FTK - THE MOVIE

Thisisit! Thelong-awaitedreleaseof theFlick To Kick moviewhichhasbeen2years inthemaking. This90-minutefilmisall

about agrudgegamebetweenDFDS andBlackbernMunichandhasaMatchof theDay feel to itwithstudio guests
AlanGardenshears, IanWrong& AlanHands-on. TheAlbnel crew leaveno stoneunturnedintheir pre-matchbuild-upwhich
featureshooligansontherampagefor addedrealismplusanexcitableGermanmanager stormingout of thepressconference
shoutingUntermenschen as theneedlereachesfever-pitch. TheinterviewershavenameslikeDick ItchingandIsaac Hunt and
therearemany other hilarious00scalecharacters, all paintedupfromofficial Subbuteo stadiumfiguresintheworst possibletaste
- includingoneof ME!!
Althoughcontainingthesort of offbeat humour that istheAlbnel hallmark (andfully warrantingaCert. 18+) thisisalso a
seriousattempt to produceaSubbuteo-basedmovieof whichthecentrepieceisthegameitselfandwhat athriller! Thereare
someexcellent visual effectsincludingmulti-angleslow-mosthat wouldnot beout of placeonSky Sports, whilethevoice-overs
aretheauthentic onesof theMOTD punditsabovesomevery painstakingeditinginvolvedhereImsure! Asfor theGrimsby
accentsof themaincommentators, thesearemoreof achallengeto theuntrainedear but our two intrepidplayersmorethanmake
upfor thiswiththeir valiant effortsto control anunpredictableC121ball duringatypically tight Englandv Germany encounter.
Intheendits ______________________ who win ___ - ___ (pleaseinsert detailsafter buyingDVD andwatchingfilm)
andasthecrowdfilters out of thePyewipeStadiumthegeneral moodisoneof anticipationfor FTK2- TheRematch!
Youcanorder your copy of thisDVD by contactingAlbnel HQ at peter.letch@ntlworld.com andthepriceisjust 5.50+P&P.
Below (left to right): TheDysonStand, hometo themassedranksof DFDS supporters.
A view fromtheaway section, behindthegoal
Insidetheplayers tunnel asthetwo teamsprepareto enter thearena
Anoverheadshot just beforekick-off withthebandonthepitchandtheteamslinedupfor theanthems.
Front Cover Back Cover
ALBNEL PRODUCTIONS PROUDLY PRESENTS ...
After a6-month interval, hereat last is issue#16. Ivebeen exceedingly busy of lateand this shows no sign of
abating so in all probability therewill only beonemorenewsletter this year which Ill schedulefor September.
Also, thearticles seemto havedried up somewhat (admittedly, I havent been pestering peopleas I normally do)
so Imwondering how many moreissues wecan squeezeout. Theresenough material in reservefor half of the
next onebut thereafter theyll appear as and when I can fill up the12 pages.
Id liketo thank all thosewho havechipped in so far, not only for #16 but ever sinceAugust 2002 and, personally,
Imamazed wevebeen ableto find such interesting, varied and original articles for so long! Then again, Subbuteo
has arich 60-year history so I supposetherewill always besomething to writeabout. However, theremust bemany
morepotential contributors who havebeen meaning to put something together for awhilebut just never got round
to it yet, so maybenow would beagood timeto givethissomethought. Theres no rush - thedeadlineis not until
August 31st.
Imdelighted to announcethemuch-anticipated releaseof theFTK-TheMovie DVD in this issueand theres
news of this on theback page. Havingreceived apreview copy Ivedonemy best to sumup what its all about, but
wheredo you begin with something likethis?? I think its safeto say that this is auniqueproduction, thelikeof
which Subbuteo has never seen before, and on that basis aloneits well worth theinvestment! It seems ages since
Neil Offiler of Albnel Productions gaveus aforetasteof this in issue#13 but hereat last is thefinished product
which can beordered immediately. Pleasespread theword and, even if you dont want acopy for yourself, suggest
it to afellow enthusiast who may beinterested. No, I do not get apercentageof theproceeds (beforeyou ask!)
Thereis also brief mention of afair on Page2 for readers who can still remember these. Will thelull havecreated a
resurgenceof interest or arecollectors events now finished? Imprepared to giveit another go and can guarantee
therewill bemasses of Subbuteo items for tradeor saleon theday, but will thebuyers respond?
Anyway, timeto wind up becauseI said that this issuewould beout in March and its already the26th as I write.
Ivestill got to go to thestationers for somecoloured paper - Imconsidering lilac for this one- and amassured
that anew toner cartridgewill arrivetomorrow for my fast-running-out printer. If all of thesethings go to plan I
should beableto hit thePrint button with minutes to sparebut its gonnabeclose! Do you think Rupert Murdoch
ever has similar crises???
