Category Archives: Seasons

A 2nd Successive Manchester League Derby At United Ends early!

On 4 May 1976 and for the second consecutive League derby at Old Trafford, a meeting between United and City was cut short when thousands stormed the pitch before its natural conclusion. Home fans invaded the pitch before the 90th minute with United leading 2-0. Afterwards it was reported that the police had signalled to the referee to blow the whistle while fans were on the pitch. Referee Roy Capey told reporters: ‘My only concern was for the linesman who had to run from the far side of the ground. But he got into the dressing room safely.’

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Derek Wallis, writing for the Daily Mirror, explained that United fans had raced on to the pitch: ‘ahead of time last night – nearly three minutes by my watch – and diplomatically referee Roy Capey promptly blew for time.’

A few days earlier United had been defeated by Second Division Southampton in the FA Cup final and United reporter David Meek started his Manchester Evening News report of the derby with this interesting line (his emphasis): ‘”WE’D RATHER win the derby than the Cup,” sang the Stretford enders as Manchester United sailed to a 2-0 win over Manchester City at Old Trafford last night.’

Sixty Years Ago Today: “We Went To Rotherham, We Won 1-0….” Manchester City’s Promotion

60 years ago today (4 May 1966) Manchester City won 1-0 at Rotherham to earn promotion back to football’s top flight. Colin Bell was the scorer and the win became immortalised in a song. Here are some contemporary match reports and photos from that day:

Here for subscribers are match reports and details of that day:

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The 2010s: Victory over West Ham

On this day (1 May) in 2011 a 2-1 victory for Manchester City over West Ham left the Blues fourth on 62 points, five points behind third placed Arsenal, though City had a game in hand. A confident looking side took an early 2-0 lead with De Jong (10th minute) scoring his first goal and then Zabaleta (15th min) added a second. West Ham did score via Demba Ba in the 33rd minute and this caused some nervousness. Mancini’s side did hang on to some extent, but overall they had much more to offer than the Hammers.

Were You There 60 Years Ago Today? Manchester City 3 Birmingham City 1

Today (30 April) in 1966 Manchester City were almost back in the top flight after a 3-1 victory at home to Birmingham City. There were only four games left after this match in the Second Division with the next game being away at Rotherham the following Wednesday – fans wondered could this be the night (and if it is would a song eventually be created that would be sung for at least the next three decades remembering the night? No they didn’t wonder that but that is what happened).

Were you there that day? If you were please feel free to add your comments. Here’s some match reports from the Birmingham game:

You can find out more on Manchester City during the 1965-66 season by reading the following 4100 word article. As with most of the other features in this series it includes words from interviews I have performed with those who were there. This is a subscriber article (see below).

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Manchester City v PSG, Champions League Semi-Final 2021

The first leg of the Champions League semi final between Manchester City and Paris Saint Germain was played on this date (28 April) in 2021. Subscribers to this site can read about that game and the second leg below.

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Law’s Last League Game

On this day (April 27) in 1974 Denis law played his last League game on a day that saw Manchester United relegated. Law was in his second spell at Manchester City and, over the years, many myths have developed about his final game and the weeks that followed.

United fans like to say that this game had no bearing on relegation (though pre match United were not relegated and still had a chance of survival) while City fans like to boast that Law’s goal relegated United (mathematically it did not). Many in the media claim Law’s goal was his last in first team football (it wasn’t) and that he retired immediately afterwards (he didn’t). There are other myths about the pitch invasions (there were two not one) and the actions of the ref, so here for the benefit of subscribers is the true story of that day, including quotes from interviews I have performed over the years. Those quoted are Dennis Tueart, Tommy Docherty, Denis law and Willie Donachie.

So get yourself a brew and enjoy this long read on that infamous day:

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1969 Manchester City’s Fourth FA Cup

On this day (26 April) in 1969 Manchester City defeated Leicester City 1-0 in the FA Cup final. City’s scorer was Neil Young. If you’d like to know more about that success or the 1968-69 season then have a read of this subscriber article on Manchester City during the 1968-69 season.
If you’d like to read this 6,000 word article , plus all other articles on the site, then please subscribe (see below). As with most of the other features in this series it includes words from interviews I have performed with those who were there.

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The 2021 League Cup Final

Pep Guardiola’s team won the League Cup for a record-equalling fourth time in succession with a deserved victory over Tottenham on this day (25 April) in 2021. The London club had dismissed manager Jose Mourinho earlier that week, placing coach Ryan Mason in charge for this final. At 29 Mason became the youngest man to be in charge for a League Cup final.

City were the dominant team for most of the game, but the game’s only goal didn’t arrive until eight minutes from time. Aymeric Laporte rose to head home Kevin De Bruyne’s free kick.

After the final Pep Guardiola told the BBC: ‘That is what these players give for the future generations of this club. It is not winning [just] one title. This team in the last decade was the team in England – since Roberto Mancini won the Premier League, this team wins a lot of times in England. It’s nice, four Carabao Cups in a row, it means consistency in the team to be there. We beat Arsenal and Manchester United on the way so we can say we deserved to win this competition. The way we played was fantastic and it’s nice when you win a title. The most impressive thing is in the last 33 games we won 30.’

The victory meant City were now level with Liverpool on eight League Cup final wins and no team had bettered that success. Similarly no manager had won the competition more than Pep Guardiola.

In this Covid-hit season there was some positive news for fans as a limited number were allowed to attend the final wearing face masks. Stewards were told to actively look for fans taking them off and frequently they went into the crowd to ask fans to re-mask otherwise they’d face expulsion. The final attendance of 7,773 included around 2,000 from each club and a number of locally based residents. At the end those from Manchester and the neutrals present stayed to watch the Blues lift their eighth League Cup.

Match Stats

25 April 2021

Manchester City 1 (Laporte) Tottenham Hotspur 0

Attendance 7,773 (Covid restrictions)

You can read my comments about attending the final here:

Covid and the 2021 League Cup Final

Southampton v Manchester City: The First Meeting


Tomorrow sees City and Southampton meet in the FA Cup semi final at Wembley . The first ever meeting between these clubs was a FA Cup tie in 1910 (5 February) and this image is from that very first meeting. City won the tie 5-0 with goals from Jimmy Colin, George Dorsett, Tom Halford, Billy Lot Jones and George Stewart. Here’s a contemporary report of the game:

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Were You There 60 Years Ago Today? Ipswich Town 1 Manchester City 1

Today (23 April) in 1966 Manchester City draw 1-1 at Ipswich. There were only five games left after this match in the Second Division and City hadn’t yet achieved promotion, though they remained in pole position. Notice that the report (main image) was written by Henry Blofeld, more commonly recognised for his cricket work on radio and TV.

Johnny Crossan scored six minutes from time to ensure a point in this match, much to the relief of manager Joe Mercer who commented afterwards (with typical Mercer humour): ‘We worked hard for it but I began to wonder if it would come. We missed enough chances to have won three games!’

Subscribers can read some contemporary match reports from this game below. Were you there that day? If you were please feel free to add your comments.

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You can find out more on Manchester City during the 1965-66 season by reading the following 4100 word article. As with most of the other features in this series it includes words from interviews I have performed with those who were there. This is a subscriber article (see below).

Subscribe to get access

Read more of this content when you subscribe today. It costs £3 per month (cancel anytime) or sign up for a year at the discounted price of £20 per year (works out £1.67 per month). Subscribers access the 1000+ articles posted so far and the others scheduled during the life of your subscription.

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