HOW great it was to return to a football stadium and watch a match. Admittedly, it was non-league football step three but regardless, being part of an event with 400 other people and watching live action was very stimulating.

The club did all the necessary precautionary measures: temperature checks, sanitiser at the entrance, plenty of visor-headed and high-vis clad stewards on hand and a few arrows here and there. It was instructive but not over-bearing, certainly not as intimidating as the gang of night club bouncers the club used to employ to act as “security”.

And people were pleased to be back. There was an air of lightness, of optimism and friendliness about the ground – if a certain 70s pop singer wasn’t verboten on playlists these days, the chant, “it’s good to be back, it’s good to be back” would have been playing out of the loudspeakers.

As if in response to the welcoming of fans once more to proper games, the home team obliged with five goals, their latest crop of academy defectors and lower division hopefuls playing bright, attacking football that delighted the crowd.

But one thing struck me and it should have concerned everyone in the stadium. I looked around at about 4.15pm and realised that the heat map (if there was such a thing) would have revealed a very similar distribution of bodies than any other time in the recent history of the club. In other words, social distancing appeared to have flown out of the window. Indeed, I was merely two or three feet away from the chap sitting next to me and just a yard or so from the club stalwart behind me. The chairman was barely four feet from my shoulder. Should we worry?

OK, temperatures had been checked, but a virus can hit you suddenly and can linger. It was interesting that while some people were complaining about the fact that “up north” and in Soho they had taken little notice of the lockdown and that’s why the numbers were climbing, but a beach at Scarborough a pavement café in central London and a football ground, is there really any difference?

Non-league grounds up and down the country would have been no different, so we have to ask, can clubs really control their crowds without a little bit more insistence being applied? If you cannot queue for a supermarket without precautionary geometry, how can people stand on a terrace safely? I attended a Pilates class a few days before the game and the caution of the teacher and the rest of the class was precise and an example of safety first. A football crowd expels a lot of saliva, gas, droplets and other fluids when the fans celebrate, moan, berate and cheer. I thought about that when a small droplet of spit hit my phone screen from the guy behind me.

Social distancing has been relaxed, but it is not a precise science and the instructions have been vague. Masks were in a small minority at the football ground and discipline has never been a strong point of British people, let alone football fans. A crowd cannot be trusted to adhere to the rules without some sort of guidance, therefore clubs should probably think again about how best to ensure a crowd is well distributed around a stadium that has had capacity restrictions placed upon it.

I thoroughly enjoyed the opening day of the season, and I will be adopting a more responsible approach to being a spectator. Throughout the lockdown, I have been cautious, but I cannot help feeling I let my guard down. But I wasn’t alone, many of us acted as if a pandemic hadn’t passed our way. Stay safe has to be the message – at home, at home games and away games!

@GameofthePeople

Categories: Talking Points

Tagged: behind closed doors, Coronavirus, fans, Non-League, pandemic, Southern League

Ajax 1971 – men of their time

GOTP Editorial Team

Posted on September 18, 2020

AMSTERDAM was a “cool” place in 1970. It was one of the last cities to dispense with hippy culture, the hair was long, the clothes bright and the mood upbeat. It was liberated and easy and the Dutch were among the most mellow folk in Europe. It was no coincidence that Amsterdam was where John Lennon and Yoko Ono decided to launch their “bed-in” to promote world peace.

From a football perspective, Dutch football was in the ascendancy. In 1969, Ajax had reached the European Cup final and in 1970, Feyenoord had gone one better and won the trophy. An emerging style of football, which later became known as “total football” was starting to change the face of the game.

Early signs

Johan Cruyff, Ajax

When Ajax reached the 1969 final, it was something of a surprise, but the world was starting to recognise Dutch talent, notably Johan Cruyff. Ajax were fairly well hammered in Madrid by AC Milan, their inexperience showing through as the more savvy Italians ran out easy 4-1 winners. Ajax went on to lift the Eredivisie in 1969-70, holding off the challenge of Feyenoord, and completed the “double” by beating PSV Eindhoven in the KNVB Final.

Just how ready Ajax were to compete with the top clubs of Europe was open to debate – they had been easily beaten by a mid-table Arsenal side in the Inter-Cities’ Fairs Cup in 1970 leading the Gunners’ manager Bertie Mee to comment the Dutch seemed rather naïve. But something was stirring as England discovered when they endured two very difficult games against the Netherlands, a 0-0 draw at Wembley and a narrow 1-0 victory in Amsterdam.

Since 1969, Ajax had added Ruud Krol, Johan Neeskens, Gerrie Mühren and Arie Haan to their line-up and the ethos being developed by coach Rinus Michels and championed by his protégé, Cruyff, was gathering momentum. The team represented a new European order, one that would challenge, and eventually defeat, the stifling catenaccio peddled by the Italians and also make the English game look quite pedestrian.

