A football app that rewards its users
Only Swans and Directors’ Box are offering football supporters the chance to win this amazing framed and signed Welsh shirt.
The shirt was signed after the matches against Germany and Finland in 2009 and comes with an official letter from the Welsh FA to confirm its authenticity, and the team sheet also with signatures.
To have the change to win this amazing shirt, keep checking the app as the only way to enter is via the official apps.
More information to follow soon.
Kyle Naughton’s loyalty to Swansea City stands as a testament to the kind of dedication and commitment that is often hard to find in modern football, where player movements are often dictated by financial incentives or career opportunities. Naughton’s eight-year spell at the club was not just a period marked by consistency on the field but also by a deep connection to the club, its supporters, and the community.
Kyle Naughton joined Swansea City in January 2015, initially on loan from Tottenham Hotspur before making the move permanent that summer. At the time, Swansea was in the Premier League and Naughton was looking for more regular playing time. His arrival was met with cautious optimism. He was a versatile defender, primarily known for his ability to play both at right-back and as a right-wing-back, which suited the Swans’ tactical needs under then-manager Garry Monk.
From the outset, Naughton’s performances were solid. He brought a level of reliability to the Swansea backline, combining defensive solidity with an ability to push forward and support the attack. However, it was his work ethic and consistency that made him stand out over time. In a club that experienced several managerial changes, including the departures of figures like Monk and Francesco Guidolin, Naughton’s commitment to the cause remained unwavering.
Swansea’s fortunes fluctuated during Naughton’s time at the club, and the team often found itself battling relegation in the Premier League or fighting for promotion after their drop to the Championship in 2018. Through these turbulent seasons, Naughton was one of the constants for the Swans. He showed resilience, adapting to the team’s needs, whether it was in the top flight or trying to help Swansea regain its Premier League status.
During the Championship years, especially in the 2018-2019 season, Naughton’s role as an experienced head in a young and often inexperienced squad became more prominent. His leadership on and off the pitch was invaluable, and it was clear that his loyalty to the club was never in question. While other players may have looked for opportunities to move to more established or financially rewarding teams, Naughton chose to remain at Swansea, fighting alongside his teammates for promotion back to the Premier League.
Naughton’s loyalty wasn’t just demonstrated in his decision to stay during tough times but also in the way he carried himself as a professional. Even when the club went through managerial changes, including the appointment of Steve Cooper in 2019, Naughton remained a central figure in the dressing room. Under Cooper, Swansea enjoyed a resurgence, and although Naughton was not always the most glamorous player on the pitch, his performances were always dependable. His no-nonsense defending, coupled with his ability to contribute offensively when required, made him an essential part of the team’s defensive setup.
In fact, despite the revolving door of talent at the club during the 2010s, Naughton’s unwavering presence in the squad made him one of the longest-serving players at Swansea, earning him the respect of fans, teammates, and coaches alike. His adaptability—playing both as a right-back and right-wing-back—made him an invaluable asset, particularly in a tactical system that required flexibility.
Off the field, Naughton’s relationship with Swansea City’s supporters solidified his image as a loyal servant of the club. He was a player who always gave his best and was never afraid to give his all for the cause. This connection with the fans was vital in an era when many players can often seem distant or disconnected from the clubs they play for. Naughton, on the other hand, demonstrated a strong emotional connection to the city and the club, with many supporters recognising his unwavering commitment to Swansea City during some of the toughest years in the club’s recent history.
Kyle Naughton’s loyalty to Swansea City transcended mere appearances on the pitch. He became a symbol of what it means to stick by a club through thick and thin. In an era where loyalty in football can often be fleeting, Naughton’s long-term commitment to the Swans—despite the many changes around him—marked him as one of the club’s most dedicated players in recent memory.
Ultimately, Naughton’s time at Swansea City may not have been filled with the silverware or individual accolades that some players dream of, but his loyalty, professionalism, and dedication left a lasting impact on the club. For many supporters, Kyle Naughton’s name will always be associated with those seasons of grit and determination, a reminder of a player who gave his all to a club that he clearly held close to his heart.
Swansea City, a club that once epitomized success and ambition in English football, has found itself in a difficult position in recent years. The journey from a lower-league team to Premier League contenders is a remarkable tale, but the subsequent decline raises important questions: When did the rot start, and why has it gone so wrong?
