One of the biggest results in our history?

[The Journalist]

Now we can all turn our attentions properly towards Wednesday, I have a genuine question for you all to ponder - would victory over Manchester United constitute one of the biggest one-off results in Bristol City's history?

Now, I'm not suggesting it'd be the biggest - that's surely impossible to quantify. I'm not even saying I think it'd be one of the biggest. I'm just asking the question, with this context behind it...

• We've never won a major trophy
• We've only ever reached the semi-finals of a major trophy twice
• We've never won a play-off final
• We've not played in the top flight for 37 years
• Manchester United, the EFL Cup holders, are one of the biggest, richest and most successful clubs in the world

How would victory compare against other wins you might consider our biggest ever? Can you name, say, five more significant one-off victories in Bristol City's history? Considering not only the impact on the pitch but the potential impact off it?

This isn't a debate about whether the league or the cup is more important to us - this is a question loaded against 123 years of history which has seen us achieve, in the grander scheme of things, very little.

Over to you...

[1bristolcity]

One for the floaters... beating Forest yesterday was massive.

[Bris Red]

The play off win over Palace in 08 for me was a pretty big one of recent years. To get ourselves one game away from the top flight was massive Imo.

[INCRED]

It would be one of the biggest alongside the Liverpool FA Cup tie at Anfield

[mozo]

How about our FA Cup quarter final replay win against Glossop North End in 1909 

[steviestevieneville]

1 minute ago, 1bristolcity said:

One for the floaters... beating Forest yesterday was massive.

100% this. It’s a bit of payback for sir steve of Lansdown after all the money he’s pumped in to have us showcased on the world stage as manc fans around the world will be watching. It may attract youngsters to become city fans but the league is much bigger for me. If we had the option of getting smashed Wednesday but no injuries and beating QPR Saturday I’d take that all day long. 

[The Journalist]

11 minutes ago, 1bristolcity said:

One for the floaters... beating Forest yesterday was massive.

 

4 minutes ago, steviestevieneville said:

100% this. It’s a bit of payback for sir steve of Lansdown after all the money he’s pumped in to have us showcased on the world stage as manc fans around the world will be watching. It may attract youngsters to become city fans but the league is much bigger for me. If we had the option of getting smashed Wednesday but no injuries and beating QPR Saturday I’d take that all day long. 

I think a lot of people would agree with that view.

However, it's fair to say we'll only know the impact of yesterday's win in May. If we miss out on promotion but reach the semi-finals of the EFL Cup, you could hardly dispute whether beating Manchester United in a cup quarter-final or overcoming mid-table Nottingham Forest in December was the bigger result in Bristol City's overall history.

So, while I completely understand your point, in making it you're missing my original point.

[cidered abroad]

22 minutes ago, The Journalist said:

Now we can all turn our attentions properly towards Wednesday, I have a genuine question for you all to ponder - would victory over Manchester United constitute one of the biggest one-off results in Bristol City's history?

Now, I'm not suggesting it'd be the biggest - that's surely impossible to quantify. I'm not even saying I think it'd be one of the biggest. I'm just asking the question, with this context behind it...

• We've never won a major trophy
• We've only ever reached the semi-finals of a major trophy twice
• We've never won a play-off final
• We've not played in the top flight for 37 years
• Manchester United, the EFL Cup holders, are one of the biggest, richest and most successful clubs in the world

How would victory compare against other wins you might consider our biggest ever? Can you name, say, five more significant one-off victories in Bristol City's history? Considering not only the impact on the pitch but the potential impact off it?

This isn't a debate about whether the league or the cup is more important to us - this is a question loaded against 123 years of history which has seen us achieve, in the grander scheme of things, very little.

Over to you...

We've been in two FA Cup semi finals. 1909 and 1920 and one FA Cup final 1909.

Two League cup semi finals. 1971 and 1989

A paltry difference to your post but a bit more. Maybe you're too young to remember those in the first quarter of the 20th century? 

[The Journalist]

15 minutes ago, cidered abroad said:

We've been in two FA Cup semi finals. 1909 and 1920 and one FA Cup final 1909.

