Cod Almighty | Article

by Simon Wilson

23 October 2006

Black and White Corner, issue one
£1, available from www.bawconline.co.uk

So the Mariners' printed fanzine scene gets a fresh and young face hanging outside Blundell Park. With Sing When We're Fishing absorbed into the 'portfolio' of the supporters' trust - saved for reminiscing and with no new issue on the horizon - it's about bloody time as well.

Whether Black and White Corner is a fanzine is debatable. My first impression was the advertising on the back page and strewn across the insides, backed up by what seems to be sponsorship carried on the front cover. The traditional sponsorship of a fanzine is that of a work photocopier, on a late night in the office. A harsh initial criticism, perhaps. These days nothing comes for free, and funding for the venture needs to come from somewhere, but it definitely shifts the feel towards that of a magazine. As unwelcome as their presence is, at least the ads are for local businesses.

The impassioned editorial strives to stamp BAWC's stance. It is hard to agree with the comment that "we are nothing like the pricey programme" when the publication leads with two interviews with club staff, the staple of homogenised modern-day club publications. The push for all the articles being "must reads" also grates. We can assume from the fact that they've been published that the zine considers them worth reading.

The showpiece interviews with John Fenty and Graham Rodger are certainly worth a read though. Their depth impresses, and such detailed natters are not as prominent on Radio Humberside these days, usually skimped on by the Telegraph, and avoided by the club's official media, where interviews tend to parrot the party line and are hidden away on the Mariners World subscription service.

There are some choice quotes and revealing insights. Fenty asserts that recent teams sent out by Rodger feature nine players who weren't at the club 12 months ago, and calls for patience from the fans. His view that most of the games have seen "good passing football... virtually everything what the fans have been asking for" may be debatable, but shows that the chairman listened to the fans' objections to Russell Slade's "hoofball". Fenty even admits that the club made Rob Jones a "derisory offer", but goes to the foolish pains of suggesting that the Stick wouldn't have attained wage parity with other squad members because "the defensive position isn't the same as a striking position... they're considered different in values". The current team currently has a Stick-sized hole, with his dominance in defence sorely missed this term, and yet to be replaced. Despite Fenty's revelations, the interviewer seems either content at the chairman's explanations or unaware of their significance. A more tenacious style of questioning could have seized upon this.

The manager's interview sees Rodger put across the passion and determination that many fans accuse him of lacking. If he'd not stayed at the club in the summer he'd have been sat in the stands as a fan. It's possibly the most human Rodger has sounded in an interview as Town manager so far. Hats off to the man asking the questions and eliciting such a response. It is worth buying BAWC for this alone.

Some pieces are a waste, in particular the tipping page, while others are a wasted opportunity. Examples? The account of an away fan visiting is awash with cliché and banality, seemingly thrown together with no regard for its worth as an overall read. Dave Boylen offers little first-person insight into the 1971-72 season other than footballers back then had to do 'proper' jobs in the summer. Boylen covers the season's build-up, but leaps suddenly to the end of the campaign, which he calls "a tremendous time for the club" but giving the reader little in the way of explanation.

The most solid pieces are from Cod Almighty regulars Al Wilkinson and Paul Ketchley (yes, I would say that, wouldn't I?), who respectively contribute a typically excellent poem and a sharp look at Fenty and Rodger's approaches as, erm, 'manager'. A 'Boston versus Lincoln' article stands out as non-Town specific, and offers a nice sideways glance at one of the most despised men in football, Steve Evans. A countdown of the top 100 Town players could bore, but is snappily written (the appearance of Danny Butterfield is likely to draw at least two tuts). Lee Bradley offers a decent and not overly wordy appraisal of the current squad.

Ian Blackmore's campaign to raise awareness of the new ground seems a little sketchy, but his enthusiasm can't be doubted. Although this was the first I'd heard of his scheme, I wish him well. His determination is infectious, and the Keep the Mariners Afloat campaign (which Fenty also mentions) would have benefited from half of the same energy and drive.

Any new publication, printed or on the web, that encourages interest in Town and debate on any issues surrounding the club is to be applauded. It is shame, then, that overall BAWC lacks the wit, humour, and verve of even off-day issues of early SWWFs. More a bog read than a settee read, it feels quite disposable. Given some of the points brought up in the interviews, I was left wondering if some space would have been better dedicated to offering up some reaction. There is a topicality missing which the best football fanzines always tap in to. Some pieces seem like they've been written at the last minute to fill a gap.

But it is only a quid, less than half the cost of the club's matchday magazine. If I had to choose between the two - which editor Jake Olley is aiming for - I'd go for BAWC. And the economy issue aside, BAWC does have a feeling for the club, a degree of love absent from the sterile official programme. Issue two will at least be worth reading for the upcoming Russell Slade interview - and refer back to Fenty's assertions regarding the bald one's departure in the current issue. This issue contains some shining lights but too many 'if only's. Maybe the next offering will look to improve on this. Overall: three stars out of five.