Five Chelsea games you would love to have attended.
- Thread starter erskblue
- Start date
Ewell CFC
Banned
- Messages
- 1,786
- Reaction score
- 1,962
Doug the Thugs debut. On holiday in Ibiza that summer we got talking to some Aberdeen fans, who really rated Rougvie as a player, so we were looking forward to seeing him.
A big black and white mob of gooners were waiting outside Highbury and Islington early on- didn't see any trouble all day but didn't hang around afterwards.
Bates had got into a feud with a journalist, who predicted major trouble for this fixture and criticised the FA for having it as a seasons opener. Might have been Harry Harris from the Mirror. Bates barred him from the Bridge all the same .
A couple of mates who were Arsenal in the North Bank reckon it was the best away following they'd seen there with the possible exception of Celtic in a friendly.
I did have a Chelsea mate that went in the North Bank as part of a firm- if you were looking from the Clock End they were on the left hand side of the North Bank.
Cant remember what exactly happened to that lot- if they got taken out by OB they didn't walk down the side of the pitch.- I'll have to ask next time I see him
My top 5 I wish I attended is very 83/84 heavy, although this is the season I started going more often, in no particular order: Leeds at home 5-0 83/84, Brighton away 83/84, Man city away 83/84, Arsenal away 84/85, Munich 2012, prob some I missed, now I got to start thinking of the most memorable I've attended!
fillerywhereru
Youth Team
- Messages
- 143
- Reaction score
- 126
Just thought of another I missed that i wish I hadnt Fulham 3 Chelsea 5 83/84 great game
Yes forgot that one, funny but scrolling through this topic again, it isn't just me but 83/84 really was a memorable season for us oldies, I wonder if the youngsters will look back on one particular season like we do with 83/84, I'm not so sure, as all this success in the last 15 years might all merge into one. We'll always remember "Jonny Neal's blue and white army"
Ewell CFC
Banned
- Messages
- 1,786
- Reaction score
- 1,962
Three team mates from back then have spent time in Her Majesty's B and B's.
Kerry Dixon, Micky Thomas and Canners.
Bit of a coincidence when you think about it. Graham Rix also went in. Jody Morris, Frank Sinclair and Dennis Wise managed to narrowly escape. Have any other Chelsea players ended up in the big house?
Agreed about 1983/84. It is so special for the 'oldies' (born 67) amongst us. We had been starved of success for what seemed ages and had been so close to relegation to Division 3 the previous season. John Neal rebuilt during the summer of 1983 and we beat Derby at the Bridge in late Aug 83 and we took off. It gave us the 'walk tall' factor on a Monday morning.
Yes, 83/84 seemed at last you could talk at school about football without armchair utd, Liverpool fans etc, taking piss, prior to that it seemed the only Chelsea excitement I got in the late 70's was buying those packets of cards with a piece of chewing gum in, and finding our players in there, superstars like David Hay or Duncan Mkensie!!!, one time though it felt like I got willy Wonka's golden ticket, inside my packet was Peter Borota!!!, If it wasn't those cards it was the figurine pannni sticker books, first one I had was Argentina 78 world cup.
Richard P
First Team Regular
- Messages
- 3,696
- Reaction score
- 2,779
83/84 was great on and off the field. The results and performances were great and without mobiles, internet/social media, paying on the day at the turnstiles you never knew who was going but we turned up in numbers. Many more than advertised as gates were opened at Brighton, Pompey and Grimsby to name three from memory. One reason why tickets for terracing came in to stop capacity problems.
Also if you offered a turnstile operator a tenner, without a ticket for an “all ticket” game they would let you in. I’m coming up fifty and this will always be one of my favourite seasons.
Also if you offered a turnstile operator a tenner, without a ticket for an “all ticket” game they would let you in. I’m coming up fifty and this will always be one of my favourite seasons.
Boyne
We Are The People
- Messages
- 30,049
- Reaction score
- 35,067
@Richard P you mentioning about there being no mobile phones reminds me of when we would come out of the ground and if we saw someone with a radio would gather around them to hear the results or occasionally to hear a cup draw. Different times.
Richard P
First Team Regular
- Messages
- 3,696
- Reaction score
- 2,779
The good old transistor radio! Had one for my 11th birthday, size of an iPhone 7 but thicker. Good old sports report on Radio 2
Richard P
First Team Regular
- Messages
- 3,696
- Reaction score
- 2,779
The chewing gum was rank by the way!! Hubby Bubba or Bubbalicous both new at the time were much better!
