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Essex Retro Football Show Preview

Spurs legend Steve Perryman is the special guest at the next Essex Retro Football Show in Chelmsford.

Taking place at Essex County Cricket Club’s Ambassador Cruise Line Ground on Saturday June 28^th, Tottenham’s record appearance maker will be part of a jam-packed event celebrating football nostalgia.

Perryman will be in attendance from around 11am-1pm, signing Futera trading cards for upcoming collections as well as meeting show attendees. The north London club’s long-serving captain will also have three books available on the day, including ‘Sir Bill’ – dedicated to the life of double-winning manager Bill Nicholson.  

Joining the usual throng of dealers, selling everything from football shirts to programmes and stickers to Subbuteo, will be the 30^th Anniversary Corinthian Convention.

The mini-figures, that first shot to fame in the mid-‘90s showcasing England’s Euro 96 hopefuls, will be showcased on a further 25 tables, requiring the addition of the Scrutton Bland Premier Suite to be in use alongside the Pavilion.

Show organiser Greg Lansdowne is excited about the growth of a Show that only began in 2023:

“After starting out in Loughton, the Essex Retro Football Show has gone from strength to strength since moving base to Chelmsford last year. Having a guest of Steve Perryman’s calibre is a huge boost to the event and I am sure he will be well-received by supporters of all clubs for everything he has achieved in the game.”  

The Essex Retro Football Show runs from 10.30am-2pm, entry is free and a fully-licensed bar will be in operation in the Pavilion (the bar will remain open until 4pm).     

Further details are available on greglansdowne.co.uk and updates will appear on the Essex Retro Football Show and 30^th Anniversary Corinthian Convention Facebook pages as well as @panini_book on X.

I shall be there searching for those last few elusive programmes for the social history project being conducted by O-M Matihalti in Finland – one programme per season, per club from 1967 to 2016. Yes, 50 years of programmes all being collated for posterity.

www.theshirt2010.co.uk/uncategorized/o-m-matihalti

If you think you can help O-M, whether you are at Chelmsford or not, please do not hesitate to shout.

Yes, it’s that time of the year again. Games are still going on with some ridiculous Club World Cup and, more importantly, the Women are in Switzerland for the Euros 2025. Is it the end of 2024/2025 season or are we now 25/26? I think my first pre-season friendly is June 28th at Bracknell (well, Sandhurst) and all around us clubs are announcing new friendlies and, of course, launching their new shirts. So, it’s all a bit confusing.

Let’s have a look at some of the early announcements. Obviously, pride of place goes to Gillingham (above) who have three new outfield shirts for their promotion push. I do not hate them as much as I did last week and by the time we are earning three points in them each week, I am sure they will be OK. Brentford has announced a new kit supplier, JOMA, but there is no sign yet of the shirt. It’s JOMA. I expect something good.

I think Bradford Park Avenue’s new offer is quite smart and likewise I am pretty keen on this Wealdstone shirt. Why it’s taken at an underground station is open to discussion but I think the colours work. The photo in the stands shows off the white, green, yellow and black quite well, I think. Good luck to the Yorkshire club. Likewise Charlton Athletic’s traditional red (below) seems very smart.

Still waiting for a FC Deportivo Galicia shirt. Watch this space.

Margate’s is as always bold and a big shout out to Slade’s Noddy Holder who kindly sponsors a local kids’ team. Good work, Noddy. “It’s Fooooooooooooooooooootball.”

I will be adding more in the next few days so please feel free to forward me photos of the best (and the worst) for 25/26. Thanks.

Clare with the Women’s Euro Trophy

Now that the season is over, I thought I would catch up with Clare at She Can Kick it to see what is happening in the women’s game.

She kindly sent some random thoughts. Much appreciated, Clare.

Women’s football is still a small community so you can virtually “bump” into other members a lot online. This week I found myself part of a (minor) conversation with former England captain Carol Thomas (who very generously told me her story for She Can Kick It) and former Swedish captain Anette Börjesson. Both women captained their countries in the first UEFA-backed Euros final in 1984.

I did slightly embarrass myself with Anette though. I’d shared a post, by Carol, on LinkedIn, about the 1984 final – the very first women’s tournament UEFA put on. Anette commented on it that she was there, but didn’t elaborate.