CONTENTS
(1) My Editorialmercifully short this time:-) (2) Members Photos (viewer discretion advised!)
(3) Subbuteo Literaturesince1996 (4) Playing with 11 different players (5) Match report - Subby wins at last!
(6 and 7) TheSubbuteo World Cup 1982 ( 8) Theargument for Hasbro (9) A messagefroman irateMum
(9, contd.) Thegames Subbuteo never made (10) Teaching Rugby tactics with Subbuteo figures & equipment
(11) Heavyweight teamvariations inthe1190 Range (12) Flick To KickTheMovie.
NEWSLETTER
Issue 16, Spring 2007
Herethey are, Subbuteos Dirty Dozen whosemugshots
comeviavarious sources fromquiteclear downloadable
files to theold grainy photos I was sent through thepost.
I suspect Andrews picturewas agood 10 years old even
before theenhancements (including superimposed hair:-)
but no questions askedall photos arepublished here
as received.
So, now you know who youretalking to when on theforum
or at thenext fair, and if I get any morepics Ill publish
themin issue17. Comealong therest of you, dont beshy!
J EZ SUBBY TREV DEAN J ULIAN ANDREW
ADRIAN VIKASH ROSS ALEX
J ASON
ANDY S.
RICHARD
The Subbuteo Forum Rogues Gallery

Who would do a deal with this shifty bunch?
There are no finalised details as I write but a Summer event in Leicester is a possibility,
J une 16th being the most likely date (subject to confirmation). Imcurrently trying to gauge
enthusiasmand if there is enough interest to justify putting on a show then well go ahead!
Please check out the Subbuteo Forumat www.subbuteoforum.co.uk for regular updates.
Anyone for Leicester?
**********************
3 stripes on arms and blue sock tops
4 with reversed socks (white with red top).
5 with the claret double band sock tops and white neck/sleeve trim (blue socks)
5 sky blue socks, white tops and white collars
9 white socks red top
9 white socks
13 no shirt trim
14 all black socks
19 blue socks, red tops
20 with black shorts
23 red stripes, black collars, black shorts with red & yellow bands and red socks with black & yellow tops
24 with black shorts
27 white shirts w/claret vertical stripe in middle
28 yellow socks
28 yellow socks plus trimmed up Admiral version
31 red collars
31 blue socks white top
31 one sock hoop
34 all black socks
37 no arm trim
40 with the red/blue stripes
40 claret stripes over sky blue
41 All red, no white trims
42 also white collars
46 all yellow strip
47 orange top variant
48 with socks reversed
49 all gold
50 with yellow socks
52 white sock tops
53 also with white shorts
53 Red blue stripes
53 with shorts trim
54 all green
55 darker purple version
59 with diagonal band
61 claret banded
61 red/yellow striped version
67 blue socks
69 with black socks
72 in black
74 Villa blue shorts variant
76 all black socks
79 claret band or turnover?
79 white shorts
79 white shirts & socks with claret top
99 available in 2 shades
106 available in 2 shades
111 trim variation-though this IS illustrated in two diff 70s cats
121 black arms & sock roll
123 white shirts mauve shorts
134 with or without yellow sock tops
139 All red version (D)
142 Plain shirt green shorts
142 green shorts banded shirt (D)
143 All blue
143 with or without the blue sock trim (illustrated)
148 Red socks/white socksred shorts (D)
154 black collar and sleeve stripes.
168 two distinctive shades
169 two distinctive shades
164 Blue socks
169 V neck/round neck
170 V on shirt/ all burgundy
173 white shorts/blue shorts (both illustrated)
182 black shorts & black sock tops
184 with or without shorts stripe
184 with reverse socks
185 the yellow version as opposed to amber
188 black socks
The 1 - 190 HW team strip variations
Almost 1/3rd of this rangehavean alternative
strip and so if you add theseto your collection the
number of teams to find increases to almost 260!!
But aretherestill moreto come? If anyoneknows
of any other variations pleasecontact meat.
jrc270@hotmail.co.uk
Most of theinformation shown herewas supplied
by members of theSubbuteo Forumand I have
just copied it all as is onto oneeasy-to-consult
list with thereferences in numerical order.
Someof theseteams aredocumented in catalogues
(eg. Ref. 59) but others arejust theproduct of
eyewitness accounts, many of which arestill
unconfirmed. I amnot questioning thegood faith
of collectors who report thembut it is quiteeasy
to bedeceived by arepainted team, for example.
Julian Cross
Hello, I amtheorganiser of ayouth rugby teamand for years I used Lego bricks to demonstrate
tactics to theplayers. This was reasonably successful and I stuck thenames of each player onto
thesideof thebluebricks which represented our teamcolours whiletheopponents werethe
other 15 different-coloured bricks.
