27 years Ago

[Chico Hamilton III]

What a day this was, a truly great performance. And look at the quality in the Everton side as well....


The Independent


November 6 1989, Monday

Football: Platt's power play sparks the Villa barrage

BYLINE: PHIL SHAW at Villa Park


LENGTH: 682 words

Aston Villa ................6
 Everton ....................2

DAVID PLATT, the striker rescued by Aston Villa from Crewe, thrust his name to the forefront of the fringe candidates for a place in England's World Cup plans yesterday with two goals and a display full of speed, skill and strength as Everton's hopes of seizing the First Division leadership collapsed.


The Manchester United reject's powerful running and confident finishing were the highlights of Villa's fifth successive victory, which lifts them to fourth in the table. They had beaten Neville Southall six times - a great achievement in itself - before Everton, their problems compounded when hamstring trouble forced Dave Watson to sit out the second half, snatched two late goals that were scant consolation on what manager Colin Harvey called 'my worst day in football'.

The barrage proved too much for Villa Park's electronic scoreboard, which went blank after the final goal. Long before then, Platt, with excellent support, had shattered Evertonian hopes of completing the second half of a weekend dream double which had begun at Anfield on Saturday.


 The afternoon was as grey as the stripes on Everton's change strip, but if the television coverage restricted the attendance to 17,637 there was no mistaking the revivalist atmosphere among the Villa faithful. The mood was infectious, and their team deservedly took the lead after five minutes.
An Everton attack broke down on the left. Chris Price, the full- back, found Gordon Cowans breaking free in the inside-right channel and the former England midfielder resisted the temptation to square the ball to Platt, instead driving a right-foot shot diagonally beyond Southall for his first goal since February.

Ian Ormondroyd, at 6ft 4in surely one of the tallest wingers ever, made the second after 15 further minutes of pressure. His cross from the left found Platt's head, Southall parried, but Ian Olney nudged the ball over the line.

Norman Whiteside epitomised Everton's frustration when he was booked for dissent in the 24th minute. Forty seconds later he fouled Ormondroyd, as those long legs performed their Puskas impersonation, and the folly was punished by a third Villa goal. Cowans's curling free-kick caught defenders ball-watching, but Platt had moved off his marker to score with a simple back-header.

Everton had nothing to lose by sending on both substitutes, but within seven minutes of the re- start Harvey's schemes were in tatters as Villa took their lead to 5-0. First, Kevin Gage was able to advance unchecked through Everton's ragged right before feeding Platt, who side-stepped former Villa defender Martin Keown before scoring his ninth goal of the season. Then, Ormondroyd's trickery - implausible but true - mesmerised poor Neil McDonald on the same flank and in the scramble that followed his cross-come-shot, Olney headed his second goal.

Mike Newell, one of the players likely to lose out if Bobby Robson acknowledges Platt's new-found form, headed against the bar during a retaliatory flurry, but Villa's sixth was not long delayed. John Ebbrell was adjudged, harshly, to have impeded Tony Daley, and, from another Cowans free-kick, Kent Nielsen headed his first goal since arriving from Denmark. Pat Nevin struck an upright from 20 yards as Everton strove to salvage a goal from the afternoon.

Suddenly, they managed two in as many minutes: Tony Cottee drilled in the first, on 84 minutes, and Paul McGrath generously donated the other by slicing Peter Beagrie's shot past Nigel Spink. Cottee then appeared to be bundled over in the penalty area - but Mr Ward, like the scoreboard, had seen enough goals for one day.

Aston Villa: Spink; Price, Gage (Blake, 64), McGrath, Mountfield, Nielsen, Daley, Platt, Olney (Heath, 73), Cowans, Ormondroyd.

Everton: Southall; Ebbrell, McDonald, Keown, Watson (Sharp, h/t), Whiteside (Beagrie, h/t), Nevin, McCall, Newell, Cottee, Sheedy.

Referee: A W Ward (London).
 

[PeterWithesShin]

Only 17,637 there.

Highlights

Full match

[garyshawsknee]

Bloody hell I feel old. A great complete performance, one of our greatest televised games.

[castlefields_villan]

Bloody hell I feel old. A great complete performance, one of our greatest televised games.

Same here Gary, (27 years ago !)

It was one of those "I was there games" (one of the 17,000*).

[darren woolley]

Great game I remember watching it happy days.

[castlefields_villan]

certainly was Darren, that was at the start of the push up the league with famous wins against Man Utd and Arsenal a few weeks later.

[Lastfootstamper]

I couldn't go as the folks had just moved, and I got pressganged into some decorating. But I remember saying to my dad just before kick-off that if we won 6-0, we'd go (I think I said) second (it definitely hinged around the 6-0 bit, don't think we'd have gone top).

Fucking Beagrie.

[Des Little]

I was there too.  Now I'm feeling very, very old indeed.  Cheers!

[Andy_Lochhead_in_the_air]

I listened to this on a little portable radio in a wooden hut in North Thailand at about 11pm at night.
The marvellous Paddy Feeney on the World Service kept me in touch with all things Villa for six months. 

[castlefields_villan]

I listened to this on a little portable radio in a wooden hut in North Thailand at about 11pm at night.
The marvellous Paddy Feeney on the World Service kept me in touch with all things Villa for six months.

Paddy Feeney - now there's a blast from the past - whatever happened to him - I must google him.

Speaking of which, who would've thought 15 years ago "To Google" would be an everyday verb ?

[montague]

17K - football really was dying pre Italia 90

[tomd2103]

Was there in the old Witton Lane stand with my Dad and brother.  Back in the days when being on TV was a big thing!  Got better and better after that, leading into beating Manchester United and Arsenal at home over the Christmas period. Happy days!!

[tomd2103]

17K - football really was dying pre Italia 90

Someone must have been fiddling the books, and it is clear from that video alone there was way more than that there. 

[Rudy65]

17K - football really was dying pre Italia 90

Someone must have been fiddling the books, and it is clear from that video alone there was way more than that there.

Theres only one 'someone'

[Villafirst]

I was there on the Holte. Doesn't seem that long ago! I think it was on November 5th? A great season when I thought we'd win the title. Shame it fizzled out in the last few weeks. But finishing 2nd was some achievement.