It has been said that the length of a skirt or the height of a new building is a measure of national optimism. Certainly, the mini skirt was a product of the hopeful sixties. So were many of our high-rise tower blocks. Those of you who were around then might remember that hemlines fell as we entered this next decade. Some might even claim that the collapse of Ronan Point tower block was symbolic, too. But that’s probably just Babel babble.
The rapid technological advances continued. We had everything from the first test tube baby to the cheap electronic calculator. And yet, when we were still in the afterglow of the first moon landing, we began to question some of the advances that took us there. We became increasingly aware of the down sides, like the rising noise and pollution brought about by urban motorways.
Our rapidly modernising world was costing us a bomb, too. As house prices increased by almost a 1000% between 1970 and 1979, we became more and more reliant upon credit. Also, we seemed to be spending more than we were earning. This was partly due to the oil sheikhs, who made sure that we paid through the nose for our support of Israel. Anyway, the result of all this was to push up inflation. Peter Jay went so far as to say that he thought that inflation was as big a world threat as over-population and the nuclear bomb. Without doubt, it was a subject which vexed all of our political leaders during the seventies and created a greater rift between the left and the right.
In the seventies, left wing idealism appeared to be in retreat. As the students of 1968, we had posters of Che Guevara and Ho Chi-Minh to cover our walls and conceal our ignorance. Messages from the Gulag Archipelago, Kampuchea (Cambodia) and elsewhere, made us challenge those ideals. It seemed as if left wing radicalism had become tainted with oppression and de-humanisation and, as far as Kampuchea was concerned, stained irredeemably with genocide. Despite a tentative thaw in Super Power relations, terrorism abounded. At home, left wing politics seemed increasingly beset with petty squabbles, fractious industrial relations and economic stagnancy.
There was little surprise about Mrs Thatcher’s surge to power. In a time of despair, quick fix bandwagons run down careful argument, often fuelled by some Four Star ‘Aunt Sally’. Mrs Thatcher had a vast family of ‘Aunt Sallys’. She traded on rising exasperation with left-wing union activists, on mounting impatience with festering towns and cities, on increasing alarm at disaffected youth, whether represented by Rastas or punks and on growing resentment of ‘welfare scroungers’. And, of course, Mummy knew best.
In a decaying Britain, punk had resonance. But while punk confronted dwindling hopes, disco escaped them. But I doubt whether the Bee Gees would knock it. After all, disco provided them with an unlikely earner, or at least the Saturday Night Fever version did. Remember that the message here was, ‘hey folks, the whites have taken over the disco’. Therefore, some Caucasian types were needed to challenge the supremacy of the black disco divas like Donna Summer or Gloria Gaynor. It just so happened that the Bee Gees were first in the dole queue.
Not that there is any good reason to knock escapism. As we trundled towards what then seemed to be the ultimate humiliation, relegation to the Third Division, there was every reason to go down the disco. The new season started with the Boomtown Rats at the top of the charts. ‘I Don’t Like Mondays’ sang Sir Bob. Actually, we didn’t like Saturdays any better. Jimmy Adamson’s boast then stood as proud and tall as Ronan Point. Martin Dobson’s return, as much as it was welcomed, seemed like a further attempt to prop up Jimmy’s dream before time finally ran out.
The season was prefaced by a savage Atlantic storm, causing the death of fourteen yachtsmen in the Fastnet Race. It was barely underway when Lord Mountbatten was assassinated by the IRA, the Yorkshire Ripper claimed his twelfth victim and the massive Cambodian relief programme was launched. It was the season when Iran seized 53 US diplomats as hostages. Delta Force then made a total pig’s ear of rescuing them as the season drew to a close. The Soviets also invaded Afghanistan, creating their very own ‘Vietnam’.
As usual, Burnley kicked off with the Anglo-Scottish Cup, this time as holders. They soon lost their grip on the trophy, though, following defeats by Blackpool and Preston and a draw with Blackburn.
For the new season, Burnley brought back to Turf Moor 31-year-old Martin Dobson from Everton. The £100,000 fee had to be settled by the new transfer tribunal. The deal was financed by the £200,000 sale of 24-year-old Tony Morley to Aston Villa. Morley had been a fringe player in 1978/79. His impact at Villa would be immeasurably greater. Harry Potts also tried to get another ex-Claret, Geoff Nulty. But Geoff wished to honour his contract at Goodison Park. Unfortunately, he became seriously injured later in the season.
