LEICESTER CITY 1969-70
SEASON
Following the disappointment of
losing to Manchester City in the F.A. Cup Final and getting relegated to
Division 2 after losing 3-2 at Manchester United on the final game of the
season ( incidentally I actually stood in the Stretford end that day) the new season began with a new
optimism, and could City go straight back up.
This is the season that I started to travel to more games home and away. Travelling to games in those days wasn’t easy for me and to get to home games I would have to catch a midland red bus from Dordon to Leicester and then catch another bus from the city centre to Filbert Street. I didn’t mind doing this but it was a bit of a drag having to get back home. I was only eighteen years old and money was tight and any spare cash I had was spent on watching Leicester (not much has changed over the years really!)My eldest brother Mick would travel to games with me whenever he could (he lived in Lichfield) and we would sit in the double decker stand. It used to cost us 8/- for a ticket up there, but what a view. As the season went on our Mick stopped going with me to Leicester because of the cost and travelling for him, but my younger brother Roy would join me and he still goes with me to Leicester
We still used the midland red from
Dordon to Leicester until we found that Wainfleet coaches from Nuneaton
travelled to Leicester matches and so for many years we would travel to games
using Wainfleet. We still had to catch a midland red bus to Nuneaton but it was
a lot easier and better and we made lots of new friends from Nuneaton and
Hinckley. We also moved from the double decker to the spion kop
On the football pitch Leicester
started well with a 3-1 win at home over Birmingham and following a 2-1 away
defeat at Middlesbrough and a 2-2 home draw with Bolton I attended my first
game of the season at home v Norwich City on August 23rd. I sat in the double
decker stand and I was one of the 26,716 who saw Leicester win with goals from
Lochhead, Sjoberg and a Duncan Forbes own goal
My first away game of the season
followed and at Aston Villa I saw the best display from anyone ever to wear a
Leicester shirt in a 1-0 away win. The goal was scored by Len Glover but the
accolades went to Rodney Fern who produced a superb man of the match display.
Leicester would be battling it out at
the top of the table all season but unfortunately we fell just short of our
target of automatic promotion by finishing in 3rd place (no playoffs
in those days).Some of my personal highlights of this season were: Travelling
to games with my brothers, seeing that awesome display at Aston Villa by Rodney
Fern. Travelling to more away games although going to Hull and seeing us lose
4-1 was not a highlight! But travelling to Birmingham, Blackburn and Oxford and
seeing us win were.
One of the memorable away games from
that season was travelling to Charlton Athletic and the old valley, I have
never seen terracing so steep and what a massive ground. In those days there
was little segregation and I remember Charlton fans making their way to where
we were standing and they were at the top of the terracing throwing coins at
us. We had the last laugh because we won 5-0 and I actually went out of the
stadium with more money than I had when I went in.
Another highlight was at home on
April 4th a Saturday evening kick off and we beat Aston Villa 1-0
and that was enough to send Villa down to the third division.
In the cup competitions we had decent
runs. In the League Cup we went out in round five losing 2-1 at West Bromwich
Albion after drawing 0-0 at home. At West Brom I was there and we played well
and in one attack both Sjoberg and Cross hit the crossbar but it wasn’t to be
In the F.A. Cup we also went out in
round five. In the third round I was sat in the double decker with our Roy it
was January 3rd and our kids birthday I remember he had a dedication
played over the tannoy. We beat Sunderland 1-0 with a Bobby Roberts goal. In
round four I had a lift with work mates to Southampton and John Farrington
scored for us in a 1-1 draw. In the replay at Filbert Street I stood in the
Filbert Street end(don’t ask me why!) and it was a thrilling match with City
winning 4-2 Lochhead 2, Farrington and Nish scoring. In round five a trip to
Liverpool and Anfield, and a memorable day out and a credible performance
drawing 0-0. In the replay at Leicester I remember standing in the Kop and the
crowd were packed so tight you could lift your feet of the floor and the crowd
would be holding you up! 42,100 was the attendance that night, and things were
going well on the pitch until Liverpool introduced there substitute Alun Evans
and he scored twice to seal a Liverpool 2-0 victory.
Fond memories for me from that era
and I often look back at my programmes to reminisce, some great memories. I
still enjoy my football and still love Leicester just as much as I always have,
but there was something magical about those days. Until the next time -
Leicester Till I Die
