iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Reposted by Mike McCarthy

Football Law @footballlaw.co.uk · 02/10/2026

Happy Manchester City Appeal Announcement Day! (I know nothing, but I think we’re all anticipating it.) PL Rules, r. W.86 provides Standard Appeal Directions that would ordinarily see, inter alia, an appeal concluded within 12 weeks of being made. However, those directions can be varied (W.85).

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CJ Fogler @cjzero.bsky.social · 23/08/2026

We have a "baby on the field" delay in San Jose 😂

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The Verge @theverge.com · 19/08/2026

The Women’s Super League’s first official fantasy app is rethinking the game from the ground up. www.theverge.com/entertainmen...

theverge.com

The women’s soccer league trying to fix fantasy sports

The WSL’s first fantasy app is doing something different.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 18/08/2026

I will be living in Animal Crossing. You lot better write!

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 17/08/2026

Articles about Newport County might not set algorithms alight, but Hayden Mullins delivered one of the standout coaching performances of the EFL's opening weekend. How Mullins took his second chance to make a first impression. mikejamesmccarthy.substack.com/p/newport-co...

Imagine the perfect pre-season as a new boss. For a start you'd have been appointed as near to end of the previous season as possible.
You'd have time to assess the state of the squad and steer the club's recruitment. You'd design pre-season. You'd have time to integrate new members of the team and establish your principles. You'd be able to build a relationship with the fans.

Suppose instead you had none of that.

Like the best designers, Mullins made a virtue of a restriction. There being no time to overcomplicate the game, Newport kept it simple. They were aggressive off the ball, and purposeful with it. In pre-season, Roma stars had been asking Newport players why they ran so much. Rochdale swiftly discovered the answer. Pressure forced mistakes, it drew fouls, it earned set pieces.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 10/08/2026

Stoke City. Sometimes maybe good? In their ninth season in the Championship, Stoke might be getting things right.

mikejamesmccarthy.substack.com

Stoke City: maybe this year?

Stoke City promise makes first contact with reality

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 28/07/2026

The guys @ntt20.com are looking for future England internationals in the EFL and asked me to write about Leicester's Louis Page. He could be in for a very interesting year...

ntt20.com

NTT20 Scouts: 10 future England internationals in the EFL

Who could follow in the footsteps of Jude, Djed, John and more?

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Dale Johnson @dalejohnsonbbc.bsky.social · 27/07/2026

EXCL: English football agrees trial to eradicate the goalkeeper injury tactical timeout. Coach has 10 seconds to select an outfield player to leave the field for one minute. Applied this season across: Premier League EFL National League WSL 👇 www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...

bbc.co.uk

English football agrees trial to end goalkeeper tactical timeout

English football is set to implement a radical trial to try to eradicate the goalkeeper tactical timeout this season, BBC Sport can reveal.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 25/07/2026

I’ve driven over Snake Pass a few times every week for the last five years. I can’t speak highly enough to the productivity and quality of life benefits this would bring.

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Reposted by Mike McCarthy

World Cup Scorigami @worldcupscorigami.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

🚨 WORLD CUP SCORIGAMI 🚨 FINAL: France 🇫🇷 (4), England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 (6) 6–4 has NEVER happened in men's World Cup history (1930–present).

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 15/07/2026

Baldrick’s holiday was longer than the highlights edit from that first half.

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This Is Football Gaming @footballgaming.bsky.social · 15/07/2026

Feeling old today? You will now… 👴 Today is the day - after 30 seasons - that CM 97/98 saves end. Championship Manager 97/98. ⚽🎮

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 13/07/2026

’Verify your age’ ”Can you get off the internet? I need to use the phone.“

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Football Law @footballlaw.co.uk · 05/07/2026

RBFA are *not* happy about FIFA’s Balogun decision, and quite rightly.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 01/07/2026

Only five of the England squad were born when Wonderwall was released.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 27/06/2026

I wrote about the joys of watching football on delay, and why this World Cup has reminded me to do more of it.

open.substack.com

Why I'm hitting pause on the World Cup

Watching football can be better when you have to wait

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 24/06/2026

“Marge, can you set the oven to cold?”

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 21/06/2026

Oh look! It's the 38th minute Spain attack. Hurry up or we'll have to wait for the 39th minute Spain attack.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 13/06/2026

When it comes to former referees explaining decisions Christina Unkel is the gold standard. Clear, precise, concise. Just what you want.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 11/06/2026

Really enjoying the ‘what are we even doing here?’ energy of VAR being able to check incorrectly awarded corners, but not incorrectly awarded goal kicks, and the latter being the only one that happened.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 06/06/2026

Maybe later in the World Cup we’ll see Messi put his hand in the bag of Walkers and actually remove a crisp and eat it.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 25/05/2026

The leaderboard suggests I’m hopeless, but this might be my new favourite word game. puzzmo.com/play/ribbit/...

puzzmo.com

's finished Ribbit #953

Play the best daily puzzles on Puzzmo

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 24/05/2026

Can we just take a moment to admire Sunderland finishing 7th with a goal difference of -6.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 19/05/2026

My Kagi subscription is paying for itself at this point.

