The start of a career in management for James Beattie (video)

Former Premier League striker James Beattie has been appointed the full-time manager of League Two side Accrington Stanley. Beattie has made well over 300 Premiership appearances for Southampton, Everton, Sheffield United and Stoke. He has been at Accrington Stanley in a player coach role since November but with the departure of Leam Richardson the board felt Beattie would be able to take on the role full time.

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Reading's quiet business

Deadline day is notoriously frantic and rumours are spreading like fire. With all the talk about Beckham moving to PSG and Peter Odemwingie losing his mind, not many people noticed Reading's league one purchase.

Reading splashed out a reported £1

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FA Cup Fourth Round Betting Tips

The fourth round of the FA Cup arrives this evening and this weekend with plenty of potential for upsets all over the fixtures list.

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Phil Jagielka: A good old-fashioned centre-half (Video)

The news that Phil Jagielka has extended his contract with the club until 2017 will have brought a smile to the face of many Evertonians.

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Beattie is a big name in League Two (Video)

Having recently signed a scorer of 90 Premier League goals, Accrington Stanley have acquired a man with a wealth of top level experience to help them in England’s fourth division.

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Minnows amongst Sharks: Life in 3rd place

This article focuses on two areas where football is a massive part of people’s lives; Manchester and Sheffield.  When you think about these areas from a footballing perspective there are two big derbies that spring to mind.  In Manchester, City vs. United has grabbed itself pride of place as the must see fixture in the English, especially after the dizzying rise of the blues.  In Sheffield, the Owls and the Blades, where the balance of power is forever shifting from between red and blue in a city where football reigns supreme above other sports.

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Whatever happened to James Beattie? (Video)

The last the football world heard of James Beattie, he was available on a free transfer after being released by Sheffield United following a second spell at Bramall Lane that failed to yield any goals.

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Barnsley to reel their Tonge in?

The saying is usually “the cat got your tongue” but it could well be the Tykes who nip in ahead in  this particular instance as word is circulating around Oakwell that Barnsley are closing in on a loan deal for Stoke City’s midfielder Michael Tonge.

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Fall from grace but still a class above

It seems only a short while since Mr. James Beattie was a man in demand, finding the net for fun at Southampton whilst collecting a hatful of England caps.

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Football and depression

It’s fair to say that 99% of football fans would trade their day job for the glitz and glamour of the world’s most popular sport. The money, the fame, the worldwide recognition from every quarter of the globe is exactly what fans dream of it the modern day. Picking up a weekly pay packet that most fans would struggle to pick up over a five-year period would be enough to sway any supporter to trade in their day job.

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Diary of a Soccer Saturday Reporter

It takes a lot to shock me in football but when I heard on Sunday lunchtime that Wales manager Gary Speed had died, I couldn't believe it. At the time, the circumstances of Speed's death had not been confirmed but just the fact that a 42-year-old was no longer around sent a shiver down my spine. To then find out that he had hanged himself was an even bigger shock.

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The unforgettable William “Fatty” Foulke

Neville Southall, Razor Ruddock, Ronaldo... while these modern day superstars shared their hunger for trophies with a hunger for burgers, William "Fatty" Foulke was arguably the instigator of their infamous athletic/nutritional habits. This is his story.

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FootballFriendsonline.com Football Quiz Challenge

What type of quizzer are you? Do you sit drunk and clueless in the corner? Or are you halfway to Nerdsville with a tank top on and a smart-arse smile? Can you admit to watching Eggheads - even if only in a moment of weakness? No matter which category you fall into – try our pub quiz and prove to yourself that the years of watching and talking about footy have not been a complete waste of time. But please try not to cheat, for as my headmaster used to say “You’re only cheating on yourself”, which ironically is not what his wife said to him, when she caught him in congress with his secretary.

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Diary Of A Sky Sports Reporter

It's good fun watching Jeff Stelling's team, it's easy to park near Victoria Park and the media get some half time grub, but the big issue is that it's at least a three-hour trip to get there. And when it's a mid-week match, double the trouble!

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The Playoffs

It’s something that has been said and written a lot since David McGoldrick walloped in the third goal at Selhurst Park on Saturday, putting the exclamation mark on our second consecutive top six finish. Nottingham Forest don’t do well in playoffs

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