I thought I recognised her name but ignored my instincts and asked her what it was like to be a spectator at the final? She replied: “well I was watching… and playing as the captain of the Swedish team”.

Cue a red-faced me!

But what a time to be alive: I was speaking to both captains of the very first UEFA-backed Women’s Euros. Captains who played a final in 1984, as I was falling in love with football as a 8/9-year-old. Captains whose posters would have been on my walls if that was a thing back then. Mind blown!

NOW

Arsenal won the Champions League again, beating the mighty Barcelona who didn’t look like they could believe what was happening! What a joy to watch the Gunners perform so well and show all their heart and soul to beat the favourites. Did you watch?

Women’s football has now turned its collective attention to this summer’s Euros and on Thursday Sarina Weigman announced her 23-woman squad.

Goalkeepers: Hannah Hampton, Khiara Keating, Anna Moorhouse

Defenders: Lucy Bronze, Jess Carter, Niamh Charles, Alex Greenwood, Maya Le Tissier, Esme Morgan, Leah Williamson, Lotte Wubben-Moy

Midfielders: Grace Clinton, Jess Park, Georgia Stanway, Ella Toone, Keira Walsh

Forwards: Michelle Agyemang, Aggie Beever-Jones, Lauren Hemp, Lauren James, Chloe Kelly, Beth Mead, Alessia Russo

13 of these players lifted the trophy 3 years ago, but 7 will be appearing at their first major tournament. I’m sure other teams will think this makes the Lionesses weaker but at least one of these players is going to become a huge star this summer.

There are some big names missing: Mary Earps shocked everyone by retiring from international duty; Fran Kirby retired when she knew she wouldn’t be on the plane to Switzerland; and most concerning, Millie Bright withdrew herself from selection because of mental and physical exhaustion. A brave decision but one I wish she hadn’t had to make. Maybe it will lead to better conversations about looking after players.

Then

Let’s have a quick look back to Euro 2022 when women’s football changed forever. Here are some of the mind-blowing stats:

The final attracted 80,203 spectators to Wembley. This was a record for a Euros final, higher than any other Euros final – men’s or women’s – in history

It was the tournament with the most goals scored by a single team: England scored 22 goals. UEFA have handily bundled them into 1 video for us: https://www.uefa.com/womenseuro/history/video/027a-167063e914fe-76d9f11cb4a4-1000–all-of-england-s-women-s-euro-2022-goals/

England smashed a load of other goalscoring records too: most goals in a group stage (14), most goals in a first half (6 against Norway), biggest win (8-0 against Norway), fewest goals conceded in a group stage (0 – equals Germany’s previous record)

Sarina Weigman was the first coach to win her first 11 Women’s Euros games having guided Netherlands and then England to the trophy. Unbeaten as a coach in the Euros – bonkers!

I don’t think many of these records will be broken in Switzerland (but let’s hope Sarina adds a few more games to her record). The stadiums are mostly small to moderately-sized so crowd numbers won’t improve and England are in a terrifyingly tricky group so don’t expect anything close to an 8-0 win! But do start getting excited. Wouldn’t it be cool if everyone had flags in the window for the women like they do for men’s major tournaments? I’ll be keeping a close eye on Wales too but them being in the same group as England, quite frankly, sucks.

Thanks for being here. Keep footballing.

Clare x

We spoke later and Clare commented on Arsenal’s decision to play ALL their women’s games at The Emirates in 2025/26. She said,” “Fantastic news that Arsenal are continuing to support their women’s team but probably no real surprise since they’ve always been ahead of the curve when it comes to club equality. The Emirates is a great stadium, the women can fill it, and they deserve to play in front of as many people as possible.”

Many of you will know that I have been working with my Finnish friend, O-M Matihalti on his famous social media project that I featured here In a nutshell, he is collecting ONE programme PER club PER season from 1967/68 to 2016/2017. This is being preserved as a huge project charting the social -economic, political and, of course, sporting life in England and Wales over those fifty years.

I thought it best if I added an update. We are making great progress although some clubs are much more difficult than others so far.

