Season 1984-85

[Ozz]

Even the LEPs Paul Agnew was convinced we were going up, this article written in December 1984 as Rovers shaped up like a top flight team.

The other side takes the mick out the North End too!

[philipl]

Great stuff Oz- thank's for posting it.

[bob fleming]

Great stuff Oz. I remember this season well. Just had a look on Soccerbase for the results after the Portsmouth match, four straight wins culminating in a 2-1 win against Leeds on Boxing Day - top of the table and there really was a feeling that we were going to do it.

And then, without wanting to steal too much of your thunder Oz, it all went wrong. Culminating in the 3-0 win against Wolves on the final day of the season. We could still have done it that day but results went against us. Still, Rovers did their bit. Ian Millers tears anyone?

[DP]

Fantastic stuff Oz and I can't wait for the rest. Don't often visit this section so must remember to do so more in future.

This was my first season watching Rovers and as a 7 year old I don't remember much about the play, or the goals, but I do remember going to the games. Leeds on Boxing Day stands out as I remember my Grandad (from Leeds) coming along with us and we sat in the "posh seats" in the Nuttall St stand. I'm sure Colin Randall scored an overhead kick and a very old Peter Lorimer was playing as well.

I got a home Rovers shirt that season and got my mum to sew a number 7 on the back as my favourite player was Ian Miller. It worries me now that my childhood hero was a ginger bloke with a tash!

[Ozz]

Bloody scanners....

OK-Saturday 8th December 1984, 3 PM Ewood Park-Blackburn Rovers V Sheffield United.

This was a game I clearly remember, at a time when legendary marksman Simon Garner was going through a lean spell, and his form was a little patchy. Legend that he is, Saxton was obviously reluctant to drop him as as he could counjor (sp?) up a goal out of nothing and save a point when all seemed lost, and three when all seemed drawn.

Big money summer signing (£32,000!) from Swindon Town Jimmy Quinn was chomping at the bit on the bench, and had already shown signs of unrest at his role in the dugout most weeks. But, as the headline below indicates his time was now, and his short appearance against the Blades was most effective.

Without getting all dewy eyed over the good old days, excitement like I felt at winning this match doesn't seem to come along much any more, and despite Thenodrogs valid views on the state of the English game back then, one cannot help feel a strong sense of nostalgia and a yearning for a return whilst looking back and reading the reports from over 20 years ago.

The points were not enough to keep us op however, as Oxford won 5-0 at home to Charlton to move past us on goal difference.

Last point, this match was the biggest crowd of the season so far, just over 9,000!

[Ozz]

December 15th 1984. I had waited all year long for the predictions of George Orwell, in his book entitled 1984, to come true. As the end of the year approached, it began to dawn on me that the Big Brother scenario, which he depicted and promised would happen, was not going to . I mean, there were only 16 days left in the year, and even with my eternally optimistic outlook and faith in the great writers predictions, I had resigned myself to more of Thatchers iron-fist-in-a-bloody hard-iron-glove style of leadership.

I mean 16 days to change the country, christ it took longer than that make a bowl of Instant Whip in those days. Oh, the irony.(The perfect afters to match a Vesta boil in the bag Chinese noodle meal).

Anyway, I digest.

Next up for the blues was a trip to Moulinex. (There's a rather flimsy theme to todays efforts-care to name it for us Neal?)

I did not make the journey to the food-mixer, as I was trying to tape my UK Subs singles all day but struggled, as I kept on pogo-ing when they were playing, and it made the needle jump off the record. But I had the old Radio Blackburn guy on in the background, and they were good enough to relay the events back to me in my studio in Chorley. Ah, technology eh?

From the two reports below, it sounded like a cruddy game, (not much has changed ), but the previously perma-benched Jammy Quinn steaked his clam for a starting role by bagging a pear. The Radio guy in the studio was playing Dizzy by Tommy Roe, and as the third went in he actually interrupted the record and came out with the line.."Well I bet Bob Saxton is feeling dizzy now as Blackburn have gone three up against Wolves, over to you Keith Macklin!".

