Peter Barnes Features and Sellers

I’m delighted to say there have now been a couple of features in newspapers on The Peter Barnes Authorised Biography, while it has now started to make its way into bookshops and other retailers.

The articles appeared in the Sunday Mirror (main image) and the Manchester Evening News.

Thanks to Simon Mullock and Stuart Brennan for those pieces. Both men read the book and highlighted a few stories from it. Simon discussed an incident when Peter nutmegged Maradona in a game while Stuart quoted the book extensively for a piece on Malcolm Allison. See his article for a feel for the quotes/content and so on that appear in the book:

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/peter-barnes-book-hartford-channon-20972079

Of course that’s only a taster of the 110,000 words and the hundreds of illustrations in the book.

You can still buy the book direct from me by using the link below, plus it has now made its way to its first bookshop (EJ Morten in Didsbury) and Ginger Wig is selling it online too. Hopefully, soon it will begin to appear in other locations and retailers.

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The Peter Barnes Authorised Biography (£16.95 incl UK P&P)

372 pages, 110,000 words, 100s of illustrations… Of particular interest to fans of City, United, WBA, Leeds, Real Betis, Coventry, Tampa Bay Rowdies & England. Outside UK contact for additional postage cost.

£16.95

England beat Germany in European Championship Final

Aware of when England beat Germany in the final of a European tournament in 1957? No, well here’s the story of when they did…

The match saw the pioneering women’s team, Manchester Corinthians, play as England. They won 4-0 in the final of a European championship in 1957, played in Berlin. This game, like so many others when the Corinthians played as England, are not officially recognised as internationals unfortunately, but no one should underestimate the achievements of the Manchester women who took part. At the time they occurred these were full-blooded affairs with some moments caught on film.

For an article I wrote some time ago on the Germany game follow this link:

https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/sport/football/manchester-corinthians-england-women-germany-17205385

Pioneering Mancunian Women

You can find out more about the Corinthians here:

Subscriber Post – Manchester City’s Youngest

Manchester City fans are extremely proud of the development of young players. Throughout the years City’s Academy has developed some extraordinarily talented players. Today I’m taking a look at some of the club’s landmark youngest record holders.

This post is available to subscribers of my site. If you would like to subscribe and read this and all my other content posted to this site (over 370 articles/sound recordings/interviews including the entire Manchester A Football History & From Maine Men To Banana Citizens books) then please use the button below. It costs £20 a year (that’s about £1.67 a month) and you have access to everything for as long as you are a subscriber (you can even subscribe for a month at a time at £3, access everything and then cancel your subscription if you like!).

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Historic Name That Ground – Week 3

Each week for the next few weeks I’ll post an image of a football ground taken in the past and you can see if you can recognise the ground. Some will be easy (believe it or not there are some grounds that have not changed much in all those decades!), others not so. You’ll be able to post your view in comments at the bottom of each page.

The following Friday I’ll post the answer. So here goes….

Can you name the ground featured in the image above?

It’s a ground I’ve been to often but I won’t give any other clues. Leave your comments below.

While you’re here why not subscribe to my site and you can then access every article, interview, audio recording etc. already posted and those that will be posted during your subscription. It costs £20 per year (about £1.67 a month) or you can sign up on a monthly basis at £3 per month (you can cancel at any time, so you could sign sign up for a month, access everything you want and then cancel). You can subscribe below:

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Brian Kidd

The news has been released that Brian Kidd has left Manchester City after 12 years in a coaching role there. Brian was of course a truly successful footballer with both Manchester clubs and has been a legendary coach with both clubs too, helping Ferguson, Mancini, Pellegrini and Guardiola find major trophy success.

He is one of the nicest men in football and his presence will be missed.

On leaving Brian has said: “It has been a privilege to be part of such an exciting chapter in this Club’s history.

“I can only thank Pep, Roberto and Manuel for their leadership during a period of huge change and challenges for everyone involved here. I hope to have offered them enough help and support along the way to have made a difference and played a small role in the different teams’ successes.

“Having also played for Manchester City, it was very special to return and throughout the last 12 years I have felt the warmth of the leadership, the staff and of the fans throughout. I am incredibly grateful to all of them.

“I would also like to say what an honour it has been to witness the evolution of the Club under the stewardship of Sheikh Mansour and leadership of Khaldoon Al Mubarak.

“I am a Manchester man, and the work that has been done to improve the City of Manchester and the local community is fantastic. I wish only the best for Manchester City moving forwards.”

