ARTICLES IN THE GOONER
As a longtime reader and collector of Arsenal fanzines, I feel greatly privileged to have my writing published in The Gooner. The articles listed here appear in the print edition of The Gooner (which can be purchased from the fanzine's website) and can be viewed online (with a current e-subscription to The Gooner at Exact Editions).
INVINCIBLE FOR FOUR REASONS
"When Jens Lehmann arrived at Arsenal in the run-up to our Invincible Premier League season, he joined a formidable backline that boasted the likes of Lauren, Cole, Campbell, Touré and Keown. However, when teamed with David Seaman in the preceding 2002-03 league season, our defence had conceded 42 goals, finishing second, five points behind Manchester United, who – notably – had conceded only 34 goals..."
Drawing upon 'The Madness is on the Pitch' (2017) by Arsenal invincible goalkeeper Jens Lehmann, I highlight four reasons for our unbeaten Premier League run through 2003-2004.
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THE IRISH EXODUS
"The front cover of the February 1980 issue of Gunflash shows a smiling Liam Brady. The Republic of Ireland international is pictured in a suit and neatly-knotted tie, holding the FA Cup while standing proudly beside the Arsenal Player of the Year Shield. The following summer, he left Highbury when the club agreed a transfer to Juventus. He had been at Arsenal since he was 15 years old and, at 24, was heading into the prime years of his career..."
Drawing upon 'Pat Jennings: An Autobiography' (1983) by, of course, the legendary goalkeeper himself, I reflect on the extraordinary departures of Brady and Stapleton in consecutive summers.
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FROM GARSTON BOYS TO WEMBLEY LADIES
"The received wisdom is that Kelly Smith is the best player in Arsenal Women’s history and the women’s game’s greatest ever English footballer. Received wisdom is not always correct. In this case, it’s spot on...."
Drawing upon 'Footballer' (2012) by Arsenal legend Kelly Smith, I reflect on the hindrances she overcame to rise to elite football during a time of extreme discrimination.
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BEFORE KAI, THERE WAS GEORGE
"Hang on. There’s something familiar here: a playmaking forward joining Arsenal from Chelsea; converting to left midfield; looking to arrive late to the box with goal scoring threat; and known for headed goals at the back post. Of course! It’s double-winning Arsenal legend George Graham! When, in 1966, he arrived from Chelsea, it sounds like the West Londoners were a rather unserious bunch – sound familiar, Kai?..."
Drawing upon 'Seventy-One Guns' (2002) by David Tossell, I make a lesser-made comparison.
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THE IRISH EXODUS
"The front cover of the February 1980 issue of Gunflash shows a smiling Liam Brady. The Republic of Ireland international is pictured in a suit and neatly-knotted tie, holding the FA Cup while standing proudly beside the Arsenal Player of the Year Shield. The following summer, he left Highbury when the club agreed a transfer to Juventus. He had been at Arsenal since he was 15 years old and, at 24, was heading into the prime years of his career..."
Drawing upon 'Pat Jennings: An Autobiography' (1983) by, of course, the legendary goalkeeper himself, I reflect on the extraordinary departures of Brady and Stapleton in consecutive summers.
BEFORE KAI, THERE WAS GEORGE
"Hang on. There’s something familiar here: a playmaking forward joining Arsenal from Chelsea; converting to left midfield; looking to arrive late to the box with goal scoring threat; and known for headed goals at the back post. Of course! It’s double-winning Arsenal legend George Graham! When, in 1966, he arrived from Chelsea, it sounds like the West Londoners were a rather unserious bunch – sound familiar, Kai?..."
Drawing upon 'Seventy-One Guns' (2002) by David Tossell, I make a lesser-made comparison.
I LOVE THE LETTERS
"I love the The Gooner for many reasons. I love how well-informed, passionate and enthusiastic the writers are about the Arsenal. I love how the Club’s story is told in panoramic breadth and microscopic detail over many thousands of pages. I must admit, however, that, while I love the fruits of the editor’s leadership and the writers’ craft, I also love the chaos of the Letters page..."
Drawing upon various issues of The Gooner (1987-88), I plot the early history of the fanzine's Letters page.
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THE EBB AND FLOW OF ARSENAL, OXFORD UNITED AND GUNFLASH
"Across a shared history of nearly 130 years, this season’s FA Cup 3rd Round clash will be only the tenth time that Arsenal and Oxford United have met. Given the scarcity of this matchup, it is, perhaps, surprising that seven of the previous nine head-to-heads came within a three-and-a-half-year period between October 1984 and March 1988. This run of matches largely coincides with Oxford’s three-year stay in the English top-flight between 1985-86 and 1987-88..."
Drawing upon various issues of Gunflash (1985-88), I recall some memorable matches with Oxford United during their rise and fall in that era.