We are complete for ARSENAL, ASTON VILLA, BRENTFORD, CHELSEA, CHARLTON, CREWE, CRYSTAL PALACE, DARLINGTON, FULHAM, GILLINGHAM, IPSWICH, LIVERPOOL, MANCHESTER UNITED, NEWCASTLE UNITED, NORTHAMPTON TOWN, PORT VALE, QPR, READING, SHEFFIELD UTD/WED, SOUTHAMPTON, STOCKPORT COUNTY, STOKE, SUNDERLAND, TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR, WALSALL, WATFORD, WEST BROMWICH ALBION, WEST HAM UNITED, WIMBLEDON, WOLVES, YORK (Edit as at 18 Feb 2026…and now many others!)

O-M comments, “Many moons ago I had this brilliant brainstorm of mine of collecting one programme per club per season. Little did I know what a project this would be. Without Steve, whom I got acquainted to back in March of 2024, getting anywhere near finishing the task would have been practically impossible. There’s been plenty of other people helping Steve. One or two of them to mention are Brian of Brian’s Football Memorabilia, Stephen Morris (thanks, we shall meet one day) and the Supporters’ Trusts at Crewe Alexandra and Accrington Stanley.

I am eternally thankful for all the help fellow collectors have been giving on the way to finalize the task. Getting back to Steve… he has swapped hundreds of programmes helping me to fill the gaps and scanned an enormous number of programme covers for me. One of the biggest challenges I have found is the high cost of postage to Finland. I can arrange postage to/from here via Steve. I have many thousands of programmes from Finland that l can exchange for my wants. Obviously you are most welcome to visit beautiful Finland …. probably best in Summer!!! Things to be done… are to meet Steve in person (I know he’s deaf but we will get by), to visit a West London programme fair (Hi, Mark, Barry, Lee and Les – Steve has told me a lot about you all so I’d love to visit) and anyone else in the UK who wants to say “hi.” Meanwhile, I will be pleased to help any collector who is interested in Finnish programmes.”

Thanks, O-M. I am really excited to get back to Finland. I was there in 1975 ….. I guess that makes me “old” or “urgammal,” as they say in certain parts of Finland.

If anybody can fill the gaps on the other clubs please do make contact with me. The hope initially was that people would be keen to take part in the project and would be happy to donate or maybe run with 1×1 exchanges. Sadly, it has not been possible to complete so now I am offering 5×1 with either/any of Premier League, big match, Gillingham, named clubs (most but not all of the 92), non-league, Finnish or Swedish. Can you help?

Those who I would like to applaud publicly are:

Lee Hermitage of NWM Football

Brian at Brian’s Football Memorabilia

Mark Barnes the co-owner of Welling Collectables and of the West London Programme Fairs

… but the biggest, biggest (drum roll, PLEASE) shout out is for Stephen Morris. He has really engaged in the project and diligently searched for dozens of teams for O-M. He has huge stocks of most UK teams and I have always had hugely positive trades with him (both privately and for the project.) Everybody else I have spoken to speaks highly of him too.

He has a terrific offer on currently with a Super Summer 50p Sale. He has tens of thousands of club programmes from the 70s to the 20s all at 50p. As my way of thanking him, if you take 50 programmes at 50p, I will double that with 50 random programmes from my own collection. Seem fair?

Any thoughts, questions, suggestions, kind wishes or, well, anything just get in touch with O-M or me.

Many thanks indeed, to everyone.

***********************************************************************************************************

It’s actually probably a good place to note that this project will be my last major involvement with programmes. Why? Well, after 60+ years, health and old age are forcing me to sell up. So, if you are interested in 20,000+ programmes at a bargain price, check here

My friends at Stanchion mailed me today with news of a very interesting-looking event in London this month. It deals with the very heart of the Shirt2010 ethos – “What does the football shirt mean?”
Hopefully Joey D’ Urso can add clarity.

Join Stanchion Books for the launch of Joey D’Urso’s new book More Than A Shirt: How Football Shirts Explain Global Politics, Money and Power. Joey will be in conversation with Patrick Maguire.

Twenty-two football shirts that explain the world, geopolitics and the biggest stories of our time.

