August 17, 1996: "Me Futre. Me Wear Number 10"

August 17, 1996: A new season begins in England's Premier League. North meets East in a London derby, as Arsenal FC defeat West Ham United, 2-0 at the Arsenal Stadium, a.k.a. Highbury, in North London. John Hartson scores the 1st goal, and wins a penalty for the 2nd, converted by Dennis Bergkamp.

This was the 1st match for West Ham for Portuguese winger Paulo Futre, who had starred in his homeland for FC Porto, and in Spain for Atlético Madrid. He had spent the previous season with Italian giants AC Milan, but was injured, and made only 1 appearance. The Hammers picked him up on a free transfer.

He was given uniform Number 16. This was only 3 years after English football stopped assigning squad numbers based on position, 1 through 11, with substitutes wearing numbers 12, 14 and 15 -- rarely 13, as it was seen as an unlucky number. So 16 was still considered an unusual number for a footballer to wear in club play, as opposed to international play, where squad numbers went from 1 to 23. Under the new format, if a player was wearing 16, it was because 1 through 11 were already taken up by starters, and 16 was available, and he would have to wait his chance; or, he wanted it for some reason.

Futre didn't want to wear 16. Depending on whose story you believe, either his English was bad, and he responded to every argument with, "Me Futre. Me wear Number 10"; or, his English (if not his perception of his own talent) was very good, and he said, "Futre 10, not 16. Eusébio: 10. Maradona: 10. Pelé: 10. Futre: 10, not fucking 16."

Harry Redknapp, then the Hammers' manager, later said, "At first, we tried to tell him that we had sold so many replicas with 'FUTRE 16' on the back that it would be impossible to change, but he called our bluff.

"'How many?' he asked. 'I will pay £100,000.' And that was when I knew this was an argument we could not win: Futre was willing to spend £100,000 just to be Number 10. In the end, he got it a lot cheaper: John Moncur, the Number 10, agreed to swap, and Paulo let him have two weeks in his villa in the Algarve, which is about the best one there, on the cliffs overlooking the best golf course."

For the record, £100,000 in 1996 is equivalent, with inflation, to roughly £211,000 in 2022, or about $286,000 with the current exchange rate. And it had only been 33 years since the abolition of the Football League's £20 maximum wage. Yet Futre wanted the number badly enough to show that it wasn't about the money, already a rarity for a major footballer. The Algarve is southernmost Portugal, where the Gulf of Cádiz flows into the Atlantic Ocean.

The fact that Redknapp, who won one major trophy in 46 seasons as a player and a manager in English football combined, knew enough about golf courses in the Algarve to have an opinion as to which one was the best makes him either a Renaissance man or an inattentive football manager. Given that his defense of a charge of tax evasion was a learning disability, I'm guessing it's the latter.

And what did West Ham, and Futre, get out of all of this? Competitively speaking, a fiasco: Between injuries, insubordination, and benching due to poor performance, "Me Futre" (as he will forever be known in the East End) played just 9 matches for the Hammers, scoring exactly zero goals. He was washed up, and was dumped back to Atlético Madrid after the single season. The Hammers finished 14th, and were knocked out of the FA Cup in the 3rd Round, and the League Cup in the 4th.

Futre later hosted a soccer-themed TV show, and his son Fábio and his nephew Artur both played the sport professionally.

*

August 17, 1996 was a Saturday. These Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Seattle Mariners, 10-3 at Yankee Stadium. Jamie Moyer was the winning pitcher, while Kenny Rogers, the weak link in the Yankee rotation with David Cone still sidelined, couldn't get an out in the 4th inning. The M's got home runs from 3 expected sources: Ken Griffey Jr., Alex Rodriguez and, 8 months after an episode of Seinfeld helped make his 1988 trade away from the Yankees look even worse, Jay Buhner. The Yankees got a home run from Bernie Williams. Rookie Derek Jeter went 0-for-4.

* The New York Mets beat the San Diego Padres, 7-3 at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego. Tony Gwynn went 3-for-5 with 2 RBIs.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the California Angels, 6-0 at Fenway Park in Boston. Roger Clemens pitched a 7-hit shutout. Two months later, Sox general manager Dan Duquette would refuse to offer Clemens a new contract, saying Clemens was in "the twilight of his career."

* The San Francisco Giants beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 8-4 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Barry Bonds hit a home run.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 7-1 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Detroit Tigers, 6-3 at Jacobs Field (now Progressive Field) in Cleveland.

* The Cincinnati Reds swept a doubleheader from the Colorado Rockies, 5-3 and 9-5 at Cinergy Field (formerly Riverfront Stadium) in Cincinnati.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Houston Astros, 12-3 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 6-2 at Milwaukee County Stadium.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Toronto Blue Jays, 11-1 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Florida Marlins, 4-3 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis.

* The Kansas City Royals beat the Texas Rangers, 4-1 at The Ballpark (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Montreal Expos, 7-6 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* And the Oakland Athletics beat the Baltimore Orioles, 3-1 at the Oakland Coliseum. Cal Ripken went 0-for-4.

July 25, 1918: “I’m Forever Blowing Bubbles” Is Recorded

Original sheet music

July 25, 1918: The Passing Show of 1918 premieres, at the Winter Garden Theatre in New York. Despite the fact that the show included the dancing siblings Fred and Adele Astaire, it was, as with most Broadway musicals of the period, forgettable, and has been forgotten.

But, occasionally, one song from a forgotten musical would be remembered. In this case, the song is "I'm Forever Blowing Bubbles." The music was written by John Kellette. Despite being short, the lyrics were written by 3 men: James Kendis, James Brockman and Nat Vincent. None of them wrote any other songs that are familiar today.

