Our wonderful owners, Fosun, have invested millions of pounds over the last few years, to enable them to become a globally known brand, increase their revenue and become a more diverse company through football, the most popular sport on the planet.
They have, however, not done this to be cheated.
I feel it is now time for Fosun to flex their powerful muscles, to try and get rid of the blatant cheating and hypocrisy rampant in English Football, namely that scourge, VAR.
In less than a week, Wolverhampton Wanderers alone have had five obvious decisions, courtesy of VAR, go against them.
Five.
And that is just Wolves.
Other teams have suffered almost as badly.
But, interestingly, virtually all of the blatantly bad decisions have been in favour of the so-called top six teams.Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Tottenham and both Manchesters.
Why?
Money.
There cannot be any other reason.
The inhabitants of the corridors of power in English football have decided, or been paid to decide, that usurpers such as Wolves and Sheffield United cannot be allowed to be in the top six, as they surely can’t sustain those places, will get relegated, and will not have enough money to keep the faceless bureaucrats in the luxury to which they want to become accustomed.
Therefore, it is obvious to me that bribery is alive and well in English football.
So, Fosun, time to take a stand.
You have more money than any other owner in the Prem, how about Nuno taking the team off at half time, and refusing to play the second half, if the injustices of the first half at Anfield happen again?
What would the Prem do?
Never happened before, but I’m sure there would be a fine, but you can afford it.
Someone needs to take a stand, and it might as well be you, Fosun.
VAR was brought in to assist referees, not replace them, with, as so eloquently put by a fellow blogger, forensic refereeing.
Clear and obvious errors were meant to be addressed, not every single decision by referee or linesman.
If it takes over four minutes to check a clear and obvious error, then it was not clear and obvious in the first place.
And, lest we forget, VAR needs to be consistent.
Lallana v Wolves, goal allowed to stand. Boly v Leicester, goal disallowed. Identical situations.
Salah gets his shirt pulled by Arsenal player….penalty. Doherty gets his shirt pulled by Newcastle player…penalty denied. Identical situations.
Van Dyke tackles Brighton player with studs halfway up his leg, yellow card. Boly takes ball, with studs, three feet from City player, who was not touched, red card.
Mahrez touched in the box, falls over as though shot, penalty. Neto, plays ball then gets fouled, no penalty, yellow carded for diving.
No consistency. Absolutely no consistency.
So, Fosun, please take a stand, otherwise, your wonderful and ongoing investment will be for nothing, and you and football will be the losers.
If an organization as big and good as you can do it, Fosun, then surely others will follow and the sport we love can soon be restored to the beautiful game.
I have the following issues with VAR…
1. Offsides – the worst aspect of the VAR experience. They say they can work it out definitively but with the technology they’re using, they can’t. They can’t possibly know the millisecond the ball is played so it’s farcical to be looking in such microscopic detail at the position of the player receiving the ball. To give Jonny offside by centimetre (if that) at Anfield when he’s running back towards his own goal out wide is just really silly. Nobody can argue this point with a straight face. Work with a greater tolerance or get rid of it completely. We have to remember offside is there to stop goal hanging. You’re not goal hanging if you’re toe is inadvertently sticking out next to a defender whose body position may actually be ahead of yours anyway. It’s anti-football.
2. Consistency – I don’t subscribe to a conspiracy as such but I do agree that there is simply no consistency. One week an incident is given forensic attention, the next an identical situation only gets a passing glance – if that. I suppose this is ultimately because it’s still a human making the decisions and one ref’s opinion is different from the next regardless of whether they’re out on the pitch or sitting in a studio. But you can’t intervene retrospectively on something as important as the award/disallowing of goals if you’re not consistent. The Boly goal disallowed at Leicester vs the Mane goal awarded at Liverpool is the perfect example of inconsistency.
I completely agree that all VAR should be is a screen on the side of the pitch that the ref consults occasionally when flagged by an official. If they can’t clearly see from a replay minus gadgets that a player is offside, fouling, handballing, etc, then the original decision stands. The goal should always be to support the on-pitch decision unless it’s completely horrendous e.g. punched into the net, several yards offside, etc.
