kushiro

Cuttings from that game filled several pages in Bernie's scrapbook. He was there too and it seems he bought every newspaper after the game. Here's one from the Manchester Evening News - just about readable if you zoom in:

Wow - thanks.

We've not got a very good record in matches played on the same day as the Rugby World Cup Final. Five games played, only one win. But that win contains one of the most thrilling counter attacks ever seen. October 31st 2015.

Did May 2nd 2016 cure that?

Thanks! I've edited it. (Can't read my own notes - 14.10 was the bit where Charlton shows us how two-footed he is).

So many great tributes to Bobby Charlton this week, the best being David Squires' cartoon in the Guardian. Here, let's take a look back from a different perspective. At several key points in his career, Leicester City were central to the story. Here's six of those moments: 1) Schoolboy Star A remarkable picture of Bobby appeared on the front of the Manchester Evening News on March 6th 1953. His face would later appear in that newspaper hundreds of times, but this was the first. Completely by chance, their photographer chose him and two others from the two dozen who arrived in the city to take part in a schoolboys' trial match at Maine Road the following day. It was his first visit to the city. The coach that took him to and from the game passed Old Trafford while a match was in progress, and he longed to get off and head inside to see the action. He couldn't, of course. He had other priorities that day. But his time would come. Look at what he's carrying in the picture - a book about the FA Cup. His time would come in that competition too, sadly for Leicester City. The trial went well, and he was selected for the England schoolboys side. He played four internationals that season, the climax coming on May 7th v Scotland - at Filbert Street. It's very likely that his uncle Stan was there at Filbert Street that day. Uncle Stan - also known as Stan Milburn, the Leicester City full back. Bob's yer nephew - Stan Milburn. 30,000 people saw the game, with parties of schoolboys traveling from all over the country. The match finished in a goalless draw - a signpost for the future? No - completely the opposite. The Leicester City - Manchester United fixture would feature a series of goal bonanzas in the years ahead, with Charlton at the heart of the action. 2) Breakthrough Game Bobby was signed up by Man United, and was a star of the team that won the FA Youth Cup five years running, including the final v Chesterfield in 1956 when he came up against a young goalkeeper called Gordon Banks. But it took him a while to break into the senior team. Bobby was 20 and he had still not established himself in the side, but on December 21st 1957, after United lost at home to Chelsea, Matt Busby decided to ring the changes. Four players were dropped for the following match, at home to Leicester City. Bobby was one of those brought in, and he took his chance, scoring with what the match report called 'a fierce hook that sent the ball rocketing into the net'. United handed us a four nil thrashing. The game was a turning point, the start of an amazing eleven game run in which he scored twelve goals. In the last of that run, he scored twice in the European Cup in Belgrade - and we all know what happened when they stopped at Munich on the way home. 3) Goals Galore Bobby seemed to enjoy playing against Leicester - especially at home. He would score again the following season as United won 4-1, then again in the one after that in another 4-0 victory. But we would soon get our own back. Look at this five year sequence of results at Filbert Street in the early 60s: Jan 1960 Leicester 3 Man U 1 Jan 1961 Leicester 6 Man U 0 Apr 1962 Leicester 4 Man U 3 Apr 1963 Leicester 4 Man U 3 Feb 1964 Leicester 3 Man U 1 There are so many stories behind those scorelines. In 1960, fans were so desperate to see the game that gates were smashed and people poured into the ground without paying before police could restore order. The following year, that 6-0 was the worst defeat Bobby suffered in his whole career. Two years later in 1963, that 4-3 put us top of the table with just six games to play. Our famous Ice Kings side, who came so close to the Double, ended up with nothing. And of course,, it was Bobby's United that stopped us winning the FA Cup for the first time. This is such a great photo: 4) Charlton and Banks November 13th 1965. One of the most freakish games ever seen at Filbert Street. We had 34 corners, numerous chances - and lost 5-0 to United. Every goal they scored that day was a picture goal - especially Bobby's strike past England colleague Gordon Banks: Later that season, Banks was the hero of a 2-1 win at Old Trafford. The press were hailing him as the best keeper in Europe, a very promising sign with the World Cup approaching. In the summer, Gordon and Bobby were teammates as we lifted the trophy. Here they are together after a later England game: 5) The Sixties Dream Is Over December 7th 1968 - a week after manager Matt Gillies quits, seven year old Gary Lineker makes his first ever visit to Filbert Street. He watches Leicester 1 Man U 1 and sees the man whose England goalscoring record he would later fall agonisingly short of. Five months later, and after losing to the other Manchester team in the Cup FInal, there is a dramatic finale to the League season. We need to win at Old Trafford to stay up against a United team with nothing to play for. Nothing, that is, except the honour of giving Matt Busby a victory in his last game before stepping down after 24 years in the job. He'd done it all - the previous season Charlton's two goals had helped them to land the European Cup at last, and now on his farewell day, Bobby inspires United to a 3-2 win that condemns us to Second Division football after 12 seasons in the top flight. 6) Charlton v Shilton We've seen him score past Banks, and here we see 34 year old Bobby testiing our next great keeper. After a few barren years, United were flying again. They'd chosen Leicester boss Frank O'Farrell as the latest man to fill Matt Busby's shoes, and he had a fine start to his tenure at Old Trafford. That win against us kept them top of the League, and at 13.10 in the video there's a fascinating moment. The United fans taunt the away fans, singing 'Thank you very much for Frank O'Farrell' to the tune of the Scaffold hit from the late 60s. Sadly for Frank, it all went horribly wrong. (By the way, don't miss the other highlight of that clip - Alan Birchenall's goal at 16.55). Bobby's last game against Leicester was in November 1972,. He was involved in both United goals in a 2-2 draw at Filbert Street, but that result left them bottom of the table. The following month, O'Farrell was sacked. Well, that's Bobby's career from a Leicester perspective, I never saw him play. If you did, I'd love to hear your memories.

