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Ask the Gaffer football trivia archive
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Sunday July 19
Ben: Hi Gaff, can you tell me all the brothers that have both played in the Premier League?
The Gaffer says: I'm pretty sure this covers all of them - Rio & Anton Ferdinand, Gary & Phil Neville, Rafael & Fabio Da Silva, Danny, Rod, Ray Wallace, Justin and Gavin Hoyte (pictured), Xabi & Mikel Alonso, Michael & Andy Dawson, Shaun & Bradley Wright-Phillips, Luke & Stefan Moore, Leon & Carl Cort, Dickson & Kelvin Etuhu, Lomana & Kazenga LuaLua, Andy & David Linighan.
Gavin Mills: Do you have a record of any player scoring against the opposition with a header from inside his own half?
The Gaffer says: Only anecdotal evidence I'm afraid. I have heard that Andy Black of Manchester City once headed a sliced clearance from Charlton goalkeeper Sam Bartram back over his head and into the net from near halfway in the late 1940s. It's a good story but needs verification, which I've not been able to find.
Stu, London: Who was the first goalie to wear gloves? What year? And who invented them?
The Gaffer says: They were first used on a regular basis by Amadeo Carrizo, a pioneering Argentine keeper who began his career with River Plate in 1945 and went on to play for Millonarios from 1969-70. Carrizo, whose nickname was Tarzan, was also the first keeper to adopt the practice of leaving his penalty area to help out his defenders when needed.
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Saturday July 18
Stu, London: Which keeper has saved the most pens in a penalty shoot out? I saw the Telford goalie save three in a row in last season's Setanta Shield final.
The Gaffer says: The shoot out that decided the 1986 European Cup final between Steaua Bucharest and Barcelona must be a record for number of penalties saved (as opposed to missing the target). Only two of eight penalties were scored with the other six all being saved. All four of Barcelona's pens were saved by Steaua keeper Helmuth Duckadam.
Lee, Bristol: Name the only player to have scored in all English and Scottish leagues please Gaff.
The Gaffer says: You're expecting me to say Colin Cramb, aren't you? You'd be wrong. Although he has played in every league in England and Scotland he hasn't actually scored in every one. He only made one appearance in the Premier League, for Southampton, and didn't find the net.
Jamie D, Glasgow: Can you tell me a team that has competed in European Cup/Champions League most without actually winning it? Got a feeling it's Rangers.
The Gaffer says: Nope, it's Dynamo Kiev with 27 campaigns and no cups.
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Friday July 17
Crick: Hi Gaffer, could you please inform me of the managers who have managed three or more Premier League clubs?
The Gaffer says: Harry Redknapp, Ron Atkinson, Dave Bassett, Graeme Souness, George Graham, Glen Hoddle, Paul Jewell, Peter Reid (Edit: Crick later emailed back with two more - Sam Allardyce and Steve Bruce).
Peter, Birmingham: Name the seven European players who have been named Fifa World Player of the Year.
The Gaffer says: Zinedine Zidane, Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Figo, Roberto Baggio, Lothar Matthaus, Marco van Basten, Fabio Cannavaro.
Zizi: Who has scored the most goals in the World Cup?
The Gaffer says: Ronaldo with 15 for Brazil. However, if you count qualifying, then it's Ali Daei of Iran with 30.
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Thursday July 16
Daniel: Who are the keepers to have appeared in competitive matches for Arsenal since David Seaman left?
The Gaffer says: Jens Lehmann, Manuel Almunia, Vito Mannone, Mart Poom, Lukasz Fabianski, Graham Stack.
Jon, Darlo: Everyone knows Celtic's 67 team was made up of only Scots, but how many Scots made up their 70 team? And also how many Scots were in the Rangers teams of 61, 67 and 72 that also reached finals in Europe?
The Gaffer says: The only non-Scottish player to appear in any of those four finals was Danish defender Kai Johansen for Rangers in 1967.
Lee, Catterick: Hi Gaff, I remember hearing once that the Royal Engineers won the FA Cup. Is this true? How many teams were involved?
The Gaffer says: Royal Engineers won the FA Cup in 1875 after beating Old Etonians 2-0 in a replay. There were 29 teams that year.
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Wednesday July 15
Christopher: How many players have won back-to-back Champions League titles? I can think of Gerard Pique of Barcelona after winning a medal with Man Utd the previous year. Also Marcel Desially with Bordeaux and AC Milan but are there any more that are floating under my radar?
The Gaffer says: You're right with Pique and Desailly (Marseille though not Bordeaux). However, you're missing a third man - Swansea City manager Paulo Sousa who won with Juventus and Borussia Dortmund in 1996 and 1997.
Kushal: Who scored the first ever own goal in the Premier League?
The Gaffer says: Goalkeeper Mark Crossley in Nottingham Forest's 4-1 defeat at Blackburn Rovers on 5 September 1992.
Chris, Halesowen: Which two English teams have played each other the most times in one season, in all competitions?
The Gaffer says: I've managed to find three different pairs of teams to have played each other seven times in one season. Manchester United v Stoke (1971/72), Burnley v Chelsea (1955/56) and Bury v Stoke (1954/55) with their seven games being played in the space of four weeks!
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Tuesday July 14
Steve, Wrexham: Can you tell me who in their career has scored more goals against Liverpool than anyone else.
The Gaffer says: Finding a definitive answer for this would involve raking through every single player's goalscoring stats and I haven't got enough miles left on the clock for that! However, a brief sojourn through the top 100 Premier League goalscorers tells me that Andy Cole is definitely a leading candidate. He scored 11 times against Liverpool since the Prem's inception, which is more than any other of the other top-flight leading goalscorers since 1992/93, including Alan Shearer (8), Thierry Henry (8) and Les Ferdinand (5).
Jon Ashby: Who holds the Prem record for scoring hat-tricks in the most consecutive seasons?
The Gaffer says: Despite Alan Shearer scoring the most hat-tricks (11), Thierry Henry holds the record for hat-tricks in five successive seasons (2001-02, 2002-03, 2003-04, 2004-05, 2005-06).
Fergie's Marching Army: Gaff, could you tell me why Gretna are still playing friendlies? I thought they'd folded?
The Gaffer says: The Gretna Supporters Society formed a new club last year called Gretna 2008 who play in the East of Scotland Football League (which is slightly odd as Gretna is actually in south west Scotland!).
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Monday July 13
Chris, Everton: Can you name five players from Liverpool who have scored in a European Cup final (not including penalties)? Can any other cities match or beat this?
The Gaffer says: Steven Gerrard, Steve McManaman, Tommy Smith, Terry McDermott and Peter Withe. A handful of players born in Amsterdam have also scored in a European Cup final - Rinus Israel, Johan Cruyff, Ruud Gullit, Frank Rijkaard, Patrick Kluivert.
Scotty: Alrite Gaff, who were Leicester City's last opponents at the Filbert fortress and who scored the last ever goal there? Cheers!
The Gaffer says: Tottenham in the last game of the 2001/02 season. Leicester won 2-1 with Matt Piper scoring the final Filbert Street goal.
Stephen, Glasgow: How many Scottish teams have played in the European Cup?
The Gaffer says: Aberdeen, Celtic, Dundee, Dundee United, Hearts, Hibernian, Kilmarnock, Rangers.
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