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Photos of The Valley

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  • Pedro45 said:

    Defo Shrewsbury...

    I hate to disagree, but that pitch doesn't strike me as how fresh it would look at the 80th minute of a very wet day in Feb, certainly not in those days when pitches from Nov onwards were not so good.

    Another early season candidate I'd overlooked was actually the first game of the season on 20 Aug 74 against Peterboro in the League Cup (4-0 Curtis pen 77 mins) att 5,911 but then again by the time the pen was struck that would have been around 9 o'clock .... not likely that on a wet evening the light would be so good.

    Not so fast! - We don't know for sure that the penalty was scored. I'm surprised that you don't recognise the ref, GHF! I have left a message on the Swindon fans' forum asking for confirmation and will let you know of any responses....

  • Pedro45 said:

    Defo Shrewsbury...

    I was at the Shrewsbury game.

  • RedChaser said:

    That terracing behind the goal Callum used to go back much higher than that and I believe was sold off to enable the residential development (block of flats) in the 1984/5 photo at the top of the thread to be built. On the player front Shipperley is the one bending over front right foreground and behind him on the other side of the 'D' is Horsfield I reckon. Looks like Bowman and next to him Colin Powell? The penalty taker could be Hales.
    Edit: Forgot to mention the raised grass area and goalposts behind the corner flag in the background which was a waste area, as far back as I can remember in the early sixties, used for shooting / penalty practice in training.

    East Terrace took 45k
  • edited December 2013
    It is deffo not Shrewsbury. It was a Sunday game and was bright sunshine. I remember it as it was our first ever Sunday game.

    Also, it was not Hereford as they played in white shirts & black shorts.

    Oldham was an evening game. I remember that as well, as they were top & we thrashed them.

    It looks to me like "killer" on the outside of the "d" standing up.

    I thought Swindon before reading other comments above. 3-3 draw Powell, Curtis pen, Powell.

    http://www.statto.com/football/teams/charlton-athletic/1973-1974


  • Pedro45 said:

    Defo Shrewsbury...

    I hate to disagree, but that pitch doesn't strike me as how fresh it would look at the 80th minute of a very wet day in Feb, certainly not in those days when pitches from Nov onwards were not so good.

    Another early season candidate I'd overlooked was actually the first game of the season on 20 Aug 74 against Peterboro in the League Cup (4-0 Curtis pen 77 mins) att 5,911 but then again by the time the pen was struck that would have been around 9 o'clock .... not likely that on a wet evening the light would be so good.

    Not so fast! - We don't know for sure that the penalty was scored. I'm surprised that you don't recognise the ref, GHF! I have left a message on the Swindon fans' forum asking for confirmation and will let you know of any responses....

    VF - I stand to be corrected, as always, but I don't think the great Bob Curtis ever missed a penalty.

    Yes, as with the Rotherham picture a couple of months ago the input from the opposition's fans will be interesting. And I'm afraid the ref on this occasion was not as memorable as Mr JR Osborne (Ipswich, Suffolk) - thank goodness.
  • Top top post GHF. Would defo been at this game and agree with all Covered End says. That is Hales in the D.

    That grass verge by the old goalposts, how many people slipped over there:)
  • If Curtis did miss a penalty it was certainly after many years. He 100% didn't miss that season.
  • No, but I was on the covered end fence behind the goal and he reduced my sister to tears when the Preston keeper saved his penalty in the promotion winning last game of the season in May '75! He was a legend though, I heard he was serving beer in the Watermans Arms within 15 mins of that game finishing.
  • No, but I was on the covered end fence behind the goal and he reduced my sister to tears when the Preston keeper saved his penalty in the promotion winning last game of the season in May '75! He was a legend though, I heard he was serving beer in the Watermans Arms within 15 mins of that game finishing.

    In which case I was standing very close to you, as I was too !
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  • edited December 2013
    A couple more old ones.
  • Good work by all those who identified Swindon - several fans on their forum confirm that they wore an away kit of all-blue at that time. Reg Smeeton, subtitled 'The Walking Encyclopaedia', writes: "You can see Tommy Jenkins (no. 11) in semi-teapot mode, and Peter Eastoe (no. 9). To me it looks like John Trollope edging into the area, Frank Burrows and the Prof (Colin Prophett) are lurking, and Terry Hubbard is the smaller figure poised to spring into action." League Division 3; 21 September 1974; Charlton 3, Swindon 3; Powell 2, Curtis, pen; att. 4,527.

    That's another brilliant and superb post, GHF. Your atmospheric evocations of the old Valley strike a particular chord at this time of an aborted takeover and fears of a possible move. I've been looking back at the wildly fluctuating home attendances around the time of that Swindon game; the final match of the previous season, against Aldershot, drew only 3,245 (won 2-0), yet just eight months later we attracted 26,104 for the game against Palace (won 1-0).

