Football writing, thoughts and more by Gary James
Well, well, well… I’ve just rediscovered in a box of my memorabilia my original 1980s inflatable banana. This went with me to various games, most memorably the 1988 match with Stoke at the Victoria Ground. I always felt I’d saved it but wasn’t entirely sure. It was hidden with various shirts and scarves from the 70s, 80s and 90s I used to wear.
There has been a lot of criticism of City’s fanbase in recent weeks. Ridiculous stuff like celebrating a goal is seemingly wrong, according to some. Thankfully the banana craze and the general humour of fans is helping enormously and is a huge positive. Let’s face it, football is a game to enjoy and, as with the original banana craze, the idea of ‘putting the fun’ back into football is something all should support. The appeal of Manchester City has never simply been about finding success, it’s about community.
I’ve often posted this page from my biography of Joe Mercer which rightly points out that football is a great game (and highlights that there’s plenty wrong around the game, though he didn’t highlight fans which I think shows he knew what it was like for us).
Football is all about camaraderie, connections, family and friends. It’s about shared experiences and the joy of life. Sometimes things don’t go so well, but the key thing is that football should always be about the joy of attending games and sharing experiences and, as with so many times in the past, the negativity of others shouldn’t detract from your own experience.
Leaving the Etihad the other night after City had lost to PSG there were plenty of smiling faces. Sure we’d lost but most there recognised the fightback and spirit exhibited in that second half, while also acknowledging that PSG played extremely well. I think we always knew it would be difficult to beat PSG, especially after Sunday’s pressures at Anfield, so it was wonderful to see the spirit of the Blues (both on the pitch and in the stands).
As I left the ground an excited boy was saying to his dad: ‘Did you see that penalty save, Dad?’ and he was clearly delighted with what he saw. I’m sure his dad will have seen better penalties – and saves for that matter – but for that boy it was a great moment. Maybe it was the first time he’d seen a penalty save? Maybe he wants to be a goalkeeper? Who knows, but what is true is that the game brought him joy. Ultimately, we should all have that joy.
Back in 1987 when the banana craze started football fans were viewed negatively by politicians, the wider media and the general public who didn’t attend games but read what they saw in the ‘papers. We were all classed as hooligans because of several high profile stories (not least Heysel but also issues at a variety of grounds around the country), but of course not all fans looked for trouble. Not all fans were ‘hooligans’. However, the negativity towards us was intense. I remember being interviewed for, what I hoped would be my first job, and the interviewee (who knew nothing about football) was surprised I’d mentioned being a season ticket holder. It was as if I’d said I belonged to some outlawed political party.
In this environment many fans began to challenge the way we were perceived and organisations were established to represent fans’ feelings. Fanzines also started to appear. Then at City the banana craze began. It was a laugh, pure and simple, and several articles highlighted the positivity of it all. It brightened the mood.
This is a bit of a rambling piece but I just basically wanted to highlight that football is a fun game and it’s not all about match results, it’s about the community. City fans know better than most that football is never just about results. Only a small number of clubs can ever find trophy success each season and games are either won, drawn or lost – we can’t all win every game. So it’s so important to have fun no matter what the result. The banana craze gave us that in the 1980s (our big fancy dress day out at Stoke ended in defeat of course!) and today, in October 2026, thanks to the 1894 Group, the Supporters Club and those who attended Anfield, the 2026 version of the craze is doing it again. Enjoy!
On this day (3 October) in 1987 Paul Stewart & Imre Varadi both scored twice as Manchester City beat Leicester City 4-2 at Maine Road. Games with Leicester were often newsworthy in the 1980s. Sadly, there was the match in March 1989 when Paul Lake swallowed his tongue and there was the FA Cup tie in January 1989 which saw the City players take to the field carrying large inflatable bananas which they then threw into the crowd. This was not a regular occurrence! You can read more on the banana craze here:
Yesterday I saw quite a few City fans talk about the 1930s song ‘Who Said City Couldn’t Play?’ which remained popular for a couple of decades (my Dad used to talk of singing it in the 40s and 50s). So it seems right to post again a talk I did on this a few years back. Chanting at football games is rarely documented correctly with many myths, rumours and stories developing over the years. This feature is designed to give a potted overview of the development of singing at City.
I explained about some of the chants in this talk I did a couple of years ago. If you’ve got time watch it:
Now, for subscribers is an 1800 word article on the history and development of chants at Manchester City:
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Today (27 November) is the anniversary of the women’s team’s first game. It was payed at Boundary Park in 1988 and saw Oldham Athletic Ladies face Manchester City Ladies. I was there as my girlfriend, now wife, was playing. She scored two goals in the club’s 4-1 victory. Subscribers can read a 2,200 word long read on this historic first game. Enjoy!
