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44 Years ago today. The great escape


Hillzider

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Absolutely fantastic.

So grateful to my Dad for agreeing to let me skip school for the afternoon & go to this.

I was 13 then for goodness sake & having suffered watching City for 50 years now have to come to gradually realise how special those 4 years were, which if we hadn’t survived on this day, it might well have been just one year.

Bizarre how you remember certain things, but stopped at a service station on the way back, I was parched, having shouted myself hoarse all game, it was packed with City fans & they had sold out of cold drinks with the exception of a diet one, called Tab. I bought one & even in my state of thirst it was really disgusting!

Final point, he really doesn’t get the credit he deserves but Donnie Gillies got the all important equaliser here, he wasn’t a big goal scorer for us but boy, did he score some big ones, this one, the winner at Leeds, our first home goal back in the top flight v Stoke after Cheese got crocked.

Bless you, Donnie.

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Fantastic night, never to be forgotten by those who were there.  The City following was estimated at 15000 but who knows, I thought it was more than that,  I arrived at 5.30 and the queues were massive at the turnstiles - so much so that I thought there was a real prospect of being locked out (as I had been for the Liverpool home game just before!) so we went in a "home" area simply because the queue was slightly shorter. when we did get in the area was rammed with City!

Brilliant night - at 0-2 it could have been over but the noise level from the City fans unbelievably just got even louder and the players seemed to find another gear.  The last 10 minutes were just surreal !

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2 hours ago, GrahamC said:

Absolutely fantastic.

So grateful to my Dad for agreeing to let me skip school for the afternoon & go to this.

I was 13 then for goodness sake & having suffered watching City for 50 years now have to come to gradually realise how special those 4 years were, which if we hadn’t survived on this day, it might well have been just one year.

Bizarre how you remember certain things, but stopped at a service station on the way back, I was parched, having shouted myself hoarse all game, it was packed with City fans & they had sold out of cold drinks with the exception of a diet one, called Tab. I bought one & even in my state of thirst it was really disgusting!

Final point, he really doesn’t get the credit he deserves but Donnie Gillies got the all important equaliser here, he wasn’t a big goal scorer for us but boy, did he score some big ones, this one, the winner at Leeds, our first home goal back in the top flight v Stoke after Cheese got crocked.

Bless you, Donnie.

I was 12 and my dad did the same.

This was my first proper away game, did Rovers but as that was close to where i lived it wasn't like an away game.

I have the same memory of stopping at the services on the way home and it being a sea of red & white.

 

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3 hours ago, Hillzider said:

Agree. Started watching in mid seventies so first five years were promotion and 4 years in the top flight.

Trouble was I took it for granted and thought it would always be like that supporting City.

40 years later how wrong I was !

Same mate. During that period we were able to watch Liverpool, Arsenal and Man United at the Gate and The Clash, The Jam and The Undertones down the Locarno. No one told me  this was as good as life would ever get ? Special memories. 

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3 hours ago, CodeRed said:

Fantastic night, never to be forgotten by those who were there.  The City following was estimated at 15000 but who knows, I thought it was more than that,  I arrived at 5.30 and the queues were massive at the turnstiles - so much so that I thought there was a real prospect of being locked out (as I had been for the Liverpool home game just before!) so we went in a "home" area simply because the queue was slightly shorter. when we did get in the area was rammed with City!

Brilliant night - at 0-2 it could have been over but the noise level from the City fans unbelievably just got even louder and the players seemed to find another gear.  The last 10 minutes were just surreal !

Yep me too....I went up on one of the special trains.....and the queues were so big, I thought either i won't get in for kick off, or maybe not all all.  However, in I got, and what a night?   A Never to be forgotten atmosphere, and occasion.   One of my best City memories.....and the journey home on the train afterwards was rocking.!!   ? ?

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I remember everybody at school talking about the game ALL DAY, and then pretty much everybody I knew getting up to Cov by trains, cars, coaches, cadging lifts, some not knowing how they were going to get back after.... A wonderful memory for all those old enough to have experienced it all. Oh what a night!

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I was at college in Northampton sailed up the A45 with little traffic problems to arrive at Highfield Road to hear the game was being delayed for 15 mins because the M6 was grid locked as City fans tried to get to the ground. We sat in the stand getting regular updates from the Everton v Sunderland game. City went two - nil down, but you thought we were two nil up as all you could here was Come on u Reds and chants to lift the side. Gerry Gow took it on board because he was inspirational and kept willing the fans on . 

When we equalised everybody were on their seats, it went crazy and even Coventry supporters were shaking our hands and saying don't go on to win it. When the Everton - Sunderland result came through the crowd erupted again and you could see both teams acknowledged what was happening as they started playing keep football  with Coventry keeping the ball and passing amongst their own players , then the City team doing the same when they were in possession . When the final whistle went the place erupted again . City fans congratulating each other as well as Coventry fans. I have never seen a football match ever end that way.

Great memories   

 

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4 hours ago, GrahamC said:

Absolutely fantastic.

So grateful to my Dad for agreeing to let me skip school for the afternoon & go to this.

I was 13 then for goodness sake & having suffered watching City for 50 years now have to come to gradually realise how special those 4 years were, which if we hadn’t survived on this day, it might well have been just one year.

Bizarre how you remember certain things, but stopped at a service station on the way back, I was parched, having shouted myself hoarse all game, it was packed with City fans & they had sold out of cold drinks with the exception of a diet one, called Tab. I bought one & even in my state of thirst it was really disgusting!

Final point, he really doesn’t get the credit he deserves but Donnie Gillies got the all important equaliser here, he wasn’t a big goal scorer for us but boy, did he score some big ones, this one, the winner at Leeds, our first home goal back in the top flight v Stoke after Cheese got crocked.

