Wednesday Fulham Stuff (20.04.11)

[White Noise]

http://www.talksport.co.uk/sports-news/football/premier-league/transfer-rumours/6681/8/fulham-plot-summer-swoop-barcelona-youngster

Fulham plot summer swoop for Barcelona youngster

By talkSPORT


Tuesday, April 19





Fulham are monitoring the progress of Barcelona B right-back Martin Montoya.

Mark Hughes is thought to be on the look out for another option in that position, with John Pantsil expected to leave in the summer.

Valencia are poised to bid for Montoya but reports in Spain have suggested the west London club are keen to hijack any deal for the 20-year-old.

The Barcelona-born defender has been part of the club's set-up since he was ten years old but has failed to break through from Barca B into Pep Guardiola's first team.

His contract at the Nou Camp expires in June 2012 but he is understood to be considering a departure this summer in a bid to secure first-team football. Barcelona want around £2.5m for Montoya.

[White Noise]

Academy On Top


Tuesday 19th April 2011




Fulham's Under 18s extended their unbeaten run to eleven games at the weekend with a 2-1 victory over Birmingham City at Motspur Park. Two goals from the in-form Marcello Trotta helped Kit Symons' side extend their lead over Southampton at the top of the table| to four points.

But with the Saints having a game in hand over Fulham, Jason Dodd's side could still finish top but they would need to secure maximum points and hope the Whites slip up in their final game of the season against Leicester City.

Looking back on the win over Birmingham, Symons was pleased with the result but the performance could have been more clinical in front of goal.

"I was very pleased with the result, we started the game very well and were dominant early on," Symons assessed. "After taking the lead fairly early we had numerous chances but we lacked that killer instinct and should have finished them off in the first half hour. We took our foot off the gas a little and allowed them to score from one of their few opportunities.

"I'm not naïve enough to think we've not had large slices of luck along this run of form. We've made mistakes and got away with them but on this occasion we got punished for it. So we came in at one-all at half-time after dominating the half. The stats at the end showed that we had 20 shots to their four.

"We weren't quite as dominant in the second-half, Birmingham had something to hold on to and they're a decent side as well. I changed the formation and personnel with half an hour to go, then made another change with 15 minutes left."

It was one of the substitutes, Corey Gameiro, who set up the equaliser with some unselfish play.

"It was something we spoke about previously," Symons said. "People making the right decisions for the team rather than on a personal level. He got on to a ball over the top and although it was a fairly tight angle, it was a shooting opportunity. Luckily he took the right option to square the ball across the face of goal for Marcello Trotta to score his second of the game.

"It was full credit to Corey – going back a while he would have shot in that situation. But he made the right choice for the good of the team and it got us the winning goal. For me, we were the better side on the day but we made harder work of it than we needed to.

"Because we scored quite early and the way that Marcello made it look quite easy, I think we almost thought it was going to be a walkover. When you're that dominant in games you to need to put teams to the sword and score three or four goals in that period.

"Our only defensive mistake of the game, allowed them back in and once teams have got something to keep hold of, even if you've looked the better side, it can be very difficult for you."

The Under 18s' final game of the season takes place at Motspur Park on Saturday 30th April, kick-off 12pm. Should Fulham top the group they will face the winner of Group D in a semi-final play-off


Read more: http://www.fulhamfc.com/Club/News/NewsArticles/2011/April/SymonsBirminghamReaction.aspx#ixzz1K2VY4dXj

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http://www.expressandstar.com/sport/wolverhampton-wanderers-fc/2011/04/19/dirty-wolves-go-into-fulham-battle/

'Dirty' Wolves go into Fulham battle

Tuesday 19th April 2011, 9:10AM BST.




Wolves columnist John Lalley warns his club have more pressing things to worry about than their 'dirty' tag the last time they played Fulham.

No team has won fewer away games in the Premier League than Fulham.

Their solitary victory at Stoke has, however, been offset by their eight draws on the road and the fact that they have conceded a meagre 19 goals in sixteen matches away from Craven Cottage.

Whatever the statistics suggest, Wolves will not have it easy this Saturday but it is a match that we simply have to win if we are to regain any of the momentum we surrendered against Newcastle and Everton.

Usually, at this time of year, Fulham are routinely winding down for the summer, safe in the knowledge that mid-table security has been secured yet again on the strength of a formidable home record. This time around, there might just be more of an edge to this particular fixture.