The song was introduced by singer Helen Carrington, a 23-year-old native of Brooklyn. On July 31, 1919, Ben Selvin's Novelty Orchestra makes the 1st recording, and it became the biggest song of the year.

Kellette died in 1922, Kendis in 1946, Carrington in 1963, Brockman in 1967, Vincent in 1979, Selvin in 1980. The Winter Garden Theatre still stands, at 1634 Broadway at 51st Street.

As with some other songs of the era that survive, the verses got forgotten, and only the chorus is remembered. (See also: "Take Me Out to the Ballgame.") But the chorus is remembered:

I'm forever blowing bubbles.

Pretty bubbles in the air.

They fly so high.

Nearly reach the sky.

Then, like my dreams,

they fade and die.

Fortune's always hiding.

I've looked everywhere.

I'm forever blowing bubbles.

Pretty bubbles in the air.

By the time the World Series began in October, the song was big enough to be used to send a message. Sportswriter Ring Lardner saw the evidence that the Chicago White Sox were "throwing" the Series to the Cincinnati Reds during the Chicago games.

On the train back to Cincinnati, Lardner vented his spleen at the White Sox. He rewrote the big hit of the moment for them:

I'm forever blowing ballgames.
Pretty ballgames in the air.
I come from Chi.
I hardly try.
Just go to bat
and fade and die.
Fortune's coming my way.
That's why I don't care
I'm forever blowing ballgames
and the gamblers treat us fair.

The scene would be recreated in the film version of Eight Men Out, with John Sayles directing, and also playing Lardner.

In 1928, fans of East London soccer team West Ham United used the song to serenade one of their players, Billy Murray, who was nicknamed Bubbles because of his resemblance to a boy blowing a bubble in a painting that had been used in a soap ad that appeared in magazines of the time.

Billy Murray

The song stuck, and, to this day, fans of West Ham, despite their tough reputation, sing it wherever they go. At key moments in home games, a bubble machine that Lawrence Welk would have been impressed by cranks bubbles out, and the fans begin to sing.

*

July 25, 1918 was a Thursday. These baseball games were played:

* The New York Giants swept a doubleheader from the St. Louis Cardinals at the Polo Grounds, with both games ending with a score of 3-2. Over the 2 games, Rogers Hornsby went 1-for-6 with 2 walks.

* The Brooklyn Robins -- as the Dodgers were known while Wilbert Robinson was their manager, from 1914 to 1931 -- swept a doubleheader from the Pittsburgh Pirates, 10-0 and 6-2 at Ebbets Field. Burleigh Grimes pitched a 1-hit shutout in the opener. Over the 2 games, Zack Wheat went 4-for-9 with 2 RBIs.

* The Cincinnati Reds swept a doubleheader from the Boston Braves, 4-2 and 5-0 at Braves Field in Boston. Edd Roush, the Reds' greatest player up until Frank Robinson came along in the 1950s, won the 1st game with an inside-the-park home run in the top of the 13th inning. Pete Schneider pitched a 7-hit shutout in the 2nd game.

* A doubleheader was split at Baker Bowl in Philadelphia. The Philadelphia Phillies won the 1st game, 10-5. The Chicago Cubs won the 2nd game, 12-6.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Philadelphia Athletics, 7-3 at Navin Field in Detroit. (The ballpark was renamed Briggs Stadium in 1938 and Tiger Stadium in 1961.) Ty Cobb did not play.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Boston Red Sox, 4-2 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Eddie Collins went 1-for-3 with a walk. Babe Ruth went 1-for-4, a single.

* The Washington Senators beat the St. Louis Browns, 1-0 at Sportsman's Park in St. Louis. Joe Judge doubled Eddie Foster home with the winning run in the top of the 15th inning.

* And, because of the shortening of the season due to World War I, the game between that the New York Yankees and the Cleveland Indians were originally going to play on this day, at League Park in Cleveland, was moved back to July 14. The Indians won, 7-1. Tris Speaker went 1-for-4. Wally Pipp got 2 hits for the Yankees, but the rest of the team only got 3.

May 14, 1995: The Blackburn Title

Alan Shearer (left) and Blackburn Captain Tim Sherwood

May 14, 1995: The Premier League title is not yet decided. Blackburn Rovers of Lancashire can win it, making it their 1st League title since 1914. But they lose, 2-1, to Liverpool, at Anfield, the former club and former home ground of their current manager, Kenny Dalglish. The crowd believes that the title has been blown.

But soon, word comes that Manchester United, 2-time defending Champions, having only managed a 1-1 draw, away to East London team West Ham United, and that gives Blackburn the title by 1 point. Team Captain Tim Sherwood accepts the PL trophy.

Liverpool fans, who hate Manchester United, and not especially thrilled with the thought of handing the title to them, gratefully give the new Champions a standing ovation.

It turns out to be the only major trophy won by Blackburn's striker, Alan Shearer, who later moves to Newcastle United, and becomes the Premier League's all-time leading goalscorer.

Elsewhere in English soccer, an embarrassing season ends for North London team Arsenal with a 2-1 loss to crosstown opponent Chelsea, at Stamford Bridge in West London. The Gunners finish 12th, and that remains their worst performance since 1976.

United went on to lose the FA Cup Final as well, to Everton, the blue club in Liverpool. They became the 8th team to "achieve" a "Runner-Up Double," finishing 2nd in the League and losing the FA Cup Final in the same season:

* 1928: Huddersfield Town of Yorkshire finished 2 points behind Everton, and lost the Final 2-1 to Blackburn.

