It was thirty years ago today...

aliwibble

that we got knocked out of the FA Cup by a puddle (see the angle at 2m50 to see what I mean)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5W0h2SZcx8

I was reminded of this match by @jimmymelrose in the discussion following one of the recent West Brom games, and following a bit of flukey googling have managed to find the highlights on youtube. The picture quality is not the greatest, but I'm not sure how much of that is down to it being converted from VHS, and how much is down to the rain. We're still in the short shorts era, a significant proportion of the ground still has terracing and perimeter fences, and our end (behind the right hand goal) appears to be fairly sparsely populated, although I can't remember whether it was just that we were all sheltering further back to keep out of the rain, and even allowing for the shocking state of the surface there's no way that some of the tackles flying in would have gone unpunished under today's interpretation of the rules. I wasn't at the Doncaster match that got abandoned at half time a few years ago; for those of you that were, how would you say the pitch compared?

ETA: I still can't tell from the highlights why we were chanting "the referee's a wanker" as previously mentioned in conversation about this match.

oohaahmortimer

Colin Walsh missed a penalty and I blame the Charlton fans who decided to take a spot up behind the goal to try and get on MOTD having spent most of the game huddled up the back under the roof.

aliwibble

It was saved Oohaah! We also hit the woodwork twice. Just wasn't our day I think.

Ormiston_Addick

The funniest part of this game was a very porky Andy Jones getting subbed for Carlo and approaching the bench extremely pissed off and screaming at a nonplussed Lennie, "What the fuck's happening?"

BlackfenLen

Remember going to that game and apart from getting completely soaked my most vivid memory was seeing 2 dead cats amongst the rubble, which seemed to make up most of the streets around the Hawthorns, as we walked up from the train station!. Never seen a dead cat before or since. That and 4 Charlton fans getting nicked for having a leak against a wall at West Bromwich station.

WhenIwasLittleBoy

Still fucking soaked from that day.

oohaahmortimer

aliwibble said:

It was saved Oohaah! We also hit the woodwork twice. Just wasn't our day I think.

Yeah his shot was shit and saved he didn’t score cos of the wallys who turned up behind the goal ...
were you one of them ! 

HardyAddick

Was there. The pitch was unplayable!

PragueAddick

I was there for that travesty and somewhere not far from where those cameras were. We were not alone as Charlton fans either. Can't remember why, perhaps we chose seats. Epic shite awayday. 

Plenty of reminders why we thought Paul Williams was a player, though.

SporadicAddick

I think the turnout was half decent for the time, but we were huddled at the back under the roof. Very wet, but not quite Yeovil away..

Chris_from_Sidcup

State of that pitch! 

SporadicAddick

Just looked up Tony Ford (the puddle scorer), one of only three outfield players to have made over 1,000 appearances, alongside the one and only Scott McGleish, who has had a remarkably long career (albeit the last couple of hundred games have been non league).  

Elthamaddick

I was there, how on earth did that game finish on that pitch

DaveMehmet

PragueAddick said:

I was there for that travesty and somewhere not far from where those cameras were. We were not alone as Charlton fans either. Can't remember why, perhaps we chose seats. Epic shite awayday. 

Plenty of reminders why we thought Paul Williams was a player, though.

I was in the seats for this too. We got a lift back to the station in a police van. We’d got held up getting out for some reason and asked a copper the way to the station when we got out. He said they were just going there, jump in.

Addictedoldgit

Was at the game cos my cousin lived nearby.
That pitch would without a doubt be deemed unplayable nowadays, and abandoned at half time imo.

Overall i think that W Brom pitch was in a much worse state than the Valley pitch v Doncaster.

bigman backstick

It just seemed to sum our luck up back then. I also remember it for as we were waiting to get out I am sure there was a tannoy announcement telling a Charlton fan to get home as quickly as possible as their wife had gone into labour!

Henry Irving

What a miserable away day that was.

Still say the puddle was off side

Lordflashheart

I was there - video a reminder of what a shit ground The Hawthorns used to be - even for those times, I still can’t believe the game went ahead given the state of the pitch

Poor old Andy Jones - couldn’t make the step up to higher level - I used to feel sorry for him - he did try

Simonsen

The sparse section at the front was due to it absolutely pissing down. 

Our away support was pretty low back then but that day (being the FA Cup) we probably had about 1500 there. 

I can still see that early tip over from Mike Salmon on his Charlton debut. Great save. 

We were having a really hard season but had got past Bradford with a really good 3-0 away replay win, so were quite confident. It was the first time we'd played West Brom in my time and it turned out to be quite a dramatic game. It was absolutely devastating to lose like that though. 

Simonsen

SporadicAddick said:

Just looked up Tony Ford (the puddle scorer), one of only three outfield players to have made over 1,000 appearances, alongside the one and only Scott McGleish, who has had a remarkably long career (albeit the last couple of hundred games have been non league).  

Saw Scott McGleish turn out for Hendon a couple of times this season. Think he's 45. He's back playing for Edgware Town now. 

Tony Ford played for years at Grimsby. Played about 2/3 of his career as a winger and then moved to right-back. Tremendous professional. 

