Old Trafford celebrates its centenary today. However, little of the dewy eyed nostalgia is focusing on the first game held at the stadium. Liverpool were the visitors and given that the Reds wrecked the house warming there seems every reason to suspect antipathy between the sides has some history.
Below is a match report from the game - not one gathered first hand via attendance.
19 February 1910 Division One
Manchester United 3 Liverpool 4
Turnbull Goddard (2)
Homer Stewart (2)
Wall
Manchester United and before their name change Newton Heath had never enjoyed the finest of venues. Their first home North Road and subsequent dwelling Bank Street located just a few hundred yards away had both suffered from terrible surfaces which no amount of tending could ever fix. They had been almost marsh like at times and at the latter venue there was also fumes from neighbouring factories to contend with.
In 1902 the club was facing bankruptcy. Their ground closed by bailiffs they were struggling to continue only getting through week to week through various fund raisers.
One of the many ideas was to charge fans to see 'Micheal The Bank Street Canary' sing but the bird in question could not sing. It and was in fact a goose which wasn't seen again following one Christmas during the 1890s.
Rescue came via another animal and a local brewing magnate John Davies who actually wanted to buy the club captain’s prized St Bernard dog for his daughter after it escaped from an event designed to boost club coffers but was instead induced to pump money into the club and ultimately purchase it which cleared their debts.
The club went through many changes - not just its name but also its playing colours which changed from yellow and green halves to red with white shorts.
There was a bigger modification to the club as Davies resolved to build a new stadium on a plot of land specifically bought for the purpose in the Trafford area outside Manchester.
It took time to acquire the land and to sort out proposals for the arena which aimed to accommodate 100,000 fans. The plans were revised when it became clear that the finances would not be in place. Renowned architect Archibald Leith was able to revise the plans with 60,000 spaces now accommodated for fans. Work ended at the end of 1909 though it took a few more months before it was considered ready.
Liverpool were to be the first guests at Old Trafford as the ground became known. Somewhere between 45,000 and 50,000 fans were said to have been recorded as present through the gates arriving in all manner of contraptions as well as foot.
Trams the more traditional method of transportation to football matches were unable to cope with the numbers and ground to a halt. 5,000 fans were said to have gained entry without paying due to the sheer numbers who forced themselves through turnstiles. Some also sneaked through unfinished features such as window fanlights and massed on the terraces.
The Sporting Chronicle described the venue as: "the most handsomest, the most spacious and the most remarkable arena I have ever seen. As a football ground it is unrivalled in the world, it is an honour to Manchester and the home of a team who can do wonders when they are so disposed." Most of the ground was uncovered so open to the elements with an admission price of six old pence.
The same journalist who waxed so lyrical about his surroundings possibly was most likely equally taken by the home side’s start as within 15 minutes the home side were 2-0 ahead. They also won the toss. Sandy Turnbull and Tom Homer securing an advantage which was held to the break. Turnbull found the net with a header after Dick Duckworth dropped a free-kick just 10 yards from goal.
Homer turned in a shot after Sam Hardy could only parry a Harold Halse shot. Everything seemed in place for the stadium to be inaugurated in just the right way for the home contingent as Liverpool could only muster sporadic attacks.
Little may have been achieved but the visitors kept their white shirts flowing towards the United goal in their honest efforts to get back into the game. They were frustrated by offside decisions after burst down each flanks were spoiled by players in the centre simply not holding their runs.
Charlie Roberts held the prolific Jack Parkinson in check for a long time but seemed to let his concentration lapse. Sam Blott suddenly found his hands were full and when a handful of forwards and half-backs combined in midfield Arthur Goddard pulled one back. It stayed 2-1 until the break.
Just after the players resumed their conflict but United held on to the slender lead which they actually increased with 20 minutes remaining during another good spell. George Wall managing to beat Hardy after he cut in from the left then shot low and hard in to the corner of goal.
Goddard restored some more pride soon after as Liverpool began to quickly reassert themselves. They were regularly outwitting as well as outpacing the United defence but there still seemed little prospect of the visitors so much as gaining a point as most expected United to get an instruction to see the game out.
