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-- Anonymous, September 10, 2001

Answers

I am seeking some information on former Dutch international Gerald Vanenburg. Why did he only play the first half of the first match of Italia90 v. Egypt?

Where is he now? Is he still involved in Dutch football?

Thank you - Eric Solli, Director, St Teresa Soccer Club, Staten Island NY USA

-- Anonymous, October 17, 2002

Some news from De Telegraaf (various topics, so I figured the Ajax Trivia thread was the best place)...

Coach Ronald Koeman decided to give the Ajax squad the day off, because today is the day of Prince Claus' funeral in The Netherlands. Koeman's decision was made easier by the fact that his squad s far from complete anyway. Most players are still on the road with their national teams.

Cristian Chivu will come to the ArenA today, after which an Ajax doctor will take him to hospital to have an MRI scan made of his knee. Chivu himself is positive. He has the feeling the injury is not too serious. He expects to play against AZ.

As Jakob already told us, in the Zlatan thread, Zlatan Ibrahimovic will not play Sweden's friendly game on Wednesday. He has returned to Amsterdam, just to take no risk. Nothing seems to be wrong with him and he is expected to play against AZ. However, the Swedish doctors told him not to fly to Holland. Therefore, a friend drove Zlatan all the way from Sweden to Amsterdam, by car.

I was wrong in the New Players thread, in which I said I did not believe that Ajax was seriously interested in Romanian left-back Rezvan Rat. However, De Telegraaf quotes Koeman, who confirms Ajax' interest: "He's in the picture and the scouting reports are positive. However, we're looking at a few other players, too." The transfer fee for Rat (now playng for National Bucharest) is, reportedly, two million U.S. dollars.

-- Anonymous, October 15, 2002

LOL Ben, but we have to watch our step, otherwise Zlatan fans will make sure that we are the ones sent up into space to destroy the asteroid aka Bruce Willis style.

-- Anonymous, July 24, 2002

Bill, Is there any truth to the rumor, or rumour on your side of the pond, that the asteroid has been nicknamed Zlatan? You know, it looks for sure like its dead on target, only to end up missing spectacularly!

-- Anonymous, July 24, 2002

Well, thats it then.... ...what are we worried about. None of this is all going to matter in 16 years time.

ASTEROID COULD WIPE OUT A CONTINENT IN 2019

ASTRONOMERS have found an asteroid that appears to be on a collision course with Earth.

It has been described as the most threatening object yet detected in space.

A preliminary orbit suggests that 2002 NT7 could strike the planet on February 1, 2019.

The BBC reports astronomers have given NT7 a threat rating on the Palermo technical scale of 0.06, making it the first object to be given a positive value.

Although they say it merits attention, they expect more observations to show it is not on an Earth-intersecting trajectory.

The asteroid is estimated to be about two kilometres wide, large enough to cause continent-wide devastation on Earth.

It was first seen on the night of July 5 by the Linear Observatory's automated sky survey programme in New Mexico.

Dr Benny Peiser, of Liverpool John Moores University, told BBC News Online: "This asteroid has now become the most threatening object in the short history of asteroid detection".

But he added: "This unique event should not diminish the fact that additional observations in coming weeks will almost certainly - we hope - eliminate the current threat."

Dr Donald Yeomans, from the US space agency's (Nasa) Jet Propulsion Laboratory in California, said: "The error in our knowledge of where NT7 will be on February 1, 2019, is large, several tens of millions of kilometres."

Not much point in purchasing a season ticket for 2018/19 season then. Shame because I had a feeling that it was going to be Zlatan's year ;- )

However, maybe the KNVB should start discussing now a shortened season ;-)

-- Anonymous, July 24, 2002

Hey, did you know this? This is really interesting... The European Super Cup was basically introduced because of Ajax... Wanna know the story? Read this, on UEFA.com.

I didn't know this. Interesting.

-- Anonymous, May 15, 2002

** A football fan's gratitude **

The past week had been a most dramatic week of me. It began during the last weekend of April, the final home match for Fred Grim. What a happy ending it must have been for him; a sight to behold at the ArenA. Another pleasant sight: our editor Menno's 3 seconds of fame on FSW, seen by thousands, happily cheering on the stands>>>!

A most amusing sight: a big Broussia Dortmund banner inside the ArenA !!

And then yesterday's match at NEC that saw the team lift the Championship Shield !!!

The last two weekends have been thoroughly enjoyable weekends to all Ajax fans.

It's time to say thank you to everyone who made this season the one to remember. Never was I able to watch so many Ajax matches in one season. Thanks to FSW who made it all possible. Like it, love it or flat out hate their announcers, it was because of FSW that we Ajax fans in N.America were able to enjoy so much coverage.