Clive I’m sure we all share your frustration but feel you are going way too far by suggesting Premier officers have been bribed. For that to succeed several individuals in posts of authority would need to be corrupted. And they in turn would have to persuade several referees and VAR technicians to join the conspiracy. At the same time preventing leaks. Mate it’s just not possible. And if your theory is justified how do you explain Leicester in second place, plus the number of decisions that have gone their way.
Having said that there is lots wrong with VAR. What exactly constitutes off-side needs clarifying. And the all important phrase “clear and obvious” needs enforcing. Refs consulting pitch side monitors would also seem an obvious improvement.
Meanwhile a very happy New Year to you and all the other many Wolves supporters in The Land of the Free.
Maybe slightly over the top with the bribery claim, but if I suddenly disappear from the blog, you will know some Russian mafia types have been round our house!!
If enough “shit” is thrown, some will stick if it’s true, or partly true, and there will be someone “justifying” it in the media.
If that happens, you can call me Mel Gibson.
Breaking news on Sky:-
Wolves are in talks to sign Striker Leonardo Campana from Ecuadorean club Barcelona sc
That’s maybe why Jimenez was a bit off yesterday.
Just saying!
Apparently he’s a 19 year old with a Spanish Passport, so no need for a visa but he will probably go into the U23’s.
No Visa for as long as we’re in EU that is.
What is Boris’ plan going to do with regards to that? Is he going to make some exception for gifted people, like Melania got in the US for having a big bust?
Anderson Talisca is my january dream signing. His passing skill is on par with Neves and his shooting skills are probably even better. And he’s versatile and can play as a central midfielder, winger or striker. The chinese club, Guangzhou, paid 19.2 millions for him, so he’s not cheap.
Remove all the British refs, assistants and analytically retentive var assistants
Replace with a bunch of professional refs from Europe
Consult the fekin pitchside monitor
Problem solved
Utw
Sorry theBoly situation at Leicester and the Lallana goal were not the same .
Lallana was found rightly to have controlled the ball with his shoulder not his arm .The ball undoubtedly hit Boly’s arm before theDonk put it in and the rule says ( not a VAR interpretation ) that if the ball intentionally or unintentionally hits an attackers arm before being put in by that or another player it must be ruled out .
Whilst there is much to criticise about VAR especially the inconsistency and ludicrously marginal offsides we do not help the case for making it better by exaggerating the cases .
But if he hadn’t moved his arm out wide, his shoulder would not have been where it was.
I know, I know, if is the biggest word in the dictionary, if my auntie had balls she would be my uncle, and all that.
All water under the bridge now, but still bloody annoying and frustrating!
Sad that we start the new Year off with all the bollocks var has caused.
Is var involved in the cup?
Anyway, Happy New Year to everyone.
Agreed. I love Clive’s passion but there’s a way of breaking the big six which Fosun can address legally and that’s by buying better players to get the club into the Champions League. Then just watch the decisions start going our way.
VAR has to change. It’s not “assisting”, it’s “intervening”. If something is not visible to the naked eye then a clear and obvious mistake has not occurred. Take away the graphics and lines and let the ref see a replay to see whether a mistake has been made.
Jonny’s hand , Wesley’s heel and Pukki’s armpit were searched for “forensically” and should not have resulted in” no goal.”
I like the idea of bringing in someone from Germany or France to do the VAR reviews. Someone who doesn’t get a boner every time Liverpool or whomever their favorite team is gets a goal.
Maybe I’m alone but I don’t even get a “boner ” when the Wolves score. That’s reserved for when I score!
Maybe we should make a poll.
Thumbs up if you get a boner when Wolves score.
Thumbs down if you don’t. (It would be interesting to see how Clive would vote)
If you don’t get boners any more, maybe you can sit this poll out :^)
I don’t understand what you are talking about.
Not any more anyway, eh Clive?
Ssshhh!!
They still think I’m a stud!
OK everyone. I just found out what the problem is. I was reading an opinion piece elsewhere and the phrase “VAR official Lee Mason” popped up.
Enough said.
Now we have him being able to screw us around when refereeing and when as a VAR official.
My issue with VAR is the deceitful way that ref’s authority has been undermined, leaving them as a puppet overruled now across the majority of key decisions. As far as I was aware the technology was designed to assist not replace ref’s.
