I did an interview for the Blue Moon Podcast the day after Colin Bell MBE passed away. It was an emotional morning of course. The guys at the podcast have made the entire interview free to listen to here:
Author Archives: garyjamesfootballarchive
MANCHESTER CITY IN EUROPE – 2008-09 v EB Streymur (at home in Barnsley!)
The City of Manchester Stadium, as it was then known, staged the UEFA Cup Final in 2008 and this presented Manchester City with all the evidence the club needed that European football was something the Blues had to strive for. Fortunately they didn’t have to wait long for the chance to prove what they could do.
Qualification for the final season of the UEFA Cup (the competition was to be rebranded Europa League for 2009-10) was achieved via the Fair Play League and, as with 2003-04, City had to progress via qualification rounds. This time however, competition started much earlier for City with games played in July. It is also worth noting that the Blues had to travel to the remote Faroe Islands for their first match in the tournament.
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Manchester’s First Major Trophy Success – The Video
Following the purchase of the oldest surviving FA Cup by Sheikh Mansour I helped Manchester City with the story of the cup and its significance to Manchester. They’ve produced a video telling the story and it can be viewed here:
https://www.mancity.com/citytv/mens/manchesters-first-trophy-1904-fa-cup-documentary-63745781
For more on the significance of this FA Cup trophy check out the category 1903-04 in the drop down list below.
Manchester A Football History part one
This is the Introduction for the 2010 edition of the book Manchester A Football History (Gary James, published by James Ward). As with everything else on this site copyright laws apply. The book is published here for the personal use of subscribers to this site. For any other use please email the publishers at info@manchesterfootball.org
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Manchester City – Highest Average Attendances in the League
In recent years fans of rival clubs have taunted Manchester City with jibes like ‘Empyhad’ yet evidence shows that, unlike most other clubs, City has been a major crowd-pulling club since first entering the League in the 1890s. Over time I’ll be posting lots of attendance related data on gjfootballarchve.com and I start here with a piece listing every occurrence of City topping the League or their division’s attendance charts.
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The origins debate – how soccer triumphed over other forms of team sports in Manchester
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Manchester’s Footballing Pioneers, 1863–1904: A Collective Biography
ABSTRACT: Association football had become a prominent part of Manchester’s sporting landscape by 1904 when Manchester achieved its first national success. Its journey had been difficult, relying on the efforts of several key individuals whose relentless determination to widen the sport’s participation ensured the game succeeded. This paper provides an analysis of three pioneering figures, John Nall, Fitzroy Norris, and Joshua Parlby, who took the game from its formalized inception in the region through to its first national successes, considering their class, experience, shared history, and connections, while analyzing what these narratives add to the wider origins of football debate. The author concludes that football’s emergence depended primarily on the activities of key individuals from varying backgrounds who provided the energy, enthusiasm, and organizational structures necessary, while relying on cross-class connections, to establish the game within a region.
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The ‘English Cup’ Has Been Saved
I’m delighted that today it can be revealed that Sheikh Mansour has bought the oldest surviving FA Cup, ensuring it will stay in England – and importantly Manchester. This is absolutely brilliant news as there had been fears the trophy would leave the city and the country when it was put up for auction by its previous owner.
This trophy is the first major trophy won by either of today’s Manchester giants. When Manchester City won this in 1904 it set the tone for everything that has followed and helped transform Manchester from a rugby playing city to a football one.
The homecoming was remarkable and meant that, for the first time ever, football mattered to the wider population of the city.
I could go on but Earlier I posted articles on the significance of this trophy and Manchester’s first success on this website for subscribers. Take a look at:
https://gjfootballarchive.com/2021/01/08/manchesters-first-great-season/
FA Cup success, football infrastructure and the establishment of Manchester’s footballing identity
Manchester City have posted their story here:
https://www.mancity.com/news/mens/fa-cup-1904-his-highness-sheikh-mansour-bin-zayed-63745630
Manchester City Season – 1996-97
Previous Season
The Blues were relegated from the Premier League at the end of 1995-96.
Manager
The season started with Alan Ball as manager, but ended with Frank Clark. In between Steve Coppell had been appointed (7 October) but resigned (8 November) while Asa Hartford and Phil Neal both had long spells – or at least longer than Coppell’s permanent period – as caretaker managers.
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Manchester City Season – 1995-96
Background
Once Brian Horton had been dismissed as manager in May 1995 rumours circulated that George Graham, Franz Beckenbauer and a whole host of other big name managers would be appointed. When the news broke that former World Cup winner Alan Ball was to be appointed supporters felt disappointed. Fans wanted him to succeed but it was fair to say that his managerial record had not impressed them. Before the season even started questions were being asked, and supporters needed to see positive performances in the Blues opening games to reassure their scepticism.
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Gary James' Football Archive 