| Revision as of 16:07, 12 April 2009 editPontificalibus (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers21,086 editsm Reverted 2 edits by 1234reasons identified as vandalism to last revision by Pontificalibus. (TW)← Previous edit | Revision as of 20:04, 12 April 2009 edit undo12345reasons (talk | contribs)1 edit I have added a sentence on Millwalls' position.Tag: blankingNext edit → | ||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
| Millwall are rubbish! So why are you looking at this page?!? | |||
| {{infobox football club | | |||
| |image= ] | | |||
| |clubname= Millwall| | |||
| |fullname= Millwall Football Club | | |||
| |nickname= The Lions, previously The Dockers| | |||
| |founded= ] | | |||
| |ground= ]| | |||
| |capacity= 20,146 | | |||
| |chairman= {{flagicon|United States}} ]| | |||
| |manager= {{flagicon|Wales}} ]| | |||
| |mgrtitle= Manager| | |||
| |league= ] | | |||
| |season= ] | | |||
| |position= League One, 17th | | |||
| |pattern_la1=|pattern_b1=_white_right_shoulder|pattern_ra1=| | |||
| |leftarm1=0033FF|body1=0033FF|rightarm1=0033FF|shorts1=FFFFFF|socks1=0033FF| | |||
| |pattern_la2=|pattern_b2=|pattern_ra2=| | |||
| |leftarm2=ffffff|body2=ffffff|rightarm2=ffffff|shorts2=000000|socks2=000000|}} | |||
| '''Millwall Football Club''' is an ] ] team based at ], in ], ]. They currently play in ]. Despite their best efforts of recent years, the club has an enduring reputation for having some of the most violent supporters in English football. <ref>Chris Roberts, Heavy Words Lightly Thrown: The Reason Behind Rhyme, Thorndike Press,2006 (ISBN 0-7862-8517-6)</ref> | |||
| The team nickname is ''The Lions'', previously, ''The Dockers''. They changed the nickname after being referred to as "Lions" for their acts of giant killing in their ] run of 1900, when they reached the semi final. They adopted a lion emblem, and the motto: ''We Fear No Foe Where E'er We Go''. The emblem, however, was not added to their shirts until 1936. They also reached the semi final in 1903, and 1937, while they went one better and reached the final in 2004, losing to ]. Their 1937 appearance was notable as they became the first team in the old third division to reach the last four, knocking out three ] sides on the way, including ] who were defeated in front of Millwall's official record crowd of 48,762, with hundreds more locked out<ref>Bethell, C, Sullian, D, Millwall Football Club 1885-1939</ref>. Their original now defunct nickname, "The ]s", emanated from the occupation of the club's supporters. Millwall were the only club up to the early 1960s allowed to kick-off home games at 3.15pm, instead of 3pm, to allow the dockers and ]s to finish the morning shift and arrive on time<ref>Murray, J, Lions of the South</ref>. In recent years the club has started to once again recognise its unique link with ] by introducing 'Docker Days', and archiving the club's dock roots in the Millwall FC Museum. | |||
| Their ] strip consists of blue shirts, white shorts and blue socks. Their current strip is blue shirts, white shorts with blue trim and blue socks. | |||
| ==History== | |||
| {{Splitsection|History of Millwall F.C.|date=August 2008}} | |||
| ===Formation=== | |||
| Millwall "Rovers" were founded by the workers of J.T. Morton in ] in the ] on the ] in 1885. J.T. Morton was first founded in ], ] in 1849 to supply sailing ships with food. They opened their first English ] and food processing plant on the Isle of Dogs at the ] in 1870, and attracted a workforce from across the whole of the country, including the East Coast of ] who were predominantly Dundee Dockers. | |||
| The club ] was seventeen year old Jasper Sexton, the son of the ] of ''The Islander'' ] in Tooke Street where Millwall held their meetings. The first ] of the club was ] international footballer and local ] Doctor William Murray-Leslie, who surprisingly never played for the club. | |||
| Millwall Rovers' first fixture was in 1885 against Fillebrook, who played in ]. The newly formed team was well beaten 5–0. Learning from this early defeat, they were unbeaten in their next 12 games before they lost to the top ] side Old St Pauls. In their first season, they were only beaten three times. In November 1886, the ] was formed, and along with it came a Senior Cup Competition. Millwall made it to the final against London Caledonians. The game was played at the ]. The match finished 2–2 and the teams shared the cup for six months each. During this season, Millwall played two games on the same day, both at home. The first was a 0–0 draw against Dreadnought in the morning; the second, a 4–1 win against Westminster Swifts in the afternoon. | |||
| Despite an 8–1 defeat in the ], Millwall went on to win the ] at the first attempt. They went on to win it for the following two years and the trophy became their property. | |||
| ===Formation of the Southern League=== | |||