Swansea City’s ascent began in the 2010-2011 season when they secured promotion to the Premier League for the first time in their history. Under the management of Brendan Rodgers, the club showcased an attractive brand of football that resonated with supporters. This period was characterized by the effective recruitment of talent, including players like Scott Sinclair and academy player Joe Allen, and a commitment to a possession-based playing style that became a hallmark of the club’s identity.
The crowning achievement came in 2013 when Swansea won the League Cup, beating Bradford 5 – 0 at Wembley, a historic moment that solidified their status in the Premier League and the following season an exciting European campaign. However, the seeds of decline were already being sown during this successful period, as managerial changes, ownership shifts, and financial mismanagement began to take their toll.
Many argue that the decline truly began after the departure of Michael Laudrup in 2014. Laudrup had successfully guided the team to a top-half finish in the Premier League, a trophy, and a good performance in Europe, but his contentious relationship with the board and players led to his dismissal. The appointment of Garry Monk as his successor initially seemed promising, with Monk managing to stabilize the team and even achieve a record start to a season. However, the following years under Monk became tumultuous, culminating in his sacking in 2015.
This managerial instability marked the beginning of a downward spiral. Subsequent managers—including Francesco Guidolin, Bob Bradley, and Paul Clement—struggled to replicate the team’s earlier success, leading to a lack of direction and coherence. Each new appointment brought different philosophies and tactics, which left players confused and unable to perform at their best.
The ownership changes that began in the mid-2010s also contributed significantly to the club’s decline. The transition from a community-driven ownership model to a more commercial approach was a pivotal moment. In 2016, the American consortium led by Jason Levien and Steve Kaplan acquired a majority stake in the club. While the intent was to secure financial stability, the reality has been different.
The new owners seemed more interested in profits than in nurturing a footballing culture. This shift in priorities resulted in a focus on short-term gains, leading to questionable transfer policies. The club’s failure to maintain a sustainable financial model became glaringly apparent when they were relegated from the Premier League in 2018. The subsequent financial repercussions of relegation forced the club to sell key players, eroding the squad’s quality and depth.
Swansea’s recruitment strategy has often been criticized for lacking foresight and coherence. In recent years, the club has made a series of signings that failed to integrate well into the team. The focus on signings without adequate consideration for how they would fit into the existing squad has led to a disjointed and underperforming team.
The club also struggled to retain homegrown talent. Players like Joe Rodon and Daniel James were sold shortly after emerging as key figures, weakening the squad and depriving fans of the local connection they cherished. The emphasis on quick fixes through replacement signings has not only failed to deliver results but has also alienated supporters who take pride in the club’s rich history of developing talent.
The managerial merry-go-round has been a significant factor in Swansea’s decline. Each new appointment brought fresh tactics and philosophies, creating a lack of continuity. Under Steve Cooper, who took over in 2019, there was a glimmer of hope as he guided the team to the Championship play-offs in 2020. However, after failing to secure promotion, Cooper departed, leading to another managerial change and the continuation of instability.
The lack of a coherent tactical identity has hampered the team’s ability to compete effectively. Players have often looked lost on the pitch, unsure of their roles and responsibilities. This tactical disarray has manifested in poor performances and inconsistent results, leading to fan frustration and dwindling attendance.
As results on the pitch deteriorated, so too did the relationship between the club and its fanbase. The disconnect between management and supporters became increasingly apparent. Fans have voiced their discontent over ownership decisions, including the perceived prioritization of profit over the club’s heritage and identity. The once-vibrant atmosphere at the Liberty Stadium has suffered as a result, with many supporters feeling alienated.
The loss of cultural identity has been particularly painful for long-time fans. Swansea City has always been a club rooted in its community, with a strong emphasis on local talent and connection. The shift towards a more commercial, profit-driven model has diluted this identity, leading to a sense of disillusionment among supporters.
In summary, the decline of Swansea City is a multifaceted issue that began with the managerial upheavals following Michael Laudrup’s departure and was exacerbated by ownership changes, financial mismanagement, and recruitment failures. The club’s inability to maintain a cohesive strategy has led to tactical confusion, alienating fans and eroding the sense of community that once defined Swansea City.
To reverse this trend, the club must focus on long-term planning, stability, and rebuilding its connection with supporters. By re-establishing a coherent footballing philosophy and prioritizing sustainable recruitment, Swansea City can aspire to regain its former stature in English football and build a brighter future for both the club and its loyal fanbase.
