John Motson John Motson was the son of a Methodist minister who first stimulated his interest in football. He celebrated his 40th anniversary on Match of the Day in October 2011, before retiring in 2018. During his career at the BBC he covered 10 World Cups, 10 European Championships & 29 FA Cup finals. Apprentice After…
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These days, collecting sports memorabilia can be a fun and exciting hobby. Also, a potentially lucrative investment. According to auctioneers collecting sporting memorabilia is on the rise. Traditional commemorative collecting such as football, golf, cricket, tennis, horse racing and baseball has tended to be around pictures, cards, signatures, photographs, paintings and ceramics. But in the…
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Broadcaster Terry Wogan once said ‘Radio has a way of getting into people’s heads’. There is no better example as BBC’s Test Match Special; which has been broadcasting the highs and lows of the England cricket team for over 65 years. The chatter and banter heard by a nation often surpassed the cricket being played…
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Brian Clough: Tomaszewski Gaffe In a must win World Cup Qualifier at Wembley in October 1973, England played Poland. Only a win for England would see them through to the World Cup finals in Germany the next year. Brian Clough was a pundit on ITV working on the match. Before the game he insisted the Poland…
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Kevin Keegan was the special guest at the Sussex Cricket Foundation lunch at The Grand, Brighton. However, Kevin had to share top billing with the ICC cricket world cup trophy, so excitingly won by England in July. Thanks to the ECB for loaning such a converted trophy for the occasion. The event was supported by…
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Tyson Fury made a Grand Hotel entrance to pay tribute to Ricky Jordan a former amateur boxer who sadly left us after an illness. The evening raised funds for worldwide Boxing charity ‘WBC Cares UK’ who are dedicated to making a real positive difference to the lives of the UK’s younger generation, their families and…
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The Change Foundation in association with The Berkeley Foundation have, in conjunction with local councils, been running the inner-city initiative called ‘Street Elite’ around London’s Tower Hamlets area. This is a ‘training for work’ initiative that uses sport, mentoring and youth engagement; to help young adults living on the edge of gangs and crime get a job…
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Just imagine, there is no fourth official and the linesman gets injured in an important Premier League football match. No one in the crowd is a qualified referee. Who could replace him? Think. Gary Lineker runs on the pitch offering his services. Then Alan Shearer says ‘I’m available?’ Sounds completely ridiculous? Yet this scenario was…
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A Brief British Football History ITV’s exclusive British TV football league contract finished at the end of the 1992 season. Since the mid 1980s, talk of a super league of elite English clubs had been frequently mentioned by various footballing bodies. As the 1990’s approached it became more of a reality. The English football clubs…
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The more outspoken they were the more television valued them. The public would switch on not only because they liked what they saw. But also to hate what they heard. Television football coverage and punditry has changed dramatically with the times. It has developed through the need of audience, growth of technology and the mass…
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George Best & Bobby Moore were footballing icons in the sixties and seventies. Bobby picking up the World Cup in 1966 for England and George Best an instrumental part of the great Manchester United side that won the European cup in 1968. Best is still seen by some as arguably the greatest player to grace…
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‘She wanted me because I was George Best and I wanted her because she was Miss World. It wasn’t exactly a meeting of minds, it was a collision of bodies.’ – George Best George Best (1946-2005) finally walked out on Manchester United in January 1974, having done so twice before. Although one of the most…
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In preparation for the 1970 World Cup in Mexico, one needed to check the England Esso coin collection was complete and the squad poster was neatly pinned to a teenagers wall. The England team left us with a song, ‘Back Home’ appearing on ‘Top of the Pops’ reaching number 1 in the charts on May…
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Gordon Banks was one of the greatest goalkeepers of his or any other generation and he will forever be remembered for his heroic part in England’s triumphant 1966 World Cup campaign that culminated in the famous 4-2 victory over West Germany at Wembley in the final. Gordon Banks: Football Legend Banks played 73 times for…
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Michael Parkinson was friends with George Best (1946-2005) for over 30 years; if anyone could shed light on this genesis of a footballer surely, he could. Yet throughout the book (George Best: A Memoir) it contains memories as the title suggests, but does not shed any new light on this complex but highly charismatic footballer.…
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It’s more than 40 years since Kevin Keegan was the face of Brut, Pirelli slippers, Smith’s crisps and the Green Cross Code. He possessed the most famous autograph in football. Kevin was England’s golden boy. The best player in the country. At a time of under achievement for the nation at international level. He followed…
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5-A-Side football is often seen today as a training method, used by clubs to keep players fit and practicing moving the ball quickly. What is often forgotten is this form of the beautiful game once had its own special competition. Leading teams would compete on a knock out basis in single evening of five-a-side football…
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The London Evening Standard 5-a-side tournament (organised by the Sports Council now called Sport England) was first introduced in 1954. And the last time in 1995. The competition, was usually played towards the end of the season (April, May). It featured the capitals league clubs. Roger Hillier says. ‘Initially the tournament ran for seven years…
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It is more than fifty years since Tennis went ‘Open’. This change allowed professional and amateur open tennis players to compete together at major Grand slam championships. Namely the US Open, French Open, Australian Open and Wimbledon (the oldest Tennis competition in the world). Since 1968 the game has soared in popularity. With millions watching…
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Up beat There is a sense of excitement and hope around the county ground nowadays. After two rather miserable years on the field and plenty of challenges off it. The professional game of cricket continues to change. Getting it right off the pitch often reflects what happens on it. Rob Andrew is a determined chief…
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Raymond Colin Wilkins MBE, often known as “Butch” Wilkins at the start of his career, was an English former footballer and at present a television pundit. He was a key midfielder for the England national football team during the 1980s, and enjoyed success at various clubs including Chelsea, Manchester United, A.C. Milan, Queens Park Rangers…
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The Chimes of Pompey rang out to all Portsmouth fans to come to the Kings Theatre to watch a potted amusing, informative theatrical history of their football club: The Pompey Story. This highly entertaining show was introduced by BT Sports commentator Ian Darke with the help of Peter Brackley bringing his now famous caretaker character…
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The wet mist descended slowly across the empty County Ground, as a small tractor moved across the moist grass while business people sipped champagne over light conversation in the Focus conference room. This can only mean one thing: the start of the English cricket season. The 2017 squad of Sussex players mixed socially with corporate…
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Peter Brackley: Sports Commentator With Several Voices
Peter Brackley began his radio and TV career as a very young sports editor on BBC Radio Brighton in the seventies, before following fellow Brighton fan Des Lynam to BBC National Radio, where he became a presenter and football commentator on Radio 2’s legendary ‘Sport on 2’, where he first met a young Garry Richardson.…
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