Sport
It pays homage to the club’s most famous chant.
Stockport County is creating a brand new mural with a group of young street artists from the local area and a little help from one of their squad members.
This past February half-term, the Greater Manchester football club enlisted the help of some schoolkids and aspiring artists, along with local creatives from around the area to create a brand new piece of artwork right in the heart of the community.
With some paint, plenty of spray cans and the expertise of Manc muralist and designer, Oskar With A K, and poet Ruth Awolola, a dozen local secondary school pupils helped write, design and paint the mural — taking inspiration directly from the club and the thriving fan culture in Stockport.
There is no chant more iconic and important to the Hatters than their famous ‘The Scarf My Father Worse’ song and that’s exactly what the local artists have decided to immortalise.
The painting process began on Friday, 16 February and, as you can see, they even managed to rope in County defender Ethan Pye came along to lend a hand with the mural, armed with a can of spray paint to help the young people bring their ideas to life.
Being developed by the Stockport County Community Trust in collaboration with North West organisations, GRIT Studios and The Writing Squad, ‘The Scarf My Father Wore’ project has received £14,800 from the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
Popping in a prime location on the corner of Castle Street and Mercian Way — just metres away from the Edgeley Park stadium and right at the beginning of the local village high street — this vibrant work of art will be passed by thousands of commuters and pedestrians every day.
Being brought to life in brilliant blue and white in line with the club’s colour scheme and proudly printing the title of the famous chant on the wall along with stencils of the County crest, footballs and many other details, it sits pride of place in the Stockport suburb.
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Much like the historic chant and the symbolic scarf itself, this brilliant piece of street art will be passed down and enjoyed by generations to come, as well as make sure the club continues to play a key role in local culture.
County’s Community Trust CEO Alison Warwood said: “This project shows how art and writing by young people can make a real difference to the local community, and I can’t wait to see the end result.”
John Macaulay from GRIT Studios added: “We’re thrilled to be involved in such a collaborative and community-spirited initiative. Our young artists will be helping to create a lasting landmark that will become a focal point in Edgeley for years to come.”
With the Hatters currently top of the League Two table and looking at yet another promotion season, there feels like no better time for fans to wear the club on their sleeve, their scarves around their necks and now up on the wall too.
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Featured Images — Stockport County
Sport
Manchester City legend Joe Hart announces he will be retiring at the end of the season
Danny Jones
Manchester City legend and ex-England international Joe Hart has announced he will be retiring at the end of the season, bringing a close to a career spanning over two decades.
The iconic Man City keeper and former Three Lions goalkeeper played 266 games for the Blues and had 75 senior caps, but has finally decided to call it a day at the age of 36.
Currently in net for Scottish giants Celtic, who are going for an incredible 54th league title this season, the number one and long-serving English keeper confirmed in a club interview that he will be hanging up his gloves at the end of this campaign.
He also represented his country at three major international tournaments but says he is now in a “place of clarity” and confident in his decision, with manager Brendan Rodgers insisting he will be a “huge miss to the game”. Truly the end of an era.
Having spent 12 years at City between 2006-2018 and making over 340 appearances in the Premier League at the likes of Burnley, West Ham and a handful for Spurs in club competitions, not to mention nearly a century of games for Celtic since 2021 already, it’s fair to call Joe Hart a footballing veteran.
All told, he has made over 700 appearances at club level and even more all-told, with half of a blockbuster season in Scotland still yet to go. Quite the achievement.
Most famously back here in Manchester though, not only did he pick up four golden gloves during his time at the Etihad but he was also in net for the Aguero goal when the Blues won their first league title in 44 years, and his reaction to the stoppage time winner is almost just as memorable as the strike itself.
But, more importantly, he had plenty of highlight reels of his own.
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Speaking to Celtic TV following the announcement, the Shrewsbury-born shot-stopper said: “This something that I have thought about for a while, there’s no right or wrong time is there?…
“Physically I feel great — I feel as good as I possibly can do for my age and what I have done to my body, I have been on the bench since I was 15 and have been involved in professional football every day since I was 16.
“I have gone down every avenue to keep myself in the best possible shape to give my all on game day and I do really think I am at that peak, but I am aware time waits for no man and I don’t want my body to be retiring me. That was one of the key factors, thinking I can smash through the finish line.”
We will always remember that unbelievable double save against Ronaldinho back in 2015, the ultra-passionate clip of him kicking the hoardings and screaming for the ball back and, of course, that wheeling-away celebration at 93:20 on 13 May 2012. Iconic.
You can watch Joe Hart’s full interview following confirmation of his retirement from professional football down below. Goodbye to one of the greats and all the best for the rest of the title race.
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Featured Images — jpellgen (via Flickr)/Wikimedia Commons
Sport
Luke Shaw could now miss the Euros after hamstring injury rules him out ‘for the season’
Danny Jones
England and Manchester United fullback Luke Shaw is looking like a doubt for the Euros this summer as he has suffered yet another injury that is set to rule him out for the majority of the season if not all of it.
Shaw had only just returned to Premier League action in recent weeks and was substituted at half-time during Man United’s away win against Aston Villa as a precaution, at least according to Erik ten Hag.
However, the same scenario played out in the game against Luton at Kenilworth Road this past Sunday and the left-back was sadly left on the physio bench following what has now been confirmed to be a recurring hamstring injury.
Unfortunately for Reds and England supporters alike, the club released a statement explaining that “Shaw has sustained a muscle injury and will be out for an extended period”, adding that “further assessment is still needed to determine the severity but we expect him to be absent for a few months.”
With Euro 2024 looming and England manager Gareth Southgate set to make his final squad selection in the next couple of months or so, it will be nothing short of a race to get back to fitness and hope that he might return to action in some form towards the end of the season — though it looks unlikely.
Said to be a muscle injury rather than any kind of fracture or ligament damage, his United and Three Lions teammates will also be keeping their fingers crossed for a straightforward recovery even if it does take a while.
Now 28, the worry on the player’s side is that he won’t want to miss out on what could be one of his last few chances to play in a major international tournament and having made such a huge impact at the World Cup and the most recent Euros, having scored that incredible opener in the final, neither will fans.
The defender has had more of an injury-ridden career than most and spent large spells on the sidelines at Old Trafford, in particular, and with ten Hag’s other fullbacks Tyrell Malacia and Aaron Wan-Bissaka both still injured, not to mention Lisandro Martinez also out for two months, they’re strapped at the back.
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As for who could fill in for Shaw at left-back when England travel to the Euros, the likes of Chelsea’s Ben Chilwell and Newcastle’s Dan Burn are probably furthest in the pecking order behind him, but Brentford’s Rico Henry and Crystal Palace’s Tyrick Mitchell could also be in contention for the full squad.
On the other hand, Southgate has experimented plenty with three/five at the back and could opt for deploying more centre-halves to fill in, having often used Manchester City star and treble-winner as a right-sided centre-back.
If you were Southgate and Shaw wasn’t an option, who would you put at left-back for Euro 2024 or would change the shape of the back line to suit the players available?
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Featured Images — USA Network (via Screenshot)/Luke Shaw/England (via Instagram)