Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Villa Memories => Topic started by: remy on March 20, 2018, 08:29:00 PM
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Good read but some bits missed:
https://www.tifofootball.com/features/25-years-on-when-a-premier-league-title-was-aston-villas-to-lose/
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I remember Norwich had to play us then Man U, in their following game.
They beat us, to go top, then Man U beat them to go top.
I'm convinced had the games been reversed they'd have beat Man U and lost to us and we'd have gone on to win the league.
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I remember Norwich had to play us then Man U, in their following game.
They beat us, to go top, then Man U beat them to go top.
I'm convinced had the games been reversed they'd have beat Man U and lost to us and we'd have gone on to win the league.
Garry Parker missed an absolute sitter in the Norwich game, which would have put us in the lead as I remember.
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Too soon 😡
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I remember going up to Blackburn in April I think and seeing us lose 3-0 - the same night as Manure won at Crystal Palace. Effectively our title race all but ended that night. An awful feeling.
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I was working in a shop in Manchester at the time and, the day after United beat Norwich at Carrow Road, Andre Kanchelskis walked in with Mrs Kanchelskis ( in a day-glo shell suit as I remember - very fashionable with Eastern Europeans at the time) and I had to serve him. I tried to make a joke about him being yards offside for his goal at Norwich but I don't think my West Midlands humour translated well.
When we went to Blackburn, wasn't that when the away end was being rebuilt at Ewood? I remember hundreds of Villa fans being marched out of the home end, along the touchline and being shoved in to the away end. Was that the same season?
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I was there when Deano had one chalked off on his debut at Elland Road (I think Hodge scored for Leeds in a 1-1 draw), but his home debut was probably the most memorable game of the season. Three games against United and they couldn't beat us in the head to heads but then that is what Ipswich say about us in '80/'81. The games at home to Coventry and away to Blackburn are the ones I remember I felt it was slipping away, particularly as United won on both those days. The Oldham game was desperately depressing.
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I was working in a shop in Manchester at the time and, the day after United beat Norwich at Carrow Road, Andre Kanchelskis walked in with Mrs Kanchelskis ( in a day-glo shell suit as I remember - very fashionable with Eastern Europeans at the time) and I had to serve him. I tried to make a joke about him being yards offside for his goal at Norwich but I don't think my West Midlands humour translated well.
When we went to Blackburn, wasn't that when the away end was being rebuilt at Ewood? I remember hundreds of Villa fans being marched out of the home end, along the touchline and being shoved in to the away end. Was that the same season?
I seem to remember sitting in a stand at the side of the pitch at Ewood that season whereas on my previous visits we were always behind one of the goals.
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I was working in a shop in Manchester at the time and, the day after United beat Norwich at Carrow Road, Andre Kanchelskis walked in with Mrs Kanchelskis ( in a day-glo shell suit as I remember - very fashionable with Eastern Europeans at the time) and I had to serve him. I tried to make a joke about him being yards offside for his goal at Norwich but I don't think my West Midlands humour translated well.
When we went to Blackburn, wasn't that when the away end was being rebuilt at Ewood? I remember hundreds of Villa fans being marched out of the home end, along the touchline and being shoved in to the away end. Was that the same season?
I seem to remember sitting in a stand at the side of the pitch at Ewood that season whereas on my previous visits we were always behind one of the goals.
That's where we were sitting too. Night game?
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I was there when Deano had one chalked off on his debut at Elland Road (I think Hodge scored for Leeds in a 1-1 draw),
I also remember that we were at the side of the pitch at Elland Road, instead of behind the goal, for Deano's debut
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Liverpool home was a great day at VP, UTD at home in the league cup was a corker too. When we won at Forest away, I thought it was within touching distance. Then Big Ron tried to shoe horn Dalian back in the team when he didn't seem fully fit and we lost our mojo.