With their flowing hair and flowing football, not to mention the iconic white and red shirts, Ajax were certainly of their time. In fact, Ajax and the Dutch national team are often compared to the Beatles and Liverpool in terms of their cultural importance. Journalist Jaap De Groot, in assessing the golden period of Dutch football, said the early 1970s were a free spirit time in Amsterdam and Ajax were a free spirit team.

Michels had joined Ajax in 1965 and transformed Ajax from a club with a laissez-faire culture to a professional outfit brimming with invention and charisma. Piet Keizer described Michels training programme as “the hardest preparation I ever had. We sometimes had four sessions a day”. Cruyff described his mentor as a perfectionist. The pair often squabbled but as the famous number 14 said, “we were becoming a machine for producing football”.

The “total football” approach saw Michels encourage players to adopt any position – full backs moving into attack, forwards dropping back into midfield and goalkeepers making full use of their area. It was all about versatility and that meant Ajax had 11 dangerous players on the pitch at any one time.

Michels’ technique began the rise of Ajax, but the 1970-71 season was to be his last in charge of this particular team. He moved to Barcelona after considering his job done for the time being.

Exceptional

Action from the European Cup Final played at Wembley between Panathinaikos of Greece (dark shirts) and Ajax of the Netherlands.

Ajax’s European campaign began with a relatively easy tie against Albania’s 17 Nëntori, but in the first leg, they wasted the two-goal lead Wim Suurbier had given them. A fortnight later, Ajax won comfortably 2-0. The second round saw them beat Basel, the Swiss champions, 5-1 on aggregate, sending them into 1971 as quarter-finalists where they were paired with Scotland’s Celtic, the 1967 winners.

In 1970-71, Celtic were still one of Europe’s top sides and had the core of their Lisbon Lions side still intact, but it was starting to age. They had won through to the last eight in prolific goalscoring mood, netting 14 in the first round against Finnish champions KPV and another 10 against Ireland’s Waterford.

Ajax received a scare before the game in that Indonesian separatists had threatened to kidnap their players. On the evidence of the first leg, this did little to curb their confidence.

Celtic’s David Hay was asked by Jock Stein to man-mark Ajax’s star man. “Their whole team was world-class but Cruyff was exceptional,” recalled Hay some years later. Hay’s role hinted at a defensive strategy on Celtic’s part and that’s exactly how they approached the game in Amsterdam. Both Cruyff and Michels were surprised at how uncharacteristically cautious Stein’s men were.

Celtic’s defensive wall hung on until the 62^nd minute when Cruyff finished off a move that started with a long ball. Interestingly, the Scottish media felt Ajax were not the match on Feyenoord in the quality of their football, that Michels’ team were more direct. That was not the general consensus, Ajax were considered to be the more enterprising of the two.

Ajax scored two more goals, a free kick by Barry Hulshoff and a Cruyff-created effort by Piet Keizer. A three-goal lead had almost killed-off Celtic, but Michels refused to contemplate the semi-finals. Celtic won 1-0 at Hampden Park in front of more than 80,000 people, but Ajax were praised for their performance.

Meanwhile, Ajax were trying to retain their Eredivisie title, but old rivals Feyenoord were matching them game-by-game. From the end of February 1971 to the penultimate game of the season, Ajax did not concede a single goal, a run of 11 games in which they scored 34 times.

Ajax were drawn against Atlético Madrid in the semi-finals. The Spanish champions were being challenged all the way in 1970-71 with Valencia and Barcelona better placed to win La Liga. Atléti won the first leg in Spain 1-0 and made Ajax work hard for their second leg victory, two of the three goals coming in the final 10 minutes. Ruud Krol, who had been so pivotal in Ajax’s season, would not be in the squad for the Wembley final as he broke his leg in the KNVB Cup semi-final against NEC Nijmegen.

Final

Ajax’s 3-0 victory took them through to meet Greece’s Panathinaikos, a team managed by Ferenc Puskas, a man who knew all about European Cup finals. If some people were surprised by Ajax’s return to the final, Panathinaikos were absolute outsiders, even though they had beaten Everton and Red Star Belgrade, the latter after the Yugoslavs had surrendered a 4-1 first leg victory.

Ajax won the KNVB Cup, beating Sparta Rotterdam, but their next game would be against Sparta’s rivals, Feyenoord. Six days before the European Cup final, Ajax, who were top of the Eredivisie but level on points with Feyenoord, filled the Olympic Stadium in the penultimate game of the campaign. It was effectively the title decider. Ajax took the lead through Keizer, who bundled the ball home from close range, but he was injured and had to be replaced. Ove Kindvall, one of Feyenoord’s goalscorers in the 1970 European Cup final, levelled early in the second half and just on the hour, full back Dick Schneider put the visitors ahead. Ajax pushed forward, but Schneider netted a spectacular third with six minutes remaining. Feyenoord were as good as champions with one game to play.

