1974-75 match reports and photos (50 years ago today)

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21/8/1974

Newcastle 2 (Burns, MacDonald) Blades 2 (Eddy pen, Speight)

I do not remember how I found out the score. I had just started my second year at Mary Hare (near Newbury). My new dormitory was at a different boarding house called "Mansell House" where all the boys from the second form (plus a handful of first form boys) slept in, played indoor games such as snooker (4th formers onwards were allowed to play), table tennis and chess. There was a reading room and a tv room. I had to be in bed between 8.15pm and 8.30pm every night so I couldnt find out how the Blades got on in midweek games until the next day. I may find out the scores from a senior pupil before or during breakfast. In my first year I slept at the Manor House (where all the girls plus most of the first form boys resided in) and on a quite few occasions I would nip into the classroom before breakfast to find out the football scores from the previous night by reading the newspaper that was delivered by the "paper boy". The Manor House had a corridor link to the school but the location of the Mansell House (built in 1963) is well away from the school and it was almost impossible for anyone to leave the house heading for the classroom without being noticed.

We wore the all blue change kit for the first time in that match. My dad wasnt at the match and I dont think he was aware of the new change kit. I am sure I wasnt aware too because the first time I was aware of this was when I received my dad's match report of the Stoke game in October 1974 by post. In his letter he seemed to be surprised that we wore all blue that afternoon.

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The below photo colorised by SouthEssexBlade. Not sure if the socks were blue or red that evening

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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables in below link
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31/8/1974

Blades 3 (Mills og, Field 2) Ipswich 1 (Lambert)

I was surprised that we had won against the media darlings, Ipswich, and my fears about getting relegation were disappearing fast. As I was at Mary Hare I didnt find out who had scored until the next morning. Only the prefects were allowed to read the newspapers until the papers were delivered in the Reading room at 11am. After breakfast I managed to persuade a prefect to find out who had scored for the Blades. He went to find out and came back to me saying "Mills own goal, Field two". Not the scorers I was expecting. It wasnt until a few days later that I found out Tony Field had scored a worldie when I got a letter from my dad through the post. It was weeks later I eventually saw Field's worldie on TV when "On the Ball" programme did a feature on SUFC. It was in 1993 when I first saw Mick Mills' own goal and Tony Field's first goal to put us 2 up when YTV released the 1968 to 1981 SUFC goals video!

Our goals are from 50 seconds in below link



The below link includes our goals and Ipswich's consolation goal. Ted Hemsley seems to be furious with Woody! From 15 mins 33 seconds



Just before the own goal after Woody had beaten big Kevin Beattie, Allan Hunter (sold him the dummy twice) and George BurleyIps74Woody.jpg

Celebrations after our second goalIps74Field1.jpg

The worldie

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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables are in below link

From the programme

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31/8/1974

Blades 3 (Mills og, Field 2) Ipswich 1 (Lambert)

I was surprised that we had won against the media darlings, Ipswich, and my fears about getting relegation were disappearing fast. As I was at Mary Hare I didnt find out who had scored until the next morning. Only the prefects were allowed to read the newspapers until the papers were delivered in the Reading room at 11am. After breakfast I managed to persuade a prefect to find out who had scored for the Blades. He went to find out and came back to me saying "Mills own goal, Field two". Not the scorers I was expecting. It wasnt until a few days later that I found out Tony Field had scored a worldie when I got a letter from my dad through the post. It was weeks later I eventually saw Field's worldie on TV when "On the Ball" programme did a feature on SUFC. It was in 1993 when I first saw Mick Mills' own goal and Tony Field's first goal to put us 2 up when YTV released the 1968 to 1981 SUFC goals video!