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I was there when Deano had one chalked off on his debut at Elland Road (I think Hodge scored for Leeds in a 1-1 draw),
I also remember that we were at the side of the pitch at Elland Road, instead of behind the goal, for Deano's debut
Your right. I can't remember the name of that stand (Lowfields?) but on my previous visits we were behind the goal.
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I watched that Blackburn game on TV screens set up on the pitch in front of the Witton Lane.
I'd forgot Sid was playing for them.
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We had a restricted allocation due to redevelopment at Ewood, I'm sure it was in the hundreds and we sat in the old and very cramped mainstand.
I remember being under the stand with Duran Duran's Come Undone playing over the PA and feeling utterly depressed, whenever I hear that song I'm there again.
Didn't Sid run the midfield that night for them?
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Great. Just what I need at the moment, reminders of previous occasions the Villa have come up short. I look forward to the articles about our attempts to get into the Chanpions' League under MON and our cup final appearances of the 21st century.
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I watched that Blackburn game on TV screens set up on the pitch in front of the Witton Lane.
I'd forgot Sid was playing for them.
Wasn't it the Trinity Road stand we were in for the Blackburn game?
I was there until my mate left at half time. Boy was there a hangover the next day.
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I watched that Blackburn game on TV screens set up on the pitch in front of the Witton Lane.
I'd forgot Sid was playing for them.
Same here. Still have my stub at home.
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We had a restricted allocation due to redevelopment at Ewood, I'm sure it was in the hundreds and we sat in the old and very cramped mainstand.
I remember being under the stand with Duran Duran's Come Undone playing over the PA and feeling utterly depressed, whenever I hear that song I'm there again.
Didn't Sid run the midfield that night for them?
You beat me to that last comment. My recollection of the night is that Sid played a blinder, but I wasn't sure if my memory was playing tricks on me.
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When we went to Blackburn, wasn't that when the away end was being rebuilt at Ewood? I remember hundreds of Villa fans being marched out of the home end, along the touchline and being shoved in to the away end. Was that the same season?
Yes, they had that big mural up on the stand with pictures of supporters painted on it.
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I remember a newspaper quietly reporting that the premier league trophy had been sent to old Trafford while we were still in with a chance.
I heard Big Ron saying a few years ago that since the fergie time owls match every 50/50 seemed to go manures way. Considering I’m sure we were pulling up trees at the same time they were losing at home to Wimbledon that season.
Garry Parker not called up for England that season - travesty.
“If you want to see great goals, get yourself down to Villa Park” - Hansen
“We need two goal of the seasons, one for villa and one for the rest of the prem” - Motson?
Aye that Blackburn defeat was one of the worst nights of my villa life.
Man City donating 3 points.
Anfield 2-1 Parker special.
We could beat manure, manure could beat Norwich, norwich could beat villa.
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My abiding memory of that season was Stan Stauntons cracking goal up at Old Trafford on the live Sunday game. Outside of the left boot, arrowhead into the top corner.
Didn’t we also do the double over Liverpool that year, as well as bear Man U atour place, draw at theirs? But threw in a few freak results too (spanked at Cov for instance).
Happy days though. Joyfull football.
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Not the greatest editing but shows more of the game than you can normally find.
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Simple fact is we weren't good enough. We had that great few months when we looked fantastic but we started (two wins in eight) and ended (won 4 of 11) the season pretty crap. Saunders went on one of his regular goal droughts from the end of Jan for the rest of the season, scoring only 2 in the last 17, Dalian didn't score again after that great double at Sheff Weds in early December. We were a side that scored great goals, but we weren't a great goal scoring side.
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Liverpool home was a great day at VP, UTD at home in the league cup was a corker too. When we won at Forest away, I thought it was within touching distance. Then Big Ron tried to shoe horn Dalian back in the team when he didn't seem fully fit and we lost our mojo.
I remember that. IIRC Yorke had been doing ok but we rushed Dalian back. Hope we don’t make the same mistake with Kodjia
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My abiding memory of that season was Stan Stauntons cracking goal up at Old Trafford on the live Sunday game. Outside of the left boot, arrowhead into the top corner.