It was at the Cottage back in early September that we endured the first of the soon to be depressingly recurring late concessions that have cost us so dearly all season.

It was our first game after the Match of The Day hatchet-job on Wolves highlighting the competitive side of our game against Newcastle, which the programme presented as gratuitous brutality with Joey Barton risibly cast in the role of victim.

Overnight, Wolves were branded as 'dirty' with the tabloid press quick to pick up the baton offered by their television colleagues.

The smear campaign was from the outset a farce proved by the short-lived duration of the hot air that was spouted.

Not a peep has been uttered since suggesting that Wolves are a bunch of savages and little wonder. Once a hint of sanity prevailed, the entire label of over-aggression on our part evaporated and disappeared for the non-story it always had been.

But seven days after Newcastle visited Molineux, the crazy rumblings were at their height and, inevitably, when Bobby Zamora was stretchered off badly injured, the howling condemnation of Wolves reached a crescendo.

Karl Henry's challenge on the luckless Zamora was legitimate, not remotely reckless, but why let reality derail a rumbling bandwagon?

Anyway, Fulham usually ranks as one of the most pleasant away trips on the circuit.

A staid, civilised and old-fashioned place alongside the river with an innate charm, a throwback to the days when football didn't take itself quite so seriously and the game was played without a permanent snarl on its face.

But, on this afternoon, the antique stirred and rocked with resentful indignation, influenced by the diet of nonsense fed to them the week before.

Even the venerable old main stand, with its vintage wooden seats and demure railway station brickwork, waded in with raucous vilification suggesting that the name Wolves was a disgrace to the Premier League.

We were branded as a mob of psychotic hoodlums intent on survival by savagery. Al Capone would have got a fairer hearing!

Late on, a rattled Christophe Berra needlessly got himself sent off, Wolves imploded to the delight of the home crowd who strongly believed that justice had prevailed and that sanity had returned to the capital.

Post match, Fulham captain Danny Murphy disparaged the Wolves approach ignoring the fact that he was the culprit himself of the worst tackle in the entire game.

Seven days later, frightened to make a tackle, Wolves conceded late to lose at Tottenham and then repeated the frailty to let Villa off the hook at Molineux.

By now, confused and apprehensive we didn't know whether to stick or twist, so when Karl Henry flew into a remarkably foolish lunge next up at Wigan and saw red, our misery was complete.

After a promising start, our season had been needlessly destabilised and we are still paying for it six months down the line. Similar inhibitions returned to scupper us in the two capitulations against Newcastle and Everton.

But indifferent results for our companions in strife last Saturday still present us with a genuine chance to determine our own destiny.

The hesitancy of the last two performances could not have surfaced at a worse time for Wolves. Saturday's game will surely indicate whether we really are in the business of reasserting our survival scrap or, God forbid, we finally have caved in under the strain.

The likes of Zamora and Murphy may have their own agendas after events in London earlier on this season, but Wolves will surely need no extra incentive.

All the same, giving just a thought to those derisive September chants about us being a disgrace to the Premier League could spur us on a little.

Turning up at Craven Cottage next season and listening to more of the same sounds just fine to me!


Read more: http://www.expressandstar.com/sport/wolverhampton-wanderers-fc/2011/04/19/dirty-wolves-go-into-fulham-battle/#ixzz1K2Vx5XtD

[White Noise]

http://fulham.theoffside.com/team-news/etuhu-v-sidwell.html


Etuhu v Sidwell


By: Sam | April 19th, 2011


With the news that Sidwell signed a contract extension that means himself and Etuhu are contracted to Fulham until 2014 – but which will be used more in the first team? Both are similar in that they are not afraid to make a hard tackle and pass the ball across midfield. This has allowed them to work well alongside Murphy in central midfield.

Statistically they're quite similar. Each have played around 230 games: Etuhu's got 27 goals while Sidwell edges with 41 goals. When you look at the guardian chalkboards they have similar patterns of play too. Here's two games where Fulham won against similar teams:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/chalkboards/0e6QP61gLH65fHILq57E


Each Sidwell and Etuhu played deep on the right side of the pitch and move towards the left as they go higher up the pitch. But if these statistics are scrutinised, Sidwell seems to be the better candidate. As said, Sidwell has got the better goal ratio, but Sidwell makes more successful tackles with a lot more of these high up the pitch compared to Etuhu.

