50 years ago (Leeds), 30 years ago (Tinns), 40 years ago?

[Bristol Oil Services]

What happened 40 years ago? What to commemorate from 1984? Well, 40 years ago this month we roughed up one fifth of the Nolans on a Saturday night down Torquay. Saturday night was fer fighting back then, and boy did we take it to just the one of the Nolans.

Let's have a shirt for that one. Lest we forget.

[City Rocker]

The win at Chester to clinch promotion from div 4, that was 1984 wasn't it? One of my favourite ever games, and the only time I've ever cried at a football match! 

Edit: I was at the Torquay away game as well, a mate got arrested. Still prefer Chester

Edited February 14 by City Rocker

[mozo]

3 minutes ago, City Rocker said:

The win at Chester to clinch promotion from div 4, that was 1984 wasn't it? One of my favourite ever games, and the only time I've ever cried at a football match! 

Edit: I was at the Torquay away game as well, a mate got arrested. Still prefer Chester

I don't know about the Chester game, what happened?

[Silvio Dante]

18 minutes ago, mozo said:

I don't know about the Chester game, what happened?

I think the answer is in his post, we clinched promotion. After the fall of the prior years to start the climb back had to have been emotional as hell (I’d started watching that season but can’t really claim to have been as invested at that point as those who saw the club nearly die then TC take the team forward with kids, students, part timers and rejects)

[cidered abroad]

19 minutes ago, mozo said:

I don't know about the Chester game, what happened?

We won promotion from Fourth Division.

[City Rocker]

Actually thinking about it, the Nolan sister incident at Torquay was a few seasons later wasn't it? The one when those City lads borrowed a boat from the harbour? 

[Banjo Island]

14 minutes ago, City Rocker said:

Actually thinking about it, the Nolan sister incident at Torquay was a few seasons later wasn't it? The one when those City lads borrowed a boat from the harbour? 

With a hole in the bottom

[mozo]

29 minutes ago, Silvio Dante said:

I think the answer is in his post, we clinched promotion. After the fall of the prior years to start the climb back had to have been emotional as hell (I’d started watching that season but can’t really claim to have been as invested at that point as those who saw the club nearly die then TC take the team forward with kids, students, part timers and rejects)

 

29 minutes ago, cidered abroad said:

We won promotion from Fourth Division.

Not a dramatic game or end to the season then? But rather good obviously, given the near extinction.

[southside]

26 minutes ago, City Rocker said:

Actually thinking about it, the Nolan sister incident at Torquay was a few seasons later wasn't it? The one when those City lads borrowed a boat from the harbour? 

84

Edited February 14 by southside

[Silvio Dante]

3 minutes ago, mozo said:

 

Not a dramatic game or end to the season then? But rather good obviously, given the near extinction.

Umm…as it was the last game of the season and we got the win we had to in order to win promotion (and iirc late on), I’d  suggest it was dramatic as a game and as an end to the season…

[cityexile]

44 minutes ago, Silvio Dante said:

Umm…as it was the last game of the season and we got the win we had to in order to win promotion (and iirc late on), I’d  suggest it was dramatic as a game and as an end to the season…

My memory can very well be playing tricks, but did we not beat Swindon 1-0 the penultimate game to secure promotion? Certainly remember the Swindon game and leaving thinking ‘that’s it, we are up’.

Sure that was 83/84, but it all merges together after a while.

[slartibartfast]

1 hour ago, City Rocker said:

The win at Chester to clinch promotion from div 4, that was 1984 wasn't it? One of my favourite ever games, and the only time I've ever cried at a football match! 

Edit: I was at the Torquay away game as well, a mate got arrested. Still prefer Chester

Nearly got deaded that Torquay evening, just walked past a police riot van when it "mysteriously" got overturned, couple of seconds later, I would have been flattened !

[slartibartfast]

16 minutes ago, cityexile said:

My memory can very well be playing tricks, but did we not beat Swindon 1-0 the penultimate game to secure promotion? Certainly remember the Swindon game and leaving thinking ‘that’s it, we are up’.

Sure that was 83/84, but it all merges together after a while.

No ,we HAD to win to be sure of autos, Aldershot could have caught us .

[Rocking Red Cyril]

1 hour ago, cidered abroad said:

We won promotion from Fourth Division.

Still my fav moment from all the ups and downs over the years. To get back out of Div 4. Good old Terry Cooper still feel he does not get the credit he deserves for what he did.

1 minute ago, slartibartfast said:

No ,we HAD to win to be sure of autos, Aldershot could have caught us .

