Is Gascoigne Going To Have a Crack? The Spurs Nostalgia Podcast

In the 1990s, following Spurs from overseas meant creativity, patience and a lot of luck. In this episode, Gareth speaks to two long‑standing supporters whose experiences reveal just how different football fandom looked before the digital age.Steff moved from London to the United States in 1986 and found himself in a footballing desert. No live matches, no radio, no newspapers covering English football — just the occasional cup final on satellite TV and the hope that an Irish pub might be showing something. His stories include missing most of the Gascoigne era, hunting down broadcasts across California, and receiving a VHS tape of the 1991 FA Cup semi‑final from his mum, watched for the first time on a tour bus with Napalm Death..and of course savouring live THAT goal at Leicester in 1997!Kjetil’s experience in Norway was almost the opposite. English football had been broadcast live since the 1970s, and Spurs were one of the most‑shown teams. Erik Thorstvedt became a national hero, supporters’ clubs flourished, and fans built their own magazines and communities. Yet travelling to London still came with risk — postponed matches, ticket hunts, and the sheer scale of navigating a foreign city in the pre‑internet era.This episode is a celebration of dedication, nostalgia and the global reach of Spurs long before the world became connected.Gareth’s books Is Gascoigne Gonna Have a Crack? and Hot Shot Tottenham are available here:https://90sspursbook.square.site/

Opening day in the 1990s wasn’t just a fixture — it was a feeling.In this special bonus episode of Is Gascoigne Going Gonna Have a Crack?, I’m joined by Jonny Blain (An Echo of Glory) to explore the sights, sounds and rituals that made the first weekend of the season so magical.To mark the opening day of the 26/27 season this episode focuses on the pre-season build up and opening days from the 90s. From Shoot and Match magazines to the Match Team Tracker, from Saint & Greavsie to Soccer Saturday, from sunshine and short sleeved shirts to chasing scores on Teletext or the World Service, this is a celebration of how football returned each August.Across the 90s, Spurs kicked off 11 times: 5 wins, 3 draws, 3 defeats — but the results were almost secondary. Opening day grew up with us, from childhood excitement to teenage ritual, and this episode captures that journey with stories of holidays, radios, early Sky Sports, new kits, new signings and the optimism that only the first day can bring.Whether you’re a Spurs fan or simply love 90s football culture, this is a warm, nostalgic trip back to a time when the summer was quiet, the season felt new, and everyone started level again! If you’ve enjoyed this trip back into 90s football nostalgia, you might also like the books I’ve written — Is Gascoigne Going To Have a Crack? and Hotshot Tottenham. Both dive even deeper into the stories, memories and characters that shaped Spurs across the 90s and 80s respectively. You can find them over at my website: https://90sspursbook.square.site/Thanks for listening — and we’ll be back soon with more Spurs nostalgia very soon!

Andy Turner’s Spurs story captures the texture of early‑90s football: a 17‑year‑old winger unexpectedly breaking into Terry Venables’ first‑team plans, scoring a winner at White Hart Lane, and then finding himself part of the most unusual competition Spurs ever entered — the 1995 Intertoto Cup.Andy only played in one of the four Intertoto games, but his memories of the trip to Cologne are rich and revealing: the intimidating atmosphere, the world‑class opposition, the makeshift Spurs squad, and the surreal feeling of being treated like a first‑team player in a competition the club didn’t take seriously.Alongside that story, Andy reflects on his wider Spurs journey — the broken leg that nearly derailed his youth career, the thrill of his Premier League debut, the encouragement he received from senior players, and the injuries that shaped the rest of his footballing life.This episode blends nostalgia, honesty and one of the strangest footnotes in Spurs’ history.You can find my book Is Gascoigne Gonna Have a Crack? here:https://90sspursbook.square.site/And you can learn more about the documentary being made about Andy here:https://www.lifegoalsdocumentary.co.uk/

Season Two closes with Part One of our deep dive into the 1997/98 campaign — a season that began with hope, glamour and new signings, and quickly descended into one of the most turbulent autumns in Spurs’ modern history.Gareth is joined by Rosa (Hometown Glory) and Dame Julie Welch to revisit the first three months of the season: the arrivals of Les Ferdinand and David Ginola, the legacy of David Howells, the emotional fallout from Teddy Sheringham’s departure, and the indifferent start that saw Gerry Francis leave the club in November.And then came his successor — Christian Gross — whose arrival at Heathrow brandishing an Underground travelcard instantly became Premier League folklore.This episode blends football, nostalgia and culture, with Rosa and Julie sharing vivid memories of university life, marathon training, Teletext letters, and the emotional rollercoaster of following Spurs in the late 90s.Part Two will open Season Three in September, picking up the story as Spurs enter a dramatic and near‑catastrophic six‑month period that ultimately ends in euphoric relief at Selhurst Park.You can find Gareth’s books Is Gascoigne Gonna Have a Crack? and Hot Shot Tottenham here:https://90sspursbook.square.site/

I was joined by Gerry Francis, our longest serving manager of the 90s, to relive life in the dugout at White Hart Lane. Gerry talks candidly about working with Alan Sugar, his enormous pride at managing Spurs and his role in the incredible 94/95 season.Gerry discussed the myth that he turned down the chance to sign Dennis Bergkamp as Klinsmann's replacement, signing Ginola and the way that English football was going as the 90s progressed. Gerry also talks about managing his son's severe OCD.