When the time is right I’ll post a detailed profile of Kiddo here but for the moment here are links to a few stories already posted to this site:

https://gjfootballarchive.com/2021/01/22/brian-kidd-nets-four-highlights/
Kidd’s Double

MCFC v LFC, October 1977

Historic Name That Ground – Week 2 Answer

On Monday I asked ‘can you name the ground featured in the image above? I know it looks a little familiar to many of the subscribers, followers and visitors to this site. It’s an image from the 1920s. So, can you work out which stadium this is.’ Well, the answer is…

Murrayfield Stadium. So, why did I say this looked familiar to those who visit this site? Well, believe it or not the stadium was modelled on Manchester City’s Maine Rd stadium. Maine Rd was opened in 1923 and the architects of Murrayfield visited Maine Rd while designing their new stadium, which opened in 1925.

Obviously, there are differences but the general look and style of the place is similar – one huge main stand which didn’t quite go the full length of the pitch (both stands ran about 3/4 of the length of the pitch with a terraced section from stand to corners); a huge, banked terracing opposite which curves down to the corners and two similar sized terraces behind the ends. Have a look at these images from inside Murrayfield in 1925 and see:

Next ground on Monday.

While you’re here why not subscribe to my site and you can then access every article, interview, audio recording etc. already posted and those that will be posted during your subscription. It costs £20 per year (about £1.67 a month) or you can sign up on a monthly basis at £3 per month (you can cancel at any time, so you could sign sign up for a month, access everything you want and then cancel). You can subscribe below:

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If you have an old image of a ground that you think it’d be worth including in this weekly quiz then please get in touch. They don’t have to be from the 1900s to 1960s – even ground images from the 70s and 80s may prove a challenge to identify these days. You can email me at gary@GJFootballArchive.com Thanks.

Opening Winning Sequences

Pep Guardiola officially became Manchester City manager on July 1 2016 (five years ago today). When he arrived his opening run of competitive games prompted much discussion on the opening achievements of his predecessors. I ended up trawling through the opening months of every City manager to establish whether Pep’s opening results (ten successive wins!) were the best achieved by any Blues’ boss.

Here for subscribers is the result of that trawl…

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Historic Name That Ground – Week 2

It looks familiar, so can you name the latest ‘Historic Name That Ground’? If you’ve not seen this feature before then each week for the close season I’ll be posting an image of a ground taken in the past and you can see if you can recognise the ground. Some will be easy, others not so. You’ll be able to post your view in comments at the bottom of each page.

On Friday I’ll post the answer. So here goes….

Can you name the ground featured in the image above? I know it looks a little familiar to many of the subscribers, followers and visitors to this site. It’s an image from the 1920s when this stadium was new. So, can you work out which stadium this is. As always, answer on Friday.

While you’re here why not subscribe to my site and you can then access every article, interview, audio recording etc. already posted and those that will be posted during your subscription. It costs £20 per year (about £1.67 a month) or you can sign up on a monthly basis at £3 per month (you can cancel at any time, so you could sign sign up for a month, access everything you want and then cancel). You can subscribe below:

Subscribe to get access

Read more of this content when you subscribe today.

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If you have an old image of a ground that you think it’d be worth including in this weekly quiz then please get in touch. They don’t have to be from the 1900s to 1960s – even ground images from the 70s and 80s may prove a challenge to identify these days. You can email me at gary@GJFootballArchive.com Thanks.

Have you ordered the Peter Barnes biography yet? Details here:

https://gjfootballarchive.com/2021/06/25/the-peter-barnes-authorised-biography-out-now/

Historic Name That Ground – Week 1 Answer

On Monday I asked you to name the ground featured in the above photo. Well, here’s the answer…

It’s Tottenham’s old White Hart Lane ground. I also asked if anyone knew the event being staged… It’s a boxing match between 32 year old British Heavyweight Champion Jack London and 24 year old Bruce Woodcock (the winner in the 6th round) in July 1945. There was an attendance of almost 40,000 and this was the first commercial boxing event in the open air in England since 1939.

London’s the boxer on the left with Woodcock on the right.

Come back on Monday for the next ‘Historic Name That Ground’.

Each week for the next few weeks I’ll post an image of a football ground taken in the past and you can see if you can recognise the ground. Some will be easy (believe it or not there are some grounds that have not changed much in all those decades!), others not so. You’ll be able to post your view in comments at the bottom of each page.

The following Friday I’ll post the answer.

Remember the old Spot The Ball competition?

Here’s one (above) I’ve spotted from the 1930s at Old Trafford. Can you work out where the ball should be? The winner wasn’t the person who accurately identified where the ball was, instead it was the person who accurately identified where football experts, employed by the newspaper or pools company, said the ball would be.

So where do you think the ball was? Is it in the goal; has it been saved and at the feet of a striker; could it have been curled around the post; maybe it’s flying high over that Trafford Park chimney?

See below for the answer…

Sadly, I don’t know which game this was (and they never said at the time) but it is Old Trafford and it appeared in the Athletic News in January 1931.

The experts identified that the ball would be here:

I can’t make out if that’s in the back of the net (possible – these were bad days for United and the club was relegated this season) or if it’s been curled around the post.