Gremlin - Footie beautie

Despite his efforts to the contrary, Gremlin has to admit that networking is becoming 'all-pervasive'. He knows so: he's heard it from enough bloody vendors.

"Networking is becoming all-pervasive, Mr Gremlin," they say, pointing to their Powerpoint presentation and anxiously adjusting the angle of their laptop so that the fluorescent lights of the hotel suite they've hired for the afternoon do not reflect obtrusively.

"We have coined a phrase for this phenomenon: 'All-pervasive networking'."

Screw that. The damning evidence for said phenomenon comes from Wales, where Llansantffraid Football Club, players of the "Beautiful Game" as Pele once called it, and winners of the 1996 Welsh FA Cup, has changed its name to Total Network Solutions FC.

The likes of Compaq, AST, and Hewlett-Packard may have got their names on players shirts, but this network integrator has gone one better.

If this is the start of a trend, Gremlin would like to suggest taking the process one step further, with the introduction of player sponsorship.

The list so far:

David Seamen - Reflex Magnetics

Alan Shearer - Accurate Technology

David James - Wave Technologies

Roy Keane - CrossComm

Gary Lineker - Nice Com (pictured above)

David Beckham - Fluke

David Batty - Demon Internet

Vinnie Jones - Extreme Networks

Ian Wright - XcelleNet

Kasey Keller - US Robotics

If you can do better, let Gremlin know by emailing gremlin@vnu.co.uk.

Head your emails FANTASY.