Thursday 1 October 2015

251 The F.A. Cup Final


First  watched : 1  May  1976

Here  is  a  genuine  milestone, the  first  televised  football  match  I  watched  from  beginning  to  end.

My  interest  in  professional  football  was  slow  to  develop. I  first  became  aware  of  the  sport  when  my  mum   (  an  avid  Man  Utd   fan  although  I'm  not  sure  she  ever  went  to  a  game ) bought  me  a  sticker  album  for  what  must  have  been  the  1971-72  season. I  formed  some  likes  and  dislikes,  largely  based  on  the  strips  I  think, which  have  never  really  left  me .  I  also  liked  certain  players  whose  stickers  I  got  including  Norman  Hunter, Asa  Hartford  and  Len  Cantello. I  do  still  tend  to  think  of   those  22  clubs  as  being  the  ones  that  really  belong  in  the  top  flight,  even  including  Huddersfield  Town  who  were  relegated  at  the  end  of  that  season  and  have  never  got  back to  the  highest  level.

At  school  nearly  everyone  was  a  Leeds  United  fan  and  the  first  Cup  Final  I  remember  being  talked  about  was  the  1973  one  when  Sunderland  beat  Leeds. I  didn't  watch  the  game  but  I  remember  the  shock  on  everyone's  faces  at  the  result. I  also  remember  hearing  about  the  1974  Final  when  Liverpool  crushed  Newcastle  ( including  the  bragging  fool  Malcolm  McDonald )   as  a  number of  kids  seemed  to  be  switching  their  allegiance  to  the  Scousers  despite  Leeds  winning  the  title  in  some  style  that  season. I  think  I  might  actually  have  watched  some  of  the  build  up  to  the  1975  Final  ( West  Ham  v  Fulham )  and  got  bored  before  the  match  began. It's  a  shame  I  missed  that  game  as  it  was  an  ex-Rochdale  player,   Alan  Taylor,  who  stole  the  show  with  both  goals.

This  being  my  first  full  match  on  TV  (  I  saw  snatches  of  the  1974  World  Cup )  was  a  direct  result  of  the  demise  of  my  Adventurous  Club ( see  the  post  on  Here  Come  The  Double  Deckers  for  more  details ) in  April  1976 . As I  mentioned  there  the other  kids  started  a  new  club  from  which  I  was  specifically  excluded.  There  was  no  alternative  but  to  walk  a  short  way  down  the  road  and  play  with  a  lad  called  Mark  instead.  Mum  was  never  happy  at  me  associating  with  him  because  he'd  unintentionally  caused  me  a  serious  injury  a  few  years  before  but  I'd  never  held  it  against  him.

The  important  thing  now  was  that  he  and  John  , my  chief  nemesis  ( and  next  door  neighbour )  absolutely  detested  each  other. Though it  rarely  erupted  into  open  hostilities  their's  was  a  classic  alpha  male  rivalry  and  they  tended  to  avoid  each  other  most  of  the  time. Mark  was  not  involved  in  the  Adventurous  Club; indeed  its  main  adventure  was  an  ( unsuccessful ) mission  to  retrieve  a  football  he  had  allegedly  stolen  from  John's  school. I  correctly  judged  that  John  would  see   having  Mark  in  his  new  club  as   too  high  a  price  to  pay  to  complete  my  ostracism.

Though  a  looser  cannon,  Mark  was  usually  a  more  easy-going  and  friendly  lad   than  John  if  you  showed  him  due  deference  and  those  few  weeks  spent  mainly  in  his  company  were  a  pleasant  change. His  main  interests  were  fishing  and  football. Though  his  dad  was  ( hopefully  still  is  but  I  haven't  seen  him  recently )  a  Dale  stalwart  Mark  was  a  big  Man  U  fan. In  the  week  before  their  encounter  with  Southampton  he  pored  endlessly  over  his  pre-match  programme  telling  me  who  the  danger  men  were  and  who  was  most  likely  to  score  the  winner.

 Because  of  this  I  can  still  tell  you  the  United  team  without  recourse  to  wikipedia : Alex  Stepney, Alex  Forsyth, Stewart  Houston, Martin  Buchan, Brian  Greenhoff, Gerry  Daly, Sammy  McIlroy, Steve  Coppell, Stuart  Pearson, Lou  Macari, Gordon  Hill. Sub : David  McCreery. This  was  pretty  much  the  team  that  had  won  the  Second  Division  title  twelve  months  earlier. They  had  finished  the  season  in  third  place  behind  Liverpool  and  surprise  package  QPR  whose  manager  they  would  lure  away  in  little  over  a  year's  time. Coppell  was  my  gran's  favourite  player , his  balancing  of  a  playing  career  and  studying  at  university  appealing  to  her  ideals  of  prudence  and  hard  work.

