Q & A: Gatting and the Jonah effect
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Your support makes all the difference.Q. The recent Sydney Test match broke a run of 10 consecutive Test appearances by Mike Gatting which had ended in defeat for England and was his 25th since he last finished a Test on the winning side. Are either of these sequences English or world records? Which player has played the most Tests without ever being on the winning side?
A. For Mike Gatting to take part in 10 consecutive Tests and to be on the losing side each time would seem to be a world record. Keith Walmsley's minutely researched book, Mosts without in Test Cricket, lists the answers to Mr Faulkner's questions, and ahost of others, but I am not sure when the latest edition appeared. Keith is an indefatigable member of the Association of Cricket Statisticians and Historians, c/o 3 Radcliffe Road, West Bridgford, Nottingham NG2 5FF.
My 1987 copy records J W H T Douglas and F E Woolley as holding the record previously for losing eight consecutive Tests - against the Australian "invincibles" of the early 1920s.
Spare a thought for the great New Zealander, Bert Sutcliffe, who played 42 Tests for his country (1947-65) without ever being on the winning side. Gavaskar, Kapil Dev and Kirmani were all involved in 31 consecutive Tests between December 1981 and December 1984 when India failed to win a Test match.
The record for an Englishman failing to play in a victorious side in a whole career would seem to be held by David Steele, with eight appearances, but this could well have been superseded recently, bearing in mind England's recent woeful demise. - J Hug h Thomas, Llandovery Q. Which footballers have played against clubs they once managed? I recall the late Roy Chapman, the father of Lee, playing for Port Vale against Lincoln City on 16 February 1968. Is this the only case?
A. Frank Worthington actually achieved this distinction twice. He was player-manager of Tranmere Rovers from August 1985 to Feb 1987, dismissed and then played for Preston North End against Tranmere two months later. The following season, he played for Stockport County against Tranmere. Despite his disastrous record at Tranmere (re-election during his first season; a two- man forward line of aggregate age of over 70 in his second), I have nothing but admiration for Frank. He was the only member of Tranmere's staff to turn up at the "Half Man-Half Biscuit"/Tranmere Rovers FC benefit gig. And my friend took two months to get over the excitement of standing next to him at the bar. - Kevin Goodall, Brussels A. Another case of a footballer playing against aclub he once managed is that of Trevor Francis. He made a full appearance for Sheffield Wednesday at Loftus Road against Queen's Park Rangers on 21 April 1990, and came on as a substitute against the same team at Hillsborough on 31 August 1991. This game was also blessed by another collector's item - Carlton Palmer scored a first-half hat-trick for Wednesday. - Paul Harrop, Maidstone Q. Manchester United recently went 12 games and 1,100 minutes without conceding a league goal at home. Is this a record?
A. I would like to mention that Queen's Park, from their formation in 1867, went unbeaten for seven years and in the first five of those seven years did not have a goal scored against them, a great record for Jock Grant, their goalkeeper. - Patrick O'Rourke, Maple Ridge, British Columbia ANSWERS PLEASE Q. During the last week, which witnessed the record transfer fee paid in Britain for a footballer, a casual discussion took place at work with a VAT inspector over the question of whether VAT would be paid in such transactions. Could anyone throw any light on the tax situation of transfers? Is a club liable to pay Capital Gains Tax when selling players? - Michael H Williams, London NW9
Q. Which football club has worn the greatest number of different strips during the course of a single season? - Richard Shipley, Otley Q. Does gelding a racehorse make it run faster and why do mares who have fallen pregnant show improved form? - Tom Stockton, Barnsley Q. Can anyone explain the derivation of "keeping a clean sheet", i.e. not conceding any goals in a football match? - Keith Sanger, Pontefract Q. A J Liebling's book, The Sweet Science, is acknowledged as the best book written on boxing. Isthis true? And to go further, what is then regarded as the best sports book ever published? - Kevin Maguire, Batley Q. How many Grand Slam tennis games have been won with four aces? - Ian Curtis, Macclesfield Q. What is the largest transfer fee paid outside football? - Joan Langton, Southport
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