| Millwall, (now playing under the name of "Millwall Athletic"), went on to become founder members of the ] which they won for the first two years of its existence and were runners up in its third. In those days, ] was in its infancy and consisted mainly of northern clubs such as ], ], ] and ]. In the south, the Southern League was not only seen as a rival league, but as prestigious. Millwall were also the ] Champions in 1908 and 1909. | |||
| Millwall played on a variety of grounds on the ]. It was not unusual for Millwall to attract thirty or forty thousand spectators to a game, especially at their second ground at East Ferry Road. This was quite an achievement, given that travelling facilities were sparse. | |||
| ===The Den=== | |||
| ]]] | |||
| Their most famous ] at ], ], which they moved to in 1910. They had previously occupied no fewer than four separate grounds on the Isle Of Dogs in the 25 years since their formation as a football club. Tom Thorne, the director in charge, had sought the help of architect ] and builders Humphries of ]. The estimated cost of The Den was £10,000. The first match was on Saturday 22 October 1910 against the reigning Southern League Champions ], who spoiled the celebrations by winning 0–1. The price of the official Match Programme was ]. Unfortunately, the opening ceremony also suffered a slight hitch when it was discovered that ], had inadvertently gone to the Canterbury (Ilderton) Road end. He had to be unceremoniously hauled, pushed, and pulled over the wall into the ground. After rushing to the other end (Cold Blow Lane) the President of the ] performed a brief opening ritual and led the players onto the pitch. Before kick off a brass lion, inscribed (in ]) ''"We Will Never Turn Our Backs To The Enemy"'', was presented to the club. However the official Club Motto was already established. The first and second editions of the club handbook (published ] and ]) bore the slogan: ''"No one likes us and we don't care".'' It was here that the infamous ''Millwall Roar'' was born. During this era, it was considered "good form" for home fans to show their appreciation of good football displayed by the opposition. The Millwall fans however, would quite literally "roar" for only their team, from start to finish. This strongly partisan support was soon to be regarded by the team as "a goal start." The Den became one of the most feared grounds in the country due to the fact no team liked to play there, because the crowd and the place itself created such an stomach turning atmosphere. Many supporters from the ] continued to follow The Lions in the early years after their move south of the ] by walking through the ] to join the supporters drawn mainly from the ]. The Lions fans were rough, uncompromising, quick to open their mouth's to the team and officials. They came from a background of poverty, hard work and danger where toughness was necessary for survival. Anyone visiting The Den thinking that southerners were soft, soon realised they were in the wrong part of London. | |||
| The Den also hosted a full ] international match against ] on March 13 1911. England won the game 3–0. | |||
| ===The Football League=== | |||
| Millwall's first ] match at The Den was on ] ]. They beat ] 2–0. This victory over Rovers was the Lions' seventh successive win against them since moving to The Den. The game was played in the Football League Division 3 South of which Millwall were founder members. | |||
| They became known as a hard-fighting Cup team and competed in various memorable matches, notably defeating three-time league winners (and reigning champions) ] 3–1 in the third round of the FA Cup in 1927. Matches against ], ] and others that saw packed crowds of forty-eight thousand plus in the 1930s and 1940s. However, it can be argued that the biggest cup upset came in the fourth round of the FA Cup on 26 January 1957, when Millwall beat the then mighty ] 2–1, watched by a crowd of 45,646, at a time when The Lions were fighting for Third Division survival. Millwall were the tenth best supported team in England in the pre-war years, despite being a Third, then Second Division side. Many thought they would go on to become one of England's best clubs, that is until the Second World War cruelly robbed them of their chance. | |||
| Millwall at this stage, had dropped the title of "Athletic", and were playing as they do today, under the name of "Millwall F.C." | |||
| ===Wartime exploits=== | |||
| On April 7 1945, Millwall appeared in a ] at Wembley against ], but because it was an unofficial Wartime Cup Final it is not acknowledged in the record books. With the War in Europe in its last days, there was a relaxation on the number of spectators allowed to attend games. The attendance was 90,000, which is the largest crowd Millwall have ever played in front of. Despite being favourites to win, Millwall played poorly and lost 2–0 to Chelsea. To this day Lions fans who were at the game blame the "guest players" in the Millwall side, and Sam Bartram, the ] ], in particular. Despite having won the Cup which was presented by ], the Chelsea post match celebrations soon "fizzled out", and most of their players ended up at the Millwall party, which continued well into the early hours of the morning. | |||