The Division Two programme began with a visit to the capital and a 2-2 draw against Orient, with goals from Steve Kindon and Leighton James. The team lined up: Stevenson, Scott, Brennan, Noble, Thomson, Rodaway, Ingham, Dobson, Fletcher, Kindon, James. Sub: Jakub.
However, this was about as good as it got, for none of the first 16 competitive games were won. Wolves eliminated them from the League Cup (1-3 on aggregate) and only 6,924 supporters turned up for the Clarets’ first home League game against Charlton (1-1). The increased entrance fee of £1.50 was certainly a deterrent. What’s more, there were no concessions available after the club had discovered abuses of the system. It was therefore cheaper to watch Man U or Liverpool.
It was not as if there was much to sustain supporters’ interest. As a result of Cardiff’s 2-0 victory at Turf Moor on 13th October, Burnley had stretched their win-less run to twenty-four competitive games. Their last victory had been at Blackburn on Easter Saturday. It was of little surprise that Harry was then relieved of his job and replaced by club coach, Brian Miller, who had spent all of his footballing career at Turf Moor as player, trainer, coach, and now manager.
Brian’s reign did not start at all well. Indeed, Burnley’s poor performances went from bad to worse. His first game in charge was a 3-2 away defeat at Preston, where James and Dobson scored the Clarets' goals. Alan Stevenson aggravated a knee injury and had to miss his first League game for nearly four seasons. His replacement for the away game at QPR was Billy O’Rourke, making his first team debut in a game which was to be televised on Match of the Day. It would go down as possibly the worst ever display by a Burnley team, as Rangers hammered them 7-0. The team was O’Rourke, Scott, Brennan, Noble, Thomson, Rodaway, James, Dobson, Fletcher, Kindon, Young. Sub: Hall. Nine members of this team had played at the highest level, and yet they were utterly humiliated. Going forward Burnley offered almost nothing, and at the back they were a shambles. O’Rourke hadn’t done anything wrong and yet he had been beaten seven times. He left the field in tears. Now it was quite clear. There was a very real prospect of Burnley being relegated to the Third Division for the first time.
Changes had to be made. Over the next few games Scott, Thomson, Noble, Rodaway, Fletcher and Kindon all lost their places. In came Tony Arins, Malcolm Smith, Paul Dixon, Jeff Tate, Marshall Burke, Vince Overson and Phil Caverner.
After expressing dissatisfaction with the prospect of reserve football, Kindon was sold to Huddersfield Town for £55,000 in December. There he would recover his dynamic form, scoring 35 goals in 69 appearances, before a serious knee injury ended his career. Early in the New Year, Noble (£25,000) and Fletcher (£30,000) were sold to Blackpool, and reserve goalkeeper Tony Norman went to Hull (£30,000).
Two weeks after the QPR debacle, Burnley faced promotion-chasing Leicester City at Filbert Street. It was Saturday 10th November. Dr Hook’s When You’re In Love With A Beautiful Woman was the number one single. The Police’s Regatta De Blanc was the top-selling album. It was a grey overcast day and the prospects were poor, especially after Burnley had sustained yet another home defeat, this time to Orient (1-2).
Despite being heavily outgunned, Burnley played with commendable vigour. They fought for everything. Their youngsters, Jeff Tate and Richard Overson, appeared well out of their depth, but they never gave up. Having said that, Leicester should have had the game wrapped up by the time that James had opened the scoring, but hell, indomitable spirit should count for something. His goal came midway through the second half. Its execution was a delight. Having cut in from the right wing James saw Wallington was off his line and chipped the ball over him precisely. The ball bounced just once before coming to rest in the back of the net. The home crowd was stunned. They had fervently believed that a Leicester goal was imminent. But James had deserved this. He had played brilliantly all afternoon. He was the only Burnley player capable of hurting Leicester, and although heavily marked, he still managed to wriggle free. He worked his socks off, too. This was quite unlike the James who had under-performed himself onto the transfer list in 1975. This was a whole-hearted commitment to what was probably a losing cause.