Johan Cruyff celebrates with team mates after Haan scored for Ajax in the European Cup Final against Panathinaikos at Wembley.

It could be argued that Ajax had more than one eye on the Wembley encounter with Panathinaikos, but they had slipped-up right at the end of the campaign. Krol’s absence may have contributed, but Feyenoord must have been sick of hearing about Cruyff and his team of cavaliers who were now the darlings of the European media.

Ajax were red hot favourites for the European Cup and their fans poured into London, many of whom created good-natured mayhem in the city centre. In some respects, the final was meant to anoint the new prince of European football, Cruyff, and the fluid Ajax side that had become a breath of fresh air after years of stale, defence-minded football.

The noisy and colourful crowd didn’t have to wait long for the first signs that a Dutch team would win for the second successive season. Keizer swung the ball over from the left and Dick Van Dijk glanced his header past Panathinaikos goalkeeper Takis Ikonomopoulos. Ajax controlled the game, but had to wait until the 87^th minute to clinch victory, substitute Arie Haan’s untidy goal finishing-off the Greeks.

While Cruyff treated the fans to one of his famous 180 degrees turns, the Dutch master’s control of the game, pointing, gesturing, directing and cajoling, gave the football world a glimpse of what was to come in the following few years.

Ajax and their fans enjoyed their first European triumph, a team that would shape football in the early-to-mid 70s and form the heart of the Dutch national team that ranks as the finest never to be world champions. As for Ajax, they were deserved and wonderful European champions.

The Ajax team that won the 1971 European Cup: Heinz Stuy, Velibor Vasović (captain), Wim Suurbier, Barry Hulshoff, Nico Rijnders (Horst Blankenberg), Johan Neeskens, Sjaak Swart (Arie Haan), Dick van Dijk, Piet Keizer and Johan Cruyff.

@GameofthePeople

Photos: PA

Categories: Europe

Tagged: 1968-69, 1970-71, Ajax Amsterdam, European Cup, Johan Cruyff, Lead, Netherlands, Panathinaikos, Rinus Michels, top slot, UEFA

Football needs to look after its own

GOTP Editorial Team

Posted on September 18, 2020

THE pandemic has delivered a few blows to football, not least the recent collapse of Macclesfield and problems at Droylesden. Add to that the demise of Bury and the alarm bells should be ringing very loud. The national media hasn’t really given it too much thought, but the CV-19 crisis has hit non-league very hard and given the often fragile nature of club finances, cast huge doubts about the sustainability of the game outside the Football League.

In the past, the non-league game was something of a nursery for bigger clubs and occupied a unique part of the eco-system (long before such phrases were invented). Quite often when small clubs were in trouble, pro clubs might donate some money to the cause, play a friendly to raise funds and, generally, adopt an attitude of generosity towards their junior neighbours. Some clubs still do, playing regular pre-season games and providing loan players and access to academy products.

When you consider how much revenue is generated at the top level, the cash flow crises of minor clubs could easily – on paper – be solved by the game’s behemoths.

Of course, these clubs are businesses and although they have allocated funds for charity and assorted good deeds, they would have to justify lending a helping hand, but the amounts involved need not be that big. And the positive PR that would be created by an elite club bailing-out the local non-league institution would be immense, changing the perception of big-time football and the people that run it – especially those that have faced questions about the motives of owners.

While some clubs have urged supporters to donate money to help them through the crisis, they are, effectively, going back to the same audience time and time again. Innovation is needed to introduce more cash to the non-league game in a time of intense pressure. Let’s not kid ourselves that football is a democracy, but surely, it is in everyone’s interest to maintain a healthy football structure?

If non-league clubs start to fall like dominoes, and there is a danger of that happening if their main source of income, matchday revenues, does not return soon, the roots of the game will dry-up and wither. And once club failure becomes commonplace, it could prove contagious and creep up the ladder to the Football League. As it is, many clubs live hand-to-mouth.

Perhaps there is a way out in starting a fund that provides a back-stop for clubs, a fund that is paid into by the elite to ensure those around them can prosper and possibly contribute to player development at the highest level?

Of course, non-league has to get its house in order and stop paying the sort of wages the clubs can ill-afford – any argument about sustainability has to begin with the question – how much of your income is spent on wages? After salaries, the other major question should be whether the current structure is the best geographical mix or has the crisis made it more vital to restrict non-league to more stringent regionalisation?

I was involved with a Hertfordshire-based non-league club for 20-plus years and it always puzzled me how a club from step three could travel 200 miles, setting out early on a Saturday morning, to play a game in front of 250 people. A game that would go largely unnoticed by the majority of people in the respective towns of the two teams. I particularly recall one trip where we hurtled north in our coach and were passed on the other side of the A1 by Bradford Park Avenue going south for a league game. That just didn’t make sense. Admittedly, we enjoyed going to faraway places, but the profit and loss on a fixture like that would have been interesting.