Football is the world’s most popular sport, and the shirts worn by teams and their supporters are its greatest means of cultural expression. Every year clubs launch new kits with increasingly extravagant marketing campaigns and convoluted explanations of how their designs reflect their history and local community. But football shirts are much more than just a symbol of which club we support. A seemingly innocuous combination of colours, sponsor logos and materials can all reflect the social values, financial struggles and political ideologies of the day, as geopolitical issues increasingly seep into every aspect of the game.

Investigative journalist Joey D’Urso has travelled across the globe, combining on-the-ground reporting with unparalleled analysis to collate a list of the twenty-two football shirts that best explain the modern world.  More Than A Shirt  takes fans on a journey from Birmingham to Belgrade and onto Medellin and Mumbai, outlining how we can see the war in Ukraine in the shirt of Schalke in Germany or China’s foreign policy in West Bromwich Albion’s; how the shirts of state-owned clubs are used for sportswashing; and why the French national kit embodies worldwide migration patterns.

More details here: Stanchion Books

Caoimhín Kelleher – if we are going to be correct.

Things are going very well at Brentford at the moment and today they announced the signing of Caoimhín Kelleher from Liverpool. The West London club had the best season of their history in 2024/2025 and this week have been buoyed with Thomas Frank re-signing until 2029 and this marquee signing. He has played 22 games for the Republic of Ireland and been the understudy at Liverpool since pre-covid. A huge statement addition to the squad. Welcome.

The Official Brentford Press Release says,

“Brentford has signed goalkeeper Caoimhín Kelleher from Liverpool on a permanent deal.

The Republic of Ireland international has penned a five-year contract; the club has an option to extend his stay by a further 12 months.

Kelleher, a two-time Premier League winner, departs Arne Slot’s side having made 67 appearances across all competitions, keeping 24 clean sheets.

Director of football Phil Giles said: “I am very pleased to welcome Caoimhín to Brentford. We have scouted him in the past and were aware that he had a year to go on his contract with Liverpool this summer.

“When Mark Flekken had the opportunity to move to Bayer Leverkusen, we immediately thought about Caoimhín as his replacement.

“As well as being a very good goalkeeper, I’ve rarely met a player for whom everybody has such positive words to say about his personality and character. I’m therefore confident he’ll be an excellent addition to the squad.”

First-team goalkeeper coach Manu Sotelo added: “Caoimhín is a young keeper full of talent who has already proven how he can perform in the Premier league as well as Europe.

“He is calm and obsessed with improving. His best quality is his agility and he is a clever goalkeeper, with positioning and awareness being key elements of his game.

“With us, I’m confident he will achieve the next level in terms of performance and show the potential he has.

“I’m looking forward to working with him.”

“Caoimhín is a young keeper full of talent who has already proven how he can perform in the Premier league as well as Europe”

First-team goalkeeper coach Manu Sotelo

Born in Cork, Kelleher joined Liverpool in the summer of 2015 from Ringmahon Rangers, progressing through the youth ranks before establishing himself as a member of the first-team squad.

The now 26-year-old got his first taste of silverware in 2019 when he was named amongst the substitutes for the 2-0 Champions League final win against Tottenham Hotspur.

Another trophy followed that August in the form of the UEFA Super Cup before he made his competitive debut for the club in a 2-0 Carabao Cup victory against Milton Keynes Dons a month later.

He played twice more in that competition and also featured once in the FA Cup in 2019/20, a season that saw him pick up his first Premier League winners’ medal.

Kelleher made his Champions League bow in December 2020 in a 1-0 win against Ajax before, five days later, he marked his first league appearance with another clean sheet as the Reds defeated Wolves 4-0.

In the process, Kelleher became the youngest Liverpool goalkeeper to keep a clean sheet on their Premier League debut.

Another club record the Irishman can boast is winning four penalty shoot-outs, more than any other keeper for the Reds.

The most memorable of those came in 2022, when he scored the decisive spot-kick in the Carabao Cup final against Chelsea.”