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Today’s feature was the last on the 1980s. I hope you’ve enjoyed them. If you missed the earlier features then start here:
The 1980s: 1980-1981 Gow, Hutchison & McDonald
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With Manchester City and Plymouth meeting this weekend it’s worth remembering this past encounter between the two teams. They met on 10 November 1987 – only three days after City had thrashed Huddersfield 10-1 in the League. The meeting with Plymouth was in the Full Members’ Cup – then sponsored by the unforgettable Simod Sports Shoes. Manchester’s football focus had been on Mel Machin’s goalscorerd and, once again, City entertained.
Plymouth suffered a 6-2 defeat only three days after the Huddersfield massacre. Again the press picked up on City’s exploits and for once the rather irrelevant Simod Cup dominated the back page headlines. The Star concentrated on the role played by Tony Adcock who had scored his second hat-trick in three days. Under the headline “Adcock’s ‘Arf Hour” reporter Kevin Francis concentrated on the news that the £80,000 signing from Colchester was only in the side because of injury to Imre Varadi, and suggested that Machin would have a difficult selection problem once Varadi returned to fitness. Machin, who also had the prolific Paul Moulden recovering from injury, looked forward to the time when he would actually be faced with the problem of selecting two of the four decent strikers he had on his books!
Interestingly, City’s first goalscorer against Plymouth, Andy Hinchcliffe, was being watched by Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish. Already the Blues were aware that almost all the wealthiest British clubs of the period were keen on City’s headline grabbing young players. Only four months later Rangers manager Graeme Souness arrived at Maine Road to watch the game against Swindon. He paid to sit in the North Stand, and watched the exploits of Paul Stewart while covering half his face with a scarf to hide his identity! It didn’t work. A Sunday People reporter spotted the Rangers manager and his assistant, Walter Smith, and forced the pair to leave before they attracted further attention.
For a while the interest in the achievements of City’s young players was high and this meeting with Plymouth certainly gained more headlines for them. The goalscorers that night for City were: Andy Hinchcliffe, Paul Lake, Paul Stewart and Tony Adcock (3).
Subscribers can find out more about the 1987-88 season by reading my 4,000 word feature on it below. Enjoy!
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Tomorrow’s feature is on the 1988-89 season. If you missed the earlier features then start here:
The 1980s: 1980-1981 Gow, Hutchison & McDonald
Today (27 November) is the anniversary of the women’s team’s first game. It was payed at Boundary Park and saw Oldham Athletic Ladies face Manchester City Ladies. I was there as my girlfriend, now wife, was playing. She scored two goals in the club’s 4-1 victory. Subscribers can read a 2,200 word long read on this historic first game. Enjoy!
Read more of this content when you subscribe today. It costs £3 per month or £20 a year. This special annual rate works out about £1.67 a week and gives access to everything posted, including PDFs of 3 of my books.
If you’d like to know more about subscribing then see:
Today’s feature was the last on the 1980s. I hope you’ve enjoyed them. If you missed the earlier features then start here:
The 1980s: 1980-1981 Gow, Hutchison & McDonald
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On this day (21 October) in 1987 Manchester City’s incredible run of 34 league games away from home without a win finally came to an end with a 4-2 win at Bradford (the first of two consecutive significant results at Bradford for the Blues). Those of us there that night will never forget the feelings of finally winning away from home.
For months we’d been hoping for a win and our travelling support seemed to increase game after game as we waited for that victory. You just had to be there and, fortunately for me, I was there on this Wednesday night in October.
It was however a tense night… Subscribers can read the story below, along with contemporary match reports.
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It’s Wolves v Manchester City today (20 October 2024) and there are dozens of stories referencing Wolves on this website. There have been major finals and significant league games. Here’s the playing record so far:
| Competition | Played | Won | Drawn | Lost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| League | 120 | 51 | 24 | 45 |
| FA Cup | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| League Cup | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| European | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
One of the away games I vividly remember going to came in October 1987 and is a great contrast with City’s modern day records:
Here’s a link to some of the other stories on here involving Wolves:
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On this day (12 October) in 1965 1980s Manchester City ‘keeper Perry Suckling was born in Hackney. Here’s a brief profile of him:
Perry Suckling
Bought for £50,000 plus the popular David Phillips, England youth international Perry Suckling was anticipated to be City’s first choice for several years when he arrived from Coventry City in May 1986. It didn’t work out that way however and by the end of December 1987 he was on loan at Chelsea. A permanent move to Crystal Palace followed in January 1988 – City received £100,000 – and after 39 League appearances that was it.
Spells for West Ham, Brentford, Watford and Doncaster followed.
Appearances: League: 39 FAC: 1 League Cup: 3
You can read a 4,000 word article on the 1987-88 season here:
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