Didn’t we also do the double over Liverpool that year, as well as bear Man U atour place, draw at theirs? But threw in a few freak results too (spanked at Cov for instance).
Happy days though. Joyfull football.
Yes double over Liverpool was indeed done. When we beat them 2-1 at Anfield Fergie said that's the sort of result that makes you sit up and notice a team.
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Liverpool home was a great day at VP, UTD at home in the league cup was a corker too. When we won at Forest away, I thought it was within touching distance. Then Big Ron tried to shoe horn Dalian back in the team when he didn't seem fully fit and we lost our mojo.
I remember that. IIRC Yorke had been doing ok but we rushed Dalian back.
York was doing more than okay, I always blamed Big Ron for not giving Yorke his chance, he fully deserved it yet he insisted with Dalian and we threw it away. We played some cracking football though. I'm knackered just rewatching the highlights of the draw at Old Trafford.
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Liverpool home was a great day at VP, UTD at home in the league cup was a corker too. When we won at Forest away, I thought it was within touching distance. Then Big Ron tried to shoe horn Dalian back in the team when he didn't seem fully fit and we lost our mojo.
I remember that. IIRC Yorke had been doing ok but we rushed Dalian back.
York was doing more than okay, I always blamed Big Ron for not giving Yorke his chance, he fully deserved it yet he insisted with Dalian and we threw it away. We played some cracking football though. I'm knackered just rewatching the highlights of the draw at Old Trafford.
In fairness - it must be hard to leave out your son (copyright Ms Brady)
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We took 10 points out of 12 in Dalian's first 4 games back. We then lost the last 3 of the season. Main reason wasn't Dalian but Saunders. After the 6 goals in his first 4 he only scored another 7 in the last 31 games.
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I remember leaving the Holte after the 0-0 draw at home to Coventry where we battered them for 90 mins but just couldn't score. On the way out of the ground it was announced Manure were losing 1-0 to Sheff Wed. Remember being gutted when we got back to the car and heard the scores :'(. That was the day we lost the league in my opinion.
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In my mind is the revenge the following season of winnng the League Cup and denying them a clean sweep of domestic trophies.
They haven’t managed it since and probably won’t now. Plus looks like at some point the most expensively assembled team in history will do it this year - their neighbours.
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My abiding memory of that season was Stan Stauntons cracking goal up at Old Trafford on the live Sunday game. Outside of the left boot, arrowhead into the top corner.
Didn’t we also do the double over Liverpool that year, as well as bear Man U atour place, draw at theirs? But threw in a few freak results too (spanked at Cov for instance).
Happy days though. Joyfull football.
We have already referenced Elland Road and Ewood Park that season. Old Trafford was another ground where we usually had behind the goal but were moved to the side that year. Risso mentioned a 'Muriel' at Ewood, but the only ground I remember having one of them was Highbury. Didn't the Arse have to paint in some black and brown faces after complaints everyone on the original was white?
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I watched that Blackburn game on TV screens set up on the pitch in front of the Witton Lane.
I'd forgot Sid was playing for them.
Villa fans were sat in the Trinity and big screens were on the pitch, early April so was still sunny at 7.45 so for the early part of the match could really see the screens properly as they were in sunlight, so could only hear the commentary, Dalian missed a sitter early on, 3-0 defeat and in all honesty that was the title gone.
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Just looking at the fixtures for that season. I remember going to the Leeds home game in August. How come we played them so soon again away? (September) Seems a bit of an anomoly...
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I remember going up to Blackburn in April I think and seeing us lose 3-0 - the same night as Manure won at Crystal Palace. Effectively our title race all but ended that night. An awful feeling.
I went there in the middle of my Finals. Bought a ticket from a tout. Missed the last train back to Manchester. Got moved by goods train to Preston then had to sleep the night at the station until the milk train came. Horrible.