* 1932: Arsenal finished 2 points behind Everton, and lost the Final 2-1 to North-East team Newcastle United.

* 1939: Wolverhampton Wanderers, of the Birmingham area, finished 1 point behind Everton, and lost the Final 4-1 to Hampshire team Portsmouth.

* 1962: Lancashire team Burnley finished 3 points behind Suffolk team Ipswich Town, and lost the Final 3-1 to North London team Tottenham Hotspur.

* 1965: Yorkshire team Leeds United lost the league title to Manchester United on goal average (the 1st tiebreaker at the time, now goal difference), and were defeated in the Final, 2-1 after extra time, by Liverpool -- meaning they came the closest of these teams to winning either, let alone both.

* 1970: Leeds did it again, finishing 9 points behind Everton, and lost the Final 2-1 to West London team Chelsea after a replay.

* 1986: Everton finished runners-up to Liverpool in both competitions, the only time a club has run 2nd in each to the same team. Liverpool beat them by 2 points in the League, and 3-1 in the Final.

* 1995: Manchester United finished 1 point behind Blackburn, and lost the Final 1-0 to Everton.

Oddly, Everton were involved 6 of the 8 times, once as victim, and 5 times as beneficiary.

*

May 14, 1995 was a Sunday. Actress Rose Lavelle was born.

An embarrassing season ends for Arsenal with a 2-1 loss to crosstown opponent Chelsea, at Stamford Bridge in West London. The Gunners finish 12th, and that remains their worst performance since 1976.

There were 3 games in the Stanley Cup Playoffs:

* The Quebec Nordiques beat the New York Rangers, 4-2 at Le Colisée de Québec, and close their 1st Round Stanley Cup Playoff match to 3 games to 2. But the Rangers won Game 6, eliminating the Nordiques, who are moved to Denver the next season, to become the Colorado Avalanche. I have a separate entry for this event.

* The Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Washington Capitals, 6-5 at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, to take a 3-2 lead in the series. Luc Robitaille scored the winning goal, 4:30 into overtime. The Penguins won the series in Game 7.

* And after 67 years, the last competitive sporting event is held at the Boston Garden. The Boston Bruins lose Game 5 of the 1st Round of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, 3-2, and are eliminated. The last goal is scored by Adam Oates. The team that eliminates the Big Bad Bruins? The New Jersey Devils.

There were 3 games played in the NBA Playoffs:

* The Chicago Bulls beat the Orlando Magic, 106-95 at the United Center in Chicago.

* The Phoenix Suns beat the Houston Rockets, 114-110 at The Summit in Houston. (It's now the Central Campus of televangelist Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church.) Kevin Johnson scored 43 points for the Suns.

* And the San Antonio Spurs beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 80-71 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California.

And these games were played in Major League Baseball:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Boston Red Sox, 3-2 at Fenway Park in Boston. Jack McDowell started for the Yankees, Zane Smith for the Sox. The Yanks scored 2 runs in the top of the 9th, but Mike Macfarlane hit a home run off Steve Howe in the bottom of the 9th to win it.

* The New York Mets lost to the Montreal Expos, 3-2 at Shea Stadium. Mark Grudzielanek grounded out to 1st base in the top of the 13th inning, allowing Mike Lansing to score the winning run. Rico Brogna hit a home run for the Mets.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Baltimore Orioles, 3-1 at Camden Yards in Baltimore. Orel Hershiser outpitched Arthur Rhodes. Cal Ripken went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Atlanta Braves, 5-3 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium. Ron Gant hit a 2-run home run in the top of the 10th inning to win the game.

* The Colorado Rockies beat the Florida Marlins, 6-3 at Joe Robbie Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Chicago Cubs, 9-7 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Andújar Cedeño hit 2 home runs. Tony Gwynn went 2-for-5.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 8-3 at Milwaukee County Stadium.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Minnesota Twins, 12-3 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis. Rickey Henderson went 1-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base.

* The California Angels beat the Kansas City Royals, 8-1 at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Texas Rangers, 8-3 at The Ballpark (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Houston Astros, 5-2 at the Astrodome in Houston.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 6-5 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Brian Jordan singled Scott Cooper home with the winning run in the top of the 11th inning.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 2-1 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Darren Lewis singled Royce Clayton home with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning. Barry Bonds went 0-for-4, but had an RBI on a groundout.

* And the Chicago White Sox beat the Seattle Mariners, 10-2 at the Kingdome in Seattle. Ken Griffey Jr. went 2-for-4 with a solo home run. Alex Rodriguez went 1-for-2 before being pinch-hit for.

May 7, 2006: The Highbury Farewell & the Tottenham Lasagne

May 7, 2006: The rivalry between the professional soccer teams of North London takes its strangest turn ever.

Arsenal Football Club (a.k.a. "The Arsenal") and Tottenham Hotspur Football Club (a.k.a. "Spurs") are separated by 4.7 miles in North London. To put that in perspective: Imagine that, in New York City, the Yankees and Mets played each other regularly, and that, while the Mets played in Flushing Meadow as they actually do, the Yankees played in Astoria, instead of the South Bronx.

The relationship is similar -- or it would be, if the Mets, instead of being the successors to the baseball version of the New York Giants, were a continuation of the same team: Great long ago, but only sporadically so since the Yankees first began winning, perennially getting humiliated by the more successful club, treating every win over the more successful club like you'd just won a world championship, and collapsing just as glory seems within your grasp.

But Met fans think the Yankees have unfair advantages: Money (true), getting the benefit of the doubt from the officials and the league office (don't make me laugh), favorable treatment by the media (don't take drugs). Tottenham fans think Arsenal have these advantages, and one more: Arsenal "bribed their way into the First Division in 1919." (It's been over 100 years: Not one shred of evidence has ever been found to back up this fact that "everybody knows is true.")