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Reposted by Mike McCarthy

Terry Godier @terrygodier.com · 05/05/2026

📢 New Essay: The Boring Internet The internet you grew up on isn’t dying. A commercial veneer glued on top of it is. www.terrygodier.com/the-borin…

terrygodier.com

The Boring Internet

The internet you grew up on isn't dying. A commercial veneer glued on top of it is. A visual essay about what actually persists.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 03/05/2026

A delight to sign off the 25/26 season by watching Bromley claim the League Two title. What a season. I can't wait to see how they handle League One.

youtube.com

TITLE ON THE LINE! | Bromley v Walsall extended highlights

YouTube video by EFL

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Dale Johnson @dalejohnsonbbc.bsky.social · 23/04/2026

Leicester City have suffered losses of £375m in recent years. It is likely they will carry the highest wage bill ever seen in League One. After mortgaging tomorrow's money to pay for today with an Australian bank, what comes next? With @priceoffootball.bsky.social www.bbc.co.uk/sport/footba...

bbc.co.uk

Leicester 'face £70m black hole' after disastrous spending gamble

Leicester City have enjoyed the good times, now they are going to have to endure the bad - and there are signs they have not hit rock bottom.

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Reposted by Mike McCarthy

Odd This Day @oddthisday.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

And lo, it came to pass that the 18th anniversary of the greatest local news story ever told came upon us, and we were sore amazed

Press cutting Lancashire Telegraph, 20 April 2008: Shepherd's pie recipe rumpus. Subhead: Petrol bomb threat in tomato topping row. By ANDREW BELLARD A dispute over the contents of a shepherd's pie proved to be a recipe for brotherly disharmony. Blackburn magistrates heard that John Garvin thought that the pie his brother Michael made should have been topped with tomatoes but Michael disagreed. The upshot was that John, who was hit over the head with a shovel, reacted by threatening to petrol bomb his brother's flat. And he ended up spending a night in custody to allow tempers to cool. John Garvin, 47, of Montague Street, admitted a breach of the peace and was bound over in £100 to keep the peace for 12 months. Catherine Allan, prosecuting, said the brothers lived in separate flats next to each other. On the day of the culinary dispute they had been drinking together since 7am. "The argument started because there were no tomatoes on the shepherds pie that Michael made for tea and John thought this was wrong," said Miss Allan. John called his brother an offensive name and then said he was going to petrol bomb his flat. "Michael was concerned by this threat because on a previous occasion John had started a fire in his own flat," said Miss Allan. Liz Parker, defending, said her client did not accept making a remark about petrol bombing his brother's flat. "He does say that his brother hit him over the head with a shovel and it is very clear there was a lot of trouble over nothing," she added. (The article has a pullout quote which says “It is very clear there was a lot of trouble over nothing” - LIZ PARKER in large letters) District Judge Peter Ward, who imposed the bind over, asked in court: "You can make shepherd's pie without tomatoes can't you?" But 'legal' opinion at Blackburn magistrates, where the issue became quite a talking point, was divided. A female defence solicitor said it should be made with lamb and topped with sliced tomatoes and that a pie made with b…

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 13/04/2026

So a first for me today: I got a call from an AI. It was trying to get me to claim for mis-selling of car finance. It wasn't very good.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 10/04/2026

A Wikipedia rabbit hole has led to another example of old football being completely nuts. A playoff final over two legs couldn't split Bristol City and Walsall. So, there was a penalty shootout to decide WHO WOULD HOST A REPLAY. That would kick off less than 48 hours after the 2nd leg had finished.

en.wikipedia.org

1988 Football League Third Division play-off final - Wikipedia

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Adam Hurrey @footballcliches.bsky.social · 16/03/2026

Right, there were only so many 1am DMs asking for a Level 5 I could take, so... we're very excited to launch the 𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐘 𝐇𝐔𝐍𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐆𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃𝐒 daily game... Guess the Premier League scorer at a Premier League away ground and see how far you get! Play it here ⬇️⬇️⬇️ games.footballcliches.com

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Alex Stewart @afhstewart.bsky.social · 03/03/2026

Regression is the monster who can’t be bought off

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 01/02/2026

Hello Internet. I read a lot of email newsletters. Perhaps more accurately, I am subscribed to a lot of email newsletters and would like to read more of them. I would like an e-reader to do this. I would like to automate the process of the newsletters appearing on the e-reader. In this possible?

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David Amador @djlink.bsky.social · 29/01/2026

recorded a Windows 95 full disk defrag to soothe your timeline.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 26/01/2026

So I’m genuinely quite relaxed about getting home when the EV battery is running low, but even I admit to cutting this a little fine.

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James Nalton @jdnalton.bsky.social · 31/12/2025

Throughout their win vs Botswana at AFCON, a DR Congo supporter replicated the stance of Patrice Lumumba, a key figure in African and Congolese independence who was assassinated in 1961 following a joint plot between political opponents, Belgium, the US, and UK 🇨🇩

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 28/12/2025

In the race against time to eat all the Christmas food before New Year. These bad boys are sensational.

Picture of a packed of ‘Pigs in Blankets’ flavour coated peanuts.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 18/12/2025

As your Prime Minister, schools will be required to put all correspondence to parents in the body of the email, and not attached via a PDF, Word document or (*checks notes*) Microsoft Sway.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 15/12/2025

Watched Sheffield Wednesday-Derby tonight and just flicked over to see the Manchester United-Bournemouth score. 🫠

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 13/12/2025

Two of Leicester’s three goals against Ipswich today came from an xG of 0.09.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 03/12/2025

All of a sudden the average age of squads in League Two has jumped. Terrific research in this piece from @ntt20.com on why it's happening, and what it means for young talent.

ntt20.com

Why is League Two so old?

Ali Maxwell investigates a phenomenon he discovered by accident...

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 24/11/2025

My 10-year-old self is going to have an excellent day. Anyone else collecting? #efl #panini

An EFL sticker album with multiple unopened sticker packets.

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Mike McCarthy @mikemccarthy.eurosky.social · 21/11/2025

So are England good at cricket or not?

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