Our goals are from 50 seconds in below link



The below link includes our goals and Ipswich's consolation goal. Ted Hemsley seems to be furious with Woody! From 15 mins 33 seconds



Just before the own goal after Woody had beaten big Kevin Beattie, Allan Hunter (sold him the dummy twice) and George BurleyView attachment 191694

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The worldie

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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables are in below link

From the programme

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that was an unbelievable goal by field he was like forest gump just kept on running must have beaten 4 players before scoring in front of the kop apparently field was not a popular bloke amongst rest of players according to tc in his book
 
I seem to remember being in the Bramall Lane stand for the Ipswich game. I can picture Field and being right behind him as he took on those Ipswich players. No idea why we chose to go there as we always went on the Kop.

Tony Currie talks in his column about the disappointing crowds at the Lane. Well TC you did more than most to push those attendances up.

There's an article about junior football and the name of Earnest Kangley. Always remember him being a lead figure in the junior footballs scene.
 
7/9/1974

West Ham 1 (Jennings) Blades 2 (Woodward, Dearden)

My parents travelled down to my school near Newbury by car and picking me and my three friends up. Norwich fan David, Hibs fan Martin and Arsenal fan Rupert (although he occasionally watched his local team Watford with his dad). The route to Upton Park was on the M4 and then on reaching London, my dad decided to park his car near Gloucester Road tube station . This week I messaged my three friends asking for their memories of that day. Martin remembered David wearing a red and white scarf until we got off the Upton Park tube station. David felt uncomfortable at getting stares from the Hammers fans so he decided to hide his scarf inside his coat! I couldnt remember that and asked David about it. He said he had bought the scarf just before the Texaco Cup match between the Blades and Man City the previous month. I couldnt remember that too!

My dad got six tickets for our seats when we arrived at the ground. It was a very windy day and one of the tickets blew away from my dad's hand so he chased after the ticket for about 20 yards before retrieving it! This had us in stitches!

Rupert was telling me how a good player Billy Jennings is as he had just signed for West Ham from Watford. He was delighted that Jennings had scored to give West Ham the lead.

In the second half we found it hard playing against the strong wind and then out of blue Woody retrieved the ball in the centre circle, raced away to just outside the penalty box before hitting a powerful shot that stunned keeper Mervyn Day. My dad rose from his seat applauding at the goal "that defied science". We were worried how the Hammers fans around us would react but all we got was "looks" from them! To this day, David still remembers Woody's tremendous equaliser. Lovely tributes about Woody from Benny Hill (the reporter) and Hammers manager, John Lyall in the below Morning Telegraph report! Not long after that, Dearden got the winner with a shot that flew over Day's head after receiving a pass. If it wasnt for the wind it would probably have gone high over the bar.

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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables from below link.
 
10/9/1974

League Cup 2nd round

Blades 3 (Eddy pen, Dearden, Speight) Chesterfield 1 (Darling)

That evening I asked Ian, a Gillingham fan two years above me at school, who is partial deaf and could listen to football commentaries, football scores etc from his transistor radio, to let me know the score of the above game before breakfast in the next morning. As soon as I woke up at 7 am in the next morning, Ian in his pyjamas and dressing gown, appeared at the door of my dormitory, his hair unbrushed, got my attention and said "won 3-1" before going
straight back to his dormitory.

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From the programme
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I seem to remember being in the Bramall Lane stand for the Ipswich game. I can picture Field and being right behind him as he took on those Ipswich players. No idea why we chose to go there as we always went on the Kop.

Tony Currie talks in his column about the disappointing crowds at the Lane. Well TC you did more than most to push those attendances up.

There's an article about junior football and the name of Earnest Kangley. Always remember him being a lead figure in the junior footballs scene.
Ernest Kangley was Secretary of the Sheffield and Hallamshire County Football Association. Quite an abrasive guy. I can remember after The Council had cancelled all Parks pitches for the 3rd week running due to water logging saying that the Council were costing him money. No play meant no income from disciplinary proceedings. How ironic is that! Later Geoff Thompson took over and some time later became Chairman of the FA.
 
