Latest news with #PeterBeardsley
The Guardian
23-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Welcome to Kasi Flava, where falling asleep on the ball is encouraged
Only real ones will remember Masters Football, the over-35s tournament for former pros hoping for one final moment in the limelight on Sky Sports in the early 2000s. Peter Beardsley's performances in 2002 for Newcastle United were legendary, Jörg Albertz helped himself to a few more thunderb@stards for Rangers and how can we forget the vastly underrated Owen Coyle squealing 'Coyle!' every time he took a shot. As they disappeared from our screens, charity fundraisers came to the fore. In Soccer Aid, Woody Harrelson being mobbed by Zinedine Zidane and Jens Lehmann after burying the winning penalty past England keeper Jamie Theakston for the Rest of the World XI was memorable, as was a certain tackle by future UK prime minister Boris Johnson on former Manchester City cult hero Maurizio Gaudino. The point is, from half-time fan competitions (Tripgate, we're looking at you) to Kerlon's seal dribbling, there is a lot of room for football-based silliness and ingenuity in a game saturated with monotonous tactics and refereeing segments. And with that in mind, Football Daily's attention turns to Kasi Flava, a maverick offshoot of the game originating in South Africa, where entertainment and showboating are as important as scoring. Teams as varied as Covid-19 FC and former champions and fan favourites Skepe Nketole FC – nicknamed The Chopper Boys owing to their propensity to arrive at matches in helicopters – compete in tournaments for prizes that range from R250,000 (£10,500) cash to brandy or even sheep. Results, then, are important, but this is closer to an improvised, performative dance than a traditional match, an outpouring of joy played and watched by working-class people in the townships. 'Kasi football is an art form, embedded in real-life human drama,' explains Tarminder Kaur, a senior lecturer at the University of Johannesburg. Bet you didn't bank on reading actual quotes from an academic in Football Daily, but here we are. Surely the best clip of the recent DStv eKasi Champs of Champs tournament, broadcast live on national television, is the winner scored by Mudagasi against Jukulyn in a 2-1 victory. Some of the moves are downright disrespectful: at one point Mudagasi's players pretend to fall asleep on the ball, before their No 9 whips a genuinely brilliant Quaresma-esque trivela pass to a teammate, who neatly laces an expert finish into the far corner to send the crowd wild. Yes, please. Kasi football is not for everyone. And if you think René Higuita should have just caught the ball at Wembley in 1995 and Yannick Bolasie should have done less sweeping and more shooting, then this is probably not for you. But for this unserious, trivial tea-timely email, it's the perfect antidote to yet another Tuesday. Join Scott Murray from 8pm BST for MBM coverage of England 2-2 Italy (aet; 3-2 on pens) in the Euro 2025 semi-finals. As soon as I knew there was a chance to join Manchester United, I had to take the opportunity to sign for the club of my dreams; the team whose shirt I wore growing up' – Robbie Keane Bryan Mbeumo is psyched for the new season after joining the club he supported as a boy. Manchester United's propensity to offload football talent (yesterday's Football Daily) didn't start today or yesterday. The following is an XI composed of players released during the 2014-15 season alone: Johnstone S, Keane M, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Anderson, Fletcher, Kagawa, Zaha, Hernández, Welbeck. Many would back that side of cast-offs against anything else put out by United since then' – Brian Broderick. Re: where the north starts (Football Daily letters passim). I would like to suggest that based on the membership of the National League North, then it starts at Bedford, because they were promoted into the league this season, even though Bedford is just 57 miles from the middle of London. Two seasons ago, Bishop's Stortford were members of the league, and they're based at the end of Stansted airport's runway. They used to love midweek games in the north-east. To extend the discussion, Merthyr Tydfil are playing in National League North this season, so where does north Wales start?' – Ray Simpson. Regarding Jon Millard's submission that 'the north starts at Sheffield, indisputably, as did football, also undisputedly. I'd love to say this is the one thing Noble will agree with me on, but he'd probably email in and say it's bloody Woodall, or something' (yesterday's letters). He's clearly right on football, indisputably. The north is more complex. When I was young, we used to just say that Chesterfield was the dividing line but then we thought that Bob Holness played the sax on Baker Street (false) and that he was the first person to play James Bond (false, he was the second) so what did we know? The north is very south Sheffield and just above Chesterfield so you're looking more at a broad line of Killamarsh, Eckington, Lowedges, Totley. And, yes, that line includes Woodall' – Noble Francis. I see that, according to Jason Wilcox, new signing Bryan Mbeumo is 'the perfect fit for Manchester United and the culture that we are developing'. That's rather harsh criticism, isn't it, on the lad's first day?' – Phil Taverner. If you have any, please send letters to Today's winner of our prizeless letter o' the day is … Phil Taverner. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we run them, can be viewed here. This is an extract from our daily football email … Football Daily. To get the full version, just visit this page and follow the instructions.