Many of us never wanted this level of intrusion because we knew the delays that would be created and the impact on match atmosphere.
We all know the teams that attempt to intimidate Referees and it must affect their confidence when decisions made in the moment are pulled apart by journalists. But constantly being picked up by the voice in the ear just makes refs risk averse.
I have said before that we should apply the same limited number of appeals process as cricket. That should mean that if an appeal is lodged the ref refers to the pitch side screen. No other person can override their decision, so minimal stoppages.
Scrap the stupid rule re accidental handball in a build up to a goal. Change offside rule back to needing clear daylight between attacker and defender before being classed as offside. Allow trainer onto the pitch for injured player and keep play going as in Rugby.
Mourinho has started calling them VRs because they have become the referees.
That’s because he reads this blog. I recall someone on here coined the term some time ago.
From what I’ve read, the problem seems to be that the Premier League are exercising their Brexit-inspired English exceptionalism by not using VAR in the way that the International Football Association Board recommend. (Being English, we know better than those damn forriners). Namely, they do not apply the ‘clear and obvious’ parameter to offside decisions. Had they done so, there is no way that Neto’s goal at Anfield would have been ruled out.
The other dichotomy is the fact that an accidental hand-ball by a defender is treated completely differently from an accidental hand-ball by an attacker – hence Boly’s goal at Less-stars being ruled out. Thats not down to VAR per se, but to a bloody stupid rule.
All of this basically stemmed from a dubious goal by Koscielny for Arsenal v Burnley when he put his hands up to protect himself and inadvertantly turned the ball into the net but the ref gave the goal. Instead of simply accepting that the ref f***ed up that time, the Prem then introduce illogical laws and a technical system which generates even more of the controversy which it was designed to counteract. Talk about making a mountain out of a molehill…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NEYkqs1mPus
Fun fact.
Gedson Fernandes was born in the same city/village as Nuno. I wonder if that would sway him to come to Wolves.
Rumours about Wolves trying to sign Ecuadorian 19 year old Leonardo Campana.
If he hasn’t played for their senior national team, can he even get a working permit?
Thanks, StuWolf.
Great piece mate….
I said at the beginning of the season that every decision is judgmental and unless it’s done by one person we’ll have a different judgement for each situation….
With which I agree that there are some bent VAR officials creaming some money.
Let’s just take Neto’s penalty claim yesterday…. clearly a foul, regardless of contact… which clearly there was … and wanker Simon Hooper decides it’s a dive …. well f@@k you Hooper you cross eyed knob…. you clearly wear top six tinted glasses and receive brown envelopes with crisp tenners in it……
How can anyone not raise an eyebrow to that penalty claim denied.
It’s all too prevalent… the inconsistency of VAR judgement….. or corruption…..
Well said Clive… a clear and transparent view….,
Lord T, I do think you should “wrap up” your comments like that. And I’m sure you can get corrective spectacles for cross-eyes but he defo ain’t been circumcised as he is a complete knob agreed.
Not sure about bribery, but some bias from time to time. As far as I am aware, the “hand” starts under the armpit, straight up to the shoulder. And nobody has yet convinced me that VAR officials could say with certainty that a small piece of the ball was not touching the edge of the hand, and thus they could never have ruled that it was “a clear and obvious error” Neto’s goal should haven stood! But that is history now, and we move on to the next game.
They do say “these things equal themselves out over the course of the season”!
So that’s it, we’re now guaranteed Top Four starting with LiVARpool on 23/01/20 when we get 2 penos for Virgins accidental toe bunts up Jota & Rauls arse and one having to be retaken for Salad’s blatant use of the tongue as encroachment.
Fek VAR
I’ve been anti-VAR from before it’s introduction. With its introduction I’m even more incensed!
It has performed even worse than I thought. I don’t think there’s bribery but it is daft introducing an extra layer of decision making that can be subject to bias, corruption & betting.
I saw a tweet about Sterling that had yet another goal wiped out by var. Man City fans are against it too. I think they chanted against it at Molineux.
There’s now a big sway of fan opinion against it. I’ve written to the Premier League about binning it, also signed the petition to stop var put up by the Fans to stop var group of all team’s fans.