Therefore, both Met fans and Spurs fans claim a moral high ground over their local rivals. This results in a huge superiority complex and a huge inferiority complex at the same time.

Even the mottoes are similar: The Mets' is "Ya gotta believe!" while Spurs' is "To dare is to do."

I've mentioned before that the Mets are the Tottenham of New York, and that this might not be fair... to the Mets. Tottenham have not won their league since 1961, while the Mets, who started in 1962 as a replacement for the Giants and the Brooklyn Dodgers (who left for California in 1957), have now won their league 5 times. (The real "Tottenham of New York" is hockey's Rangers, complete with their idiot thug fans: They talk as much trash as Yankee and Arsenal fans do, but they don't get the results to back it up.)

Tottenham have won England's top division of soccer (or, as they say, "football") twice, both times clinching at their home ground of White Hart Lane: In 1951 and 1961. They beat the same opponent both times: Sheffield Wednesday.

Arsenal have also twice clinched England's top division of soccer (or, as they say, "football") at White Hart Lane: In 1971 and 2004. They beat the same opponent both times: Tottenham.

Arsenal have won the League 13 times, including 6 times since Spurs' last title: 1971, 1989, 1991, 1998, 2002 and 2004.

Tottenham have won the FA Cup, England's national tournament, 8 times. This is actually a very impressive total. But they haven't won it since 1991, when they beat Arsenal in a Semifinal. They haven't even been to a Final since, going 0-3 in Semifinals, including losing to Arsenal in 1993 and 2001. Arsenal have won the FA Cup 14 times, more than any other club, including 9 times since Spurs last did: 1993, 1998, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2014, 2015, 2017 and 2020.

Because of their association with the old Royal Arsenal in Woolwich, in what's now Southeast London, Arsenal have always had a cannon on their club crest, and are thus known as the Gunners. Their fans, known as Gooners, like to say that Tottenham Hotspur, named for early 15th Century English rebel Henry Percy, a.k.a. Lord Harry Hotspur, are "forever in our shadow."

But every so often -- currently, we are in one of those moments -- the lopsided advantage in honors that tilts toward Arsenal looks like it might be reversed, what Spurs fans call "a power shift in North London."

A decade ago, there was one of those moments. But it ended up getting flushed down the toilet. Almost literally.

In 2005-06, Arsenal had their best Champions League campaign ever, reaching the Final. That Final, still the closest Arsenal have ever come to winning the European Cup (the UEFA Champions League format kept the name for the trophy), turned out to be the last appearance in Arsenal's colors for Dutch forward Dennis Bergkamp, French winger Robert Pires, English centreback Sol Campbell (who controversially transferred from Spurs to Arsenal 5 years earlier), and, controversially, English left back Ashley Cole.

Cole had grown up as an Arsenal fan and in Arsenal's youth system, but had been "tapped up" by West London rivals Chelsea, and would go to them due to new owner Roman Abramovich's spending spree, which had gotten Chelsea the 2005 and '06 Premier League titles. Cole has been known as "Cashley" to Gooners fans ever since.

But the 2005-06 season was the end of an era for another reason: It was the last season for the Arsenal Stadium, a.k.a. Highbury. The new Emirates Stadium -- some call it The Emirates, some by the area's former name Ashburton Grove, some cheekily call it New Highbury -- was going up, 500 yards away, and would open in the summer, the product of the success Arsenal had enjoyed in its 1st 10 years of management by the Alsatian genius, Arsène Wenger.

Arsenal wanted very badly to end the last game at Highbury with a win. It was against Manchester area club Wigan Athletic, and was expected to not be hard, but Arsenal have a history of losing the occasional game that they really should win.

But it wasn't just sentiment: Arsenal went into the season's League finale in 5th place in the Premiership, with Tottenham in 4th. All Spurs had to do in their game, which was away to East London club West Ham United, was match Arsenal's performance on that final day of the Premiership season, and it would be Spurs in the 2006-07 Champions League, with Arsenal "relegated" to the UEFA Cup -- unless, of course, Arsenal could win the CL Final, as the defending champion is always invited back.

The night before, Tottenham manager Martin Jol had secluded his players at a hotel, the Marriott Canary Wharf, in London's financial district, a.k.a. The City. This is not unusual: Many managers do things like this, even before home games. American football head coaches, in both the professional and the collegiate ranks, also do this. The players would have a nice dinner the night before the game, and get a good night's sleep, and would have a nice short bus ride to the stadium, all away from the prying of fans and the media.

What did Scottish poet Robert Burns say? Translated into modern common English, "The best-laid plans of mice and men often go astray."

In the middle of the night, 10 Spurs players woke up, vomiting, and/or having diarrhea: Robbie Keane, Edgar Davids, Michael Carrick, Aaron Lennon, Michael Dawson, Lee Barnard, Calum Davenport, Teemu Tainio, Lee Young-Pyo and Radek Cerny.

Someone decided to blame the lasagne they'd eaten for dinner that night, and after the whole thing was over, some Spurs fans started a conspiracy theory (shades of their delusions about 1919) that the Marriott chef was an Arsenal fan, and had purposely poisoned the Spurs players! It became known as Lasagne-gate.

In the morning, several Spurs players were still, uh, indisposed. So club chairman Daniel Levy called the League office, and asked League chairman Richard Scudamore to postpone the game.

Nothing doing: With 1 League game to go, all teams were to play their games at the same time, 3:00 PM. This was a change from past policy, to avoid teams whose League place had already been decided from laying down on the job, thus giving gamblers some easy pickings and paying customers a less than honest performance.