While a benevolent or crisis fund makes sense in some shape or form, clubs also have to start provisioning for rainy days and using prize money as emergency capital rather than bonuses. It cannot simply be “cash in, cash out” and hope for the best. I’ve long been an advocate for lower wages and restrictions around how much a club can pay, but that’s allowing the head to rule the heart. As we know, football is often run with the heart dictating the narrative and that invariably ends in tears and often even life-threatening for a club.

As matchday income is so crucial, non-league has to get started as soon as possible, but not behind closed doors. There is no imperative around broadcasting for the vast majority of clubs. Although this is controversial, clubs and leagues might also consider wage freezes until normality is restored.

Regardless of the practical challenges and hurdles facing non-league clubs, how dull would the world be if we didn’t have that vast family of little clubs, all corrugated metal, spindly floodlights and creaking turnstiles, that has produced some excellent players for the highest stage?

@GameofthePeople

This article first appeared in Football Weekends magazine.

Categories: Talking Points

Non-League football’s time may have arrived

GOTP Editorial Team

Posted on September 17, 2020

WITH nobody allowed near a Premier League turnstile and everyone being advised to adopt a simpler, more fulfilling life while they refrain from breathing the same air as their neighbour, non-league football may have a golden opportunity to win more friends and influence for folk.

When a magazine like Monocle, a pretentious coffee table monthly (which I have subscribed to for around five years), recommends their readers – in pursuit of a gentler life – adopt their local sports club, then you know something is afoot. Monocle people, generally speaking, are about as far away from football fans as you could possibly be. Wild swimming, shopping for high end goods, sauntering down boulevards and loitering around kiosks and hopping on inter-city flights is more their game.

This is just one example of a sea change that is developing, for the football hungry public, desperate to feel the buzz and animal spirits of a match, may just decide the shabby non-league club across the common might be worth a visit.

There’s little sign that fans will be allowed back into top flight games any time soon, indeed if a second wave hits Europe, that will delay things even further. The fact is, nobody is going to allow 70,000 people into a stadium for a long time to come. But smaller crowds in a more restrained environment could be just the ticket – unless another lockdown comes along, of course.

This could be non-league clubs’ chance to show the uninterested and apathetic that this level of the game really provides a humane and personal option. Animal spirits are in short supply, and in this age of spectacle-misting masks and sanitiser, thank heaven for that. But it is not just the game itself that may attract people – in terms of quality, expectations certainly have to be lowered – it is also about being in a place where other people are sharing the same experience.

Don’t forget, when a crowd sings in praise of a team or player, they are singing, “We” all agree, not “I”. There are two teams on the field of play and another two teams of supporters.

In this strange and worrying time, being able to watch something like a football match and being part of an audience has suddenly become more than just sport. We have been shut away for too long and we still have no clue when the restricted life will open-up once more. It is a fair assumption there will be a “new normal”, we will not necessarily go back to how we used to live.

For example, who will want to be seated in a stadium alongside 30,000 other people? Who will ever look at a buffet in the same way? How will we feel when a crowded tube train taking us to the Emirates, Stamford Bridge or the London Stadium rolls into a station? The matchday condition once delivered a pot pourri of aromas – beer, cigarettes, sweat, urine, after shave/perfume, chewing gum, flatulence and halitosis. Now add to that the possibility of a life threatening illness. Does that sound a compelling proposition?

With social distancing likely to continue for some time, the average non-league stadium, which is invariably no more than 20% full, offers an escape route from all this. Admittedly, some youngsters who still believe they will live forever will ignore such advice, but when life is so fragile, why shorten the odds?

If football fans long for their Saturday afternoons to change, then they should stroll along to their non-league club this coming weekend. They probably won’t know the players, indeed squads change so much these days regulars will struggle to name their team, but step three might just be a tentative step back to something like normality. You never know, it may become habit-forming.

Around a year ago, I happened to mention that the non-league game had lost its magic for me, an admission that made me a little sad. Then along game the pandemic and I have to admit, I am so looking forward to Hitchin Town v Alvechurch this Saturday. With my mask on, naturally.

Photo: PA Images

@GameofthePeople

Categories: Non-League

Tagged: behind closed doors, Corona virus, covid-19, Non-League, pandemic

An hour in, I realised I had abandoned social distancing: A return to football

GOTP Editorial Team

Posted on September 20, 2020

Ajax 1971 – men of their time

GOTP Editorial Team

Posted on September 18, 2020

Early signs

Exceptional

Final

Football needs to look after its own

GOTP Editorial Team

Posted on September 18, 2020

Non-League football’s time may have arrived

GOTP Editorial Team

Posted on September 17, 2020