It’s definitely ruining football, it’s daft, stupid & has very little logic. Is it just the way us superior Brits have implemented it? Don’t know. But we are the best Country by far at producing farces! Var is in the ilk of the Carry On Films, Brian Rix & Aykbourn plays.
It’s unnatural as well, a system of technology that is only used in one league and cannot lend itself to use in grass roots football to me is an anathema.
Why is there a messianic mission to achieve 100% accuracy in the Prem league? It’s just a game of football after all, the game and all it’s rules & regs should be the same at Accrington as it is at Wolves.
It could’ve maybe worked if they had put it in with common sense & empathy, understanding of the desires and passions of football fans who want to celebrate goals in real time not 4-7 minutes later.
As the fans in all Prem grounds across the country sing fuck Var.
Oh and thanks for the article. It certainly needed covering by the blog, thus reflecting the growing disquiet amongst fans all over this “Sceptered Isle”.
And as if we hadn’t seen enough stupidity surrounding var, now Watford are apparently appealing the red card they got yesterday.
They are expecting var to overturn var!!
Absurd!
Totally mind blowingly absurd!!
The problem for me is that in that all important moment when a goal is scored, I now find myself sitting impassively awaiting a VAR review rather than leaping about like a crazy thing. I don’t go to footie to sit impassively.
Those of you who know their American Football will know the system which works there. The ref’s throw a flag in the air if they feel a decision is needed, which indicates to the crowd that there is going to be a review. There’s a flag on the play, the commentators say.
If the lino suspects a possible offside, he flags. The crowd know immediately there’s a doubt. No flag from the lino and the goal stands without a review. No flag, as I’m sure would have been the case in the Jonny/Neto incident, no review and the celebration can take place when it’s meant to.
Something has to be done. I’m bloody sick of it.
I don’t buy into the conspiracy theory although I can understand why many do. Given the amount of dissatisfaction arising from the offside rulings the guidelines need to be tweaked immediately( none of this wait till the end of season rubbish) on the basis that unless the VAR review is concluded within a maximum of one minute, the referees decision stands. No if/buts and maintain the Refs authority on the pitch. The players should also buy in to only the captain approaches the Ref , any harassment resulting in a yellow card. Rugby is a full on contact sport and the Ref respect is good
Don’t mess around Clive – say it like it is! Great article.
I don’t suspect bribery of officials (as yet!) but I strongly suspect it at some point in the future.
As it stands VAR is a waste of time. Keep all decisions consistent, use the pitch side monitor (otherwise why have it sat there), go back to the old clear off side rule & make sure this hand ball rule is clear – then stick to what is said!
Or scrap the entire idea & let us go back to enjoying football & celebrating wildly when our team score – without having to panic & check the screen for the dreaded “VAR checking goal”.
In short give us the passion back in the game, else at this rate it’ll vanish!
May I suggest Clive, as my all time hero HAL the computer said to Dave Bowman, after a malfunction, in the stupendously classic film, 2001 A Space Odyssey:-
“I can see you’re really upset about this. I honestly think you ought to sit down calmly, take a stress pill, and think things over. I know I’ve made some very poor decisions recently, but I can give you my complete assurance that my work will be back to normal. I’ve still got the greatest enthusiasm and confidence in the mission. And I want to help you.”
Perhaps HAL should have been named VAR.
You should have put a full stop after the word hero.
You know that’s what I meant.
I mean, you’ve met John Richards.
Not many people know that.
I’m sorry but VAR should be knocked on the head immediately.
The jobs for the boys in their ivory tower down south should be scrapped immediately.
They are justifying their position.
They are not assisting but countermanding the referee
I don’t want to know after 5 minutes whether someone is a gnats dick offside, I want a decision instantly.
I want to celebrate immediately, or have a moan immediately, not wait while the remote referee fills out his expense claim form.
There’s a lot of immediately’s and instantly’s but that’s what football is, immediate, that’s why we love it.
FOVAR
I’m sorry to0 Lowves, but no way will they knock VAR on the head. Such technology is here to stay, as the evidence in other sports proves.