Bless you, Donnie.

I'm a similar age mate, I wasn't allowed to go to aways in the week, if I turn up at the pearly gates and St Peter says "you can see one game, that you missed" it would probably be the Coventry game.. 

Listened to it on Salthouse fields, it wasn't even on live they would go to a reporter to update every goal... 

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44 years, crikey! Though I suppose it does feel like it as I was a teenager at home in West Somerset listening to it on the radio.

The problem was, radio Bristol was relatively clear around 7.30 and all was clear as to start with. However as time went on the interference from other radio stations, including foreign ones, was unbearable.

It was heart stopping moments as the signal drifted in and out and I had to make do with snippets, remember there was no other option, they would have given the result on the late news but that was it until the morning papers. 
Eventually I could make out the delight in the RB mans voice and I had heard the Sunderland game was over. We’d done it and another season with the big boys lay ahead.

Oh how we could do with some end of season joy! 

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To start the season with an away win at Arsenal and finish it at Coventry with all the emotions thrown in will always take some beating.  Allowed to leave early from work and 5 of us drove up in one car surrounded on the motorway by what seemed like,half of Bristol. Fantastic memories.

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Same story as many for me. 

I was 10 and this was my first evening away game. Dad told my primary school I was 'ill' IIRC but they knew where i was going.

As dad had lived in Coventry for a short time when he worked at Jaguar, we went up very early so he could see some old friends.

I'll never forget just how many Bristolians were there as we seemed to be everywhere. As a young 'un, I didn't think everyone would fit.

Dad was very happy at the end, I remember that so I was happy too.

What a time to be a young city fan that was eh! 

One day guys, one day, we'll do it again. 

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Still have great memories of that game and that night! Got a lift with 5 mates to the game and the motorway was full of fellow fans on their way to Coventry. We arrived a few hours before kick-off and some pubs weren't allowing Coventry fans in as they were packed with City fans. The build up before the game, the amount of away fans - we ended up in the Coventry Home End - and topped off with the result. Will never witness a night like that again. Not sure how I made work the next morning!

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15 hours ago, cityexile said:

Blimey, memories.

Some highlights of those last few games here. About 4:30 the Coventry game...so many jumping up when City scored at the Coventry end. 

 

Brilliant was there for all those games what a night at Coventry

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It was great to watch the footage from all that time ago, it really brought the whole situation back to life.   I was at all 4 games ................Man Utd, Leeds, Liverpool and Coventry, and what looked so so daunting before hand, miraculously happened!   The Roger Malone quote of "How to use a free kick to maximum use" and describing Kevin Mabbut's flat as "Snazzy" rekindled my  view of just what an absolute "Merchant Banker"  he was ?   Ha!  ?

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Defines us as Bristol City fans .... what is your fondest memory of following the Club over 50 years?

A 2-2 draw away at Coventry which saved us from relegation.

You had to be there. 
 

.... and those of us in the 40 odd late coaches that delayed the kick-off time can claim some credit for that. Our immediate reward was that we had the benefit of watching the goals right in front of us in their open end. Camera angle doesn’t do us justice.. City took over the mid/upper central blocks behind that goal - as well as the ‘split’ home end and good chunks of the side stands.
 

Seriously impressive support - officially was 17,800 away fans but seemed more than that. A couple of years later when Coventry visited The Gate, I think for a key match for their possible European qualification, their manager asked for a similar level of support from their fans as we gave our team so that night - so it clearly left a mark on them. Think we beat them and their support was s**t, don’t think they even filled the away section.

 

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Amazing, unbelievable.

Arrived in Coventry from Bedford as I was doing a course there. Didn't know the stadium at all or where the best place for away supporters to go was so asked a copper.

He said "anywhere, your effing everywhere". So we went in the covered end, lively to say the least!

I have spoken often since that night to anyone who wants to listen, waxing lyrical about my all time favourite ever game but that didn't scratch the surface of the game or the emotional roller coaster.

You really did have to be there and I am so damn glad that I actually was!

 

 

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On 19/05/2021 at 11:30, CodeRed said:

Fantastic night, never to be forgotten by those who were there.  The City following was estimated at 15000 but who knows, I thought it was more than that,  I arrived at 5.30 and the queues were massive at the turnstiles - so much so that I thought there was a real prospect of being locked out (as I had been for the Liverpool home game just before!) so we went in a "home" area simply because the queue was slightly shorter. when we did get in the area was rammed with City!

Brilliant night - at 0-2 it could have been over but the noise level from the City fans unbelievably just got even louder and the players seemed to find another gear.  The last 10 minutes were just surreal !

Was in the home end as well, great night 

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What an unforgettable night, not only for the match, but for actually having two replacement coaches due to breakdowns.

First one conked out on the M5 less than 30 mins from leaving the Gate.  It took so long to get a replacement that we had no chance of seeing much of the match, so the driver gave us the choice of returning back home, or continuing up to Coventry and maybe catching a bit of the game.  

Obviously the vote was to head to Cov and we got into the ground with about 20 mins to go, just after we’d pulled it back to 2:1.  It was a surreal experience, as in those days of strict segregation, wherever you looked around the ground, there were large groups of City singing and chanting and there was no obvious segregation that I could see.

Then the magic moment when we equalised and the whole place went absolutely berserk and we then had the infamous last few minutes, with both teams playing for time and not wanting to upset the apple cart by going on the attack!

That was probably the most amazing and emotional 20 minutes of football I’ve ever experienced and even though our replacement coach also broke down on the way back to Bristol and I got home at stupid o’clock, I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.  

Though we’ve had a few exciting occasions in recent times, such as the Man U cup win none could match that amazing night at Highfield Rd for me.

 

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