Both Etuhu and Sidwell are the rocks of midfield. With two players who give similar assets to midfield, it's a sign of good depth. But it's difficult to chose between them, when each are fit. If you were to judge it by who is statistically better and for when you want the team to play higher up the pitch – Sidwell's your man. But, Etuhu can play from a deep position and make storming runs into the higher end of the pitch – as demonstrated in a goal he scored very early in the season against Blackpool away. So, Etuhu v Sidwell. It's a tough choice, but it's a good tough choice to have.

In other news...

•Sorry for the hiatus and lack of posting recently. With a combination of no Fulham fixtures and my university exams last week I couldn't get creative with the Fulham offside blog. But, with my exams over and a fixture this week, service will hopefully resume as usual.

•Kits Symons is doing a good job with the Fulham U-18s. They are top of the Academy League Table by 4 points after a 2-1 win over Birmingham City U-18s. Marcello Trotta scored both goals for Fulham – hopefully something that'll be said more as he rises up the ranks at Fulham.

[White Noise]

Birmingham U-18's game match report -

http://www.bcfc.com/page/U18MatchReports/0,,10412~2342272,00.html

[White Noise]

Loyalty Rewarded


Tuesday 19th April 2011





Top scoring Loyalty Point holders were treated to an Open Training Session yesterday at Fulham's Motspur Park Training Ground. The event marked the first of a number of initiatives which the Club are developing in order to reward loyalty.

The event began with a continental style breakfast in the Training Ground restaurant. Fans then watched as the players were put through their paces by Mark Hughes and his coaching team in the lead up Saturday's away game against Wolves.

After the session, players mixed with fans and signed autographs. Fans also enjoyed a question and answer session with Mark Hughes.

The club have already received positive feedback from a number of fans; emails have been flooding in from those who attended. Debra Ziton who attended with her great niece, Lily Woodhart emailed in with the following message:

"What other Premier League club, if any, would open their doors to a selection of supporters in the same way - without charging them!!! Yet another reason to love Fulham."
... "Lily loved every minute; she really is a true Fulham supporter, which is just as well because the rest of the family are. To get up so close to the players was fantastic for her (and me) and the gift of the stationery set was a lovely thought."
There were also positive comments from regular visitors of Cottage Corner|, Fulham FC social network:

Well organised (congrats to Tommy Guthrie) the players and management were a credit to the club. Mark Hughes particularly generous with his time and displayed a sense of humour not readily apparent in his TV appearances.

...We were all sat in the stand next to the arena pitch. They all passed along the front signed, posed for pictures and chatted. Mark Hughes waited until the players had finished, thanked us for our support and took questions before passing along the line himself.
I was there as well. Very good day, everyone was very friendly, happy to pose for photos
Remember that you can collect 20 bonus Loyalty Points by renewing your season ticket for the 2011/12 season before midnight on the 22nd May |


Read more: http://www.fulhamfc.com/Club/News/NewsArticles/2011/April/LoyaltyPointsOpenTraining.aspx#ixzz1K2WlXqAu

[White Noise]

Easter Stars!

Tuesday 19th April 2011


US and Fulham star Clint Dempsey paid a visit to the Fulham FC Foundation Easter Soccer Course in Hurlingham Park on Tuesday afternoon. Meanwhile Damien Duff, David Stockdale and Chris Baird dropped into the Foundation's course taking place at the Training Ground. A great day for the kids!


http://www.fulhamfc.com/Club/News/NewsArticles/2011/April/SoccerCourses.aspx

[White Noise]

http://www.hounslowchronicle.co.uk/west-london-sport/west-london-brentford-fc/2011/04/19/fulham-spurs-wolves-and-west-brom-youngsters-to-discover-fate-109642-28545297/


Fulham, Spurs, Wolves and West Brom youngsters to discover fate


Apr 19 2011



By Jacob Murtagh


BRENTFORD will decide which triallists to offer contracts by the end of the month.

The Bees are running the rule over 12 youngsters – many from Premier League clubs - who are trying to earn a deal at Griffin Park next season.

Charlie Mann (Crystal Palace), Samuel Griffiths (Wolves), Olumide Durojaiye (Spurs), Jonathan Cosgrove, Aaron Pierre, Albert Owusu-Ansah and Michael Kamau (all Fulham), Cerif Faty (FC Sochaux), Liam Bellamy (ex-Charlton), Jordan Tubbett (West Brom), Warren Morgan (Reading) and Robert Bartley (Chesham) have featured in reserve team wins over Gillingham and Crawley Town.

