. We couldn’t take the story a lot further, but were at least able to signpost the forthcoming storm during the course of that night’s live show. Technically, we’re absolutely in the hands of the experts and the increasingly complex technology. If that fails to work,
we’re all pretty helpless.

Has it happened?
There was a complete power failure in Television Centre during a midweek MotD last season. Those midweek shows are fairly hairy at the best of times given the fast turnaround, so losing all pictures during the games meant there was every chance we’d have no show at all. After about half an hour, power returned. We knew we’d have to mount a show, but had to cobble together what we could of the missing segment of each game by asking the Outside Broadcasts to play down key moments when the games were over. Gary prefaced the show with a precautionary reference to a few gremlins, but somehow, every goal and key incident made the air. We didn’t do full justice to Liverpool 0 Wolves 1, a game in which Wolves had apparently been superb, and had certainly scored their winner, during the missing segment. The goal, a few incidents, and Mick McCarthy’s interview did make it, but it wasn’t quite our normal service, and I wrote a piece for the Wolves website the following day to admit as much. Mind you, it turned out a lot better than ever seemed possible sitting in the dark at about 9pm.

It’s good to have Sir Alex Ferguson back on board…
It is indeed. Much as we appreciated Mike Phelan standing in for Sir Alex, the Match of the Day production team and viewers always want to hear the thoughts of the managers themselves, particularly when he’s the most successful in the history of the English game. He’s our near neighbour now – I can actually see Old Trafford out of the window as I type this – and at the time of writing, it looks increasingly likely that he may just pull off one of the more remarkable Barclays Premier League title wins of his illustrious career.

FWA Q&A: Neil Ashton

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The Daily Mail’s Neil Ashton on clapping Palace fans, Iniesta’s goal and a whopper in Buenos Aires…

Have you ever worked in a profession other than journalism?
Yes, I worked in my mother’s restaurant when I was about 16/17. I loved it, particularly as I set out in each shift to earn more in tips than I did in salary (which wasn’t difficult on my mother’s rates). I also worked for a corporate events company in golf, which allowed me to travel around the world and in return I rarely got paid. It didn’t last long, much as I enjoyed it.

Finest achievement playing football?
When Steve Coppell turned to me and said: “You’re on” in Geoff Thomas’s benefit game at the Colosseum between Palace and Manchester United in 2006. To play in the same team as my boyhood heroes – Geoff, Mark Bright, Ian Wright and Andy Gray and to play centre-half against Mark Hughes – was something I didn’t imagine could ever happen. Shaun Custis from the Sun was on the phone the next day and he said: “Right, you’ve got two minutes to tell me everything and then I never want to hear another word about it again.” Somehow I forgot to tell him I had clapped the Palace supporters in the Holmesdale Road when I walked off the pitch – unfortunately for me it has now become part of Matt Lawton’s entertaining dinner party stories.

Most memorable match covered?
On the rare occasion when I need to remind myself of the reasons why I love the game, I think of the unique roar that went up from a corner of Barcelona fans when Andres Iniesta scored that remarkable stoppage time equaliser at Stamford Bridge in the Champions League semi-final second leg in 2009. I’ve never heard a sound like it and I was transfixed by the celebrations that
followed by the corner flag.

The one moment in football you would put on a DVD?
Professionally it has to be Iniesta’s goal against Chelsea – the moment it left his boot, it was destined to beat Petr Cech. Personally it’s John Motson’s commentary of Mark Bright’s hooked, left foot equaliser against Liverpool in the 1990 FA Cup semi-final at Villa Park. On the Holte End we momentarily stood in shock each time Palace scored and it was only a second or so later when we realised the linesman’s flag hadn’t gone up, it was bedlam.

Best stadium?
The Millennium Stadium in Cardiff is magnificent. For historical significance, then it’s tough to beat Camp Nou or the Bernabeu.

…and the worst?
None. I still get a knot in my stomach on matchday, a real sense of anticipation and it doesn’t matter which game I’m going to. I got the same feeling in the days when I covered Crewe v Port Vale as I do for the Champions League final – to the supporters it means just as much.