Then recently somebody gavemean old Subbuteo Rugby set and I immediately found it had a
greater impact on thoselistening becausethelifelikefigures help themto relatemoreto the
situations being described. Basically, theyrenow seeing arugby match instead of somerandom
objects and although Imnot claiming its improved results (yet!) its certainly mademy talks a
lot easier as well as appearing moreprofessional.
J ust having apitch with thelines all marked out to scaleis avast improvement on theprevious
green tablecloth, whilethescrumdeviceis arevelation and is far superior to thecut-out oval card
I placed on thepitch before. Thesamegoes for theposts (formerly an H chalked on thecloth)
and theball which was asmall whitebeadround of course!
Imwondering how I ever managed without theseSubbuteo items but its very difficult to find
miniaturerugby stuff likethis dueto ageneral lack of games, unlikesoccer which has loads!
Onesmall detail I had to changeweretheteamcolours becausetheset given to mehad teams
with hoops and 3 players wereslightly broken, but this was soon remedied by oneof our club
members purchasing 2 new teams for meon eBay, including astrip with blueshirts likeours.
I amtold that this rugby gameis not too easy to play and can well believeit, although nobody at
theclub has tried thefull version. Thescrummer onceattracted theattention of our gambling
fraternity, until they realised how easy it is to maketheball exit fromany given hole, so they
then turned their talents to conversions - again with amodest stakeinvolved! - using thelarger
kicker. A coupleof lads haveimprovised something with thekicking wedge, seeing who can find
thefarthest touch, but theplaying figures themselves arestrictly off-limits during thesesessions.
This is becauseImkeen to keep my full complement of players intact for as long as possible.
Thephoto below shows thepitch set out all ready for ademo. Maybeamoreinteresting one
would havebeen to show thematerial I used before, but this has been disposed of for good now
that weveentered theSubbuteo era.
James Sheppard
Teaching Rugby Tactics Using Subbuteo
The Subbuteo Club Newsletter CD
Now updatedto containall 16issuesfor just 6.00(worldwide) includingP&P.
Ideal for newcomerswishingto catchuponall thenewssince2002aswell asmore
longstandingmembersof theSC whodlikeapermanent referenceontheir computer
and in full colour! WiththisCD youcanprint out asmany back issuesas youlike!
To readthisdisc youwill needto havePublisher, Publisher Viewer or AdobeAcrobat
installedonyour computer. Pleasecontact trev@europe.com to placeyour order
or just sendaPayPal payment entitledNewsletter CD direct to thisaddress.
Subbuteo Literature since 1996
Fifty YearsOF FlickingFootball, writtenin1996by
RichardPayne, wasthedefinitiveSubbuteo reference
book of thepre-Internet era. Itsstill anexcellent readto
thisday with11chaptersspreadover 80pagesand
includingmany photosandillustrationsinblack & white.
Thepricewas 7.25.
Flick MeSideways wastheNewsletter of theSubbuteo
Collectors Clubwhichranfrom1997until 2002.
Appearingquarterly, itwas inA5format for issues1- 9
andtheninA4upto issue18. It hadeither 16or 20
pageswithcolouredcoversandB/W contents. Theprice
was5.00for 4issuesat theoutset, risingto 8.50andit
providedsomeinterestingarticlesduringthisperiod.
TheSubbuteo ClubNewsletter (2002, ongoing) isthe
successor to FMS but withtwiceas many clubmembers
theresawider pool of contributors, dealingwithboth
thecollectingand playingsidesof thehobby. A5format
with12pages fromissue#2, all B/W but withcoloured
coversfromissue11. Initially 5.00for 4issues, now
soldindividually at 2.99.
Thisisthemagazinefor theSubbuteoworld company,
usedprimarily to advertisetheir products. An8-issuerun
throughout 2004and2005with16x A5colour pages.
Subscriptionsto thisclub (?) cost 15.00UK and
17.00overseasandincluded4issues.
Flick To Kick by Daniel Tatarsky istheonly
hardback inthisseries. Its similar to FYOFF in
somerespectsasit retracesthehistory of thegame
withlotsof stats andhighquality colour photos.
It contains112pagesandtheRRP is7.99.
GrowingUpWithSubbuteo (2006) waswrittenby
Mark Adolphwho recountshislifeas thesonof the
gamesinventor. Interestinginpartsbut littleinthe
way of new informationfor Subbuteo connoisseurs.
A 224-pagepaperback withB/W photos, RRP 7.99
Paul Streather
A look at reading material since the final Subbuteo brochure
Photosnot to scale. Thanksto thosewho suppliedmagsandgeneral info to assist withtheabove.
Hereis my Manchester United DreamTeam line-up whereeach player is adifferent typeof Subbuteo figure.