| With the loss of so many young men during the Second World War it was difficult for all clubs to retain their former status. This was especially true for Millwall, who appeared to suffer more than most. From being one of the country's biggest clubs before the war, Millwall were reduced to one of its smallest afterwards. The Den sustained severe bomb damage during ]. A ] bomb hit The North Terrace on April 19, 1943 and on 26 April, a fire destroyed the main stand. The club accepted offers from neighbours ], ] and ] to stage games. On 24 February 1944 Millwall returned to The Den, to play in an all-standing stadium. This was achieved, in part, with considerable volunteer labour by the Lions fans. | |||
| After the war, rationing in ] continued and Millwall were refused permission by the ] to construct a new two tier stand, despite having procured all the materials. They had to wait until 1948, when permission was granted to build a smaller single tier stand two thirds the length of the pitch, with a forecourt terrace at the front. | |||
| Archibald Leitch's "trademark gables" were never replaced. | |||
| ===In the doldrums=== | |||
| Their form during the 1950s was poor, and they suffered relegation on a regular basis. One highlight during this period was on October 5, 1953, when Millwall played ] to mark the opening of their floodlights. A crowd of 25,000 saw The Lions beat The Red Devils 2–1. In the 1958-59 season, Millwall became founder members of Division Four. It wasn't until the early 1960s that things began to change. During this time, they discovered a number of useful players, such as winger ] and ] ]. Stepney later went on to fame with Manchester United, winning a ] Winners medal in 1968. | |||
| ===The class of '71=== | |||
| Later in the decade, Millwall established an incredible record of 59 home games without defeat from: 22 August 1964 to 14 January 1967. This was thanks largely to managers Billy Gray, who laid the foundations, and ], a former player who continued to build on Gray's side. All the players were presented with a commemorative ] cigarette lighter by ]. In the early 1970s Millwall boasted a truly great side, now remembered by Lions fans as "The Class of '71". This was a team that boasted the inspirational ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], ], and more. They lost out on promotion to the old Division One by just one point. In 1974 Millwall hosted the first game to be played on a Sunday (against ]). To get around the law at the time, admission was gained by "Programme Only". On production of a matchday magazine, the bearer was then sold a team sheet bearing the words "Official Programme". The programme was sold for the same price as admission to the ground. Millwall repeated this exercise against Fulham on 25 April 1982, hosting the second game to be played on a Sunday. | |||
| Millwall are also the only club to be unbeaten at home in four different divisions: | |||
| 1927-28 Division 3 (South), 1964-65 Division Four, 1965-66 Division Three, 1971-72 Division Two, | |||
| 1984-85 Division Three. | |||
| ===George Graham=== | |||
| ] was Millwall manager from 1983 to 1986, and during that time he guided the club to promotion to the ]. Millwall also won the ], beating ] 2–3. It was during this game that Graham spotted a talented young Lincoln ], ], who signed for Millwall and was an F.A Cup winner with his next club, Wimbledon. In the 1984-85 season Millwall knocked ] out of the FA Cup. This was a Leicester side that boasted ] and ], but Millwall showed tremendous discipline and ended up winning 2–0. Graham left to begin a successful nine-year spell as ] manager. | |||
| Reflecting on his time as the Millwall manager Graham informed the ]: "The Millwall fans reminded me of home. The ground may have been a bit spartan, but I soon realised that the fans were in a different class. In fact, their passion for the game reminded me of my days in ]. The people up there are really fanatical about their football, they eat it and sleep it, and the Millwall fans were exactly the same. That was something I wasn't used to, because I thought that in general, southerners were less passionate. I learned so much". | |||
| ===The First Division at long last=== | |||
| Graham's replacement was ] ], previously a manager at ] and ]. In his second season as manager, Millwall surprised observers by winning the Second Division ] and gained promotion to the top flight of English football for the first time in their history. Millwall had been the only professional team in London never to have played in the top flight. Docherty stated at the time: "The full enormity of what we had achieved struck home that night as we celebrated with the players and fans. When ] and I went into the ''Royal Archer'' with the Championship Trophy, I think most of our fans thought that I was a cardboard cut-out! They couldn't believe that we wanted to have a drink with them and let them hold the Trophy, but for me, that sort of moment is what the game is all about". During this season, Millwall were the first club to open a ] in the Football League. Millwall were also voted "Community Club Of The Year". | |||