Their  opponents  were  Second  Division  Southampton  of  whose  number  I  could   now  name  around  seven.  Though  no  fan  of  United  I  wanted  them  to  win  because  the  Saints  had  spoiled  the  party  by  defeating  Crystal  Palace  then  of  the  Third  Division  who  had  made  the  semi-final  after  a  thrilling  giant-killing  run.

It  wasn't  to  be. United  were  lacklustre  throughout  and  seven  minutes  from  time  their  former  player  Jim  McCalliog  played  a  perfect  pass  for  the  little  known  Bobby  Stokes  to  run  on  to  , take  the  ball  past  Stepney  and  score. Many  years  later  I  would  get  to  know  McCalliog  slightly  as  he  was  living  a  few  doors  away  while  managing  ( not  with  any  great  success  )   Halifax  Town  and  he  seemed  like  a  nice  bloke. The  result  was  a  sensation  and  made  their  manager  Lawrie  McMenemy,  who'd  never  actually  played  League  football , a  household  name.  Stokes  unfortunately  fell  victim  to  what  seemed  a  bit  of  a  curse  on   Cup  Final  scorers  during  the  seventies  as  he , Taylor , Ian  Porterfield  ( the  Sunderland  scorer )  and  Allan  Clarke  ( the  Leeds  scorer  in  1972 )  all  suffered  serious  injuries  not  long  afterwards  which  blighted  their  subsequent  careers. He  died  twenty  years  ago  of  bronchial  pneumonia  aged  44.

Mark  was  mortified  but  he  got  over  it  as  you  do  and  enjoyed  their  triumph  over  Liverpool  the following  year.I  didn't  see  that  one , preferring  to  go  for  a  walk  with  my  dad,  who  was  completely  uninterested  in  football, instead.

By  the  time  of  the  next  one  I  was  fully  engaged  with  football  , buying  Shoot  and  watching  all  the  televised  matches. Like  everyone  else  I  expected  Arsenal, in  the  top  five, to  beat  Ipswich, not  too  far  clear  of  the  relegation  zone  and  with  some of  their  best  players  only  half-fit , comfortably. Though  I  didn't  like  Arsenal  much  I hated  Ipswich  for  knocking  one  of  my  favourite  teams, West  Brom, out  in  the semis. Arsenal  though  didn't  turn  up  and  Ipswich  beat  them  much  more  comfortably  than  the  1-0  scoreline  suggests. It  was Alan  Hudson's  last  game  for  Arsenal  and  effectively  the  end  of  his  career  as  a  top  class  player.

Arsenal  returned  to  Wembley  the  following  year  and  beat  United  3-2  after  one  of  the  most  remarkable  finales. Arsenal  were  cruising  to  a 2-0  victory   when  their  manager  Terry  Neill  succumbed  to  sentimentality  and  decided to  give  young  substitute  Steve  Walford,  a  defender,  a  run-out. Quick  as  a  flash  United  exploited  the defensive  confusion  caused  and  were  level. Then , just  as  suddenly,  Liam  Brady , by  a  long  distance  the  man  of  the match, set  up  a  last minute  winner  for  Alan  Sunderland  to  give  Arsenal  the  victory.

Arsenal  came  back  for  the  third  year in  a  row  in  1980  to  play  West Ham, still  marooned  in  the  Second  Division  despite  the  presence  of  top  talent  like  Trevor  Brooking  and  Alan  Devonshire. The  former of  those  two  scored  the  winner  early  on  with  a  rare  header but  the  most  significant  incident  occurred  late  in  the  game . Due  to  injury  West  Ham  fielded  17  year  old  Paul  Allen  in  midfield, the  youngest  ever  player  in  the  Final  at  the  time. He  was  at the  forefront  of  a  West  Ham  breakaway and  bearing  down  on  goal  to  crown  a fairy  tale  story. Then  Willie Young, Arsenal's  graceless  ginger  stopper , chopped  him  down  , taking  the  booking  for  the  team. The  outrage  at  his  cynicism  led  to  the  introduction  of  mandatory  red  cards  for  such " professional"   fouls,  a  rule  change  which  remains  in  the  game  today.    

