Issue 7 of this unofficial organ appeared in 1991 and covered August/September. We join our heroes from Simon’s Haircut at the start of the season, back in the GM conference again after winning the Southern League title in the final game of the season with victory vs Atherstone the previous season, more on that later.

In case you missed it the name of the fanzine came from a devotion to wonder striker and club all time top scorer Simon Read. There is an interview online in which he reveals that it was his neighbour who cut his hair. Listen here is you need more Simon Read news https://x.com/FanzineFC/status/1935060139037356117?s=20

The editorial gets straight to the point, they need a sponsor to establish themselves in the conference, plus they need a new full back. It’s always one or the other. Paul Coombs is mentioned, as a shrewd and crucial buy, in true fanzine style this went to press just before he was transferred to Basingstoke, eschewing the chance to play at a higher level to be closer to home in Essex, more later. Printed by Juma, good old Juma.

The club’s financial woes were to continue until administration in 2007 with the phoenix club also struggling to survive. Happily they are now secure in the national league south…basically about where we found them in 1991. I have no news on full backs to give you.

Then is appears, the Southern League trophy. My god THAT is a trophy worth winning. Being resolutely Northern I have never needed to be aware of the dimensions of this behemoth but that is properly worth winning. The photo itself is superb;

• Ultra high definition by fanzine standards but also vaguely shambolic
• The team trackies
• The hightops
• Proper haircuts
• Broomie is ahead of his time in wearing sliders but he has lost his shorts

To give you further idea of the size of the trophy, still awarded to this day, here it is next to an early 90’s TV. OK there is perspective and the TV was probably only about 14″ but still. There is also a photo of the Hants FA president apparently committing GBH.

Following the theme of Broomie being shorn of his shorts there is another photo of fans and players “posing” with the trophy, not sure this was Southern League approved and can’t believe it wasn’t in the Top 5 celebrations of the season. I have issue 8 and it appears that no one entered the competition.

Another great photo appears with Paul Coombs scoring in a pivotal game at Atherstone the previous season, a game the ‘Boro would win 2-1 to return to the promised land of the Conference. This equaliser came in the 85th minute and the winner 2 minutes later after Farnborough had been behind for the vast majority of the game. The wonders of the internet tell me that Paul Coombs went on to join Basingstoke Town and would become their record scorer with 164 goals between 1991 and 1999 when he was transferred to “ambitious Isthmian Premier side Purfleet” for £3,500.

Moving on to religious matters, there is a nice little piece about clergymen who played, refereed or even sponsored matches and a nice little ecclesiastical team. Nick Pope may have fallen out of favour with England but for sure he would have made this team.

Slightly less religious is a letter of complaint about the previously mentioned shortless hero Brian Broome who apparently he wore very tight shorts anyway. In Your Own Write is perhaps the worst ever title for a correspondence page that we’ve seen but the letter is a beauty, just like Brian’s bottom according to the girlfriend of the correspondent.

Along with the ubiquitous back issues piece there is a complaint about pres season friendly prices. £3.50 to watch even an experimental Oxford XI seems decent nowadays and the Top3 chants are excellent if very much with a local flavour.

Adverts abound, good, honest no nonsense local businesses who print T Shirts, sell bargain books and… shipping computers globally which was probably very much a burgeoning business in 1991. Great logos from the freight companies though, very ‘hair metal’ in nature.

Not only have ‘Boro won the Beazer Homes league the previous year but they have also received ‘accolades’ from the superb Wealdstone fanzine Elmslie Ender.

Even more incredibly there is further praise from the MSM, this time a handwritten letter from none other than the award winning journalist Patrick Collins who really was a great journo even if he did work for the Mail. Did Patrick live in Farnborough? Was he a fan? Did he have any association with the club? We’ll never know but it’s a nice letter.

Final (Wolf) Whistle

Patrick Collins was right (despite working for the Mail). Even if, as I suspect, he didn’t actually read Haircut fervently, fanzines from outside the league could be just as good as, and in Haircut’s case much better than league offerings. Local football, local characters, fervent support and fun, what’s not to love for 50p. Well done Adrian and your team, every time I flick through one of these my mood lightens tremendously.