Heroes & Villains, the Aston Villa fanzine
Heroes & Villains => Villa Memories => Topic started by: Deano's Mullet on March 09, 2021, 01:47:42 PM
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Claret and Blue have just done an excellent podcast interview with Steve Hunt who has a book out shortly about his time in football and growing up in Witton. He left after a second spell the season before I started going. What’s the general consensus on him - was he popular, did people like him as a player etc etc? Seems a decent bloke on the podcast but is he one of those in the relegation season who earned his keep or is he a step below Steve Hodge in the unpopularity stakes? I’d be interested to see what Villa fans think.
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I saw him play in his second spell at Villa and he was a classy player. He was one of the only players to come out of that period with his reputation intact. The Chrissy Price song (no hair and we don't care) was originally sung for him.
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He was very much a player's player - as I've said on here before, Gordon Banks was with us briefly as a goalkeeping coach and said he could never understand why Hunt had never had a chance at one of the top clubs or played for England regularly.
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I really liked him. Good player in a bad team. Remember Brian Clough saying if he could sign somebody like Hunt Forest would be title challengers again.
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The relegation season was my first proper season going down, my memories are a bit vague but he was certainly one of our few decent players.
He also lived up the road from me on the Old Chester Rd in Castle Bromwich, me and my mate knocked on his door for an autograph one Sunday morning and he opened it wearing nothing but a pair of red shorts, the 80's style ones that Alan Partridge 'pops out' of.
Fair play to him, he obliged, I'm not sure I'd be so forthcoming in the same situation.
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Time I'm afraid has dimmed my memory of him being with us for two different spells, but I remember him as a decent player with a good left foot.
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When we re-signed both Hunt and Blair in the old March transfer deadline in 1986 the two of them were massive in keeping us up. I met Hunt briefly once at Portman Road after SGT's first game in charge and the one thing that has always stuck in my mind is that he was smoking a fag.
I also remember Hunt and Simon Stainrod recreating the Ernie Hunt/Willie Carr 'donkey' free kick in a 2-0 win against Leicester at Villa Park in 1986.
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Agree with the opinions of others, a classy, hard-working player, with a good eye for a pass. He looked good when rejoining us in 1986 and was one of the few players to come out of relegation the following season with any credit. Played a part early on in the season we came back up too, before his knee injury caught up with him and SGT brought in the Grays and Mark Lillis, who often played a similar midfield role to that which Hunt had.
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Long before my time watching Villa, but I remember we had the board game Team Tactics and he was the highest value Villa player.
I think he was valued at 500K.
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If my memory is correct saw him score a late winner at a "very wet" Huddersfield in SGT first season in charge
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I was always a bit underwhelmed by him, he seemed to have a very good reputation when playing for the Albion but I was never that impressed. Maybe one of those 'right player, wrong time' instances.
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A decent player who always gave 100%. In darker times he was a shining light.
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He looked a really good player in a struggling side and was.one of the few players at the time that seemed consistently good however badly the team performed.
Something positive was always likely to happen when he had possession of the ball.
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When we re-signed both Hunt and Blair in the old March transfer deadline in 1986 the two of them were massive in keeping us up. I met Hunt briefly once at Portman Road after SGT's first game in charge and the one thing that has always stuck in my mind is that he was smoking a fag.
I also remember Hunt and Simon Stainrod recreating the Ernie Hunt/Willie Carr 'donkey' free kick in a 2-0 win against Leicester at Villa Park in 1986.
I used to see Andy Blair run a market stall in Stratford when growing up , couldn’t get my head around it . I had a picture of him on my wall with the team winning the European cup . ( not that there is anything wrong with running a market stall obviously)
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If my memory is correct saw him score a late winner at a "very wet" Huddersfield in SGT first season in charge
Yep, that's what I think of when his name is mentioned.
You can keep your "that night in Barcelona" and "that night in Istanbul", that afternoon in West Yorkshire is amongst my fondest memories.
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If my memory is correct saw him score a late winner at a "very wet" Huddersfield in SGT first season in charge
Yep, that's what I think of when his name is mentioned.
You can keep your "that night in Barcelona" and "that night in Istanbul", that afternoon in West Yorkshire is amongst my fondest memories.
And as if you weren't wet enough already you then practically wet yourself laughing when we got on the coach and I took my match programme out to read only to find out that it had turned into a ball of paper mache that just disintegrated when I took it out of my coat pocket.
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If my memory is correct saw him score a late winner at a "very wet" Huddersfield in SGT first season in charge
I remember his winning goal rather differently. As opposed to a late winner I recall Steve Hunt scored the only goal of the game 'early doors' and we hung on for a 1-0 win in monsoon conditions.
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I thought it was late in the game - but Damo you may be right
Just remember standing on the terraces and as soon as the ref blew his whistle to start the game the rain came down, and it did not stop!