Levy protested: We have sick players, so can't the game be postponed until tomorrow? Or even until tonight, just to give us a few more hours to recover? Scudamore asked if Spurs had 11 players who could play. Well, yes, but... Then the game would go on. If Spurs wanted to postpone, they could refuse to play, but an inquiry would be held, and Spurs would likely lose that appeal, and the penalty for refusing to play would be a deduction of points, which would make a win in the rescheduled match meaningless.

West Ham officials said they were willing to accept a postponement, so long as it wasn't too close to the following Saturday, when they were to play Liverpool in the FA Cup Final (which Liverpool went on to win). Unlike Spurs, West Ham were not threatened with a points deduction for going along with the postponement (which makes sense, since it wasn't their idea).

But the police were afraid of what additional time to drink that day would do, considering the reputation that both Spurs' and the Hammers' fans had for hooliganism, including against each other. (A fight between fictionalized versions of hooligan firms from those clubs opened the 2005 film Green Street.) So the cops said they would allow the game to start no later than 5:00 -- an extra 2 hours, not much of a help for the last 2 players who still needed rehydration, Carrick and Lennon.

Carrick and Lennon

In the end, the game kicked off on time, at the traditional English football starting time of 3:00 in the afternoon, and only one of the affected players, backup goalkeeper Cerny, did not make it into the game, although Carrick had to be subbed off after 63 minutes, Lee (for fellow affectee Barnard) in the 78th, and Tainio (for fellow affectee Davenport) in the 87th.

*

That season was Wigan's first-ever season in the Premiership, and they had achieved midtable respectability, finishing 10th. An Arsenal win shouldn't have been assumed, but it was well possible. West Ham were about Wigan's equal, finishing 9th, and were hosting Spurs -- hence the Canary Wharf hotel, not far from the Hammers' Boleyn Ground, a.k.a. Upton Park.

Pires scored the Highbury opener, and, for the last time at that ground, the song "One-nil to The Arsenal" was sung -- by both Arsenal fans at Highbury and West Ham fans, learning by radio and text message, at Upton Park.

But Wigan struck back, and led 2-1. Spurs fans, getting calls and messages on their mobile phones, found out, and were ecstatic. And when Jermaine Defoe scored in the 35th to match Darren Fletcher's goal for the Hammers in the 10th, meaning Spurs were looking at a draw while Arsenal were losing, it looked like it would be Spurs' day.

It wasn't. Arsenal's superstar French forward Thierry Henry scored a hat trick, tallying in the 35th, the 56th, and the 76th with a penalty that was the last goal ever scored in the ground's 93-year history. Feeling that history, after putting the ball in the net, instead of launching a ghastly celebration, he bent down and kissed the grass. The final score was Arsenal 4-2 Wigan Athletic.

Of course, it wouldn't have mattered if Spurs had also won. But West Ham came from behind, and won 2-1 on a goal in the 80th minute by Yossi Benayoun, a midfielder from Israel.

Arsenal finished 4th, 2 points ahead of Tottenham, and qualified for the Champions League; Tottenham, finishing 5th, went to the UEFA Cup.

*

The remains of the supposedly offending lasagne were sent to a laboratory, and tested. As it turned out, there was nothing wrong with it, at least not medically. The virus that spread among the Spurs players was real, but it had nothing to do with food.

Still, Spurs fans blame that lasagne, and the chef that served it. Just like the Yankees-Red Sox "Curse of the Bambino," the lasagne contagion never really existed, but it has taken on a life of its own, because the afflicted team's fans believed it. And so, to spite them, ever since, Arsenal fans have sung, to "Volare":

Lasagne, whoa!
Lasagne, whoa!
We laughed ourselves to bits
when Tottenham got the shits!

Which matches another Arsenal chant. I don't know how far back it goes, but it was already in place in early 2007:

Q: What do you think of Tottenham?
A: Shit!
Q: What do you think of shit?
A: Tottenham!
Q: Thank you!
A: That's all right! We hate Tottenham and we hate Tottenham! We hate Tottenham and we hate Tottenham! We hate Tottenham and we hate Tottenham! We are the Tottenham haters!

Indeed, Tottenham didn't finished higher than Arsenal in the League between 1995 and 2017. They then did it 4 times in a row, before Arsenal took over again in 2022.

For talk among their organization, and talk among their fans, and talk among the media, all combined, and then divided by results, Tottenham Hotspur are arguably the biggest joke franchise in sports on planet Earth, any sport, any country.

Lasagne-gate may have been the highest moment -- or the lowest, if you prefer.

*

May 7, 2006 was a Sunday. The American version of football was out for the season. There were 2 NBA Playoff games that day, each a Game 1 of a Conference Semifinal. The Detroit Pistons beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 113-86 at The Palace in the Detroit suburb of Auburn Hills, Michigan. And the San Antonio Spurs beat the Dallas Mavericks, 87-85 at the AT&T Center (now named the Frost Bank Center) in San Antonio.

There were 2 Stanley Cup Playoff games that day, both in the Conference Semifinals. The San Jose Sharks beat the Edmonton Oilers, 2-1 in a Game 1 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose (now named the SAP Center). And the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, in their last season under that stupid name before they became simply the Anaheim Ducks, beat the Colorado Avalanche, 3-0 in a Game 2 at the Arrowhead Pond (subsequently renamed the Honda Center).