Before my time:
Arsenal 1933
Old Trafford 1970
Millwall 1976
Sheff Wed 1955
Athens 1971
Since first going as a 12 yr old in 1979 I've done quite a few of the games that have gone down as legendary for various reasons - Bolton 83 (a), Leeds 83 (h & a), Brighton 83 (a), Man City 84 (a), Grimsby 84 (a), Arsenal 84 (a), Millwall 84 Milk Cup (h & a) and FA Cup, Sheff Wed 85 Milk Cup (h), Sunderland 85 Milk Cup (h & a), Man City 86 Full Members Cup, 94 Cup Final and Semi, 97 Cup Final, Stockholm 98, Arsenal (a) CL 2004, Bolton (a) 2005, various away victories at Old Trafford, Spurs and West Ham, the Steady Eddie goalkeeping display at Fulham mentioned above and so on, but these are some I missed:
Sheff Wed 4 Chelsea 4 Did so many games that season including both the home games in this incredible tie but missed this one as I couldn't find a way up there given such short notice (was it arranged for two days after the first game?) Was gutted at the time and still regret it to this day. Listened to extra time on a radio outside Plough Lane where I'd gone and watched Wimbledon knock Forest out of the Cup. There were loads of Chelsea who'd done the same. Funny thing was I'd asked someone with a radio for our score at half time (3-0 down) and had given up all hope of course.
Cardiff 3 Chelsea 3 This is the only match that season that I really wish I'd been at. I missed a few that year but did all the ones I consider important/memorable/legendary except this one.
Chelsea 4 Liverpool 2, 1997. Was at university in York for the year and relied on a mate to get me a ticket so I could come down and he f**ked up.
Barcelona 2 Chelsea 2, would have loved to have been at this one. Can't stand Barca. Such tension and such an incredible result.
Munich. It pains me to even write this, still hurts for sure. I live in Canada now, moved here in Dec 2008. Stopped going in 2005 after watching us win the League at Bolton (after all, what was the point we'd "done it all" now, lol). I thought it was a nice symmetry, a nice place to stop, since I was also at Bolton in '83. I did come out of retirement to go to Moscow (well we hadn't done that had we?) and I hope if we ever do it again I'll be there next time but I missed our first and I'll never be able to change that. Saddest thing was I was over in the UK, just happened to have booked a trip home that May. Got myself a flight to Salzburg but never managed to get hold of a match ticket. Ended up deciding to watch it in the Imperial with a couple of mates.
Arsenal 1933
Old Trafford 1970
Millwall 1976
Sheff Wed 1955
Athens 1971
Since first going as a 12 yr old in 1979 I've done quite a few of the games that have gone down as legendary for various reasons - Bolton 83 (a), Leeds 83 (h & a), Brighton 83 (a), Man City 84 (a), Grimsby 84 (a), Arsenal 84 (a), Millwall 84 Milk Cup (h & a) and FA Cup, Sheff Wed 85 Milk Cup (h), Sunderland 85 Milk Cup (h & a), Man City 86 Full Members Cup, 94 Cup Final and Semi, 97 Cup Final, Stockholm 98, Arsenal (a) CL 2004, Bolton (a) 2005, various away victories at Old Trafford, Spurs and West Ham, the Steady Eddie goalkeeping display at Fulham mentioned above and so on, but these are some I missed:
Sheff Wed 4 Chelsea 4 Did so many games that season including both the home games in this incredible tie but missed this one as I couldn't find a way up there given such short notice (was it arranged for two days after the first game?) Was gutted at the time and still regret it to this day. Listened to extra time on a radio outside Plough Lane where I'd gone and watched Wimbledon knock Forest out of the Cup. There were loads of Chelsea who'd done the same. Funny thing was I'd asked someone with a radio for our score at half time (3-0 down) and had given up all hope of course.
Cardiff 3 Chelsea 3 This is the only match that season that I really wish I'd been at. I missed a few that year but did all the ones I consider important/memorable/legendary except this one.
Chelsea 4 Liverpool 2, 1997. Was at university in York for the year and relied on a mate to get me a ticket so I could come down and he f**ked up.
Barcelona 2 Chelsea 2, would have loved to have been at this one. Can't stand Barca. Such tension and such an incredible result.
