Okay, I’ll admit it. I’m a Gooner. But at least I can say that I supported them back in the ‘70s when they were second rate and nobody liked them, as well as in the 80s when they were dull and nobody liked them, rather than just under the aegis of Saint Wenger now that Arsenal are successful… and nobody likes them. Actually, supporting Arsenal whilst living in Sheffield can be problematic. The blue half of the city - as well as a particularly bitter Chris Waddle - remember Arsenal’s cup double against the Owls. (Thank you Chris Woods… and whatever happened to Steve ‘go on, break my arm Tony Adams) Morrow. And then there was the Di Canio/Steve ’take a dive’ Durkin affair - I was at that match and that was probably the only interesting moment in the game. But just so that the red half also have something to complain about, there was ‘that’ goal scored by Overmars in the cup. At least we had the decency to offer them a rematch and beat them again. And then, of course, there was all the controversy of 2003’s FA Cup Semi Final. Neil Warnock: it couldn’t happen to a nicer man.

Low point: Denis Bergkamp missing a 90th minute penalty against Man U in the FA Cup semi-final. If just two kicks that season had been different (the other being Kaba Diawara‘s effort being cleared off the line at Southampton), then Arsenal would have done the double Double.

High points: There has been three - being in The Rosendale pub in 1989 when Micky Thomas scored the second against Liverpool for the 2-0 win which gave us the title on goals scored. Surely the greatest end to any league season ever. The second had to be Tony Adams scoring the final goal in Arsenal’s 4-0 drubbing of Everton to win the double in ‘98. And, of course, the third has to be the 2004 Invincibles season – although it’s a shame we lost the FA Cup Semi Final because giving Millwall a shoeing in the final to do yet another Double would have been immensely gratifying.

I used to regularly play in goal for various 5- and 6-a-side football teams. I mainly played for various university sides, but also played for Eastwoods - an engineering company. Playing as often as six times a week has taken a heavy toll on my knees. That aside, I was relatively lucky when it came to injuries; during my playing days all I sustained was a couple of badly twisted ankles, a sprained wrist and a dislocated finger. I was one knocked out cold, however, taking a volley from a yard out squarely in my eye. I still have a blood clot at the back of my eye as a result. The irony was, that the guy who did it - and then promptly provided first aid - was a medical student. I ended up playing for another team two hours later with one eye completely shut. They make men of steel in Sheffield. Grrr. Cough, wheeze croak.

But if anybody out there plays for a 5 or -a-side team in the southeast London area that’s looking for a ‘keeper, then give me a call - I’m looking for a new team to join.