What should be done is that VAR must be used only in the way intended, i.e. to correct clear and obvious errors, and to do this swiftly. Definitely NOT to conduct a forensic investigation to prove that the referee was wrong! (As they seem to be doing now in England, but not on the Continent).
Looking past var to tomorrow, looks like it might be a bostin game under the floodlights.
Ole in his interview paid us the highest respect.
http://c.newsnow.co.uk/A/1014516565?-300:786
We are being punished over and over again because Boly scored the equaliser against Citeh with his hand last season. Enough is enough we have paid in full.
Didn’t Sterling figure in the equaliser in that match? He found an outstretched leg to fall over for a soft free kick. Sterling sends out search parties for outstretched legs. Goes down like Christine Keeler.
Boly opened the scoring with the Hand of God, unintentionally it must be said.
I have exactly the same mind-set as Clive……..no-one knows what goes on in the dungeons of Stockley Park.
But a quick change of topic….. I think I may have posted something like this eons ago but can’t remember..
So its FA cup day today and yet again against the Red Mancs. I guess most fans these days would say “so what” but for me the FA Cup was simply magical.
Since the inception of the Premier League and Champions league place for the top 4, plus the untold riches of ensuring survival in the top flight, the FA Cup has to all intents and purposes been relegated to a “bit part” competition for the so called “big clubs” until at least the quarter finals and key players are rested. Unfortunately some clubs in the lower divisions also tend to adopt this philosophy and it really is all a far cry from the time when the FA cup was THE knockout competition in world football.
Our beloved Wolves won the cup on 4 occasions, the last of these in 1960 and since then we have played in 5 semi-finals (1973, 1979, 1981, 1998 and 2019) and lost the bloody lot. Unfortunately I witnessed every one of these defeats and for me the most bitter – even worse than Watford – was losing to those grubby Yorkshire cretins Leeds United at Maine Road in 1973.
During the formative years in the 1960’s I used to wait with bated breath for the third round draw. Christmas 1963 or thereabouts and my cherished grandparents bought me the ultimate present – a red transistor radio with a large dial on the front indicating the wavelength settings of a multitude of transmitters and locations, some of which I had never heard of at the time (Hilversum, Lille, Athlone, Allouis) plus some of a more familiar nature (Moscow, Warsaw, Droitwich). Twiddling the dial resulted in a high pitched “wheee hoooo weeeee” as the machine searched for frequencies to connect with. Marconi was a visionary!
Well what on earth has this to do with the FA Cup one may ask? Well for me it meant tuning into the Light Programme and then Pete Murray on radio two for the third round draw live from FA headquarters, Lancaster Gate, London. (The first ever live draw on the BBC actually took place in 1937. Two broadcasting legends Pete Murray/Bryon Butler covered the draw in 1977 some 40 years later).
The FA cup represented a magical excitement across the country with the opportunities for lowly football league or non-league clubs to get one over their lofty opponents. Yes it has happened to Wolves as we know but apart from the infamous Chorley defeat, when 63,000 turned up (excuse the sarcasm but funny how many Wolves fans claim to have seen all three games), Stan “The Grand Master” Cullis witnessed a shock of epic proportions when his all-conquering Wolves lost 1-0 at Molineux to a Reg Cutler for Bournemouth from the third division in front of over 42,000 and the goal post snapped at the South Bank end– the magic of the cup!
In reality my earliest recollection of the magic of the cup arrived during 1964/65 season. In the third and fourth round we defeated Portsmouth and Rotherham before the draw (as listened to on the aforementioned transistor) pitted Wolves v Villa. And what a titanic struggle this proved to be. Over 100,000 watched the first two games at Villa Park and Molineux which failed to find a winner. So the second replay was played at The Hawthorns on a bitterly cold evening with the pitch carpeted in snow – it resembled the icing on a wedding cake. I stood on the Brummie Road terraces with a mate from the time – Martin Wheeler (I wonder if he reads this blog) – after arriving via the number 74 West Bromwich Corporation bus from Dudley. Hugh Mcllmoyle bagged a hat trick as Wolves ran out 3-1 winners. Of course we already knew our quarter final opponents having smuggled the radio into school and tuned in to the lunchtime draw – Manchester United and Matt Busby with his second crop of babes including the mercurial George Best and then usual suspects of Law, Charlton etc. 53,581 sardined into Molineux on that Wednesday evening (the game was scheduled for the previous Saturday but snow put paid to that).
