This blog is a purely selfish exercise in recording random stuff that comes to mind. My daughters had been pestering me to start a blog (suggesting I do one on beer!) so I eventually got round to creating one – the only problem being that one week later this ‘blog’ was still blank. What the hell do I write?! So I thought – why don’t I reflect on something that interests (or interested) me, or on some place or some person, and see where it goes. Then I could, perhaps, not only look back on anything that I want to, but also, sort of, record things, places and people that I have crossed paths with in my life. And this recording could be completely random. And then I thought that in doing so I could also look up stuff on the internet that interests me – a favourite pastime – and add links to random things! Yay! And then I could put links in that nobody but me would look at!
So here we go:
Random thought number one: Football!
First football match: Chelsea versus Sheffield Wednesday – 25th March, 1970.
This floodlit game at Stamford Bridge was truly memorable and turned me into a Chelsea fan. It was the early stages of the brilliant and glamorous team put together by Dave Sexton and the team that went on to win the FA Cup at the end of this 1969/70 season (more of that later).
Or the official line: http://www.chelseafc.com/page/History
Biggin Hill, Kent circa 1969!:
It was another couple of years until I went to my next Chelsea game so this game really did stand out. It might sound a tad corny, but in my memory it really was a magical 90 minutes.
Here’s some general stuff on Chelsea’s 69/70 campaign:
Here’s some general stuff on Chelsea’s 69/70 campaign:
My Dad & I sat in the West Stand. A floodlit game (there’s something romantic about floodlit games!). An Osgood penalty. Ron ‘chopper’ Harris pulling up with a hamstring injury.
The magisterial Charlie Cooke dribbling past everyone. The Scot Tommy Hughes deputising for Peter ‘The Cat’ Bonetti. The brilliance of Peter ‘The King of Stamford Bridge’ Osgood. Hollins, Houseman, Webb, McCreadie, Dempsey – legends all.
The niftiness of the red-haired Wednesday player Tommy Craig. The ridiculous throw-ins from Ian Hutchinson – arms spinning round like a windmill. Still, to this day, one of the best goals I’ve ever witnessed - Alan Hudson picking the ball up in his own half, taking it past at least five Wednesday players before rounding the keeper (Springett?) and tapping the ball into the back of the net. Such a shame there were no cameras.
Chelsea had a West London glitzy, flamboyant image, and ’playboy’ players such as Osgood & Hudson revelled in it, as well as having oh-so 70s-looking barnets. Long sideburns, long hair, some tentative early mullets. Word association football. The rhyming slang term barnet (for hair) comes from Barnet Fair, a well known horse fair in years past, dating back to Elizabethan times. Barnet is in the London Borough of Barnet, North London and is short for High Barnet or Chipping Barnet. The word Chipping denotes the presence of a market. Barnet FC, The Bees, who play at Underhill, joined Division 4 in 1991and in 1994 drew 0-0 with Chelsea in the FA Cup third round. They returned to The Conference (the fifth Division if you like) in 2001, and then returned to the now-League Two (Division 4) in 2005.
The term sideburns comes from U.S. Civil War General Burnside , a man known for his unusual facial hairstyle that had, er, sideburns.
Some cracking highlights from a 1969 Chelsea versus Arsenal match from ‘The Big Match’:
Peter Osgood tribute - mainly becuase it starts with that diving header against Leeds in the 1970 Cup Final! Sorry about the music but it is Born Is The King Of Stamford Bridge...
English First Division 1969/1970
Historical league standings at 25th March 1970 – in the days of two points for a win and goal average (goals scored ÷ no. of games) instead of goal difference. Out of these 22 teams, 12 are now in the Premiership (the First Division). 8 are in the Championship (the old Division 2). One- Sheffield Wednesday – is in League One (the old Division 3).