| Millwall had a good start to the 1988-89 ] campaign, topping the League on October 1 1988 having played 6 games- winning 4, drawing 2, losing 0 and rarely being out of the top five before ]. This was mainly due to their deadly strike force of ] and ], also, ] and team ] ] who totally dominated the Millwall ]. Cascarino was signed from ] for £225,000. Sheringham began his professional career at Millwall in 1982 at the age of sixteen, after impressing a scout when playing for ] during a youth team game against Millwall. The first ] transmission of a Millwall game was on 22 January 1989. The TV cameras picked out a ] bearing the slogan "It's Taken You Long Enough To Find The Den!" Viewers were treated to a 5 goal thriller in which Millwall were beaten 2–3 by ] thanks to a spectacular ] goal scored deep into injury time against the run of play. During the post match interview, Docherty, instead of criticing the referee's addition of 6 minutes injury time (as the commentary team had done), chose to praise the quality of the young ]'s goal. Millwall's first top division season ended with a tenth place finish, which was the lowest place occupied by the club all season. They also briefly led the league for one night in September 1989 after beating ] 4–1, but won only two more games all season and were ] in bottom place at the end of the 1989-90 campaign. | |||
| ===Life outside the top flight=== | |||
| Just before relegation was confirmed, John Docherty was sacked and replaced by ex-] manager ]. Striker Teddy Sheringham, who later played for the ] team and was the highest scoring player throughout the Football League in 1990-91, was sold to ] for £2,000,000 after Millwall's defeat in the Second Division playoffs. | |||
| Rioch left Millwall in 1992 to be succeeded by ] ] ]. McCarthy guided Millwall to third place in the new Division One at the end of the 1993-94 season. This was their first season at the new ground, also known as ], which was opened by the Labour Party leader ] on 4 August 1993. They also knocked ] out of the FA Cup in the 3rd round, beating them 2–0, with a spectacular goal coming from young ] ], ], but they lost to ] in the playoff semi finals. Mark Kennedy was sold to ] in March 1994 for £2,300,000. McCarthy resigned to take charge of the ] on 5 February 1996, shortly after Millwall had been knocked off the top of the Division One table by ] after a 6–0 defeat. The new ground was the first new football stadium to be built in London since the Second World War. | |||
| ===Another slump=== | |||
| ] of ] was appointed as McCarthy's replacement, but could not address the slump in form which saw Millwall relegated at the end of the season in 22nd place. Just five months before this they had been top of Division One. Instead Millwall found themselves in Division Two for the ]. The club also experienced extreme financial difficulties that resulted in them being placed in ] for a short time. Jimmy Nicholl was relieved of his duties and John Docherty returned on a short term basis to stabilise the club at playing level. | |||
| The club came out of administration, and new chairman ] appointed ex-] (Millwall's bitter rivals ) manager ] as manager. Paphitis proposed that Millwall should play in grey shirts, but after fans objected he relented and Millwall's home colours became all white, with a blue away strip. He also dispensed with the ''Rampant Lion'' crest. An ongoing campaign was launched to have the ''Rampant Lion'' restored to the Millwall Shirt. This was not a successful season, with the club hovering close to relegation to the ]. Bonds was sacked and replaced by ], with ] as his assistant. McLeary was promoted to joint manager. Millwall's blue "home" shirts were reinstated. | |||
| Keith Stevens and Alan McLeary led Millwall to their first ever official ] appearance. The Lions reached the final with a Golden Goal win against ] in the Semi-Finals, and a 2–1 aggregate victory over ] in the Regional Final. They faced ] in the ]. However, Millwall, who were playing in front of 49,000 of their own fans lost by a single injury time goal. Millwall also lost on aggregate to Wigan in the 2nd Division play-off semi finals in 2000. | |||
| Early in 2007, members of Millwall Supporters Club voted overwhelmingly for the ''Rampant Lion'' to be reintroduced. The Millwall Board agreed to abide by the vote and it has been in use since the start of the 2007/8 season <ref>http://www.millwallfc.premiumtv.co.uk/page/NewsDetail/0,,10367~825487,00.html</ref> | |||
| ===Promotion=== | |||
| ] was named as Millwall's new manager in September 2000, and eight months later the club won promotion as Division Two ] after five years in the lower tier of the league. Winning the first match of the season 4–0 at home to ] set the team up well for a good season in which Millwall qualified for the Division One playoffs, but lost to eventual winners ] 0–1 in the semi finals. This meant that they missed out on a second successive promotion, which would have given them a place in the ]. Millwall missed out on a playoff place in 2002-03 and McGhee was sacked soon after the start of the 2003-04 season. | |||