1981  saw  a  team  I  had  some  emotional  investment  in , Manchester  City,  make  the  Final  against  Tottenham  Hotspur. City  were  still  recovering  from  the  crazed  second  coming  of  Malcolm  Allison  two  years  earlier  and  their  appearance  in  the  Final  was  something  of  a  surprise  having  knocked  out  title  contenders  and  press  darlings  Ipswich  along  the  way.  City  acquitted  themselves  well  in  the  Final  and  were  unlucky  to  be  held  to  a  draw  by  means  of  an  unfortunate  deflection  from  Tommy  Hutchison  who'd  scored  City's  goal  earlier. In  the  replay  they  were  edged  3-2   with  the  winner  a  memorable  solo  goal  from  the  less  celebrated  of  their  Argentinian  pair,  Ricky Villa.  Our  maths  teacher  was  a  big  Spurs  fan  and  was  so  overcome  with  the  victory  we  spent  the  entire  next  lesson  talking  about  it  despite  the  imminence  of  our  O  Level  exams.

Tottenham  had  to  do  without  the  Argentinians  the  following  year  as  we  were  fighting  them  in  the  South  Atlantic  at  the  time   which  gave  Second  Division  QPR  under  Terry  Venables  more  of  a  chance . This  one  also  went  to  a  replay  with  a  Glenn  Hoddle  penalty  finally  settling  the  tie. It  hasn't  left  much  impression  on  me.

1983's  Final  was  the  third  in  a  row  to  go  to  a  replay  with  Ron  Atkinson's  Manchester  United  facing  Jimmy  Melia's   Brighton  who'd  managed  to  combine  Cup  heroics  including  knocking  out  Liverpool  and  relegation  from  the  top  flight. The  previous  Saturday  Brighton's  giant  centre  half  Steve  Foster  had  been  booked  which  took  him  over  the  suspension  line  and  despite  a  High  court  challenge to  the  FA  he  was  unable  to  play  in  the  Final. His  replacement  utility  man  Steve  Gatting  played  heroically  and  Brighton  would  have  won  the  game  had  former  Rangers  striker  Gordon  Smith  not  fluffed  a  golden  chance  in  the  last  minute. With  Foster  restored  to  the  side  Brighton  went  down  4-0  in  the  replay  with  the  United  fans  gleefully  taunting  Foster  with  "What  a  difference  you  have  made  !"

I  watched  the  1984  Final  at  my  hall  of  residence  at  Leeds  when  Everton  on  the  up  beat  Watford   in  decline  2-0, Graham  Taylor  paying  the  penalty  for  sticking  too  long  with  dodgy  keeper  Steve  Sherwood. BBC 's  coverage  was  notable  for  giving  too  many  free  plugs  to  Watford  chairman  Elton  John's  latest  single.

I  watched  the  1985  Final  between  Manchester  United  and  Everton  at  home  and  I  remember  warning  my  mum  that  referee  Peter  Willis,  who  always  caused  controversy  whenever  he  reffed  a  Dale  game , would  do  something  to  get  himself  noticed. He  duly  delivered  by  sending  off  United's  Kevin  Moran  for  a  not  especially  bad  tackle  so  I  suppose  justice  was  done  when  United  won  the  game  with  a  great  goal  by  Norman  Whiteside .

I  don't  remember  much  about  the  all-Merseyside  final  in  1986  apart  from  getting  annoyed  by  all  the  cloying  comment  about  the  rival  fans  sitting  together  as  if  the  Red  half  hadn't  just  got  English  clubs  banned  from  European  competition  for  the  rest  of  the  decade. Liverpool  won  3-1  as  part  of  a  Double.

The  following  year's   was  my  favourite   Final  as  Coventry  , a  team  I'd  long  been  willing  to  actually  win  something , beat  Tottenham  3-2  after  putting  out  Manchester  United  in  the  earlier  rounds. They   won  with  an  own  goal  from  Gary  Mabutt  but  it's  journeyman  striker  Keith  Houchen's  second  equaliser , a  classic  diving  header  that's  remembered.

The  1988  Final  was  also  won  by  the  underdogs  as  Wimbledon  spoiled  Liverpool's  party  by  taking  home  the  trophy  with  a  headed  goal  from  Lawrie  Sanchez  and  a  penalty  save  by  giant  keeper  Dave  Beasant. Those  two  moments  apart  the  game  was  pretty  dismal.

A  year  later  there  was  a  dismal  atmosphere  to  the  game  for  a  different  reason  given  the  deaths  at  Hillsborough  in  one  of  the  semi's. It  was  Liverpool  and  Everton  again  with  the  Reds  winning  3-2  after  extra  time.

