Nostalgia

[johnh]

Nostalgia eh. I remember when we used to have a game called 'football'. There were teams of eleven players and the objective was to get a spherical object into a 'goal'. If you got more in than the 'team' you were playing, you won. The adjudication was carried out by a man, dressed in black, known as 'the bas*ard in the black'. The football authorities were working on a system to replace him with three guys sitting next to a television monitor, not to be closer than 100 miles from where the game is played. Clubs played at 'Stadiums' which held 'crowds' of 50K or 60K at some of the top clubs. Many of these 'Stadiums' still exist. Some examples of this 'football' game can be seen in old video's on Youtube.

[Paul ITFC]

48 years ago today was without doubt the best day ever supporting Leeds United. Today we won the holy grail of English football the FA Cup, it saddens me the way today it is so undervalued. Arriving in the stadium around 12:00 to soak up the atmosphere which was already buzzing we were so happy to be there. At the other end of the ground the Arsenal fans were doing the same. The chant of UNITED UNITED went up & as the players inspected the pitch they gave a wave to the assembled Leeds fans. The game is now part of the clubs folk lore, Allan Clarke will always be remembered for scoring the winning goal. Mick Jones with his arm in a sling bravely walking up the steps to receive his medal.

I was there that day, not even sure how I obtained my ticket, and I was also there on 6th May 1978 to see ITFC win it.

I remember Tommy Steele leading the community singing before the game in a (I think) white suit.

I traveled to the 1972 game with two work mates from Suffolk and no idea where they got their tickets from either.
I was in the tunnel end with the Leeds fans but I think my workmates were on half way or somewhere.

Certainly it is sad that the F.A. Cup now is not what it was in 1972 (and 1978).

[Leicester White]

I guess as a Millwall fan, Tommy Steele would have had a close call between Leeds and Arsenal for who he wanted to win!

[kk white]

... A team made up of quality players from the UK...

Ahem, don't forget there was a little slice of green in the midfield

[Deleted User 3289]

... A team made up of quality players from the UK...

Ahem, don't forget there was a little slice of green in the midfield

And Ireland.

[Deleted User 3289]

What drugs was Gary Sprake on when he decided to throw his mates under the bus about the bribes scandal. Its a truly awful statement to make, especially with the tag that Leeds had acquired. No smoke without fire? Or selling his soul to the devil? Either way i'd have punched his lights out if i was a team mate.

Its the equivalent of going to Vegas on a Stag do. Then selling a story about the trip your mates wives. Baffling and i believe he never retracted his story.

[kk white]

... A team made up of quality players from the UK...

Ahem, don't forget there was a little slice of green in the midfield

And Ireland.

[kk white]

Just finished another great podcast with Johnny Giles. This time he, Liam Brady and host Eamonn Dunphy (I have to keep reminding people that Dunphy also played pro) talk about 'Living the Dream' and what it was like to move to England at such a young age.

John was 15 when he went to Manchester, but was better paid as an apprentice than when he signed professional terms:
The club paid his digs/lodgings/accommodation.
They sent £3 home to his Mother in Dublin every week.
He earned £2.50 a week in a job he was given with an engineering firm (Busby's way of getting around the FFP rules of the day - give players a job so they're not on the clubs books).

Therefore, he had £2.50 in his pocket and Mammy was happy too

When he signed pro:
Club stopped paying his digs
Club stopped paying his Mother

So:
He earned £8 a week in winter, £7 in summer
Paid £1 tax
He sent £3 home to his Mother
£3 on digs

Which meant he was penniless in summer and had £1 in winter

[kk white]

To put that in the context of the conversation/interview, 5 years later Dunphy signed for the red team too and was on same wages, but spent it all in the bookies as he was befriended by Barry Fry

Liam Brady signed pro 10 years later for Arsenal, was on £40 a week WITH accommodation paid... + he had 3 brothers already in London, 2 ex footballers and 1 owned a pub. He had it easy

[NottinghamWhite]

I was there that day, not even sure how I obtained my ticket, and I was also there on 6th May 1978 to see ITFC win it.

I remember Tommy Steele leading the community singing before the game in a (I think) white suit.

I traveled to the 1972 game with two work mates from Suffolk and no idea where they got their tickets from either.
I was in the tunnel end with the Leeds fans but I think my workmates were on half way or somewhere.

Certainly it is sad that the F.A. Cup now is not what it was in 1972 (and 1978).

A lot of tickets not sure of the exact percentage were given to County Football Association’s ( not sure if that’s still the case ? ) so I would imagine that’s how you obtained yours as getting tickets for this game was very difficult for Leeds fans. I had a friend who’s father was on the committee of the North Yorkshire FA & went to the final for many years. Yes Tommy Steele did wear a white suit that day.



In 1973 Frankie Vaughan led the community singing. I remember the 78 final wasn’t it Roger Osborne who bagged the winner ? Arsenal were a decent side & had one of my favourite none Leeds players playing that day in Malcolm MacDonald ( I was at Wembley in 1975 when he scored 5 goals against Cyprus ) or Super Mac as he was better known. You also had Paul Marinier who I had watched a few times for Plymouth Argyle as I was living in Torbay in those days.