If you think about it, no two players play thesameway in areal gameso I decided to givethemall an individual
identity in Subbuteo too. I choseMan. Utd. becauseit is thegeneric red and whites you get in all thesets and Im
not surethereareany other teams you could build that haveall theseplayers available. You could probably come
very closethough with theblue/whiteand white/black strips.
Apart fromthe10 players shown thereare2 moretypes of moulded ones, another flat 60s player in cardboard as
opposed to celluloid and another Hasbro 2k6 player with aCobrabasewhich is wider and flatter than the
Sidewinder on thephoto. This gives measquad of 14 outfield players to choosefromand for thekeeper I always
pick astandard LW which aretall andvertical and as good as any Subbuteo keepers ever produced.
So, who plays where?
Defence My 2 central defenders areusually HWs (60s and 70s types) but sometimes I put a2k6 Cobra player at
centrehalf becausethesearetall, imposing figures with larger bases and ideally suited to themiddleof thedefence.
The2 fullbacks areacoupleof moulded players and hereIvegonefor theWalker and Scarecrow versions but I
tend to rotatethese.
Midfield My 2 central midfielders arethetwo I liketo play with most (having begun playing in themid-80s when
it was all Zs and LWs) so I put theminto thethick of theaction. Out wideI placemy dribblers (ieplayers who
can spin well) so theobvious choices hereareaHasbro 2k6 Sidewinder and a60s flat player on each wing.
Shown is thecelluloid flat version but theres no real differencebetween theseand cardboard.
Attack The2players up front area90s Hasbro and an interesting Chunky rugby player that was producedfor a
short timeon aHW base. Theselook likeyour typical target man and so automatically get thenumber 9 shirt while
theHasbros aregreat sliders and perfect for chipping theball with their low-profilebasesnatural goal-scorers!
Below is what my starting line-up usually looks like
By
Alex Isman
A Team Of Individuals A LONG-SUFFERING MUM SPEAKS OUT!
My son Robin is abig Subbuteo fan and likes to collect teams of littlemen that heplays with all over
thecarpet. This usually means awholeroomis out of bounds whileheplays with his matebecause
Subbuteo isnt themost discreet gameand requires alot of space. I can copewith his computer
becauseit only involves awirefromtheTV set but when theSubbuteo comes out (whenever I want to
hoover!) its acoupleof hours I cant usetheroom. I darent go in thereduring play becausethereare
so many small parts Imguaranteed to tread on aplayer. Theseseemto go hurtling off thepitch at
regular intervals and when this happens everyonehas to freeze for fear of stepping on them!
Still, it keeps himquiet.or does it? Ivelost count of thenumber of squabbles hes had with his
playing partner who lives over theroad and then they dont speak for afew days beforemaking up
with another gameof Subbuteo! Theother lads Mumis delighted it keeps her son out of thehouse
whereshed no doubt havethesameproblems as meso it seems weretheselected Subbuteo venue.
I havewatched afew of their games but cant seeanything in it myself. I must bemissing something
becauseI dont mind watching football on TV but this just looks adisorderly mess.
Robin is 13 and Imhoping his Subbuteo phasewill soon beover but it shows no sign of abating.
Oneof thebetter spin offs fromit all is hes developed apassion for painting littleplayers into
different colours which keeps himamused for several hours at atime. Heis doing well in art and
design at school, which could bearesult of his Subbuteo painting at homeor maybeviceversa.
I may look back on his Subbuteo obsession as something productiveoneday but at theminuteits a
real pain as far as Imconcerned.
Jennifer Deacon
SUBBUTEOS MISSED OPPORTUNITIES

Rugby Union Teams Too much of aLeaguebias, theremust havebeen loads of fans in places
likeLeicester and Bath during the70s whod havesnapped theseup if theyd had thechance.
Cricket one-day teams Imaginehow popular theone-day outfits would havebeen, both
English Leagueand International, instead of just 4 all-whiteteams distinguishableonly by their caps
Golf Thefan-basewould havebeen thereas its played across theworld (unlikerugby & cricket
for example). Probably avery hard gameto simulatebut they madeAngling so anythings possible!!!
Basketball A nicelittle5-a-sidegamethat would not havetroubled theideas men too much.
To shoot you could havetaken pops at thebasket with somekind of amodified ball-raising chute.
Swimming Look at your HW diving keepers and tell methey wouldnt look likeswimmers if
turned facedown in thewater. See? Thats thefront crawl sorted (or is it thebutterfly?) and were
halfway therealready!
American Football This would havebeen adoddlefor theinventors of TableSoccer & Rugby
and would havecaptured thelucrativeUS market, not to mention its increasing popularity over here.
Thesearejust someideas I scribbled on theback of an envelopein about half an hour oneevening.
Arethereany others I could havementioned?
