HodgysBrokenThumb
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March 18, 1961. FA Cup Semi-final
Leicester 0-0 United
(at Elland Road, Leeds)
(See video, post 478)
In the current climate of despair about United, it is worth repeating the old cliche ‘It’s a funny old game’. The week before we had had our first and only league match that season to end in a 0-0 draw, but we followed this with two 0-0 draws in the Cup semi-final in just 5 days (the second match after extra time). We had not played in a Cup semi-final for 25 years, but in just 9 days we played 3 semi-finals. At the time, it seemed a truly historic moment, as it was the first time in my life that we had reached the semis, and any event pre-war was in my eyes ancient history; and whilst I was aware of the significance of the achievement, it never occurred to me that it would be another long 32 years before we made it to another semifinal. And even more depressingly, I have now lived through 7 semifinals, and not a single one has ended in victory. The moral of that story: enjoy (if that is the right word) each game as it is played, and don’t rely on winning trophies to make life worth living. Any other attitude is bad for our health (though it is good to dream occasionally).
The many pictures of the days before the game show that it was warm, dry weather, and as was normal at the time, in spring this meant a bumpy pitch which made good football difficult. There was a strong wind, and as the film shows, at half-time the heavens opened and concrete bumps turned to bog, which again made for difficult conditions.
The programme, double the normal price at 6 pence, was a little disappointing; I have reproduced the most interesting page, the ‘Welcome from Leeds United’, which presents Leicester and United as role-models for Leeds. Not as flattering as it might seem - it is because we are not glamorous or wealthy clubs, but ‘honest triers’ who enjoy occasional success amidst years of honest toil and mediocrity. Remarkably, Leeds’ plight was such that they aspired to share our success. And rather depressingly Leicester and Leeds have progressed further than United in the last 60 years.
The match was disappointing. There was relatively little goalmouth action, and though United were the better side, we rarely looked like winning the game. We were, of course, helped by the injury to Wills which meant he was a limping passenger for the whole of the second-half; the tackle by Summers was out-of-character, probably unintentional, and would have been a straight red card nowadays. There were good players on both sides, but it was the defenders who dominated. McLintock and King stood out for them. Banks was by this stage an Under-23 international, and it is remarkable to look back and appreciate that both goalkeepers were born in Sheffield, and one was a recent England international, and the other went on to be a World Cup winner - no wonder it was 0-0!
The atmosphere was good throughout. I think we won for volume of support (the limited crowd microphone for the film picks up ‘Ilkla Moor’, especially in the second half). The one explosive moment came at the end of the game (and at the other end of the ground from where we were standing). Pace scored, the referee disallowed the goal for handball. Afterwards, Pace reportedly showed the ref a muddy mark on his shirt which showed it should have been a goal. I don’t think I ever saw film of the incident, so I have no idea whether we were dealt an injustice. Looking back, it is pretty certain that we would have made history in the Final - by losing to Spurs, the first team to do the League and Cup double goal n the 20th century.
Pics of the programme below, and from the scrapbook in the following post:
Leicester 0-0 United
(at Elland Road, Leeds)
(See video, post 478)
In the current climate of despair about United, it is worth repeating the old cliche ‘It’s a funny old game’. The week before we had had our first and only league match that season to end in a 0-0 draw, but we followed this with two 0-0 draws in the Cup semi-final in just 5 days (the second match after extra time). We had not played in a Cup semi-final for 25 years, but in just 9 days we played 3 semi-finals. At the time, it seemed a truly historic moment, as it was the first time in my life that we had reached the semis, and any event pre-war was in my eyes ancient history; and whilst I was aware of the significance of the achievement, it never occurred to me that it would be another long 32 years before we made it to another semifinal. And even more depressingly, I have now lived through 7 semifinals, and not a single one has ended in victory. The moral of that story: enjoy (if that is the right word) each game as it is played, and don’t rely on winning trophies to make life worth living. Any other attitude is bad for our health (though it is good to dream occasionally).
The many pictures of the days before the game show that it was warm, dry weather, and as was normal at the time, in spring this meant a bumpy pitch which made good football difficult. There was a strong wind, and as the film shows, at half-time the heavens opened and concrete bumps turned to bog, which again made for difficult conditions.
The programme, double the normal price at 6 pence, was a little disappointing; I have reproduced the most interesting page, the ‘Welcome from Leeds United’, which presents Leicester and United as role-models for Leeds. Not as flattering as it might seem - it is because we are not glamorous or wealthy clubs, but ‘honest triers’ who enjoy occasional success amidst years of honest toil and mediocrity. Remarkably, Leeds’ plight was such that they aspired to share our success. And rather depressingly Leicester and Leeds have progressed further than United in the last 60 years.
The match was disappointing. There was relatively little goalmouth action, and though United were the better side, we rarely looked like winning the game. We were, of course, helped by the injury to Wills which meant he was a limping passenger for the whole of the second-half; the tackle by Summers was out-of-character, probably unintentional, and would have been a straight red card nowadays. There were good players on both sides, but it was the defenders who dominated. McLintock and King stood out for them. Banks was by this stage an Under-23 international, and it is remarkable to look back and appreciate that both goalkeepers were born in Sheffield, and one was a recent England international, and the other went on to be a World Cup winner - no wonder it was 0-0!
The atmosphere was good throughout. I think we won for volume of support (the limited crowd microphone for the film picks up ‘Ilkla Moor’, especially in the second half). The one explosive moment came at the end of the game (and at the other end of the ground from where we were standing). Pace scored, the referee disallowed the goal for handball. Afterwards, Pace reportedly showed the ref a muddy mark on his shirt which showed it should have been a goal. I don’t think I ever saw film of the incident, so I have no idea whether we were dealt an injustice. Looking back, it is pretty certain that we would have made history in the Final - by losing to Spurs, the first team to do the League and Cup double goal n the 20th century.
Pics of the programme below, and from the scrapbook in the following post:
