Come On You Wands!

Back in the 1960s and 1970s (and, I dare say, several decades before then) the county and London cup ties were always played at weekends, with replays generally taking place the following weekends as required. The FA and Amateur Cups also went along those guidelines but, strangely, there never seemed to be any real congestion build-ups with league games; not even in the 1967-68 season, when Cray did really well in the cups and had to play games on both Saturdays and Sundays at Grassmeade at the end of the season.  Because Saturdays were seen as match days proper, most non-League football clubs of the era played full-strength teams; it was also borne out of necessity due to the fact that the first team 'squads' consisted mainly of 11 (only 10 before the introduction of substitutes) outfield players and one goalkeeper. The more affluent amateur sides had a nice array of 'fill-in' players neatly nestled in their Reserves' teams who could be called upon one week to ...

Have you ever heard of the saying "White Rabbits"? It is a two-word phrase that can either be used to greet someone (everyone!) on the first day of every new month, or it can be the first thing someone says when they wake up on those days. My mum always said it, without fail, on the first of each month and the 'tradition' soon rubbed off on me. I still say it to this day. My wife thinks I am bonkers! However, the reference to saying "White Rabbits" goes back to at least the 1940s in war-torn Britain and, unsurprisingly it has its connotations linked to the hope of bringing the person saying it luck and good fortune. It is a belief that RAF fighter pilots and their bomber crews said it as a protective measure prior to flying their missions. Sadly, I guess for them, it didn't always work. Yet, really, does it work? Interestingly, yes... and no. I have been saying "White Rabbits" every first day of a new month since before I was a teenager, which ...