Category Archives: 1976-77

The 1970s: Attendance Facts Not Fiction

It seems that some have a view that the giant clubs remain giant clubs forever and that there are some clubs who have only recently become prominent. Others believe that teams that were giants decades before some of today’s major trophy winners were never actually that prominent. I could spend hours challenging those who hold these views and pointing out that teams such as Everton, Newcastle & City won major trophies before many of these clubs and were perceived as giants years earlier too (decades before in some cases!), but it doesn’t feel like they’d listen. Ah well! Instead as part of my series of features/articles covering Manchester City in the 1970s I’d like to post a few attendance details that may interest some.

The following are a list of the top seven best supported top flight clubs for the ten seasons prior to City’s relegation in 1983. The Manchester clubs are in bold and the numbers in brackets show each club’s league position that season. In addition if any of the clubs won the European Cup, UEFA Cup, ECWC, FA Cup or League Cup that is also listed in brackets.

AVERAGE ATTENDANCES – Top Tier 1973-74

42712 MUFC (21st); 42332 Liverpool (2nd & FA Cup winners); 38666 Leeds (1st); 33048 Birmingham (19th); 32861 Newcastle (15th); 30756 MCFC (14th).

AVERAGE ATTENDANCES – Top Tier 1974-75

45966 LFC (2nd); 40021 Everton (4th); 34822 Leeds (9th); 34614 Newcastle (15th); 32898 MCFC (8th); 30854 Birmingham (17th); 29872 West Ham (13th & FA Cup winners). Both Manchester United (48387) and Sunderland (29931) were in Division Two but had an average higher than some of those in the top seven top tier averages.

AVERAGE ATTENDANCES – Top Tier 1975-76

54750 MUFC (3rd); 41623 Liverpool (1st & UEFA Cup winners); 38874 Aston Villa (16th); 34280 MCFC (8th & LC winners); 33060 Newcastle (15th); 31511 Leeds (5th); 28350 Derby (4th). Sunderland in Division Two had an average of 31250.

AVERAGE ATTENDANCES – Top Tier 1976-77

53710 MUFC (6th & FA Cup winners); 47221 Liverpool (1st & European Cup winners); 40058 MCFC (2nd); 37903 Aston Villa (4th & LC winners); 33599 Newcastle (5th); 32743 Sunderland (20th), 32671 Arsenal (8th).

AVERAGE ATTENDANCES – Top Tier 1977-78

51860 MUFC (10th); 45546 Liverpool (2nd & European Cup winners); 41687 MCFC (4th); 39513 Everton (3rd); 35464 Aston Villa (8th); 35446 Arsenal (5th); 32501 Nottm Forest (1st & LC winners). Tottenham were in Division Two with an average of 33417.

AVERAGE ATTENDANCES – Top Tier 1978-79

46430 MUFC (9th); 46407 Liverpool (1st); 36371 Arsenal (7th & FA Cup winners); 36203 MCFC (15th); 35456 Everton (4th); 34902 Tottenham (11th); 32838 Aston Villa (8th).

AVERAGE ATTENDANCES – Top Tier 1979-80

51608 MUFC (2nd); 44586 Liverpool (1st); 35272 MCFC (17th); 33596 Arsenal (4th); 32018 Tottenham (14th); 29794 Crystal Palace (13th); 28711 Everton (19th).

1979-80 League table and attendance detail up to 26/4/1980

AVERAGE ATTENDANCES – Top Tier 1980-81

45071 MUFC (8th); 37547 Liverpool (5th & LC winners); 34117 Aston Villa (1st); 33587 MCFC (12th); 32480 Arsenal (3rd); 30724 Tottenham (10th & FA Cup winners); 26477 Sunderland (17th). West Ham were in Division Two with an average of 27140.

Kippax Stand c.1980

AVERAGE ATTENDANCES – Top Tier 1981-82

44571 MUFC (3rd); 35100 Tottenham (4th & FA Cup winners); 35061 Liverpool (1st & LC winners); 34063 MCFC (10th); 26780 Aston Villa (11th & European Cup winners); 26585 West Ham (9th); 25589 Arsenal (5th).