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I am trying to remember if there was a point when I was 100% convinced we would win the league. Possibly when we won at Anfield in the January. But I don't remember ever thinking it was ours, whereas in 1990 I was totally convinced we would be champions as we left White Hart Lane on the night of our 2-0 win.
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I am trying to remember if there was a point when I was 100% convinced we would win the league. Possibly when we won at Anfield in the January. But I don't remember ever thinking it was ours, whereas in 1990 I was totally convinced we would be champions as we left White Hart Lane on the night of our 2-0 win.
I think after the 1-1 draw at Old Trafford I was pretty sure.....especially as we generally outplayed them in that game.
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5-1 Vs Middlesbrough. I honestly thought we'd win it after that performance.
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5-1 Vs Middlesbrough. I honestly thought we'd win it after that performance.
A good day, especially as our bunch of mates on the Holte had a Boro supporter as our guest at the game and in the pub afterwards. I sort of get your point as it was a good performance and comprehensive win but it isn't a game like that where you judge your team's credentials. White Hart Lane in 1990 ( Spurs finished third behind Liverpool and us that year) and Anfield in 1993 are the kind of games where you evaluate your chances.
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5-1 Vs Middlesbrough. I honestly thought we'd win it after that performance.
A good day, especially as our bunch of mates on the Holte had a Boro supporter as our guest at the game and in the pub afterwards. I sort of get your point as it was a good performance and comprehensive win but it isn't a game like that where you judge your team's credentials. White Hart Lane in 1990 ( Spurs finished third behind Liverpool and us that year) and Anfield in 1993 are the kind of games where you evaluate your chances.
Part of what got me excited was Ron Atkinson saying afterwards he'd never enjoyed a performance by one of his teams as much as he had this one. I honestly thought he believed and hence so did I.
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I remember coming home from that Coventry home game and marching straight out into the garden, standing at the top of the lawn and just staring into space. I was twelve. Kind of set the tone for the majority of my time as a Villa fan.
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Both times in that era we were responsible for losing the titles as opposed to anyone winning them if that makes sense. Wimbledon at home in GT’s era. Just what happened there.
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Both times in that era we were responsible for losing the titles as opposed to anyone winning them if that makes sense. Wimbledon at home in GT’s era. Just what happened there.
I can only remember God having a nightmare on three occasions. The Beelzebub hat trick game, that Wimbledon game when he had a nightmare up against John Fashanu and a boxing day mare he had at Highfield Road when Mick Quinn caused him loads of problems.
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25 years ago today, Bruce scored those two goals 😕
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Too soon 😡
This
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Why were the home gates so low? I remember Alan Hansen mentioning this as well.
I remember the prices for the Wimbledon game being dropped to £5. The only lockouts I can remember were Man U (beat them twice in a week) and Spurs in midweek.
Edit - oh and Liverpool
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Why were the home gates so low? I remember Alan Hansen mentioning this as well.
You can probably find Dave Woodhall's answer to this question in a million different places on this site if you really want to. It applies to many seasons not just this one.
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Why were the home gates so low? I remember Alan Hansen mentioning this as well.
You can probably find Dave Woodhall's answer to this question in a million different places on this site if you really want to. It applies to many seasons not just this one.
I don't think I've ever given any specific answer because I don't have one. Sometimes our crowds just drop for no apparent reason.
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It might just be my memory playing tricks on me but despite a lot of grounds undergoing work to comply with the Taylor report that season I don't particularly recall having to queue up for tickets. But I do recall having to queue up for tickets for games in the last half of the 1989-1990 season. Didn't we even have a pretty big crowd for the cup game at home to Port Vale?
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Why were the home gates so low? I remember Alan Hansen mentioning this as well.
You can probably find Dave Woodhall's answer to this question in a million different places on this site if you really want to. It applies to many seasons not just this one.
I don't think I've ever given any specific answer because I don't have one. Sometimes our crowds just drop for no apparent reason.
