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Paul Brooker
Paul Brooker (born 25 November 1976) is an English retired professional footballer who played as a winger in the Football League for Fulham, Brighton & Hove Albion, Leicester City, Reading and Brentford. Career Fulham and Brighton & Hove Albion (1995–2003) Able to play on either wing, Brooker began his career as a schoolboy at Chelsea, before joining the youth system at West London rivals Fulham. He turned professional in 1995 and broke through into the first team during the 1996–97 season. He was a part of the team which secured promotion to the Second Division in May 1997. Brooker was out of favour over the course of the following three seasons and made just one league appearance during the Cottagers' 1998–99 promotion season. He spent time away on loan at Stevenage Borough and Brighton & Hove Albion and joined the latter club on a three-year contract for a £25,000 fee in May 2000, a move which reunited him with his former Fulham manager Micky Adams. After bre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hammersmith
Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. It is bordered by Shepherd's Bush to the north, Kensington to the east, Chiswick to the west, and Fulham to the south, all on the north bank of the River Thames. The area is one of west London's main commercial and employment centres, and has for some decades been a major centre of London's Polish minority in United Kingdom, Polish community. It is a major transport hub for west London, with two London Underground stations and a bus and coach station at Hammersmith Broadway. Toponymy Hammersmith may mean "(Place with) a hammer smithy or forge", although, in 1839, Thomas Faulkner (topographer), Thomas Faulkner proposed that the name derived from two 'Saxon' words: the initial ''Ham'' from List of generic forms in place names in Ireland an ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Football League Second Division
The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third tier became known as the Football League Second Division, while the second level was branded "First Division," below the Premiership. After the rebranding of the Football League in 2003–04, the second tier became known as the Championship, and the third tier became known as Football League One. Early history In 1888, Scotsman William McGregor a director of Aston Villa, was the main force between meetings held in London and Manchester involving 12 football clubs, with an eye to a league competition. These 12 clubs would later become the Football League's 12 founder members. The meetings were held in London on 22 March 1888. The main concern was that an early exit in the knockout format of the FA Cup could leave clubs with no matches for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2006 Football League Play-offs
The Football League play-offs for the 2005–06 season were held in May 2006, with the finals taking place at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff for the last time. The play-off semi-finals were played over two legs and were contested by the teams who finished in 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th place in the Football League Championship and League One and the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th placed teams in the League Two table. The winners of the semi-finals advanced to the finals, with the winners of these matches gaining promotion for the following season. Background The Football League play-offs have been held every year since 1987. They take place for each division following the conclusion of the regular season and are contested by the four clubs finishing below the automatic promotion places. In the Championship, Watford, who were aiming to return to the top flight for the first time since 2000, finished 9 points behind second placed Sheffield United, who in turn finished 16 points behind champions ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
EFL League One
The English Football League One, known as Sky Bet League One for sponsorship reasons, or simply League One, is a professional association football league in England. EFL League One is the second-highest division of the English Football League and the third tier overall in the English football league system, after the Premier League and the EFL Championship. It is contested by 24 clubs. Introduced in the 2004–05 English football season as Football League One, it is a rebrand of the former Football League Second Division. Burton Albion currently hold the longest tenure in the division following relegation from the Championship at the end of the 2017–18 season. There are nine former Premier League clubs currently competing in this division, named Barnsley (1997–98), Blackpool (2010–11), Bolton Wanderers (1995–96, 1997–98, and 2001–12), Bradford City (1999-2001), Cardiff City (2013-14 and 2018-19), Huddersfield Town (2017–19), Luton Town (2023-24), Reading (200 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Free Transfer (association Football)
In professional association football, a free transfer, also known as a Bosman transfer, involves a professional association football club releasing a player when the player's contract has expired or made available just before the end of the contract. The player can then sign for any club offering them a contract. How it works The club acquiring the player does not have to pay any compensation for their release due to having nothing left to pay on their contract, hence, the term free transfer. Some individual leagues have restrictions to protect academies. For example, in the UK, players under 24 who are out of contract are only available on a free transfer if released by the club holding the players' licence. Another type of free transfer is when a player is transferred from one club to another for no price, sometimes a transfer for a nominal fee is credited as a free transfer. With six months or less remaining on an existing contract for players aged 23 or older, they are f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Premier League
The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football League (EFL). Seasons usually run from August to May, with each team playing 38 matches: two against each other team, one home and one away. Most games are played on weekend afternoons, with occasional weekday evening fixtures. The competition was founded as the FA Premier League on 20 February 1992, following the decision of clubs from the Football League First Division, First Division (the top tier since 1888) to break away from the English Football League. Teams are still promoted and relegated to and from the EFL Championship each season. The Premier League is a corporation managed by a Richard Masters (football), chief executive, with member clubs as shareholders. The Premier League takes advantage of a £5 billion domestic televi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2002–03 Football League First Division
The 2002–03 Football League First Division (referred to as the Nationwide First Division for sponsorship reasons) was the eleventh season of the league under its current format as the second tier of English football. Portsmouth won the division to return to the Premier League after a fifteen-year absence. In Harry Redknapp's first full season in charge the team secured the title on 27 April, with a victory over Rotherham, having been promoted with four games to spare by defeating Burnley. Leicester City were promoted at the first attempt following their relegation. Their promotion was contentious as they entered administration during the season due to debts in excess of £50 million stemming from their loss of Premier League income and major investment in a new stadium, but were able to write-off these entirely when a new consortium took control and therefore avoided having to sell off players. Following this incident, the Football League would introduce rules that penalised a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Withdean Stadium
Withdean Stadium is an athletics stadium in Withdean, a suburb of Brighton. It was constructed in 1930. It was the home track of Olympic athlete Steve Ovett. Between 1999 and 2011 it was the home ground of football team Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. History The site was opened as a lawn tennis club venue in 1936, having been used as playing fields before this. The centre court had seating for 2,000 and was used for the Davis Cup match between Great Britain and New Zealand in the spring of 1939. Later developments included a zoo and miniature railway. In 1955 the then mayor of Brighton, Walter Dudeney, opened Brighton Sports Arena as a new athletics arena hosting various sporting activities and events. The arena was upgraded over the years, with lighting added and additional squash courts. In 1980 Steve Ovett opened an all-weather running track, which was resurfaced in 1997. In 1999 the stadium became the temporary home of Brighton & Hove Albion F.C. Use by Brighton & Hove Alb ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Football League First Division
The Football League First Division was the top division of the Football League in England from 1888 until the end of the 1991–92 season, when its teams broke away to form the Premier League. From 1992 to 2004, the name First Division was given to what had previously been called the Second Division. After the 2003–04 season, the division was renamed the Football League Championship (now EFL Championship, with the division below it called EFL League One). The First Division contained between 12 and 24 clubs, playing each other home and away in a double round robin. The competition was based on two points for a win from 1888 until the increase to three points for a win in 1981. History The Football League was founded in 1888 by Aston Villa director William McGregor. It originally consisted of a single division of 12 clubs ( Accrington, Aston Villa, Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, Burnley, Derby County, Everton, Notts County, Preston North End, Stoke ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