1981 City v United Maine Road

AVERAGE ATTENDANCES – Top Tier 1982-83

41552 MUFC (3rd & FA Cup winners); 34758 Liverpool (1st & LC winners); 30581 Tottenham (4th); 26789 MCFC (20th); 24153 Arsenal (10th); 23748 Aston Villa (6th); 22822 West Ham (8th). Second Division Newcastle attracted an average of 24166.

Fans storming the main entrance in 1983. Mirrorpix photo

For those wondering Manchester City did drop a little in terms of position in the attendance chart during their Second Division days but they were still the 6th best supported club (of all clubs) in 1983-84 and 8th best in 1984-85. Back in Division One in 1985-86 the Blues were once again the 4th best supported team in the entire League.

This series of articles and features on Manchester City in the 1970s has been running throughout January with indepth articles some days and smaller ‘on this day’ style posts on others. Every day in January will offer something to enjoy.

Subscribers will get access to everything. If you want to know more on this incredible decade for Manchester City Football Club then why not subscribe and read it all? You could even subscribe for a month and see what you think. The following 1,600 word article is on the 1974-75 season and is available to subscribers below. Enjoy!

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Maine Road 100 – Day 62

Day 6 of my posts counting down to the centenary of Maine Road’s opening game continues with another segregation image. This is a late 1970s Manchester derby image and the City player is Mike Doyle but look beyond him at the segregation and perimeter fencing. As well as the railings in front of the Kippax Stand the away section (to the right) has an additional chicken wire style temporary fence in front of the United fans.

This was a period when United fans had an extremely bad reputation for pitch invasions and crowd actions and City had been forced to install this additional netting for this derby match after consultation with the police.

The fencing didn’t last of course and so this image is extremely unusual.

If you’d like to read more on the history of Maine Road, take a look at Farewell To Maine Road, which can be downloaded from this page:

Farewell To Maine Road – Part One

If you enjoy all the free material on my website and would like to support my research and keep this website going (but don’t want to subscribe) then why not make a one-time donation (or buy me a coffee). All support for my research is valued and welcome. It allows me to keep some free material available for all. Thanks.

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Can You Help Find These MCFC Fans?

“It was the way in which the football supporters of Manchester United and Manchester City used to dress and treat the whole match as if it were a carnival”
– Iain S. P. Reid

A book is to be produced on Iain SP Reid’s photographs of City and United fans at Maine Road and Old Trafford. Paul Sorene (one of the people behind the book) has asked me to help track down anyone who appeared in these photos.

Images, like the one above of the hot dog sellers and fans on Maine Road, will be reproduced in the book with, where possible, the stories of those featured in the photos. Maybe, if circumstances allow, they’ll recreate some of the scenes within the book too.

So if you appeared in that photo or in any of the others Iain took during this period then please get in touch.

You can make contact with Paul Sorene and all involved at info@flashbak.com or through the Facebook page for Iain’s work at:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?vanity=IainSPReid&set=a.2606932862855473

These photos were taken circa 1977. Iain believed that photography could improve lives. His work is full of joy. Sadly he died in 2000, leaving his fabulous archive of photographs filed away in boxes unseen until his family rediscovered them.

The book will be crowdfunded and we’ll all be able to spread the word but, most importantly at the moment, the people behind the book really want to hear from those Iain captured in his work. The pictures alone would make a fantastic book, but including the stories of those capture will make it a truly brilliant project.

I’m always passionate about the capturing and preservation of footballing images and stories. For me football simply isn’t about the players on the pitch but the thousands who dedicate significant time – and money – to supporting their club. If you’re a Blue or a Red who attended games around 1976-77 then take a look at Iain’s collection at https://www.facebook.com/IainSPReid and see if you’re there – or if there’s someone you recognise. The more people can do this the better. Thanks