When comparing two of Wales’ most iconic footballers, Ryan Giggs and Gareth Bale, the debate often sparks passionate discussions among fans. Both players have left an unforgettable mark on the game, but their styles, achievements, and contributions to Welsh football can lead to differing opinions on who deserves the title of the better player.
Ryan Giggs had an illustrious career entirely with Manchester United, spanning from 1990 to 2014. Over this period, he made 963 appearances, scoring 168 goals and amassing an impressive collection of silverware, including 13 Premier League titles and 2 UEFA Champions League trophies. Giggs known for his incredible dribbling ability, pace, and tactical intelligence, Giggs was a quintessential winger whose performances often defined important matches.
Gareth Bale, on the other hand, has enjoyed a more varied club career. Starting at Southampton, he made a significant impact at Tottenham Hotspur before moving to Real Madrid in 2013, where he became a crucial part of one of the most successful teams in history. Bale’s career is highlighted by his explosive speed, powerful left foot, and ability to score from almost anywhere on the pitch. His accolades include multiple Champions League titles and numerous individual awards, including the PFA Player of the Year.
Giggs was renowned for his ability to take on defenders in one-on-one situations, often creating goal-scoring opportunities for himself and his teammates. His vision and creativity allowed him to thrive in various tactical setups, making him a versatile asset for Manchester United. He was particularly effective in high-pressure situations, often rising to the occasion during critical matches.
Bale, on the other hand, redefined the role of a modern winger with his combination of speed, strength, and technical skill. His ability to score spectacular goals, such as his long-range strikes and free kicks, set him apart. Bale’s physical prowess allowed him to dominate games, and his performances in crucial moments, particularly in Champions League finals, have made him a household name.
When it comes to their international careers, both players have had significant impacts on Welsh football. Giggs, despite his immense talent, never led Wales to a major tournament during his playing days, which somewhat diminishes his international legacy. However, he remained an essential representative of his country, amassing 64 caps and 12 goals. He did however appear to miss a few games through “injury” but would then be back playing for Manchester United a few days later.
Bale, in contrast, has enjoyed a more fruitful international career, helping Wales reach the semifinals of Euro 2016 and the quarterfinals of Euro 2020. His leadership and crucial goals in these tournaments have endeared him to fans and cemented his status as a national hero, especially as his number one commitment was always Wales.
Both players have made remarkable contributions to Welsh football, and their legacies will endure for generations. Whether one favours Giggs’s remarkable club career or Bale’s international and Real Madrid heroics, it’s clear that both are legends in their own right, representing the best of Welsh talent on the world stage. Ultimately, the choice between them may come down to personal preference, but their places in football history are assured.
Football is often praised for its ability to unite, enrich, and diversify communities, but what happens when it does the opposite—when it reinforces the patriarchal structures present in broader society?
Mainstream media, schools, and football culture often create the impression that football is more important for boys, offering a space where strong masculine identities can be expressed.
Even when parents encourage girls to take an interest in football—by buying them football shirts, taking them to matches, and encouraging them to play—it doesn’t take long for the game’s rhetoric of “man up” and its pervasively masculine atmosphere to affect how girls perceive the sport and their place in it.
Over the last 30 to 40 years, football has been forced to reevaluate how it treats marginalized groups. In the United Kingdom, there have been infamous incidents, such as bananas thrown at John Barnes, racist abuse directed at Raheem Sterling from the stands, and derogatory language aimed at Chris Hughton by fellow professionals.
As a result, the football community has had to change. While racism is still an issue, campaigns like “Kick It Out” and “Black Lives Matter” have led to improvements in how ethnic minorities are treated in the sport. Today, racist abuse at a football match is widely regarded as unacceptable.
But can the same be said for sexism? Have there been similar improvements in how girls and women are treated in football? While men’s football is ethnically diverse, women are still largely absent from the men’s game, which means it hasn’t had to confront how it treats women. As a result, they aren’t held to the same standard of equality as other marginalized groups.
If sexist remarks are heard at a men’s football match, they’re often brushed off as “banter.” This creates an unwelcoming environment for women interested in the sport.
Despite the prevalence of sexism in men’s football, women’s football is thriving. Remarkably, the FA banned women’s football from 1921 to 1970, but the sport has since made a strong comeback in the United Kingdom.
The England Lionesses won the UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 and finished as runners-up in the FIFA World Cup 2023. These successes have inspired girls and women in the UK, offering them footballing heroes and much-needed representation.