Yes sure we had to beat Chester 

[Nogbad the Bad]

8 minutes ago, cityexile said:

My memory can very well be playing tricks, but did we not beat Swindon 1-0 the penultimate game to secure promotion? Certainly remember the Swindon game and leaving thinking ‘that’s it, we are up’.

Sure that was 83/84, but it all merges together after a while.

No, after beating Swindon 1-0 in front of almost 13k we still had to beat Chester.

Trevor Morgan put us 1-0 up in front of 3k travelling fans but Zelem equalised in the 81st minute. Morgan then scored the winner on 87 minutes to clinch promotion, followed by a mass pitch invasion and Terry Cooper conducting the chanting fans from the stand.

An absolutely fantastic day after all we'd been through as a club and fans.

As the EP said the next day:

'All the financial problems, internal wrangles, and disappointing results of the past 5 seasons were forgotten as success starved fans mobbed their heroes at the final whistle. Alan Crawford lost his shirt in the battle to reach the players' tunnel, Glyn Riley was raised shoulder high and Tom Ritchie found himself buried in a heap of bodies offering congratulations.

The volume of noise seemed to shake the ground to it's foundations, especially when the irrepressible Cooper appeared in the stand with his victorious team to lead the singing.

It matched the night in 1976 when City were promoted to the First Division. The achievement may not be comparable but the emotion felt by fans who 2 years ago feared they may no longer have a club to support created scenes to remember'.

[Nogbad the Bad]

1 hour ago, mozo said:

 

Not a dramatic game or end to the season then? But rather good obviously, given the near extinction.

You really need to learn up on your City history, it could hardly have been more dramatic, and one of the best days supporting City, ever.

[Rocking Red Cyril]

1 hour ago, Nogbad the Bad said:

You really need to learn up on your City history, it could hardly have been more dramatic, and one of the best days supporting City, ever.

Yes agree. Will always be my top day as a city supporter.

[mozo]

7 hours ago, Nogbad the Bad said:

You really need to learn up on your City history, it could hardly have been more dramatic, and one of the best days supporting City, ever.

Sorry dad  I used to read my City history books when I was a nipper, but definitely a blind spot for me on this promotion which is why I was keen to hear more. I enjoyed the memories in your post above 

We need to keep the stories of the past alive on OTIB

Edited February 15 by mozo

[TV Tom]

8 hours ago, Nogbad the Bad said:

No, after beating Swindon 1-0 in front of almost 13k we still had to beat Chester.

Trevor Morgan put us 1-0 up in front of 3k travelling fans but Zelem equalised in the 81st minute. Morgan then scored the winner on 87 minutes to clinch promotion, followed by a mass pitch invasion and Terry Cooper conducting the chanting fans from the stand.

An absolutely fantastic day after all we'd been through as a club and fans.

As the EP said the next day:

'All the financial problems, internal wrangles, and disappointing results of the past 5 seasons were forgotten as success starved fans mobbed their heroes at the final whistle. Alan Crawford lost his shirt in the battle to reach the players' tunnel, Glyn Riley was raised shoulder high and Tom Ritchie found himself buried in a heap of bodies offering congratulations.

The volume of noise seemed to shake the ground to it's foundations, especially when the irrepressible Cooper appeared in the stand with his victorious team to lead the singing.

It matched the night in 1976 when City were promoted to the First Division. The achievement may not be comparable but the emotion felt by fans who 2 years ago feared they may no longer have a club to support created scenes to remember'.

Left our wreck of a rented van at Chester and caught the train home instead, most of my all time favourite away games came in the 80's up to '90, some fantastic memories, that Torquay game was a strange night for so many reasons 

[TedsHeadIs Red]

Are we saying something surprisingly good happens to City if the year ends with a 4?

[Calculus]

Sorry to drag this back. What exactly was the Nolan sister Incident?

[1960maaan]

 

10 hours ago, mozo said:

Not a dramatic game or end to the season then?

Our last game of the season , needing a draw to guarantee promotion . Aldershot had 2 games left and could get 80 points with us on 79 pre Chester, with us having a much better goal difference. 
One of my favourite away days , 3,000 out of the 4,000 gate were City ( we averaged 7,300 ish that year at home ). 
From lads cutting the support on the fencing and just holding it up until the end , To Terry Cooper looking like he was going to fall out of the stand when some City lads lifted him on to their shoulders , just a brilliant day. Bedlam on the train that day.

