Definition of the ultimate stoic? A season ticket holder at Stockport. Apparently insouciant amid rain and defeats, shouting nothing, just chewing furiously on his briar, the only sign perhaps of piqued pride. Everyone bruises. Years later we learned of the grudge match behind closed doors. If County had been given a hiding he handed one […]

OCTOBER 1966 Reach Out I’ll Be There at number one, pounding from the Tannoy at half-time. Fifty-five thousand on a Wednesday night; three-nil against Spurs, all second-half goals. Crushed in the Fulham Road queue for the tube, walking on air; nothing they could say to me at school next day. We were, briefly, top of […]

The Portuguese barber – with vain hopes, it turns out, for tonight against Spain – puts down his scissors, stares at me in the mirror. It’s emerged that we love the same club. He describes in detail a special one our hero scored – back to goal, pulled the ball down, shrugged off the defender, […]

If Shevchenko had put away that last-minute chance, There’d have been no miracle of Istanbul. If Maradona’s Hand of God goal had been disallowed, England might still have lost on penalties If the police at Hillsborough had thought about it, If the terrace wall at Heysel had been stronger, If the Bradford stand hadn’t been […]