A case could certainly be made, Chris.

 

The club were mad not to offer him a contract when he ended his spell at Milan, a decision that altered history in many ways.

Speaking of 'elf and safety', the old East Stand...

 

 

 

Any vantage point is good enough!

 

 

Andy Wilson: 'go on gaffer, I wouldn't mind a fag'

 

Ha, Greaves probably has the best goals to game ratio for a chelsea player (?)

 

But actually i meant in your last photo, with Tony has quoted with George Best in a CFC shirt next to the King.

Best,Osgood and Hudson, was that picture from 1979?

Best,Osgood and Hudson, was that picture from 1979?

1975 Ossie's testimonial.

 

Edited January 27, 201313 yr by Tommy Docherty

Anyone remember this?

 

That was in 1980 right?

 

Weird that they played cricket at the Bridge.  How easy must it have been for Botham to score a boundary into the East Stand?  It appears ridiculously close in that photo.

 

It was a real shame they couldn't get David Haye Vs Klitschko on at Chelsea.  Would love to have gone to that.  To my knowlegde, I don't think Stamford Bridge has ever seen a top class boxing bout?  Please correct me if I'm wrong.  Obviously Wembley had loads.....and I think Highbury saw Henry Cooper fight Ali in the rematch (1966?).  The Nigel Benn Vs Chris Eubank rematch was at Old Trafford and Barry McGuigan fought at Loftus Road.  West Ham has seen plenty of boxing too.

 

Regarding those old pictures of Stamford Bridge in that previous page, who here ever stood on the old West Terrace?  It looks absolutely massive!  Would be interesting to hear what it was like.  You'd need to have been going pre mid-60's to have experienced it.

Edited January 29, 201313 yr by BernardLambourde

But in June 1980, Surrey took the bull by the horns and, backed by the Daily Mirror, staged a match under the floodlights at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge on August 24 and roped in the touring West Indies side to provide the opposition. Packer had looked at and approved the venue a year earlier when he had been scouting for possible grounds to host WSC floodlit games, and it was agreed to be an ideal location.

 

One problem was obvious from the off. A football ground is longer and narrower than anything used for cricket, and so even modest hits square of the wicket were an almost guaranteed six. Officials toyed with the idea of reducing a side-on hit into the stands to two runs, but eventually decided not to tinker and to play to the laws as they stood.

 

Micky Stewart, at the time Surrey's manager, was keen to stress that the match was more than a gimmick. "This is will be a highly competitive match and not just a staged event," he explained a month before the game.

 

Harry Brind, the groundsman at The Oval who coincidently had held in the same post at Stamford Bridge, was brought in to supervise the laying of a drop-in wicket. But in the end that proved too problematic and an artificial pitch was laid, and Brind admitted his contribution was limited to cutting the grass under the mat. Essex lent their mobile scorebox as Chelsea's new electronic scoreboard was completely unable to cope with the complexities of cricket scores.

 

Unfortunately for Surrey, they were unable to come to their own party and show off the chocolate brown kit they had had made specially for the occasion. Rain meant their Gillette Cup semi-final against Yorkshire at The Oval spilled over into a second day, and so Essex replaced them.

 

obviously the above was nicked by me thank f**k for copy and pase, funny that when i was a kid i was f**king hopless at paint by numbers    so you can teach an old dog new tricks

According to the caption on the official site, it was 1982:
 

1982 : Ian Botham batting for Somerset during the Lambert & Butler cricket competition at Stamford Bridge

Really?  I thought it was 1980.  I'm sure I've seen a photo of Geoff Hurst and Bobby Gould with the cricketers at Chelsea and they were around in about 80 weren't they?  Maybe I'm wrong.

You're not wrong, but that was an earlier occasion:

 

 

Members of the West Indian cricket team field as Geoff Hurst tries his
hand at batting a football at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge ground, London,
July 23 1980. Fielding are (left to right) Derek Murray, Clyde Walcott,
Viv Richards and Alvin Kallicharran.

According to the caption on the official site, it was 1982:

 

1982 : Ian Botham batting for Somerset during the Lambert & Butler cricket competition at Stamford Bridge

well some ones wrong?

 

 

That was in 1980 right?

 

, I don't think Stamford Bridge has ever seen a top class boxing bout? well can live in hope can't we http://www.boxingnews24.com/2012/11/groves-v-johnson-on-december-15th-in-london/

also the bridge did hold  first ever amateur boxing matches  well thats what this website cliams http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stamford_Bridge_(stadium)

 

PS sorry lads about the grammer and some spelling mistake brain and eyesight not what they used to be  must visit specsavers

Maybe, but there's also this on ESPN but even that gives the Lambert & Butler competition as 1981

The ground was used in 1980 for the first major day-night match between Essex and West Indies (although organised by Surrey) which was a commercial success; the following year it hosted the final of the inaugural Lambert & Butler county competition. It, however, failed and the experiment of playing cricket on football grounds was ended.

