First European Journey
1960-61
Burnley v Rheims
16th November 1960
Burnley’s second title winning success brought them not
just the championship, but secured for the first time entry into the European Cup.
Friendly summer tours on the continent had been a feature at the club for some time, but
now they went forward as national champions to compete with the best in Europe for
football’s premier trophy. Since its inception, one team, Real Madrid, had
established a monopoly on the Cup and no British club had reached the final. It was
commonly believed that home clubs could not match the top continental sides – a
theory that Burnley would now put to the test. After enjoying a bye in the preliminary
round, they were drawn to play French champions Rheims in the first round; a club rich in
domestic honours. Rheims had eight full internationals and supplied half the French
national squad. Raymond Kopa and Just Fontaine, leading scorer in the 1958 World Cup, were
both world class players. They had appeared twice in the European Cup Final and were only
just behind Real Madrid and Barcelona in the pantheon of top European clubs.
Rheims arrived at Manchester’s Ringway Airport and took
up residence in the Keirby Hotel, where they were welcomed on arrival by Chairman Bob Lord
and club officials. Burnley retired to the Blackpool resort where they had prepared for
the title-winning encounter at Maine Road. They made the facilities at Gawthorpe available
to their French guests. The French knew McIlroy from the World Cup and he was to be
tightly marked, but otherwise the two sides knew little of one another so the game began
with many open possibilities.
It was the first European tie ever played in East Lancashire
and 36,742 crowded into Turf Moor on the night of Wednesday 16th November 1960
to see the biggest game in the club’s history. It was a day in which Clark Gable
died. He once admitted, ‘I can’t emote worth a damn.’ It was just as well
that he couldn’t make the game, then. He would have been in a company of one. At
number one, Elvis Presley reckoned 'It’s Now Or Never'. But Burnley didn’t need
reminding that a first leg victory was crucial.
A promising sign was to see the Rheims players take the pitch
in a change strip of yellow and black – Burnley had scored five against Wolves on the
previous Saturday. They also had a most encouraging start. Hardly had the national anthems
died away when Burnley scored. Left back Rodzic’s headed clearance went straight to
Connelly, who hooked the ball straight back into the goalmouth for Robson to put Burnley
one up in the first minute. Yet perversely, it was Rheims who settled quicker and Blacklaw
had to save well from inside left Pianton. Nevertheless, McIlroy increased Burnley’s
lead when his shot deflected off centre half Siatka into the far corner of the net.
Pointer, running tirelessly, troubled Rheims most of all and it was his fine centre which
nearly set up Pilkington for a third just before half time. Unfortunately, the Burnley
winger’s shot missed by inches. Yet Burnley had to rely upon Blacklaw’s
brilliant save from left winger Vincent to preserve Burnley’s interval lead.
The second half resumed with Burnley on the defensive and
Blacklaw had to save superbly from left half Moreau’s thirty-yard volley. Rheims had
players who delighted with touches of individual craft. They possessed exquisite control
and could certainly shoot but Burnley were the more solid team. Once McIlroy found his
rhythm, Burnley moved with greater freedom and determination and there was little that
Rheims could do about it. McIlroy hit the post with one of the best shots of the night and
with better luck Burnley might have had further goals. Rheims managed a late rally but the
home defence dealt adequately with this.
At the final whistle, as at the interval, both teams received
a standing ovation for an entertaining game. Burnley had done well in their European
baptism against formidable opponents, but Rheims were a most resourceful side. They would
have learned much and were sure to give Burnley plenty to do in the return leg. Would two
goals be enough?
Teams:
Burnley: Blacklaw, Angus, Elder, Joyce, Adamson, Miller,
Connelly, McIlroy, Pointer, Robson, Pilkington.
Stade De Rheims: Jaquet, Wendling, Rodzick, Leblond, Siatka,
Moreau, Rustichelli, Muller, Kopa, Pianton, Vincent.
Rheims v Burnley
30th November 1960
To cater for the many fans who wanted to see the return leg,
Rheims switched the match from their home ground to the Parc de Princes in Paris.
Excitement had mounted to fever pitch in a competition from which previously omnipotent
Real Madrid had just been eliminated by arch rivals Barcelona. Bob Lord told journalists
in Paris, "The European Cup has never been more open and we’re just the team to
win it." 45,000 turned up on Wednesday 30th November. Most of them were
hostile home supporters, intent upon proving him wrong. This fanatical crowd was to give
Burnley their first explosive experience of European football. Rockets streaked across the
pitch, other fireworks were thrown, and fights broke out. Hampden Park was famous for its
intimidating roar, but this was like a bullring.
On the night, Rheims made two team changes – Just
Fontaine, who had been sidelined for the first leg, replaced the injured Kopa. Also
Glovacki replaced Rustichelli on the right wing. Burnley were unchanged.
Roared on by their partisan crowd, Rheims tore into Burnley.
Fontaine and Pianton could not be contained. Yet somehow the Burnley defence managed to
hold together, assisted by the steadying composure and confident handling of Blacklaw.
Then after 32 minutes, Burnley snatched the lead. Miller’s shot rebounded off the bar
and Robson nipped in to volley home. This gave confidence to the Burnley forward line,
which began to move with speed and grace, opening up the Rheims’ defence. Jaquet
turned Robson’s drive around the post. The force was now with Burnley. The tie seemed
secure.
But this extraordinary crowd roared Rheims on. Fireworks
hailed down, rockets snaked across the pitch at regular intervals; "one missing me by
inches," said Pilkington afterwards. Others landed among spectators causing furore
and sparking off fights, a phenomenon, which was still rare in Britain.
Rheims pulled one back when Pianton’s shot drifted
through a crowd of defenders with Blacklaw unsighted. Then six minutes later, full back
Rodzick’s twenty yard shot found goal inciting feverish excitement. Rheims now threw
everything at Burnley. But Adamson proved to be Burnley’s hero. Three times he headed
goalbound shots clear and then blocked Fontaine’s effort on the line. It was
desperate stuff.
Then in the 54th minute came the incident which
almost caused a riot. Rheims had made a practice of stealing ground at free kicks. When
Pilkington fouled Wendling, the Rheims players twice moved the ball, gaining all of twenty
yards. This was too much for Harry Potts. Onto the field he strode, to roll the ball back
to its rightful place. This caused uproar. Club officials hastened him off the pitch as
one of the Rheims players tried to hit him. The Gendarmerie also had to protect him from
the angry crowd. The game was being televised ‘live’ on 'Sportsview' (fronted by
Peter Dimmock). Kenneth Wolstenholme, the commentator, had already criticised Rheims’
gamesmanship but could find no words of sympathy for Harry’s extraordinary
intervention.
The crowd was now incandescent. But in the 75th
minute they were momentarily silenced. Connelly received the ball in his own half and
began a diagonal run which took him past five defenders before slipping the ball past the
advancing Jaquet. It was one of the finest goals seen in European football. Rheims seemed
floored. However, they quickly came to life again when Rodzick popped up to score their
third, only a minute later. Again the fireworks crackled. But Burnley hung on, going
through on a 4-3 aggregate.
Despite Harry’s intervention and the crowd disorder,
this had been a hard fought and generally fair game. It was regrettable that the Rheims
players refused to shake hands with the Clarets, but this didn’t bother Burnley too
much. They were now in the Quarter finals.
Burnley v Hamburg
18th January 1961
In January 1961, JFK, at 43, was sworn in as the youngest US
President, Ham, the US space chimp, ascended 150 miles above the earth, to test the
Mercury space capsule and the contraceptive pill first went on sale in the UK. Johnny
Tillotson’s 'Poetry in Motion' was the top selling single of the month with Peter
Sellars’ and Sophia Loren’s 'Goodness Gracious Me' (from the film 'The
Millionairess') doing unreasonably well also. As for Burnley, their reward for progression
to the quarterfinals was a tie with the powerful Hamburg SV. Shrewd observers thought that
this encounter could produce the eventual winners of the trophy.
Hamburg Sports Verein were more an institution than a
football club, having deep roots in their community. They reflected a different
continental tradition in which a club would run many teams at all levels including other
field sports. Hamburg were Europe’s largest club of this kind. Through their
extensive club network of teams, young hopefuls were groomed for eventual first team duty.
Prior to the inception of the Bundesliga in 1963, German
professional football was organised on a regional basis. The two most successful teams
from each of the four regions competed in a knock out tournament to decide the national
championship. Hamburg had won this and their association cup on several occasions. In the
1960-61 season, Hamburg were ‘doing a Tottenham’ having dropped only one point
from their sixteen league matches. They were running away with the league. The two clubs
were quite familiar with one another having met in various invitation matches. But Harry
Potts still went to Germany to run his eye over Burnley’s opponents. He was left in
no doubt of the size of their task. As for Guenther Mahlmann, Hamburg’s voluble
manager, he seemed confident of success despite the standard compliment. He said, "We
love playing against English teams and Burnley, as we all know, are one of the greatest
teams in the world today. Everyone here is looking forward to our matches with them."
The Hamburg party arrived at Ringway on Saturday 14th
and stayed overnight in Manchester as guests of Matt Busby, an old acquaintance of the
club. They went to see Man.Utd defeat leaders Spurs 2-0 with goals from Quixall and
Charlton and also paid their respects at United’s recently completed memorial to the
Munich air tragedy. They then proceeded to Burnley, arriving in a town ablaze with
excitement.
In the league, Burnley had begun to close the gap on Spurs.
Only a Boxing Day home defeat by Everton had interrupted a sequence of six wins and a
draw. Thirty-one goals were scored during those eight games with Pointer (ten) and Robson
(nine) netting most. During this run, they had seasoned sportswriters reaching for new
superlatives. Having been exposed to wide TV coverage during the Rheims games, the club
had captured a wider audience. Although many were still uncertain about where the town was
situated, the names of Pointer, McIlroy and Connelly had now become very familiar.
However, the hot streak ended on the Saturday before the Hamburg tie, when Burnley
succumbed to newly-promoted Cardiff (1-2) at a dank, dismal Ninian Park, allowing the
struggling Welshmen to complete the double over them.
From the Kierby Hotel, where the Germans were staying, it was
but a short walk to Turf Moor. Here, they inspected the ground and particularly pleased
Bob Lord by proclaiming the floodlight system to be better than that at Old Trafford.
However, they were unhappy at Lord’s curt refusal to allow training on a pitch which
he was determined to have in immaculate condition for the big game. Manager Mahlmann
complained, "It is bad that we cannot train on the pitch. When Burnley come to
Germany they will be able to use our stadium when and for as long as they want." But
Mahlmann was appeased by the offer of the Gawthorpe facilities, believing these to exceed
anything he had imagined. Burnley again retreated to the seclusion of Norbreck in
Blackpool.
Prior to the game newspaper reporters were drawn to Gawthorpe
to study the German’s form in training. The German’s discipline and thoroughness
impressed them. It was clear that Hamburg would take some beating, particularly after
Burnley’s poor showing in Cardiff. Despite their unsuccessful attempt at postponing
the tie until their winter break had ended, Hamburg seemed to be brimming with confidence.
One of their party joked that they were willing to play the return leg here also to save
Burnley an unnecessary trip.
On a mild January night, 46,237 turned up for one of the
biggest games in the club’s history. Among them was a party of exuberant,
klaxon-sounding German supporters. Hamburg were originally concerned that they might have
had to play on a hard pitch, but these fears were unfounded. What did face them, though,
was a Burnley team at full strength and an impassioned crowd behind them.
After just seven minutes, Burnley seized the initiative.
McIlroy’s finesse freed Pointer, who set up Pilkington to score. Confidence
immediately spread through the team. At the back, Blacklaw was handling confidently and
commanding his area. Adamson was also keeping a tight lead on the dangerous Uwe Seeler,
the German’s main threat. So Burnley were able to press forward with Pointer drifting
wide to allow Robson and Connelly to run at the heart of the German defence. As the
pressure increased, Pointer, too, became more prominent in the German’s area. He only
just failed to convert two sharp crosses and Robson was inches away from connecting with a
third. German keeper Schnoor was also fortunate when his clearance from Robson left him
off limits. Pointer’s quick lob left him scrambling to recover but he just managed to
palm the ball over. Despite this pressure Burnley were still only one up at the interval.