13/9/1974

Brian Clough's spell as manager of Leeds ends after 44 days as he gets the sack.

 
14/9/1974

Blades 1 (Eddy pen) Middlesbrough 0

I remember my dad saying in his match report to me that it was a tough game and Boro were a well organised side.

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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables in below link


From the programme
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20/9/1974

My parents came down to my school near Newbury for the Speech Day presentations. I won a prize for the most improved speech for my year and my Norwich supporting mate, David, won the class prize. After the Speech Day, my parents took me home along with David for the weekend. We were excited about going to Leeds for the match in the next day and I was confident of us beating Leeds who had just sacked Brian Clough after a poor start to the season. We were in 5th place of the first division ....

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21/9/1974

Leeds 5 (Clarke 2, McQueen, Lorimer pen, Yorath) Blades 1 (Dearden)

For years when thinking about the match I couldnt remember if myself, David and my dad travelled to the match by car or by coach. Quite recently, David told me that he remembered us going to the match by coach. It might have been the last time I travelled to the match by Bransons coach organised by SUSC (Dronfield branch). I went to only three more away games for the rest of the season. They were Leicester in October, Coventry and Arsenal in March. My dad definitely drove to the Leicester and Arsenal matches by car but I am not sure if it was the same when we went to Coventry.

Before the kick off in the main stand my dad introduced me to a Leeds fan who was based in Dronfield. He was sitting not too far from the Dronfield based Blades. I thought the Blades were the better side in the first half, we had two chances that hit the woodwork but Leeds scored twice that was against the run of the play. This Dronfield based Leeds fan stood up cheering and waved at the direction of the Dronfield based Blades. They we got a penalty just before half time but Keith Eddy's effort hit the post.

After half time we conceded a bizarre goal, I dont think the ball really crossed the line. The ref was wrong in awarding a penalty for Leeds' 4th goal as you can see clearly in the video below that Joe Jordan had dived. Then soon after they got a 5th and this smirking Dronfield based Leeds fan carried on taunting us. When Billy Dearden got the consolation goal near the end, my dad jumped up from his seat and cheered loudly, everyone around him including me and David were startled at his reaction but David and I saw the funny side of it and this Dronfield based Leeds fan went quiet, too embarrassed to look at my dad!



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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables in below link
 

Still one of the worst refereeing displays I’ve ever seen!
Yes, John Yates. I remember him disallowing Colin Addison's last gasp winner against QPR in November 1970 because he blew for time just before the ball crossed the line!
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24/9/1974

Wolves 1 (Daley) Blades 1 (Woodward)

I hadnt realised that we had played a midweek game until I received a letter at school from my dad a few days later! He did go to the match. I was surprised to learn that Woody scored from a header!

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Scores scorers, line ups and league tables in below link
 
28/9/1974

Blades 1 (Woodward) Liverpool 0

In the next morning at school I found out from the papers that the YTV cameras were at the match. I wasnt sure if the match would be featured as the 2nd or 3rd match in "The Big Match" on ITV in the afternoon. I was hoping for bad weather in Newbury area to happen that afternoon so the "Sunday Walk" for pupils from the 1st to 4th year between 2pm and 4pm would be cancelled so that I would be allowed to watch "The Big Match". Sadly the weather was fine so I had to go on a walk with my usual group of friends and miss "The Big Match"

When I came back to the boarding house I spoke to Vikram, the Head Boy also the football captain of the school 1st team , who had watched the whole Big Match programme, I asked him if our match was featured in the programme . He said "Yes, Tony Currie made a lovely long pass to Woodward who had beaten the offside trap, kept his cool running towards Clemence and then placed his shot under the keeper" Vikram knew that I was a mad Blade and he had always spoke highly of Currie. He was from Derby at the time but I am not sure if he still lives there.

When Woody passed away in 2015, TC said
"Woody was the greatest player I have played with. He would always joke with me that he made me look good. We had telepathy out there on the pitch and how he never played for England I will never know, seriously I mean that.