Simonsen

Addictedoldgit said:

Was at the game cos my cousin lived nearby.
That pitch would without a doubt be deemed unplayable nowadays, and abandoned at half time imo.

Overall i think that W Brom pitch was in a much worse state than the Valley pitch v Doncaster.

The game wouldn't have started these days. But I'm glad it was played. Despite losing and feeling gutted, it was a bit of a classic. 

Weegie Addick

I was there.

Ferryman

Was the same week we also lost 8-2 to Greenwich Council - the rest is history!

Algarveaddick

Remember it well. 

SX_Addick

I was there. Those highlights make it look a more exciting game than I remember. Think we had to wait ages for the train back on a platform with no cover. 

PragueAddick

Was there another game at West Brom in that era which had a similarly waterlogged pitch? A league game, I guess, if indeed my memory is correct.

I think there was also a game at Sellout, I think against the Nigels themselves, when they scored because the ball got stuck in the mud.

Simonsen

PragueAddick said:

Was there another game at West Brom in that era which had a similarly waterlogged pitch? A league game, I guess, if indeed my memory is correct.

I think there was also a game at Sellout, I think against the Nigels themselves, when they scored because the ball got stuck in the mud.

Don't recall another similar West Brom game.

The Palace one was Boxing Day 1984. Lost 1-2 and the goal was scored by Kevin Mabbutt (against Steve Gritt!). Long ball over the top which stopped dead and Mabbutt didn't break stride as he lashed it into the bottom corner. Attendance...9,500. 

PragueAddick

Simonsen said:

PragueAddick said:

Was there another game at West Brom in that era which had a similarly waterlogged pitch? A league game, I guess, if indeed my memory is correct.

I think there was also a game at Sellout, I think against the Nigels themselves, when they scored because the ball got stuck in the mud.

Don't recall another similar West Brom game.

The Palace one was Boxing Day 1984. Lost 1-2 and the goal was scored by Kevin Mabbutt (against Steve Gritt!). Long ball over the top which stopped dead and Mabbutt didn't break stride as he lashed it into the bottom corner. Attendance...9,500. 

Blimey, top memory there. That will be the one. I recalled a really popular Charlton player was done by the mud, but couldn't remember who. Gritty, of course ....

Simonsen

PragueAddick said:

Simonsen said:

PragueAddick said:

Was there another game at West Brom in that era which had a similarly waterlogged pitch? A league game, I guess, if indeed my memory is correct.

I think there was also a game at Sellout, I think against the Nigels themselves, when they scored because the ball got stuck in the mud.

Don't recall another similar West Brom game.

The Palace one was Boxing Day 1984. Lost 1-2 and the goal was scored by Kevin Mabbutt (against Steve Gritt!). Long ball over the top which stopped dead and Mabbutt didn't break stride as he lashed it into the bottom corner. Attendance...9,500. 

Blimey, top memory there. That will be the one. I recalled a really popular Charlton player was done by the mud, but couldn't remember who. Gritty, of course ....

It was Gritt's ball as he came out but the ball stopped dead about 20 yards out. 

Peter Nicholas scored the first with a really good free-kick into the top corner. Dave Madden got one back with about 5 left, with a hugely deflected shot. 

There was no public transport (no tube or British Rail), so my Dad gave me a lift all the way from Uxbridge. He sat in the car while the game was on! He did the same away to Norwich on Boxing Day the following year! 

Simonsen

Lordflashheart said:

I was there - video a reminder of what a shit ground The Hawthorns used to be - even for those times, I still can’t believe the game went ahead given the state of the pitch

Poor old Andy Jones - couldn’t make the step up to higher level - I used to feel sorry for him - he did try

And yet his record was not the worst; 

1st Division; 59 apps 15 goals

Cup; 13 apps 5 goals 

I guess the real problem was the big price-tag £325,000 

PragueAddick

Simonsen said:

PragueAddick said:

Simonsen said:

PragueAddick said:

Was there another game at West Brom in that era which had a similarly waterlogged pitch? A league game, I guess, if indeed my memory is correct.

I think there was also a game at Sellout, I think against the Nigels themselves, when they scored because the ball got stuck in the mud.

Don't recall another similar West Brom game.

The Palace one was Boxing Day 1984. Lost 1-2 and the goal was scored by Kevin Mabbutt (against Steve Gritt!). Long ball over the top which stopped dead and Mabbutt didn't break stride as he lashed it into the bottom corner. Attendance...9,500. 

Blimey, top memory there. That will be the one. I recalled a really popular Charlton player was done by the mud, but couldn't remember who. Gritty, of course ....

It was Gritt's ball as he came out but the ball stopped dead about 20 yards out. 

Peter Nicholas scored the first with a really good free-kick into the top corner. Dave Madden got one back with about 5 left, with a hugely deflected shot. 

There was no public transport (no tube or British Rail), so my Dad gave me a lift all the way from Uxbridge. He sat in the car while the game was on! He did the same away to Norwich on Boxing Day the following year! 

Gritty was in goal at the time, ah yes, I remember now (with the help of Colin Cameron's book) We had our 2nd choice keeper and he went off injured in the 16th minute. Another reason why I've hated those nigels since 1967.