After half time, Burnley made their superiority tell. In the
sixty first minute, Pilkington ran onto Miller’s pass and struck a splendid goal from
twenty-five yards. Robson then had three chances to put the game beyond Hamburg. But he
failed with two close range shots and was unable to capitalise on Connelly’s
excellent centre. Hamburg then demonstrated that there was still had some sting left. The
effervescent Seeler began to put himself about with greater effect. It needed the agility
and bravery of Blacklaw to deny him on three occasions. For all that, Burnley’s
passage to the semis should have been secured in the 75th minute. McIlroy, who
had sustained much rough treatment, centred. Pointer powered in a header, which Schnoor
couldn’t hold and there was Robson to knock in the third. A fourth should have
followed, when Pointer, running onto Connelly’s pass, was brought down from behind in
the box. Incredibly, the referee waved play on. As so often happens in these situations,
Hamburg broke away for Doerfel to score. Even then, Burnley had a late opportunity to
restore their advantage when Pointer was clean through but shot wide when he had only the
keeper to beat. On the 15th March, Burnley would find out how expensive these
misses would prove to be.
At the end of the game, Burnley lined up to clap their
sporting opponents off the field. In turn, the huge crowd applauded the Clarets
ecstatically. The crowd had roared so loudly that no one had noticed the German’s
klaxons. It was the finest night of football ever played at Turf Moor.
Bert Trautmann, Manchester City’s German born
goalkeeper, was the guest commentator on 'Sportsview' that evening. He pointed out the
potential importance of the away goal and predicted darkly that the return in Germany
would be very different. But there was no denying Burnley’s superiority on the night.
As a result they were made second favourites to lift the trophy, only just behind
Barcelona, whom they would meet in the semis if they progressed. Life didn’t get much
better than this.
Teams:
Burnley: Blacklaw, Angus, Elder, Joyce, Adamson, Miller,
Connelly, McIlroy, Pointer, Robson, Pilkington.
Hamburg SV: Schnoor, Krug, Kurbjuhn, Werner, Meinke, D
Seeler, Neisner, Dehn, U Seeler, Sturmer, Doerfel.
Hamburg v Burnley
'Fussballfest in Bahrenfeld'
15th March 1961
On the 15th March, Dr Henrick Verwoerd
announced that South Africa would quit the Commonwealth. He explained, "It is clear
after the lead given by a group of Afro-Asian nations that we will be no longer
welcome." The South African policy of apartheid certainly wasn’t. On the same
day, Dr Beeching was appointed to head British Railways. His appointment signalled
genocide of rural branch lines. March the 15th was also the day on which
Burnley played Hamburg in the return leg. The Everly Brothers were in pole position in the
charts with 'Walk Right Back' but the Beatles, with Stuart Sutcliffe in their line-up, had
just secured a three month residency in the German city’s Top Ten Club.
The return match had stimulated enormous interest in Germany.
Such was the public demand that tickets were sold three weeks in advance. Stand tickets
had sold for 100 Marks. As in the previous round, the away venue was transferred to a
larger ground. Hamburg forsook their home ground for a larger municipal stadium in the
Volkspark, seven miles south of the city. Nothing in the Football League could rival the
Volkspark. It was a series of public gardens laid out in a monumental style, reflecting
the pomp of the Second Reich. The stadium was a fine modern purpose-built athletics arena,
which was partly enclosed by covered stands. This urbane setting seemed quite unsuited to
top class football; at least it was if you’d been brought up in crammed, antiquated
British grounds.
Harry Potts had studied Hamburg closely. He felt sure that
every necessary arrangement had been made. But nothing could have prepared his team for
what greeted them on that bright, cold afternoon of March 15th. Burnley were
first to emerge from the players’ tunnel and the massive crowd rose to acknowledge
them. However, the greeting received by the home side was something else. The initial
crescendo of whistles and klaxons was quite deafening, and the thunderous chanting, which
then followed, rolled round and round the stadium in rhythmic unison. Everywhere there
were Hamburg banners and flags being waved fervently from side to side. None of the
Burnley players had experienced anything quite like this, even in Paris when playing
Rheims. Quite naturally, they were unnerved.
Hamburg tore into Burnley. Doerful, on the left wing, had the
beating of Angus every time and his crosses to Uwe Seeler created havoc in the Burnley
defence. Although only a small man, Seeler was as powerful in the air as he was nimble on
the ground. Adamson found him uncontainable. Unsurprisingly, Hamburg took an early lead.