Gary Aitken
IN DEFENCE OF HASBRO
By Michael Booth
Hasbro havehad aroughridefromtheexcessively nostalgic for whomSubbuteo will never beas good as it was in the70s,
so this articleis about thegood things theyvedone. Therehavebeen plenty!
Thething I likemost is their willingnessto innovate, and what was moreinnovativethan their first teams on 1-piece bases?
Theseweredesigned for extrastability sothat players werenot falling over all thetime, and whilst maintaining someof
their ability to spin they werealso great for sliding! Also worthy of mention is thefact that teamsfor thefirst timein almost
50years had asubstitute player! Its incredibleto think that this hadnever been considered before, but Hasbro camealong
and put right oneof Subbuteos basic flaws straightaway. Another vast improvement werethesturdy goals which do not
break likejust about every onebefore! Add to this thegreater lifeexpectancy of teams (by virtueof their spareplayer) and
you can seethat Hasbro aremaking things to last!
Their latest batchof Photoreal teams arealso very durableand far superior to theprevious flat teams of the50s and 60s
which either curled up or just broke! Sure, materials haveimproved but theseareon quality plastic by any standard and will
last ages unless their owner is very careless. But of coursetheir main virtueis thefact they represent real players.amaster
stroke! You could benegativeand say theres no boxes for them, theteams go out of datewhen players leave,
not enough basecolours and so on, or you can look at thepositives and talk about thetwo different kinds of bases
(another first!) or the15-man squads with names onshirts, thus adding ateam selection element to games. I also happen to
likethepitch thatcamewith theDreamStadiumset and thenovel ideaof keeping it flat with tension rods.
Speaking of boxed sets, Hasbro havevaried theformat of theseand kept thingsinteresting, whereas 70s editions
(for example) all looked thesame! France98is oneof thebest Subbuteo box styles Iveever seen, not to mention the
uniqueand ingenious throwers and kickers that it containedfar moreeffectivethan any previous versions! Also, theidea
of producing aset dedicated to just onespecific team(Man. Utd.) was onceagainoriginal and Id haveliked to haveseen a
couplemoreof theseat least. Maybeif I haveacriticismof Hasbro its that they didnt always go far enough with their
good ideas. Wecould alsohavedonewith somemorePhotoreal teamsfor example, but they know themarket and if there
was amega-profit to bemadetheyd havepursued theseideas.
Therehavebeen several one-off items produced by Hasbro, probably far too many to list on this page, and somehavebeen
easy to ridiculesuch asthefinger puppets (theexampleeveryonequotes) but theyvehad somesuccessestoo. It all depends
what youreafterT-shirts, mugs, key rings or car stickers etc... but you cant accuseHasbro of not having adiverse
product lineand even as I writetheres an Easter egg on sale:-) Somepeoplepour scorn on items likethis becausethey see
themselves as seriouscollectors and feel that Hasbro should reflect their own serious-mindedness. Lighten up chaps!!!
Subbuteo history is full of frivolous products and peoplearepaying afortunefor themtoday!
Therewasacar sticker madein thelate60s in fact which was less than thrilling, theonly differenceis that if acollector
finds agenuine60s car sticker hegoes wow, its apriceless artefact! whereas a2005version will just attractaloud yawn
despiteits superior quality. Its often said that Hasbroaimalot of their stuff at young kids but fine- so did Waddingtons,
who produced acolouring set at onestage! Hasbro dont actually deny they target ayoung marketbecausethey areTOY
manufacturers after all and it makes no commercial sensefor themto appeal to just afew hundred 30/40-somethings on the
Internet who arestill into their product. I really do think peoplesuffer fromexcessivenostalgiaandselectively forget all the
cr*p produced under theSubbuteo namebeforeHasbro camealong. What about that that awful double-sided tapethat was
supposedto keeptheball in thenet? This was sold duringtheGolden Age of the60s and early 70s but if Hasbro did
something likethis today theyd bemocked without mercy!!
I think oneof themajor problems Hasbro faceis that theInternet iswith us and everyoneseems to begetting in on theact of
producing TableSoccer figures. Often, they aremadefor aspecialist market (eg. players on theFISTF circuit) and everyone
complains when Hasbro produceanew basethat is not perfectly balanced and slides superbly to rival these. They then get
flak for not having consulted afew self-important experts onSubbuteo forums when all thesepeoplewould do is argue
amongst themselves anyway!!! So Hasbro haveleft thehigh-tech nicheto thosewho want to cater for ahandful of elitists
with highdisposableincomes and areconcentrating instead on themass marketat prices most peoplecan afford.
I find this wholly commendable!