Gareth is joined by David Harris (Grumpy Old Spurs podcast) to revisit the 1996/97 season — the year when Spurs’ mediocrity didn’t just begin, it fully took hold.This was a truly forgettable campaign: a summer so underwhelming we couldn’t even complete the signing of Tony Thomas from Tranmere, followed by a season that opened — and continued — with relentless frustration.We explore a year defined by:Gary Mabbutt’s season‑ending double leg break after 18 minutes of the opening gameA squad ravaged by injuries: Nethercott, Anderton, Armstrong, Sheringham — all sidelined earlyA team that never won three consecutive games and drifted aimlessly in mid‑tableThe nadir: an eight‑day winter collapse featuringlast‑minute heartbreak at Highburya 6–1 humiliation at second‑tier Bolton in the League Cupthe infamous moment when even our own turf turned on us against LiverpoolA season so thin that Spurs began 1997 with their 6th and 7th choice strikers starting away at Manchester UnitedThe surreal contrast of moving into a world‑class training ground while the team on the pitch fell apartAnd, incredibly, how David’s early legal career helped set in motion the chain of events that would lead to Sol Campbell’s departure four years laterAll of this unfolds against the backdrop of Euro 96 optimism, Britpop fading, Oasis at Knebworth, Trainspotting, Spice Girls, Gazelles, Fred Perrys — and Spurs feeling older and more tired than the country around them.As ever, we tackle this largely miserable season with the levity, irreverence and gallows humour that 96/97 absolutely deserves.If you want to explore Spurs’ journey through the 1980s and 1990s, Gareth’s books Hot Shot Tottenham and Is Gascoigne Going To Have a Crack? are available here:https://90sspursbook.square.site (and via Amazon in hardback and e‑book formats).Please follow the podcast and leave a rating — it really helps.

In this episode, I’m joined by broadcaster and host of The Tottenham Way podcast Marcus Buckland as we continue our journey through Tottenham Hotspur’s 1990s seasons — this time landing on the often‑overlooked 1995/96 campaign.After the chaos, colour and heartbreak of 94/95 — Klinsmann, Popescu, Barmby, Ossie’s Fab Five — the following season felt far more subdued. Marcus and I dig into why 95/96 struggled to leave a lasting mark on supporters, despite the numbers telling a very different story.We revisit a campaign full of contradictions: big wins over Arsenal and Manchester United, two strikers hitting 20+ goals, clean sheets, a spell in third place, and two draws against Kevin Keegan’s Newcastle that shaped the title race. Yet it was also a year defined by “nearly” moments — a dramatic FA Cup trilogy with Nottingham Forest ending in Spurs’ first ever penalty shoot‑out defeat, and a final‑day collapse that saw us fall from 5th to 8th within twenty agonising minutes.Along the way we explore the mood around White Hart Lane: Alan Sugar’s infamous “Carlos Kickaballs” summer, the departures of Klinsmann, Popescu and Barmby, the arrival of Chris Armstrong and Ruel Fox, and the symbolism of swapping Umbro for Pony — a moment that felt like Spurs shrinking just as the rest of the Premier League (Arsenal with Bergkamp, Chelsea with Gullit, Newcastle with Ginola and Ferdinand) was expanding.Marcus brings sharp insight from both the stands and the BBC Radio London press box, helping us understand what this quieter, transitional season reveals about Spurs’ identity in the 90s — and why even the forgotten years matter in the bigger story of English football.Read about Spurs’ entire 90s journey in my book Is Gascoigne Going To Have a Crack? — available directly from me here: https://90sspursbook.square.site/

This week on Is Gascoigne Going To Have a Crack? I’m joined by Match of the Day commentator Steve Wilson, who was part of the era‑defining Capital Gold Sport team throughout the 90s — a golden age of English football nostalgia and the soundtrack to how London followed the game.Steve talks through his career journey, from volunteering at the newly created Capital Gold Sport, to covering Spurs during one of the most chaotic and memorable periods in 90s football, and eventually becoming one of the most recognisable voices on Match of the Day.We discuss the cultural phenomenon of Jonathan Pearce, the magic of listening to football on the radio, and Spurs’ place in the wider London football landscape as the decade progressed.Do you have memories of listening to Steve or Capital Gold Sport? Get in touch via Spotify, Bluesky (@90s90sSpursbooks) or X (@garethdace).Looking for some Spurs reading this summer? My books are here — https://90sspursbook.square.site/