James Ernest Mangnall who gained the job after his effective predecessors Harry Stafford and James West were found guilty of making illegal payments to players soon after joining the club’s takeover may well have given that direction but James Stewart levelled then with the home side shell shocked grabbed a winner.
Manchester United: Moger, Stacey, Hayes, Duckworth, Roberts, Blott, Meredith, Halse, Turnbull, Wall
Liverpool: Hardy, Chorlton, Rogers, Robinson, Harrop, Bradley, Goddard, Stewart, Parkinson, Orr, McDonald
Friday 19 February 2010
Wednesday 17 February 2010
Do you remember your first time?
A 1-1 home draw against second tier opposition would not, indeed probably should not, live too long in the memory. But not for a then 12 year old boy quite literally on a pilgrimage to The Kop.
On 22 November 1983 Liverpool took on Fulham in a League Cup replay.
With a very different climate surrounding the game then it was the type of game parents were relaxed about allowing their young to cut some football teeth on.
At least so long as advice about going to close to the front was followed.
The crowd was a relatively meagre 15,783. Even The Kop, as was to be found in a very painful way involving the folly of not standing pitch side of a crush barrier at a league game some months later, was more sparse than usual.
As a spectacle the game was fairly scrappy but drinking in the atmosphere albeit muted, chanting and seeing the likes of Bruce Grobbelaar, Graeme Souness, Phil Neal, Ian Rush and especially Kenny Dalglish in the flesh outweighed any lack of flair.
Except for Dalglish netting from short distance memories of the game are few. In fact the goal mirrored events before us. The build up is lost to any effective recall except that the build up came down the Liverpool left - probably.
But that didn’t matter King Kenny had provided something any first match would be complete with - a goal from one of his sainted boots - and one witnessed without a Match of the Day camera intervening between the viewers eyes and the scene.
There was disappointment in a late penalty award and Kevin Lock equalising to take the tie to a third game at Craven Cottage which Liverpool won in extra-time.
More than anything else it’s the sights and sounds in and around the ground which still linger.
Outside the single most striking was The Kop. Approached from Oakfield Road and lit up like a beacon.
Closer in a steep bank was visible with bodies seeming to surge up the steps like ants.
Just before the ground came the smell of onions hit the nostrils. They would accompany hot-dogs and burgers on offer to anyone with a hunger for that type of food or perhaps a desire to run the gauntlet of a stomach bug - ask yourself where a man operating a small unit with a hotplate run on butane gas canisters (a) goes to the toilet and (b) how he washes his hands if he does so.
Golden goal ticket and programme sellers punctuated the air with calls to purchase their wares.
Once in the final few steps of my own journey were an impatient clamber before the scene which had greeted millions of fans or just over 90 years met my own eyes - the lush Anfield turf. Inside there were no men with rolled up copies of the Echo just piss running down the terraces as the excesses of pre-match refreshment made its inevitable way out of the body.
Compared to the Premiership era it may feel like football’s dark ages but in truth it was a golden age. There was something special about the old Kop terrace and those who stood there.
Even though it has been has been demolished for 16 years there remains a residual spirit of what Bill Shankly termed a twelfth man. Thousands of people thinking, acting and supporting as one mind and voice.
Reduced in its powers maybe but nonetheless but still backing its team and its manager.
On 22 November 1983 Liverpool took on Fulham in a League Cup replay.
With a very different climate surrounding the game then it was the type of game parents were relaxed about allowing their young to cut some football teeth on.
At least so long as advice about going to close to the front was followed.
The crowd was a relatively meagre 15,783. Even The Kop, as was to be found in a very painful way involving the folly of not standing pitch side of a crush barrier at a league game some months later, was more sparse than usual.
As a spectacle the game was fairly scrappy but drinking in the atmosphere albeit muted, chanting and seeing the likes of Bruce Grobbelaar, Graeme Souness, Phil Neal, Ian Rush and especially Kenny Dalglish in the flesh outweighed any lack of flair.
Except for Dalglish netting from short distance memories of the game are few. In fact the goal mirrored events before us. The build up is lost to any effective recall except that the build up came down the Liverpool left - probably.
But that didn’t matter King Kenny had provided something any first match would be complete with - a goal from one of his sainted boots - and one witnessed without a Match of the Day camera intervening between the viewers eyes and the scene.
