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Orange's football trivia expert answers your best questions
Frank, Potters Bar – 19 May 2013
Re Bale, has he scored more goals in a Prem season than any other Spurs player?
The Gaffer says:
Gareth Bale's winner for Tottenham against Sunderland took his 2012-13 Premier League tally to a club record-equalling 21 goals in a single campaign. Teddy Sheringham shares the record with the 21 goals he scored in the inaugural Premier League campaign of 1992-93, when teams played 42 games as opposed to today's 38.
Gary, Wood Green – 19 May 2013
How many goals has Bale scored from outside the penalty area in the Prem this season?
The Gaffer says:
Gareth Bale took his tally of Premier League goals scored from outside the box in 2012-13 to nine with his fine late winner against Sunderland. No other player can match that figure. Bale's other 12 Prem goals were scored from inside the penalty area. In all, Tottenham have registered 16 goals from outside the box, more than any other team in the division.
William, London – 19 May 2013
Hi Gaffer. If Arsenal and Chelsea end up with the same number of points, goal difference and goals, are they going to have a play-off?
The Gaffer says:
Yes they are. If, in today's last round of Premier League matches, Chelsea were to draw with Everton and Arsenal were to win by a single-goal margin at Newcastle having scored two more than the Blues, both teams would be level on points, goal difference and goals scored. A play-off game would then be played at Villa Park on 26 May to decide which club enters next season's Champions League at the group stage, and which one must start in the play-off round.
Sue, Hull – 18 May 2013
Which is the only side to have a 100% record against Manchester United since Sir Alex Ferguson became manager?
The Gaffer says:
I assume you're referring to the old chestnut about Southend United, who beat Manchester United in a Carling Cup tie at Roots Hall in November 2006 when Freddy Eastwood scored the only goal of the game. It's true that the Shrimpers had a 100% record against Sir Alex, left, but since your question isn't restricted to English football, it's wrong to say that Southend are the only club to boast such a record. They are in fact one of six teams with 100% records against Fergie's United. The others are Athletic Bilbao (two wins), Borussia Dortmund (two wins), Vasco da Gama (one win), Lazio (one win) and Zenit St Petersburg (one win). Southend are, however, the only English club to claim the honour.
John, Morecambe – 18 May 2013
Hey Gaff, who was the first player to win Premier League winners' medals with two different clubs?
The Gaffer says:
It was Henning Berg, who won the title with Blackburn in 1994-95, and with Manchester United in 1998-99, and then in 1999-2000.
David, Bedfordshire – 14 February 2011
I wonder if you can shed some light on a truly bizarre game between Grenada and Barbados in 1994?
The Gaffer says:
Pay attention at the back - this lengthy tale is one worth telling. Barbados needed to beat Grenada by two goals in the last group game of the Shell Caribbean Cup in order to reach the final. A draw after 90 minutes would mean extra time, while anything less than winning by two goals would see Grenada go through. However, organisers had decided that in the case of extra time a Golden Goal would count as two goals. Barbados went 2-0 up early on, but Grenada made it 2-1 in the 83rd minute, meaning Barbados would be knocked out unless they scored a goal - yes, at either end. One Barbados striker realised his side were unlikely to score another goal with only a few minutes to go and Grenada parking the bus, so decided their best chance of winning was to take the game into extra time - so he promptly hammered home past his own stunned keeper to make it 2-2. Grenada now needed to score a goal at either end to avoid extra time, so turned and headed for their own net. Barbados anticipated this and rushed to defend the Grenada goal (in addition to their own!) until the whistle went for extra time. Barbados were eventually rewarded for their quick thinking, scoring the winner four minutes into extra time, which sent them into the final.
Stuart, UK – 14 February 2011
Which team has to travel the furthest distance to play a domestic game?