The three points saw us back on top of the table, with a trip up the M6 next week for infamous day at Brunton Park.

Watch this space!

Edited February 4, 2008 by ozziejones

[Ozz]

PS, on the first newspaper report in the last post, the headline reads SUPER ROVERS CALL THE TUNE, and not UPER ROVERS CALL THE TUN.

Just thought it may help.

[Ozz]

The Saturday before Christmas saw the relatively short trip up the M6 the Carlisle. I got of lift with Gordon Cottam, Bill Gornall and Rob Bennett I think, in Rob's white Escort RS2000. Which made short work of the motorway, as Rob liked to get a move on shall we say. Parked near the castle, and remember seeing tons and tons of cars going north with Rovers flags and scarves trailing from the wound up windows of them. If you were hard, you wound down your window put your scarf in then wound it up again and ran the risk of it blowing out down the motorway. The soft gits just laid their scarves along the back parcel shelf!

Carlisle holds the honour of being the first place I ever bought and ate a Doner Kebab too, as we had supped a shed load of cans in the journey up and the only place open for grub on a Sunday was a kebab shop we found.

The match it self was won 1-0 by Rovers, Faz scoring a penalty in the second half I think. Bu the game will be remembered for other reasons really, as the whole game saw running battles between the two sets of supporters on the pitch, across the pitch and behind the stands. Sadly, one such battle saw a Carlisle supporter suffer fatal wounds when hit by some bricks or similar.

The away following from Blackburn was huge that day, and the atmosphere was ugly all day long, really the nadir of 80s football violence for watching Rovers I think.

The game has been touched on in earlier threads, with several memories recorded here.

Guardian Report of game ...

Handed out at the next match at Ewood...

[Ozz]

Great stuff Oz. I remember this season well. Just had a look on Soccerbase for the results after the Portsmouth match, four straight wins culminating in a 2-1 win against Leeds on Boxing Day - top of the table and there really was a feeling that we were going to do it.

Well it's boxing day 1984. I had just turned 18, and after only one day of playing Raving Bonkers, eating Terrys Chocolate Orange, and turkey drier than Saharan heatwave, loosing at Top Trumps (Elite Cars) and having already worn the battery out on my new LCD watch that played The Yellow Rose Of Texas as the alarm theme, I was ready for some football.

This year the bank holiday game was, as Bob Fleming has already hinted at, Leeds at home. They were just below us in the table, 5th going into the game. They were still getting used to life outside the top flight, after winning titles and cups galore under Revie in the 70s, but had slipped away in recent times, much to the disappointment of the rest of the footballing fraternity.

Indeed, some of the great names were still at the club, in Frank Gray and Peter Lorimer, whilst they were managed by Eddie Gray too. Not sure, but I think that nearly every great Leeds player from the 70s has had a go at managing the club at some point!. They also had two skillful midfield players in Tommy Wright and wanna-be Rover Scott Sellers.

If asked my favourite game of this season, I think this would have to be up there in the top three. There was so much to be excited about by it. Leeds United at home was in those days a big match in itself, the fact that it would be (and was) a massive crowd by recent standards, some 20, 149 (according to the reports-Reckon there were much more on myself), an absolutely brilliant atmosphere, a ding dong match, two superb goals from Rovers, including what from my memory was a stunning overhead kick from the edge of the box into the Blackburn End net to win it from Colin Randell, the fact that the three points took us clear at the top of league-an absolutely superb game of football, having almost everything you would want in a match.

Read the reports, and if you were there, tell me I'm right!

I love this photo of Noel heading in the first, cue mass chorus of Noel, Noel, Noel Noel-He is the king of Ewood Park! What a legend was Broth-Head! RIP mate.

[Ozz]

It made us a couple of bob too!

[Ozz]

Meanwhile, away from being top of the league, the draw for the 3rd round of the FA cup had been made, and Rovers got a bit of a stinker really, away to Portsmouth. Tough game, no money, no glamour, long journey. Bob Saxton agrees...