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KELLY SMITH & THE FOLKLORE OF ARSENAL'S WOMEN
"Following England’s golden summer of women’s football, the game appears to be poised to take another step – or leap – forward into the mainstream, mass media, sporting consciousness. With more than 40,000 tickets sold for a Women’s Super League edition of the North London derby, it appears that records will be broken and trails will be blazed. Though the achievements of previous generations of Arsenal’s women footballers were not played out against the backdrop of the adulation currently heaped upon Leah, Meado and Viv, their stories can and should live on to be shared – told, re-told and celebrated – down through the generations of Arsenal supporters..."
Drawing upon 'Footballer: My story' by Smith with Hardy (2012), I recall the storied career of an Arsenal legend.
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WHEN WE DIDN'T TRUST THE PROCESS
"It’s not very often that a club gets the chance to play both of the League match-ups against an opponent in quick succession. It’s rarer still that such an opportunity arises against a direct rival for the achievement we seek. In such a circumstance, winning both games is chef’s-kiss sweet. Happily, across a fortnight in February this year, Wolverhampton Wanderers obliged in all respects. Worthy of celebration, surely...."
Drawing upon 'Billy Wright: My Dad, A Hero For All Seasons' (2018) by Vicky Wright with Norman Giller, I recall the development of youth during Billy Wright's managerial tenure at Arsenal.
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ONE OF US
"Some points of connection between clubs bring to mind great achievements to be celebrated; some are drenched in sadness, regret or even tragedy; some are steeped in controversy, debate and division. The transfer of David Rocastle in the summer of 1992 – a momentous connection between Arsenal and Leeds United – captures all of the above: greatness, sadness and more than a modicum of controversy..."
Drawing upon Arsenal fanzines of that time, I recall the transfer of David Rocastle from Arsenal to Leeds United.
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THE PERSPICACIOUS PURSUIT OF PIRES
"As we contemplate Arsenal’s real and imagined moves in the transfer market, let’s consider a rather fine signing we made in 2000. The story starts during a calamitous, relegation-threatened season at Olympique de Marseille. A couple of weeks after the L’OM players faced a violent supporter revolt after a particularly heavy defeat, one of their number – Robert Pires – went straight to the top, and requested a one-to-one meeting with Club (and Adidas) Chairman, Robert Louis-Dreyfus..."
Drawing upon 'Footballeur' by Pires with Rivoire (2003), I recall a momentous signing for the Arsenal.
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FROM HALE END TO THE EUROPEAN CUP
"It appears that Arsenal has an outstanding group of young players. More generally, though, the route from Hale End to a distinguished career at London Colney is a rarely trodden path. In recent years, Arsenal supporters’ attention has been drawn to a European Cup winner – Bayern Munich’s Serge Gnabry – who somehow never made the grade at Arsenal, and left after only ten league appearances, and just one league goal. However, let’s recall another European Cup winner. A striker who managed only one league appearance for the Arsenal, and not a single league goal..."
Drawing upon 'Andy Cole: The Autobiography' (2005) by Andy Cole with Peter Fitton, I recall the young striker's time at Arsenal.
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LEEDS LEAD MEE THROUGH TWO FORGETTABLE FINALS
"Cup Finals, eh? The tension of the never-ending build-up. The pageantry of a Wembley showpiece. Players, knowing that a trophy is on the line, expending cramp-inducing levels of frantic energy. George’s repose; Brady’s socks, Cazorla’s free-kick: memorable stuff. On the other hand, Cup Finals can lack spectacle. Fail to ignite. As Arsenal supporters, we remember the wins, of course. While we might be forgiven for trying to forget the losses, we remember many of those too: being humbled by Swindon and Birmingham and that travesty in Cardiff. They were memorable in a different and far less pleasant way. However, when Bertie Mee’s Arsenal met Don Revie’s Leeds United in two Wembley Finals – the 1968 League Cup Final and the 1972 FA Cup Final – we lost in a manner that has proven to be mildly forgettable..."
Drawing upon 'Bertie Mee: Arsenal's Officer & Gentleman' (2005) by David Tossell, I recall two strange Cup Finals against Leeds United.
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HOWE AND THE HORNETS
"As the recently-departed Jimmy Greaves famously concluded: football is a funny old game. Well, it certainly conjures up pleasing – and not so pleasing – coincidences from time to time. Examples of this are to be found in the notable roles played by Watford in and around the start and end of Don Howe’s tenure as Arsenal manager. In December 1983, Don, of course, took over from the manager he had served under as first team coach..."
Drawing upon 'Inside Soccer' (1985) by Tony Woodcock with Peter Ball, I recall how the hornets featured at both ends of Don Howe's managerial tenure at Arsenal.