But maybeweshould bemost grateful to themfor allowing others to usetheir brand nameso freely. WehaveSubbuteo
forums and websites all over theWeb and eventhis mag is called theSubbuteo Newsletter. Hasbro arenot overprotective
of their copyright when Imsurethey could be. All things considered wehavealot to thank themfor, notleast their efforts
at keeping thegamein theHigh Street shops and rescuing aproduct which was all but deadin themid-90s. If Waddingtons,
theUKs biggest toy company at thetime, couldnot makeaprofit fromSubbuteo then whocould? Areweunwittingly
being anti-American here, believing thatSubbuteowas born in theUK and should remain hereforever? Thats finefroma
sentimental viewpoint but lets begrateful that, thanks to Hasbro, Subbuteo is at least aliveand - in my opinion - kicking!!
Jez Tomlin
My best Subbuteo game ever
Itsnot oftenthat youfindyourself perfectly matchedwithyour opponent andhaveagamethat couldhavegoneeither way but thatsjust what
happenedtheother day withmeandmy cousin. Hes15andafair bit younger thanmebut abetter player overall duetoplayingmoreregularly.
Readersmay remember mewritingabout hisRefereecollectionacoupleof issuesagobut thisonedealswiththeplayingsideof things. Imsure
hecouldwriteadozenarticlesabout hisfinest victoriesover mebut thisisoneisabout oneof my rare(andthereforememorable) triumphs.
I must say I felt ongreat formfromthewordgoandit wasoneof thosedayswhenall my littlespinsandslideswhichusually missby
millimetreswerecomingoff andeverythingwasgoingright. Sometimesyouhavethat feel andother timesitsjust not therebut after winning
thefirst coupleof minor exchangesmy confidencewassoaring. SoI wasonformandfeelingconfident but I knew that to get anythingout of the
gameIdstill needabit of luck towinfor only thesecondtimein30+attempts(plus6draws). It wasnogoodbeingunrealistic andexpectingto
matchhisskill level soI stuck tomy usual 4-4-2formationandwasdeterminedtokeepit astight aspossibleandusecounterswhenthechance
came. Intheevent, thisispretty muchhow thingsturnedout inagameof territorial dominationversusopportunism...aninterestingclashof
stylesinmany ways.
Fromthekick off hehadbeencampedinmy half andI hadafeelingof businessasusual at thispoint. But thensuddenly, after about 3
minutes play I brokeuponeof hisattacksandhit alongball upfield. Not only hisdefendersbut hehimself wasout of positionastheball rolled
throughmidfieldandintohisshootingzone. I flickedanattacker at theball whilst it wasstill rolling, knowingthat anythingontarget would
probably scoreandI madeperfect contact withtheball whilehewasstill nowherenear hisgoalkeepingrod. Somewouldsay it wasan
unsophisticatedgoal inthat I just hoofedtheball forwardbut I knew moreor lesswheremy forwardswereandtheresnodenyingthat thefinish
wasdeadly. Anyway, I now hadanearly goal however it cameabout andwasgoingtohangontothisleadat all costs!
Normal serviceresumedinmy half for awhilebut I wasgettingall thebreakswiththeball constantly rollingupagainst my players. Maybe
fortuitously but thenI wastheonewhoput themtheresoI canat least takecredit for their positioning. Infront of my defencethe4midfielders
werestiflinghisattacksatreat andI limitedhimtojust acoupleof half chancesfor thenext tenminutesor so. However, just beforethepause
hegot anequalizer that really camefromnowhere. Asgoodasmy blockingflickshadbeenupuntil thenthey let medownonthisparticular
attack andhescoredwithashot fromjust insidetheD of thepenalty area. I only hadmyself toblamefor somelax play.
Thisequalizer wasamajor blow andI went topiecesininjury timeandconcededanother soft secondgoal by meansof acorner kick takenwith
akicker . Helandedit somewhereamidst agaggleof playersandImevennot sureif it went inoff oneof hisor minebut thatstheproblem
withacrowded6-yardbox at corners. Youcouldsay thisreflectedtherunof play but, althoughthepossessiongaugeyouseeonthetelly might
havesaidsomethinglike34%-66%inhisfavour, I wasreally disappointedtobegoingin1-2at theturnaroundtosuchafreakishgoal scored
fromaset pieceininjury time.
It couldhavegot worsewhenearly inthe2ndhalf hehadachancetoseal thegamebut heblazedwidewhenunder nopressureinfront of goal.
A slightly harder chancefromananglewaswell blockedby my keeper andI wasjust about hangingonat thisstage. Thensuddenly I put
together astunningmovewhichbeganby interceptingalooseball inmidfield, spinningmy player roundhisplayer andontotheball whichhe
thought wasshielded. I thentook theball onfor another flick beforereleasingit withmy 3rdflick tomy outsideright. It landedperfectly infront
of himbut my cousingot inhisblocker whichreducedtheangleI hadtoshoot into. DespitethisI firedit inat thenear post (whichhethought he
hadcovered) witharisingshot that surprisedmeasmuchashim.if only I knew how tochiptheball moreoften! My first twogoalshadbeen
purequality andit wasall toplay for onceagain. I think at thispoint my cousinknew hewasinamatchandI wonderedif hewoulduphisgame
now thepressurewasonor whether my new-foundmomentumwouldtakemeontovictory. I definitely felt therewasat another goal tobehad!
