WHY ARSENAL SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN PROMOTED
"Which team in the current Premiership has been in the top flight the longest? Is it really Coventry City, as so many sports presenters tell us?" asks Graham Codd
By mentioning Coventry, we assume you're after the club with the longest current unbroken run in the top division, Graham.
But we don't know which sports presenters you've been listening to. Coventry, who were promoted under Jimmy Hill's stewardship in 1967, are the fourth-longest serving members of the elite. Liverpool were promoted in 1963, and haven't slummed it in the meantime, while neighbours Everton have held their top-flight status ever since 1954, despite their best efforts during the 90s.
Then there's Arsenal. They were promoted from the old Second Division in 1919 and have never been away since. But, predictably, seeing as they hold the record for current top-flight longevity, the nature of their promotion that year is controversial, to say the least.
In 1919, the First Division was extended from 20 to 22 clubs. During previous expansions, the relegated clubs from the previous season were re-elected, while the top Second Division sides were promoted as usual.
So Derby and Preston, the two top Second Division sides in 1915 - there had been a break for the War - did indeed move on up. And Chelsea, who had finished 19th that season, were, as expected, re-elected.
But the reason for Chelsea's escape were somewhat arbitrary. In 1915, Manchester United had, to avoid relegation, fixed their last game (against Liverpool of all people). They won 2-0 and sent Chelsea into the relegation places instead, but Liverpool chairman John McKenna must have felt some guilt, because at the League's AGM in 1919 he gave a speech insisting on the continued presence in the top flight of the Stamford Bridge club.
For some reason however, he also suggested that lowly Arsenal, who had finished fifth in the Second, should be rewarded for their long service to the League. They should replace the team which came 20th in 1915, he argued.
And so it came to pass. The unfairly relegated club? Why, Tottenham Hotspur.
THE NAME OF THAT ENGLAND MASCOT
"What was the name of the Bournemouth civil servant who became the self-appointed mascot for England in the 60s?" asks Bill.
"He was Ken Bailey and could be seen at all sorts of sporting events where England were represented," remembers Neil Penny. "He used to go to AFC Bournemouth and walk round the pitch before home games and was also a Conservative local councillor. He died a few years ago."
Meanwhile Andy Smith remembers: "Week in, week out, he'd be at Dean Court dressed up in his Union Jack suit. After a while, though, kids started to be scared of him."
SCHMEICHEL: LOUSY PENALTY SAVER?
"Am I right in thinking that the save Peter Schmeichel made against Arsenal in the 1999 FA Cup semi-final is the only penalty save he ever made for Manchester United, excluding shoot-outs? Or even the only penalty which wasn't converted while he was playing?" asks Richard Shaffer.
Not quite, Richard. According to Rob Smyth: "He saved one from Tony Cottee in a Fizzy Pop Cup match in December 1993, and one from Teddy Sheringham in the Premiership in August 1994, but generally there was a feeling amongst Reds that he didn't acquit himself as he might on penalties."
MOST PROFILIC FOREIGNER EVER (2)
Last week, Simon Rogerson asked which foreign [non-British and Irish] player has scored the most goals in the top flight in England. "It's the Jordan-juggling Manchester United striker Dwight Yorke with 117 goals," we replied, "followed by the Chilean George Robledo with 82 goals." However, there was a tiny caveat - we weren't sure how many Robledo had scored for Huddersfield and Barnsley.
So hats off to Richard Morgate and Reidar Weltzin, who both say that Robledo was an amateur at Huddersfield and didn't play, and moved to Barnsley where he scored 45 goals in 105 appearances. However, Barnsley were in the old Second Division during his spell there, so they don't count as top-flight goals - which means Dwight Yorke is still the most prolific foreigner in the top flight ever.
"But it opens another question," says Reidar Weltzin. "Who is the most prolific foreigner in the whole league ever? Could it be Alf Ackerman with 197 goals for Hull, Norwich, Derby, Carlisle and Millwall? I don't know if he carried a British passport or a South African one, though. Another contender is Shaun Goater, but there can be many more I don't know of. Can anyone else help?"
CAN YOU HELP?
"Thanks to a sending-off in the Cup Winners' Cup semi-final while playing for Borussia Moenchengladbach in the 1973-74 season, Vincenc de Toni missed his next match in Europe. But the next European tie for this veteran left-back was nine years later, when his new club Werder Bremen took on the East Germans of FC Vorwarts in the first round of the 1982-83 Uefa Cup, with our man de Toni still suspended from the 1974 game. Has anyone waited longer than this to serve out a European suspension?" asks Al Jennings.
"What is the greatest number of Scots to turn out for a single English club match, either league or cup? Has an English club, in any match ever come close to fielding an all Scottish eleven?" asks Alan Sheridan.
"Are all the BBC's radio sports correspondents Manchester United fans? I know that Mark Chapman is on Radio 1 as is Fergus Sweeney on Radio 5, however as these are the only radio stations I listen to. I am at a loss as to whether the rest could be the same. Nonetheless with Greg Dyke in charge is there some sinister plot to redden the BBC or simply shared interests that guarantee promotion to top sports jobs?" asks Andy Peacock.
Email the.boss@theguardian.com if you know the answers.