    As we maintain a healthy average gate of around 15,000, it's worth remembering some of the pitiful crowds of the not-so-distant past. In 1985-86, the season we were promoted to the top tier after an absence of 29 years, only 3,059 turned out for our game against Carlisle. And even in the top division the following year, Norwich, Forest, Southampton and Villa each attracted crowds of less than 6,000.

    So there's no lack of support as we contemplate the very real prospect of third-tier football at The Valley once again. Many of our players in the Third Division in 1974 still shine as Charlton legends: Flanagan and Hales, Bob Curtis, Phil Warman, King Arthur, Keith Peacock and Paddy Powell. In 40 years' time will we look back on our current squad of players with the same affection and admiration? Somehow, I don't think so.
  • Good work by all those who identified Swindon - several fans on their forum confirm that they wore an away kit of all-blue at that time. Reg Smeeton, subtitled 'The Walking Encyclopaedia', writes: "You can see Tommy Jenkins (no. 11) in semi-teapot mode, and Peter Eastoe (no. 9). To me it looks like John Trollope edging into the area, Frank Burrows and the Prof (Colin Prophett) are lurking, and Terry Hubbard is the smaller figure poised to spring into action." League Division 3; 21 September 1974; Charlton 3, Swindon 3; Powell 2, Curtis, pen; att. 4,527.

    That's another brilliant and superb post, GHF. Your atmospheric evocations of the old Valley strike a particular chord at this time of an aborted takeover and fears of a possible move. I've been looking back at the wildly fluctuating home attendances around the time of that Swindon game; the final match of the previous season, against Aldershot, drew only 3,245 (won 2-0), yet just eight months later we attracted 26,104 for the game against Palace (won 1-0).

    As we maintain a healthy average gate of around 15,000, it's worth remembering some of the pitiful crowds of the not-so-distant past. In 1985-86, the season we were promoted to the top tier after an absence of 29 years, only 3,059 turned out for our game against Carlisle. And even in the top division the following year, Norwich, Forest, Southampton and Villa each attracted crowds of less than 6,000.

    So there's no lack of support as we contemplate the very real prospect of third-tier football at The Valley once again. Many of our players in the Third Division in 1974 still shine as Charlton legends: Flanagan and Hales, Bob Curtis, Phil Warman, King Arthur, Keith Peacock and Paddy Powell. In 40 years' time will we look back on our current squad of players with the same affection and admiration? Somehow, I don't think so.

    I won't, I'll be pushing up daisies :-(
  • I absolutely love that picture callumcafc, think I'll make it my desktop background!
    Used to stand just along to the right and down a bit.
    Wow! All the memories are flooding back.
  • I absolutely love that picture callumcafc, think I'll make it my desktop background!
    Used to stand just along to the right and down a bit.
    Wow! All the memories are flooding back.

    Yeah, it's a great picture: I love the sparse loyal crowd under brollies, the sections of terracing at different levels, the rain-swept roofs in the background. And great black & white photos from E-cafc, too; I think I've seen the one of the muddy pitch published recently, but can't remember the details. Date? Opposition? Players?

  • E-cafc said:

    More oldies!

    E-cafc great photos in the bottom RH photo we seem to be playing WBA or Huddersfield I can clearly identify Jock Campbell & Frank Lock .

  • As we maintain a healthy average gate of around 15,000, it's worth remembering some of the pitiful crowds of the not-so-distant past. In 1985-86, the season we were promoted to the top tier after an absence of 29 years, only 3,059 turned out for our game against Carlisle. And even in the top division the following year, Norwich, Forest, Southampton and Villa each attracted crowds of less than 6,000.

    To be fair though, those games you mention weren't at The Valley. If they had been the crowd would have been a lot higher. Maybe not massivley so, but definitely higher.
  • You're all assuming the penalty was scored? I know Bob didn't miss that many but.......
  • You're all assuming the penalty was scored? I know Bob didn't miss that many but.......

    See Bolloxbolder's memory of Bob's penalty miss reducing his sister to tears, above.

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  • You're all assuming the penalty was scored? I know Bob didn't miss that many but.......

    Looks like a save to me - look at where the keeper is. Great photo; happy memories.
  • kafka said:

    You're all assuming the penalty was scored? I know Bob didn't miss that many but.......

    Looks like a save to me - look at where the keeper is. Great photo; happy memories.
    According to the stats supplied by GHF above, Bob Curtis scored from a penalty in the 50th minute of that game against Swindon.

  • My memory is that Curtis had never missed a pen until that one v Preston.
  • edited March 2014
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  • BDL said:

    I was on a pleasure flight from Biggin Hill, my aim was take take a pic of my house but the Pilot went the wrong side of Shooters Hill and we ended up circling over the Valley.

    Found it in a shoebox in the loft, so I thought I'd share it.

    I love the idea of a photo archive, I'd be very willing to get involved Ken. I have some photos of the East stand being constructed somewhere.

    I have quite a few of the East being built as well,plus many of the ground in disarray when we played at palace.

    Also have quite a few of the Valley before selhurst,which I'm presuming were taken during a pre-season,looks nice
  • What a lovely looking surface :-)
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