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ARSENAL VS BRENTFORD: A RARE FIXTURE IN HISTORY
"For Arsenal, playing Brentford is a little similar to London buses… but in reverse. That is, we played them twice in one week, and then not again for more than 30 years. Indeed, despite the familiarity implied by the initial double-header, we have barely seen them since – only a further 11 match-ups in the last 119 years. Compared to the regularity with which we have met many other London clubs (over 200 matches against Spurs and Chelsea, over 100 against West Ham, around 50 or more against Crystal Palace, Charlton and QPR), these 13 matches – and only one since 1947 – are pitifully few, and not enough to stoke the furnace of an intra-city rivalry..."
Drawing upon 'Woolwich Arsenal 1893-1915' (2012) by Tony Attwood, Andy Kelly and Mark Andrews, 'A Lifetime in Football' (1955) by Charles Buchan, and 'Football Ambassador' (1945) by Eddie Hapgood, I report on an under-developed London rivalry.
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KENNY SANSOM: BECOMING A WINNER
"Famously trophy-less Harry Kane missed a chance to open his account in this season’s League Cup Final. He’s earning fortunes and has received numerous individual accolades, but is he a winner? Does he feel like a winner? On the morning of Sunday, April 5, 1987, Kenny Sansom was, in many ways, a supremely successful footballer. Having started his professional career in the Third Division, he had, over the previous dozen years, risen to the top to make over 300 appearances in the First Division. Moreover, he had become an established international – so far earning 76 England caps, and starting all but one of England’s games at two World Cup Finals. Indeed, that very evening, Sansom was to receive an accolade from the Professional Footballers’ Association, as he had completed an 11-year run of being selected as the outstanding left back in his division. A record that is unmatched before or since..."
Drawing upon 'Going Great Guns' (1987) by Kenny Sansom, I recall the day Kenny became a winner.
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NIALL QUINN AND HIS ANFIELD '89 HEARTACHE
"The recent and imminent graduates from our Hale End Academy look promising – in some cases, extremely promising. Every once in a while, a club can produce a glut of talent that goes on to make major contributions to a successful era in the club’s history. They come through the youth age groups together. Then, they play for senior side together. They play for each other, and they win together. We may be on the brink of that. One might argue that the last time this happened for The Arsenal was in the late 1980s, when a cohort of young, home-grown stars helped George Graham propel us to Cup and League glory. We can list the names: Tony Adams, Paul Merson, David Rocastle and Mickey Thomas; and we can add Martin Hayes and Gus Caesar. However, another of this band of brothers – Niall Quinn – felt distanced from the achievements of the group. Amidst the glory of Anfield 89, he was out of the team and marginalised..."
Drawing upon 'Niall Quinn: The Autobiography' (2002), I recall how Niall felt excluded from title celebrations.
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FATHER CUNNINGHAM AND AN AXE MAN IN THE GORBALS
"Today, elite footballers are wealthy and live privileged and pampered lives. In the days when Frank McLintock was making his mark as one of Arsenal’s greatest ever captains, the money and the luxuries were not as extreme, but they were enough to be comfortable and put a little aside for the decades after the knees gave out. Reflecting the working class roots of the game, the lifestyle made possible by football would, for many top players, have starkly contrasted with the conditions of their upbringing. Born in 1939, Frank grew up among the crowded tenements of the Gorbals in Glasgow. Violence was commonplace..."
Drawing upon 'That's The Way The Ball Bounces' (1969) Frank McLintock and Terry McNeill. I recall that Frank grew up tough.
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MEE CHOSE TO STAY AND FIGHT
"Some managers leave too soon. We hope Arteta won’t. Some managers stay too long. Many who rate Wenger’s achievements most highly nevertheless believe that he should have stepped aside sooner. A manager that stays too long tends to create conflicting emotions among their club’s supporters. While past glories earn them longevity, as well as supporters’ admiration and respect, such accomplishments can also grant some measure of discretion to choose the time of their departure. If they stay too long, and the fortunes of the Club fall too far, supporters’ frustrations grow, and the end can be brutal. Given the scale and scope of Bertie Mee’s contributions to Arsenal, his time at Club should have ended in the right way. A dignified exit. Sadly, that didn’t happen. In 1976, languishing near the relegation zone, the Club was in disarray. Mee chose to stay and fight rather than step aside..."
Drawing upon 'So Far, So Good' (1980) by Liam Brady, I recall the last days of Bertie.
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JUST SHOW ME WHERE TO SIGN
"Among other things, the summer of 2020 has, for Arsenal supporters, been characterised by lengthy contract negotiations. So lengthy that a tired-and-cranky Arsenal Twitter has taken its reputation for detective work to new heights and, indeed, self-parody. From mind-numbingly drawn-out attempts to re-sign Aubameyang, to our seemingly interminable pursuit of Gabriel, we are left with the impression that vast delays are made inevitable by the infinite complexities of football contracts. Has it always been the case? Let’s consider a momentous signing in the autumn of 1991..."
Drawing upon Gunflash and 'Proud To Say That Name' (1997) by Amy Lawrence, I recall a legendary signing.
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