Much excitement and partying in Newcastle to celebrate the Toon Army’s club takeover by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF). Twitter is awash with video footage of shirtless Geordies dancing in the streets, with an estimated 15,000 gathering at St James’ Park to celebrate. Another part of the consortium, businesswoman Angela Staveley, insists the club will not be run by the state of Saudi Arabia, but there is no getting away from the fact that the state does now own 80% of Newcastle United. The PIF is overseen by the Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Staveley says that PIF is “an autonomous commercially-driven investment fund” and a “great partner for Newcastle.” Lovely. The aim, she says, is a global brand, generating pride across the world. Even lovelier.
This, of course, sees the end of the reign of the loathed Mike Ashley, a character about whom it is hard to find anything nice to say, so I won’t. However, I am quite prepared to break my own niceness rule for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which Amnesty International reports is responsible for human rights breaches on no fewer than ten counts, including torture, executions, no right to protest, lack of free speech (including murder of journalists), chronic discrimination against women and and no rights for LGBT. Looking at the last one in more detail, acts of homosexuality are punished with fines, public whipping, chemical castration, life imprisonment and torture. Saudi Arabia has no criminal code and operates solely under Sharia Law, which presumably will play well with the EDL contingent in the North-East (and wider). I can’t profess to be any sort of international security expert, but the CIA think bin Salman was involved in the killing of an opposition journalist and the planes used in that were owned by FIP. A quick look at the Wikipedia page on him doesn’t make for comforting reading and that’s before we even start to contemplate the Saudi royals‘ suspected funding of al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Hey ho…
Personally, such a takeover at Forest would probably be the line in the sand for me and I’d be off to pastures new. Newcastle fans can look forward to becoming one of the world’s wealthiest clubs, but at what cost?
Which brings us to 1974...
A fantastic photo of the City Ground, posted on Twitter this week by the NFFC Archive, brought back memories of that year. The old East Stand, a decent looking crowd for the time and Forest in FA Cup action v Bristol Rovers. The were 23,456, a nine year-old Zagger included, there on the 6th of January to witness a thrilling 4-3 win. This was well above the typical 10-13,000 of the time, highlighting the continuing ‘magic of the cup’. Forest, at the time, were a pretty mediocre 2nd Division side, finishing 7th that season, a decent improvement on 14th the year before. The squad looks fairly lacklustre, with plenty of journeymen and only the majestic, wonderful talent of Duncan McKenzie to brighten things up. Robbo, Bomber Bowyer and Martin O’Neill were decent, but not looking like potential European Champions just five years later.
Partly behind the sizeable crowd was the novelty of a Sunday match. Power shortages were causing matches to be played at unusual times (for the time). The NUM were on an overtime ban and a full-on strike was only a few weeks away. The three day week had come into effect on New Year’s Eve and commercial consumption of energy was restricted to three consecutive days. At the time of this match, even the telly was subject to a staggered shut-down
The win brought around a tasty home draw v Man City. 41,000 at this one, myself included, on the Bridgford. This one became a big part of the McKenzie legend, along with being able to leap over a mini and throw a golf ball round Bulwell Forest in par. Another Sunday, painfully cold, a mud bath pitch which he just seemed to skate over. He was unplayable, setting up two for Bomber, another for George Lyall, before rounding things off with a goal so sublime that a number of Man City fans online still refer to it as the best goal they’ve ever seen. Sadly, I have no recollection of it! City fans also talk/write nostalgically of a number of them being thrown in the Trent that day, as happened. “Always a lot of aggro at Forest, and that day was one of the worst,” someone on a Blue Moon thread about this match writes. The national press described it (the match, not the aggro) as the biggest surprise of the round and a “humiliation” for City, who featured to-be Forest legend Colin Barrett.
Next up, a home tie v Portsmouth And I remember absolutely nowt about this. I’m not sure I went, though I’d imagine the likelihood is that I did. Reports are difficult to find, beyond it being a 1-0 win for Forest and another Sunday fixture.
