“If you’d have told me ten years ago I’d be emigrating to Australia, I wouldn’t have believed you!’ Max Rushden tells me. Yet here we are. Englishman Rushden, afresh from completing his 14 day hotel quarantine, made his Stan Sport Champions League debut alongside Australian football legends Mark Bosnich and Craig Foster as their coverage kicked off on Wednesday morning. The 42 year old is best known to UK audiences for his work on Soccer AM, TalkSport and fronting the award winning Guardian Fo

Tino and the Safecracker – The story of how Darlington almost signed Faustino Asprilla ‘Supporting Darlo under George Reynolds was always a circus, at least at this stage it was fun more than anything else,’ says Darlington fan David Hart, recalling the time his club seemed to be on the verge of one of the biggest transfer coups of all time. It’s late August 2002, and Darlington are about to take on Carlisle United early into the Nationwide Third Division season (League Two in today’s money).

ROBBIE FOWLER was effusive in his praise for his Brisbane Roar side as they produced a dominant display to defeat Western Sydney Wanderers 3-1 and move into fifth place on the A-League ladder. However, he was scathing of referee Chris Beath and the match officials, questioning whether an agenda existed against his team. Beath showed Fowler a yellow card midway through the second half – the former Liverpool striker's second in as many games – and the Roar boss was left fuming in his post-match

Socceroos fans will no doubt be keeping one eye on the results of Brighton and Hove Albion this year, with Aaron Mooy joining goalkeeper Mat Ryan on the English south coast. Brighton are now managed by Graham Potter, with the 44-year-old taking up his first Premier League managerial position this season. Potter’s rise to the top has come via spells working in further education and the Swedish fourth division. Not really your traditional path, but one that has still culminated in him reaching t

Most teenagers spend their time alone in their bedrooms and/or fighting with their parents. Not so Jude Bellingham, who has been setting the EFL Championship alight with Birmingham City this season. At just 16 years and 38 days, Bellingham became the Blue’s youngest ever player when he started an EFL Cup match against Portsmouth, beating the previous record that had been held by Trevor Francis since 1970. Bellingham then became the club’s youngest scorer a few weeks later, coming off the bench

Since his one-month contract with English Championship side Charlton expired at the end of January, Ledley had been training with League Two outfit Newport County, a short drive from his Cardiff home. County had hoped to strike a deal to sign the 33-year-old, with Ledley telling BBC Sport Wales at the beginning of February: "There are options, but for me I’d like to be closer to home. "I’ve been away - only for a month - and family comes first for me now." It would appear though that the form

Fowler had returned to his Merseyside family home in March after the A-League shut down, and had been coy about plans to go back to Brisbane, saying he felt he wasn’t ‘a priority’ for the club as they were yet to organise a flight for him. Technical Director Tony Grant has also ended his deal with the club, with vice chairman Chris Fong confirming Roar's next permanent manager would be Australian. With the A-League restarting on July 16, the clock had been ticking on his return; particularly g

The 14th of May 2000 is a date etched in the minds of Bradford City supporters. The unfashionable West Yorkshire side, playing in its debut Premier League season, had defied the odds, and began that day knowing a win at home would be enough to ensure their survival in the top flight. Their task was going to be an enormously difficult one though, as the opposition was to be Liverpool, who themselves needed a result to qualify for the Champions League. The outcome? A bullet header in the 12th m

Sunshine Coast Wanderers Head Coach Paul Arnison is under no illusions to the challenges ahead, as the Wanderers prepare for their maiden National Premier Leagues (NPL) Queensland Men’s campaign. The Englishman guided his side to promotion last year from the Football Queensland Premier League (FQPL), finishing top of the ladder, but insists that retaining their NPL status remains the ultimate objective this season. “Last season it was an unbelievable achievement to get promoted, but this year