| ===FA Cup final=== | |||
| In 2003 ], ex-] and ] player, became caretaker, and subsequently permanent player-manager, of the club. In his first season in charge Wise led the club to the first ] final in their history (excluding the 1945 War Cup Final). When Millwall took to the field at the ] they were only the second team from outside the top flight to play in the final since 1982, and were the first team from outside the ] to reach the final since its foundation in 1992. They were also missing no less than sixteen players from their squad due to suspension or injury. They played the Cup final on ] ], losing 3–0 to ]. As Manchester United had already qualified for the ], Millwall were assured of playing in the ] ]. Millwall midfielder ], substituted for Wise with one minute of normal time remaining, became the youngest Cup Final player in history at 17 years 119 days, beating the 125 year old record of ]. Dennis Wise also insisted that the injured ] and ] be presented with medals. | |||
| ===Foray into Europe=== | |||
| In the ], Millwall lost 4–2 on aggregate in the first round proper, to ] Champions ], with Wise scoring both Millwall goals. | |||
| Millwall put up a brave fight in both games, but the Hungarian champions were too strong. Surprisingly, whilst Millwall were seeded, Ferencvaros were not. Millwall could have had an easier draw, against ] minnows ]. If Millwall had beaten them, then they would have made it into the group stage of the competition, where they would have faced some of Europe's elite, including teams such as ] and ]. | |||
| ===Change of hands=== | |||
| In 2005 Theo Paphitis announced that he was stepping down as chairman of the club with Jeff Burnige to replace him from May 2005. At the end of the 2004-05 season, manager Dennis Wise announced that he was leaving as he was unable to form a working relationship with the new chairman. | |||
| ===Another change of hands=== | |||
| On 21 June 2005 ] (Millwall forward 2001-03) was announced as the new player/manager of Millwall FC. However, when Burnige then stepped down just two months after taking up the post, it was announced on 27 July that Claridge had been sacked after 36 days, without ever taking charge of the team in a competitive match. | |||
| ===A leap into misery=== | |||
| Former ], ] and ] manager ] replaced him but lasted only five months in charge of the club. On 21 December, with the club bottom of the Championship, he became the club's Director of Football and was replaced as manager by 32-year-old player ], on a short-term contract until the end of the season. Tuttle had no prior experience in football management. In February 2006, Colin Lee left the club altogether. Millwall experienced a very difficult season, possibly as a consequence of having had no fewer than four managers in 2005. Their relegation to ] was confirmed on Monday 17 April 2006 with a 2–0 loss against ]. | |||
| Ironically, sacked manager ] had spoken to ] on the 13th of April stating, "I was treated absolutely disgracefully at Millwall, for people to come out and say after I'd gone and say, he had to go, we could have got relegated - well, they have done really well since I left, haven't they?" | |||
| Tuttle was unable to save Millwall from relegation to League One and resigned from the job as a result on 20 April 2006. Goalkeeping coach Tony Burns and Alan McLeary took charge for the two remaining games of the season. | |||
| Millwall won one and lost one of their two remaining games, with caretaker manager McLeary fielding teams whose average age was just twenty one. They were officially relegated to ] in 23rd place on Sunday 30 April 2006. | |||
| McLeary subsequently left the club, remaining an agent following his ] against ]. Burns joined South London rivals ]. However, he was recently re-appointed Goalkeeping Coach as part of Kenny Jackett's coaching staff. | |||
| On 1 May 2006, the New Den hosted the ] Final between ] and ]. Arsenal Ladies won the Cup 5–0. | |||
| ===A change at the top=== | |||
| In March 2006, Millwall appointed their first Fan On The ] (FOTB). After being elected by members of the (MSC), was appointed to a two year term. | |||
| On ] ], lifelong Millwall supporter ] became the new Chairman of Millwall Football Club, with ] remaining as chair of the Holding Company, (Millwall holdings plc).{{aim|MWH}} New Executive Deputy Chair ] oversaw the running of the company. On ] ], ] was announced as the new manager of Millwall Football Club. Spackman failed to make an impact at the South London club after a run of only 2 competitive wins out of 8 games (up to and including 9/9/2006.) In September 2006, Theo Paphitis (chairman from 1997 to 2005) ended his 9-year association with the club after a year spell as a non-executive director of The Lions. | |||
| On ] ] Spackman left the club by mutual consent after five successive defeats, placing assistant ] in temporary charge, and leaving Millwall second from bottom in League One. | |||
