South American Teams On Modern Bases

A little change of focus for today's post which has a South American flavour.  Two very simple kits that I painted a few years back on SCco 2k4 figures. The Chile national team is on Stefan Corda Image II bases while the Santos is on Santiago Spitfire bases.

My son and I gave these two teams a run out at the weekend after watching a documentary about the legendary Brazilian duo Pele and Garrincha.  I'm not sure why the Chile team won out when the natural choice was a Brazil!

We had a busy Subbuteo weekend recreating some of the English Premiership matches as well as playing a Manchester United Home v Man Utd Away fixture using the United Box Set - (my son's reasoning was at least one of them would lose - whilst not accurate it made me laugh). All but one of our matches were played using teams on different bases. I always find it interesting playing matches with teams on different bases as match tactics need to be adopted and changed to get the best from each base type.

Chile - Stefan Corda Image II, 2k4 figures

Santos - Santiago Spitfire, 2k4 figures

I really like the look of the Image bases and the tricolour works well on this Chile team. When it comes to match play I can get a good long curl on them but haven't had nearly enough practise with them to get proficient at curling over short distances. The Santos team is as simple as a paint job can get, but on the lily white, solid base they look stunning. For me the Santiago Spitfire is a great, versatile base and one of my favourites - they have a little of everything.

Result: Chile won 2-0

...and Man Utd home were beaten 4-0...so my son was right!

Liverpool 87-88

Today's team is Liverpool 87-88 - painted on Santiago HW.

SK Beveren (BEL) 70/71

Here is a Belgian side I painted a couple of years ago - SK Beveren of Belgium.  I found the pic on my computer and just had to post it! What a great kit & lovely base combination.

My recent activity on the blog has been very limited as I am currently in the process of painting sides for my solo re-creation of the 1970-71 FA Cup. I've got the vast majority of the sides organised now and will be revealing some of them here in the coming weeks.

New Season

The new NGD season is about to begin.

Preparations are being made for the beginning of Season 3 of NGD. This time out the competition will feature

two divisions for the first time.  Each league comprises of 8 teams who will play on the usual home and away basis.  There will be promotion to and relegation from division 1 but no relegation from division 2 at this stage.  Plus this season we have a larger cup competition, featuring 32 teams.

More details will be up shortly on the blog.

Santiago SSG

It's difficult getting hold of original Subbuteo teams in NZ so building a collection can be frustrating. Because of this I paint my own onto replicas. This way I can have the teams I want now and search eBay or pick up teams privately at my leisure.

Here are a couple of SSG reference teams I painted onto Santiago replicas. Incidentally, I now have both these teams on original heavyweights.

Bristol Rovers

Cork Hibernians

NGD Solo Cup Winners Season 2

This weekend saw the final of the NGD Solo Cup between league champions Redpool FC and last year's beaten cup finalists Burndale FC.

It was a great game, the action was pretty much end to end. Burndale forward Gorgo Dash was the difference between two very closely matched sides. He scored two stunning goals, the first half-way through the first half before adding a second just after the break.

It was a great moment for the Clarets after a difficult season, and went someway to sweetening the bitter taste of finishing runners up in both the league and cup last season.

Gorgo Dash atop the cup after Burndale win the NGD Solo Cup

Liverpool 1950

After a long wait I finally got my hands on some of the Santiago vintage figures.

So here we have Liverpool from the 1950 FA Cup final. I've made a representation of the badge, this is not something I usually do as I like to keep faithful to the way SSG produced the hand painted teams. I just felt that this team needed to have the badge included as it finished off the kit. However, after selecting this photo for the blog I'm not that happy with the results. They look better with the naked eye as the camera throws up all of the faults. So will likely revisit the badges in the future to tidy them up.

I've got one more team to do in these figures and I am considering two kits, it's going to be either the Arsenal kit from the 1950 FA Cup Final or the Burnley kit from the 1947 final. I'll post them up when I've finished them.

Liverpool FA Cup Final 1950

NGD Solo Cup Semi-Finalists

It's cup weekend and here are the semi-finalists for this season's NGD Cup. The four teams are champions Redpool FC and last year's losing finalists Burndale FC. They are joined in the last four by two non-league sides AFC Litherland and Blackfriars FC.

All teams are painted on Santiago replica figures.

Redpool, Litherland, Blackfriars, Burndale

Moulded Heavyweight - The Scarecrow

Continuing with the moulded heavyweight theme - here are the figure type commonly know as 'scarecrows'. I think they look like George Best or maybe Charlie George.

As in the last 'classic heavyweight' post, the sock variation is evident.

As far as I can work out these figure types were present in the late 60's early 70's and were therefore available side by side with the other moulded styles. Often box sets would include different figure types in the same box, usually full teams, but occasionally just the odd figure.

Generic Red Moulded Scarecrow

Generic Red Moulded Scarecrow (with sock top)

(The Goalkeeper is a Santiago Replica I painted up to accompany the team.)

If you have any extra information about these figures I'd be delighted to here from you.

Heavyweight Subbuteo - Manchester City

I watched a great film last night called 'Once In A Lifetime' - it wasn't about the Talking Heads funnily enough but the New York Cosmos. Released it 2006 it's an absolutely fascinating insight into the team, rammed full of stars like Pele, Franz Beckenbauer, Giorgio Chinaglia and Carlos Alberto and also the North American Soccer League and the men who made it possible. I heartily recommend.