Thenext few minuteswerequiteuntidy andnothingmuchtoreport asthegamegot boggeddowninmidfield. Thefew attackingideaswere
comingfromhimbut I alwaysseemedtohaveaplayer intheway andwhenever I neededtohit alooseball I wasmakingit every time. Then,
about midway throughthesecondhalf hetriedaclearancewiththeball restingupvery closetooneof my players. Hadhejust blastedit out of
play that wouldhavebeentheendof thematter but hechosetotry anddirect it toateammatetokeeppossessionbigmistake! It reboundedoff
my player, ontohis(asplanned) but thenspunoff wildly ontomy only forwardwhowasupfieldat that timegivingmepossessionjust outside
hiszone. My first touchwasperfect, takingit over thelineandcreatingashootinganglebeforemy secondtouchmadeit 3-2withonly my 4th
seriousshot at goal. Onceagain, deadly finishing!!
Normally whenI get aheadI becometwitchy but onthisoccasionI felt I couldholdout for thelast 7minutesor so. Insteadof resortingto
kickingfor touchupby hiscorner flagI waspassingtheball roundvery nicely andevenif not threateninghisgoal I waskeepingtheball for
longenoughperiodstoeat away thetime. I hadanasty moment withafreekick that wasdeflectedwideafter abit of ascramble, andfromthe
resultingcorner my keeper cameout topunchclear. Hetriedfor apenalty shortly afterwardsby aimingfor my lying-downplayer but I managed
toraisehimandget my finger out of theway just intimeastheeball flew past. I thinkthiswasreally thelast seriousscare.
I evenhadacoupleof half-chancesmyself becausehisdefencewasnowhereat all duringthefinal minutes. Unfortunately I wasnt quiteclinical
enoughonthebreak, whichisironic givenhow lethal Idbeenupuntil then. It almost seemedtooeasy attackingthosewide-openspaceswith
just 2of hisdefendersback andthissomehow bluntedmy killer instinct, makingmemessuponthosecrucial flicks. BecauseI couldnt kill off
thematchI wasalwaysvulnerableandwithwhat turnedout tobehislast attackheplayedalonghopeful ball throughmy defencethat eluded
everyone, includingtheplayer hedesperately flickedat it whilst rolling. A typical 91st minuteploy, but after that I knew weweredealingin
secondsandthekitchentimer went off asI clearedtheball fromthegoal kick, pretty muchasinareal gametogiveanauthentic finale.
Timershavebeenknowntoringat awkwardmoments, likejust whensomeoneisshootingtothegreat annoyanceof thepersonconcerned:-)
I wasmighty relievedandfelt agreat senseof achievement at theend. My cousinhasavery competitivespirit but heacceptedthelosswell,
knowingthat hewasstill thebetter player but that Idbattledtoawell-earnedwinthat hedidnt begrudgeme. Itsgoodtoknow that, likereal
football, Subbuteoisagamewherethebest player doesnt alwayswinbecausenotwomatchesever follow theexact samepatternandluck does
play itspart, givingtheunderdogthechancetopull off ashock result withadecent gameplanthat goeswell. Thebest encountersarethose
whicharetight andtheoutcomeisuncertainright until thelast kick - especially enjoyablewhenyouget afavourableresult!
WeplayedtheabovegametotheAdvancedRulesbut haverecently beentryingout theRetroones, whicharemorecomplex. I doubt they will
increasemy winratiobut if I domanageanother exploit youll behearingall about it either hereor ontheSubbuteoForum.
The Subbuteo

World Cup 1982

By Gianmatteo Tonci

Teams in qualifying group draw
Theseboxes werereleased beforetheend of qualifications, so Subbuteo wasnt ableto determinewhich teams will beactually
participatingintheWorldCup. Theteamsarecomposedby 10L/W outfieldplayersplus1roddedGK, andareusually machine-
painted. Theboxes usedarethestandard green ones marked with C100 indication, but insteadof thecommon Team printing
they get aWorldCup1982 special print. Also ontheback of theboxes isprintedthegroups compositionalongwithSubbuteo
Ref. Nos. for any teamavailableat thetime itsworthnotingthat many kits areinheritedfrompast WorldCupeditions.
Teams in qualifying group draw were the following (numbers in brackets represent Subbuteo Ref. No. where available at the
time):
EUROPEAN SECTION
Group1: Albania(14), Austria(10), Bulgaria(152), Finland(18), West Germany (156).
