Ken Furphy

[Darren]

How does that team compare to the one for the back end of the previous season? I mean, were Franks, Bradford, Speight, and Guthrie in it?

As I say, it was the same team except for Guthrie.

 

[Darren]

The South Stand was built at that time and probably curtailed any plans for player investment for several years after that.
With an ageing squad and too low a budget to replace with any quality the inevitable happened, I guess

As I say above, the "aging" thing is a bit of a myth. The average age of the 1975 team was 26 and no player was older than 30.

 

[SouthEssexBlade]

The South Stand was built at that time and probably curtailed any plans for player investment for several years after that.
With an ageing squad and too low a budget to replace with any quality the inevitable happened, I guess

At the start of 75-6, our first choice team would have been

Brown - aged 23

Badger - 30
Colquhoun - 30
Franks - 24
Bradford - 22

Currie - 25
Eddy - 30
Speight - - 24

Woodward -28
Guthrie - 21
Field - 29

Average age - 26

I hardly think we can call that team aging - only 3 players the wrong side of 30 (and then only just) and, as I say, apart from Guthrie, that was the side that had only 2 defeats in the second half of the 74-5 season and saw us finish 6th. My view is that the confidence went after the first 3-4 defeats at the start of 75-6 and the players never recoverd from that.

..of course, you both overlook the fact that this is the season when we first introduced black into the shirt. Up to this point it had always been just red and white. There's the reason the rot set in and we've never recovered.

 

[Kenilworth]

..of course, you both overlook the fact that this is the season when we first introduced black into the shirt. Up to this point it had always been just red and white. There's the reason the rot set in and we've never recovered.

An Admiral attempt at a theory there SEB but too superstitious for my taste

 

[Kenilworth]

As I say above, the "aging" thing is a bit of a myth. The average age of the 1975 team was 26 and no player was older than 30.

They were all around a year older, though Dazzler - so somebody was ageing

 

[Darren]

They were all around a year older, though Dazzler - so somebody was ageing

Finished 6th 29th April 1975
First game of 75-76 16th August 1975

so 109 days older actually

 

[Kenilworth]

So the debt and interest payments of the South Stand build forced us into selling our best assets and recruiting lesser quality players as replacements.

Same owd

 

[LSF]

As I say above, the "aging" thing is a bit of a myth. The average age of the 1975 team was 26 and no player was older than 30.

I would argue that players were past their peak much earlier than today when a player at 30 still has plenty left in the tank.
Badger, Colquhoun, Eddy, Woodward and Field were not the force they once were and in the first four, that's a big hit to take.
Today, with better habits diet and conditioning, those four would approaching peak, not past it.

 

[pommpey]

Sad news.

That. Just ... that.

Thank you the 1970s, TC, AW and Ken Furphy.

pommpey

 

[Darren]

I would argue that players were past their peak much earlier than today when a player at 30 still has plenty left in the tank.
Badger, Colquhoun, Eddy, Woodward and Field were not the force they once were and in the first four, that's a big hit to take.
Today, with better habits diet and conditioning, those four would approaching peak, not past it.

I think that's true as a general point, but it doesn't explain why - with virtually the same set of players - our record for the last 11 games of 74-5 was
W5 D5 L1 - i.e Championship form

And our record for the first 11 of 75-6 was

W1 d1 L9 - i.e. relegated by Xmas form.

Furphy's explanation was that the Board sent the club on training tours in the summer of 75 - to Kuwait, New Zealand and New Caledonia in May and then Tunisia, France, Netherlands and Belgium in July; that was then followed by 3 games in the Anglo-Scottish Cup at the beginning of August and that the players wer knackered come the start of the season.

 

[Grecian2000]

I would argue that players were past their peak much earlier than today when a player at 30 still has plenty left in the tank.
Badger, Colquhoun, Eddy, Woodward and Field were not the force they once were and in the first four, that's a big hit to take.
Today, with better habits diet and conditioning, those four would approaching peak, not past it.

I had a similar response lined up.

We signed Jimmy Johnstone when he was not much past 30 and he was so far past his best you couldn't see it with a telescope.
Heavy smoking/drinking meant by 30 you were pretty much a busted flush back then.

 

[Lane Ender]

I would argue that players were past their peak much earlier than today when a player at 30 still has plenty left in the tank.
Badger, Colquhoun, Eddy, Woodward and Field were not the force they once were and in the first four, that's a big hit to take.
Today, with better habits diet and conditioning, those four would approaching peak, not past it.

You are right its wrong to compare that era with this but I,m glad I had the pleasure to watch the Blade teams between early to mid 70s loved that era.

RIP Ken Furphy the manager of the best United side i ever saw.

 

[Silent Blade]

He alienated himself with some of the established pros and had a particularly difficult relationship with TC.

I remember my dad writing to me about what TC said to him just after the start of the 1974-75 season when I was at boarding school. TC said he was looking to leave SUFC as he wasnt happy with some things. Over the years I had wondered why TC had said that even though we didnt read anything in the papers of his unhappiness at the time. I wondered if he was angry with the board for selling his mate Geoff Salmons and not bringing in the players the board promised him in 1973 (when he signed a new contract and Docherty at Man U was chasing after him). I read somewhere a few years ago he was quite scathing of the signings (especially Tony Field) Furphy made. Interesting that you said Furphy had a difficult relationship with TC. I think everyone were surprised at how high we were in the league table at the end of the 1974-75 season. TC's transfer requests were made public not long before Furphy were sacked and on the first day of Sirrel's time at BDTBL reporters were saying TC was looking angry when leaving the players entrance after the club rejected his transfer request

 

[Silent Blade]

What then happened in 75-6 was a bit of a mystery. We didn't sell any players and only added Guthrie. .