In what proved to be a humdinger of a game Wolves swept into a 2 goal lead early on thanks for Mcllmoyle only for United to score 5 including 4 in 24 second half minutes. Peter Knowles scored Wolves’ third late on but United went to the semi-finals only to lose to Leeds.
Looking from the North Bank end, the South Bank was an unbelievable site with thousands of cigarettes burning like fireflies and clouds of smoke billowing under the Molineux lights. In those days the South Bank terrace was one of the largest in the country housing around 29,000 spectators and when full it was quite a sight.
The following season in the 5th round Wolves drew Manchester United again at Molineux. Again in front of over 53,000 -again Wolves swept into a 2 goal lead (Terry Wharton) and yet again we lost as a Man United team inspired by the unbelievable skills of a certain George Best won 4-2 in another corker of a game. We watched in awe crammed into the “kids enclosure” underneath the half time scoreboard in the North Bank as Best simply ran the show.
These mid 60’s fixtures are in YouTube in very evocative black and white.
So ended my dreams of following Wolves to Wembley for the FA cup final as I was too young in 1960 and my cherished dad refused to take me along…thanks dad…thank a lot pal..
Over the following 5 decades or so dreams of Wembley and an FA cup final with Wolves were dashed time and time again but that is for another day….
Next up – 1973 and the run to the semi-finals – only to lose to Leeds at Maine Road….up until Nuno arrived, 1972-73 was my most favourite season – something to do with the music and Club Lafayette and the “fashions” and a bit of cash on the hip and of course playing football and cricket and watching Waggy and Richards and Dougan tear strips of opposing defences.
Have a great weekend guys and let’s hope we are in the 4th round draw.
BOG
BOG.
It’s oh so Wonderful to have you back, life On this blog is quite mundane without your volumes of precise passionate information that stimulates my old fart of a brain into so many, I was there moments.
I was not at Chorley and “quite frankly my dear, I don’t give a damn”.
Because where I have been of late, is every single game home and away of this wonderful rollercoaster ride that is the Nuno 2019/20 season in Europe, (With the exception of Armenia). In years to come, I shall fondly remember this season as being the one that gave me my passion and belief back, in this Wonderful game that is football.
The FA Cup,
Me I don’t care if we progress, I hope we do obviously, but it can’t be at the expense of our players. Pep Mardiola said on Sky yesterday, ” he wants to compete and do well in every competition, But, not at the expense of his players.
I hope we rip Man U apart as one pundit predicted today, but I won’t be gutted if we don’t. Let’s instead get 7 days well deserved rest for our boys after todays game, then onwards and upwards.
Me, I will take a top 4 spot over a Cup run all day long.
Thank you BOG for the amazing memories, I was at those games in my Doc Martins, Levi’s with braces and my Crombie coat, I was skint, happy, had hair and the World was good. Thanks for that BOG.
Wolves 3
Man U 1
Cheers Stu – really good to read your memories as well.
Levi’s, braces and Doc Martens (or brogues for the date) along with Ben Sherman shirts with buttoned down collar.
I once went home with a grade one cut – my beloved dad went berserk!
Let’s hope we progress to round 4 and draw West Brom – away!
All the best
BOG
Those two defeats to ManUre (I was 8 in 1965) led to my lifetime loathing of them.
T’was so much better when the Cup draw was on a Monday lunchtime. I recall chemistry lessons when one kid would have a radio with an earphone and would pass on messages of who had drawn who – happy days.
As for Chorley, I wasn’t there – couldn’t get a ticket… 🙂
I thought I had sold you my spare ticket for the Chorley match?
Bloody hell BOG!
You don’t post anything for a millennium and then you come up with your version of War and Peace.
Good to have you back.
Let’s hope that in years to come you can retell the time when we went into a two goal lead against Ollie’s Army – then got two more.
And went on to win the Cup!
Hello Mighty DOOG
Well the game didn’t really live up to the billing on Saturday but I have a insatiable love affair with the FA cup and decided to post some memories even though at 67 my mind ain’t what is was….!
