Referee Beaten Unconscious by Arsenal fan

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The Arsenal Crowd at Woolwich

Referee JB Brodie knocked insensible by Woolwich Arsenal fan

Manor Ground closed for 6 weeks

Brodie Athletic News 10 Nov 1902 a

If you cast your mind back to last season there was a lot of media talk about a pitch invasion in the FA Cup tie between, our opponents in the final, Aston Villa and WBA. Much of it was hyperbole, and as they managed to demonise a relatively peaceful crowd intrusion, we wonder what the modern media would have made of the following episode!

Woolwich Arsenal was the first Football League club to have their ground closed for crowd disturbances according to the extant records of the Football Association. This was borne out of the league game against Burton Wanderers on 26th January 1895. Both teams, but particularly Arsenal in seventh place, had outside chances of promotion from Division Two, and a crowd of 6-7,000 was attracted to the Manor Ground in Plumstead to witness the duel.

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Arsenal Publicans

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List of Arsenal players as Publicans 

In the summer Chris Jack, the Grandson of 1930’s exceptional player David Bone Nightingale Jack, got in touch with information about how DBN had run a pub after he retired from the game. So in mid October we met up with him at the very same pub, just up from the Angel tube station for a convivial chat.

This has since evolved into an attempt to list as many of the Arsenal players who took this, until recent times, favoured post playing route.

Frank McLintock Pub Sutton Arms

Frank McLintock at the Sutton Arms: Harp Stays Sharp to the Bottom of the Glass!

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Don Howe – the Arsenal Obituary 2015

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507: Don Howe 1935-2015

“A man of principle and of vision, sometimes a prophet in the wilderness and a footballer of breathless magnificence. How English football could do with another Don Howe today”
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Don Howe: the Arsenal – player 1964-66; coach 1966-71 & 1977-83; manager 1983-86; youth coach 1997-2003

Instrumental in the 1970-71 double win Don, a genuinely great coach, was earlier the 507th player for the Gunners and later a manager. An England international right back his coaching prowess and organisational skills were equally in demand and admired. His time as player, coach and manager at Arsenal spanned five decades.

The Arsenal obituaries

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