But they will get another chance to shine in another second-string clash against Aldershot Town on April 26 before their fate is decided.

[White Noise]

http://gillsconnect.com/s/Gills_News_Desk/Entries/2011/4/19_LAWRIE_SANCHEZ_IS_PLOTTING_A_BARNET_VICTORY.html


LAWRIE SANCHEZ IS PLOTTING A BARNET VICTORY

Wednesday 20 April 2011


On Saturday the Priestfield away team dugout could contain a celebrity of sorts as the former Wycombe Wanderers, Northern Ireland and Fulham manager, Lawrie Sanchez (right) has been employed as a football consultant for Gills next opponents, Barnet.

Lawrie Sanchez was at Underhill this morning to cast his eye over training for the first time since his appointment and he has signed a short-term deal covering the last four games of the season as struggling Barnet battle to stay in the Football League.
 
The Bees caretaker boss Giuliano Grazioli is delighted to be able to call on Sanchez's experience and will almost certainly have Lawrie beside him on the touchline at Priestfield. Barnet, second from bottom and three points from safety pose a big task for the Grazioli and Sanchez duo but Sanchez said: "I've come to help Giuliano, who is a football acquaintance, with the big task of helping Barnet off the bottom of League Two starting with Gillingham".   

Former Barnet favourite Grazioli (pictured left) said, "This is an opportunity for me to learn from someone with experience at Premier League and International level. Lawrie has so much to give and there is a lot to learn. We've got a job to do and three weeks to get it done."

The enthusiasm for Lawrie also comes with an endorsement from Barnet Chairman, Tony Kleanthous, who firmly believes Lawrie Sanchez can help mastermind their bid to beat the drop.

Kleanthous told the London Evening Standard, "We are fighting all the way and doing what we can to preserve our Football League status and Lawrie Sanchez provides top-quality help for the whole Barnet set-up"

Barnet were beaten by promotion chasing Bury last weekend in what was Grazioli's first game in charge following the sudden departure of Martin Allen after only 19 days at Underhill to Notts County. Barnet have since reported County to the Football League and Football Association claiming the Magpies only contacted them after they had struck a deal with Allen and are now seeking compensation for his services.

Lawrie Sanchez, who led Wycombe Wanderers to a famous FA Cup semi-final ten years ago against Liverpool, has been out of work since being sacked by Premiership Fulham in 2007.

He reached the FA Cup semi-final in 2001 with Wycombe Wanderers having saved them from relegation in the 1998/99 season. Former Wycombe favourite Steve Brown said "I was at Wycombe when Lawrie Sanchez came in and we were dead in the water and he achieved the great escape where we won our last game and stayed up".
In January, 2004, Lawrie Sanchez dragged a Northern Ireland side that was ranked 124th in the world by its bootstraps, took them up 97 places, ended a 1,298 minute-long goal drought and masterminded famous wins over England, Sweden and Spain along with a draw in Portugal.

From this international stage Lawrie Sanchez took over Premiership Fulham, initially on a trial basis with five games left of a Premiership season, saved them from relegation and got the job on a permanent basis.

Lawrie's management principles are. "At the bottom you have to be the best coach, the best scout, the best motivator, the best man-manager, the best everything," he says.

He started laying the foundations for a career in management as early as possible – in fact, a few weeks after he scored the winning goal for Wimbledon against Liverpool in the 1988 FA Cup Final he started his Uefa A-licence coaching badge.

[White Noise]

Dalglish turns to Udinese defender Armero in search for Liverpool's new left-back


By Sportsmail Reporter



Last updated at 11:11 AM on 19th April 2011


Kenny Dalglish is tracking Udinese left-back Pablo Armero as an alternative to Newcastle's Jose Enrique.

Liverpool manager Dalglish is desperate to add a left-sided defender and Anfield legend Phil Thompson claimed earlier this month a deal was already done for Spaniard Enrique.

But Magpies manager Alan Pardew dismissed Thompson's claim and insisted he is still hopeful of Enrique, who is under contract until next summer, signing new terms.