There was disappointment in a late penalty award and Kevin Lock equalising to take the tie to a third game at Craven Cottage which Liverpool won in extra-time.
More than anything else it’s the sights and sounds in and around the ground which still linger.
Outside the single most striking was The Kop. Approached from Oakfield Road and lit up like a beacon.
Closer in a steep bank was visible with bodies seeming to surge up the steps like ants.
Just before the ground came the smell of onions hit the nostrils. They would accompany hot-dogs and burgers on offer to anyone with a hunger for that type of food or perhaps a desire to run the gauntlet of a stomach bug - ask yourself where a man operating a small unit with a hotplate run on butane gas canisters (a) goes to the toilet and (b) how he washes his hands if he does so.
Golden goal ticket and programme sellers punctuated the air with calls to purchase their wares.
Once in the final few steps of my own journey were an impatient clamber before the scene which had greeted millions of fans or just over 90 years met my own eyes - the lush Anfield turf. Inside there were no men with rolled up copies of the Echo just piss running down the terraces as the excesses of pre-match refreshment made its inevitable way out of the body.
Compared to the Premiership era it may feel like football’s dark ages but in truth it was a golden age. There was something special about the old Kop terrace and those who stood there.
Even though it has been has been demolished for 16 years there remains a residual spirit of what Bill Shankly termed a twelfth man. Thousands of people thinking, acting and supporting as one mind and voice.
Reduced in its powers maybe but nonetheless but still backing its team and its manager.
Wednesday 10 February 2010
Just What Does Arsene Know?
Rafael Benitez is often said to be one of the most wilful managers in world football who will only ever operate under his own methods and never give so much as a nod to anything which deviates from those routines.
On Wednesday evening he comes up against a man every inch as obdurate - Arsene Wenger.
Though in general it is difficult to argue with Wenger’s record. Except for the past few seasons or so it stands against any of his peers but some questions are more than justified. The Frenchman's principles and some of the football his teams have produced since he joined Arsenal cannot be faulted.
However, a problem certainly lies in his stubbornness and refusal to think about compromise - not to mention a player policy only slightly more compassionate than the Deep Sleep Operatives from Logan’s Run.
Despite having a large war chest available he prefers not to use it even though his side cries out for real depth. Over a couple of transfer windows he kept the bankers happy and left his funds in place rather than invest while his side.
There were huge implications in the 2007-08 campaign when he had a five point lead at the Premier League’s summit. Reliance on a very small core squad when a team is about to enter one of the demanding parts of any season is a huge gamble.
There may not be so many games crammed into Christmas and New Year as once was the case. With under soil heating present across the majority of grounds pitches are rarely hard but at a time when the weather is at its coldest and the demands of mid-season greatest injuries are inevitable - especially when a side is active on nearly all fronts - well over a decade's experience in English football should have taught that lesson.
A season which promised so much for the Gunners was in effect laid bare on one single afternoon when Eduardo suffered an horrific leg break and when leading 2-1 Gael Clichy conceded a last minute penalty which gifted Birmingham a point but deprived Arsenal of not only two but their momentum - no small measure of impetus went courtesy of William Gallas’ post-match histrionics and a sit in protest not seen since the heydays of Neville Southall.
Wenger's unjustified comments regarding the tackle on the Croatian international certainly suggested he knew what his team had probably lost.
If his transfer activity in the summer just gone is anything to go by it seems that he will either not heed or denies the errors of last winter.
Arsenal who have been defeated by both likely suspects and unlikely candidates so far this term and last when they threw some very commanding leads away. Their struggles in many respects courtesy of that absolute rejection to invest.
A goalkeeper better than Manuel Almunia should have been brought in some time ago Soo too players who can not only dictate the pace of a game but control it. That weakness has been laid particularly bare over the past two weekends.
So too a willingness to make tackles - something no Liverpool player was hesitant to do against Everton and a similar battling performance will most probably reap its own rewards at Ashburton Grove on Wednesday. As stopping Arsenal playing their football has yet to receive any answer other than the Gunners to attempt more of the same.
Once they are caught up the pitch a weakness can be exploited. Starving them of the ball as another key for as good as they are with it Arsenal can often be apalling without it at their feet failing to track runs, anticipate movement and close people down.