[Ozz]

Captures the zeitgeist to an extent, that when there was no trouble at a football match, it makes the news.

Edited March 20, 2008 by ozziejones

[Ozz]

Anyway, after the glory and joy of the Boxing Day feast against Leeds, it was, as has always been the case by and large with Rovers, back to reality with a bang with the next fixture with Huddersfield. I remember the match as being the worst performances of the season (So far, it did get worse at one point...).

Rovers were murdered by an average Town outfit, but recall Dale Tempest as being a particular thorn in the side of apparently hungover Rovers back four. Rovers were missing Terry Genoe in goal, and had one of the Ewood crowds hate figure in Vince O'Keefe as his stand in. Poor Vince had a ropey season, and often took flak when he didn't really deserve it. Mind you thats not unusual at Ewood!

Town brought a big following, I think the total on was 15,000 odd and created a good atmosphere under the old covered Darwen End. I was always a little peeved by the fact the Blackburn roof, whilst although I think it held the distinction of being one of the first fully cantilevered roofs in the country, did not help the home end acoustics. The design was made to allow uninterrupted views of the pitch, which it did, but it did make it a little cold in the wind and rain and allowed the singing from the home fans to dissipate quickly into the air. The Darwen End, with it's low inverted Vee shaped roof always seemed to allow even small away followings to generate a lot of noise, which annoyed me a little bit.

The 3-1 scoreline to Town flattered us to be honest, we were awful. It was our first defeat since early November in a run of seven wins and a draw, but we managed to stay top of the league. For now.

[waggy]

bloody brilliant thread

[ABBEY]

The Saturday before Christmas saw the relatively short trip up the M6 the Carlisle. I got of lift with Gordon Cottam, Bill Gornall and Rob Bennett I think, in Rob's white Escort RS2000. Which made short work of the motorway, as Rob liked to get a move on shall we say. Parked near the castle, and remember seeing tons and tons of cars going north with Rovers flags and scarves trailing from the wound up windows of them. If you were hard, you wound down your window put your scarf in then wound it up again and ran the risk of it blowing out down the motorway. The soft gits just laid their scarves along the back parcel shelf!

Carlisle holds the honour of being the first place I ever bought and ate a Doner Kebab too, as we had supped a shed load of cans in the journey up and the only place open for grub on a Sunday was a kebab shop we found.

The match it self was won 1-0 by Rovers, Faz scoring a penalty in the second half I think. Bu the game will be remembered for other reasons really, as the whole game saw running battles between the two sets of supporters on the pitch, across the pitch and behind the stands. Sadly, one such battle saw a Carlisle supporter suffer fatal wounds when hit by some bricks or similar.

The away following from Blackburn was huge that day, and the atmosphere was ugly all day long, really the nadir of 80s football violence for watching Rovers I think.

The game has been touched on in earlier threads, with several memories recorded here.

Guardian Report of game ...

Handed out at the next match at Ewood...

not gordon from brinsky?the manc?

[Ozz]

not gordon from brinsky?the manc?

Aye Abbs, that's him.

[ABBEY]

what was gord doing @ rovers?? i know gord v.well

[Ozz]

He's a mate of mine too. Used to be a gang of us, drinking gang. I went to Old Trafford a couple of times with him when it wasn't feasible to watch Rovers, just to watch football.

[ABBEY]

have you been in crics?

[Ozz]

Not for a long time Abbey.

[ABBEY]

me neither ..18 months nearly now since i moved to rishton

[Ozz]

Anyway, enough chat. The first day of the new year, January 1st came. It was (and still is ) called New Years Day. Cannot remember what kind of state I was in, probably not too bad as I managed to get my arse sufficiently enough in to gear to get on the official coach from the Flat Iron to make the relatively short journey to the Peoples Republic Of South Yorkshire-Destination Nowhere (Barnsley actually). In fact I pretty much recall the bus was the one used on the photo of the Pretty Vacant single, which actually had Nowhere as the official destination on the front.