Attracting attention: Udinese defender Armero (left) is on Liverpool's radar

Dalglish has ordered scouting reports on Armero after hearing good things about the 24-year-old Colombian.

Filling the position is a priority for Dalglish this summer as teenager Jack Robinson was called on when Fabio Aurelio went off injured during Sunday's draw with Arsenal.

Paul Konchesky failed to make his mark on Merseyside after arriving from Fulham last year and is on loan at Nottingham Forest. 



Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1378405/Kenny-Dalglish-targets-Udinese-defender-Pablo-Armero.html#ixzz1K2Yfe49w

[White Noise]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1378234/John-Terry-Senrab-old-boys-vow-save-club.html?ITO=1490

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1378677/John-Terry-saves-Senrab-Seeing-faces-children-brilliant-says-club-secretary.html

[White Noise]

http://www.footballfancast.com/2011/04/football-blogs/london-derbies-could-it-have-an-effect-on-the-premier-league



London Derbies – could it have an effect on the Premier League?

Date: 19th April 2011 at 4:20 pm


Written by Matt_G-Freebody


Next season could see the English Premier League host six teams from the capital with the likely promotion of Queens Park Rangers from the Championship and if West Ham United are able to avoid relegation. Could the number of games between London clubs have an effect on results?

In the past, London derbies were usually much tighter games than they are today. Whilst some of the fixtures are fiercer than others (like Arsenal vs Tottenham), there is certainly an added atmosphere and tension to the games between London sides.

Growing up, I remember London derbies being tight games, often unpredictable or ending in both teams cancelling each other out. Perhaps this was because at the time, no sides from the capital were finishing in the top 4 of the EPL unlike today. However, the last three seasons with the current one included, the EPL has seen the same five teams from the capital competing in the Premier League and based on results between all five clubs, they've had interesting out comes.

In the 2008-2009 season, Tottenham Hotspur finished top of the London Derbies table, with 13 points that included 3 wins, 4 draws and only 1 defeat with Chelsea close behind them on 12 points. The theory about these London games being tight are supported by this seasons stats with all teams recording at least 3 or 2 wins over each other.



The following season in 2009-2010 was very different. Chelsea finished on top with 19 points, that included 6 wins, 1 draw and 1 loss with Tottenham and Arsenal behind them on 16 and 13 points. However, Fulham and West Ham both suffered 5 defeats in London derbies during this season, with West Ham failing to win any!

Up to date with the current season and Arsenal are top on 12 points closely followed by their rivals Spurs on 11 but this could all change after the game on Wednesday evening. West Ham have improved on their previous seasons form by winning 2 derbies so far and have a chance to make it 3 when they play Chelsea at the weekend. Fulham however, are bottom without a win including 5 defeats and with only 1 fixture remaining against a London club on the last game of the season at home to Arsenal.

So, if West Ham do survive relegation this season and QPR secure promotion to the EPL, it will certainly make the London Derby table and interesting spectacle from fans in the capital for next season. There is also an outside chance that Millwall can still qualify for the play-offs, which would make it seven teams in total and certainly provide an interesting fixture against rivals West Ham.

Queens Park Rangers on the other hand will enjoy competing in league competition against West London neighbours Chelsea and Fulham which they have not met in the English Premier League since 1996 (Chelsea), whilst the last league fixture against Fulham came in Division One (Championship) in 2000-2001 season, that saw Fulham promoted and Rangers relegated.

As a QPR fan myself, I will certainly be embracing the London fixtures next season if we secure promotion over the next coming weeks. The last time we were in the Premier League, we caused a few upsets and we've got a new generation of supporters in the capital to make a name for ourselves once again.

In conclusion, has the London derby lost its edge in the top flight of football these days? Or are they still an atmospheric battle like I witnessed in the early nineties? Comment below and let me know.

[White Noise]

http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standard/article-23942380-football-clubs-agree-to-pay-for-match-day-traffic-control.do

Football clubs agree to pay for match-day traffic control

Rashid Razaq


18 Apr 2011




Three London football clubs have agreed to pay for match-day traffic management in a deal that will save taxpayers more than £100,000 a year.

Chelsea, Fulham and QPR will take over responsibility for local parking and road safety during games from Hammersmith and Fulham council.

The local authority will no longer have to send its own staff to oversee traffic, or foot the bill for putting up parking suspension signs and road barriers.

