handsofclay

It's difficult to imagine now that in the four years when City were in the top flight that no domestic players were selected to play for the home nations. I would class Collier as one of those worthy enough for England caps. Others who should've got a look in for England were Clive Whitehead (superior to Peter Barnes as a winger) and Norman Hunter who although a veteran still oozed class and was consistently good. Gow, Sweeney, Ritchie and Shaw should've had a few Scotland call ups. But we were an unfashionable club in the top flight, but I agree with your analysis of Collier a really classy centre back.

The documentary was spot on in identifying that Gary Collier's departure on the new freedom of contract rule to Coventry City was the catalyst for the spectacular downfall. Back then, before the Bosman ruling, clubs who lost a player that way still obtained a transfer fee set by the transfer tribunal who usually favoured the buying club (City got Walsh for £18,000 when Darlington valued him at getting on for ten times that....I think they were right!) If I recall correctly, City got something like £350,000 for Collier although had they been able to sell him they would've expected £500,000. Effectively losing £150,000 was a lot back then. City panicked and put players on long contracts. As Peter Godsiff correctly stated, players lose motivation etc then. We had Clive Whitehead on an 11 year contract so he went down to Div 3 on First Division wages, including bonuses and protected against inflation etc. It's all very well Alan Dicks saying that the board should have sold those players and cashed in when they dropped out of the top flight, but what club would offer Whitehead a ten year contract to tempt him away. Thus City had to sell the likes of Whitehead and Mabbutt for giveaway prices so couldn't even cash in there. Finally Archie Gooch said at one stage that City averaged 18,000 in the top flight. Yes, but that was the final season of four, the relegation season. In the first season it was 24,000 plus average attendance.

I had a great laugh at that point. Thanks for posting this. I had forgotten we had been the subject of World In Action. But it brought back memories watching it and I remembered Archie Gooch and his other director saying how ridiculous it was for them having to pay to get in. I was rather taken aback by the solutions offered to the crisis facing football in 1982 by the likes of Jimmy Hill, Peter Swales etc. A maximum wage and restriction of TV coverage!!! It was the extension of TV coverage, indeed TV saturation that saved the game!

Having said the above it could simply be that the light is making the brown wooden seats look reddish or a reddish brown so it could be 1970 if that's the case

I would say early to mid 80s as others have said as when the Dolman was built and into the First Division days the seats in the Dolman were brown, wooden seats. This photo clearly shows the red, plastic seats that replaced them as an upgrade a decade to 15 years later. Dolman was built in 1970 so I'd guess about 1984-86ish perhaps even slightly later

You have displayed tremendous dignity through your words in your post. Your son would be proud of you as you were so proud of him. Neither yourself or your late son are tainted by those few idiots who chose not to honour his memory as he deserved. We respect his memory and your humanity in expressing your feelings so eloquently.

Also Mexico would have hosted it (and co hosted it)three times. I was four years old later in 1966 so have no recollection of the tournament.

I'm pretty sure it was WBA who wore the astro boots that day and kept their footing while City players slipped all over the place. I recall their decision to do that being lauded in the national press after as a masterstroke. Im sure the boots were not specifically designed for artic conditions, someone at WBA simply thought their astro turf boots would be better in the conditions than studded boots and they were totally right!

Ricardo Villa was pretty well the man of the match, I think it was the first time he had ever seen ice except when he was once given the opportunity to have it with his glass of coke in a cafe in Buenos Aires when he was 12. What I recall most about that match is that the turnstiles were opened about half an hour later than usual as the game was still in doubt an hour before kick off and that the half of the pitch towards the Covered End was rock hard as the sun hadn't got to it. Then Kendall, the Spurs keeper, took a catch above his head at the Covered End, slipped backwards and banged the back of his head on the hard ground knocking himself unconscious. Finished 0-0 but Villa was the star of the show.