I'd like to follow up with a Cosmos Subbuteo post, but I don't have them immortalised in plastic (something I may well remedy). Instead I am presenting some Heavyweight Manchester City teams.

The link between the two sides is Dennis Tueart, who was in the film and of course the news announced last month of the deal between City and the New York Yankees to bring the Cosmos into the MLS.

Reference 5 - Manchester City - Sky blue outer

Reference 5 - Manchester City - White outer

Santiago Replica Team, with kicking Goalie

NGD Solo League - New Additions

A lot of thought has gone into the playing strips of the NGD teams. First and foremost I couldn't see the point of replicating a kit that was already available in the Subbuteo range. If I did then I may as well just use those, rather than design new ones. I also decided that I wanted to put together different base combinations, ones rarely, if ever, seen. The NGD sides are painted on Santiago figures and that range includes 16 base colours. Therefore it is possible to create 256 (if my maths is correct) combinations. If Top Spin replica teams are added to the league in the future, these have different colours and base shades, therefore the possible combinations increase even further - to well over 500.

I feel I've created a visually appealing range of teams that offer something a little different. My ego is not so large, however, that I am blinkered to the fact that most of the kits probably already exist somewhere in the world.

When developing the kits I have shied away from what I would call 'standard kits' preferring to include more stripes, bands and sashes than would usually occur. I've also added less fashionable colours, i.e. yellow has become a popular colour in the NGD. In real life the colour occurs regularly as trim and in away kits but is not a home strip staple.  

Two new additions to the league are pictured below. In my younger days I played for the real life counterparts of both. I have modified the kits to fit in with my design ethos and am pleased with the outcome.

Ford Celtic - Home

AFC Litherland - Home

Litherland host Ford Celtic in the first round of this season's Solo Cup this week. Results to follow.

NGD Solo League - Fazakerley FC

NGD will have a second division next season. I decided on the six new clubs months ago and have painted them up.  However, recently I created a team that caused me to have a rethink. I like my new team so much, that I decided to elect them into the league in place of another club. The team that failed to make the cut will have to remain a non-league side, for at least another season.

I was painting this team and wasn't sure where it was going. I had mixed a nice shade of blue and was keen to use it up. It could quite easily have ended up as a Ref 210 - Hambuger FC, the two strips, (as can be seen below) are obviously very similar. In order to give them a personality of their own I plumped for a pink shirt with white trim (it's actually much nicer in the flesh, the flash has done it no favours). I felt that the pink shirt gave it a retro feel, plus it looks killer on the base combination.

The name 'Fazakerley' just popped into my head after I based them up. So, as name and strip seemed to fit - a new team was born. Fazakerley is a suburb of Liverpool and in the north of the city, near Rice Lane. It was here that William Keeling's opened a factory to produce his table soccer game 'Newfooty'. Keeling's game was a rival of Subbuteo in the 1950's and is worthy of further discussion on the site...but not here and now. 

Fazakerley FC

I discovered that Everton wore a very similar kit in the 1900's - the similarity between the Goodison Park outfit and Fazakerley FC is purely coincidental however. The Toffee's strip, reproduced here. is taken from the excellent Historical Football Kits website (without permission). 

Everton FC - 1886-87

Fazakerley FC make their debut tonight in the NGD Solo Cup. In case you are wondering, the unlucky club who miss out on making their league debut are St Botolph.

NGD Solo League - Shrugborough Town Home

This is one of my favourite kits and is another team from my solo Subbuteo league - this team was born for season two of the NGD. They struggled, finally finishing eighth, but in doing so guaranteed a least one more season in the first division.

Painted onto flesh coloured Santiago figures and on Santiago bases,  I have stuck the players in with blu-tack which not only serves to keep the players in place (therefore negating the need to use glue), it has the added bonus of weighting the team slightly, so they play a little more closely to the original Subbuteo heavyweight bases.

Shrugborough Town

NGD Solo League - Wolvendean Away

As a direct result of requests to see my solo league teams. I present the side that finished runners-up this season, Wolvendean in their change strip.

Wolvendean Athletic 2nd kit

England 1914 - Vintage Team

England 1914 painted on vintage Stefan Corda figures. The bases are navy blue Santiago Spitfire's. The shirts looked a little bare so I decided to paint a badge on them and did an approximation of the one England were wearing at the time.

Walker at Association Football Before The 'D' told me that up until 1909 goalkeepers wore the same shirt as the outfield players. Records show that the first England keeper jerseys were green, the standard and more familiar, yellow jersey was introduced after 1921. Obviously these days kits are far less likely to follow tradition, especially when there is cash to be made.

I recommend you check out Walker's blog - it's brilliant.

NGD Solo League Teams

When I get chance I play a solo league - here are some on the teams I use.

They are fictitious but many are based on real teams.

All these teams are painted on Santiago.

Everlast United - Away

Burndale FC - Away

Burndale FC

Everlast United

Fullingham City

Fullingham City - Away

Middleton United

Middleton United - Away

Newhouse Rangers 

Newhouse Rangers - Away

Norton Wanderers

Norton Wanderers - Away

Redpool FC

Redpool FC - Away

Wolvendean Athletic

Wolvendean Athletic - Away

Sheil Park Away & Home strips

Melchester Rovers vs YoungHeart Manawatu

Post match handshake.