Women’s football matches at Wembley Stadium, The Emirates, and Old Trafford are now regularly sold out, breaking attendance records. The continued growth of the sport feels both natural and inevitable.
Despite the increased interest and participation in women’s football, girls still have fewer opportunities to play football than boys. FA studies show that only 41% of secondary schools offer equal access to football for girls during PE lessons. Additionally, a surprising 51% of secondary schools don’t have girls’ teams or extracurricular football clubs for them.
However, some progress is being made. The next generation of girls may grow up in a culture where football is a more widely accepted and accessible hobby for them. For example, 71% of primary schools now have a girls’ or mixed football team, up 10% from 2022.
The “Raising the Bar” campaign, backed by a £600 million investment in women’s football at all levels in the UK, aims to further improve match attendance, equality, and broader engagement with the women’s game.
Ivan Toney has become one of England’s highest-paid athletes of all time after completing his £40M transfer to Saudi Arabia side Al-Ahli, where the forward will reportedly earn over £400,000 a week – a wage only currently bettered by Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane.
The once hopeful Northampton Town academy striker’s rise to footballing prominence is incredible. Only four years have passed since Toney, the scorer of England’s third penalty during their EURO 2024 quarter-final shoot-out trump against Switzerland, was playing his trade for Peterborough United in League One, where he was considered little more than an exciting talent prospering in the lower depths of English football.
Yet the 6ft1’ forward made the transition from League One to the Premier League (with a brief goal-filled season in the Championship in between) look seamless in a way that few others do. After signing for Brentford in 2020, Toney has found the back of the net 36 times in just 85 Premier League appearances.
By his admission, Toney was ready for the world stage. The forward regularly discussed on podcasts and interviews ambitions of leading the line for Europe’s biggest clubs and eventually replacing the ageing Harry Kane as England’s most dependable striker.
There was the sense that Toney had outgrown Brentford; no player has scored more Premier League goals for the West London club and speculation surrounding moves to Chelsea, Arsenal, Manchester United, or Liverpool had been consistent throughout his time with the Bees.
Eventually, and perhaps partially due to a move to one of England or wider Europe’s top clubs failing to come to fruition, Toney opted to switch the Premier League for Saudi Arabia, a type of transfer unprecedented for elite-level English players still at the height of their powers.
It represents the first time an English Premier League sensation, still only 28 years old and in the process of defining the legacy they’ll have within the game, has chosen to turn their back on dreams of elite-level silverware and success, opting for an obscenely financially lucrative move to the Middle East instead.
Toney, as an individual who’ll have his motivations, can’t be blamed for making the switch to Al-Ahli. After all, the forward, who endured mixed spells at Peterborough United, Barnsley, Shrewsbury Town, and Scunthorpe United during his early career, will know more than most how unpredictable football can be.
An injury, fall from grace, or, in Toney’s case, the exposition of another betting scandal, could make the type of money currently on offer entirely unattainable at any other point in his future career, making the eyewatering £400,000-per-week contract hard to refuse.
However, from the perspective of any football purist, Toney’s move to Al-Ahli represents one of many issues within the modern game. The threat of losing talent to largely uncompetitive leagues is abundant. It makes one wonder, had these types of opportunities been available to players at earlier stages of the Premier League era, which fondly remembered stars might have become forgotten, or which memories may not have been made, had players been tempted by lucrative Saudi Arabia contracts instead.
Toney’s current wage is higher than that of Ballon d’Or candidate Jude Bellingham, a player who, one would imagine, will have to refuse mouth-watering amounts of money throughout his career, if he is to become the titan-like figure of European football he dreams of being.
Swansea City’s 22-year-old left-back, Nathan Tjoe-A-On, is a player many within the game are excited by.
The Rotterdam-born Indonesian international arrived in South Wales in the summer transfer window of 2023 for a fee of £300,000, having already made 33 Eredivisie appearances for Excelsior.
But Tjoe-A-On, a superstar in Indonesia with over two million Instagram followers, has found game time limited since making the switch to the Swans. Josh Tymon, a skilful left-back regarded among the best in his position in the Championship, blocked Tjoe-A-On’s pathway into manager Luke Williams’ team.
The four-time capped Indonesia was forced to settle for a loan move at SC Heerenveen, another Eredivisie club, where he made a handful of substitute appearances.
