1975/76: Diary of a Season
Part Three
Burnley v Leicester City
‘December ’63 (Oh What A Night)’
17th February 1976
Noble is out again. He twisted his knee at Middlesbrough and
it’s going to take weeks to mend. Damn! The ‘Clarets in Focus’ caption
writer threatens, ‘Some defences are going to suffer when that Hankin – Fletcher
combination is back in business.’ But Fletcher is ruled out as well. So, how long
were we to wait? Poor Hankin has to battle up front alone again with Ingham and Flynn
drafted into the midfield for this vital, ‘must-win’ game. With a rejuvenated
Frank Worthington, Robert Lee and Chris Garland playing up front for City, supported by
the direct wingplay of Keith Weller, this promised to be a tougher contest than the League
Cup affair. It was. However, Keith Newton managed to evade the attentions of Whitworth and
Weller and curl a right foot shot around Wallington midway through the second half, and
thanks to some dogged, grafting defending we just about hung on. What’s more, this
win lifted us above Wolves and put Birmingham within sight. Another victory would place
safety within our grasp. Brilliant!
Wolves v Burnley
‘Mamma Mia’
21st February 1976
It was a grey day in the Black Country. Burnley could not
afford to lose this relegation scrap. The good news was that Fletcher was fit to partner
Hankin. With Morley working the flanks we had something with which to hurt Wolves.
However, John Richards struck the first blow before the break and although Fletcher
levelled afterwards, Wolves steamed into a two-goal lead before the hour, thanks to
another Richards’ effort and a header from lanky Geordie striker, Norman Bell. Morley
then began to show what he was capable of as he laid on a string of enticing opportunities
for our front pair. Fletcher was denied when his shot struck the bar but Ray Hankin’s
late header gave us something to fight for. However, despite our best efforts it
wasn’t enough. With Birmingham having lost as well, this was a huge missed
opportunity.
Burnley v Sheffield United
‘Forever and Ever’
24th February 1976
This had been an awful season for the Blades. They had managed
just two victories, one of which was against Burnley when sheer floodlight robbery
deprived us of the points. Former manager, Ken Furphy, had paid for United’s failures
with his job. His uncanny ability of turning lower division artisans (Billy Dearden, Tony
Field, Colin Franks, Keith Eddy, Ted Hemsley etc.) into top performers had finally dried
up. Gnarled Scottish veteran, Jimmy Sirrel, had replaced him. With United ten points
adrift of Burnley, relegation was a certainty. It was hardly surprising that they came
with minimum expectations. This is what Burnley boss, Joe Brown, had to say about the
game. ‘We were without Noble, Peyton and Morley, through injury, but the team lifted
their game splendidly and this, allied to maximum effort, brought us a convincing victory.
At half-time I knew we would have to be patient because Sheffield had defended dourly. But
things worked out well for us in the end with our three goals scored by the youngest
members of the team, Ray Hankin (20), Derek Scott (18) and Brian Flynn (20). Ray’s
goal was a well-placed header from Keith Newton’s typically accurate cross; Derek
headed a gem after Paul Fletcher’s long run; and Brian, like Derek, scored his first
home League goal with a tremendous shot from 20 yards five minutes before the final
whistle.’ Another of United’s lower division purchases, Chris Guthrie, headed
the Blades’ consolation goal. Joe also mentioned Mike Summerbee in dispatches,
complimenting him on his highly influential role in this uplifting victory, which enabled
us to hurdle Wolves once more and put us alongside Birmingham, albeit with two more games
played.
Burnley v Aston Villa
‘Love To Love You Baby’
28th February 1976
On this sunny, mild Saturday, Danny West organised the first
London Clarets trip to Turf Moor. It was shared with a number of Villa fans, who’d
enjoyed a sound return to the First Division. Having said that, Villa had travelled badly.
They hadn’t won away from Villa Park thus far. But it looked as if they had put that
behind them when Ray Graydon and Andy Gray slammed the Villains into an early two-goal
lead. To Burnley’s great credit they scrapped to achieve half-time parity. On a
heavy, sapping surface, Brian Flynn kept his feet better than most. Twice he wriggled free
of Villa’s defenders to slam a brace of fizzing drives past John Burridge, leaving us
with expectations of victory. It wasn’t to be. The second half became a dour
attritional stalement and an important point was lost. Birmingham pulled ahead once more.
