IN THE BEGINNING

The concept of Internet football can be traced back to mid-1995 and the emergence of a Leeds United side formed from members of a supporters' email list, which challenged a local fanzine's staff to a game. They got slaughtered.

Cybury Gooners - the name comes from a combination of Cyberspace and Highbury - appeared during the summer of 1995, bringing together a dozen members of the Arsenal email list, which was then being run from the USA, for a few kickabouts in London's Finsbury Park. Things became much more serious when rumours began to circulate of a similar team of Tottenham supporters. And following a few games against various office and Sunday sides, Cybury's first competitive 'Internet vs Internet' fixture was - inevitably, I suppose - to be against our greatest rivals, on a sunny November Sunday at St Albans City FC: the ground where Dennis Bergkamp played his first game in an Arsenal shirt, incidentally.

Darren Skeels was the man of the moment, scoring both goals in a well deserved 2-0 victory over Internet Hotspur side, despite a hysterical psychological warmup by Spurs boss Dr Ivan Cohen. The match generated quite a lot of interest, including a colour feature in a major UK computer magazine, and led to the formation of a number of similar Internet teams. By early 1996, enough teams had sprung up to justify a national tournament, bringing together football fans from all over the country (and indeed further afield!).

NOTTINGHAM 1996

The first tournament, named Euronet in line with the coinciding Euro 96, was held in the second week of June at a university playing field in Nottingham. As one of the longest established sides, Cybury were well fancied but these expectations were to prove as unjustified as the amazing rumour that we owned our own team bus. Drawn against Leeds, Derby and Man United, the Gooners crashed out at the first hurdle with one victory from the three games. But if the football was less than memorable, the camaraderie was not to be forgotten. The Arsenal contingent began attending all of the Tottenham team's matches, and vocally supporting the opposition - we developed a close relationship with Colchester United in particular, as they played out an enthralling 4-3 victory over Internet Hotspur, punctuated by pitch invasions after each goal the Spurs boys conceded!

MIDDLESBROUGH 1997

The Middlesbrough Cellnetters were the surprise winners of the first tournament, and in the best traditions of the Eurovision Song Contest, they very kindly offered to host the next year's event. Positioned next to one of Europe's largest chemical plants, the Wilf Mannion recreational grounds were in bad enough shape as it was, without the appalling weather conditions which greeted the hundreds of participants at the 1997 event. Cybury again had high hopes of reaching the latter stages, but failed to qualify from a real Group of Death. A disappointingly stereotypical series of goalless draws against Glasgow Rangers and Bradford City meant the Gooners had to go for broke against the infamous QPR side Accrington Stanley Bowles, but it was not to be. The despair at bowing out so early was only matched by the relief of not having to stay in Middlesbrough for a second day.

READING 1998

But just as the 1997 performance mirrored the negativity of the George Graham era, so 1998 reflected the arrival of the Wenger philosophy at the Marble Halls. Reading Rugby Club was the venue, and marked Cybury's finest hour (so far). The Gooners breezed through the group stages, even allowing a weakened side to play their final game (from which they still managed to get a point!) and were clearly the team to beat. But the dream was brought to an astonishing end in the semi-final, when an Aston Villa midfielder scored the greatest goal most of us had ever seen, with an overhead scissor kick from the edge of the penalty area. Villa went on to lose the final 2-0 to the ever-impressive QPR side.

The quality of Cybury's play during the Reading tournament was admirable, bearing in mind that this was a group of so-called computer anoraks who only met up once in a while - not to mention Swedish import Paul Cohen, who only ever joins us once a year. But it was the team spirit which will remain longest in the memory - the various emotional emails which followed the event were later to inspire Gwyneth Paltrow's infamous acceptance speech at the 1999 Oscars.

TO INFINITY AND BEYOND

Cybury was always intended to be a social experience as much as anything else. But as anyone who has worn the Red and White will testify, it's hard to be entirely Corinthian when you're defending the reputation of Highbury in the Internet environment. Reading proved that life with the Gooners could be both a fun day out and a competitive and skilful experience. Hopes are high that we can carry both elements forward to the 1999 WorldNet tournament, and beyond.

Cybury Gooners 2-0 Internet Hotspur
St Albans City FC, Nov 1995...

Darren Skeels got both goals, incidentally

We fell over ourselves to make friends at Nottingham's Euronet 96 tournament

Villa's wonder goal puts us out of the 1998 competition at the semi final stage