Guest Post by Beniron
It’s the start of a new decade the glorious 70’s, the innocent days of growing up are over I’m 13 and beginning to realise that school could be over soon (ROSLA – Raising of the School Leaving Age to 16 wasn’t to become law until 2 years later) as in those days you could leave school the term you became 15, so in my case I could leave at 14 and 300+ days, for some it could mean a lot closer to 14.
Also this is the age when all sorts of things are happening with puberty – but I promise this won’t be one of those soppy coming of age stories just my version of life then, theoretically this should be the clearest part in my life no drink or drugs to cloud it – at least the first year of it ….
I still spent most of the holidays playing football – this time a bit more organised. I had a trial with East London District (most kids did in those days), got through the first stage but not any further. I would describe myself as talented but being short sighted and before contact lenses were around I struggled seeing the ball until the last minute, so was alright in possession but playing right back meant I was often squinting to see where the ball was!
At that time and for a few years anyone who was any good ended up at Senrab – just look at their record of ex-players! Suffice to say I never got to Senrab.
On a side note, reading CRB’s history of the boot etc around these times it was Puma (my brother’s old ones to be precise!) and Gola that my mate had, I didn’t know anybody who had Adidas at that time.
As I said in the last episode, I was getting pocket money now – not loads but a bit of independence. If I remember (Dan can check this) because of the World Cup, in Mexico I think, the season (69-70) finished ridiculously early and we played about 6 games in 2 weeks.
We’d sold Peters and got Greaves, and whilst past his best I think that signing saved us from relegation. In those last games I think we only lost one, and beat Man C 5-1, Liverpool 1-0 and Wolves 3-0. I was at the Wolves game and I think that made us safe with a couple left, all sounds so familiar.
Next season football was back on, I managed to get to two games in the summer holidays, both packed to the rafters. Arsenal 0-0 I think, it was one of the worst games ever seen, I remember there was aggro everywhere in the south bank; and a cracker against Chelsea 2-2. I didn’t get to many more games that season, I had a Saturday job, but I got to a couple. One was a night match against Forest – we had new floodlights I think and it was magical – 4 shadows, yes 4 shadows unbelievable! And we won 2-0 and new boy Pop Robson scored. The journey home was a nightmare, I didn’t get home until nearly midnight, no mobiles etc so my mum was waiting and she went spare, we’d just got a phone and I kept forgetting to call.
Talking of phones – we got one because me and my big brother spent more time out now so mum and dad relented and got one. As I’ve said before, we weren’t swimming in money so the cheapest option was a party line. This, to those that don’t know, meant that some other house shared the line; so you picked up the handset, if no one was talking then you pressed a button and got the dial tone and Bob’s your uncle, you’re away. If someone was talking then you hung up as they were using the line – yeah, like that happened – we always listened into each other’s calls that was the only good thing about it!
We struggled all that season though, one of the highlights for me was being allowed to stay up to watch the game on Sportsnight with Coleman (younger readers should Google David Coleman, he came up with some great cock ups that were known as Coleman Balls, my favourite was on the Olympics and Alberto Juanterena was running in the 400m, Coleman’s commentary went something like “he’s making a move now and look at the length between his legs!”). The football was normally on about 9:45 – 10:00 pm, which in those days was amazing as the matches didn’t finish until 9:15. The other was one of my favourite players entering a new phase, Billy Bonds was moved into midfield and John McDowell came in as right back. I remember Bonds was described as a marauding player, I think that he was deployed by Greenwood as one of the first fullbacks to push forward and one of the first true box to box midfielders – but I am a tad biased – I think he was Hammer of the Year as well.
It was also at this time that I was into music, I bought my first album by Cream – Goodbye (it was their last album). I got it second-hand as I couldn’t run to a new one, and my first single was All Right Now by Free. My music taste was heavily influenced by my big brother (5 years older than me) and his collection consisted of Yes, Genesis, Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Sabbath etc. Perversely I also liked pop and loved Sundays when you found out who was number 1 – no downloads or mp3 and all that stuff but people buying vinyl singles!
So ‘71 comes along and now it’s all Crombies, Prince of Wales check, Solatio shoes and Harrington’s. The fashion of the time was a strange mix – I also got my obligatory DM’s from Blackman’s near Petticoat Lane (one of the very few shops that sold them).
Back end of that season I managed to get a few games in – now in the North Bank as it was cheaper and you could still get two for one at some of the turnstiles. I saw us lose at home to Derby and Leeds two weeks on the trot, next game I went to was home to Manu – we won 2-1, played really well and a great atmosphere. I’m not sure if that’s the game where the wall collapsed but someone will remember I’m sure.
Finished just above relegation again – getting too common that was; and had the debacle of Blackpool in the cup all over the papers, next year will be better though!
Well it didn’t start too good – I went to the first game against West Brom and it was awful, lost 1-0 and lots of moans about Greenwood already. I don’t think we scored in our first few games and we were all over the place – even Bobby Moore was looking lost. Picked up a bit but the season was like that, good run followed by bad run etc – sounds so familiar! But this year was the year of the cups for the Hammers, first the League Cup – we must have played 9 or 10 games and didn’t reach the final – unbelievable. The League Cup, like today, was night matches mid-week and I loved them – I’m 15 now and I have a Saturday job down the market so can’t get to many Saturday games. I went to the Leeds game and we battered them at Upton Park, and these along with Derby and Liverpool were the best in the country! Ended 0-0 and thought that was our chance gone but I went to Elland Road and in extra time Clyde Best nods in the winner – get in!