9 hours ago, slartibartfast said:

Nearly got deaded that Torquay evening, just walked past a police riot van when it "mysteriously" got overturned, couple of seconds later, I would have been flattened !

I remember that well as my mate was the only one charged over it. He got a fine and had to report to the Police station on match days. They were so organised he was allowed to "sign in" on the mornings , so he still came to away games with us 
Unusually lively outside the ground that night.

 

Edited February 15 by 1960maaan

[mozo]

58 minutes ago, 1960maaan said:

 

Our last game of the season , needing a draw to guarantee promotion . Aldershot had 2 games left and could get 80 points with us on 79 pre Chester, with us having a much better goal difference. 
One of my favourite away days , 3,000 out of the 4,000 gate were City ( we averaged 7,300 ish that year at home ). 
From lads cutting the support on the fencing and just holding it up until the end , To Terry Cooper looking like he was going to fall out of the stand when some City lads lifted him on to their shoulders , just a brilliant day. Bedlam on the train that day.

I remember that well as my mate was the only one charged over it. He got a fine and had to report to the Police station on match days. They were so organised he was allowed to "sign in" on the mornings , so he still came to away games with us 
Unusually lively outside the ground that night.

 

Love that, thanks

[22A]

12 hours ago, mozo said:

I don't know about the Chester game, what happened?

1982 City dropped to Div 4; the final game was home to Chester, the only team beneath them. The attendance was 3,200, the 200 were travelling Chester fans. Two years later in 1984; 

An off pitch row erupted when City's adverts proclaimed them to be Bristol's top club. The directors at Eastville pointed out Rovers were in a higher division. The riposte from Ashton Gate was that the word was club not team! The top scorer that season was Alan Crawford who averaged a goal every two games and passed the twenty goal mark. City had to send some of their own stewards to Chester on the final day of the season to help them cope with the massive influx of visiting supporters. They saw City promoted after a 2-1 win. Not only was the team back in the third division, but the bank account was in the black!

[Davefevs]

12 hours ago, Nogbad the Bad said:

Alan Crawford lost his shirt in the battle to reach the players' tunnel

Didn’t I read somewhere that the person who nicked the shirt offered it back to club?

[transfer reader]

So years ending in a 4.

1894- founded.

1904- our reserves enter the western league an win div 2 as champions. (Initially put div 1 because was thinking of top div as western prem, but don't think that was the term then)

1914- nothing

1924- relegated from 2nd tier

1934- Welsh cup winners

1944- football suspended

1954- nothing

1964- nothing

1974- Leeds win

1984- Div 4 promotion

1994- Liverpool win

2004- lost playoff final

2014- nothing

2024?

 

Edited February 15 by transfer reader

[Mike Hunt-Hertz]

14 hours ago, Silvio Dante said:

I think the answer is in his post, we clinched promotion. After the fall of the prior years to start the climb back had to have been emotional as hell (I’d started watching that season but can’t really claim to have been as invested at that point as those who saw the club nearly die then TC take the team forward with kids, students, part timers and rejects)

I remember the coach back, and loads of bemused big club fans, seeing us hooning around like dogs with three tally whackers.

Spoilt bastards.

[mozo]

2 hours ago, 22A said:

1982 City dropped to Div 4; the final game was home to Chester, the only team beneath them. The attendance was 3,200, the 200 were travelling Chester fans. Two years later in 1984; 

An off pitch row erupted when City's adverts proclaimed them to be Bristol's top club. The directors at Eastville pointed out Rovers were in a higher division. The riposte from Ashton Gate was that the word was club not team! The top scorer that season was Alan Crawford who averaged a goal every two games and passed the twenty goal mark. City had to send some of their own stewards to Chester on the final day of the season to help them cope with the massive influx of visiting supporters. They saw City promoted after a 2-1 win. Not only was the team back in the third division, but the bank account was in the black!

I bet the first derby game back in Div 3 was a spicy one then!

Edited February 15 by mozo

[Natchfever]

15 hours ago, Bristol Oil Services said:

What happened 40 years ago? What to commemorate from 1984? Well, 40 years ago this month we roughed up one fifth of the Nolans on a Saturday night down Torquay. Saturday night was fer fighting back then, and boy did we take it to just the one of the Nolans.

Let's have a shirt for that one. Lest we forget.

Love it.

A few dont seem to get the point though..

[Mike Hunt-Hertz]

18 minutes ago, mozo said:

I bet the first derby game back in Div 3 was a spicy one then!

3-0 win, and it was on MOTD.