20 years of Holmesdale Fanatics / It Started With a Kick Episode 77 : Robin Bailey

Here’s the piece from yesterday’s the Guardian on 20 years of the Holmesdale Fanatics, the Palace supporters group at the forefront of the ultras movement in England and how there is still a long way to catch up with the Europeans in terms of fan culture and activism. https://bit.ly/46OoP9o It Started With a Kick EpisodeContinue reading “20 years of Holmesdale Fanatics / It Started With a Kick Episode 77 : Robin Bailey”

The Community Shield 2025 and a history of muddle-headed meddling

When Crystal Palace face Liverpool this coming Sunday, 10th August they will be contesting their first Community Shield in the 103rd edition of the new season’s traditional ‘curtain raiser’. The Community Shield, or its ancestor Charity Shield, dates back to before Palace were formed as a professional club. Throughout the early years of the match’sContinue reading “The Community Shield 2025 and a history of muddle-headed meddling”

‘It Started With a Kick’ Episodes 61 and 62

It Started With a Kick – Episode 61 : Chris Lee Chris is an author, writer and podcaster and the man behind the excellent Outside Write magazine which takes readers to various nooks and crannies around the world in search of what defines football culture through its history and especially its politics. Chris describes himselfContinue reading “‘It Started With a Kick’ Episodes 61 and 62”

Premier League Match Week 20/ Episode 39 ‘It Started With a Kick’

PREMIER LEAGUE NUGGETS – MatchWeek 20 TOTTENHAM MAKING A DIFFERENCE Whatever has been said about Tottenham this season, and there has already been plenty, one of the most remarkable things is how they have managed to have a healthy goal difference of +12 despite being 12th in the table. There are currently only three clubsContinue reading “Premier League Match Week 20/ Episode 39 ‘It Started With a Kick’”

Premier League Nuggets 2024/25 Match Week 9. Episodes 29 and 30 of “It Started With a Kick”. Wednesday 13 November live show with Pat Nevin

PREMIER LEAGUE NUGGETS – MatchWeek 9 TOP AND TAIL Looking at Brentford’s position in the table there is a neat symmetry as they are ninth after nine matches. They have won four, lost four and drawn one, scoring 18 and conceding 18. But that hardly tells the story of the drama that has unfolded inContinue reading “Premier League Nuggets 2024/25 Match Week 9. Episodes 29 and 30 of “It Started With a Kick”. Wednesday 13 November live show with Pat Nevin”

2023-24 Premier League Nuggets / ‘It Started With a Kick’

26 April MW 34  TEENAGE KICKS AS SHEFFIELD UNITED JOIN THE 92 CLUB On Wednesday night Sheffield United made the bold move of appointing a 19-year-old Academy graduate as captain against Manchester United. It was Oliver Arblaster’s seventh Premier League start and he became the youngest player to lead a side. That’s where the goodContinue reading “2023-24 Premier League Nuggets / ‘It Started With a Kick’”

Premier League Nuggets 2023/24

BURNLEY IN THE RED In October 2021 I wrote a  piece about how Burnley had shrugged off their image of being ‘a little rudimentary’ in their approach in going 100 Premier League matches without a red card – https://bit.ly/3mHDInh The Clarets went on to extend their unblemished record to 120 matches until Nathan Collins wasContinue reading “Premier League Nuggets 2023/24”

‘It Started With a Kick’

As ‘It Started With a Kick’ podcast launched this week the focus of today’s post is unashamedly all about the podcast rather than Premier League Nuggets. The simple premise behind the pod is interviewing a wide selection of well-known fans and leading figures from the world of football talk about the first match they attended.Continue reading “‘It Started With a Kick’”

Premier League Nuggets 2023/24

5 April Match Weeks 30/31 GOALLESS GAMES In this season of goals galore, two goalless matches in the space of a week feels like a drought. Although Match Week 30 rattled along at the overall rate of 3.2 goals per game, the last match ended with the stalemate at The Etihad – the first timeContinue reading “Premier League Nuggets 2023/24”

2023/24 Premier League Nuggets

5 December MW20 GOALLESS IN STRATFORD  As has been pointed out here many times, this season has seen a glut of goals. In the first nine games of MW20 there had already been 35 including the usual slugfest that is Liverpool Newcastle which ended 4-2 (not quite one of the 4-3 classics from 1996 andContinue reading “2023/24 Premier League Nuggets”