Boreham Wood: Luke Garrard

All good things must come to an end. After nine years at the helm, Boreham Wood manager Luke Garrard takes charge of his last match at the club on Saturday. There will not be a dry eye among the Wood Army at Meadow Park. 

Hopefully there will be tears of happiness and relief added to the emotional outpouring after the final game of the season against Ebbsfleet. At the end of a tough campaign, the Wood face a crucial 90 minutes to determine which level of the National League they will be playing in. Win and they stay up. Anything else and it's the drop.

Sport hurts: Jimmy White (1994)

Monday May 2, 1994. Stephen Hendry and Jimmy White are locked in a final frame decider in the World Championship final. With White leading 37-24 and the table open, even the usually stoic Hendry is showing signs of concern. White bends down to tackle a black he would normally pot with his eyes closed.

It should have been his crowning glory, the moment White conquered his Everest. Instead it was the day the music died. A gasp echoed around the Crucible as White's attempt at the black failed to threaten the pocket. All he could do was sit, wait and hope that Hendry would give him one more shot.

1993 Ryder Cup

Welcome to 1993. Take That teamed up with Lulu. There were four UK terrestrial television channels. England were preparing for a crucial World Cup qualifier in the Netherlands. Five of America's 2023 Ryder Cup team had not been born. The world wide web was still a thing of the future. Prince Andrew was allowed to present the Ryder Cup to the winning captain. The past is indeed a foreign country.

As captain Tom Watson lifted up the Ryder Cup at the Belfry on September 26, 1993, you would have got long odds on the American team waiting at least 30 years to triumph on European soil. But since that Sunday in the Midlands, six US captains - including Watson again in 2014 - have tried and failed to take the trophy back across the Atlantic. Thirty years of hurt. 

At the time it felt like the end of an era and the start of another period of American dominance. Admittedly the 1991 and 1993 wins had been nip and tuck throughout, but America's strength in depth coupled with an apparent lack of successors behind Europe's ageing stars painted a worrying image for the future. Yet history tells us another tale.

1997: England v Australia First Test

For once in my life it appeared as if my optimism had not been misplaced. Going into the first Ashes Test in the summer of '97, there seemed a renewed energy, not just with English cricket but also the nation as a whole. Euro 96, Britpop, Things Can Only Get Better, it was clear that this momentum was leading to an inevitable conclusion: The Ashes were coming home. 

Disappointment heaped upon misery, embarrassment and despair since 1989 had left many English cricket fans wondering when the drought would end. But in 1997 there was genuine hope that Michael Atherton could lift the Ashes urn and end the years of hurt.

2001 Ashes

By 2001, the Ashes had become a bit of an obsession. Winning the urn in 1985 was my beautiful introduction to Test match cricket and retaining the Ashes down under in 1986/87 was the stuff of dreams during a turbulent time for English cricket. But then came 1989.

A series that has entered the hall of shame for the England national team, anything that could go wrong that year did. The 4-0 reverse was shocking, as 29 players were shuffled around in the vague hope that England could compete with the resurgent tourists. To be honest, losing 4-0 flattered us.

From that point on I dreamed of winning back the urn at the start of every Ashes series. But time after time it soon became clear that my initial hopes were ill-founded. Losing became a habit against Australia, but still I hoped that the latest series would be the one. You do it to yourself, you do, and that's what really hurts. 

2000: Pakistan v England

England began their tour of Pakistan in 2000 just looking to compete. By the end of it they were dancing in the moonlight.

A year had been a long time for the English cricket team. Beaten by New Zealand in the summer of 1999, England dropped to the bottom of the unofficial world rankings and the start of the new captain/coach partnership of Nasser Hussain and Duncan Fletcher suggested that the road to recovery would be long.

In fairness, the bowling conditions were ideal as England slumped to 2/4 in the opening Test of the series in South Africa. But despite going down to a 2-1 series defeat - the one win coming after the notorious Hansie Cronje declaration in the final match - there were small signs that Hussain was moulding a side in his image.

1973 FA Cup third place play-off: Arsenal v Wolves

This article orignally appeared in edition 273 of The Gooner.

Those of us of a certain vintage will forever bang on about how great the FA Cup used to be, and with some justification. The competition was rightfully viewed with pride as worldwide audiences were left enthralled at the magic of the cup. Sadly, the riches of the Premier League and Champions League has left the FA Cup looking like a slightly poor relation in comparison. Well done, everyone involved.

Many of the great traditions have been lost – marathon replays, neutral club grounds used for semi-finals, the wacky 3pm kick-off time for the final – but fortunately one experiment has long since disappeared. I yearn for the days of old, but you can keep your FA Cup third-fourth play-off match.