Shels shock makes for dynamite year

The phrase ‘fans with typewriters’ always struck me as a pretty inept slur to hurl at the nation’s revered football press - and not just because technology has rendered the old Olivetti redundant.

The implied criticism is clear enough - we’re all moon-eyed invertebrates incapable of taking a tough stance on anything (and, by the way, if you say that to me again, I’ll tell the Sports Editor) - but the phrase still contains the seeds of its own downfall.

Put it this way, if you’re not enthusiastic about the stage how could you ever be a theatre critic? And if you don’t love music, how are you going to write a record view with any passion? Similarly, the question has to be asked: if you’re not a football fan to begin with, what the hell are you doing in the press box?