Group2: Belgium(21), Cyprus(5), France(164), Holland(13), Republic of Ireland(157).
Group3: Czechoslovakia(231), Iceland(166), Soviet Union(161), Turkey (133), Wales(319).
Group4: England(317), Hungary (281), Norway (231), Rumania(160), Switzerland(114).
Group5: Denmark (225), Greece(18), Italy (166), Luxembourg(231), Yugoslavia(149).
Group6: NorthernIreland(320), Portugal (281),Scotland(318), Sweden(162).
Group7: East Germany (18), Malta(1), Poland(39).
SOUTH AMERICAN SECTION
Group1: Bolivia, Brazil (50), Venezuela.
Group2: Columbia, Peru(159), Uruguay (163).
Group3: Chile(68), Ecuador, Paraguay.
AFRICAN SECTION
Round 1: Algeria, Cameroon, Egypt, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Lybia, Madagascar, Malawi, Morocco
(158), Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, SierraLeone, Somalia, Tanzania, Tunisia(1), Uganda, Zaire(176).
Round2: Central AfricanRepublic, Liberia, Sudan, Togo.
ASIA-OCEANIA SECTION
Group1: Australia(174), Fiji, Indonesia, New Zealand(156), Taiwan.
Group2: Bahrain(39), Iraq, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria.
Group3: Kuwait, Iran(322), Malaysia, SouthKorea, Thailand.
Group4: China(149), HongKong, J apan(2), Macao, NorthKorea(1), Singapore.
NORTH-CENTRAL AMERICA SECTION
Canada(41), CostaRica, El Salvador (155), Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico (157), Panama, UnitedStates(271).
CARIBBEAN ZONE
Cuba, DutchAntilles, Grenada, Guyana, Haiti (175), Surinam, Trinidad.
Qualifying teams
Theseboxes werereleased after the24qualifiedteams for theWorldCupwas established. Theteams arecomposedof 10 L/W
outfieldplayersplus1roddedGK, andareusually machine-painted. Theboxesusedarethestandardgreenonesbut gaindiagonal
stripes in the Spanish flag colours (red & yellow) and are marked with D100 indication, furthermore they get a World Cup
Team special print. Also ontheback of theboxesisprintedthecompletegroups compositionalongwithSubbuteo Ref. Nos. for
all teams. Notethat someteamsareaddedto thechart after qualifyingto theWorldCupor gainsnew kitsfor thecompetition.
Thesix groups werecomposed as follows (numbers in brackets represent Subbuteo Ref. No., teams marked with astar (*) are
appearingfor thefirst timeinSubbuteo kits, teamsmarkedwithtwo stars(**) gainsanew kitafter qualifyingto theWorldCup):
Group1: Italy (166), Peru(159), Cameroon(403)*, Poland(39).
Group2: West Germany (156), Chile(68), Algeria(402)*, Austria(10).
Group3: Argentina(67), Belgium(151)**, El Salvador (155), Hungary (281).
Group4: England(329)**, France(164), Kuwait (404)*, Czechoslovakia(231).
Group5: Spain(48), NorthernIreland(393)**, Honduras(405)*, Yugoslavia(149).
Group6: Brazil (50), Scotland(318), New Zealand(156), U.S.S.R. (161).
Collecting World Cup 1982 teams
If youdesireto seriously collect theseteams, youwill needthefollowingsquadsintheappropriate
C100(pre-WorldCup) or D100(post-WorldCup) boxes.
1Malta, NorthKorea, Tunisia
2J apan
5Cyprus
10Austria
13Holland
14Albania
18East Germany, Finland, Greece
21Belgium
39Bahrain, Poland
41Canada
50Brazil
67Argentina
68Chile
114Switzerland
133Turkey
149China, Yugoslavia
152Bulgaria
155El Salvador
156New Zealand, West Germany
157Mexico, Republic of Ireland
158Morocco
D100 boxes with Spanish stripe (World Cup Team) 24 teams in 24 different Ref. Nos.*
161Soviet Union
162Sweden
163Uruguay
164France
166Iceland, Italy
174Australia
175Haiti
176Zaire
225Denmark
231Czechoslovakia, Luxembourg, Norway
271UnitedStates
281Hungary, Portugal
317England
318Scotland
319Wales
320NorthernIreland
322Iran
10Austria
21Belgium*
39Poland
48Spain
50Brazil
67Argentina
68Chile
149Yugoslavia
151Belgium*
155El Salvador
156New Zealand, West Germany
159Peru
* Belgiumstays both at Refs. 21 & 151, whileNew Zealand & West Germany stay both at Ref. 156
161USSR
164France
166Italy
231Czechoslovakia
281Hungary
318Scotland
329England
393NorthernIreland
402Algeria
403Cameroon
404Kuwait
405Honduras
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