Furphy also signed Cliff Calvert not long after the start of the 1975-76 season

 

[Silent Blade]

RIP Ken Furphy the manager of the best United side i ever saw.

I would say 1971 was the best and 1973 was the most entertaining

 

[Darren]

Furphy also signed Cliff Calvert not long after the start of the 1975-76 season

His first game was at West Ham on 20/9/75 when our record was P7 W0 D1 L6, so we can't blame Cliff for the awful start

 

[Grecian2000]

Furphy also signed Cliff Calvert not long after the start of the 1975-76 season

That pretty much nails it then.

Calvert, Franks, Guthrie, Garbett, Bradford and Field on the field together is a nightmare waiting to unfold.

 

[metalblade]

That pretty much nails it then.

Calvert, Franks, Guthrie, Garbett, Bradford and Field on the field together is a nightmare waiting to unfold.

Yep none as good as the players they replaced .............................. and we to this very day are still making the same mistake of selling quality and replacing from lower divisions, one or two can work half a team soon has you relegated.

 

[blade too long]

yes RIP to him but his tenure saw him take the praise for the squad reaching a peak then hitting a wall . The deterioration from 6th in the league. to div 4 in 6 seasons wasfrom allowing Currie to depart to thinking having 4 sides meant we could get by with cheaper players .Harris bought players who offered something all in differing degrees but added and found some gems . . Furphy even allowing for poor backing chose poorly and bought fools gold players

 

[Lane Ender]

Yep that 75/76 season was bizarre after 74/75

Chris Guthrie FFS .
Colin Franks - the fastest man in football

 

[BladeFisher]

And the best anchor man gone too. Brian Moore was brilliant.

 

[silverfox]

RIP Ken.

I was at the Birmingham match where we drew 0-0.

To be fair to Ken he followed the great John Harris who was a real gent and he came in with a totally different approach.

It was still baffling how crap we were that following season.

I did watch Chris Guthrie train pre-season and he looked a world beater on the Ball Inn ground. He never did it in a game though!

Ken still took us to the highest position I've seen us finish so deserves a bit of credit for that.

 

[Mustela Putorius Furo]

And the best anchor man gone too. Brian Moore was brilliant.

What i always notice from these clips of United in the mid 70s was how few Blades were at away games.

Apt because I remember Furphy making a point about it before the Cup game at Villa - which galvanised people and resulted in a massive following that day (and about the most rucking i've ever seen on terraces during one match).

It was strange because in the 70-71 promotion season there was usually a very large following. In the first half of 71-72 it was generally very impressive, then for some reason for 3 years or so it tailed off to the odd coach load and a few blokes finding their way around supporters club bars... kinda bizarre that after that, the lower we then sank, the better it seemed to get.

 

[Mustela Putorius Furo]

...or two wins from being League Champions.

RIP Ken!

actually, a win and a draw if those would have come against Derby County!

 

[bornablade]

Yep that 75/76 season was bizarre after 74/75

Chris Guthrie FFS .
Colin Franks - the fastest man in football

The reason for our demise in 1975/76 is the Yorkshire cricketing Gods made it quite clear that once supporters were allowed to sit on the hallowed wicket then top flight football would disappear from BDTBL.

Of course after the 1974/75 season nobody believed that to be the truth. But from that opening game of the 75/76 when we played champions Derby County in front of the brand new South Stand the season turned into a disaster and who would've believed fourth division football by 1981.

Fortunately along came a bloke called Harry....

RIP Ken.

 

[Lane Ender]

What i always notice from these clips of United in the mid 70s was how few Blades were at away games.

Apt because I remember Furphy making a point about it before the Cup game at Villa - which galvanised people and resulted in a massive following that day (and about the most rucking i've ever seen on terraces during one match).

It was strange because in the 70-71 promotion season there was usually a very large following. In the first half of 71-72 it was generally very impressive, then for some reason for 3 years or so it tailed off to the odd coach load and a few blokes finding their way around supporters club bars... kinda bizarre that after that, the lower we then sank, the better it seemed to get.

Remember that cup game at Villa.
If you travelled in those days it always came on top exept places like Norwich ,Ipswich , Coventry no help when you needed it from the old bill.
Home games were best always strong at the lane

 

[blade too long]

remember going to

 

[Blade56]

RIP Ken one of my heroes as a young man sorry we were not in a better place like in your day

 

[blade too long]

Remember us going to Everton coming back from 2-0 down to win 3-2 which halted their title charge we took our full allocation and I got in their terrace and regretted that choice after jumping up and down after Currie netted the winner also nearly got ambushed under a railway tunnel on way to brum ground heard a load of scuffling turned round and coppers had intercepted a bunch of brum fans who were going to jump us .

 

[Lord Bos of Eckington.]

The midweek home game against Derby was end to end stuff. They got a late winner in their 2-1 win but had we got the late winner then we would have needed a win at Birmingham in the last match to become Champions!

Watched the Birmingham match on pay to view tele , with me dad , in our front room ,were you had to put the money in the slot . At the time i remember we didn't have a telephone , and we still had a outside loo. Also perhaps i didn't appreciate how good the blades were at that time .

How things change in the world and not always for the better.

UTB