Happy New Year! (1st January, 2018)

It's been quite the year.

This blog started in a dorm room, as a result of an impulsive decision. On the 16th of February, 2016, I clicked the publish button.

Everyone makes impulsive decisions - but I may be the only one who doesn't regret it.

Since then, this blog has featured the likes of the The Hinchas y Jugadores project, which (tried) to bring fans, writers, footballers and coaches together. And it blew up - I ended up interviewing ex-Barcelona players, a footballer with three consecutive league titles, the assistant technical director of Rayo Vallecano, an Ipswich legend, and the nephew of Juan Sabas.

Not to mention the fact that fans of Segunda B clubs came on board - yes, Burgos and Real Jaén have fans, and Ponferradina had more than one! Someone actually wrote over 2,500 words about the Barcelona Femení team. UCAM Murcia, a team that were in the sixth tier a decade ago, had a fan too. And if that surprises you, how about the fact that a Norwegian supports Gimnàstic de Tarragona. Or that Real Madrid's reach is so great that they have fans in Kurdistan.

And all that pales in comparison to the coincidence that my Alavés fan interview was with the cousin of ex-Alavés defender Santiago Martínez.

More importantly, this blog has always tried to delve into the depths of the historical archive, and do things that no one is doing. No one plots player's careers on Google Maps. And no one talks about university clubs. So this blog did it - twice, and counting. Not to mention that this blog went to Westfields, and at WHSmith picked up every Madrid travel guide and searched for Vallecas - finding no mention of Vallecas - just to prove the point that Vallecas is under-the-radar.

Because why not.

But this blog has always been about fans. So to all those who contributed to the Hinchas y Jugadores project, or the live projects such as the Rayo aficionado or Las Perspectivas....thank you. This blog doesn't survive without you - and it helps assuage the effects of the impulsive decision I made.

Finally, given that this is the new year, I've attached below a compilation of some pieces that I think went under-the-radar - yes, even on this under-the-radar blog.

This is blog post number 345 on day number 320.

Over and out.

Links:

University clubs

A club in Vallecas - Vallecas Club de Fútbol. And more on Vallecas.

Live projects

And some under-the-radar pieces

Javi and Emilio Guerra - twins divided by opportunity
From Catalonia to Heybridge - the story of an eighth division club
Francisco Pérez Pérez - the actual oldest player to have played in Spain

Ismael Urzaiz and Salamanca. A 22 team La Liga. Trust and Víctor Casadesús (9th June, 2017)

Salamanca traveled to Albacete to compete for promotion to La Liga with an impossible task on their hands. They had to overturn a 2-0 deficit away from home, against a side that entered La Liga's relegation playoff spots on the final day, and who had scored 44 goals in the league - just four less than Salamanca themselves. As the clock ticked towards the 90th minute, Salamanca were winning 1-0 yet in danger of losing a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Born in Tudela, Navarre, Urzaiz began his professional career at Real Madrid's B-side, making his debut in Segunda División in 1989. Despite being a successful youth international, he did not make any La Liga appearances for the first team (however, he did play one game against Odense BK, in the 1990–91 European Cup). Urzaiz spent the 1991–92 season on loan at Albacete Balompié, making his top flight debut when he came on as a substitute against Athletic Bilbao in October 1991. In early 1993, he was loaned to Celta de Vigo

Non-league Incider: St Helens Town 3-0 Atherton Laburnum Rovers

Last game: 8th August: Dulwich Hamlet 2-1 East Thurrock United The previous day, I was blown away by my first ever football match experience. Dulwich Hamlet impressed me, but what impressed me more was the journey. The travel to the stadium was just as enjoyable as the football itself. I had caught the groundhopping bug. There were no games scheduled for the 9th of August. There was one, near Wigan, and all I had booked earlier was a refundable bus ticket from Manchester Airport leaving at quarter past midnight. I should have refunded it. This was a mistake. This whole day was a mistake. I was only slightly hungover from the previous night, but that was nothing compared to this feeling of loss - I couldn't handle the fact that there was a game happening. And I wasn't too far away. Just three hours and a bit. They'll fly by , I thought. I was in autopilot. Something within me made me get up, grab a bag, and get out the door. This wasn't me. I wasn't trave

Non-league Incider: Cray Valley Paper Mills 4-4 Punjab United Gravesend

Last game: 9th August: St Helens Town 3-0 Atherton Laburnum Rovers After ripping up my groundhopping calendar, mostly because I was determined to avoid overnight travel, and partly due to other commitments, there was a period of time where non-league football took a backseat. But that period did not last long. Because of course it didn't. Secretly, I'd loved travelling over ten hours back-and-forth to watch some 10th division football. And this was 9th division football in London. When I had gone to East Dulwich exactly a week back , I had commented on how the amount of graffiti struck me as I watched from on board a southeastern train. I was going the exact same way, but much further this time - then I had stopped at Denmark Hill, now I would have to go six stations further. The graffiti I had thought was so emblematic of south London quickly disappeared, as did the tall buildings desperately cluttered together. We, and by we I mean me, were going to the suburb

The Pride of Vallekas

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