| On ] ], ] stepped down as Chairman of Millwall Holdings plc, promoting ] to the position. | |||
| On ] ], ] was appointed manager on permanent basis. | |||
| On ] ], Donachie received a two-year contract as reward for excellent progress which had seen the club climb to 11th place in the league. | |||
| Before Donachie took charge, Millwall had taken only six points from their first ten games. Club Chairman ] told the Millwall website: "This achievement speaks for itself." | |||
| However, the start of the ] saw Millwall bottom of the table at the beginning of October. Willie Donachie and assistant ] were both sacked on ], with ] and Colin West becoming caretaker managers. | |||
| The Millwall board appointed ] Manager of Millwall Football Club on ] ]. Despite losing their last game of the season 2-1 away to ] on 3 May 2008, Millwall had already secured their League One status with a 3–0 home win against ] the previous week. Millwall finished in 17th place with 52 points. <ref></ref> | |||
| Millwall currently lie in 3rd place in ] with 76 points. | |||
| ===Regeneration, Sports City and American investment=== | |||
| In 2006, Millwall's ] unveiled an ambitious scheme to regenerate the area surrounding The New Den backed by new investors. | |||
| Sports City is to become a major redevolpment of housing and a hotel with the football ground a central point. | |||
| In March 2007 ], led by John G Berylson, who have interests in business and financial services, retail, property and sport invested £5m into the club. In addition to this investment, a further £1.5m was raised from investment from other parties and existing directors of the company and former chairman Peter de Savary invested another £500,000. | |||
| ], became the club's biggest shareholder, buying 15% of shares in Millwall Holdings plc, invested £1million as part of the package. | |||
| Berylson became non-executive chairman of Millwall Holdings plc and a director of the club, while his colleague Demos Kouvaris joined both boards. | |||
| "This is tremendous news for Millwall and our fans," said Heather Rabbatts, who will continue to run the club in the role of executive deputy chairman. | |||
| Millwall FC are currently one of the best supported teams in League One, and will be hoping to regain their place in the Championship in the near future, and hopefully use the re-generation of the area around the ground to push on to bigger and better things. | |||
| In the wake of calls by Graham Ferguson Lacey to the Millwall board to hold an extraordinary general meeting, requests which the Millwall board twice refused, claiming Lacey's proposals are "vexatious and ineffective", a date was set for 2 July 2008. | |||
| Chief executive Heather Rabbatts said: "Mr Lacey has left us with little choice so we have decided to call a general meeting as this will result in lesser costs than going to court. | |||
| "Nevertheless, this is still a highly-damaging exercise we are being forced into and will cost the club many thousands of pounds when we can least afford it." | |||
| A week before the EGM, Chestnut Hill Ventures, the company of Lions chairman John Berylson, converted a £2.3m loan into shares in Millwall PLC - thereby becoming the club's major shareholder. | |||
| Fellow directors Constantine Gonticas, Trevor Keyse and Stewart Till also converted a combined sum of £200,000 into shares. | |||
| Berylson and the rest of the board hold a combined stake of 36.66% in the club, while Lacey's share has dropped to around 22.2%. | |||
| On 2 July 2008, Chairman ] won the support of 46,000 shareholder supporters at the crucial shareholders meeting, who voted against motions that would have tied his hands on major decisions concerning regeneration around The Den. Lacey who had foisted the meeting on the Millwall Board, did not turn up<ref></ref> | |||
| ===Summer signings=== | |||
| During July 2008 there was some controversy over the signings that Kenny Jackett made, as there were few promising young strikers other than ]. Some of these concerns were dispelled after ] found the net frequently through-out pre-season. | |||
| The signings of ], ], ] and Grimes have given Millwall fans hope of winning promotion this season and Tony Craig showed his loyalty to the club by stating: "I'm home" on the Millwall web site. | |||
| Harris and ] both agreed terms on new contracts in June. It took Harris a lot longer to decide as it meant him accepting a drop in wages of almost half of what he earned the previous season. | |||
| Jackett also signed ] on a six month loan deal from ] on 6 August. | |||
| Further into the season due to injuries to players like ] Jackett signed out of favour striker ] from ] on an initial one month loan deal, and former ] striker ] on a short term contract after being released from his contract by spanish side ]. | |||
| ==Millwall supporters== | |||