Next up Liverpool – went to this one as well and beat the Mickey Mousers 2-1. Pop got the winner at the far post, that I can see to this day, he seemed to hang in the air and wait for the ball at an almost impossible angle – the crowd went mad and Bubbles at a night match makes me tingle – was this our year! Quarter Final next – Sheffield Utd at home (the draw was kind to us with so many home games) and we murdered them, Robson with a hat-trick again I was there it was another big crowd – oh what joy, Semi Final here we come!
The Semi Final deserves its own paragraph, the 4 games had everything (yes 4 games, in those days you played extra time and then another match until there was a winner – none of this namby pamby penalties nonsense!). Away Leg first and it was on the box – Stoke were all over us initially and went 1-0 up, but we came back and Billy Bonds was magnificent, came away winning 2-1 with a cracker of a goal from Best to seal it. We are odds on now to get to the Final. Night match at Upton Park, 35,000 plus crowd, it was all set up – I can honestly say I’ve never felt so deflated as when Banks saved Hurst’s penalty – I can remember now thinking it was nailed on – anyway Stoke score and it’s 0-1 and that’s how it ends after extra time.
The replay is at Hillsborough, I think and it’s a dour game that ends 0-0. I couldn’t get there as it’s a school night but listened to it on the radio. The second replay is at Old Trafford – Conroy whacks Ferguson and he has to go off so Bobby Moore goes in goal , he saves Stoke’s penalty but not the rebound (it’s all going wrong) I’m screaming at the telly – mum says it’s only a game (arf arf). Bonds equalises and it’s 1-1 , all is looking good, even better after half time as Brooking scores straight away, 2-1 and Wembley next. Next 10 minutes and it’s all over, Stoke score twice and I think it took the wind out of our sails as watching it on the box it looked like we were treading water. It was the worst moment of my West Ham life, these games took place before and after Christmas, a joyous time spoilt by Stoke. I went to bed and could hear my mum saying “what’s up with him?”
Next came the FA Cup – and to get it in perspective Britain was in turmoil, known as the sick man of Europe we were in trouble, energy crisis, strikes etc – so night matches were banned as floodlights weren’t allowed, which meant in January and February kick off times were brought forward so matches could be finished before dark. So the infamous FA Cup game against Hereford from the Southern League kicked off at 2:15 on Monday 14th Feb 1972.
It was a very strange day, nobody expected a big crowd, being a Monday lunchtime kick off (ok it was a late lunch). Me and a couple of pals had agreed we’d bunk off just after lunch and get the bus there – my school was on East India Dock road so the 15 bus stopped outside – easy peasy! It became clearer during the day that we weren’t the only ones thinking of this. Lunchtime came, we had the register called after lunch and then we skedaddled out of there to the bus stop.
It was packed, we got the 3rd bus as we couldn’t get on the earlier ones, now thinking it might be a tad busier than we thought. When we got there it was heaving, none of us had watches so had no idea what the time was but suddenly they started closing the gates, people were shouting and hollering. We were gutted if we’d left 10 mins earlier – but as my mum used to say “if ifs and ands were pots and pans we’d all be jolly tinkers” (the last bit I toned down). We didn’t really have a scoobie what to do, we wandered around the ground looking at any other possibilities, there were loads of people heading to the flats behind the east stand etc, we turned round and headed home – gutted of Poplar! By the way, we won 3-1, Hurst with all 3, next round we got beat by Huddersfield, who were eventually relegated!
By this time at the tender of age of 14 and a half I went to the pub with my mates for the first time – no ID checking in those days. It was mid-week and the school dance was on and we went into the Greenwich Pensioner on Bazely Street, 5 of us all done up not knowing what to do. My brother used to drink Light and Bitter, so I walked to the bar and ordered 5 L&B’s, the barman looked at us, shook his head and started serving us, we’d cracked it. I think it was 10 bob for the lot, but that could be my mind playing tricks. We all put our money together and sat down and drank this stuff – it took some getting used to but we all agreed we’d do it again (only had enough money for one drink!).
That was the start of a slippery slope, by the next term (this would have been 72-73 season) we were in a pub most weekends. I had a job in Chrisp Street market, every morning I got the stall set up before I went to school and every evening put it away after school, exceptions were Monday – market was closed and Thursday when it went away lunchtime for early closing, all day Saturday for the princely sum of £4 a week. This wasn’t a bad wedge in those days and on Saturday I got two bags of fruit and veg to take home. But one Sunday night we went for a beer in the Steamship in Blackwall way (it’s gone now) and my mate and I won a bottle of whisky in the raffle, we thought we couldn’t take it home so drank it on the way home. To this day I can’t take the smell of blended whisky, I was so sick I made the obligatory oath never to drink again. It was school day the following day and my mum knew it was a hangover but she made me get up and go to school, certainly taught me a lesson for a few days I can tell you.
That season again I could only go to night matches but I can tell you it was a great season – my first game was Coventry on a Monday night, it was a terrible match but we won 1-0, a young kid called Ade Coker was playing and despite all the hype about West Brom and their coloured players I’m sure we were the vanguard in that area with John Charles, Clyde Best, Ade Coker etc. The only other game I got to was Southampton on, I think, a Friday night – a real cracker, 4-3 and Pop got a hat trick, notched up loads of goals that season, I think 25.
I suppose you’re thinking “how does he know it was a great season, he only went to two matches”, well the Big Match seemed to have us on every week and we were playing some good stuff – I think we finished 6th that year. Next year I’d be in a real job so hopefully get to some more games, looking forward to that.
Part 4 coming soon hopefully, and hopefully this one will get more than a couple of hours on the site!