Your best ever scoop?
I’m not one for patting myself on the back. I prefer to look ahead and would like to think that my best stories are still ahead of me.

Biggest mistake?
This question brings me out in a cold sweat. I once got an introduction to a property developer who wanted to buy Elland Road at the height of their financial troubles. The developer wanted to pull down the stadium – Billy Bremner statue and all – and suggested that the mighty Leeds went to groundshare with Barnsley while they redeveloped the site for a supermarket. It didn’t go down well with Leeds fans.

Have you ever been mistaken for anyone else?
No, although I’ve been told AVB looks like me.

Favourite football writer?
I would love to be able to write with the touch or poise of Hayward, but it’s never going to happen. In terms of emerging talent, Sami Mokbel at the Daily Mail has the fearless qualities that are required of news reporters. Good on him.

Favourite TV commentator?
Has to be Bryon Butler, painting a picture and mesmerising the radio audience with that incredible change of pace. His description of Maradona’s second goal at the 1986 World Cup – Maradona, turns like a little eel, he comes away from trouble, little squab man, comes inside Butcher and leaves him for dead, outside Fenwick and leaves him for dead, and puts the ball away…and that is why
Maradona is the greatest player in the world…’ is broadcasting at the highest level.

Most media friendly manager?
Harry. Doesn’t everyone say this?

Best ever player?
Zizou. I still marvel at his ability, La Roulette trick that took two or three players out of the game in one spin of those magical boots. The guy was something else.

Best ever teams (club and international)
CLUB: Current Barcelona team, although Ajax’s 1995 Champions League winning team would give them a game. INTERNATIONAL: Spain in 2008 and 2010. The football’s breathtaking at times.

Best pre-match grub?
Wembley, provided it’s an FA event. They really know how to look after the media.

Best meal had on your travels?
Carlos Tevez’s two best friends in Argentina took me into Fuerte Apache and in return I told them to book the best restaurant in Buenos Aires – they got the driver to take us Burger King and they dined out with whoppers, fries and genetically-modified Sprites. Respect

…and the worst?
Any time I have to eat food on the run or from an airport.

Best hotel stayed in?
The Faena in Buenos Aires. England’s general manager Franco Baldini could have a nice sideline business in hotel recommendations around the world.

…and the worst?
When I put my bags down in my room at the Cabanas in Sun City for the World Cup in South Africa, I wondered how I would ever get through the next 42 days and nights. The only thing that spared me was the company of the Independent’s Sam Wallace and the Sunday Telegraph’s “foot corr” as he calls himself, Duncan White.

If you could introduce one change to improve PR between football clubs and football writers what would it be?
I wouldn’t really, they do a solid job in tough circumstances. Perhaps I’d probably remind them that they are employees of the club and are not part of the management or squad. I’ve seen press officers walk on to the pitch to high five players and pat them on the bum at the end of a game and I’ve seen players kissed on both cheeks by female press officers when they come out of the dressing rooms. It’s unnecessary, but can understand why it happens when people are caught up in the moment.

One sporting event outside football you would love to experience?
Has to be the US Open at Flushing Meadows.

Favourite current TV programme?
What is this, Shoot! magazine? I flick through the channels and find some football. If there’s nothing live, then it’s Football Greatest Managers on Sky, or FA Cup Legends on ESPN.

Last book read?
I’ve been reading A Life Too Short, the tragic story of the German goalkeeper Robert Enke, since the start of November, but the poor guy had so many demons I can only read it in short passages.

Your most prized football memorabilia?
I paid an absolute fortune for Crystal Palace’s famous adidas sash kit from the 1980/81 season worn by the No7 at the time David Giles – it’s an absolute beaut and I wouldn’t sell it for a million pounds. Mark Bright’s No9 shirt from the 0-9 defeat at Anfield in September 1989 and Ian Wright’s No10 shirt from 1987/88 are also up there. I collect match-worn Crystal Palace shirts and have told the chairman Steve Parish he can put the entire collection on display in the grand entrance hall to their new stadium when they finally move there.
ENDS