The Gaffer says:
Russian side Luch-Energiya, based in Vladivostock, have got to be the most remote league team in the world. It's a nine-hour flight just to get to the capital Moscow. When they hosted Zenit St Petersburg in October 2006, three Zenit fans travelled 15,000km by car only to break down on arrival. They took the Transsiberian Railway home and were rewarded for their dedication by the club with a new vehicle.
Alan, Glasgow – 13 December 2010
In the 1974 World Cup final why did Johan Cruyff only have two black stripes on his shirt when his teammates had three?
The Gaffer says:
The Dutch FA had a deal with adidas to supply their kit during the tournament. However, Cruyff had an exclusive personal deal with adidas's rivals Puma, who supplied him with their classic Puma King boots. As a result, he was unwilling to sport the three trademark stripes of adidas and insisted on a two-striped version instead.
Alan, UK – 13 December 2010
Which player has played with the longest beard in the Premier League?
The Gaffer says:
I reckon Alan Cork, who during Sheffield Utd's 1993 FA Cup run refused to trim his beard until the Blades were beaten by Sheffield Wednesday in the semi-final played at Wembley. Another Blades old boy, the late Trevor Hockey, also boasted quite a bush, albeit in the old First Division. And so too did George Best when his playing career was at its lowest ebb.
Lee, St Helens – 14 February 2011
Can you name a full team of players you could find in the garden?
The Gaffer says:
Keepers other than the obvious Tim Flowers include Gordon Banks, Kevin Poole, Bob 'Primrose' Wilson and Steve Cherry. Another Cherry (Trevor) can join George Berry in defence, along with Steve Potts. Also at the back is our ornithological friend Alvin Martin. Other high-flyers are Mark Robins, Matt Sparrow and Jason Crowe, with the predatory Ruel Fox up front. Alongside him is Dennis Viollet, with the mighty Alan Oakes prompting from midfield. Michael Branch, Paul Brush, Nicky Butt and Frank Burrows are also in contention.
Chum, London – 13 April 2011
Which was the last team to win the FA Cup with an all-English side?
The Gaffer says:
The 1975 West Ham team who beat Fulham 2-0 in the final. The line-up was: Mervyn Day, John McDowell, Frank Lampard, Billy Bonds (c), Tommy Taylor, Kevin Lock, Billy Jennings, Graham Paddon, Alan Taylor, Trevor Brooking, Pat Holland.
Imran, Manchester – 22 March 2011
Which players have won the Premier League, that are the only players from their country to do so. Eg Dwight Yorke with Man Utd who comes from Trinidad & Tobago.
The Gaffer says:
This is one of my 'classic questions', so apologies to long-term readers who may have seen it on the old site or on Orange World. Here's the full list: Alex Manninger (Austria), Dimitar Berbatov (Bulgaria), Peter Schmeichel (Denmark), Michael Essien (Ghana), Eidur Gudjohnsen (Iceland), Park Ji-Sung (Korea), Christopher Wreh (Liberia), Tomasz Kuszczak (Poland), Dwight Yorke (Trinidad and Tobago), Oleg Luzhny (Ukraine), Diego Forlan (Uruguay). N.B. Quinton Fortune (South Africa) didn't play enough games in one season to win a title while at Manchester United.
Darren Stow, Boston – 28 February 2011
Who played in the Premiership and was also on the plane of the Munich air crash but obviously survived?
The Gaffer says:
A horrible urban myth this one. The answer is supposedly the unborn John Lukic in his mother's womb, but it's untrue. Lukic was born in December 1960, nearly three years after the tragedy - that's one long pregnancy! There was at least a passenger called Lukic on the flight, which is where the myth stems from.
Zac Bearshaw, Rochdale – 16 February 2011
Which Football League team is closest to the River Mersey?
The Gaffer says:
Stockport County's Edgeley Park. The River Mersey starts where the River Goyt and River Tame - which run off the Derbyshire hills - meet under the MerseyWay Shopping Centre in the centre of Stockport.
Rambo, Scotland – 11 February 2011
What's the only team in Britain with a J in its name?
The Gaffer says:
Of note? St Johnstone.
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