In  1990  it  was  Manchester  United  against  Crystal  Palace  who'd  beaten  Liverpool  4-3  in  the  semis. This  was  one  of  the  rare  occasions  I  wanted  United  to  win  a  game,  having  a  strong  dislike  of  Steve  Coppell's   Palace  since  witnessing  their  gamesmanship  in  a  match  at  Maine  Road  three  years  earlier. Palace  had  also  put  Dale  out  in  the  fifth  round  and  if  we  could  have  got  past  them  our  quarter-final  opponents  would  have  been  fellow  Fourth  Division  side  Cambridge. The  match  was  a  3-3  thriller  with  fingers  pointed  at   United's  Scottish  goalkeeper  Jim  Leighton  despite  none  of  the  Palace  goals  being  due  to  an  obvious  howler. Then  came  the  decision  that  turned  things  round  for  the  beleagured  United  manager  Alec  Ferguson  when  he  dropped  Leighton  (  who  he'd  brought  in  from  his  previous  club  Aberdeen ) for  the  replay,  replacing  him  with  former  Coventry  and  Luton  man  Les  Sealey. Sealey  duly  kept  a  clean  sheet  and  United  won  1-0  with  a  goal  from  soon  to  be  displaced  left  back  Lee  Martin.  

1991  was  a  disappointing  result  for  me . Like  most  neutrals  I  had  great  respect  for  Brian  Clough  and  his  Nottingham  Forest  team.  After  Forest's  1980  European  Cup  win  he'd  lost  his  way  a  bit , over-spent  on  indifferent  players  and  mislaid  right  hand  man  Peter  Taylor  but   gradually  he'd  rebuilt  the  side   and  by  the  late  eighties  they  were  clearly  the  second  best  side  in  the  country  playing  a  scintillating  brand  of  football.  They  weren't  able  to  seriously  challenge  Liverpool  for  the  title  but  were  a  formidable  cup  side  with  two  recent  League  Cups  and  a  victory  in  the  short  lived  Full  Members  Cup. Now  they  had  the  chance  to  give  Brian  Clough  the  one  honour  that  had  always eluded  him.

It  didn't  turn  out  that  way. Forest  could  rightly  feel  aggrieved  that  bubble-permed  referee  Roger  Milford, anxious  to  maintain  his  smiley  image, didn't  send  off  Paul  Gascoigne  for  his  two  berserk  fouls  ( either  one  of  which  would  get  him  a  straight  red  today )  early  on  which   would  have  given  them  a  considerable  advantage. Nevertheless  they  didn't  play  that  well  and  eventually  succumbed  to  a  Des  Walker  own  goal  after  extra  time.  During  the  break  after  full  time  Clough  excited  comment  by  talking  to  a  policeman  rather  than  going  on  the  pitch  and  giving  a  team  talk. It  signalled  the  beginning  of  the  end  ; two  years  later  he  was  forced  by  a  combination  of  drink, scandal  and  relegation  to  relinquish  his  post  at  Forest  and  he  never  managed  anyone  again.

The  1992  Final  was  routine  with  Liverpool  easily  disposing  of  Second  Division  Sunderland  2-0  in  a  match  I  only  remember  for  Jimmy  Hill's  bizarre  argument  that  a  blatant  penalty  Sunderland's  Paul  Bracewell   got  away  with  didn't  count  because  of  the  angle   of  his  tackle.

1993  saw  Arsenal  beat  Sheffield  Wednesday 2-1  with  a  goal  from  their  first  reserve  centre  half  Andy  Linighan    and  then  a  year  later  United  beat  Chelsea  4-0. The  outcomes  were  getting  very  predictable. 1995  sprung  a  bit  of  a  surprise  when  the  "dogs  of  war"  approach  Joe  Royle  adopted  at  Everton  to  stave  off  relegation  was  enough  to  beat  United  , deprived  of  the  services  of   Eric  Cantona  after  his  moment  of  lunacy  earlier  in  the  year.  I  think  I  saw  Cantona  crown  his  comeback  with  the  winning  goal  against  Liverpool  the  following  year  but  my  interest  in  top  flight  football  was  waning. With  each  year  of  the  Premier  League  it  was  clearer  that  money  ruled  football  more  than  ever  before  and  the  number  of  potential  prizewinners  was  shrinking  to  a  handful  of  clubs  populated  by  dislikeable  foreign  mercenaries.

I  don't  think  I  saw  the  1997  Final  between  Chelsea  and  Middlesbrough; I  just  had  too  much  else  going  on  in  my  life  at  the  time,  breaking  a  twenty-year   viewing  stretch. And  I'm  not  sure  I've  ever  sat  down  and  watched  a  full  Final  since  I  got  married  late  that  year. I  may  have  been  tempted  by  the  City-Stoke  final  in  2011  had  I  been  in  but  I  was  out  on  a walk  that  day.

              

            

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