"If Woody and I had played for England together then who knows what could have happened. Alf Ramsey never really played with wingers and Don Revie was the same, he certainly was good enough to play for his country.


"Everything he did on a football pitch was magic, we had a telepathy, but the partnership Woody and Len (Badger) had on that right-hand side was something special. I don't know how, but he just had that wonderful ability to know when to run, where to run and when to shoot or cross, he really was a special player.

The below video shows the telepathy between TC and Woody at their best. In the photo below the video, my dad would be on the A row of the BLUT and he would be between the "Kills Cough" and "Head for Houseleys" adverts.




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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables in below link


From the programme

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TC. Be it his left foot or his right foot he could land a ball on a sixpence.

Amazing today how how many top players are 'one-footed'.
 
5/10/1974

Stoke 3 (Hurst, Greenhoff, Smith) Blades 2 (Eddy pen, Field)

A few days later I received a letter from my dad which included his match report. He said that he was surprised to see us wearing an all blue kit. I was too, I dont think we were aware we wore the same kit at Newcastle in August. Early in his match report he said it was a physical match, he wouldnt be surprised if a player got sent off later on. He was right as Len Badger got his marching orders with 10 mins left.

When I got home for the October school holidays on the Thursday, my dad told there were spectators nearby at the Stoke match noticing that he was writing down notes of the match. "Nip" Hague, a Blade well known in Dronfield told them "He writes for the Green Un". They believed him so Nip invited them to have their say about football. My dad was pretending to jot down their thoughts of the match or other things about football!

Both match reports mentioning the "kissing" between TC and Geoff Salmons when they met for the captain's toss up in the centre circle before the kick off. I didnt realise this until I posted the reports tonight and I dont think my dad realised this at the time!

Jim Brown saves Geoff Hurst's penalty but Hurst netted the rebound.

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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables in below link.

 
28/9/1974

Blades 1 (Woodward) Liverpool 0

In the next morning at school I found out from the papers that the YTV cameras were at the match. I wasnt sure if the match would be featured as the 2nd or 3rd match in "The Big Match" on ITV in the afternoon. I was hoping for bad weather in Newbury area to happen that afternoon so the "Sunday Walk" for pupils from the 1st to 4th year between 2pm and 4pm would be cancelled so that I would be allowed to watch "The Big Match". Sadly the weather was fine so I had to go on a walk with my usual group of friends and miss "The Big Match"

When I came back to the boarding house I spoke to Vikram, the Head Boy also the football captain of the school 1st team , who had watched the whole Big Match programme, I asked him if our match was featured in the programme . He said "Yes, Tony Currie made a lovely long pass to Woodward who had beaten the offside trap, kept his cool running towards Clemence and then placed his shot under the keeper" Vikram knew that I was a mad Blade and he had always spoke highly of Currie. He was from Derby at the time but I am not sure if he still lives there.

When Woody passed away in 2015, TC said
"Woody was the greatest player I have played with. He would always joke with me that he made me look good. We had telepathy out there on the pitch and how he never played for England I will never know, seriously I mean that.


"If Woody and I had played for England together then who knows what could have happened. Alf Ramsey never really played with wingers and Don Revie was the same, he certainly was good enough to play for his country.


"Everything he did on a football pitch was magic, we had a telepathy, but the partnership Woody and Len (Badger) had on that right-hand side was something special. I don't know how, but he just had that wonderful ability to know when to run, where to run and when to shoot or cross, he really was a special player.

The below video shows the telepathy between TC and Woody at their best. In the photo below the video, my dad would be on the A row of the BLUT and he would be between the "Kills Cough" and "Head for Houseleys" adverts.




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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables in below link


From the programme

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Albert Gilderthorpe. Blades legend ❤️
 
My dad always liked to watch tricky wingers. John McGeady could have been very successful. I think injury unfortunately curtailed his career.
Broke his leg at Man City in March 1976. Never the same when he came back to playing again.
 