Home
|
Away
|
Overall
| |||||||||||||||||
#
|
Team
|
Pl
|
W
|
D
|
L
|
F
|
A
|
W
|
D
|
L
|
F
|
A
|
W
|
D
|
L
|
F
|
A
|
Pts
|
GA
|
1
|
37
|
15
|
3
|
1
|
39
|
17
|
10
|
4
|
4
|
24
|
15
|
25
|
7
|
5
|
63
|
32
|
57
|
1.97
| |
2
|
36
|
14
|
4
|
0
|
46
|
12
|
6
|
10
|
2
|
29
|
21
|
20
|
14
|
2
|
75
|
33
|
54
|
2.27
| |
3
|
36
|
11
|
7
|
1
|
33
|
17
|
7
|
6
|
4
|
28
|
20
|
18
|
13
|
5
|
61
|
37
|
49
|
1.65
| |
4
|
37
|
13
|
3
|
3
|
39
|
13
|
6
|
4
|
8
|
16
|
21
|
19
|
7
|
11
|
55
|
34
|
45
|
1.62
| |
5
|
37
|
9
|
7
|
4
|
31
|
20
|
8
|
4
|
5
|
28
|
19
|
17
|
11
|
9
|
59
|
39
|
45
|
1.51
| |
6
|
37
|
12
|
2
|
4
|
33
|
14
|
3
|
9
|
7
|
12
|
16
|
15
|
11
|
11
|
45
|
30
|
41
|
1.50
| |
7
|
35
|
8
|
5
|
5
|
30
|
24
|
8
|
4
|
5
|
17
|
14
|
16
|
9
|
10
|
47
|
38
|
41
|
1.24
| |
8
|
37
|
8
|
8
|
3
|
30
|
21
|
4
|
7
|
7
|
23
|
27
|
12
|
15
|
10
|
53
|
48
|
39
|
1.10
| |
9
|
35
|
7
|
7
|
3
|
26
|
22
|
5
|
8
|
5
|
25
|
26
|
12
|
15
|
8
|
51
|
48
|
39
|
1.06
| |
10
|
36
|
8
|
7
|
2
|
25
|
17
|
4
|
7
|
8
|
21
|
28
|
12
|
14
|
10
|
46
|
45
|
38
|
1.02
| |
11
|
37
|
5
|
9
|
4
|
23
|
20
|
5
|
8
|
6
|
21
|
23
|
10
|
17
|
10
|
44
|
43
|
37
|
1.02
| |
12
|
35
|
8
|
6
|
5
|
25
|
20
|
5
|
4
|
7
|
23
|
22
|
13
|
10
|
12
|
48
|
42
|
36
|
1.14
| |
13
|
36
|
7
|
8
|
2
|
23
|
20
|
2
|
9
|
8
|
21
|
35
|
9
|
17
|
10
|
44
|
55
|
35
|
0.80
| |
14
|
36
|
8
|
2
|
8
|
20
|
19
|
5
|
6
|
7
|
25
|
32
|
13
|
8
|
15
|
45
|
51
|
34
|
0.88
| |
15
|
37
|
6
|
6
|
7
|
29
|
27
|
4
|
7
|
7
|
20
|
29
|
10
|
13
|
14
|
49
|
56
|
33
|
0.88
| |
16
|
36
|
8
|
5
|
5
|
31
|
23
|
4
|
3
|
11
|
17
|
29
|
12
|
8
|
16
|
48
|
52
|
32
|
0.92
| |
17
|
38
|
6
|
7
|
5
|
22
|
19
|
4
|
4
|
12
|
22
|
37
|
10
|
11
|
17
|
44
|
56
|
31
|
0.79
| |
18
|
37
|
3
|
10
|
6
|
23
|
26
|
2
|
5
|
11
|
19
|
33
|
5
|
15
|
17
|
42
|
59
|
25
|
0.71
| |
19
|
37
|
6
|
5
|
7
|
22
|
23
|
2
|
3
|
14
|
14
|
40
|
8
|
8
|
21
|
36
|
63
|
24
|
0.57
| |
20
|
37
|
6
|
5
|
7
|
16
|
17
|
1
|
5
|
13
|
16
|
41
|
7
|
10
|
20
|
32
|
58
|
24
|
0.55
| |
21
|
38
|
4
|
5
|
10
|
18
|
35
|
1
|
9
|
9
|
14
|
27
|
5
|
14
|
19
|
32
|
62
|
24
|
0.52
| |
22
|
37
|
4
|
8
|
5
|
15
|
21
|
1
|
3
|
16
|
12
|
44
|
5
|
11
|
21
|
27
|
65
|
21
|
0.42
| |
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