THE FOX | est. 1987

“STEVE CLARIDGE’S CAR BROKE DOWN, SO HE RAN ABOUT SIX MILES TO MAKE OUR INTERVIEW”

LEICESTER CITY thefoxfanzine. wordpress. com

GARY SILKE

FAVOURITE COVER Leicester had a very lean time of it during the late- 80s and early- 90s, marooned in the bottom half of the second tier and escaping relegation to the third by the skin of their teeth. Then Brian Little arrived and things started to get better: three play- off finals at Wembley and a first season in the Premier League. Little left for Aston Villa, Mark Mcghee also departed, and things looked down until Martin O’neill arrived. By February 1998, Leicester were established in the top half of the Premiership. Suddenly, all those kids wearing Manchester United and Liverpool shirts were converting to royal blue Fox Leisure.

STANDOUT MOMENT It has to be the moment Wes Morgan lifted the Premier League trophy in 2016. There may have been times when we questioned whether it was all worth it during some low points, like getting relegated to League One in 2008, but we were vindicated when City pulled off the greatest shock in sporting history. The world could have ended the day after that and we wouldn’t have been that bothered. On a more mundane level, though, if you’re standing there selling the fanzine in the rain and someone comes up and says, “Keep up the good work,” that’s always great to hear. MEMORABLE PLAYER/ MANAGER INCIDENT

We’d arranged an interview with Steve Claridge and had been waiting for him for over an hour in a hotel bar on the south coast. Naturally, we were beginning to think he wasn’t going to turn up when he burst through the door, panting and wringing with sweat. His car had broken down, so he had run around six miles, and his phone was dead so he couldn’t contact us. I’m not sure the players of today would go to that trouble, and he gave us a fantastic interview. MOST IMPORTANT STORY The fight against ID cards in the late- 80s springs to mind – we got a mention in Hansard when it was taken to the House of Commons. We’ve also given platforms to several supporters’ groups, from the ‘ Ambitious Leicester Fans’ in the early- 90s to the Foxes Trust that came about when the club went into administration. There isn’t much to kick against now!