Safeguard the future by learning the lessons of the past | OneFootball

Time goes fast when you reach a certain age.

If like me, you’re in your very very late thirties, chances are you’ll agree that the year 2000 doesn’t seem like that long ago, in spite of considerable evidence pointing to the fact it’s almost 25 years since the Millennium.

There could be people reading this who weren’t even born then but are married with kids now.

My own daughter was born in 2012 and she’s now been here for more of this millennium than she hasn’t, which seems crackers to me, as it was surely just a couple of years since I was wandering into the RVI with a car seat and a hangover, to fetch her and her mam home.

Anyway, what am I on about this for?

Well, the year 2000 has relevance in light of recent events, because that was the last time Newcastle played Wimbledon, a time delay that has been stretched slightly by a week, after the flooding at Plough Lane that cause the rearrangement (and relocation) of the Carabao cup tie. It only really occurred to me when doing the sums above that anyone under 30 will have no memory of the Dons as an opponent, so I thought I’d do a bit of a run down.

For most of their history Wimbledon were a non-league club, representing a part of South West London that is probably better known for tennis, before making it up to the football league in the late seventies. What followed was a fairytale rise under manager Dave Bassett, as the Dons reached the top flight within ten years. A couple of years later, they created a massive upset in winning the FA Cup, knocking out Newcastle at SJP in round five, en route to shocking Liverpool in the final.

This was the high point of Wimbledon’s 14 year stay in the top flight, which would transform into the Premier League during their tenure. They were always a nightmare for Newcastle to play against (and many others) as they maintained a long-ball, tough tackling style, setting the tone for games with a ghetto blaster in their changing room. The likes of Vinnie Jones and John Fashanu grew infamous as the club earned the nickname “the Crazy Gang.” Unable to afford to redevelop and upgrade the original Plough Lane, they ended up ground sharing with Crystal Palace. As the Premier League grew in profile, they were just starting to grow their attendances when relegation struck and with it, disaster.

I don’t think many tears were shed when Wimbledon left the Premier, especially up here, as we had zero away wins in all our visits to their various homes. However, events that followed ensured the club earned the sympathy and goodwill of the wider football community.

In 2003, new owners bought Wimbledon and moved the club lock, stock to Milton Keynes, affecting the moniker Milton Keynes Dons, leaving nothing for the people of the club’s original community. The Football League initially refused to allow this move but appeals and tribunals were used to force the move ahead.

Undeterred, the original Wimbledon fans formed a phoenix club, AFC Wimbledon, and started again in the ninth tier of English football. The profile of the club allowed them to swiftly gather momentum and within eight years Wimbledon were once again promoted to the football league. A particularly sweet moment for Dons fans must have been meeting and beating Milton Keynes in League One in 2016-17, both clubs now operating at the same level despite the latter’s attempt to destroy the old club’s very existence. In fact, prior to our aborted League cup tie, Wimbledon were surfing the crest of a wave after smashing MK 3-0, both sides once again occupying the same division in League Two.

It is this resilience in the fact of adversity that has given Wimbledon a bit of a place in the affections of many supporters of other clubs. It’s likely this feeling that saw such a positive response to the fundraiser launched to repair their (supporter-owned) ground. Hopefully the 315k donated by NUFC, added to the split gate receipts for what is looking like a sell-out, will be a huge help in getting things back on track.

So, it’s a bit of a weird one when United welcome the Wombles on Tuesday, as there seems to be inconsistency in records.

Is this the same Wimbledon that won the cup in 1988, with whom we shared 23 largely miserable fixtures between 1986 and 2000?

In my mind it is and I’m sure I read something a few years back where MK had returned all historical documents, trophies and remaining evidence of the old club to AFC Wimbledon, effectively transferring the legacy back to where it should be.

Despite this chequered history, I’m sure Newcastle United fans will give them a warm welcome on Tuesday. These are proper fans of a club that have been through it in a way us big club workie tickets can’t even imagine.

One particular NUFC YouTuber created a bit of a stir in a video shot around Plough Lane the other day. Having stayed down after the Fulham game, he was marching around the stadium filming slightly wet things and shouting abuse, effectively blaming Wimbledon for allowing a set-up where this could happen. A bit unwise in an area you’ve no expertise in and it has seemingly proved a massive own goal, as other Newcastle United fans, as well as neutrals, have found the YouTuber’s actions distasteful when the fan-owned club face major issues to deal with beyond a mere cup tie.

I sympathise with anyone who had plans to travel, as recouping costs from cancelled games can be a lost cause, but hopefully most don’t hold it against the home club. Even if you do, or for whatever reason you don’t subscribe to the goodwill around this, you should stand back and take in a cautionary tale.

In recent years, the scourge of American ownership has subtly pushed the Premier League as a worldwide product. It feels like every few weeks some ten-gallon hatted mutton heid blathers forth yet another horrible idea for games in the USA. Proper Premier League games as well, not just the energy sapping, preparation annihilating pre-season kickabouts that take place over there every summer these days.

Feels like a matter of time before some uber capitalist gets hold of one of our clubs and just does what he likes. In America they just up and move “franchises” from city to city (see the LA/Oakland/Las Vegas Raiders if you want an example) and successful Americans believe their way is best, so everyone should follow.

What if someone wants to buy, say, Bournemouth and relocate them to Houston. Stuff you people of Bournemouth and an away game in Texas every year for the rest. Then some grovelling lickspittle (almost certainly Crystal Palace) agrees to swap one of their home games to Yankee Stadium and the whole deck of cards falls. Whilst the rules currently don’t allow this, who would trust the relevant authorities in the future to ensure that remains the case…?

If you’re thinking “this wouldn’t happen” then I’m sure that’s consistent with the thoughts Wimbledon fans had some twenty years ago. Ask one if you’re out and about on Tuesday night and safeguard the future by learning the lessons of the past.