Right that’s what I meant, generically not specific to that season. I also think at the end of the day, we just aren’t as well supported as we like to think we are, even taking fluctuations into account.
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Why were the home gates so low? I remember Alan Hansen mentioning this as well.
I remember the prices for the Wimbledon game being dropped to £5. The only lockouts I can remember were Man U (beat them twice in a week) and Spurs in midweek.
Edit - oh and Liverpool
I remember being at the Cov game and it was seemingly rammed in the Holte End.
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Attendances in general were still low. We ended up averaging 29,500 and that was the third highest in the country that season.
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Attendances in general were still low. We ended up averaging 29,500 and that was the third highest in the country that season.
Yep seemed the next season saw an increase and subsequent years. The ‘experience’ changed, grounds improved beyond recognition around then, and it became more commercial and much better marketed. Thatchers Yuppies were now parents and the extended audience was captivated.
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From memory, gates were low at the start of 1994-95, possibly because the Holte was still being finished, then they took off towards the end of the season and kept rising until about 1999.
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In 92/93 we went as low as 16K for Southampton and had 2 or 3 other sub 20K, as well as what seems to have been airbrushed from history, a PL record at the time of 45,347 for the Holte's last stand.
In 94/95 capacity at the start of the season was just under 30 iirc and only once on the first 5 or 6 games did we reach that, the Newcastle game after Inter.
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In 92/93 we went as low as 16K for Southampton and had 2 or 3 other sub 20K, as well as what seems to have been airbrushed from history, a PL record at the time of 45,347 for the Holte's last stand.
Which was, of course, the season after.
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They are the figures for 93/94, I just typed the wrong season like a plum.
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The 16k for Soton in deepest November was one of the coldest ever experiences at football. Le Tissier bagged 2.
Made worse when I bumped into the only Southampton fans I have ever met who coincidentally was covering the game for one of the East Mids radio stations.
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Attendances in general were still low. We ended up averaging 29,500 and that was the third highest in the country that season.
Are you sure that was in 92/93 and not another season?
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Yes.
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The 16k for Soton in deepest November was one of the coldest ever experiences at football. Le Tissier bagged 2.
Made worse when I bumped into the only Southampton fans I have ever met who coincidentally was covering the game for one of the East Mids radio stations.
The coldest I have ever been at a game was at Notts County in midweek in the BFR days. The coldest I have ever been at Villa Park was a night match against Forest in the ZDS cup or whatever it was called that particular year. I think that was in the BFR era too. I know we also played Forest in that competition just before Christmas (1989 I think) one year, but that wasn't the one I nearly froze to death at.
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I couldn't get to that Southampton game because the points on the railway track between Crewe and Stafford had frozen.
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I drove to that Southampton game from Chester in a mini metro. How I got home through the snow was a miracle in itself! In fact wasn’t that 93/94?
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The coldest I have ever been at a game was at Notts County in midweek in the BFR days.
Cup replay or postponement on a Tuesday night - feckin' freezing. Tons of Villa there.
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I am trying to remember if there was a point when I was 100% convinced we would win the league. Possibly when we won at Anfield in the January. But I don't remember ever thinking it was ours, whereas in 1990 I was totally convinced we would be champions as we left White Hart Lane on the night of our 2-0 win.
I loved that season but I never really believed we’d win. As BFR said when interviewed on the Villa Review podcast, Man Utd had much better players than us. The hope was that they’d bottle it again.
Obviously th Sheffield Wednesday comeback didn’t help but personally I think they were always likely to win
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I am trying to remember if there was a point when I was 100% convinced we would win the league. Possibly when we won at Anfield in the January. But I don't remember ever thinking it was ours, whereas in 1990 I was totally convinced we would be champions as we left White Hart Lane on the night of our 2-0 win.
I loved that season but I never really believed we’d win. As BFR said when interviewed on the Villa Review podcast, Man Utd had much better players than us. The hope was that they’d bottle it again.