Stoke City v Burnley
‘I Love To Love (But My Baby Loves To Dance)’
6th March 1976
Despite having a talented squad, Stoke had an indifferent home
record. There was reasonable expectation of a result here. But on a bright, blustery
afternoon, we capitulated. We were two down after 24 minutes. First centre back, Dennis
Smith opened us up and finished with great flair and then, thanks to a lucky bounce, Jimmy
Greenhoff buried a second. Dreadful defensive blunders presented Smith and Mahoney with
second half goals and only a mix up between Shilton and Mahoney allowed Hankin to reduce
the deficit. Birmingham were now three points in front of us with two games still in hand.
Returning home, the evening beauty of the wind-ravaged Peaks was largely lost on us as we
registered our diminishing prospects.
Burnley v Man. City
‘Convoy’
13th March 1976
Over 24,000 turned up on an overcast afternoon for this
red-blooded derby against the League Cup winners. It was easily our best gate of the
season and 7,000 higher than for our previous home game. Despite being reduced to ten men
for the whole of the second half, Burnley battled bravely for a point. Mind you,
Tueart’s two penalty misses helped them. Arguably, Burnley should have been awarded a
late penalty themselves when Morley appeared to be tripped as he burst into the City box.
Burnley v Spurs
‘Love Really Hurts Without You’
20th March 1976
On this perversely bright afternoon the light went out after
one of the limpest performances of the season. There was no conviction, no fight. Spurs
were gifted the points. Following goals from Duncan and Pratt the visitors were well in
control. Waldron’s drive from the edge of the box should have sparked a late rally.
It didn’t. Waldron hardly acknowledged his effort. His colleagues looked equally
disinterested. Heads bowed, they and we knew it was all over.
Liverpool v Burnley
‘I’m Mandy Fly Me’
27th March 1976
It was just habit now that kept us going. The result was a
foregone conclusion even though we were able to field our strongest side for weeks. Noble
was back after his knee injury. It made little difference. The champions-elect seemed
content to play ‘cat and mouse’ with us for long periods. Perhaps the warm
spring sunshine dulled their killer instincts. Finally, ‘super sub’ David
Fairclough tired of it all and slammed in two goals to finish us off. It was difficult to
believe that we had eliminated the Reds from the League Cup just six months earlier.
Leeds United v Burnley
‘Music’
3rd April 1976
At least we showed some fight here after showman Duncan
McKenzie had scored from close range. Hankin managed to muscle his way into the box to
prod a deserved equaliser past Stewart shortly before half-time but after the break full
back, Peter Hampton (the very same!), crashed in a twenty-five yard drive to secure Leeds
the points.
Burnley v Birmingham City
‘Save Your Kisses For Me’
10th April 1976
It was to be my last game of the season. My mother’s
illness finally forced me out of my joyless routine. At least, I was able to bid farewell
to the First Division with a victory. On a hard bumpy pitch, there wasn’t much
entertainment. But we hardly expected any. There was too much at stake. Burnley had to win
to retain the remote mathematical possibility of avoiding the drop and Birmingham were
still being stalked by Wolves. One goal decided it. Hankin crashed through the City
rearguard to beat Latchford with a crisp low shot and despite a bit of huff and puff that
was that.
Burnley now needed to secure maximum points from their three
remaining games to achieve safety. It was an impossible task. Admittedly, Noble grabbed us
two improbable points at St. James’ Park but on Easter Monday Lou Macari finally
brought the shutters down on our Indian Summer. That just left Coventry to attend the wake
five days later. It was ironic. We had welcomed Coventry to the First Division in August
1967. They had helped expel us in 1971 and now they formed our final farewell committee.
The obvious truth was that Burnley were not good enough. It was
ironic that their ‘75/76 strip sported a large ‘V’ since they only secured
nine victories in this lean season. Noble’s enforced absences were critical; so was
James’ departure, as was his loss of form and appetite beforehand. Dependable Alan
Stevenson lost confidence as his arthritic defence frequently stumbled. He was placed on
the transfer list before the end of the season along with Docherty, Collins and Morgan.
Although young Gerry Peyton, snatched from non-League Atherstone, proved to be a more than
able deputy. Fletcher’s knee injury also deprived him of his former speed and
mobility. But for some, the decisive factor in Burnley’s demise was Adamson’s
resignation. It certainly cast a shadow over loyal troops like Waldron, Collins and
Fletcher.