There is a certain madness to becoming an Ajax fan from abroad; unless you're Dutch, you had to rely on very few sources of info to be able to follow your team.

In the early nineties ESPN2 covered a sporadic amount of matches but not as regularly as FSW this time around. The advent of the internet back then was not as developed as it is today. Michel Herper's website was about the only site where I could get some info on a consistent basis. Even before that, we had to talk on (the very cumbersome) Prodigy's soccer chat on Dutch football. But very little behind-the-scences news can be had, especially if one don't understand Dutch.

While the proper thing to do is to learn some Dutch, and I'm sure most of us am willing to admit that, times have changed. Thanks to the dedication of Jim & Menno & Bastiaan, we casual fans are offered the luxury of following the team news, rumours, gags and all the fun stuff that makes following a team rewarding and flat-out fun. And in English (!!).

But I still do want to learn the language...despite my bad "G"...!

But of course, the biggest thanks must be reserved to the entire staff of the team, from the coaches to every player on the roster.

And we shan't forget Co Adrianse who build the foundation of the team. In looking back, there were so many players who contributed positively towards the team. Here are just some of the players that deserve special mention:

- Raphael vd Vaart: the rise of another future Ajax great. A true gem.

- Andy vd Meyde: perhaps the player most improved during the season. He made doubters into believers as the season progressed.

- Christian Chivu: The soul of the team. Can be called upon for set pieces and to support the attack and his leadership skills are second to none.

- Andre Bergdolmo: Together with Chivu, the duo is forming the best defensive line in the Eredivisie. Rock solid and skillful in the best of Ajax tradition.

- Wamberto: His form fell off slightly during this year but his form last year was instrumental.

- John O'Brien: His flexibility will always be an asset with the team.

- Nikos Machlas: His contributions were essential. An important asset to any team.

- Mido: No player seized an opportunity better than he did. On the verge of a fallout, a twist of fate and now the major reason why Ajax won the title.

- Jan van Halst: Like him or not, his style of play was the missing piece of the puzzle.

- Fred Grim: Deserves all the credit. Arguably can still play for a few more seasons.

- ..and to the rest of the crew, namely Pienaar, Maxwell, Zlatan, Galasek, De Cler, Ikedia, Heitinga and so many others, who made this winning season possible !!

KAMPIOEN 2001-2002 !!!!!!!!

-- Anonymous, May 06, 2002

In 1997-1998 Ajax was the Dutch Champion for the last time. In wich match did they became Dutch Champion?

-- Anonymous, April 21, 2002

Rudy's right. That's the story, in short. The name that escped you is De Volewijckers, from Amsterdam-North. Blauw Wit ('Blue White') was from West and DWS from South. I'm pretty sure Blauw Wit played at the Olympic Stadium, and I think DWS and Blauw Wit shared the Olympic Stadium, like Inter and AC Milan share San Siro. The three former Amsterdams professional clubs still exist as amateur teams.

-- Anonymous, March 05, 2002

Hmmmm.....

Here's what I recall about "other" Amsterdam sides. There used to be a bunch of much smaller teams; DWS, Blauw Wit, and er...the name escapes me...Verssomehting-or-other. They all merged in the early seventies to form FC Amsterdam, and actually beat Inter in the UEFA cup. They played at the Olympic stadium, but folded 10 years later, seperating and going into amateur football.

At one point when frustration was growing with Ajax there was talk of a group of businessmen wanting to form a new club...Johan Cruyff FC which JC was supposed to run but it came to nothing.

My Dad told me all this many moons ago and I'm exactly sure of the facts.

Sorry, that's the best I can do!!!!

Cheers,

-- Anonymous, January 29, 2002

Very concerned that no answers have been forthcoming re Amsterdam Teams. Are people awaiting for an inducement? - like first prize being a copy of the Ajax March and/or a second prize of 2 copies of the Ajax March being made available.

-- Anonymous, January 25, 2002

On the long car journey home, I was thinking about the meaning oflife, the universe, and everything, and then after about 2 seconds started thinking about the history of football in Amsterdam. I would be grateful if somebody could enlighten me on the following questions so that I could get back to thinking about the meaning of .........: (1) What is the most teams Amsterdam have had in the top 2 divisions at any one time. (2) Was the support for these teams drawn from the area in which the ground was situated, and was there intense rivalry between the teams and supporters. (3) Why did these teams disappear (3) When was the last derby game. (4) What happened to all the supporters of the other Amsterdam teams once they were disbanded - did they then move onto Ajax. (5) Do the supporters of Ajax miss this rivalry. Thanks in anticipation

-- Anonymous, January 23, 2002

Ray Apparently Jonk is still @ Sheffield Wednesday but is injured.