And these Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Texas Rangers, 8-5 at Ameriquest Field (now Choctaw Stadium) in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. Chien-Ming Wang was the winning pitcher. Hideki Matsui went 2-for-3 with a home run, 3 walks and 3 RBIs. Derek Jeter went 0-for-5. Alex Rodriguez went 2-for-5. Future Yankee Mark Teixeira went 2-for-5 for the Rangers.

* The New York Mets lost to the Atlanta Braves, 13-3 at Shea Stadium. John Smoltz outpitched José Lima. Brian Jordan and Jeff Francoeur homered for the Braves, Carlos Beltrán for the Mets.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles, 10-3 at Fenway Park in Boston. The steroids didn't quite work for David Ortiz, who went 0-for-4, but had an RBI on a sacrifice fly. Jason Varitek hit a grand slam.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the San Francisco Giants, 9-5 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. Pat Burrell and Aaron Rowand hit home runs for the Phils, while Barry Bonds (the 713th of his career) and Mark Sweeney hit them for the Jints.

* The Washington Nationals beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 5-4 at Robert F. Kennedy Stadium in Washington.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Florida Marlins, 9-1 at Dolphins Stadium (now Hard Rock Stadium) in Miami Gardens, Florida.

* The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Los Angeles Angels, 3-1 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Kansas City Royals, 3-2 at U.S. Cellular Field (now Rate Field) in Chicago.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Detroit Tigers, 4-2 at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.

* The Colorado Rockies beat the Houston Astros, 5-3 at Coors Field in Denver.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Arizona Diamondbacks, 9-8 at Chase Field in Phoenix.

* The San Diego Padres beat the Chicago Cubs, 6-3 at Petco Park in San Diego.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 10-2 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.

* The Tampa Bay Devil Rays beat the Oakland Athletics, 3-2 at the McAfee Coliseum (as the Oakland Coliseum was then known).

* And the Cleveland Indians beat the Seattle Mariners, 2-0 at Safeco Field (now T-Mobile Park) in Seattle. CC Sabathia pitched 8 innings of 7-hit shutout ball, and Bob Wickman completed a 9-hit shutout. Ichiro Suzuki went 2-for-4 with a stolen base.

May 6, 1967: The Modern Age of Football Hooliganism Begins

May 6, 1967: The modern age of "football hooliganism" begins. And it's in celebration of one of the best soccer teams in English history.

Matt Busby managed Manchester United to the Football League Division One title in 1956 and 1957. After the Munich Air Disaster of 1958, he had to rebuild his team almost from scratch. But they managed to finish 2nd in 1959. It was an outlier: The next 4 seasons, they finished 7th, 7th, 15th and 19th, barely avoiding relegation to Division Two in 1963, although they did manage to win the FA Cup.

By that point, the players known as "The Trinity" were in place: English forward Bobby Charlton, Scottish forward Denis Law, and Northern Irish winger George Best. In 1964, they finished 2nd. In 1965, they won the League again. In 1966, they finished 4th. In all 3 seasons, they reached the Semifinals of the FA Cup. In 1966, as his ill-fated "Busby Babes" did in 1957 and 1958, they reached the Semifinal of the European Cup. And in 1967, they went into the final game of the season, on May 6, needing a win or a loss by Nottingham Forest to clinch the title.

All this success, both before and after the Air Disaster, made them a popular team beyond the Manchester area: Television coverage made them nationally popular, especially with Charlton having helped England win the 1966 World Cup; and Best's long hair, skill and personality making him the most popular player in the country.

This success did not necessarily transfer to their national teams: Although Charlton and midfielder Norbert "Nobby" Stiles were members of England's 1966 World Cup winners, Law's Scotland and Best's Northern Ireland did not qualify for that tournament. Scotland, with Law, did famously beat England, with Charlton and Stiles, 3-2 at Wembley Stadium in London on April 15, 1967, but the Scots' claim of being "Unofficial World Champions" was not taken seriously.

By 1967, Man United were probably the most popular team in England. They were also, arguably, the 4th-most popular team within London's M25 motorway (their equivalent of a road "beltway"), behind North London's Tottenham Hotspur (League and FA Cup "Double" winners in 1961, Cup winners again in 1962 and 1967, European Cup Winners' Cup winners in 1963), West London's Chelsea (not very successful, but popular among denizens of the city's nearby theatre district), and East London's West Ham United (1964 FA Cup winners, 1965 Cup Winners' Cup winners, and the darlings of the working class).

By this point, North London team Arsenal, which hadn't won the League since 1953 or the Cup since 1950, and were nearly relegated in 1966, were considered just about irrelevant. Little did anyone know that their rebuilding effort would result in a Double in 1971.

Best certainly enjoyed taking the train down from Manchester to London to enjoy the capital's delights, its "wine, women and song," which would ultimately ruin his health and lead to his death in 2005, not quite 60 years old. His shenanigans are also the best way to deny later United manager Alex Ferguson's statement that, had Paul Gascoigne left Newcastle for him, instead of for Tottenham, he could have kept him on the straight and narrow, in Manchester and out of London. Carousers will always find a way.

There had always been "firms" of "hooligans" following English soccer teams. In the East End, West Ham had already developed one of the most fearsome, which would become the Inter-City Firm (ICF). Manchester United had the Red Army. But their London following was big enough that they had a separate firm of Londoners, "The Cockney Reds."

This infuriated West Ham fans: While pretty much everybody from outside the M25 thinks of everybody from inside it was a "Cockney," the word has a specific definition: A person born "within the sound of Bow Bells," meaning the bells of the Church of St Mary-le-Bow, on the street known as Cheapside, a mile and a half from Central London -- but only a 5-minute walk from the much larger St. Paul's Cathedral. Both churches were rebuilt after the Great Fire of London in 1666, and both were designed by the greatest architect of the age, Sir Christopher Wren.