The Guardian
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Welcome to Kasi Flava, where falling asleep on the ball is encouraged
Only real ones will remember Masters Football, the over-35s tournament for former pros hoping for one final moment in the limelight on Sky Sports in the early 2000s. Peter Beardsley's performances in 2002 for Newcastle United were legendary, Jörg Albertz helped himself to a few more thunderb@stards for Rangers and how can we forget the vastly underrated Owen Coyle squealing 'Coyle!' every time he took a shot. As they disappeared from our screens, charity fundraisers came to the fore. In Soccer Aid, Woody Harrelson being mobbed by Zinedine Zidane and Jens Lehmann after burying the winning penalty past England keeper Jamie Theakston for the Rest of the World XI was memorable, as was a certain tackle by future UK prime minister Boris Johnson on former Manchester City cult hero Maurizio Gaudino. The point is, from half-time fan competitions (Tripgate, we're looking at you) to Kerlon's seal dribbling, there is a lot of room for football-based silliness and ingenuity in a game saturated with monotonous tactics and refereeing segments. And with that in mind, Football Daily's attention turns to Kasi Flava, a maverick offshoot of the game originating in South Africa, where entertainment and showboating are as important as scoring. Teams as varied as Covid-19 FC and former champions and fan favourites Skepe Nketole FC – nicknamed The Chopper Boys owing to their propensity to arrive at matches in helicopters – compete in tournaments for prizes that range from R250,000 (£10,500) cash to brandy or even sheep. Results, then, are important, but this is closer to an improvised, performative dance than a traditional match, an outpouring of joy played and watched by working-class people in the townships. 'Kasi football is an art form, embedded in real-life human drama,' explains Tarminder Kaur, a senior lecturer at the University of Johannesburg. Bet you didn't bank on reading actual quotes from an academic in Football Daily, but here we are. Surely the best clip of the recent DStv eKasi Champs of Champs tournament, broadcast live on national television, is the winner scored by Mudagasi against Jukulyn in a 2-1 victory. Some of the moves are downright disrespectful: at one point Mudagasi's players pretend to fall asleep on the ball, before their No 9 whips a genuinely brilliant Quaresma-esque trivela pass to a teammate, who neatly laces an expert finish into the far corner to send the crowd wild. Yes, please. Kasi football is not for everyone. And if you think René Higuita should have just caught the ball at Wembley in 1995 and Yannick Bolasie should have done less sweeping and more shooting, then this is probably not for you. But for this unserious, trivial tea-timely email, it's the perfect antidote to yet another Tuesday. Join Scott Murray from 8pm BST for MBM coverage of England 2-2 Italy (aet; 3-2 on pens) in the Euro 2025 semi-finals. As soon as I knew there was a chance to join Manchester United, I had to take the opportunity to sign for the club of my dreams; the team whose shirt I wore growing up' – Robbie Keane Bryan Mbeumo is psyched for the new season after joining the club he supported as a boy. Manchester United's propensity to offload football talent (yesterday's Football Daily) didn't start today or yesterday. The following is an XI composed of players released during the 2014-15 season alone: Johnstone S, Keane M, Ferdinand, Vidic, Evra, Anderson, Fletcher, Kagawa, Zaha, Hernández, Welbeck. Many would back that side of cast-offs against anything else put out by United since then' – Brian Broderick. Re: where the north starts (Football Daily letters passim). I would like to suggest that based on the membership of the National League North, then it starts at Bedford, because they were promoted into the league this season, even though Bedford is just 57 miles from the middle of London. Two seasons ago, Bishop's Stortford were members of the league, and they're based at the end of Stansted airport's runway. They used to love midweek games in the north-east. To extend the discussion, Merthyr Tydfil are playing in National League North this season, so where does north Wales start?' – Ray Simpson. Regarding Jon Millard's submission that 'the north starts at Sheffield, indisputably, as did football, also undisputedly. I'd love to say this is the one thing Noble will agree with me on, but he'd probably email in and say it's bloody Woodall, or something' (yesterday's letters). He's clearly right on football, indisputably. The north is more complex. When I was young, we used to just say that Chesterfield was the dividing line but then we thought that Bob Holness played the sax on Baker Street (false) and that he was the first person to play James Bond (false, he was the second) so what did we know? The north is very south Sheffield and just above Chesterfield so you're looking more at a broad line of Killamarsh, Eckington, Lowedges, Totley. And, yes, that line includes Woodall' – Noble Francis. I see that, according to Jason Wilcox, new signing Bryan Mbeumo is 'the perfect fit for Manchester United and the culture that we are developing'. That's rather harsh criticism, isn't it, on the lad's first day?' – Phil Taverner. If you have any, please send letters to Today's winner of our prizeless letter o' the day is … Phil Taverner. Terms and conditions for our competitions, when we run them, can be viewed here. Here's David Squires on … keepers grabbing the headlines at the Euros. Marc Cucurella has lifted the lid on why Donald Trump ended up staying on for the trophy lift after crashing Chelsea's Copa Gianni final party – and you'll be shocked to hear that fear played a big part. 'We had been told that, as a rule, Donald Trump would come to present us with the trophy and that we couldn't lift it until he left,' the hirsute defender explained to Spanish journalist Gerard Romero. 