Munich. It pains me to even write this, still hurts for sure. I live in Canada now, moved here in Dec 2008. Stopped going in 2005 after watching us win the League at Bolton (after all, what was the point we'd "done it all" now, lol). I thought it was a nice symmetry, a nice place to stop, since I was also at Bolton in '83. I did come out of retirement to go to Moscow (well we hadn't done that had we?) and I hope if we ever do it again I'll be there next time but I missed our first and I'll never be able to change that. Saddest thing was I was over in the UK, just happened to have booked a trip home that May. Got myself a flight to Salzburg but never managed to get hold of a match ticket. Ended up deciding to watch it in the Imperial with a couple of mates.
Backbiter
An Untouchable
- Messages
- 8,519
- Reaction score
- 4,149
Great post. You were at most of the games I wish I'd been to.
Munich is an easy journey from Salzburg. Like about 30000 Chelsea fans I went over without a ticket, never got near the Allianz, but wouldn't have missed it for the world.
Ewell CFC
Banned
- Messages
- 1,786
- Reaction score
- 1,962
Top 5 Aways...
Man City 84. We did loads of road trips that year in my mates Escort Estate- back seat down- couple of crates of Pils. Superb support. When I get together with my oldest pals for some reason that's the game we talk about more than others.
After parking up we walked down a backstreet to find a group of about 20 geysers walking towards us- looked like they'd all come straight off a building site- heads down keep walking we thought...
Turns out they were Chelsea- they're were loads of chaps everywhere that night.
Ps for me 50th a mate got me a signed/ framed programme from this game.
Grimsby 84- very hot and super packed in our end. I'm not sure whether any trains were running that day but saw a massive convoy of Chelsea coaches on the A1
Portsmouth Midweek 84- Nice spring evening, afternoon on the piss in Southsea, loads of offs, great fun all round
Arsenal in the League Cup 98- not the most important game, but the first time I ever saw us win against them. We got given a big allocation- first time a lot of us had heard the now famous Arsene Wenger songs. Took the piss all night.
Super Cup v Real Madrid.
Played in Monaco, spent 5 days in Nice, daytimes sunning on the beach- night in the bars with other Chelsea. Once again, not a massively important game, but I do remember thinking at the time, we've just seen our team beat the mighty Real- had a fantastic trip- it ain't gonna get much better than this.
Man City 84. We did loads of road trips that year in my mates Escort Estate- back seat down- couple of crates of Pils. Superb support. When I get together with my oldest pals for some reason that's the game we talk about more than others.
After parking up we walked down a backstreet to find a group of about 20 geysers walking towards us- looked like they'd all come straight off a building site- heads down keep walking we thought...
Turns out they were Chelsea- they're were loads of chaps everywhere that night.
Ps for me 50th a mate got me a signed/ framed programme from this game.
Grimsby 84- very hot and super packed in our end. I'm not sure whether any trains were running that day but saw a massive convoy of Chelsea coaches on the A1
Portsmouth Midweek 84- Nice spring evening, afternoon on the piss in Southsea, loads of offs, great fun all round
Arsenal in the League Cup 98- not the most important game, but the first time I ever saw us win against them. We got given a big allocation- first time a lot of us had heard the now famous Arsene Wenger songs. Took the piss all night.
Super Cup v Real Madrid.
Played in Monaco, spent 5 days in Nice, daytimes sunning on the beach- night in the bars with other Chelsea. Once again, not a massively important game, but I do remember thinking at the time, we've just seen our team beat the mighty Real- had a fantastic trip- it ain't gonna get much better than this.
Last edited by a moderator:
Richard P
First Team Regular
- Messages
- 3,696
- Reaction score
- 2,779
Went by special for Grimsby. There were 3 trains with different coloured tickets. I only remember this as it was chaos coming back with people not have the patience to wait for the right train!! My one had people standing all the back to London!!
Ewell CFC
Banned
- Messages
- 1,786
- Reaction score
- 1,962
There never seemed to be the same amount of people coming back from the game, as going to the game on the specials- never able to work out why?
Sometimes they'd be people up in the luggage racks, or hiding under tables or in the bog when the ticket collector did his rounds!
A bloke called Winkle whose no longer with us used to be a fixture on the trains in the early 80's. He was a good laugh but a real pain the backside RIP
fillerywhereru
Youth Team
- Messages
- 143
- Reaction score
- 126
I remember the name Winkle, was a tall bloke with curly hair ?