15 October 1971 - He'll Always Be Andy To Me

On 15 October 1971, striker Andy Cole was born in Nottingham, England. He went on the become the second-highest goalscorer in Premier League history.

Cole began his professional career in 1989 with Arsenal, but played for a total of twelve clubs before his retirement in 2008. He stayed the longest at Manchester United where he scored 93 goals in 195 league appearances between 1995 and 2001. While there, he won five league titles, two FA Cups, and the Champions League.

A prolific scorer, his best season was with Newcastle United in 1993-94, when his 34 goals made him the league's Golden Boot winner. He lost the title the following year to Alan Shearer, who went on to win it three straight times--the last with Newcastle--and is the only player ahead of Cole on the league list of all-time goalscorers.

Cole left Old Trafford in December 2001 for Blackburn and won the League Cup the following season. After spells at a number of other clubs in England, he ended his career with Nottingham Forest in October 2008. Along the way, he tallied 187 Premier League goals, second only to Shearer's 260.

In 2000, several press outlets reported that Cole had asked to be called by his full first name, "Andrew," rather than the shortened "Andy," prompting a surprisingly vigorous discussion. He later claimed, however, that he had been misquoted and had instead just answered a reporter's question about what his full name was.


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20 June 2000 - England Gets Nevilled

On 20 June 2000, Romania humbled England, eliminating them from the European Championship with an 89th-minute penalty kick.

England have traditionally struggled in the Euros, advancing out of the group stages only twice from 1964 to 1996 (and failing to qualify for four of those tournaments). But they made it to the semi-finals in 1996 before losing on penalties to Germany and were looking to improve on that showing in 2000. Although they lost their opening group stage match to Portugal, they beat Germany and needed only a draw against Romania to advance to the quarterfinals.

Playing before a crowd of 30,000 at the Stade du Pays de Charleroi, Romania took the lead with a 22nd-minute goal from defender Cristian Chivu, whose attempted cross missed its target and instead found the top corner of the net. But England scored twice before the break, first after a Chivu foul on Paul Ince resulted in an Alan Shearer penalty kick (41'), then when Michael Owen found the net four minutes later.

Midfielder Dorinal Munteanu equalized three minutes after the restart and England appeared content to play for the draw. In the 89th minute, though, Romanian striker Viorel Moldovan charged into the England box and was brought down by left back Phil Neville. The referee awarded the penalty and substitute Ioan Ganea converted it with ease. The kick sent England home and put Romania through to the quarterfinals, where they lost to Italy, 2-0.

26 July 2009 - A Fitting Farewell For Bobby Robson

On 26 July 2009, England and Germany played a rematch of their meeting in the 1990 World Cup in honor of former England manager Bobby Robson. Proceeds from the match went to his cancer charity, the Sir Bobby Robson Foundation.

The 1990 match, which was won by West Germany on penalty kicks, was Robson's last in charge after eight years at the helm of the national team. The sides met in the semi-finals, marking England's deepest run in the World Cup since winning it in 1966.

After leaving the England job, Robson managed several clubs, including PSV Eindhoven (1990-92, 1998-99), Sporting (1992-94), Porto (1994-96), Barcelona (1996-97), and, lastly, Newcastle United (1999-2004). During that time, he had been diagnosed with cancer on five separate occasions. The last diagnosis, in 2007, was terminal. Shortly afterward, in March 2008, he launched the Bobby Robson Foundation to fund cancer research, detection, and treatment.

The charity match was played at Newcastle's St. James' Park, with Robson in attendance. The England XI included ten members of the 1990 side, including Peter Shilton and Paul Gascoigne, while three players. Three players from the West German team, including captain Lothar Matthäus, joined the Germany XI. The remaining slots were filled by younger internationals and celebrity players such as singers Craig David and Simon Webbe.

History appeared likely to repeat itself as the Germans took an early 2-0 lead in the 18th minute, but England leveled before the break. Newcastle hero Alan Shearer provided the winning goal with a 79th minute penalty kick and the match ended 3-2 for England.

The match was Robson's last public appearance, as he passed away five days later. By the time of his death, the Foundation had raised £1.6 million and by late 2009, that number had risen to £2 million.