However, these misfortunes might not have proved so significant had
Burnley prepared better. After Burnley had regained their First Division status in 1973
they could no longer afford to retain their ‘sell-to-survive’ policy. The young
talent wasn’t streaming into Burnley with the profusion enjoyed in the fifties and
sixties. That was a prerequisite for this policy to remain sustainable. Post ’72,
only Hankin, Flynn and Scott graduated successfully from youth team to first team
football, not a bad return by most clubs’ standards but a relatively poor harvest for
Burnley. After them there seemed to be no one capable of making the step-up, at least at
First Division level. Having said that, had we retained young, former apprentices like
Morris, Bradshaw and Parker our subsequent decline might not have been so rapid. These
three netted just £40,000 in transfer fees and look what they then achieved with lower
division clubs, although Bradshaw’s career was cut short tragically due to arthritis.
Surely, their sale was a false economy.
In fairness, Bob Lord was prepared to buy but only when a lucrative
outgoing move created a surplus. Moreover, he thought that, as far as revenue was
concerned, the club should always be in the black with a reserve to set against future
deficits. If still in charge, he would probably have used the 1999 rights issue to clear
the ground debts rather than using the additional funding for team investment. He was
never prepared for the club to carry any debt until the club’s decline forced his
hand. I remember him proudly telling a reporter in 1973 that the club didn’t owe a
penny. Lord was surely right to develop the ground but he should have taken a longer-term
view in his business planning. Thankfully, the current board of directors are more astute.
Dobson’s sale should have been resisted. Admittedly, the
really negative effect of Dobo’s sale was delayed for six months or so. However,
Dobson’s experience and skill could have made a crucial difference as our 1974/75
Championship bid began to unravel. He might also have helped us secure safety in 1975/76.
To a lesser degree, the same might be said of Geoff Nulty. Relegation not only deprived
Burnley of significant financial rewards (it certainly wiped out the value of Dobson and
Nulty’s transfer fees), it also deprived them of bright young talent who might have
been enticed to the club in the hope of achieving early first team opportunities.
The run-in to the 1974/75 season confirmed that Adamson’s team
was creaking. By then we could no longer afford to be a selling club. We had buy.
Morley’s purchase came far too late. He should have been signed while James was at
the peak of his powers. I wonder whether Morley’s career at Burnley was blighted by
the weight of expectation that was initially thrust upon him. He might have served us
better if introduced gradually into a successful side rather than required to pick up
James’ discarded mantle immediately. As proof of that look what he achieved at Villa
where he was phased into an ascending team. Two years after leaving Burnley he represented
England!
There were other gaps, though. It is perhaps significant that
Docherty, Waldron and Collins achieved little after released by Burnley. Even in
‘73/74 it was evident that we needed more mobility and pace in the centre of our
defence. Remember the FA Cup semi-final at Hillsborough? For a while Rodaway threatened to
help fill that gap but then he quickly went into reverse. Flynn adapted successfully to
first team football but he never replicated Collins as our arch playmaker. His part was in
a scurrying linkman role. He might have blossomed more if supported by Dobson and Nulty.
Again, too much was expected of him in this stuttering side. Special mention should be
made of young Ray Hankin, though. He deserved a medal for his stirring efforts during this
dismal season. For most of the time he carried our attack alone. Curiously, his career
didn’t take off after leaving Burnley. After one purple season with Leeds he never
featured as a force again.
Obviously, Burnley could never afford a large spending spree. And
in any event, as was proved in 1970/71, it was difficult to attract top players to the
club. What was lacking was a consistent investment policy, which allowed one or two
talented younger players to be purchased from the lower divisions each year perhaps
supplemented by one or two free or cut price signings of experienced top players, just
past their peak, like Newton and Summerbee. Between 1971 and 1976 Burnley sold or released
fifteen experienced professionals, over £1million worth of talent including Coates,
Mellor, West, Kindon, Thomas, Probert, Dobson, James and Nulty. On the other hand they
signed just seven players with football league experience (Fletcher, Newton, Stevenson,
Noble, Summerbee, Morgan and Morley), at a combined cost of just over £300,000. It was
far too few to enable ageing or departing players to be replaced, especially when three of
these replacements were in the twilight of their careers themselves. If Burnley’s
youth policy was still delivering a string of gems then that parsimony might have been
justified but it wasn’t.
Of course hindsight offers easy conclusions but had Burnley
invested more in their future during the late sixties and early seventies, supported by
greater commercial acumen, then they might have reaped the financial rewards that enhanced
TV revenue brought ten years later. Southampton, Wimbledon (until last year) and Coventry
(until today) have all shown how it is possible to survive at the top with limited
support. Unfortunately, in the early seventies Burnley were wedded to a business policy
which had no future.
Tim
Quelch
July 2001