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By coincidence - surely not - there is an account of another player joining New York Cosmos at the same time, Dennis Tueart - in this months Four Four Two. Steve Hunt naturally features.
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A good player in struggling teams. Hard working and skilful and I really liked him as a player and was really pleased when we signed him.
I vaguely remember a 3rd round cup tie at Villa Park against Chelsea, possibly the year we went down so January 87. They were winning 2-1 and in the last minute Walters put in a wicked cross and Hunt scored a diving header to equalise. Vaguely remember going flying on the ice in the Holte when celebrating.
Unfortunately we lost the reply a few days later, I think 2-1 and I think Hunt scored again.
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A good player in struggling teams. Hard working and skilful and I really liked him as a player and was really pleased when we signed him.
I vaguely remember a 3rd round cup tie at Villa Park against Chelsea, possibly the year we went down so January 87. They were winning 2-1 and in the last minute Walters put in a wicked cross and Hunt scored a diving header to equalise. Vaguely remember going flying on the ice in the Holte when celebrating.
Unfortunately we lost the reply a few days later, I think 2-1 and I think Hunt scored again.
We heard that go in from near Aston Church, as we’d given it up a few minutes before.
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Agree with the opinions of others, a classy, hard-working player, with a good eye for a pass. He looked good when rejoining us in 1986 and was one of the few players to come out of relegation the following season with any credit. Played a part early on in the season we came back up too, before his knee injury caught up with him and SGT brought in the Grays and Mark Lillis, who often played a similar midfield role to that which Hunt had.
If I remember right we bought Mark Lillis in the opening weeks of the season and he made his debut for us away to Leicester along with Malcolm Allen. It was our first win of the season and before kick off SGT came over to us as we were in the front row of the stand and one of our travelling party shouted "When are we gonna win Graham"? To which SGT firmly replied "Today"! We bought 'The Gray Twins' in late November or early December and they both made their debuts away to Bradford.
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Fantastic memories of the away games in the promotion season under SGT
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A good player in struggling teams. Hard working and skilful and I really liked him as a player and was really pleased when we signed him.
I vaguely remember a 3rd round cup tie at Villa Park against Chelsea, possibly the year we went down so January 87. They were winning 2-1 and in the last minute Walters put in a wicked cross and Hunt scored a diving header to equalise. Vaguely remember going flying on the ice in the Holte when celebrating.
Unfortunately we lost the reply a few days later, I think 2-1 and I think Hunt scored again.
We heard that go in from near Aston Church, as we’d given it up a few minutes before.
I must have been right next to you as I was walking under the flyover. Learned the lesson never to leave a game early that day,
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Fantastic memories of the away games in the promotion season under SGT
It was my first season going home and away regularly as I had just left school and had my YTS money. The games I can remember best are the first game at Ipswich and of course the last game at Swindon. Away to Leicester and Albion early in the season, Huddersfield in the torrential rain, two wins at Leeds. Reading was memorable for being surrounded by a real bunch of funny characters, Shrewsbury in midweek, McInally scoring the only goal at Oldham. Beating Bradford with the two new signings 'the Gray twins' and really believing at that point that we would go back up. I missed seven games including the game at the sty as I was on a family holiday in Australia. The atmosphere at the last three games at home to Shrewsbury and Bradford and away to Swindon was fantastic.
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Fantastic memories of the away games in the promotion season under SGT
It was my first season going home and away regularly as I had just left school and had my YTS money. The games I can remember best are the first game at Ipswich and of course the last game at Swindon. Away to Leicester and Albion early in the season, Huddersfield in the torrential rain, two wins at Leeds. Reading was memorable for being surrounded by a real bunch of funny characters, Shrewsbury in midweek, McInally scoring the only goal at Oldham. Beating Bradford with the two new signings 'the Gray twins' and really believing at that point that we would go back up. I missed seven games including the game at the sty as I was on a family holiday in Australia. The atmosphere at the last three games at home to Shrewsbury and Bradford and away to Swindon was fantastic.
Went to all the home games that season but only a couple of away games as was only 13/14. Grew up in Hockley and remember going to the midweek Albion away game when Aspinall scored two. Walked home down Soho Road at 9.30/10 at night and mum asked if I’d enjoyed the match when I got home, how times have changed for 13 year olds!!
Bradford at home was electric, 36,000 at VP after regular low 12,000-15,000 attendances for a number of years. You could feel the nerves, the place went up when Platt scored!
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If my memory is correct saw him score a late winner at a "very wet" Huddersfield in SGT first season in charge
I remember his winning goal rather differently. As opposed to a late winner I recall Steve Hunt scored the only goal of the game 'early doors' and we hung on for a 1-0 win in monsoon conditions.
...and a glorious walk back to the station with a warm welcome from both Huddersfield fans and the SYP.