The 2024/2025 season looks to represent something different for the 22-year-old. Despite a season spent away from the starting line-up of any club-level side, several clubs, including newly promoted Championship side Oxford United, inquired about the availability of Tjoe-A-On during the off-season.
Despite the ongoing interest, Williams, who got the opportunity to closely observe the fullback for the first time during the recently completed pre-season, appears to view Tjoe-A-On as part of his first-team plans this campaign.
Tjoe-A-On finally made his Swansea debut during a 3-1 EFL Cup victory over League Two side Gillingham before receiving his first Championship minutes in the closing stages of a 3-0 win against Preston North End four days later.
Reflecting on Tjoe-A-On’s amplified involvement in the Swansea first team, Williams claimed:
“I don’t have any complaints about his performance. He’s been training really well with the first team. He’s a really good guy. A really hard-working guy. He has a huge following on social media. So, I’m sure there will be a lot of people really happy to see him play.”
The 22-year-old has shown enough promise to potentially challenge Tymon for a starting spot this season,
Swansea have started the season in, on paper, a 4-2-3-1 formation, but during build-up and while in possession in the opponent’s half, players rotate into more of a 3-2-5 formation.
First-choice full-backs Josh Key and Josh Tymon have operated in inverted roles while in possession, with emphasis on the pair’s passing range along with their defensive abilities.
This is something that could suit Tjoe-A-On perfectly. The 22-year-old’s footballing education at Excelsior’s youth academy, a club renowned in the Netherlands for developing technical footballers, equipped Tjoe-A-On with technical skills suitable for the role of an inverted full-back.
During the Indonesian superstar’s full debut against Gillingham, as well as footage observed from spells at Excelsior and SC Heerenveen, Tjoe-A-On regularly demonstrates the ability to play progressive, line-breaking passes to forwards from his own half.
The 5ft11’ defender has impressive ball-carrying skills, too; like Tymon, who has received the freedom to take risks in the attacking half under Williams’ management, Tjoe-A-On is comfortable in offensive one-on-one situations and can cause opposition defences problems with his wicked deliveries into the box.
Tjoe-A-On is one to keep an eye on this season.
‘Mr Swansea’, the man who saved his boyhood club from the brink of liquidation on two separate occasions is among the most influential figures in the Swans’ history.
But without the generosity of Mel Nurse, who willingly lost over £300,000 of his own money to keep Swansea City alive in 2002 and whose business know-how helped launch a consortium that radically altered the club’s trajectory forever, would there be a professional football club in Swansea today?
There is every chance Swansea, a 246,000-person sport-loving community, would be left stranded without a professional football club representing it. Something almost impossible to comprehend today, as the 21,000-capacity Swansea.com Stadium stands proudly on the edge of the city, with 19 years of history already representing it.
So, in an alternate reality where Nurse decides to retire quietly, leaving Swansea to drift into oblivion, who would young supporters, left without their local team to cheer on, turn to support?
Despite reluctant parents and grandparents, with 20th-century battles against archenemies Cardiff still fresh in their minds, the lure of nearby professional football might’ve been too hard to resist for new, football-obsessed children born in Swansea beyond the earliest part of the new Millennium.
In 2003, one year after Nurse saved the Swans from extinction, Cardiff won the League One play-off final in their home city, an achievement that, without a professional football club in Swansea, could have grimily been celebrated by national media as an ‘all-Welsh footballing success.’
These kinds of messages could’ve enticed impressionable young, otherwise Swansea supporters, desperate to belong to a football club that represents their local community and, if not, country.
Cardiff, despite hundreds of miles worth of hatred, is only a 34-mile, 50-minute train journey from Swansea. With the eventual opening of the 33,000 all-seater, family-friendly Cardiff City stadium in 2009, which would also house the national team, it is probable that the Bluebirds would have become an emblem of Welsh football, something challenging for new families of supporters to turn down.
Cardiff, like Swansea, reached the Premier League in the mid-2010s and, despite regularly threatening to, hasn’t dropped out of the top two divisions since. With the club occupying an even larger catchment area without the existence of Swansea, their matchday attendances would swell, filling the otherwise unoccupied, red-seated top tier of their stadium, helping to finance a Welsh super club that could sustain regular Premier League football.
Swansea railway station would be filled with blue and white shirts on Saturday lunchtimes, as thousands of young supporters pass the empty site where the Swansea.com Stadium stands today on their way to the Welsh capital to get their weekly football fix.
