Our reviews of the current season Premier League issues continue with a look at Watford’s ‘The Hornet’. Read our full review of the programme below and click here to see all of the 2019/20 issues.
Watford’s programme, titled ‘The Hornet’ was one of last season’s most improved issues and there is plenty to like about this season’s issue too. The highlight of the Watford issue is a 16-page nostalgia section called ‘Golden Memories’. Printed on sepia-toned paper and featuring various articles running through the centre-pages of the programme, the section contains an excellent range of reading.
‘Prequels XI’ runs through a selection of players who have made significant contributions to previous clashes between Watford and the visiting club. There is then a two-page feature with homegrown Hornets defender Adrian Mariappa, who has now completed ten years’ service with the club. This offers a rather more in-depth and revealing focus than the standard player features in many programmes. ‘Overseas Opponents’ uses memorabilia, photographs, and programme excerpts to reminisce about matches that Watford have played against foreign opposition. For example, in the West Ham issue the feature recalled a 1971 friendly fixture against Bohemians of Prague, including images of the programme from the day. ‘The Number Game’ looks at players who have worn a particular shirt number for Watford, in the 20 years since they were first used by the club.
‘Lost Acquaintances’ is a nice inclusion, profiling those clubs that Watford have faced down the years who are no longer in the Football League. Given Watford’s history of playing in the lower leagues before their rise under Graham Taylor, the feature certainly has plenty of clubs to draw on, with Merthyr Town and Aberdare Athletic profiled in the West Ham issue. ‘Yellow Brick Road’ offers something different, looking at 50 years of albums from Watford’s Honorary Life President, Sir Elton John. ‘Ten Years in the Rookery End’ is a piece from the team behind the Watford podcast ‘From the Rookery End’, which looks back on an eventful decade for the club. ‘Story of a Season’ concludes the retro content, recalling notable campaigns from Watford’s history, with a mix of stats, commentary, and pictures. The eight features that make up ‘Golden Memories’ are all well-presented and offer some excellent reading for Hornets fans.
As well as the historical content, the programme offers some current features too. ‘In Their Own Words’ is the main player article in the programme. Spread over seven pages, the individual concerned reflects on their pathway into football and their career to date. ‘My Favourite Goal’ sees one fan writing about their most cherished Watford goal, including pictures of the fan and the goal in question, while ‘Near and Far’ profiles Watford’s various supporter groups from around the world. There is a 16-page ‘Junior Hornets’ section stitched into the centre of the programme. This includes a host of features to keep younger fans occupied, including news, stats, and puzzles.
In contrast to the amount of original content included, the section on the visiting club is rather underwhelming. Covering just five pages, the section opens with an attractively designed page featuring a large club crest and basic notes on the visiting team. There is a squad list that contains basic biographical information on the visiting team’s squad, and short profiles of the club’s manager and two of their key players. With a large proportion of the five pages given over to graphics and photographs, there is a distinct lack of written material on Watford’s opponents.
The programme includes an impressive amount of club information. Especially noteworthy is the extensive coverage afforded to the Watford Ladies team. The section includes six pages of match reports and photos, details of results and fixtures, a player Q&A, and a separate player interview. This is an impressive amount of coverage for the team, particularly considering that Watford Ladies are only a third-tier side, playing in the Women’s National League South. Many other clubs do not offer this depth of coverage for women’s teams playing in the top two divisions of the women’s game.
Elsewhere, the head coach has his say, while there is an extensive and typically honest column from club captain Troy Deeney. News updates from the club are provided in ‘Voice of the Vicarage’, and there are four pages on the club’s community work. Previous matches are covered over two pages, with a wealth of match stats, the team line-ups, and pictures from the game. ‘Academy News’ contains updates from the club’s various age-group teams, with results and fixture charts for the under-23s and under-18s. The issue includes several pages of first-team stats, including two pages of pen-pics, and a first-team season spread that makes good use of the club’s colours.
The improvement in the Watford programme over the last couple of seasons has been marked, with the historical content and range of club information provided standing out. It is only really the limited opposition coverage that prevents this issue from scoring more highly and taking its place among the league’s best issues.