April Fool’s Day 2008
As with many other aspects of life April Fool’s Day is a fantastic opportunity for the media to hoax football supporters into believing the unbelievable. Whether in the form of transfer rumours, crazy decisions or wacky quotes here are some of the top stories which may have caught out people out this year…
‘Capello’s solution to the language barrier’
The Sun printed an exclusive report into Fabio Capello’s belief that it would be easier for his England players to learn Italian than it would be for him to learn English. Although it was an obvious wind up, many were not quite so wise and ‘The Sun’ soon found itself inundated with posts on its message board saying that the Italian should step down immediately after his comments.
‘Lincoln goes green’
The Lincoln City website ran reports that the club was considering changing kick off times for its games from Saturday at 3pm to Monday at 10am in a bid to help the environment. The report went onto state that with so many people working at the times when the games would be played it would reduce the cities ‘carbon footprint’ through lower attendances.
‘The FA ‘sock-it’ to Northampton’
The Northampton website took a leaf out of the clubs nicknames book when it announced that Stuart Gray’s side were set to be deduced points after rivals had complained over the colours of the teams kit socks.
‘Name change to stop Stanley mickey taking’
Accrington Stanley’s official website announced that the club are to file for a change of name deed to the FA after years of jokes for being involved in the infamous ‘milk’ advert. The club believed that changing the teams name to Lancashire Stanley would stop people asking ‘Accrington Stanley…who are they!’
‘Midfielder turns singing sensation’
League Two Wycombe Wanderers website revealed exclusive news that their Spanish midfielder Sergio Torres was set to spend much of the post season signing rather than training. It stated that the midfielder has long been heralded as a fantastic singer and that it had led him to attempt to impress record label BMI with his skills.
‘Hartlepool celebrates centenary’
The Hartlepool website featured a story that the club were planning to celebrate the clubs centenary next season by releasing a new ‘black and white’ kit which when pictured looked strangely like the attire of rivals Darlington.
‘Knill signs himself’
Bury’s official website reported that in a desperate push to avoid relegation, Alan Knill had signed himself on a short term deal until the end of the season to boost the clubs chances of staying up. The 43 year-old was also set to take over the number 10 shirt.
‘Preston honour the invincibles’
Preston North End were reported to be looking to commemorate the 60th anniversary of their team of invincibles by turning some of the seats in the stadium ‘invincible gold’ which looked suspiciously tangerine as their rivals Blackpool.
‘Burnley groundshare plan’
Burnley released a story that the club were planning a ground share with bitter rivals Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park whilst their own Turf Moor ground was closed for redevelopment in 2010/2011.
‘Enjoy Old Trafford’
Unofficial reports from Manchester United website said that the club were considering an offer for its Old Trafford stadium from soft drink giants Coca Cola. The club had apparently been in talks with AIG International who currently sponsor them with Coca Cola offering to buy them out of their contract. The report also stated that Manchester United’s new away kit would be black with a zip up the middle so that it looked like a can of the fizzy stuff.
‘Wildcards Galore’
Two separate stories alleged that UEFA were considering giving England a wild card into Euro 2008 because of their clubs sides excellent performances in the Champions League. The same sight also suggested that clubs who had won the Champions League more than five times such as Liverpool and Real Madrid should be given automatic entry into the Champions League no matter where they finish in the Premiership.