Cardiff would win trophies year-on-year, bypassing the real-world achievements of the Swans, and accomplish footballing supremacy as a mainstay in the upper reaches of the Premier League. Sky Sports refer to Cardiff as ‘The Welsh Club’ as the years of success made by Swansea Town & then later, Swansea City would slowly become a piece of forgotten 20th-century history.
Thankfully Nurse saved the club, and the rest is history. Swansea has since been able to enjoy promotion from each of the three English Football Leagues, spend seven glorious seasons in the Premier League, win a historic League Cup, and spend a season in the Europa League that created life-lasting memories for supporters.
Nurse prevented Swansea from extinction and, indirectly, thwarted the development of a mega club in the capital. For that, he deserves his legacy to be made immortal with the recognition of a statue outside the club’s stadium, standing as a reminder of his genericity for generations to come.
Player. Supporter. Saviour. Mel Nurse, 86, affectionately nicknamed ‘Mr Swansea’ by locals, is one of the most influential figures in the Swans’ sometimes turbulent 112-year history. He’s a man whose legacy far transcends cult hero status on the terraces, with his impact touching the entire community of Swansea: something recognised by the local council, who credited the former Welsh international centre-back with ‘freedom of the city’ and Swansea University, who awarded Nurse with an honorary degree in 2016.
Nurse, born in Fforestfach, Swansea in 1937 before making the short move to Alice Street, a row of terraced houses in Cwmbwrla which incredibly birthed five future Wales internationals, helped save his boyhood club, whom he represented on over 300 occasions between 1955 and 1971, from the brink of liquidation on two separate occasions.
It is by no means hyperbole to suggest that without the lifelong commitment of Nurse, modern-day Swansea City, a club that has since gone on to build a multi-million-pound stadium, spend seven seasons in the Premier League, and, in 2013, win a League Cup, may not exist.
There is an unthinkable alternate reality of Swansea without the interventions of Nurse: unless there was the successful inception of a Phoenix club that could come close to replicating the on-and-off-field successes of Swansea, the city’s young football fans could be tempted into travelling east along the M4 to the capital to watch their local professional team, Cardiff City.
Thankfully, for the sanity of the city, Nurse’s contributions, both in 1985, when the 12-time capped Wales centre-back helped the club fight for its very existence in High Court, and 2001, when Nurse saved the Swans from Tom Petty’s financial mismanagements, despite losing thousands of pounds of his own money.
This is the life story of Mel Nurse, the man who saved Swansea (twice).
Despite living on a serial Wales international star-producing street, a sensational story that has since been documented by Swansea University’s Taliesin Arts Centre in the film Wonderland, Nurse’s formative years were defined by hardship, poverty, and struggle.
In 2009, the 86-year-old told Wales Online:
“There was no central heating, no electric, just a gas lamp. We had overcoats for bedclothes as we couldn’t afford blankets. I can remember waking up many mornings with my leg down the sleeve of the coat.”
But Nurse, a determined, entrepreneurial youngster with two childhood ambitions: to become chairman of Swansea and own a Rolls Royce (both of which he’d eventually fulfil), would develop his first craft while living on Alice Street—football.
Nurse predominantly learned to play football, a skill which would later see him subject to an unsuccessful £35,000 bid from Manchester United, with a tennis ball. For many working-class communities in the 1930s and 1940s, a football was too costly to purchase and thus the local schools and football clubs were forced to make do with whatever they’d got.
Even during his adolescent years, Nurse was a tall, commanding defender. At age 14, Nurse was spotted by Swansea scouts while playing for the Wales schoolboys’ team, whom he represented several times, including a 3-3 draw at Wembley against an England team containing Bobby Charlton and Wilf McGuiness.
After rejecting various potentially more lucrative moves, including a switch to giants Arsenal, out of the familiarity and loyalty to his boyhood club, Nurse would make his senior debut for Swansea in 1955 at age 18.
Nurse would make 156 appearances for the Swans between 1955 and 1962, helping the club to multiple top-half finishes in the old Division 2, before leaving the club for a then-club record transfer of £25,000. After subsequent spells at Middlesbrough and Swindon Town, Nurse would return to South Wales in 1968 and see out the remainder of his professional career with Swansea.
As earlier alluded to, Nurse was an entrepreneurial thinker. During his playing days at Middlesbrough, where he made 118 appearances, Nurse first conceptualised a business idea that would eventually, in some way, contribute to raising the money to save Swansea City Football Club.