-- Anonymous, January 22, 2002

Ok - I'll give it a shot...

Silooy is probably still playing for Armenia Bliefield (D); Kreek is with Vitesse, I think; Vink is somewhere in South Africa; Jonk is still with Sheffield Wednesday ? D.Petersen is probably back in DK; S.Pettersen is probably back in Sweden; Roy is still trying to find a club in NL; Most people know the whereabouts of Bergkamp,Blind,Winter,deBoer. No idea where Menzo is, though.

And, ahem, what of their 1992 coach, a particular van Gaal ??

-- Anonymous, January 21, 2002

Thanks gentlemen - I guessed that was the answer - but as my info came from Ajax.nl I thought that my thoughts must be wrong - when have they ever got it wrong !!!!! Please remember the other points on offer.

As a parting shot - How many PSV fans does it take to change a light bulb ? Answer - None as they always have and always will live in the Ajax's shadow

-- Anonymous, January 21, 2002

I think Bill knew that, Rudy...

Anyways: I can confirm it, cos I was there. The game was played in the good old pile of rotten concrete with no light-plant: the Olympic Stadium, built 1928... Man, we were actually able to beat the Philips Boys in those days. Can you believe it?

-- Anonymous, January 21, 2002

Bill,

The must have played at the Olympic stadium, not De Meer.

Cheers,

-- Anonymous, January 21, 2002

10 Years Ago on the 19 January 1992 I note that Ajax beat the money- bags (PSV) from down south 1 - 0 with Peterson scoring the winning goal in front of 48,000 in the De Meer.

The starter question for 10 points is how did 48,000 people get into the De Meer - it must have been like in the 60's trying to see how many people you could get into a mini (car not skirt) !!!!

Also interesting to note that one Erik Gerets got himself booked that day. So strange that 10 years further on his abilities are still not recognised at this time of year.

The team that day was: Danny Blind Aron Winter Sonny Silooy Bryan Roy Dennis Bergkamp Dan Petersen Frank de Boer Wim Jonk Stanley Menzo Stefan Pettersson Michel Kreek Marciano Vink

The main question is where are they now ? A further 10 points per player is on offer here.

-- Anonymous, January 21, 2002

This is nice!

VI Planet.nl has published the full all-time Eredivisie ranking (1956- 2001) and will update it after every game played from now on... You'll find it right HERE.

Some remarks:

1) The teams in bold characters are now playing in the Eredivisie. The teams in regular characters are either in the First Division or do not exist anymore.

2) PSV is second (882 victories) and Feyenoord third (870). On average, Ajax won just over 22 games per season of 34. PSV won just over 20 per season, on average. Which means that PSV will need some six more season to reach win their 1000th game.

3) Sparta is fourth, but only because they played all seasons in the Eredivisie. Looking at average result, FC Twente is obviously the all- time 'best of the rest', directly behind the 'Big Three', Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord.

-- Anonymous, September 25, 2001

A nice interesting little something (found it on Ajax.nl): yesterday's victory over AZ Alkmaar was Ajax' 999th Eredivisie victory. If Ajax manages to beat Frank Rijkaard's and Aron Winter's Sparta Rotterdam next week in the Amsterdam ArenA, the respectable number of 1,000 Eredivisie victories will be a fact. Ajax has played 1,519 Eredivisie games so far. Some 66% of those games were won.

Only four Dutch clubs have *always* played in the Eredivisie: Ajax, Feyenoord, PSV and Sparta. Ajax' record is unrivalled. Both PSV and Feyenoord are over 100 victories behind Ajax. Next week's opponent, Sparta, is 4th on the ranking with a more modest record: they won 556 out of of their 1519 games.

AJAX vs SPARTA - let's go for a THOUSAND!!

(By the way: the interesting fact that Ajax can become the first Dutch team to have won a thousand league games, is one more reason why Fox Sports World should choose for Ajax vs Sparta next weekend!! Send emails!!)

-- Anonymous, September 17, 2001

In response to the questions asked by Robert and Tim (the uniform numbers for Co Prins and Piet van Reenen)...

First of all, I'm pretty sure Tim is being a smart-ass ;-) Piet van Reenen (30s and 40s) never wore a uniform number, since they were introduced in the 1950s, in which decade football was shown on TV for the first time.

Robert's question is more relevant: Co Prins played for Ajax from 1959 to 1966 and had a uniform number. Unfortunately, there's no picture in my Ajax history book on which I can see his number...

-- Anonymous, September 11, 2001

What number did Co Prins wear for Ajax or for the Pittsburgh Phantoms (NASL)?

-- Anonymous, September 10, 2001

What uniform number did Piet van Reenen use when he played for Ajax (30s and 40s)?

-- Anonymous, September 10, 2001