On May 6, the next-to-last weekend of the League season, Man United needed to win 1 of their last 2 games to clinch the title. The suspense ended early: Charlton scored in the 2nd minute, Pat Crerand in the 7th, and Bill Foulkes in the 10th. Best scored in the 25th, and Law in the 63rd (on a penalty) and the 79th. The Irons' only goal came from John Charles, who, 4 years earlier, became their 1st black player. (He should not be confused with the John Charles who starred for Leeds United, Juventus, Cardiff City, and the Wales national team.)

But after the game, the Cockney Reds began throwing bottles, rocks, and whatever else they could get their hands on, at anything damageable: Windows, cars, people. According to local newspapers, 20 people were hospitalized, and 12 were arrested.

As one member of West Ham's ICF put it in a book about their doings, in particular their relationship with Man United: "Attitudes changed toward them. They had some respect after the Munich air crash, and many an old boy round our way admired the way they had rebuilt after that. After 1967, any respect they had went out the door, and it hasn't changed to this day."

Over the late 1960s, the 1970s, and the early 1980s, things would continually get worse and worse. By the mid-1970s, "perimeter fencing" was put around the fields at many stadiums, to prevent "pitch invasions." The idea was, if the fans were going to act like animals, the authorities were going to put them in cages. But that didn't prevent fighting in the stands, and it certainly didn't prevent it outside the stadiums.

*

May 6, 1967 was a Saturday. It was the day my parents got married in their hometown of Newark, New Jersey. It rained that day, which was said to be a good omen for a marriage. Theirs lasted 47 years. My parents couldn't have cared less about soccer, even though America's 1st top-flight soccer league had just begun play. Their old neighborhood didn't care, despite being mostly Italian-American: People there didn't care much about what was going on in "the old country." The neighborhood sure cares about it now, as it's populated mostly by Central and South Americans.

Elsewhere in English football that day: Arsenal beat Staffordshire team Stoke City, 3-1 at Highbury in North London; Liverpool and the other North London team, Tottenham Hotspur, who would go on to win the FA Cup 2 weeks later, played to a 0-0 draw at Anfield in Liverpool; Everton, also of Liverpool and the defending League Champions, beat Aston Villa, 4-2 at Villa Park in Birmingham; Manchester City and Yorkshire team Sheffield United played to a draw, 1-1 at Maine Road in Manchester; and Midlands team Leicester City beat North-East team Newcastle United, 4-2 at Filbert Street in Leicester.

On the same day, Scotland's league finished its season. The Glasgow derby, "the Old Firm," between Rangers and Celtic, was played to a 2-2 draw. They had a "ruck" (or an "off"), too: Among the fans, 50 were injured, and 39 were arrested. Celtic won the League, and went on to win the Scottish Cup, and the League Cup, and became the 1st British team to win the European Cup: A still-unique "Quadruple": No other team in European soccer has managed that.

American football was out of season. The NHL season had ended 2 days earlier, with the Toronto Maple Leafs beating the Montreal Canadiens for the Stanley Cup. The NBA season had ended on April 24, with the Philadelphia 76ers beating the San Francisco Warriors. Both of those Finals went to 6 games.

These games were played in Major League Baseball:

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Atlanta Braves, 4-3 at Atlanta Stadium (later Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium). Pete Rose went 3-for-4 with a solo home run. Hank Aaron went 1-for-4 with 2 RBIs. Joe Torre went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the San Francisco Giants, 6-5 at Forbes Field in Pittsburgh. George Spriggs singled home the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning. Roberto Clemente went 1-for-4. Bill Mazeroski went 3-for-5. Willie Stargell did not play. For the Giants, Willie Mays went 0-for-4 with a walk. Jack Hiatt, starting at 1st base in place of Willie McCovey, went 2-for-4 with a home run and 4 RBIs. McCovey later pinch-hit, and went 0-for-2.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Cleveland Indians, 2-0 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Joe Horlen pitched 7 innings of 3-hit shutout ball, and Bob Locker pitched 2 perfect innings to finish it.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Baltimore Orioles, 4-1 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. Al Kaline hit a home run. Frank Robinson went 1-for-3 with a walk. Brooks Robinson went 0-for-4.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs, 5-3 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Lou Brock went 1-for-5 with a stolen base. Orlando Cepeda hit 2 home runs. Ernie Banks went 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Boston Red Sox, 4-2 at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. Harmon Killebrew went 0-for-4. Rookie of the Year Rod Carew went 2-for-4. Carl Yastrzemski went 1-for-4.

* The Washington Senators beat the California Angels, 2-0 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). Barry Moore had pitched 3 innings of 3-hit shutout ball, but had also walked 4 batters, and was moved in favor of Darold Knowles. He allowed just 2 hits over the last 6 innings, and completed the shutout.

* As I said, it rained in the New York Tri-State Area, so the New York Mets and the Houston Astros were rained out at Shea Stadium. The game was made up on July 20, and the Astros won, 7-0. Don Wilson pitched a 2-hit shutout, allowing only singles by Larry Stahl and Ed Charles, and walks to Stahl and Ed Kranepool.

* The rain that hit the Northeast on May 6 also rained out the Philadelphia Phillies and the Los Angeles Dodgers at Connie Mack Stadium in Philadelphia. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on July 18. The Phils won the opener, 5-0. Rick Wise pitched a 4-hit shutout. The Dodgers won the nightcap, 2-1.