In the 7th minute, Seeler outjumped Angus near the halfway line to send Doerful
away. His powerful cross was then thumped into the net by Sturmer’s diving header,
despite the close attention of Alex Elder. Burnley were rattled as Hamburg pressed forward
relentlessly. Blacklaw was forced to come to the aid of his shaky defence on four
occasions in that seige-like first half saving well from Dehn, Seeler, Werner and Meisner.
But Seeler, in particular, was not to be denied. In the final minute of the first period
he dived to head in Sturmer’s corner. Now the tie was all square and the crowd gave
their heroes rapturous applause as they trooped off for halftime. Up to the interval,
Burnley had hardly featured at all as an attacking force. Pointer had managed to get past
full back Krug in the 15th minute, but Robson wasted his precise cross,
allowing it to run on for another forward. Unfortunately, there was no other forward.
The highlights would be shown later on 'Sportsview' but those
who hurried home early were able to watch the second half ‘live’ on BBC, by
courtesy of the Eurovision link. A large clock was superimposed on the screen providing
Burnley’s countdown to defeat. "If Burnley are able to keep their European hopes
alive, they must score," shouted the commentator excitedly over the frenzy. They did
just that through Gordon Harris, who to the German’s surprise, replaced their former
tormentor, Brian Pilkington. (Pilkington had been transferred to Bolton.) The scoring move
began when Harris slipped the ball to Robson. Robson promptly returned it, allowing the
powerful left winger to advance inside and crack a blistering drive past Schnoor from
twenty-five yards. The Hamburg keeper had no chance and Burnley were back in front. But
within two minutes, Seeler set up Doerful to score again, and then Seeler outpaced four
Burnley defenders before beating Blacklaw. Now the Germans were in the driving seat. But
they nearly squandered their advantage. At last showing some urgency, Burnley pressed the
Germans into dogged defence. The crowd was silenced as the tension gripped. Hamburg had
not known defeat at home for three years. Now they had to fight hard to maintain their
lead.
In the seventy-second minute Robson passed across the goal
area with only Schnoor to beat and the ball was cleared. Then no one could connect with a
Pointer cross. Time ticked on – fifteen minutes to go and Pointer went close.
Connelly and Joyce both beat the defence but somehow the ball was scrambled away at the
far post. Ten minutes more and Harris and Miller were both thwarted. Six minutes left and
another attack was broken. With three minutes to go Schnoor conferred with his anxious
defenders as play was stopped. Then in the final minute, there was one last moment of
drama. McIlroy latched onto a ball from Pointer and holding off his desperate German
challenger hit what seemed to be the equaliser. Schnoor got the merest touch as the ball
smacked against the inside of the post. To the astonishment of everyone the ball rebounded
across the face of the goal before being hooked clear by Dieter Seeler. The referee
consulted his linesman but no goal was allowed. Had the club officials replaced the
stadium’s old-fashioned square posts with the modern rounded type, Burnley might have
survived. As it was, the final whistle sounded shortly afterwards and Burnley were out of
Europe.
The crowd surged onto the pitch and Uwe Seeler was hoisted up
to be carried shoulder high from the scene of triumph. A long night of German celebration
would follow. As for Jimmy Adamson and his dejected team, they were just by-passed by the
converging crowd and officials. By now it was evening. Clouds drifted across the bowl-like
stadium obscuring the brilliant sunset. It seemed symbolic. Afterwards, away from the
mayhem, a reporter approached Jimmy McIlroy. "With the FA Cup semi-final against
Tottenham in three days time, have Burnley any injuries?" McIlroy replied, "No,
just eleven broken hearts."
For Brian Miller and John Angus, their European journey would
be extended during the summer. Both were selected to join the England party. It was their
misfortune that they played in the only international defeat of the year, in Austria
(1-3). This was after a season in which England had run up 46 goals in only nine games.
The new 4-2-4 system appeared unstoppable, until other teams learnt how to shackle
playmaker Johnny Haynes. England had peaked too early for World Cup success and, alas for
Angus and Miller, they were not given further opportunities to extend their international
careers. But they both would be given one further opportunity to resume their European
journey. That would come five years later. However that’s another story.
Adapted by Tim Quelch from a series of articles written
by John McPartlin
The second European adventure
Clarets in Europe and beyond menu
