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· Last Season's Corresponding Game - Stoke beat Spurs 2-1
· This Season's home game - Spurs 0 Stoke 0
· This week - last year
· What happened in the Premiership in Match 37 2011-12
· See the current injury list for all Premiership Teams
· All the Spurs Stats you could hope for here! THFC6061 Sports Stats
Full League Record v Stoke City
Premier Pl W D L F - A Pts
Home 5 2 2 1 7 - 5 8
Away 4 2 0 2 6 - 6 6
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Total (Prem) 9 4 2 3 13 -11 14
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Football Lge
Home (Div One) 26 20 5 1 56 -19 49
Away (Div One) 26 7 8 11 26 -34 24
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Total(Div 1) 52 27 13 12 82 -53 73
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Football Lge
Home(Div Two) 7 6 1 0 18 - 7 13
Away(div Two) 7 2 1 4 9 -11 5
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Total(Div 2) 14 8 2 4 27 -18 18
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Total (Prem) 9 4 2 3 13 -11 14
Total (Div1) 52 27 13 12 82 -53 73
Total (Div2) 14 8 2 4 27 -18 18
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Grand Total 75 39 17 19 122 -82 105
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Last Six Premier League results:-
Stoke
Everton 1-0 Stoke
Stoke 1-3 A. Villa
Stoke 0-2 Man Utd
QPR 0-2 Stoke
Stoke 1-0 Norwich
S'derland 1-1 Stoke
Spurs
Swansea 1-2 Spurs
Spurs 2-2 Everton
Spurs 3-1 Man City
Wigan 2-2 Spurs
Spurs 1-0 S'hampton
Chelsea 2-2 Spurs
Pos P W D L F-A GD Pts
5.Spurs 36 19 9 8 63-45 18 66
11.Stoke 36 9 14 13 32-42 -10 41
Bl**dy Delilahs!
1. Delilah - "Dlila, Standard Hebrew meaning "[She who] weakened or uprooted or impoverished" from the root dal meaning "weak or poor")[1] appears only in the Hebrew bible Book of Judges 16, where she is the "woman in the valley of Sorek" whom Samson loved, and who was his downfall." (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delilah)
2. Delilah - 60s hit by Tom Jones, also made popular in the 70s by The Sensational Alex Harvey Band, and used as a "theme" by Stoke fans after Alex Harvey's band played live at the old Victoria Ground.
3. Delilah - Paloma Ayana Stoecker, aged 22 and born in Paris, is a modern day recoding artist who uses the mononym "Delilah".
4. Bl**dy Delilah - derogatory term used in a late sixties ITV comedy series "The Dustbin Men" towards the cleansing department Inspector.
Stoke City has never been a pleasant place to go to for football purposes, and tomorrow's game will be as tough as ever. The draw at Sunderland on Monday night effectively gives Tony Pulis's side Premier League safety on 41 points, but mathematically it is not over for them just yet.
Bearing in mind ours is the first game to kick off tomorrow, and it is Stoke's last home game of the season, I have no doubt Stoke will want to put in a performance and send their fans home happy; spoiling Spurs chances of Champions League football in the process. If that occurred, then Spurs fans might well adopt the derogatory term of "Bl**dy Delilahs".
I can't remember there ever being such a crunch game in the league between these two sides, and Stoke's reputation of being "game spoilers" does not make this the most attractive venue to go to for what really (yes, really this time) is a must win game for Spurs. By doing so, we can go two points ahead of Arsenal, putting them under some pressure before their delayed game against FA Cup Finalists Wigan on Tuesday.
In an ideal world, we need QPR to beat Newcastle tomorrow; Wigan to win on Tuesday; and then Newcastle to need something from their last game against Arsenal on the last day. That's the trouble with losing control of our own destiny, and of course we firstly need to win this game! Chelsea's 2-1 win at Villa Park today (Saturday) effectively assures them of top four place, so it is a straight shoot-out between us and Arsenal for the remaining place.
This week has seen the issue of a set of stamps about "Football Heroes". The "team" of eleven selected footballing legends included Gordon Banks and Jimmy Greaves, both of whom have worn the shirt of Stoke City (read on). Banks was a Leicester City player when he won his 1966 World Cup winners' medal, but he was a Stoke player when he made what is acknowledged as one of the greatest ever saves from Pele in the 1970 World Cup epic match against Brazil. That was the game after which Bobby Moore and Pele embraced in a well known photograph. Moore, of course, also features in the team on the set of stamps, as does Spurs legend Dave Mackay.
When selecting such a team, one is always reminded of a Fast Show sketch where a pub gathering would always keep going back to the start, but would always agree on "Banks in goal". Another former Spurs and Stoke player, Garth Crooks wrote about Greaves, and first saw Jimmy in a Stoke City shirt as a seven year old lad, when Greaves took part in the Stanley Matthews Testimonial game at The Victoria Ground back in 1965.
It must have been hard work for Stoke fans watching their team this season. Their team has only managed 29 Premier League goals all season, and only QPR have scored less. Spurs have scored almost twice as many goals as "The Potters". When Spurs hosted Stoke just before Christmas (Spurs 0 Stoke 0), the game was goal-less. At that time Stoke were in the midst of a 10 game unbeaten run, which included 5 league wins. They were also in the top half of the table.
Stoke were really only drawn into the margins of the relegation battle as a result of a recent run of 7 games without a win, and only one draw. They brought relief to their situation with consecutive wins at QPR and at home to Norwich.
Last season's aaway game at Stoke was not a good day for Spurs or referee Chris "Foy not Hoy", who attracted much anger from the travelling fans who saw Kaboul sent off for a harsh second bookable offence, and a good goal disallowed for offside. the frustration was increased by the fact that the defeat brought an end to a fine 11 game unbeaten run. Oh, and former Spur Matthew Etherington scored both Stoke goals, taking great delight in doing so too.
Rory Delap, now 36, has been out on loan at Barnsley, but Stoke still have a long throw merchant - Ryan Shotton - so we can expect to see plenty of that tactic, if Spurs give them the chance. Also on the agenda will be the Charlie Adam versus Gareth Bale saga, but Andre Villas-Boas has wisely tried to stem any negativity. Why, Charlie Adam was even the victim on Monday night at The Stadium of Light when Craig Gardner was sent off!
Stoke have one or two potential injury problems, with midfielder Whelan likely to miss out, and defenders Andy Wilkinson and Marc Wilson needing late tests, whilst Spurs hope to be able to field Mousa Dembele, whose presence could be vital to the visiting team.
So, will Stoke be like the "Delilah" in the Bible story be our downfall, or as the Tom Jones song goes, will Spurs feel the knife in their hand and Delilah laugh no more? I have to predict a win, and I am going for a 2-1. See you there!
Tomorrow's referee will be Kevin Friend, whose "record" for Spurs this season is not great. We won our League Cup game up at Carlisle in September, but Mr. Friend was in charge when we lost 2-1 at Goodison Park in December, and then at Leeds in January in the FA Cup.
· May 11th 2003 was NOT good day for Spurs
· 10 years ago this week-end was the last day of 2002-03 Premier League season
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