Showing 1 - 10 of 22
A sporting year of cheers, jeers and tears that will be remembered
Sports, Nobby Piles, Published on 27/12/2025
» It's that time of the year to acknowledge the men and women who have graced the sports pages over the past 12 months. It has been a year of mixed emotions. Here are a few of those who have contributed to the memorable moments of 2025.
'3 B's' give hope to the smaller clubs
Sports, Nobby Piles, Published on 14/12/2024
» Back in the 1960s as a teenager I would regularly visit Elm Park to watch my home town team Reading in the old Third Division. Among the visiting sides were Brighton, Bournemouth and Brentford. Just like Reading, these clubs looked destined to stay in the lower divisions forever although by some miracle Reading made it to the Premier League in 2006 for an all-too-brief stay.
Local derbies add a touch of spice to the action in Premier League
Sports, Nobby Piles, Published on 21/09/2024
» With seven London clubs in the Premier League it is hardly surprising that local derbies come thick and fast in England's capital city. Last week was the "big one", the North London clash in which Arsenal secured an important 1-0 away win at Tottenham Hotspur.
Kane joins the 100 club in golden style
Sports, Nobby Piles, Published on 14/09/2024
» Harry Kane celebrated his 100th appearance for England in true style by scoring both goals in the 2-0 defeat of Finland at Wembley on Tuesday night. Fittingly he was wearing golden boots after receiving a golden cap for reaching the century mark
No great revelations in opening weekend
Sports, Nobby Piles, Published on 24/08/2024
» Although it was not the most spectacular opening week in the Premier League with no major upsets there were still enough talking points to whet the appetite for this weekend's action. It was also a low-scoring week with just 21 goals coming from the 10 matches, but at least there wasn't a 0-0.
It's a stable season for managers
Sports, Nobby Piles, Published on 08/06/2024
» One of the more intriguing aspects of the recently concluded Premier League action is that there were only three managerial changes during the entire season. This was in sharp contrast to the previous season which proved to be a merry-go-round with only nine of the top-flight teams keeping the manager they had started with.
Some defeats hurt more than all
Sports, Nobby Piles, Published on 11/03/2023
» It is never pleasant watching the football team you happen to support get stuffed by the opposition.
Good times for Bees, Seagulls, Cottagers
Sports, Nobby Piles, Published on 21/01/2023
» Few pundits would have predicted that at this stage of the Premier League season Fulham, Brighton and Brentford would be above the likes of Liverpool and Chelsea.
Managers brace for a season of two halves with prayer on their lips
Sports, Nobby Piles, Published on 06/08/2022
» The English Premier League kicked off last night, facing a brand new challenge -- the minor matter of having to stop in mid-season for six weeks to accommodate the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Confidence boost for Man U in Bangkok
Sports, Nobby Piles, Published on 16/07/2022
» The Thai media had dubbed it the "Red War" but it turned out to be more of a skirmish at Rajamangala National Stadium on Tuesday night in which the Red Devils restored some much-needed pride after their recent underwhelming season.