As it turned out, Burnley did get something from the game. Alan Young snatched a late equaliser but then missed a penalty to allow Burnley to escape with a well-earned point (1-1). This was much better.
Fletcher worked hard up front but the guy’s confidence was completely shot. He was unrecognisable as the young centre forward that had upset so many First Division defenders with his speed and aerial strength. His days had to be numbered. In fact, he would only play two more games for Burnley. He would make way for another Burnley hero, Billy Hamilton, who was signed from QPR for £38,000.
Billy made his debut one week after Burnley’s first win of the season, a 5-3 home victory over nine-man Cambridge. He replaced Paul Fletcher for the away game at Bristol Rovers (0-0). Burnley were developing greater resilience and their confidence was lifting. A further victory was achieved against Watford (1-0), and having beaten Newcastle (3-2) and Notts County (3-2) over Christmas, they finally emerged from the relegation zone. Billy Hamilton looked good in a leggy, awkward sort of way. So did young winger Phil Caverner. Both players scored a brace apiece in the Christmas games. To cap it all, Brian Miller secured the Second Division Manager of the Month. We could now celebrate the New Year with hope restored.
Alas, it was just a brief respite in the downward spiral. Perhaps all the remaining luck was used up in a home FA Cup game with Stoke (1-0). Two ludicrous dismissals left Stoke with a colossal task after Dobson had scored from the spot. But they battled on bravely in the mud, only for Crooks to miss an absolute sitter in the final minute. Bury then knocked the Clarets out in the next round after a diabolical performance (0-1).
After that, Burnley managed just one win, a 2-1 home victory over ever-so-obliging Fulham on an ice rink surface. It was amazing that anyone was able to keep their footing on that pitch. James did, though, scoring a splendid opening goal after a mazy dribble.
Of the remaining 15 games, nine were defeats and six were drawn. Only four goals were scored in the final eight games, all netted by Billy Hamilton, who became the club’s leading scorer with seven goals.
After Sunderland had thrashed them 5-0 on February 9th, with little Stan Cummins scoring four, attempts were made to strengthen the squad, but resources were short. So Leighton James was put on the transfer list in order to try to raise some cash. Bobby Shinton, the Manchester City and ex-Wrexham striker was courted but turned down a £200,000 move.
Martyn Busby was signed on loan from QPR in March after Dobson had limped out of the action. Dobbo’s Achilles hamstring injury sidelined him for the remainder of the season. With him went Burnley’s last hope of survival. A dismal home draw with Bristol Rovers (1-1) on April 12th finally sent them down.
It was inevitable that there would be a mass clear out. James went to Swansea for £140,000 to pep their First Division aspirations. Arins and Burke were given unexpected opportunities to resurrect their careers at Leeds. As for the others, Brian Hall went to Northwich Victoria, Richard Overson went to Hereford, Malcolm Smith went to York, Rob Higgins went to Rochdale and Jeff Tate and Neil McGregor both went to Morecambe. Peter Robinson was the only other former Claret to command a fee. He was transferred to Sparta Rotterdam for £35,000. The decade ended as it begun, with relegation. Burnley had succumbed to the fate which had afflicted the other former Lancastrian giants, Bolton, Blackburn, Blackpool and Preston. Much as it pained us, and much as we tried to conceal it, now it was official. We were third rate.
It was a perversely bright afternoon. Surely, there were better places to be than at Turf Moor? The meagre crowd of just 5,270 provided its own telling answer. It was Burnley’s lowest post war League gate. Each successive season now seemed to herald a new low. The Burnley Express was advertising a fortnight in the Bahamas for under £500. Never did it seem as attractive.
Burnley had done well to gain a point at Newcastle on the previous Saturday (1-1). Hamilton had scored, giving the Clarets a smidgen of hope that the drop could be avoided. Miller kept faith with that team when selecting his squad for the crucial home game with Bristol Rovers. The team lined up: Stevenson, Scott, Thomson, Rodaway, McAdam, Smith, Robertson, Jakub, James, Hamilton, Burke. Sub: Young. Bristol Rovers included Terry Cooper and Gary Mabbutt in their side.
