Southend United

Bristol Rovers

Front cover? Called The Pirate. Colour shot of the most recent game, that being the 0-0 draw v Runcorn in the FA Cup! We know how it feels to struggle v Runcorn!
Value for money? 4/5 - 64 pages, £2.
Decent content?

'The Boss': Ray Graydon's notes are opened with the Rovers manager making it clear how good a friend of his he considers Denis Smith to be, and how they have followed each other's careers closely.

'Youth Report': Phil Bater is still there, as Bristol Rovers' Director of Youth Excellence! He writes a piece on the most recent U-19s match.

'Opposition features': six pages, mainly comprised of a potted write-up of the players and our recent form, team photo, manager feature, and a few stats. Separate is a Pirates/Robins (sic) 'Connections' page of players who have played for both.

Other major features: 'Gas Girls' - the Bristol Rovers Ladies football team have a page. They are shit hot! They are top of a league featuring Ladies teams from Chelsea, Wimbledon, Ipswich Town and Bristol City to name but a few! Perhaps Mr Graydon needs to consider swapping the ladies for his current squad! 'Clocking on', 'Pirate Eye', 'Supporters Clubs' and 'In the Community' - very large features in the programme centred around photos and articles related to fans, local schools, and their own WINS-style set-up (Gas Trust ). 'In Conversation With' and 'In My View' which have pieces written by various squad players, not just the captain.
'Gall's Goal Fires Wales': Kevin Gall gets a page headline for his U-21 exploits in Azerbaijan. 'Taff Talk': A whole page on Kevin Gall, his career, and his prospects for Gas and for Wales. 'Rovers Red Dragons': a page on all Welsh connections and international players from Rovers history.

Fans views: there are a number of articles written by supporters, including 'Around the Ground', 'Talking Ed' and 'Eclectic Blue'..
Attractive design? How times change - our once proud matchday programme is now lagging behind the field. We offer 40 pages of 'samey' material which can be read in an hour. The Pirate is a veritable book in itself: 16 out of 60 pages are adverts. We have 9 pages of ads in 40. Both roughly 25 per cent, but they give themselves a massive 44 pages to play with thanks to the ads; we have 31 pages to spare for the same price.
Best article? 'Enemy Lines' is brilliant: Reds fans Pete Davies and Matthew Williams answering a list of questions via e/mail.
Overall? Ah well…who won the bloody game anyway! Seriously, I hope they survive. They have magnificent support (second best in the division) and deserve a more successful team than they currently have.

Wales v Italy