My packed lunch, was two packets of Ritz Crackers left over from Christmas, the ones in the red boxes...

Delicious, if a little dry. Nobody missed them.

On arriving at the coach park, disembarking on what appeared to be a slag heap, the first thing I noticed was the temperature. It ws cold, very very cold.Probably about 7 degrees lower than when we set off in Lancs. A short walk off the heap led us to the entrance to the away end at Oakwell, which also seemed to built on a slag heap. There was a small hut type thing, built just above the away end, which looked like the sort of thing building site workers would have their tea breaks in. Probably enough room for three wheelchairs and a brazier. Earlier that season, Leeds had played here and they had started trouble with the home fans, and began with missiles being thrown at the disabled hutch. Classy stuff.

The terrace was just open concrete at one end of the ground, similar to Boundary Park, in both construction and warmth levels.

A fairly boring match, lit up by Noels beauty of an opening goal and a flood light failure. You wouldn't have thought it possible, that Barnsley was the birth place of the Switch The Floodlights Off And Win Lots Of Money In An Asian Betting Scandal, but these were strange times the mid 1980s, the height of Thatcherism, and the denouement of the Coal Industry as a Nationalised industry. But the Tykes were bang at it long before your West Hams and your Charltons.

Noels goal was a classic. Picking the ball up on the wide left, near the touch line, he jinked past a couple of defenders, and unleashed a curler right into the top corner. Every bit as good as a Damian Duff !

Barnsley equalised with a penalty a bit later, though I don't really remember much about it to be honest.

There was a good sized following from Rovers that day, indeed we took plenty everywhere in those days. Some great days out and adventures were had. You got to see plenty of familiar faces each trip. Where's Wimberley now though eh?

Here's the match day report form a local paper I think.

We remained top of the table though going into the FA cup third round...more of that next time.

[waggy]

i think it was this match a mate off mine was nicked for waving a tenner at the barnsley fans,after or during the miners strike.those were the days when the whole coach stayed put whilst the lad was let out off the nick at 7pm

[1864roverite]

There aint much that has changed in Barnsley, even in 2008

[Ozz]

With the league position looking very healthy, it came to the day in the year that most media types often refer to as the most exciting day in the footballing calendar. Yes of course, it was the Annual Alan Hardacre memorial lunch at Lancaster Gate. Also, it was the FA Cup 3rd round day too.

Earlier in this so-called thread I posted reaction tot eh draw made in December, an away tie at Portsmouth Fratton Park. Portsmouth were promotion rivals to us this, meaning that both domestic cup competitions had us playing a team from our division in the shale up for going up. Bit boring really, how about a home tie against Man United for example....

Indeed, the 2nd round of the league cup was a two legged tie with Oxford, FA cup was at Portsmouth, which as you are about to find out was a draw and needed a replay, and then another draw in the next round at Oxford again! So that would be five games against Oxford this season and four against Portsmouth.

I think I went on a service train to the match, setting off at stupid O'clock and arriving at just about half two ish. The station wasn't too far away from the ground , a shortish walk along the front, me trying to not give my accent away by keeping my gob shut. Bit rough down there as I recall.

The weather was very very cold, I remember being concerned as to whether the game may be abandoned at on epoint, which would be highly un-funny bearing in mind the distance travelled. The away end, as has been the case quite a few times this season, was an open terrace surrounded by cages (and still was until this season too!), and from memory about 300 from Lancs turned up.

The game should have been a walk over for Rovers, but I still to this day cannot work out how Chris Thompson missed a open goal from 5 yards, when he hit the post. He blames the pitch, I blame his general crapness!

I met Chris Thompson on the Isle Of Man latter that summer, he was very humble and agreed when I told him I didn't think he was very good at football. Jim Branagan was with him at the time though, and he had to be held back as he wanted to kill me for me insults.

So it was back on the train, back up north and home at midnight, with the replay scheduled for Tuesday.