'And of course, we were all there waiting for him to leave, but the guy didn't want to leave, and on top of that, we looked at him and he said: 'Get him up, I'll stay here, and so on.' And I wondered who would say anything to him, you know … I was scared sh!tless!' The former Liverpool and Wales defender Joey Jones has died at the age of 70. Jones played 100 times in a glittering spell at Liverpool, winning two European Cups, a Uefa Cup and a league title in three years. Paul Gascoigne is back home and 'doing well' after being admitted to hospital over the weekend. Premier League clubs could follow the Lionesses in stopping taking the knee next season, amid growing division among anti-racism campaigners over the merits of the symbolic gesture. ITV is poised to surge ahead of the BBC in the Euros ratings battle, with an audience of more than eight million people expected to tune in for England's semi-final against Italy. Leeds have signed Germany midfielder Anton Stach from Hoffenheim in a deal worth £17m. 'I would say I am an aggressive player. I am good in duels,' he growled. 'I heard some things also about the fans, or about the tradition of Leeds, like 'dirty Leeds' I think. So I'm looking forward to it and to seeing the fans.' And if you have around £300,000 to spare, the shirt worn by Peter Shilton in the 'Hand of God' World Cup quarter-final against Argentina in 1986 is to be auctioned. It sounds like a lovely bit of kit. 'As you can imagine, coming off his back in 100-degree heat … it has a wee bit of a whiff to it,' parped David Convery, of Graham Budd Auctions. 'There are a couple of pulls and snags due to the material but it's in pretty fantastic condition.' Here's the latest edition of our sister email on the players at Copa América Feminina, who have hit out at Conmebol over poor conditions at the tournament, where some warm-ups have had to take place in cramped rooms with rivals. England arrive in the beating heart of Euro 2025 with the Italian job still to do, reports Nick Ames. Here's Jonathan Liew on the rise of Alessia Russo. Tom Garry on six ways the Lionesses can improve for the semi-final. And Sophie Downey profiles Italy's great hope, Cristiana Girelli. Matt Hughes explains why Manchester City's record £1bn deal with Puma holds value beyond the bottom line. Much has changed in football over the years but the drama and dynamics of penalties remain, writes Jonathan Wilson who, we like to imagine, takes a cracking no-look spot-kick. And Big Website now has a sport Bluesky account. Get following. 4 March 1974: Terry Venables has a cup of tea while working through a fair bit of paperwork when he was juggling being a businessman with playing for Crystal Palace.
BBC News
13-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Your most skilful Newcastle players
Newcastle legend Steve Howey named Peter Beardsley, Paul Gascoigne, David Ginola, Chris Waddle and Hatem Ben Arfa as the club's most skilful players are some players that you think deserved to be on the list: Richard: While I agree totally with Beardo as number one I don't think you can put Ginola and Ben Arfa in and leave out fellow Frenchman Laurent Robert. I mean, Robert didn't score goals…. he scored GOALS!! Every one was a worldy! He had absolutely no concept of defending, of course, but what a player going forward!John: Allan Saint-Maximin should be on that list, a sorely under-appreciated talent who made Grealish look sluggish and left defenders completely bamboozled. Thanks PSR for making us sell him Nobby Jimmy Smith. Frustrating at times but a brilliant dribbler on his day. I saw him nutmeg Bobby Moore twice in succession. He did it because he could but I don't think he should have done, not good to do that to a well respected and great Tony Green, career cut short by injury but the best that I've seen at He didn't miss anyone out. How great it is to have three Geordies in the top five! They'd get into our team today.
BBC News
12-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Howey selects Beardsley as Newcastle's most skilful player
Throughout Thursday, we have been revealing who Newcastle United legend Steve Howey believes are the club's most skilful players of all the winner is... Peter Beardsley. Beardsley had two spells with Newcastle, operating as a midfielder and a forward. An exceptional England international, his brilliant footwork and close control set him apar."I've gone with Peter Beardsley," Howey told BBC Radio Newcastle. "Even when he hit a bad pass, it was our fault because we should have been there. "There are those good players who are two or three moves ahead before the ball comes to them. Peter was four or five moves ahead!"He had that trick, no matter how many times he ran at defenders, he could just lift his leg and weave his way through. "I've been so lucky to be on the same pitch, basically, as all of these lads, but with Peter I used to stand back and look and feel blessed to be on the same pitch as him. "He used to do it in training. While I was astonished by how good he was, it didn't surprise me."So here is the definitive list of the top five most skilful players in Newcastle's history, according to Howey. Peter Beardsley Paul GascoigneDavid GinolaChris WaddleHatem Ben Arfa Do you agree with Howey's selection? Put them in order over hereWho has he missed out? Tell us hereAnd listen to the full discussion on BBC Sounds
BBC News
09-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
38 years ago today...
On this day in 1987, Liverpool legend John Barnes completed a £900,000 move to Anfield from Jamaica-born winger was signed by former manager Kenny Daglish and arrived on Merseyside alongside fellow attackers John Aldridge and Peter went on to clock up 406 appearances during his 10-year stint at Liverpool, scoring 107 was twice named England's Footballer of the Year, after winning the title in 1987-88 and 1989-90. His silverware on Merseyside also included the 1989 FA Cup and the League Cup in 1995.
