Boxing Day 1968

[Virgil Caine]

Brian Tilers debut, pre-match Volunteers to shovel snow off the pitch, freezing cold weather, the Holte End packed with the Children of the Revolution, 11 year old me circled with my Dad, bless him, to my right, and my Uncle with arms aloft to my left. The air thick with fag smoke, whisky fumes and cheap Christmas aftershave.

Some time ago the late Rutski of this manor posted a subject on the characters of Villa Park and in particular a gentleman who always wore thick rimmed glasses and a black raincoat, whatever the weather. I believe his is present just in front of me on the photo.

With thanks to the late Ron Manager another HEITS who was very helpful in tracking down this clipping from the Meaning Evil via Birmingham Archive Library. Of those H&Vers of a certain age- were you there at this game?

[dave.woodhall]

Brian Tilers debut, pre-match Volunteers to shovel snow off the pitch, freezing cold weather, the Holte End packed with the Children of the Revolution, 11 year old me circled with my Dad, bless him, to my right, and my Uncle with arms aloft to my left. The air thick with fag smoke, whisky fumes and cheap Christmas aftershave.

Some time ago Russon (RIP) formerly of this manor posted a subject on the characters of Villa Park and in particular a gentleman who always wore thick rimmed glasses and a black raincoat, whatever the weather. I believe his is present just in front of me on the photo.

With thanks to the late Ron Manager another HEITS who was very helpful in tracking down this clipping from the Meaning Evil via Birmingham Archive Library. Of those H&Vers of a certain age- were you there at this game?

What's happened to Russon?

[Virgil Caine]

I apologise in advance but I thought some time ago had posted that he had passed on. If I have made a mistake I will of course send him a PM to sincerely apologise- in the meantime I will edit my post

[dave.woodhall]

I apologise in advance but I thought some time ago had posted that he had passed on. If I have made a mistake I will of course send him a PM to sincerely apologise- in the meantime I will edit my post

He was alive on Monday night.

[Dr Butler]

this was my first ever Villa game, I was 5 and went with my Great, Grandfather, Grandfather, Dad and assorted Uncles and Cousins....we went in the Aston Tavern if my memory serves me right, well when I say "we" they went in and I played outside in the snow with the other kids.

Barrie Hole got one with Brian Godfrey getting the other ? 

thanks for posting that clipping

UTV
The Doc

[bob rowe]

Never forgotten this game. Thick snow on the ground making walking trecherous, the old open buses useless in winter. Massive crowd despite all that which Blues fans tried to dismiss as loads of Wolves fans coming back from thier postponed game at Coventry & calling in at VP so they didn't have a day without a game. If I remember it right that game was called off first thing in the morning so hardly any Wolves fans would have left home anyway. Blosers jealous as always.

[Virgil Caine]

this was my first ever Villa game, I was 5 and went with my Great, Grandfather, Grandfather, Dad and assorted Uncles and Cousins....we went in the Aston Tavern if my memory serves me right, well when I say "we" they went in and I played outside in the snow with the other kids.

Barrie Hole got one with Brian Godfrey getting the other ? 

thanks for posting that clipping

UTV
The Doc

Brian Tiler on debut scored with a header and Barry Hole as you say scored the other

[dave shelley]

Happy to say that that's another one I was at.  The hope we were beginning to feel was tangible.

[dcdavecollett]

A real sense of being at the start of something.

A 39,000 crowd, as I recall, double the size of the Norwich game. The last home game before the takeover, against promotion-chasing Charlton, drew a 'gate' of 12,000!

The Villa players wore crepe soles while the bluebirds slid around .on the surface. Tiler's header at the Holte brought the house down. The corner taker was Mike Ferguson, who celebrated the goal like Villa had won the league. What a day!*

*And no, there wasn't a VAR tw*t in sight to fuck everything up.

[Bernie]

I was there too. The crowd I think was 41,000- and if memory serves earlier that year crowds in the low teens had been not unknown. There certainly was a feeling that we were at the start of something big, and though 2 years in Division 3 beckoned, the momentum never quite left us, carrying through to the glory days of the late 70's/early 80's. I can still, in my minds eye, see Brian Tiler's header, and the cleared snow surrounding the pitch. Thanks for the memory!

[Flamingo Lane]

That was a rare one for my dad and me and my sisters to miss at that time - such was the snow, my dad was convinced the game would be called off, so we stayed home.

[Andy_Lochhead_in_the_air]

This was my 3rd season and it was an incredibly exciting time. A couple of months earlier it had been slow handclaps and chants of "The board must go !"
Now the Doc had arrived and we had over 40,000 in the ground. It was only Dougs second game as chairman so no doubt that 40k would have turned into 35k with more experience. We had 5 straight wins in league and cup and stayed up.







"My name is Tommy not Oliver, but just the same I am asking for more. I would love to see a big crowd on Boxing Day, and I am sure we will exceed last weeks attendance of 20,000 ".

[Dr Butler]

this was my first ever Villa game, I was 5 and went with my Great, Grandfather, Grandfather, Dad and assorted Uncles and Cousins....we went in the Aston Tavern if my memory serves me right, well when I say "we" they went in and I played outside in the snow with the other kids.

Barrie Hole got one with Brian Godfrey getting the other ? 

thanks for posting that clipping

UTV
The Doc

Brian Tiler on debut scored with a header and Barry Hole as you say scored the other

cheers Virgil, I'm always getting my Brian's mixed up

UTV
The Doc

[steamer]

Found the Programe for the game
I just need to work out how to post the image

[Andy_Lochhead_in_the_air]

Found the Programe for the game
I just need to work out how to post the image

Click Add image to post is the easiest way.