All of which brings us to Newcastle and events which I’ve still not really ever forgiven them for. March the 9th. My tenth birthday. Forest took a huge following, reputedly 12-15,000, contributing to an atttendance of over 52,000, well up on Newcastle’s (already healthy) 32,000 average. Again, the magic of the cup. Dad had got hold of tickets for the Main stand, which was probably the first time I’d ever sat at a match. An electric atmosphere and the Geordies definitely fully-expecting a stroll into the semi-final.
Bomber scored early on, but Newcastle equalised through David Craig. Liam O’Kane scored a screamer from about 20 yards and Forest led 2-1 at half-time. Happy days. Things got (briefly) better in the second half as Forest were awarded a penalty, Newcastle‘s Pat Howard disagreed and got himself sent off for dissent and George Lyall slotted it away, 3-1. From a modern perspective, it’s interesting to see - highlights below - Neil Martin arguing for Howard not to be sent off. How times change.
Anyway, cue chaos…
Newcastle fans in the Leazes End spilled onto the surround of the pitch, possibly to avoid crushing. It did look insanely packed. This turned into a full-on pitch invasion, clearly intended to stop the match. Forest players were kicked and hit and the ref took everyone off. In the main stand, an adult Geordie punched a ten year old boy full-on in the face. He’ll either be dead or knocking on 80 now. I hope he had a thoroughly shit life. Police with dogs battled with the marauders as they headed for the Gallowgate End, where the majority of the Forest support was gathered. 23 people were taken to hospital, two with fractured skulls. Another 103 people were treated at the ground and 39 were arrested.
On the restart, some ten minutes later, Forest were clearly shaken and Newcastle came storming back. Terry McDermott scored, then John Tudor with a spectacular full-length diving header. 3-3. The final sting in the tail came as Malcolm ‘Supermac’ McDonald set up Bobby Moncur for a winner. Terry McDermott was absolutely awesome, to be fair, and you could see why Liverpool went on to snap him up.
Highlights here: Fabulous Hugh Johns’ commentary, great kits, pitch invasion, brilliant goals, the lot! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KHWoY-0SThs
Inevitably, Forest appealed. A certain Frank Clark vociferously claimed that Newcastle’s comeback was legitimate and enough to put them through. FA Chairman Ted Croker said that a replay was impossible as the match had concluded with a winner, but that Newcastle could be disqualified. A four man committee met to debate this and, in the end, fudged it. A replay was awarded, the match scrubbed out as null and void. Expectations of a home match were scuppered as the FA bizarrely ordered it to be played at Goodison.
The ‘replay’ was held on a Monday, the 18th March and we travelled again, sitting in the vertiginous heights of Goodison’s Main Stand. I’d never been in a stand with an escalator before! Newcastle battered us, hitting the woodwork, three times, but Forest held on for 0-0 after extra time. Surely the replay of the ‘replay’ would be at the City Ground then. Nope, back to Goodison on the Thursday and I didn’t make it but listened on the radio - presumably Dad was busy working. Another nervy affair, but a Supermac winner put Forest out.
Newcastle went on to beat Burnley (at the time, higher in Division 1) 2-0 in the semi at Hillsborough and then be right royally spanked 3-0 by a Keegan-inspired Liverpool in a boringly one-sided final. Ray Clemence could have brought a deck-chair out for the 2nd half. Almost certainly the only time I’ve ever fervently supported Liverpool. Same ref as at St James’, curiously enough, Gordon Kew.
Further on, Newcastle finished the season in 15th as they did the next two. In 1976-77, as we got promoted, they finished 5th, prompting hopes of a revival. Tragically, relegation followed the next season, with Forest completing a 2-0 double over them en route to the title. This led to six years in Division Two whilst Forest went about winning the League, countless cups, being Kings of Europe twice and generally do very, very nicely, thankyou. Karma. Newcastle still await a trophy since the Fairs Cup of 1969. Will this week’s events hasten an end to that wait? Until yesterday, I think I’d have been happy enough for them to win something. I’m not sure I really care either way now.
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