| Millwall are indeed a well supported club for their size and status. They have, however, had a long and notorious history of football ]. Their ], known as the '']'' ]''] were one of the most notorious of all hooligan gangs. However, the police, especially in the local Lewisham borough, are supportive of the club and recognise that any problems now emanate from a very small minority. ] Archie Torrance of ] Police has stated, "Millwall have our full support." He continues to work hard with the club to keep the ground the safe place that it now is. Informed media commentators including ], Paul Casella the editor of the leading Millwall ] ''The Lion Roars'', ] and ] also believe that Millwall's hooligan problems are to a certain extent greatly exaggerated, and that such wilful exaggeration has led to a siege mentality among the decent, law abiding fans, who are a constant easy target for both press and media alike. Examples of this include: ] footage of their hooligan element's past bad behaviour being shown, when disorder has occurred at other grounds, not involving them. During a game between Millwall and ], ] reported that a Huddersfield Town fan had thrown a coin at a linesman, and that some Millwall fans had intervened, and handed the culprit over to police. The ], however, bore the headline: "Millwall Thugs Deck Linesman With Concrete". These, and many other similar incidents, gave rise to the Millwall fans' famous song; ] being sung in defiant defence of themselves, and their team. | |||
| A former Chairman of the club, Reg Burr, once commented; "Millwall are a convenient coat peg | |||
| for football to hang its social ills on."<ref>{{cite video | |||
| |people = pr: Norma Spence | |||
| |date2 = | |||
| |month2 = | |||
| |year2 = 1989 | |||
| |title = No One Likes Us - We Don't Care | |||
| |format = | |||
| |medium = VHS | |||
| |publisher = WORKING PICTURES (MILLWALL) LTD for ] | |||
| }}</ref> | |||
| Having said this, hooligans attaching themselves to Millwall were involved in a riot away from the ground, after a play off game against ] in May 2002, which was described by the ] as one of the worst cases of civil disorder seen in ] in the recent past. A ] spokeswoman said that 47 policemen and 24 police horses were injured, and the Metropolitan Police considered suing Millwall after the events. | |||
| The then Chairman, ], stated that Millwall Football Club could not be blamed for the actions of a mindless minority who attach themselves to the club. He then went on to introduce a Membership Scheme, whereby only fans who would be prepared to join and carry membership cards, would be allowed into The New Den. Scotland Yard withdrew its threat to sue stating: "In light of the efforts made and a donation to a charity helping injured police officers, the Metropolitan Police Service has decided not to pursue legal action against Millwall F.C. in relation to the disorder". | |||
| Legal experts believed it would have been difficult to hold a football club responsible for something that occurred away from its ground and involved people who did not attend the match. The scheme introduced by Paphitis still applies, but for away games only. Many Millwall fans blame Paphitis' scheme for diminishing Millwall's support at away games. | |||
| Their behaviour at the 2004 FA Cup Final was exemplary, with the ] police reporting no arrests of any of the Millwall Supporters. | |||
| The overwhelming majority of Millwall's supporters are peaceful if avid fans. One notable supporter is the clubs chaplain Frater Canon Owen Beament MBE, who regularly prays for the club from his pulpit at All Saints Parish Church, New Cross Gate. Frater Owen has been known to delegate Saturday weddings to junior clergy if they clash with the club's home games. | |||
| ==Current squad== | |||
| :''As of 21st February 2009.'' | |||
| {{football squad start}} | |||
| {{fs player| no= 1 | nat=Ireland | pos=GK | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no= 2 | nat=England | pos=DF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no= 3 | nat=England | pos=DF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no= 4 | nat=England | pos=MF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no= 5 | nat=England | pos=DF | name=]}} | |||
| {{fs player| no= 6 | nat=USA | pos=DF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no= 7 | nat=Ireland | pos=MF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no= 8 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no= 9 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no=10 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no=11 | nat=England | pos=MF | name=]|other=on loan from ]}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=12 | nat=England | pos=MF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no=13 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=]|other=on loan from ]}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=14 | nat=Wales | pos=DF | name=]}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=15 | nat=England | pos=DF | name=]}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=16 | nat=England | pos=DF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs mid}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=18 | nat=Croatia | pos=MF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no=19 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=]}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=20 | nat=England | pos=MF | name=]}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=21 | nat=England | pos=MF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no=22 | nat=Ghana | pos=MF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no=23 | nat=England | pos=GK | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no=24 | nat=Scotland| pos=MF | name=] }} | |||