28/9/1974

Blades 1 (Woodward) Liverpool 0

In the next morning at school I found out from the papers that the YTV cameras were at the match. I wasnt sure if the match would be featured as the 2nd or 3rd match in "The Big Match" on ITV in the afternoon. I was hoping for bad weather in Newbury area to happen that afternoon so the "Sunday Walk" for pupils from the 1st to 4th year between 2pm and 4pm would be cancelled so that I would be allowed to watch "The Big Match". Sadly the weather was fine so I had to go on a walk with my usual group of friends and miss "The Big Match"

When I came back to the boarding house I spoke to Vikram, the Head Boy also the football captain of the school 1st team , who had watched the whole Big Match programme, I asked him if our match was featured in the programme . He said "Yes, Tony Currie made a lovely long pass to Woodward who had beaten the offside trap, kept his cool running towards Clemence and then placed his shot under the keeper" Vikram knew that I was a mad Blade and he had always spoke highly of Currie. He was from Derby at the time but I am not sure if he still lives there.

When Woody passed away in 2015, TC said
"Woody was the greatest player I have played with. He would always joke with me that he made me look good. We had telepathy out there on the pitch and how he never played for England I will never know, seriously I mean that.


"If Woody and I had played for England together then who knows what could have happened. Alf Ramsey never really played with wingers and Don Revie was the same, he certainly was good enough to play for his country.


"Everything he did on a football pitch was magic, we had a telepathy, but the partnership Woody and Len (Badger) had on that right-hand side was something special. I don't know how, but he just had that wonderful ability to know when to run, where to run and when to shoot or cross, he really was a special player.

The below video shows the telepathy between TC and Woody at their best. In the photo below the video, my dad would be on the A row of the BLUT and he would be between the "Kills Cough" and "Head for Houseleys" adverts.




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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables in below link


From the programme

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I realise it goes without saying but what a fantastic goal by Woody. The world class pass, the first touch and finish by Woody, absolutely magnificent. My dad and I had a season ticket for 6 seasons, 6 rows up from the “H” in Housleys and I was there sat behind your dad Silent.
 
I remember being puzzled when my dad wrote to me to let me know that we would be employing Derek Dooley the following month.

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12/10/1974

Blades 2 (Dearden, Woodward) Everton 2 (Lyons, Buckley)

My first visit to BDTBL in 8 weeks as I was home for the two week October holidays. I remember Woody's lovely goal. For many years, the ticket office in Cherry Street had the below photo hanging on the wall (I seem to remember it was still there in the 1980s, am I right, Rooks ?)

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Not long after the 2nd goal there was a lot of fighting in the BLLT (I was in the BLUT watching several policemen go in the BLLT to stop the fighting and making arrests. Play carried on as normal on the pitch.

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It was sickener when Mick Buckley equalised for Everton to make it 2-2

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Highlights of the match can be seen from 46 minutes 25 seconds in below link




Dearden scoring the first goal

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Woody striking for the 2nd

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Mick Lyons pulls one back
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Scores, scorers, line ups and league tables in below link

From the programme
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Bit of a poignant reminder for me this one Silent as this is the anniversary of my paternal grandad collapsing and dieing on his way home from the match. I was six at the time and it was the first time myself and my elder brother were sent on ahead back to my grandma's on Bennett Street on our own.
We didn't realise why but dad knew and didn't want us to see what was unfolding. First we knew was when there was a knock at the front door, no one ever used the front door back then and a young lad.....probably in his teens asked for my mum or grandma, bit of confusion as he asked for Mrs ****** which they both were.
I was too young to grasp the whole importance of the situation but looking back one of the last things he'd done was seen his Blades with his son and two of his grandchildren who were all Blades too thanks to him.
That first picture, in front of the John Street Stand will actually have all four of us in it.
 

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