The first half was dire. Burnley had most of the ball, but couldn’t do anything with it. There were very few chances. Rovers’ defence was composed and well organised with Terry Cooper, playing superbly as sweeper. Time and time again Cooper broke up Burnley’s moves at source to set up incisive counter attacks with well-placed passes. However, veteran stopper Jim Thomson marshalled his defence very capably. Scott was also playing well at right back, trying to pep up Burnley’s blunt attack with some foraging wing raids.
Burnley’s best chance fell to the hard working Billy Hamilton after 20 minutes. He had been giving his hefty marker, Steve Harding, a difficult time, particularly in the air. But when James crossed well from the right, Billy volleyed the opportunity wide from inside the goal area. It would prove very costly. For after Stevenson had saved brilliantly from Aitken, Rovers won a disputed penalty in the 41st minute. Chic Bates had gone down like a sack of spuds after getting past Rodaway on the left of the area. It appeared that there hadn’t been any contact, but the linesman thought otherwise. Vaughan Jones put the chance away.
Burnley began the second half by tearing into Rovers. James and Scott worked well together, enabling Smith to get in a sharp volley, which keeper Thomas did well to save. Burke also appeared to be pushed in the area, but no penalty was awarded. Thereafter, Burnley became increasingly dispirited. It was only in the last ten minutes that they appeared to recover their resolve. James ran almost the entire length of the pitch to set up Hamilton, but the Irishman’s header struck Harding and was deflected wide.
With hope almost expired, Hamilton snatched an equaliser. Jakub’s shot was on target but Thomas parried. Kevin Young blasted the rebound across the face of the goal, and there was Hamilton, at the far post, to lash it into the roof of the net. Burnley then threw everything into a final three-minute assault. Had it not been for an acrobatic goal-line clearance by Cooper from a James’ thunderbolt, Burnley might have stole it at the death. But it was not to be. With Watford winning at Notts County, Burnley were down.
Brian Miller was as dignified and candid as ever in defeat. He seemed rather fatalistic, too. He told the Burnley Express, "It is a bitter disappointment and, of course, it’s a terrible blow for the fans. But while I am not happy to accept the situation, people must realise that football is not the same now, as it was when we were a force in the First Division. The running of football in 1980 is nothing like the same as it was in 1960. It is so much harder for the small town clubs. How can we be expected to succeed when even clubs who win the First Division make a loss? I think it’s also worth recalling that we are the last of the Lancashire town clubs [Blackburn, Blackpool, Bolton, Preston] to taste Third Division football… and of all of these towns we are the smallest."
Was Brian telling us that we must accustom ourselves to lowered expectations? It seemed like it.
Noel Wild of the Lancashire Evening Telegraph echoed Brian’s modest hopes. He said, "[Relegation to the Third Division] has happened to many other clubs, of course. Aston Villa, with their majestic ground, were in the Third Division not all that long ago. Sheffield Wednesday, at magnificent Hillsborough, are in the Third now. The difference to me is that these clubs are City clubs with tremendous potential support. If and when clubs like these make a comeback – the support is on the doorstep. This is not so at Burnley. For the Clarets it will be a hard road back from obscurity."
As for Jimmy McIlroy, he was not totally surprised at Burnley’s decline. He said, "No football team at any level can consistently sell off its top players and expect to stay on at the top. It has to be a question of priorities, and I am not sure that Burnley have always got theirs right, despite the particular financial and geographical circumstances they are in."
With regard to team selections during this grim season, Brian continued, "I’ve obviously thought long and hard about what has happened, but I honestly don’t believe there is anything more I could have done. If anyone can tell me what else could have been tried I’d be pleased to listen to them. I’ve put in youngsters when experienced players weren’t doing it. I tried to sign players both on a permanent basis and on loan, without success. I’ve made changes when I thought they were necessary… But people told me that I was taking over an impossible situation when I became manager, and that’s the way the situation has worked out… Although we took six points out of six at Christmas it took its toll on the younger players. It was the toughest spell of matches they had experienced in their life and some of them were never the same again. The injury to Martin Dobson did not help, and if there is one regret I have on our planning it was that we did not re-adjust to his absence as quickly as we should have done. We should have tightened up more."
