Arsenal’s Most Capped Player – How The Record Has Progressed

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Arsenal’s 8th most capped player – No way! Yes, way.

Having previously written blogs on the progression of Arsenal’s record appearance makers and goalscorers, we thought we’d write one about the players who, in turn, have been the club’s most capped player. Just to be clear, this record only includes full international caps that a player has won whilst registered as an Arsenal player so Pat Jennings isn’t included as most of his 125 Northern Ireland caps were won whilst he wasn’t on Arsenal’s books.

Jack Kelsey

Jack Kelsey

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Arsenal’s Hat-trick Heroes

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Complete List of Arsenal Players to Score Three or More Goals in a Game

Following the Arsenal v Basel Champions League game on 6 December 2016 in which Lucas Perez became the third Arsenal player to score a hat-trick this season, we were asked what is the record for most hat-tricks scored by Arsenal players in a season. And then, what is the record for most number of different players to score a hat-trick in the same season.

Not ones to shirk from very important questions like this we decided to put together a list of all of players to score three or more goals in a competitive match for Arsenal. For the sake of clarity, competitive means Football League, Premier League, FA Cup, Football League Cup, European Cup, Champions League, Cup-winners’ Cup, Fairs Cup and UEFA Cup.

As we all know, football fans love lists so we have two. The first is a season by season breakdown of how many hat-tricks were scored and who the players were, with their individual totals. The second is a list of the top ten players to have scored most hat-tricks. We’ve also included some items of hat-trick trivia. Read More →

The Original Arsenal Clock – New Evidence

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The Clock Revisited

We all know the original clock was placed on the Laundry End in 1930 and after some shenanigans with the FA and Highbury redevelopment it was moved to the College End in 1935.

We wrote as much in a recent blog and article for the club magazine.

However, all may not be as we all had assumed as new detail has emerged which shows the clock most likely began its life on the West Terrace, within an information centre on the South-West corner of the ground before moving to the Laundry End a few years later.

At the start of the week Andy told me that the Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News had been placed on the British Library website. This was exciting news for historians as the publication “did what it said on the tin” – it being a weekly paper that began in the Victorian period to provide the interested populace a multitude of drawings and photos of current sporting and artistic news and events. As such it provides insight that words can not convey.

He then said look at this beauty from the Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News 1930:

The Original Clock in the information centre at Highbury - 20 September 1930

The Original Clock in the Information Centre at Highbury – 20 September 1930*

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Arsenal play catch up…as Sunderland lead the way!!!

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Sunderland Lead the Way!!!

We rarely veer from the historical but for this blog we will regarding this weekend’s big win.

Now obviously from the title this is not about the football, as it was evident from Saturday’s win that, on the pitch, very little is right about the Wearsiders who showed why they are now favourites for the drop.

It is not about Brexit either, for while the Sunderland landslide “Leave” result at half past midnight showed the way the country was leaning we are a non-political concern.

Instead this is about a far sighted and imaginative scheme at Sunderland which caught our attention, in a sphere both Andy and myself have deep interests:

The Stadium of Light Sensory Room for those on the autistic spectrum.

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Arsenal’s First Game In Europe

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Arsenal’s Great Danes

Staevnet 1 Arsenal 7

Arsenal: McKechnie, Magill, McCullough, Brown, Ure, Groves, MacLeod, Strong, Baker, Eastham, Armstrong.

53 years ago today Arsenal made their first foray in European competition when they played Staevnet, a combined Copenhagen XI, in the Inter Cities Fairs Cup. The Gunners had qualified for the competition, despite having finished seventh in the First Division, by virtue of the fact that teams above them were not eligible as the cities in which they were based did not host an annual trade fair. Possibly the most obscure qualifying criterion for a football competition. Read More →