The first goals came flat packed and were made of what was to become the familiar subbuteo wire, used in many accessories. In the early sets they were covered in a card net printed to look like a net and attached to the frame with sellotape. Once again you suspect this net, accidentally simulating an unsighted keeper, was a cheap and simple measure to launch the game. Ashley tells me the assembly instructions refer to the printed nets as parchment paper - Peter Adolph did like to embellish his descriptions a little.



Within weeks a 'real' net was available as an accesssory. In the 1948/49 catlogue the real netting came with white adhesive tape to secure the netting and make the posts appear more realistic. Thanks to Ashley for the two pictures above.



The parchment did a reasonable job of deadening the ball so that it did not bounce straght back out of the goal. One suspects that these goals remained in the sets because they were cheap rather than popular. They continued in to the red box Popular Set after which they were replaced with a staggeringly dreadful shallow one piece all plastic moulded goal. Yet again I have no information who made the early wire goals or printed the nets. The later moulded goals will probably have been produced in-house.



If you were being kind you might describe the moulded goals as small, shallow and cheap: more accessory sales no doubt. Curiously, despite these cheap disasters, the accessory replacements were and remain two classic subbuteo items. The first was still a wire-based goal with plastic piping over the wire and a realistic netting. This was supplied with the Combination and Super sets. However, a variety of goal securing devices could not fully solve the problem of the goal moving during play at crucial time. A wild dive to save by the keeper could see the goal fly off the pitch. It was not difficult for the player to keep one hand on the top of the goal when handling the keeper, but in our house moving the goal whilst making a save meant conceding the goal.



The Subbuteo company produced a set of slightly smaller goals in 1952 as accessory NN. Essentially the same as the existing goals, the catalogue advises new players to purchase the standard size set, so one assumes the aim was to make the game slighty more difficult for the experienced player.



The final type of goal in the flat era arrived in 1959. It was an all moulded goal with square posts and brown netting probably my personal favourite Subbuteo goal. Apart from the Popular set this goal continued to be used in all flat sets despite the arrival of the green-based continental goals: probably a cost decision. This was a fine, clean and simple goal design.




Flick Me! subbuteo archive goals