The Big Match Revisited 1981

  

The Big Match Revisited 17 October 1971

   

The Big Match Revisited 1980

  

FA Cup 1981 1982 Chelsea Liverpool

Division One 1985 1986 Everton Southampton

Division One 1985 1986 Chelsea Liverpool Decisive

3 Mai 1986
Stamford Bridge

 As the crowds gathered at Anfield on a bright Saturday afternoon in mid-August 1985, it was not to herald a new season of football but rather to mourn the past season for Liverpool. It was a mere three months since the tragedy of Heysel and had been the most traumatic period to date for the club. An intense debate had swept through Parliament and the media about the problems of football violence while the Merseyside police were conducting a thorough investigation into the riot. Culprits were found and dossiers handed over to the Belgian authorities. In Belgium itself, the Government coming under increasing criticism, had been forced to resign and call a general election. Politicians on Merseyside and in Turin crossed the channel to help heal the wounds and pay their respects but the memories of those who had suffered or lost innocent friends and relations could never be erased. Not surprisingly, the European Football Association took the sternest action possible, banning English clubs from playing in Europe indefinitely and imposed a further ban of three years on Liverpool.

Division One 1983 1984 Season Review

 Liverpool became only the third club in the history of the League, after Huddersfield in the twenties and Arsenal in the thirties, to achieve a hat-trick of Championships when they drew 0-0 at Notts County on 12 May. Their latest triumph emphasizes that careful planning and continuity of management are essential requirements for consistent success in modern League soccer. While other clubs have changed managers with distasteful and expensive frequency, Liverpool have quietly kept matters in the family, promoting Bob Paisley when Bill Shankly retired and, 12 months ago, appointing Joe Fagan to maintain that line of succession. And Mr Pagan has quietly gone aboul his job, loo, with two major honours under his belt already and The European Cup final coining up at the end of the month.Typical of the way the club works is the purchase of men such as John Wark, shrewdly signed from Ipswich a couple of months ago when the Anfield tnidfield unit was beginning to show occasional signs of faltering. Wark, who has missed only a handful of games through injury over the last 10 years and rarely turns in a bad performance, provided the extra touch needed during the tiring closing weeks. Players like him — and Lee, Hansen, Neal and Kennedy — provide essential support for the more gifted football of Souiiess, Lawrenson. Dalglish, Rush and Whelan. For anyone who has lost count, this was Liverpool's 15th Championship.

Division Two Playoffs 1988 1989 PlayOffs Final Blackburn Rovers Crystal Palace

Match Aller
31 mai 1989

Ewood Park

 Crystal Palace strode triumphantly into Division One amid amazing scenes when Ian Wright scored a stunning winner three minutes from the end of time in the second leg of their promotion play-off at Selhurst Park. Wright's carefully placed header capped a magnificent performance from Steve Coppell's team as they clawed back Blackburn's two-goal advantage from the first leg. In a contest that could not be bettered as a sporting spectacle, Palace remained true to their season-long philosophy and gambled on attack. It was daring, painfully exciting, but above all successful. In the frenzied atmosphere. Palace benefited from an early break, when the prolific Wright scrambled home his first goal after Pardew's cross had caused havoc. Only the heroics of central defender Hendry kept Blackburn from disintegrating, but they stayed ahead on aggregate until just after the interval. Atkins needlessly brought down McGoldrick, anil Madden converted the penalty to set up the eventual dramatic finish.

Division Two 1983 1984 Newcastle Brighton

42e journee
12 mai 1984
St. James Park

  One of only four Newcastle players ever to return to the club as manager, Kevin Keegan occupied a prime place in the affections of all Newcastle supporters in two dramatically successful playing years in the stripes from 1982 to 1984. Keegan galvanised the slumbering club and left with United a First Division side, but then was called on to return as manager after eight years out of the game to guide United away from the bottom of the Second Division and into the newly-formed Premier League.

