Vin Rogue Reviews WTBM Issue 82

Vin Rogue in what could become a series provides a review of the latest issue of the When the Ball Moves fanzine.

Vin Rogue Review of WTBM Issue 82



Earlier in the season I used to post my player ratings out of 10 and because of my low scoring I took a bit of flack! So I decided for a bit of fun to mark an Issue of whentheballmoves out of 10 and also rate a few articles along the way. My literary experience for doing this review is a 25 yard swimming certificate and 3 O`Levels, namely English, Surveying and Art!

I wasn`t and never had been a great buyer of any fanzine. I think last season I bought one and then a couple of weeks later bought the same fanzine again, it sort of put me off a bit. This year with the introduction of the Glossy photos I have been able to spot a new edition and have not made that stupid mistake again.

So to the review, as it is now becoming the norm, first the photos on the cover pages are a joy, none more so than 2 very different photos of members of the Laws family and the scoreboard pictures. For me these score 10 out of 10 as they just set the tone for the entire fanzine.

Page 6 MARCH PART THREE by Dave Thomas.

This article quotes almost all the "ifs" and "could have been" that this season has so far given us. It was a great reminder as to how close we could have been to survival with just a little more luck. Dave finishes with Tony Mowbray leaving Celtic and the likelihood of a job vacancy in the summer for you know who. 9 out of 10.

Page 30 KILBY - WIMP OR GENIUS? by Arthur Jones.

Presenting a case for Wimp and then a case for Genius is pure genius! It provokes the mind and prepares you for a good debate in the pub. I have a sneaky feeling Arthur thinks Genius! 9 out of 10

Page 8 CHILES PLAY by John Sutcliffe.

Enjoyed this one page article as I like Adrian Chiles and John makes this an easy read and one I understand. 8 out of 10

Page 10 SECRET DIARY OF A YOUNG CLARET.

Keep writing as you have set yourself a high standard, I just wish I knew how old you were? It would affect my opinion on the article but it is an 8 out of 10.

Page 20 THE CASE FOR (AND AGAINST) THE DEFENCE by Steve Kilby.

This is an absolutely brilliant way of looking at the stats. The comparisons between ourselves, Birmingham and Wolves in defence are astounding. This article using stats and logic that will challenge your thoughts on where we are going wrong. This was nearly my first ever full house but I have gone for 9 out of 10 because I had to find my glasses to read the forwards Stats. I hope this is repeated next season around the half way mark.

Page 14 THAT IS ILLOGICAL CAPTAIN by Gary Sidley.

Another way of presenting stats for our best starting 11. This article appealed to my sense of always wanting to zag when the majority zig. It ends with the 11 players we should start every game with and I will go on record as saying I disagree with that 11 but loved the article and gave it 9 out of 10

Page 41 I LOVE THE PREMIER LEAGUE?! by Dale Warrington.

"We are Burnley not some superpower of the modern game......" Read it, enjoy it and consider it is written with honesty and integrity. 10 out of 10

Page 44 TICKETLESS IN DESPAIR by Couch Potato.

Despite the use of a swear word 2 pages of a great read "....I am in despair about the Premier League. It seems to be in denial about its problems...." 10 out of 10

Page 50 THE OLDER VIEW by Andrew Lipton,

Found myself disagreeing and saying that`s simply not true, it made me mad reading it yet I did agree with some paragraphs but not many! Different and Enjoyable 9 out of 10

Page 24 KEYBOARD KINGS by Rickers Twickers.

What a brilliantly balanced article, part fact part fiction and the fact that Sepp Blatter is going to read WTBM...well you just need to read the article and enjoy it 10 out of 10

Page 54 WHY I WON`T MISS THE PREM By Ria Hopkinson

I have read perhaps 4 or 5 articles by Ria and some I have enjoyed and others I have struggled with, however here is an article we should all try and understand and learn from. 10 out of 10

Page 4 EDITORIAL RAMBLINGS and Page 48 BARNSEY`S WEIRD WEEKENDS

Both of these articles score 10 out of 10 and so having agreed with the ramblings and chuckled loads at the weekend muses Barnsey gets the Vin Award and to think I have actually bought two copies of this Issue, one to send to minivr. That sort of takes me back to last season.

Just a few mentions Boff 9/10, I`ve Tried 9/10, Goals at Both Ends 8/10, Should I Stay or Should I Go 9/10

Finally if you haven`t voted for your favourite fanzine go to www.footballfanzineawards.com and do the right thing. This edition gets a 10 out of 10 and for £1.50 it isn`t that much of a drama if you do like me and buy 2, as you could easily sell the spare on!

VinRogue

If anybody else would like to do a review of Issue 82, particularly if you disagree with Vin Rogue's comments and ratings then please feel free to send your review in Word Doc format to the following email address:

burnley@vitalfootball.co.uk

You would also all be welcome to review future issues of When the Ball Moves.