Striker (comic)

Striker (comic)

Striker is a comic strip and former magazine which was featured in the tabloid newspaper The Sun from 1985 until 2009 (aside from an interval from 2003 to 2005 where it was an independent magazine) and in the British magazine Nuts from January to October 2010, before returning to The Sun in January 2013. It was created by Pete Nash. Since its inception, the strip revolved around the life of Nick Jarvis (a former player and manager of the Premiership side Warbury Warriors. Jarvis initially played for the non-league Oakville before moving to First-Division side Thamesford, who were plagued by injuries. He stayed with Thamesford for nine years, quitting in 1994 and winding up at Conference side Warbury. He and the team achieved various promotions (reaching the Premier League in 1999), were relegated twice in succession and then promoted again. They won the Championship play-offs at the end of the 2005–2006 season, which meant they were playing in the Premier League for 2006–2007. That season, Warbury finished in sixth place (which meant they would be playing in the UEFA Europa League in 2007–2008. That season Warbury finished fourth in the league, gaining them a place in the Champions League during the 2008–2009 season. They also reached the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup, losing to Aberdeen. A year later Warbury beat Chelsea 2-1 in the Champions League final, guaranteeing them a place in the following year's Champions League Group Stages (in the new format, where winners get automatic promotion to the group stages). They also survived in the Premiership after beating Portsmouth 2-1 to finish in 17th place.