##Let’s not forget him that following an injury to Alisson in October 2024, Kelleher played several matches including a home tie with Real Madrid in the Champions League. He saved a penalty in the match from Kylian Mbappé to maintain Liverpool’s lead in the 2–0 home win

Well, this is interesting news. Spain’s JOMA become Brentford’s official kit partner. All of us at FC Deportivo Galicia at Heathrow are delighted to see the iconic JOMA from Toledo partner with our neighbours just down the road at the GTech Stadium. We hope it will be a great relationship for both parties. ¡Bienvenidos, JOMA! … ¡#TodosSomosJoma!

BRENTFORD ANNOUNCE JOMA AS NEW OFFICIAL KIT PARTNER

Joma Sport S.A. will supply bespoke, elite performance wear for Brentford men’s first team, B team, academy, women’s teams, coaching staff and Brentford FC Community Sports Trust as part of a multi-year deal beginning in July 2025.

Brentford FC has partnered with Spanish sports clothing and shoe brand Joma Sport, S.A., as their new official kit partner.

Joma will create bespoke, elite performance wear for Brentford men’s first team, B team, academy and women’s teams, as well as coaching staff and Brentford FC Community Sports Trust as part of a multi-year deal beginning in July 2025.

The new kits in 2025 will include a celebratory home shirt that commemorates 100 years of the club wearing red and white stripes.

Brentford’s decision to partner with Joma is rooted in shared values. Like the Bees, Joma has strong connections with its local community, having been founded in 1965 as a family business in Toledo, Spain, where they remain headquartered. Brentford and Joma also share a focus on innovation and elite performance, as well as a commitment to sustainability. All of our new range will be made from recycled polyester and other ecological fabrics to reduce environmental impact.

Joma have a 60-year history in sportswear, manufacturing kits and equipment for football clubs worldwide and elite performance apparel in other sports. Joma started as a family business and has continued to expand internationally. The brand prides itself on detail, from design to its relationship with athletes and consumers.

With 60 years of history, distribution in over 140 countries, a presence in the big five leagues, 10 Olympic committees, 18 athletics federations, and more than 300 professional teams worldwide, Joma has a strong presence in top international competitions, including the World Cup. Spanish teams such as Villarreal CF, Getafe CF, and CD Leganés currently wear Joma kits. Outside Spain, the brand stands out in the “Big Five” – the five major European leagues – with clubs like Hellas Verona FC, Torino FC, and Atalanta BC in Italy, RSC Anderlecht in Belgium, TSG Hoffenheim in Germany, and Le Havre in France. For the 2025/26 season, Brentford FC will proudly stand out as the only club in the Premier League to wear kit supplied by Joma.

Additionally, Joma sponsors national teams such as Romania, Cuba, and Honduras, as well as prominent international clubs like Atlante FC and Venados CF in Mexico, HNK Rijeka in Croatia, Paços Ferreira in Portugal, and Carlos Barbosa in Brazil, among others.

Fran Jones, Brentford FC’s commercial director, said: “We are delighted to welcome Joma as our new official kit partner. From our very first conversation, there was a clear alignment between us. Joma share Brentford’s commitment to community, innovation and performance. Their bespoke approach to design was also a key part of their proposal, enabling us to have kits, training wear and leisure wear that reflect who we are as a club, our rich history and heritage and our exciting future. We’re looking forward to presenting these ranges to our fans in July.”

Ben Ryan, Brentford’s performance director at Brentford FC, added: “Our collaboration with Joma is about more than just kit supply – it’s about elevating performance. Joma’s proven track record in elite sportswear, and their willingness to work closely with our performance teams, gives us confidence that our players and staff will benefit from apparel tailored to meet the demands of Premier League football.”

Marina López, managing director of Joma Sport S.A. said: “At Joma we continue working to offer the best product with constant technological evolution and a daily commitment to providing the best to those who give their all in their sport.

“That’s why we are delighted to collaborate with Brentford Football Club and are excited to support them in their journey in the Premier League. This collaboration represents a fundamental step for Joma Sport in the English football scene, and we are honoured to be the club’s official kit partner. A commitment to excellence and an ambition to offer the best are fundamental characteristics of Joma’s philosophy, which we share with Brentford.”