Two League cup semi finals. 1971 and 1989

A paltry difference to your post but a bit more. Maybe you're too young to remember those in the first quarter of the 20th century? 

Ah, I stand corrected - I foolishly failed to count the 1909 semi-final and was unaware of 1920. I'm a wee bit too young to recall that one.

I wouldn't say it's a paltry difference, as it obviously means we've won four quarter-finals before and so this occasion isn't quite as rare as I gave credit for originally!

Was the opposition we faced in those last-eight fixtures as formidable as Wednesday, though?

Just to add, too, that I'm not trying to prove or disprove that beating Manchester United would be a massive result, it's a genuine question.

[steviestevieneville]

2 minutes ago, The Journalist said:

 

I think a lot of people would agree with that view.

However, it's fair to say we'll only know the impact of yesterday's win in May. If we miss out on promotion but reach the semi-finals of the EFL Cup, you could hardly dispute whether beating Manchester United in a cup quarter-final or overcoming mid-table Nottingham Forest in December was the bigger result in Bristol City's overall history.

So, while I completely understand your point, in making it you're missing my original point.

Yeah ok I’ve completely sidestepped the question you were asking. I’d probably say bigger games were , arsenal away 76 Coventry away 77 , palace playoff semi , Liverpool away F.A cup and for having a impact on our future the Hull playoff final. 

The game Wednesday could possibly have a impact fan base wise but it is only a one off cup game. It would be great in the future to be playing these teams every season which would make any games like Wednesday insignificant in comparison. 

[1bristolcity]

2 minutes ago, The Journalist said:

 

I think a lot of people would agree with that view.

However, it's fair to say we'll only know the impact of yesterday's win in May. If we miss out on promotion but reach the semi-finals of the EFL Cup, you could hardly dispute whether beating Manchester United in a cup quarter-final or overcoming mid-table Nottingham Forest in December was the bigger result in Bristol City's overall history.

So, while I completely understand your point, in making it you're missing my original point.

I know....and I do think it's a nice aside from the rigours of the League, can't really lose either way, but we have already beaten three Prem teams and we didn't go overboard then and we won't if we beat Utd. The wider public's view would be that was massive, the run of the mill City supporter would I am sure be like me, just concerned in beating QPR.

I have supported City for thousands of years....the 1-0 win against Pompey was huge sending us up.

Arsenal 1-0 away first match in Div 1 

Beating Man U 3-0 away.

Liverpool at home in the League and FA Cup.

Leeds away in the 70's FA Cup replay was massive, Leeds were arguably  not only the best team in the country, but possibly in Europe too.  

 

A few more I guess.

[Hampshire Red]

Obviously one of the biggest, if not Number 1.

Biggest crowd in the New stadium, most seated fans ever in Bristol, biggest TV audience ever in Clubs history, noisiest group d since Hartlepool, most valuable aggregated players in any sporting event in West of England

In my view we should all enjoy the match and wider evening as a homage to Sir Steve and to celebrate the very hard work of one of the leagues best English managers. We weren't a large minority who believed in March he would come good.

CoYrs

[The Journalist]

1 minute ago, steviestevieneville said:

Yeah ok I’ve completely sidestepped the question you were asking. I’d probably say bigger games were , arsenal away 76 Coventry away 77 , palace playoff semi , Liverpool away F.A cup and for having a impact on our future the Hull playoff final. 

The game Wednesday could possibly have a impact fan base wise but it is only a one off cup game. It would be great in the future to be playing these teams every season which would make any games like Wednesday insignificant in comparison. 

Coventry in 1977 is a superb point. The victory over Crystal Palace in 2008 was massive too, of course, in terms of creating an opportunity we'd never had before or had since. Surely Liverpool in the FA Cup would only be on a par, however?

And, without stating the completely bleeding obvious, sadly we can't count Hull in the play-off final among our biggest wins... 

[BigTone]

8 minutes ago, The Journalist said:

Ah, I stand correct - I foolishly failed to count the 1909 semi-final and was unaware of 1920. I'm a wee bit too young to recall that one.

I wouldn't say it's a paltry difference, as it obviously means we've won four quarter-finals before and so this occasion isn't quite as rare as I gave credit for originally!

