DONS MAKE MATT'S SUMMER

WIMBLEDON players traditionally spend World Cup finals summers on the beach.

They make break sweat as they search their chosen holiday destination for a bar with a television set but, in the past, it has been rest and relaxation for the Dons whenever the finals come round.

This year, however, the club will have a pair of representatives to keep an eye on in France. These two, Neil Sullivan and Robbie Earle, have also helped Matt Bensted from Sevenoakes win this week's Factual Football competition and book a trip to a crucial match in the second phase of the tournament in Lens on 28 June. Sullivan has forced his way into the Scotland squad, who face World Cup holders Brazil in the first game of the tournament on 10 June, and Earle has been recruited by Jamaica . They were joined by Wimbledon teammate Kenny Cunningham in the team picked by Matt. A West Ham fan who has recently finished a nine-month course in sound engineering, Matt has been playing the competition since its inception but had given up all hope of winning. "I've entered loads of teams but wasn't having any luck," he said. "I entered this team a while ago and was thinking of having another go in the next couple of weeks, but I won't have to bother anymore." Winning is a dream come true for the 21-year-old, whose Italian girlfriend Simona is constantly on his case for watching too much football on television. "I don't play football because I've got two left feet but I love watching it on television," he added. The players you choose for your Factual Football team are rated every time they play in the Premiership. The Carling Opta scoring system, devised by former England coach Don Howe, means that every pass, every kick and every header is given a mark. That is why our game is fact, not fantasy. Remember, you can enter a new team each week and make changes to your existing lineup. All our weekly winners - there will be a new one each week until the end of the season in May - will be whisked off to Lens for the World Cup match between the winners of Group C and the runners-up in Group D. Hosts France look the likely winners of Group C, where the main challenge will come from former European champions Denmark. South Africa and Saudi Arabia are the rank outsiders to qualify from the group. Group D is more difficult to predict, with Spain and Bulgaria looking the two strongest teams. However, they cannot afford to underestimate the challenge from Nigeria, who beat Brazil in the final of the Olympic Games, and Paraguay. One thing is certain. Our winners will have a day they will never forget. We'll meet them at Waterloo, where they will board a Eurostar bound for Lens. There will be celebrities on board to keep them entertained along with goodie bags and a light meal. After the match there will be a four-course meal in a local restaurant with guest speakers before the journey back to Waterloo. MATT'S TEAM Neil Sullivan ....................Wimbledon Lee Dixon .............................Arsenal Stuart Pearce ...................Newcastle Kenny Cunningham ........Wimbledon Nigel Winterburn...................Arsenal Robbie Earle ...................Wimbledon David Beckham...................Man Utd John Barnes.....................Newcastle Keith Gillespie ..................Newcastle Paul Scholes .......................Man Utd Andy Cole ...........................Man Utd

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