Real Club Deportivo La Coruña

Yes, the season is now in its death throes and I can sadly confirm that everyone’s favourite Spanish-ish team, FC Deportivo Galicia, did not win promotion. We go again. Our gallant youths will honour the pitches of most of Southern England in the Combined Counties Step 6 again this season. In Step 5 The CC management still has not decided who finishes 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th or 5th in scenes shared with Brian Rix they have told the five clubs involved that they will make a final, final, final (probably) decision on Wednesday. Fantastic that means two teams are on standby to TRY get flights to Jersey for their team, management and fans in two days time on a bank holiday weekend. Good luck with that, guys! The best I can find is £540 return! (Mmmm,often £100ish if booked weeks in advance) That’s even praying that there are 20+ seats available ….. and I expect that price to have gone up by tomorrow!) So, as it stands Cobham and Fleet are waiting by the tel-e-phone (cue Blondie lyrics) not knowing which of four clubs they will be playing …..and hoping players can get time off work on the Friday!

Moving on to happier stories. Real Club Deportivo La Coruña, our “little brother club” in Galicia, North West Spain has off-the-field news. Sadly the days of Galicia Super Depor are over and this season they will finish mid table in La Liga 2 (second level of Spanish football, so one below Real Madrid, Valencia, Getafe etc.) However… “Deportivo La Coruña and Kappa have released a limited-edition shirt in two versions, marking 25 years since the club’s historic 1999/2000 La Liga title.

The commemorative pieces honour the achievement and legacy of a team that brought home the club’s first and only league championship.

The short-sleeved version features gold fabric with subtle vertical striping, a navy polo-style collar, navy trim on the cuffs, and navy sponsor logos. The long-sleeved version has a cleaner look with no sponsor and features navy cuffs. Both editions carry a special inside neck print marking the 25th anniversary of the title and highlighting Deportivo’s league triumph on 19 May 2000, when they defeated Espanyol 2–0 at the Riazor. Only nine clubs in Spain have ever lifted the title.

The shirts are individually numbered, with 2,000 units available for the short-sleeved version and 500 for the long-sleeved version. A collector’s badge with the Kappa and Deportivo crests is included near the hem. Each piece is part of the Kappa Kombat range and produced as a tribute to the golden era of Deportivo, with legendary names such as Djalminha, Mauro Silva, Fran, Donato, and Makaay central to the team’s legacy.”

Full details here There are some interesting new shirt announcements on the FootballShirtCulture.com site but as most involve Nike, Kappa, Adidas extorting huge amounts of money from people prepared to pay £1000+ per season for their favourite teams’ kit, I will let you “enjoy” the site.

Talking of money, Deportivo Galicia at Heathrow is looking for sponsors for next season. You, don’t need to be ABANCA, from Hollywood or even Colliers Wood, no, £25 gets you onboard! Please contact “el presi” , Leo Decabo , at the club and he will be delighted to welcome you to the fold.

An interesting story and it ties up a couple of my interests.

I would like to introduce you to Charlie. I don’t know him personally but his grandfather and I are on a couple of football forums. Charlie has committed to attending all the 15 play off matches in the Championship, League 1 and League 2. Tragically Gillingham do not feature but he is currently visiting
Bristol City, Coventry, Sheffield United and his beloved Sunderland. In league 2 and 3 it is AFC Wimbledon, Charlton, Chesterfield, Notts County, Orient, Stockport, Walsall and Wycombe. The winners of the two legged semi-finals continue to Wembley where promotion awaits. To make things even more exciting for Charlie, Sunderland are guaranteed a place after two tremendous semi-finals against Coventry. They will play Sheffield United who bulldozed Bristol City 6-0 on aggregate.

That’s interesting enough but to take it to the next level, Charlie is raising money for a cancer appeal and has already collected over £1400 for Cancer Research UK. If you fell able to donate, please do so.

I have donated and have also offered to send 10 random programmes to anybody who donates £5 and 20 to anybody who donates £10. Just PM me here and I will pop them in the post to you. Any specific teams? Please ask and I will try to oblige. Here is the official fundraise page from Cancer Research UK.

