Next Wednesday a brand new football magazine is being launched. When you consider that poker, fly fishing, hell even embroidery publications outnumber those on footy – our national sport – on our newsagent shelves this is something to be celebrated, especially because Late Tackle will be written by us, the fans. We asked Gareth Roberts from Late Tackle all about it…
What initially sparked the idea for founding the magazine?
I’m a journalist, and I already produce a magazine about Liverpool, Well Red (www.liverpoolfc.wellredmag.co.uk). I wanted to expand into a magazine that is open to a wider audience and that offered writers the chance to get their work in print about absolutely anything related to football. The intention is to offer something different from the mainstream, but something that still maintains high standards.
How difficult a process was it getting from there to actually putting the first issue together and launched?
The actual process wasn’t too difficult as I am fortunate enough to know a lot of good writers and I am well versed in producing magazines. It was just a case of putting in the hours to produce it. The only problem for the magazine is awareness – we’re doing our best to promote it via social media and word of mouth but we can’t match the big boys when it comes to marketing.
Where do you see Late Tackle fitting in amongst the few other football publications available?
Well it’s not FourFourTwo, and it’s not obsessed with the Premier League. If anything, much of the content in the first issue is quite disparaging about modern football. With that in mind, it’s probably something that will appeal to people who remember what football used to be like, pre 1992. But in the main, the aim is to appeal to ‘proper’ football fans. Not your knee-jerk modern fan who class a Sky Sports pundit as an oracle.
The website is still at an embryonic stage. Do you hope to expand that side of things (cyber-publishing) so it’s a facet in its own right or will it be there predominantly to publicise the magazine?
That’s putting it kindly. All the efforts have gone into getting the magazine out because that’s what we are about. We plan to put some stuff online once the site is developed but we don’t aim to compete with the established football websites that are already out there.
In the main, the aim is to appeal to ‘proper’ football fans.
What can we look forward to in the first issue?
Where to start. Well there’s an interview with Mick Quinn, contributions from writers from The Guardian and The Telegraph, pieces on Scottish football, why nobody loves Michael Owen, a great feature on Wigan (the six-team town) and moans about Robbie Savage, the death of the tackle and the flood of statistics in the modern game.
Who would be your dream contributor?
Someone who can write well, likes moaning and is mildly amusing. Does Victor Meldrew like football? Seriously, someone like James Richardson, or Marcotti.
Where do you hope Late Tackle to be in a years time?
Still going would be nice! We’re just testing the water with this – if people want it to survive, they’ll have to buy it.
The first issue of Late Tackle will be out on Aug 31st and available in WH Smith and other outlets.