| {{fs player| no=26 | nat=France | pos=MF | name=]}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=28 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=]}}''(on loan from ])'' | |||
| {{fs player| no=29 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=Darren Ebsworth}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=30 | nat=England | pos=DF | name=]}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=36 | nat=Ireland | pos=DF | name=]}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=37 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=Gary Bowes}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=38 | nat=England | pos=FW | name=Lyle Taylor}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=39 | nat=England | pos=GK | name=Laurie Walker}} | |||
| {{fs player| no=40 | nat=England | pos=GK | name=]}} | |||
| {{football squad end}} | |||
| ==Legend XI== | |||
| ==Notable former players== | |||
| {| | |||
| |valign="top"| | |||
| ;Australia | |||
| *{{flagicon|Australia}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Australia}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Australia}} ] | |||
| ;Barbados | |||
| *{{flagicon|Barbados}} ] | |||
| ;Brazil | |||
| *{{flagicon|Brazil}} ] | |||
| ;England | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| |width="33"| | |||
| |valign="top"| | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|England}} ] | |||
| |width="33"| | |||
| |valign="top"| | |||
| ;Republic of Ireland | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Republic of Ireland}} ] | |||
| ;Scotland | |||
| *{{flagicon|Scotland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Scotland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Scotland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Scotland}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Scotland}} ] | |||
| ;Trinidad & Tobago | |||
| *{{flagicon|Trinidad and Tobago}} ] | |||
| |width="33"| | |||
| |valign="top"| | |||
| ;United States of America | |||
| *{{flagicon|USA}} ] | |||
| ;Wales | |||
| *{{Flagicon|Wales}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Wales}} ] | |||
| *{{flagicon|Wales}} ] | |||
| |} | |||
| ==Honours== | |||
| *''']''' (second tier) | |||
| **'''Champions''': 1987-88 | |||
| *''']''' (third tier) | |||
| **'''Champions''': 1927-28, 1937-38 (then ]), 2000-01 (by then known as the Second Division) | |||
| *''']''' (fourth tier) | |||
| **'''Champions''': 1961-62 | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **Best performance: '''Round 1''' (2004-05) | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **'''Runners-up''': 2004. | |||
| **'''Semi Finalists''': 1900, 1903, 1937. | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **Best performance: '''Quarter-finals''' (1973-74, 1976-77, 1994-95) | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **'''Winners:''' 1982-83 | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **Best performance: '''Quarter-finals''' (1988-89) | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **'''Runners-up''': 1999 | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **'''Runners-up''': 1945. | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **'''Winners:''' 1979, 1991. | |||
| **'''Runners-up:''' 1994. | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **'''Champions:''' 1895, 1896. | |||
| **'''Runners-up:''' 1897. | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **'''Champions:''' 1908, 1909. | |||
| * '''United League''' | |||
| **'''Champions:''' 1897, 1899. | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **'''Champions:''' 1904. | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **'''Winners:''' 1887, 1888, 1889. | |||
| *''']''' | |||
| **'''Joint Winners:''' 1886. | |||
| ==Notes== | |||
| {{reflist}} | |||
| ==References== | |||
| *Lions of the South, James Murray, Millwall Football Club. Indispensible Publicatations and Millwall F.C. 1988. ISBN 1871220017 | |||
| *Millwall 1910 - 1993. Goodbye to The Den. Deano Standing and Rob Bowden. 1993. Sports and Leisure Print Limited ], ] | |||
| *The Millwall History Files | |||
| ==External links== | |||
| *{{BBC Football Info|BBClinkname=m/millwall}} | |||
| * | |||
| * | |||
| * | |||
| * | |||
| * | |||
| Fan Sites: | |||
| * | |||
| * | |||
| {{fb start}} | |||
| {{Football League One}} | |||
| {{fb end}} | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
| ] | |||
Revision as of 20:04, 12 April 2009
Millwall are rubbish! So why are you looking at this page?!?