After years of sensible investment plans, Nurse would purchase several B&B properties along Swansea’s seafront, building a remarkable portfolio enabling him to fulfil his lifelong dream of owning a Rolls Royce.
Nurse’s business expertise would ultimately steer his boyhood club away from the near prospect of oblivion. In 1985, now a Swansea director, Nurse, alongside fan fundraising groups, agreed a deal that would ensure the football club avoided liquidation.
16 years later, in 2001, Swansea was again in financial disarray—the board attempted to resolve ongoing off-field difficulties by sacking seven first-team players, a move that prompted Nurse to resign from his role at the club.
But “Mr Swansea” would return. In 2002, the former Alice Street resident used his acute business understanding and personal finance to form a consortium to prevent Swansea’s looming liquidation. He then bought the club’s debts to save it from administration.
It’s a bleak thought, but, without Nurse, it’s probable there’d be no professional football team representing Swansea and its young supporters, despite the pleas of their parents who’d watched their home club battle through the turbulence of the 20th century, may have turned to the nearest club, Cardiff.
The saviour-like role Nurse played in 1985 and 2002, among his various activities in the local Swansea community, where, despite his personal wealth, he still humbly resides, is why he’s been given the freedom of the city.
Supporter’s fanzine, ‘A Touch Far Vetched’, hopes to see the city’s hero recognised further, as they call for a statue of Nurse to be erected at the Swansea.com Stadium.
A statue or no statue, Nurse will always be a much-loved Swansea player, supporter, and saviour.
Swansea City Vs. Cardiff City: the ‘South Wales derby’ is among the fiercest fixtures in the British football calendar. Almost annually, the two biggest clubs in Wales, separated by 34 miles along the M4, fight for local bragging rights, as they play each other home and away in the Championship, where the two clubs have remained stagnant since their respective mid-2010s relegations from the Premier League.
The South Wales derby, voted by One Football as the 6th biggest grudge match in the United Kingdom, is often controversial. Aside from the drama on the pitch, where Swansea have come out victorious on 34 occasions to Cardiff’s 24, the game is defined by the passion, hatred, and post-match euphoria (for the winning team, anyway) on display on the terraces.
As so often with derby games, it is a fixture that supporters must endure rather than enjoy. In the days leading up to South Wales’ biggest fixture, supporter nerves run high as they negotiate the prospect of their team getting beaten by their most bitter rivals at the weekend.
The emotion can turn ugly. It is almost inevitable that when two clubs with cultural differences, close geographical proximity, and a long history of hatred meet, there will be at least some degree of supporter trouble: that is just the reality of football in Britain.
But are supporters of Swansea and Cardiff treated differently to many of their British counterparts on derby day? During the 1990s, away fans were, for a brief period, banned from attending the South Wales derby, a measure placed on no other fixture in the English Football pyramid.
On the one hand, this epitomises the level of hatred and animosity shared between the two clubs but simultaneously highlights a discriminatory attitude held by policing and football authorities towards Welsh football supporters that still stands today.
Today, Swansea Vs Cardiff is the only Football League or Premier League “bubble” fixture: a measure ensuring that all away supporters going to the derby will be required to travel, usually by coach, with official transport provided by the club from their home stadium directly to the opposing team’s stadium.
It is reasonable to suggest that while the ‘South Wales derby’ is synonymous with passion, hatred, and the occasional bit of violence, and precautions do need to be taken to ensure the safety of all supporters, it is arguably no more susceptible to fan trouble than Burnley Vs Blackburn, Preston Vs Blackpool, or Southampton Vs Portsmouth, all of which pass without the need to “bubble” travelling supporters.
Supporters are frustrated about the difficulties associated with attending one of the biggest games in their football calendar. Cardiff supporters, who have seen their team lose on each of their last three visits to the Liberty Stadium, are discussing boycotting the upcoming 25th August fixture in Swansea.
Sloper Road Blues, an online forum for Cardiff supporters, tweeted:
“Swansea (A)
Looks like there’s plans to boycott Swansea (A) due to the ongoing bubble that’s in place.
We are the only teams currently still under a bubble in the uk.
Enough is enough imo.”
Should the bubble remain in place? It’s difficult to foresee the trouble that may or may not be implicated without restrictions around the biggest game in Welsh football.
Have your say and Vote Now in the Directors Box Poll.