Was the opposition we faced in those last-eight fixtures as formidable as Wednesday, though?

Just to add, too, that I'm not trying to prove or disprove that beating Manchester United would be a massive result, it's a genuine question.

We were in the final in 1909 and it MUST be avenged

[The Journalist]

6 minutes ago, 1bristolcity said:

I know....and I do think it's a nice aside from the rigours of the League, can't really lose either way, but we have already beaten three Prem teams and we didn't go overboard then and we won't if we beat Utd. The wider public's view would be that was massive, the run of the mill City supporter would I am sure be like me, just concerned in beating QPR.

I have supported City for thousands of years....the 1-0 win against Pompey was huge sending us up.

Arsenal 1-0 away first match in Div 1 

Beating Man U 3-0 away.

Liverpool at home in the League and FA Cup.

Leeds away in the 70's FA Cup replay was massive, Leeds were arguably  not only the best team in the country, but possibly in Europe too.  

 

A few more I guess.

In fairness, I think beating Manchester United in a quarter-final is a little more reason to go overboard than getting past Watford, Crystal Palace and Stoke, with respect to those clubs - all of whom we've faced in the league recently!

The Leeds FA Cup tie is a really good comparison, though, given the context around that game. I guess that's a key factor to consider as well - the standing of the opposition at the time of the game.

In that case, if I'd started off thinking this might make a top five, perhaps it'd be somewhere lower down in the top 10?

[steviestevieneville]

2 minutes ago, The Journalist said:

Coventry in 1977 is a superb point. The victory over Crystal Palace in 2008 was massive too, of course, in terms of creating an opportunity we'd never had before or had since. Surely Liverpool in the FA Cup would only be on a par, however?

And, without stating the completely bleeding obvious, sadly we can't count Hull in the play-off final among our biggest wins... 

I know but it has had a big impact on our future. Hull are seen as a yo yo club now and possibly never been perseived as big as a club as they are now. That could of been us ,  we’re much more equipped for the prem now than ever before but it could of been ten years earlier. 

[redcityman]

Not so glamourous as ones already mentioned but Bolton at Wembley in the Freight Rover Trophy is one for me, especially when you considerer we were so close to going out of existence not so long previous.

Both Chelsea at home and Leicester City in the FA cup were tremendous occassions.

A non match event if i may include, Jon Lansdown getting his dad to come and watch the City.

[ZiderEyed]

I know we've probably all thought it, but we do, hypothetically, have a chance of winning the League Cup, don't we? Beat this lot Wednesday, and it wouldn't be totally out of the realms of possibility. Wow.

[ChippenhamRed]

Without question it would be one of the biggest one-off results. Beating a footballing superpower for a place in the semi finals would be right up there in our history. I think some people on here are afraid to admit how big it could be for fear of seeming “tinpot”, but there’s no point pretending it wouldn’t be massive. Our history is not exactly peppered with notable scalps.

I appreciate the arguments saying yesterday’s win was more important, but we’ll only know how important if it proves to be the difference between promotion or not. If we win the league by 15 points it will have been an irrelevance!

 

[David Brent]

1 hour ago, mozo said:

How about our FA Cup quarter final replay win against Glossop North End in 1909 

The semi final win was bigger, imo

[mattjtsmith]

12 minutes ago, ZiderEyed said:

I know we've probably all thought it, but we do, hypothetically, have a chance of winning the League Cup, don't we? Beat this lot Wednesday, and it wouldn't be totally out of the realms of possibility. Wow.

Leicester / Bournemouth / West Ham in those two fixtures....then yes 

In regards to the fixture, as a 27 year old I don't have those memories of huge cup games, and growing up in Kent, surrounded by Man Utd fans  in the 99' era of the treble etc, it would be a huge game for me, a little revenge for all the times they've said "who?" when I told them who I support. But in the grand scheme of things, it would mean very little compared to promotion to the PL, just a great weapon in the workplace back and forth. 

[BobbyC]

It has to be Arsenal away in 76.

First game in the top division with big Cheese doing the job inside the ground and the East end boys doing it outside.