Thanks for putting the side. That team they put out was probably good enough to beat any team in the country so it was a very strong side. But there were three changes made from their usual eleven, and this was in an age where teams were rarely changed (unless due to injury or loss of form which was rarely the case with successful sides). Alec Lindsay, if I recall, played little that season as he had been ousted by Joey Jones, and Kevin Keegan and Steve Heighway were also missing. Nowadays we are used to squad rotation so any 11 from 14 top players would seem like a full strength team, but I recall when I was at the game it felt like Liverpool were resting three key players from their usual eleven. Back then the Football League took strong disciplinary action against any team seen to significantly weaken their team for a fixture, so resting three players from their usual eleven was the most they thought they could do without incurring the wrath of the FL I totally agree with you it was a very strong team Liverpool put out that night but I would still contend that it was a little way off from their strongest team. ??

Liverpool played a strong XI but rested the likes of Kevin Keegan and a couple of others. They had won the league the game before two days earlier, were playing in the FA Cup Final five days later and the European Cup Final 4 days after that. It was a strong side they fielded but I wouldn't say it was full strength.

At least you have admitted you haven't read all the pages on here but I highlighted this game on page 1 of this thread!!

I mentioned it on page 1 !!!

It could be argued that they were the best side in Europe at the time, too. Surprised there's no mention of beating Arsenal at Highbury on the opening day of the 76-77 season. In the week leading up to it all we had in the national press was how Supermac on his debut would put the country bumpkins on their return to the top flight after 65 years to the sword but City totally outplayed them

Great news. It means Ranieri is now free to take us to the Premier League title once Nigel goes.

I think the Palace keeper was at fault for being on the pitch between Jota and the goal and thus enabling Jota to deliberately run into him once he had lost control of the ball. I hate it when keepers are free to make stupid errors like this. When Liverpool are attacking they should be safely sat in the stands to prevent anything like this happening.

But we can all do that on our day, it's doing it consistently that matters (although one can only do it twice a season v Brentford if in the same division as them).

Yes, his name was Slobadan Antic from a side called, iirc, Radnicki Nis. A friendly was hastily arranged with Plymouth at Home Park as a trial for him. By all accounts he played well in a 3-1? Win. But nothing came of it. He went back to Yugoslavia. He would have been our first foreign signing (Eisenstrager excluded), which accounts for my good memory of it as it seemed so exciting back then.

I turned up for the Hibs v Kilmarnock opening game of the 2004-05 season in a City shirt. I had a few looks and a few supporters chatted to me and welcomed me to Hibs. One supporter was up from Newcastle and we chatted about Andy Cole and Brian Tinnion.

We are quite high in the current 2022 table. Above Arsenal and currently, after 61 minutes, above Liverpool and Chelsea too

Whatever match and year it was, and Bath City 1986 seems a bloody good guess, the picture was taken in the 70th minute as the first person leaving the Dolman can be spotted descending the nearest stairway.

You should thank your lucky stars it wasn't Tammy Abraham driving it (although he would've been about minus fifteen at the time, and I'm referring to his age not rating his dexterity behind the wheel).

That's City v Forest in the league cup semi final 1989, not the FA Cup match of 1981 but still fond memories nevertheless.

I think it was Toshack who scored. Great player made all the better by Paisley moving him into midfield. RIP

Here is the article from The Athletic: If there is one club that is forever called "Sleeping Giants" it is Bristol City. Peter Goldthorne of The Athletic examines the legitimacy of this claim: I have reached the conclusion that it is grossly unfair to label Bristol City as "Sleeping Giants" for even those of gargantuan stature that are asleep do at times awake and then rightly adopt the mantle of giants. In Bristol City's case they remain constantly asleep. Medical opinion is unanimous in cases of giants being asleep for 41 years plus that they are not actually sleeping at all but are either deceased or in a comatose state from which they are unlikely to arise. Thus I feel Bristol City should be called "Comatose Giants" as if prodded, unlike those that are dead, they do exhibit signs of life (unless it's approaching the 90th minute or beyond in a game). The Athletic believes that although comatose so not strictly dead that owner Steve Lansdown should try and return the club back to the shop in Bolton from whence he bought it and try to convince the shop owner that it is indeed a dead club and not one that is just resting or pining for the (Fred) Fords. We believe that it should then be put back on the shelf with a price tag of £150,000,000 the high asking price due to the fact that the club comes replete with a modern 27,000 seater stadium that hosts the Bristol Bears rugby club as well as having lighting that considerably pisses off Tilly Vacher in Clifton.