Despite acknowledging the lack of experience in the squad, particularly after Christmas, Brian had no regrets over the sales of Noble, Kindon and Fletcher. He pointed out that these sales had reduced the wage bill by £1,000 per week and brought in around £100,000. He added, "‘When I took over I did not think the team spirit was good, and I had to do something to improve that. I could not guarantee first-team football to Noble or Kindon, and neither was prepared to accept reserve team football for any length of time. In the case of Fletcher he had lost all confidence of playing in front of the Burnley crowd. In each case I made the decision to let them go and I stick by that judgement."
Brian concluded that his top priorities in the transfer market were for a strong midfield player and, "someone to battle up front with Billy Hamilton." It was rumoured that Brian was checking out the experienced Newcastle pair, rampaging forward Billy Rafferty and international midfielder Tommy Cassidy.
Jimmy McIlroy would have probably have agreed with this interest. He said, "One or two veterans, just short of top class, are the sort of players to do the trick. I’m thinking of the Dixie McNeils and Bob Hattons, very experienced, full of bustle and fight and shrewd enough to carry the youngsters along with them."
As with any relegation campaign, ‘naming and shaming’ abounded. But Brian Miller was careful not to allocate blame. The nearest he came to a reproach was when he referred to the poor team spirit when he took over. The local press and many Burnley supporters were not so forbearing, though. Predictably, the knives were out for Bob Lord and the Burnley directors.
Peter Higgs Sports Editor of the Burnley Express wrote, "Economics have played their part, of course. It IS getting tougher all the time for the smaller clubs. But that’s only part of the story… The men responsible for failing to correct this disastrous slide must be Mr Lord and his board of directors… Misguided policies and too much petty politics behind the scenes have eventually been reflected on the field of play. How is it, for example, that Burnley’s players were among the best paid in the Second Division (as revealed by Mr Lord after the 7-0 defeat by Queen’s Park Rangers) when they spent almost the entire season in the bottom three? Were they overpaid or were the coaching staff not getting the best out of them?... And who was being asked to foot the bill for these high wages? None other than the long-suffering supporters, who had to pay a minimum of £1.50 per match – no matter how young or old. Over the years the lack of respect for supporters, bordering on contempt, has been one of Burnley’s biggest failings. It has driven thousands away and tested the loyalty to the limit of the remaining faithful 5,000 (how many will it be next season?)… A change of leadership, making Burnley a more democratic, friendly and better-organised club is long overdue..."
One supporter wrote to the Burnley Express stating, "The euphoria following the uplift in fortunes when Brian Miller first took over as manager was to me ridiculous. I stated at that time that Bob Lord and his yes men would see Burnley in the Third Division… Had the 89% of the supporters who wanted Bob Lord out (according to the Granada TV survey) boycotted the matches until he resigned, I feel the club would be in a far better position…"
Another supporter asked, "Why has the club persisted in appointing managers who have had little or no experience as either players or managers outside Burnley FC?… Why has the club not appointed a new, more professional commercial director or manager, to improve both financial and commercial aspects? Why has the club not introduced a more professional public relations exercise to win more friends and less enemies, and to the point, more goodwill?… Why has the playing staff not been strengthened by players other than ex-Burnley?"
As expected, Brian defended his Chairman and board of directors, stating that, "It’s wrong to place blame on any one man or any one group of people within the club. What has happened at Burnley has been caused by a culmination of circumstances." Brian sounded a bit like a beleaguered Social Services director in the wake of a child abuse tragedy.
Brian went on, "As far as myself and the coaching staff are concerned we have every confidence in the board of directors to run the club on the right lines." And I thought it was the prerogative of the directors to express confidence or not in the management of a club. Brian pointed out that he had been given a free hand in playing and coaching matters and that the directors couldn’t have given him better backing. He urged the need to work together.
To his critics, Bob Lord seemed autocratic, self-opinionated and closed to new ideas. He appeared to put ground before team and, arguably, failed to maximise the commercial opportunities which became available to him. He outrightly opposed TV coverage for a time, when this might have helped put Burnley in the shop window. He made controversial and sometimes offensive public remarks, and his response to supporters at large was, at best, aloof. However, he presided over the club during one of its most glorious periods. For that, he deserves credit. Burnley would always find it hard to compete at the very top once the abolition of the maximum wage had removed the artificially level playing field. His fault was in not adapting sufficiently or soon enough. As for the criticism that he only selected managers from within, the first venture outside the fold led to the appointment of a Mr Bond, John Bond. But that’s another story.