Well, the season may be over today for most clubs in the Championship, League 1 and 2 but your football fix can be satisfied with a couple of high profile events in the next few weeks. Whilst others are dreaming about the beach, my thoughts move to Morden in Sarfffff London (Sarfffff Lunnun, innit?) and Colchester. Today it is my pleasure to spotlight Barry Dixey’s “South London Football Programme & Memorabilia Fair.” The event is tomorrow 4th May at Tooting & Mitcham United’s excellent facilities in Morden.

I caught up with Barry earlier and it’s clear that he’s very excited about this event. He has some well-respected regulars and a couple of new stall holders.

“SOUTH LONDON PROGRAMME & MEMORABILIA FAIR at Tooting & Mitcham FC. – This Sunday – 4th May. Doors open at 10.30.

12 stall holders + the Club are putting on an exhibition.

I have 11 confirmed dealers coming from all over the Country, who are as follows:

Tony Cavanagh. Based in Manchester and has a variety of Football Memorabilia. His stall always looks great and has a lot of interesting World Cup items.

Barry Dixey (Orpington). Organiser of this fair and the West London fair at Emperors Gate. His stall covers all manner of football items including programmes, tickets, autographs, posters and cards.

Elmo Books (Rochester). Emil & Karen specialise in books and are very knowledgeable on the subject. You will often find a hidden gem on their stall as well as a sought after book.

Lee Hermitage (NWM Football). NWM stands for North West Middlesex and that is where Lee is based. If he’s not at a match he is stalling out at a fair or market. He specialises in Football magazines and programmes but like most dealers he has other football memorabilia for sale.

Martin Lane. Martin specialises in Chelsea programmes but has a variety of items on his stall.

Richie Letts. Based in Sheffield and the new owner of Sportingold Sports Auction. Richie has a fantastic display of old and rare programmes.

Paul Manuel. Specialises in Football Shirts but covers other sports such as Cricket & Boxing and will be accompanied on his stall by his friends Mono & Stan.

Ray Margetson. Lots of interesting items of surplus stock from his own collection. “Among my collection will be original pennants from the 80s, Subbuteo boxed sets from the 70s, football shirts, non league programmes, sticker albums, tickets, pin badges, and a large collection of books – rare and classics.”

(Shall I ask if he has any tickets for the “Arsenal Have Blown it Yet Again Party” in Tottenham on Bank Holiday? Always a great event.)

Terry O’Neill. Based in Daventry and runs TSA auction house when he is not stalling out with his Football memorabilia that mainly covers football programmes.

Mike Pudney. A first time dealer so it will be interesting to see what he is selling on his stall.

Tommy Roe. The laird of Lytham St. Annes who is a larger-than-life character who has many interesting Football tales to tell. Has some great memorabilia on his stall and a story to go with each item!

Andy Trasler. Runs Cobblers Collectables outside Northampton Town FC ground. Andy is knowledgeable on football programmes and loves the non-league variety.”

Thanks, Barry. I look forward to seeing you tomorrow.

I know Lee Hermitage is there with his usual massive stock of magazines, programmes and general memorabilia and that Andy Trasler is coming all the way from Northampton. Both Lee and Andy have come up trumps this week. No, sorry, I can’t use that word. It makes me see orange! Seriously, they have both helped O-M complete his social media project so are due a coffee, beer, the comfy chair or my wife’s recipe for ratatouille. Maybe Gerald the Gorilla will turn up too with an “original” programme for the 1923 FA Cup Final. To make me believe it is original he will insist that the “Reprinted by Millennium Print Services, Neasden 2002” is simply for HMRC purposes! No, the Not The Nine O’Clock News cast will presumably be trucking elsewhere but anybody else who is anybody will be there.

To be slightly more serious, it’s a BIG shout to all who have helped. It is always invidious to name names but Lee, Andy and Stephen Morris have all stepped up when the gaps looked big. Thanks to everyone. If you want to know more about this incredible social project do give O-M a shout. It has been a privilege to try to help.

As I type this I am watching the victory celebrations at Home Park. I would like to congratulate Burnley on achieving 100 points and hope they survive in the rarefied airs of the Premier League. It would be rude not to mention Leeds United. So, I have. No doubt they will be towards the top of the Championship in May 2027.

Gillingham’s season comes to an end at Port Vale in a few minutes. “Maybe, next year.” Yes, maybe.