Football is full of cliches but today the football community truly has lost one of its pioneers! Cyriĺle Regis paved the way for so many black footballers playing today. He endured racial taunts and overcame them so much so that many playing today couldn’t even  fathom; rising to the top of his profession, representing his country at a time when even a section of his own fans booed him.

Cyriĺle truly was a gentleman that paved the way. We at Continental Star benefited from his support over the years and we are both grateful and thankful.

All those involved  at Continental Star send out our condolences to the Regis family.

 Continental Star trustee Bob Hazel returns to one of his former clubs this week; a chance to catch up with former colleagues.

It would be remiss of me not to mention Bob’s side kick and resident blogger Lincoln Moses was in tow to ensure that we had pictures of the event.

Star get off the mark with a win away to AFC Solihull.  Two goals either side of the half by Davion Hamilton was enough to secure the points, after the home side was awarded a dubious equalizing goal, after it appeared that the ball had entered the goal directly from a throw-in. Star lifted their game and created several chances as both teams went for the win. However it was Davion who struck the winner with an effort from 25 yards out that flew pass the hapless keeper.

Star’s U21s draw their inaugural game away to Sutton Town after taking the lead in an exciting game.  Star were unfortunate not to see the game out and conceded a sloppy goal in the closing stages of the game.

The picture shows an all-black team of professional players that was assembled to play in a testimonial game.  Believe it or not, those involved in the match also wanted to highlight the plight of black players in the game; it was hoped that the people of the day  would begin to acknowledge the fact that black players were there on merit and didn’t deserve to be singled out for abuse solely based upon the  colour of their skin.

BBC’s Adrian Chiles recently visited The Hub as part of his research into the legacy of the game.

Above: Bob Hazel, Adrian Chiles and Lincoln Moses at the pre-screening of the show that will be screened on BBC 2 Sunday 27/11/16