That’s not to say Wenger does not have any form of tactical nouse nor player recruitment and retention policy - but it is one which will only bear long term dividends and possibly sustained success depending on factors should all those youngsters stay or just as importantly realise their promise.
In the meantime the entire project is threatened by events in the present and short term.
The football may be pretty but it seems the dressing room is anything but. Not only that where players suffering from a dip in form or confidence look around the Liverpool squad and see Steven Gerrard as their leader Arsenal have until recent times had William Gallas - a tantrum waiting to happen contrasted with the Reds’ beating heart and thankfully a player who is beginning to find his form again in recent games.
Gerrard's opposite number Cesc Febregas should be appreciated for the world class talent he is while still in his early 20s.
Beyond their skipper any player at Anfield, fitness allowing, sees Jamie Carragher, Javier Mascherano, Pepe Reina and Fernando Torres amongst others around them.
Many of those players have won the Champions League plus some of the game’s other highest honours and with not just clubs but their countries.
More than a couple have also skippered their respective nations and can be relied upon for advice by anyone struggling - those under similar crisis at Ashburton Grove are surrounded by peers at a similar stage and predicament to themselves. Some had their issues not to mention the contents of their stomachs and hearts laid bare before a worldwide press when Gallas decided to discuss his teammates with journalists from his own country.
Another consequence felt particularly hard by the Gunners is the absence of grit in midfield. Mathieu Flamini was moulded into a player as comfortable at scrapping as silky movement but was not only allowed to leave but to do so for nothing with his deal down to zero even when the player had given considerable notice that he may well exploit the rules to walk away for nothing through passage of team or if necessary buying out his contract.
The player offered an interview to a French football magazine on the specific basis they would ensure syndication in Italy, Germany as well as Spain and barely made a secret of his ultimate intentions.
Rafa Benitez has made errors in the market but moved them on quickly. Many of those who have expressed a desire to depart - whatever their reason - even with little on their contracts have been moved on for profit.
In truth while Liverpool could do with some of Arsenal’s attacking zing by contrast the Gunners who have succumb to very similar goals against Manchester United and Chelsea would benefit from some of the Reds’ recent returned strength down the spine. Without it Arsenal will remain justifably unfancied to end a five season trophy drought.
While Wenger’s contemporaries - Benitez included - have proved they can adopt a more pragmatic approach than the Arsenal boss regardless of form going into a game he does seem to hold a tendency to get things right against the other top sides. Despite a modest build ups to hosting Manchester United, Everton and others Liverpool have come out of these encounters on top and not for the first time.
In contrast to last season when they led the 'Big Four mini-league' Arsenal and Liverpool are fairing less well with just three points apiece.
Three more for either will not suggest Liverpool or Arsenal are anything other than contenders for the minor Champions League placings. In the former case it would serve as something of a grab on the coattails but a first win at the Gunners’ new home would be a crucial boost for the Reds - no doubt Arsene knows that.
On Wednesday evening he comes up against a man every inch as obdurate - Arsene Wenger.
Though in general it is difficult to argue with Wenger’s record. Except for the past few seasons or so it stands against any of his peers but some questions are more than justified. The Frenchman's principles and some of the football his teams have produced since he joined Arsenal cannot be faulted.
However, a problem certainly lies in his stubbornness and refusal to think about compromise - not to mention a player policy only slightly more compassionate than the Deep Sleep Operatives from Logan’s Run.
Despite having a large war chest available he prefers not to use it even though his side cries out for real depth. Over a couple of transfer windows he kept the bankers happy and left his funds in place rather than invest while his side.
There were huge implications in the 2007-08 campaign when he had a five point lead at the Premier League’s summit. Reliance on a very small core squad when a team is about to enter one of the demanding parts of any season is a huge gamble.
There may not be so many games crammed into Christmas and New Year as once was the case. With under soil heating present across the majority of grounds pitches are rarely hard but at a time when the weather is at its coldest and the demands of mid-season greatest injuries are inevitable - especially when a side is active on nearly all fronts - well over a decade's experience in English football should have taught that lesson.
A season which promised so much for the Gunners was in effect laid bare on one single afternoon when Eduardo suffered an horrific leg break and when leading 2-1 Gael Clichy conceded a last minute penalty which gifted Birmingham a point but deprived Arsenal of not only two but their momentum - no small measure of impetus went courtesy of William Gallas’ post-match histrionics and a sit in protest not seen since the heydays of Neville Southall.
Wenger's unjustified comments regarding the tackle on the Croatian international certainly suggested he knew what his team had probably lost.
If his transfer activity in the summer just gone is anything to go by it seems that he will either not heed or denies the errors of last winter.
Arsenal who have been defeated by both likely suspects and unlikely candidates so far this term and last when they threw some very commanding leads away. Their struggles in many respects courtesy of that absolute rejection to invest.
A goalkeeper better than Manuel Almunia should have been brought in some time ago Soo too players who can not only dictate the pace of a game but control it. That weakness has been laid particularly bare over the past two weekends.
So too a willingness to make tackles - something no Liverpool player was hesitant to do against Everton and a similar battling performance will most probably reap its own rewards at Ashburton Grove on Wednesday. As stopping Arsenal playing their football has yet to receive any answer other than the Gunners to attempt more of the same.
Once they are caught up the pitch a weakness can be exploited. Starving them of the ball as another key for as good as they are with it Arsenal can often be apalling without it at their feet failing to track runs, anticipate movement and close people down.
That’s not to say Wenger does not have any form of tactical nouse nor player recruitment and retention policy - but it is one which will only bear long term dividends and possibly sustained success depending on factors should all those youngsters stay or just as importantly realise their promise.
In the meantime the entire project is threatened by events in the present and short term.
The football may be pretty but it seems the dressing room is anything but. Not only that where players suffering from a dip in form or confidence look around the Liverpool squad and see Steven Gerrard as their leader Arsenal have until recent times had William Gallas - a tantrum waiting to happen contrasted with the Reds’ beating heart and thankfully a player who is beginning to find his form again in recent games.
Gerrard's opposite number Cesc Febregas should be appreciated for the world class talent he is while still in his early 20s.
Beyond their skipper any player at Anfield, fitness allowing, sees Jamie Carragher, Javier Mascherano, Pepe Reina and Fernando Torres amongst others around them.
Many of those players have won the Champions League plus some of the game’s other highest honours and with not just clubs but their countries.
More than a couple have also skippered their respective nations and can be relied upon for advice by anyone struggling - those under similar crisis at Ashburton Grove are surrounded by peers at a similar stage and predicament to themselves. Some had their issues not to mention the contents of their stomachs and hearts laid bare before a worldwide press when Gallas decided to discuss his teammates with journalists from his own country.
Another consequence felt particularly hard by the Gunners is the absence of grit in midfield. Mathieu Flamini was moulded into a player as comfortable at scrapping as silky movement but was not only allowed to leave but to do so for nothing with his deal down to zero even when the player had given considerable notice that he may well exploit the rules to walk away for nothing through passage of team or if necessary buying out his contract.
The player offered an interview to a French football magazine on the specific basis they would ensure syndication in Italy, Germany as well as Spain and barely made a secret of his ultimate intentions.
Rafa Benitez has made errors in the market but moved them on quickly. Many of those who have expressed a desire to depart - whatever their reason - even with little on their contracts have been moved on for profit.
In truth while Liverpool could do with some of Arsenal’s attacking zing by contrast the Gunners who have succumb to very similar goals against Manchester United and Chelsea would benefit from some of the Reds’ recent returned strength down the spine. Without it Arsenal will remain justifably unfancied to end a five season trophy drought.
While Wenger’s contemporaries - Benitez included - have proved they can adopt a more pragmatic approach than the Arsenal boss regardless of form going into a game he does seem to hold a tendency to get things right against the other top sides. Despite a modest build ups to hosting Manchester United, Everton and others Liverpool have come out of these encounters on top and not for the first time.
In contrast to last season when they led the 'Big Four mini-league' Arsenal and Liverpool are fairing less well with just three points apiece.
Three more for either will not suggest Liverpool or Arsenal are anything other than contenders for the minor Champions League placings. In the former case it would serve as something of a grab on the coattails but a first win at the Gunners’ new home would be a crucial boost for the Reds - no doubt Arsene knows that.
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