Fulham and QPR will handle matchday traffic management around Craven Cottage and Loftus Road from August, while Chelsea is currently testing the scheme around Stamford Bridge.

Hammersmith and Fulham estimates that if all 92 league teams did the same, councils would save £12.7million a year in total. Greg Smith, cabinet member for residents' services, said: "It is good news for local taxpayers that the clubs are playing ball."

Sarah Bradford, who has lived opposite Stamford Bridge since 1975, welcomed the move, saying: "I think it's awful that taxpayers have to pay. Why should we? If they can afford to pay footballers as much as they do, why shouldn't they pay for their own event and for their own security?"

Chief Inspector Steve Riley of Hammersmith and Fulham police said officers would still be present around the grounds but would now be able to concentrate on policing rather than traffic issues.

QPR said it had appointed club staff to take over the duties of council traffic officers and there would be no change for match-goers.

[White Noise]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/apr/19/arsenal-bob-wilson-cycling-charity?INTCMP=SRCH


The unveiling of that Michael Jackson statue this month turned Craven Cottage into something of a laughing stock, and while Fulham's home may never be able to live down its association with one of the oddest representations of the pop legend since, well, the man himself, it has this week at least become the venue for a genuinely dignified, uplifting purpose.

Bob Wilson, the former Arsenal and Scotland goalkeeper, set off from the stadium on Monday morning for a 500-mile cycle ride that will incorporate visits to every Premier League ground and hopefully raise at least £250,000 for the Willow Foundation, the charity Wilson set up 12 years ago in honour of his late daughter, Anna.

[White Noise]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2011/apr/19/stoke-city-fa-cup-manchester-city?INTCMP=SRCH


Elegance of George Eastham sparks Stoke City's neutral appeal


Like Fulham and West Bromwich Albion, Stoke City have a 'certain appeal' for the disinterested observer


Comments (50) 


Richard Williams The Guardian, Tuesday 19 April 2011 Article history


George Eastham, pictured with Manchester City's Tony Book, was the creative hub of Tony Waddington's Stoke City side. Photograph: Bob Thomas/Getty Images


Football supporters of recent vintage may be surprised to learn that it is not against the law to harbour warm feelings towards a football club that one does not actually support. I was reminded of this on Saturday when Roy Hodgson remarked, during the course of an interview with my colleague Paul Hayward, on a significant similarity between two of his own most recent clubs. "West Bromwich Albion, like Fulham, have a certain appeal," he said. I would add a handful of others to Hodgson's list, among them Stoke City.

Stoke's success in reaching their first FA Cup final will not please those who believe that history began 20 years ago, with the founding of the Premier League, or who propound the tiresome belief that the only way to play football in the 21st century is by trying to copy Barcelona. But in rattling five unanswered goals past Bolton Wanderers, Tony Pulis's team emphasised their right to march out at Wembley alongside Manchester City on 14 May.

This will be their first top-line Wembley final – if we discount wins in the Football League Trophy and its successor, the Auto Windscreens Shield, in 1992 and 2000 – since they beat Chelsea to secure the 1972 League Cup, the only major trophy in a history going back to their formation by a group of railway apprentices 148 years ago. It was Stoke's "certain appeal" which persuaded me to take my place, on a sunny March afternoon, among the 97,852 assembled for that match.

More specifically, it was the appeal of George Eastham, then 35 years old and coming to the end of a distinguished career. One day about 10 years earlier, as I was setting off to watch Nottingham Forest play Arsenal, my father advised me to look out for the London club's spindly inside forward: "He can't run five yards, but he passes the ball as well as anyone in England." A lasting admiration was born that day, and after Eastham joined Stoke it spread to encompass the whole of Tony Waddington's carefully assembled team, which also included Jimmy Greenhoff, Peter Dobing and Gordon Banks. It was Eastham who rewarded the visit to Wembley, after Terry Conroy had opened the scoring and Peter Osgood had replied for Chelsea's all-star line-up, by scoring a joyous winner from close range midway through the second half.

The "certain appeal" applies to a club in whom you have no intrinsic interest – never lived there, never supported them, no family allegiance – but whom you nevertheless like to see doing well, albeit not at the expense of your own club. When they fall on hard times, you feel a small twinge of disappointment.