* And while the New York Yankees were on the road, they, too, got rained out, against the Kansas City Athletics at Kansas City Municipal Stadium. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on June 27. The A's won the 1st game, 10-2. Future Yankee Jim "Catfish" Hunter outpitched Al Downing. The Yanks won the 2nd game, 2-1. Joe Verbanic outpitched Chuck Dobson. Mickey Mantle went 1-for-3 with a walk in the 1st game, and drew a walk as a pinch-hitter in the 2nd game.

May 3, 1975: The Last All-English Team to Win the FA Cup

May 3, 1975: The FA Cup Final is held at the old Wembley Stadium in London. It's an all-London affair, with West Ham United from the East End taking on West London's Fulham. West Ham had previously won the Cup in 1964. This was Fulham's 1st appearance in any cup final, and it remains their only appearance in the FA Cup Final.

Alan Taylor scores both goals for the Irons, within 4 minutes of each other after the hour. Ironically, West Ham's biggest hero, Bobby Moore, was playing for Fulham, reaching the Final in his 1st season away from his local club. Also ironically, Moore, the only man ever to captain England to a World Cup win, was not Fulham's captain in this game: Alan Mullery was.

Because of their collective age, the Cottagers were nicknamed Dad's Army, after a sitcom then running on British television. It was time for a new generation of Hammer heroes, including Taylor, Captain Billy Bonds, Trevor Brooking, and Frank Lampard -- father of the later English soccer star of the same name.

No one knew it at the time, but this West Ham squad was the last all-English team to win the FA Cup. In fact, Ireland-born Jim Conway of Fulham is the only player on either side not from England.

*

May 3, 1975, like all FA Cup Final days, was a Saturday. Actress Christina Hendricks and journalist Willie Geist were born.

These Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Milwaukee Brewers, 4-3 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Rudy May started, but Sparky Lyle blew it in the 8th inning. Hank Aaron, running out the string with the Brewers, went 0-for-1, and Robin Yount went 2-for-2, and each had 3 walks.

* The New York Mets lost to the Montreal Expos, 3-0 at Shea Stadium. Woodie Fryman allowed only 1 hit, a double to John Stearns in the 5th inning, to outpitch Hank Webb. A rookie catcher for the Expos went 1-for-3 with a walk. He would have better days at Shea. His name was Gary Carter.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Detroit Tigers, 12-2 at Fenway Park in Boston. Rick Wise went the distance for the win. Carl Yastrzemski went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The Philadelphia Phillies swept a doubleheader from the Pittsburgh Pirates, 6-2 and 4-3 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Tom Underwood outpitched Jim Rooker in the opener. Willie Stargell did not play. In the nightcap, Dave Cash singled Terry Harmon home with the winning run in the bottom of the 11th inning. Stargell went 1-for-4. Over the 2 games, Mike Schmidt went 2-for-9 with a home run and 2 RBIs.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Baltimore Orioles, 6-1 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Frank Robinson, in his 1st season as MLB's 1st black manager, put himself into the game as a pinch-hitter, and had an RBI single against his former team. Another former Oriole, Boog Powell -- who said the Indians' all-red uniforms made him "look like the world's largest Bloody Mary" -- went 0-for-2, but drew 2 walks, 1 with the bases loaded to give him an RBI. Brooks Robinson went 0-for-2 with a walk.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Atlanta Braves, 6-1 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. George Foster hit a home run. Pete Rose went 1-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. Johnny Bench also went 1-for-4.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Oakland Athletics, 4-3 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Bill Melton doubled Carlos May home in the bottom of the 10th inning. Melton had homered earlier. Reggie Jackson went 2-for-5 with 2 RBIs.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the Kansas City Royals, 14-5 at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. Bert Blyleven went the distance for the win, while Paul Splittorff couldn't get out of the 3rd inning. Rod Carew went 2-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. Steve Brye went 3-for-5 with 4 RBIs. Eric Soderholm went 2-for-4 with a home run, a walk and 3 RBIs. Twins legend Harmon Killebrew, running out the string with the Royals, did not play.

* The Chicago Cubs beat their arch-rivals, the St. Louis Cardinals, 7-3 at Busch Memorial Stadium. Jerry Morales went 3-for-4 with a walk and an RBI.For the Cards, Ted Sizemore went 4-for-5, but had no RBIs; and Lou Brock had an RBI single as a pinch-hitter.

* The California Angels beat the Texas Rangers, 4-2 at Arlington Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas. Nolan Ryan only pitched 6 innings, but struck out 9, and got the win.

* And the San Diego Padres beat their arch-rivals, the Los Angeles Dodgers, 3-1 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. In the top of the 15th inning, a Fred Kendall ground ball should have become a double play, but Lee Lacy made an error, allowing Steve Huntz and Johnny Grubb to score. For the Padres, Willie McCovey went 1-for-4, while Dave Winfield went 0-for-6, but had an RBI on a sacrifice fly.

American-style football was out of season. There was 1 game in the NBA Playoffs: The Boston Celtics beat the Washington Bullets, 101-90 at the Boston Garden. The Bullets would win the series, but got swept in the Finals by the Golden State Warriors.

There was 1 game in the American Basketball Association's Playoffs: The Indiana Pacers beat the Denver Nuggets, 104-96 at the Denver Auditorium Arena. This was a Game 7, so the Pacers advanced to the ABA Finals, where they lost to the Kentucky Colonels.

There was 1 game in the Stanley Cup Playoffs: The Montreal Canadiens beat the Buffalo Sabres, 8-2 at the Montreal Forum. But the Sabres won the next 2 games and won the series, before losing the Stanley Cup Finals to the Philadelphia Flyers.

And there was 1 game in the World Hockey Association Playoffs: The Houston Aeros beat the Quebec Nordiques, 6-2 at the Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston.