Book Review
Burnley's Greatest Goal and the
Last of the Golden Boys
Written by Peter Fyles
Price £5.99 (+ £1.50 pp)
This latest edition to the ranks of Burnley FC related literature is a slim
volume concentrating on two specific periods in Burnley history. The first half of the
book centres around Tommy Cummings’ celebrated goal against Newcastle in 1952. For
the uninitiated, this consisted of a seventy yard run all the way from defence, finishing
in a fierce shot at goal - with his wrong foot! Imagine Steve Davis’ late run at
Wembley in 1994 culminating in a goal rather than a badly misplaced shot and I reckon
you’re somewhere near. It sounds an extraordinary enough achievement even now, but
the book makes the point that in those days, defenders weren’t expected to leave
their own half or do anything fancy beyond stopping the other lot scoring, so at the time,
this goal seemed a ludicrous and almost incomprehensible feat. The context of the times
and the season, along with the build up to the game and reaction to the goal are recounted
in meticulous detail, as is the goal itself.
Was it Burnley’s greatest goal? That you will have
to decide for yourself. I’ve never seen it. Perhaps the two goals we put past Orient
in 1987 are the greatest Burnley goals, as without them we might not have a club to
support now. I can offer two brilliant goals from my era to the debate. David Eyres’
run and shot, taking out three defenders, for the equaliser at Wembley in 1994 was a
classic goal on a big stage. Liam Robinson, of all people, scored with an expertly placed
chip from miles at out Wrexham to ensure second division safety in 1996. Thinking about
it, this sounds about as likely as Tommy Cummings' goal. Are there any other contenders, I
wonder?
The second half of Burnley's Greatest Goal
moves on to explore the more familiar times of the early to mid seventies, and that young
team of ultimately lost promise that many of our members will remember with such fondness.
Here’s your chance to get stuck into serious nostalgia about the 1973-74 season, when
we surged to second in the table before Christmas, hammered the mighty Leeds 4-1 in an
immortal game and came agonisingly close to an FA Cup Final. The writer tells a story of
fanatical childhood devotion to Burnley, where the whole purpose of the week was Saturday,
with days up to Wednesday being spent on post-match post-mortems and Thursday and Friday
set aside for pre-match build up. Midweek games were a bonus, although one saw him reduced
to begging strangers for loose change to get in!
As a much later convert to the one true faith of
Burnley, I found these tales of young addiction pretty heart-warming. I also enjoyed the
bits about the child’s belief in the rhythms of ritual and superstition, which of
course persist into adulthood. There's a lot of good material on Jimmy Adamson, and the
tremendous self-belief and spirit he instilled in this team. The bonds forged in that team
still exist, with players and manager keeping in touch more than twenty years after the
parting of the ways. Our writer is fairly philosophical about our subsequent decline, but
contends that Adamson's departure was a contributing factor, with the team which was loyal
to him and breaking up shortly afterwards.
Our more alert reader will have spotted that, as the
writer was a childhood follower of the Clarets in the 1970s, he would not have been born
when Tommy Cummings scored his goal in 1952. Correct. I always struggle to write about
anything I have not directly experienced, and the fact that he writes so evocatively about
the 1950s and that goal is an admirable achievement.
Burnley’s Greatest Goal
also boasts some
splendid archive pictures. I’d certainly recommend it as one to read and put on the
shelf alongside Burnley Were Back and the Clarets Collection. It set me
wondering whether there isn’t more scope for this kind of tightly focused book,
concentrating on one or two particular aspects of Burnley’s long history from the
perspective of a supporter. Perhaps our history is too rich and full to ever be properly
captured in one volume, so maybe a number of individual histories are what we need. (Hmm,
maybe one day I will finish that full story of the 1994 play-offs and our day in Plymouth
after all.) Of course, the success of these books, and the prospect of more, depends on
you lot going out there and buying them, and I urge you to do so. I used to feel that
Burnley were a club under represented on the book shelf, but over the last few years we
have at last started to redress that. Give it your support
Incidentally, it's interesting to note that the writer
lives in Sweden, wrote his book in Ireland, it’s been published in Hull, and of
course here I am reading it in London. That says something about the nature of our
support: diffused, dispersed, but of course, always passionate and committed to the cause.
And best of all, there are many more chapters of our story to come.
If you would like to order a copy of this book, send a
cheque for £7.49 (includes £1.50 post and packaging) to:
Sean Spencer
Hull News and Pictures
Room 115
Hull Microfilms Centre
266-290 Wincolmlee
Hull
East Yorkshire
HU2 0PZ
Cheques
should be made payable to 'S Spencer'
For more information, e-mail Sean Spencer on sean@hullnews.karoo.co.uk
Firmo
December 1999
Reviews section menu