I still read the posts on the BLOG but I have a ridiculous urge to write reams of garbage at times and hence bore the pants off everyone.
Hopefully we will win the replay and draw West Brom – away!
Take care and all the best
BOG
Brilliant bog
Welcome back
The magic of the cup rings true for me too, not just memories of old games when I was a young fella but also later on
I emigrated to Australia in 1990 and for about the first 10 years the only game of football that you could watch, in any form was the fa cup final
That’s 90 minutes of football a year , thinking about that now for a minute makes me wonder why the hell I stayed
Brits would have football parties in excitement
Fast forward 30 years and I just hope we make any final in the next few years so I can take my boy to his first final and I get excited now because I believe this team are going to deliver just that
In Singapore atm and it’s funny how many man Ute fans don’t want to chat to me and my wolves logo training shirt
These are the days my friend
Utw
Hi Marney
90 minutes of football – blimey compare that to the Sky/BT/Amazon saturation coverage these days!
Like you I hope we reach a major final in the near future. As I am now 67 the time factor is a consideration – maybe Gdansk in May methinks!
I hope you are enjoying Singapore and its great to read you are proudly displaying your Wolves logo shirt.
So many Man U fans everywhere – I remember doing some business in China before retirement. On a trip to Hong King I nipped into an Irish bar one late afternoon to watch Man U v Liverpool and the place was absolutely rammed with shirts of both clubs. As were all the other bars in the area apparently.
I think we will win the replay and meet West Brom in round 4!
All the best
Mike
I hope you’re right old gold !
See you in Gda?sk
Utw
Thanks BOG, I’m with you at The Hawthorns for aye, aye Hughie’s hat trick on the snow, and the Man U matches where we scored first then got battered by the Best, Law, Charlton Trinity. I sat on a barrier in the North Bank till I was old enough to stand on a beer crate, remember being alarmed to move several yards when the crowd moved on block either because we had scored or opposition fans were invading the cowshed.
“Those were the days my friend i thought they”d never end.”
I remember them well.
I”ve got a tear in my eye from that wonderful blog .
Superb.
When football WAS football.
The youngsters will never know the fantastic times we lived through.
A great pity i think.
Cheers Spikey – yes I too have such fond memories and love looking back from time to time. The whole era during the 60’s and 70’s was a great time to be a lad.
Those were the days my friend – an apt description from Mary Hopkin.
Thank the lord we are in another unforgettable era with Nuno and Co. The last three seasons have been amazing considering the dross under Saunders, Lambert et al.
Onwards to Gdansk in May!
All the best
BOG
BOG such an evocative post. Like you,in my youth, for me the FA cup was THE football competition. This was probably because it was some of the very little live football allowed on TV. And of course there was the glamour of Wembley, Abide With Me, marching bands and the walk up the 39 steps to collect the cup. BBC coverage seemed to be on all day, highlights of earlier rounds,what the players had for breakfast etc etc.
So devoted was I that I hitched from Glasgow where I was at uni to watch those ties against Man U you described, bringing it all back. Two great games.
Hello Happy
Now that is a commitment to hitch 300 miles from Glasgow to Wolverhampton TWICE and then back again I guess.
As you correctly say – BBC all day coverage of the FA cup final (then ITV jumped in as well and each broadcaster had a reporter on the team coach), where the teams stayed the night before etc. I think coverage started about 10 am….
I know times move on and its wonderful to be a Wolves fan these days – long may it continue.
But from time to time nostalgia sets in and I have a glance back in time….a bit sad really but there we are!
All the best
BOG
“You have more money than any other owner in the Prem, how about Nuno taking the team off at half time, and refusing to play the second half, if the injustices of the first half at Anfield happen again?”
WTF?
Time to put the tin foil hat on methinks and stop the aliens messing with your mind.
😉
Way too late for that, my mind went decades ago, about the time of those Cup matches so eloquently described above.
How do you have VAR in a tournament where some of the lower league venues are not set up with the correct facilities?
PS: Rumours are that Cutrone is already in Italy.
Poor game today I thought. Lots of individual errors, thought Vinagre was below par. Think they all need a break.