Sometimes, as in Stoke's case, this feeling has its root in specific teams or players. Where West Brom are concerned, I used to admire the side of Jeff Astle, Tony Brown and – most of all – the Scottish inside forward Bobby Hope, under Alan Ashman's management in the late 60s, followed in the 70s by the exhilarating team assembled by Ron Atkinson, with Cyrille Regis, Laurie Cunningham and Bryan Robson. I responded not just to the Fulham of Johnny Haynes but also to Malcolm Macdonald's skilful and well-balanced team of the early 80s, whose midfield included Ray Houghton, Ray Lewington and the underrated Robert Wilson, with Gordon Davies up front and Tony Gale and Roger Brown at the heart of the defence.

But to inspire such secondary loyalty in a disinterested observer, a club has to possess an inherently benign personality. A blend of tradition, modesty and civility is certainly to be found at The Hawthorns and at Craven Cottage, where the essence of the club has survived even Mohamed Al Fayed's eccentric ownership. Some might claim that Stoke forfeited goodwill through the activities of their notorious hooligans in the 80s and 90s, but since their return to the top tier the club's fans have earned only admiration for their raucous fervour.

Now they are going back to Wembley, with an outside chance of getting the better of a club who were once among the fringe candidates for the support of neutrals. But no amount of that "certain appeal" can survive the flaunting of unlimited wealth.

[White Noise]

http://www.fansfc.com/story/31598.html


Sunderland lining up Zamora swoop


07:00 PM 19 April, 2011


Sunderland Football Club have added Bobby Zamora to their wanted list.

Steve Bruce was left reeling in the New Year, when Darren Bent engineered a staggering £24million transfer to Premier League rivals Aston Villa.

The Black Cats were unable to land a replacement for their star striker, but money will be made available for reinvestment when the window reopens.

Bruce accepts he has little chance of persuading Manchester United to let him have Daniel Welbeck, so he has turned his attention to other targets.

And the News of the World claim the Stadium of Light boss is interested in Zamora, the Fulham striker, 31, who is under contract at Craven Cottage until 2014.

[White Noise]

Where are they now? Hameur Bouazza signs 2 year deal at Millwall -

http://www.football365.co.za/story/0,22162,8669_6884521,00.html

[WhiteJC]

http://fulham.theoffside.com/team-news/charismatic-right-back.html?

Charismatic Right-Back

Fulham – like many, many, teams – have had, and will have, their fair share of charismatic/eccentric players. In Fulham's recent history, two players who have put themselves out there played at right-back. Moritz Volz and John Panstil. With the former at FC St. Pauli and the latter likely to leave at the end of the season, will Fulham be without such individuals who add that a little bit of eccentricity to the team?

If Mark Hughes is going to find an eccentric replacement at right-back, here's two videos that should indicate the expected standards:
Moritz Dancing

John Paintsil Squeezing Yakubu's Bits

Of course, it helps if they're good at playing football. But, sometimes the game needs players who also take away the seriousness of it all.

[WhiteJC]

http://www.fulhamchronicle.co.uk/london-sport/fulham-fc/2011/04/20/win-fulham-v-bolton-tickets-82029-28553553/?

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http://www.birminghammail.net/birmingham-sport/wolverhampton-wanderers-fc/wolves-fc-news/2011/04/20/mick-mccarthy-sidwell-loss-became-blessing-for-us-97319-28554021/?

Mick McCarthy: Sidwell loss became blessing for us

STEVE Sidwell's 11th-hour turning down of Wolves may have been a blessing in disguise as it ushered in a move for Jamie O'Hara.

Certainly Mick McCarthy has no regrets about how things have panned out.

Sidwell will be at Molineux with Fulham on Saturday having undergone a medical at Compton on deadline day after agreeing to move from Villa.

"Had Sidwell signed on loan, Jamie wouldn't have come," admitted McCarthy.

"Irrespective of how I felt, or what I said or what I did, it is one of those occasions where things have worked out right for us because we got a really good player."

Sidwell signed a new three-year contract at Craven Cottage this week.

McCarthy revealed: "That's why he went. He lives in London and the agreement was the rest of this season and three more."

McCarthy is expecting big things from Spurs loanee O'Hara in the final six games.

"I hope he gets another seven or eight goals!

"He's played really well but we are always looking for more out of them.

"Who's to say. I will accept him playing as well as he has in the next six games."

Wolves travel to Stoke and Blues next week and McCarthy added: "It is a big week for us, a huge week.

"What we get out of these three games will certainly be a determining factor."



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