SIMON SHELDON REFLECTS ON THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF A GAME THAT ONCE CAPTIVATED MILLIONS…

CASHING IN

AT THEIR peak in the 1970s and early 80s, more than 15 million people regularly checked their pools coupons on a Saturday teatime, either listening to the radio or watching the results on television.
With fingers crossed, they were looking for eight score draws out of the ten matches they had picked in order to win that week’s jackpot.
Competitions for predicting the results of football matches are in fact older than the Football League.
In 1887, the Cricket and Football Field ne...