[handsofclay]

It has to be remembered that when we beat Leeds in a replay in February 1974, Leeds had a full strength team. The same full strength team that was unbeaten in the league all season, up to that point, and were sailing away with the top flight title in the days when there were usually three or four teams battling it out to be champs with a month or so to go in the title race. City were still in danger of relegation from what is now the Championship. It was an almighty shock when City beat them and quite rightly made the front page of The Times.

The league and cup double was also highly prized at the time. Only two clubs, both London teams, had achieved the feat in the 20th century up to that point, so Leeds were definitely in it to win it.

As has been previously stated in this thread, Leeds were probably the best side in Europe, let alone England, at this time. The following season they made it to the European Cup Final where they fell prey to some dubious refereeing decisions against Bayern Munich.

[Robbored]

Obviously I'd love City to win but I can't see anything but our exit from the league cup. 

The Man Utd game is a nice financial bonus but ultimately it'll be a side show for the main event - the Championship.

[tin]

Mourinho was asked this recently and rightly said the next game is the biggest game. Can understand where he’s coming from. 

I think it’s impossible to answer this until after the game’s been played or even the season’s over. If we were to win, it would be the biggest result in our history but only until the next round and then there’s potentially the final. 

The League v Cup debate is relevant to your question because I’d say we’ve got far bigger games (Wolves, Villa) coming up. Some key players looked knackered after 60 minutes yesterday, and I’d personally like to see them rested against United in an attempt to freshen them up for a busy festive schedule. 

[Lanterne Rouge]

23 minutes ago, handsofclay said:

It has to be remembered that when we beat Leeds in a replay in February 1974, Leeds had a full strength team. The same full strength team that was unbeaten in the league all season, up to that point, and were sailing away with the top flight title in the days when there were usually three or four teams battling it out to be champs with a month or so to go in the title race. City were still in danger of relegation from what is now the Championship. It was an almighty shock when City beat them and quite rightly made the front page of The Times.

The league and cup double was also highly prized at the time. Only two clubs, both London teams, had achieved the feat in the 20th century up to that point, so Leeds were definitely in it to win it.

As has been previously stated in this thread, Leeds were probably the best side in Europe, let alone England, at this time. The following season they made it to the European Cup Final where they fell prey to some dubious refereeing decisions against Bayern Munich.

I tend to agree. Leeds were so dominant back then and were so far ahead of the rest. Beating them was comparable to someone like San Marino  beating a full strength Germany and to do it on their own patch was something else.

[chinapig]

40 minutes ago, Red Right Hand said:

I tend to agree. Leeds were so dominant back then and were so far ahead of the rest. Beating them was comparable to someone like San Marino  beating a full strength Germany and to do it on their own patch was something else.

IIRC they were unbeaten in the League when we won the cup tie.

[GrahamC]

Sorry, I've come to this thread a bit late but surely any win when we were in the same division as our opponents (like Arsenal in '76 & Man U in '78) has to rank lower in terms of achievement than if we were to win on Wednesday?

Leeds under AD and the Liverpool win under Osman are the only obvious two I can think of..

[054123]

39 minutes ago, GrahamC said:

Sorry, I've come to this thread a bit late but surely any win when we were in the same division as our opponents (like Arsenal in '76 & Man U in '78) has to rank lower in terms of achievement than if we were to win on Wednesday?

Leeds under AD and the Liverpool win under Osman are the only obvious two I can think of..

Depends on the frame of reference.

To beat Arsenal, as a peer, on the opening day of the season speaks volumes as to the achievement of the club. The same for any win in the top flight.

It's a little bit like when people talk about success under Lansdown and point to 2 promotions from division 3 and 2 football league trophies.

Is that the bar we set ourselves?

 

[GrahamC]

1 minute ago, 054123 said:

Depends on the frame of reference.

To beat Arsenal, as a peer, on the opening day of the season speaks volumes as to the achievement of the club. The same for any win in the top flight.

It's a little bit like when people talk about success under Lansdown and point to 2 promotions from division 3 and 2 football league trophies.

Is that the bar we set ourselves?

 

Good points.

As for anything to do with the JPT/Freight Rover (post Terry Cooper, who dragged us out of the '82 mess) I viewed it as embarrassing, rather than an achievement & didn't see a single game the last time that we won it..