Division Two 1988 1989 Chelsea Barnsley

38e journee

1 avril 1989
Stamford Bridge

  Chelsea is back and will, once again, be a power in English football. It seems that everybody has learnt lessons from the past year. Ken Bates, the players and the supporters rejoice in promotion and also pray that they do not suffer the indignity of relegation again. Quite a few things have happened on the Chelsea scene. First there is the news about the granting of planning permission for the Stamford Bridge development. But just as important has been the clubs playing record since then, because without the team being in the First Division any redevelopment might be hampered by lack of investment from supporters as well as other sources. Chelsea is in line for a new record on away goals scored, which stands on 41, most wins in a season stands at 25, most points in a season stands at 88, most goals in a season stands at 98, and hopefully they will win the Second Division Championship as they have never won any senior trophy twice, and finally is that Dave Beasant only has to play at West Bromwich Albion to have played at every ground in the Football League.

Division Two 1986 1987 Manchester City Huddersfield

7 Novembre 1987
Maine Road

 Manager Mel Machin spent just over two years in charge at Maine Road but had the privilege to preside over two games that will linger long in the fans' memories. This one was City's biggest win of the century; the other was, of, course, the famous '5-1' victory over Manchester United in September 1989. Wearing a hideous black and yellow square kit (possibly the worst ever seen at Maine Road) Huddersfield, bottom of the table, arrived for the game with new manager Malcolm Macdonald just three weeks into the job. Despite their lowly league position, Huddersfield could have taken the lead twice in the opening ten minutes. City's Neil McNab, at his most influential that day, broke the deadlock in the 12th minute and well and truly opened the floodgates. 

Division Two 1983 1984 8 Goals Thriller Notts County Watford

11 Fevrier 1984
Meadow Lane Nottingham

 Following the 5-2 home defeat to Leicester, Notts had earned a creditable 1-1 draw at Arsenal and made it through to the 5th round of the FA Cup with a 2-1 win at Huddersfield Town, but we then crashed 4-1 at Everton. Wearing sponsored shirts for the first time ever in this match v. Watford, County took the lead when Harkouk headed in McCulloch's cross from the right. John Terry then shoved Christie out of the way in the area as he tried to get on the end of a long ball, the ref gave Notts a penalty which Christie converted for 2-0. A fluke goal allowed Watford back into the match when a free-kick found its' way to Kenny Jackett, McDonagh pushed his effort away but it ricocheted off David Hunt and into the net, 2-1. A cross from the left led to Watford's equaliser, the ball found its' way to Callaghan on the right who guided a low shot into the far side of the net for 2-2. 

Division One 1989 1990 7 Goals Thriller Chelsea Wimbledon

Division One 1984 1985 Newcastle Liverpool

 

Leeds United 1986 1987 Season Review

FA Cup 1980 1981 Final Replay Tottenham Manchester City

14 Mai 1981

Wembley 

The South American pair Ardiles and Ricardo Villa, Ardiles especially, added strength and guile to a team built around the languid talents of Glenn Hoddle. With a natural finisher in Scots international Steve Archibald. only a creaky back four let them down. But fortune srniled on them. QPR. Hull, Coventry and Exeter were ail despatched at White Hart Une. Only Wolves barred their way.After an enteruining 2-2 draw. Tottenham enjoyed the distinct and unfair advantage of a replay at Highbury, Urged on by local support packing three sides of the ground, two frotn Gardi Crooks and a rocket from Ricky Villa sent Spurs' fans streaming from NS wilh an unac-customed warm glow.

Charity Shield 1983 1984 Everton Liverpool

FA Cup 1984 1985 Everton Manchester United

Finale

18 Mai 1985
Wembley Stadium London

United wrecked Liverpool's hopes of a League, FA Cup and European treble with their win at Wembley in 1977. They repeated this victory when they met Merseyside's other famous team - the blues of Everton. It may seem strange to anyone under 20 years of age but Everton were the dominant team in England during the mid Eighties. In 1985 the trophy Room at Goodison Park was already home to the Canon League Trophy and the European Cup-winners Cup and Everton looked set to achieve something that no other club had done before win the League and Cup Double and a European prize in the same season. United were unfancied by many having lost to Everton 5-0 in the league earlier that season at Goodison. 

Sherpa Von Trophy 1987 1988 Final Burnley Wolverhampton

FA Cup 1984 1985 Liverpool Manchester United 1st & Replay

The competition was won by Manchester United, who defeated Everton 1–0 at Wembley, thus denying Everton the double on top of the European Cup Winners' Cup that Everton had already won. The final was also notable for seeing the first sending off, with Kevin Moran obtaining the unwanted distinction.