9 April 1988 - I Wish I Knew Why The Arsenal Always Seem To Be On The Other End Of These Records

On 9 April 1988, Southampton striker Alan Shearer became the youngest person in history to score a hat-trick in England's top flight. At 17 years and 240 days old, he smashed the previous record set by Jimmy Greaves (20 years, 290 days) in 1960.

Shearer joined Southampton's youth academy in 1986 and was called up to the first team two years later, making his first professional appearance on 26 March 1988 as a substitute in Southampton's 1-0 win over Chelsea. Around noon on 9 April, he was informed that he would receive his first start that evening at home against Arsenal because the scheduled starter, winger Danny Wallace, failed a late fitness test.

Shearer made the most of the opportunity, heading in his first goal after five minutes. Arsenal drew level five minutes later thanks to an own goal from Southampton's Kevin Bond, but the hosts took a 3-1 lead into the break after another goal from Shearer (33') and one from Mark Blake (44'). Shearer's historic moment came early in the second half, as he scored his third of the day in the 49th minute.

The Gunners mounted a late challenge and finally found the back of the net when Paul Davis scored in the 82nd minute, but it was too late and Southampton finished with the 4-2 victory.

Shearer would go on to have a prolific career with Southampton, Blackburn Rovers, and Newcastle, scoring a total of 379 career club goals in all competitions. 260 of those were in the Premier League, making him the League's all-time leading goalscorer.

2 April 2005 - And Then There Were Eight

On 2 April 2005, visiting Aston Villa pounded Newcastle 0-3 before a crowd of 52,306 at St. James' Park. It was an all-out humiliation for the hosts, who finished the match with only eight men thanks to three red cards, two of which were issued for a fight between Newcastle teammates Lee Bowyer and Kieron Dyer.

Newcastle entered the match as heavy favorites, having lost only once in their previous 17 matches. Villa, meanwhile, had won away from home only twice in 15 attempts that season. But any optimism among the home supporters was dashed by Juan Pablo Angel's 5th-minute strike that put the visitors ahead 0-1.

Newcastle applied constant pressure for an equalizer that never came, despite several close misses and a legitimate cry for a penalty when skipper Alan Shearer's header struck the arm of Villa defender Jlloyd Samuel. The referee, however, ruled that the contact was not deliberate.

The referee did award a penalty kick for a handball in the second half, as Newcastle substitute Steven Taylor handled a Villa shot on the line, earning himself a red card in the process. Gareth Barry converted the 73rd-minute kick to extend Villa's lead to 2-1, then extended it further when Darius Vassell earned another penalty thanks to a challenge from Newcastle's Stephen Carr in the 80th minute. That's when the match moved from embarrassing to surreal.

Shortly after Barry's second penalty kick, Bowyer apparently took offense when Dyer did not pass him the ball and the two ended up in a full-bore brawl. Barry stepped in to separate the two, but both Bowyer and Dyer were sent off for violent conduct.

Oddly enough, Bowyer left Newcastle for West Ham at the end of the 2005-06 season, then was joined by Dyer, who arrived at Upton Park in the summer of 2007. They continued to play together until January 2009, when Bowyer left for Birmingham City.

22 April 2006 - "Shear" Brilliance

On 22 April 2006, legendary Newcastle United striker Alan Shearer announced his retirement from football. The Newcastle native is the all-time leader in Premier League goals with 260 - 73 more than second-place Andrew Cole.

Shearer joined Newcastle from Blackburn Rovers in 1996 for the then-world record transfer fee of £15 million. He proceeded to lead Newcastle to second position in the final Premier League table at the end of the 1996-97 season and to the FA Cup Finals in 1998 and 1999. In all, Shearer made 404 appearances for the Toon, scoring a Newcastle record of 206 goals in all competitions.

He scored his 206th Newcastle goal in his last competitive match, played on 17 April 2006 against Newcastle arch-rivals Sunderland A.F.C. Shearer scored once in the 4-1 win, then tore the medial collateral ligament in his left knee in a collision with another player. He had previously declared his intent to retire at the end of that season, but the injury effectively ended his career with three games left.

Since retirement, Shearer has enjoyed a successful career as a television pundit, making regular appearances on the BBC's Match of the Day. In April 2009, however, he returned to Newcastle as temporary manager until the end of the season, standing in for Joe Kinnear, who is in poor health.