Obviously th Sheffield Wednesday comeback didn’t help but personally I think they were always likely to win
We lost some crucial very 'winable' games late on in 1990 and 1993 whereas in 1981 we won those kind of games.
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Some great away days that season, Anfield, Old Trafford and Highbury - how many seasons can we say we did those three unbeaten.
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Some great away days that season, Anfield, Old Trafford and Highbury - how many seasons can we say we did those three unbeaten.
2009/2010 season.
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How were we tipped to do on the eve of the new dawn 92/93 season? Was United's squad streets ahead? Or were Leeds, Liverpool and Arsenal more hotly-tipped?
We bought Deano early on, they got Cantona a couple of months after, without looking I'm not sure how much football Bryan Robson played for them that season.
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Some great away days that season, Anfield, Old Trafford and Highbury - how many seasons can we say we did those three unbeaten.
We had a good spell in North London for a while. Winning 3-2 at Arsenal early on in our first season back up in 1988 (the whole game is on Youtube). That was my first visit to Highbury. Winning at Spurs and Arsenal in live midweek games at crucial points in the season in 1990 in what at the time were crucial title six pointers. Spurs and Arsenal finished third and fourth just behind us that season. Coming out of White Hart Lane that night I was convinced we would win the league. At Highbury Chris Price missed a sitter quite late on, prompting one of our car load of mates to announce "Price will never score as long as he has got a hole in his arse"! Moments later he scored the only goal of the game. I remember in BFR's first season going to WHL and being 2-0 down and winning 2-5. I also remember winning 1-0 at Highbury with a late Tony Daley goal and then finding out on the radio of the coach after the game that the noses had been 4-1 up at home to Swindon and ended up losing 4-6.
I moved abroad for a couple of years in the mid nineties but as I recall our success in North London carried on for a while.
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Remembering 92/93?
I try not to... :'( :'( :'(
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Remembering 92/93?
I try not to... :'( :'( :'(
To not win the league that year was one of the biggest disappointments I have had following the club. To win the first Premier League title would have been great as would have winning the last FA Cup final played at the old Wembley.
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Remembering 92/93?
I try not to... :'( :'( :'(
To not win the league that year was one of the biggest disappointments I have had following the club. To win the first Premier League title would have been great as would have winning the last FA Cup final played at the old Wembley.
We had a bit of Karma thrown back at us that season. Ipswich like to point out they beat us three times in 1980/81. We played United three times in the first PL season and won two and drew one.
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So, Damo, you're a betting man. Can you cast your brain back 26 years back and recall how well we were tipped?
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So, Damo, you're a betting man. Can you cast your brain back 26 years back and recall how well we were tipped?
I didn't start my football betting until I moved abroad in 1994. A mate of mine out there ran a bookies business from a corner in one of the bars.
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Pretty sure we were only fancied as an outsider? Leeds,. Arsenal, Man United and - yes - Sheffield Wednesday were all the favourites that season. Knowing the media, probably Spurs too. Chelsea and Man City would have been nowhere and Newcastle and West Ham weren't even in the division.
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You could probably guess the approximate odds to some extent from the previous seasons table, which was...
1Leeds
2Man U
3Sheff Wed
4Arsenal
5Man City
6Liverpool
7Villa
8Forest
9Sheff U
10Palace
11QPR
12Everton
13Wimbledon
14Chelsea
15Spurs
16Southampton
17Oldham
18Norwich
19Coventry
Luton, Nott County and West Ham went down and were replaced by second division winners Ipswich, runners up Middlesbrough and play off winners Blackburn.
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Pretty sure we were only fancied as an outsider? Leeds,. Arsenal, Man United and - yes - Sheffield Wednesday were all the favourites that season. Knowing the media, probably Spurs too. Chelsea and Man City would have been nowhere and Newcastle and West Ham weren't even in the division.
50/1 at the start