 

Someones cocked up somewhere.

A Groves Vs Degale rematch at The Bridge would be good.

Maybe, but there's also this on ESPN but even that gives the Lambert & Butler competition as 1981

The ground was used in 1980 for the first major day-night match between Essex and West Indies (although organised by Surrey) which was a commercial success; the following year it hosted the final of the inaugural Lambert & Butler county competition. It, however, failed and the experiment of playing cricket on football grounds was ended.

 

Someones cocked up somewhere.

It was the West Indies, I went to it.

It was the West Indies, I went to it.

Yep, that was in 1980 (I'm not and never was a cricket fan, so I wasn't there and wasn't even that interested), but what about the Lambert & Butler competition, which the official site say took place in 1982 and ESPN in 1981?

Maybe, but there's also this on ESPN but even that gives the Lambert & Butler competition as 1981

The ground was used in 1980 for the first major day-night match between Essex and West Indies (although organised by Surrey) which was a commercial success; the following year it hosted the final of the inaugural Lambert & Butler county competition. It, however, failed and the experiment of playing cricket on football grounds was ended.

 

Someones cocked up somewhere.

Closest i got to going to a cricket match was going past the ovel on a 36 bus , Groves Vs Degale rematch at The Bridge i buy a ticket if that happened

I saw Chelsea play Surrey at the Oval in a game of 50-over cricket, then a 7-a-side game - part of Peter Bonetti's testimonial tied in with one of the cricketers' testimonials. Bit of a laugh, but inevitably became extremely boring after a while - think I was about 10 or 11 at the time.

I saw Chelsea play Surrey at the Oval in a game of 50-over cricket, then a 7-a-side game - part of Peter Bonetti's testimonial tied in with one of the cricketers' testimonials. Bit of a laugh, but inevitably became extremely boring after a while - think I was about 10 or 11 at the time.

funny you should mention that  was at the oval once something chelsea related not sure if it was anything to do with the Cat but could ave been only thing it would ave been very late sixties or early 70s? only thing i recall is there was donkies there for donky rides i help the fella who owned them and with the money i got and the bit i half inched from him i went and got  a pair off levis cord jeans

Kingy couple of faces in this pic you know ;-)

 

Marseille away

You're not wrong, but that was an earlier occasion:

 

 

Members of the West Indian cricket team field as Geoff Hurst tries his

hand at batting a football at Chelsea's Stamford Bridge ground, London,

July 23 1980. Fielding are (left to right) Derek Murray, Clyde Walcott,

Viv Richards and Alvin Kallicharran.

 

Geoff Hurst was actually a decent cricketer. He played 2nd XI cricket for Essex, may even have played the odd 1st XI game

A couple of floodlit cricket snaps:

 

 

 

I love this picture of Robbie in Tromso.

 

 

Could somebody tell me what year the old offices came down in?

 

 

I've always loved the contrast between the posh looking Fulham road facades and the ground, the best situated stadium in football? 

 

 

Another picture to feed my bobbies at the bridge obsession.

The design of the East Stand looks brutal on it's own doesn't it?

Edited January 30, 201313 yr by BernardLambourde

Continuing the cricket theme I went to this game for Alex Stewart.(see below)

 

Decent day out ,had a few beers  got bored and went for a walk around the ground. Most fans were in the west stand but with a strut I walked left around passed the Matthew Harding ,along the front of the east stand by which time I was knackered and plonked myself down In  the home dugout.
 

I looked to my left and there padded up and dressed in his cricket whites was Kerry Dixon who was a little amazed to see an out of breath old git now sitting next to him. To his credit he was good as gold –we had a natter about the good old days as you do, I had a wave to my mates back in the west stand and wandered back.

 

Chelsea XI vs England XI today

 

Sun 18 May 2003
 

Alec Stewart’s Day/Night testimonial cricket match, England v Chelsea, is at Stamford Bridge this afternoon and evening.
 

Kevin Hitchcock leads the Chelsea Old Boys team which he has put together over the last few weeks.
 

Joining him in the field will be Graeme Le Saux, Gustavo Poyet, Steve Clarke, Graham Rix, Nigel Spackman, Graham Stuart, Kevin Wilson, David Lee, Jason Cundy and Mark Falco.

 

Alec’s team includes top England cricketers like Mark Butcher and Angus Fraser.

How many people were at that F1905?