Cheers - youtube videos can be a bit unreliable sometimes when you try and specify a certain start point - it's nice to test them sometimes so as not to confuse people with completely the wrong section of a clip.

They're just test videos to be placed in a proper thread later.

Ha ha. On the beach before the clocks go back.

November / December 1973. Newcastle 1-0 Burnley 2-0 Spurs 3-0 QPR 2-0 Here's the report on game 4:

Seems it was three for a try, two for a conversion. Four for a dropped goal. But the terminology was different. NZ 28 Leicester 0 was 'five goals and a try' - which meant five converted tries and one unconverted try. If you converted a try it became a 'goal'. Clear as mud!

Just discovered something else - after that weekend of Tigers v NZ and Fosse v Chelsea, the rugby tourists' next game was four days later - at Stamford Bridge. Fine shot of the game here, with Chelsea's first Main Stand not yet ready. Unlike most main stands, it was built facing not east but west, so spectators had to face the afternoon sun. New Zealand won 34-0.

I think this is actually a fantastic tribute to the new regime - that we've done it in just thirteen games. That is actually the fastest we have EVER done it. We've been relegated so many times down the years that there's been no shortage of small points totals to chase the following year. But yes - this is the quickest of all. The next quickest is Micky Adams' side in 2002/03 - 15 games to overhaul the pathetic total of 28 the previous year.

We're making so much history at the moment it's hard to keep up. As you know, we're now the first team to win twelve of the first thirteen games in the second tier since Bristol City in 1905/06.. And with the Rugby World Cup Final coming up, that date has an unmistakable resonance. 1905/06 was a pivotal season in the development of the game. It was the New Zealand rugby team's first ever tour of the UK - a tour which has attained legendary status. You might wonder if these two stories - of round ball and oval ball - overlap. And indeed they do. Let's have a look how. On successive weekends in late September 1905, sports lovers in Bristol and Leicester were faced with an agonizing choice between watching the most exciting rugby team ever seen on these shores, and a truly mouth-watering game of association football. The New Zealand squad arrived at Plymouth on September 8th. They weren't called The All Blacks' yet - it was during the tour that the name was attached. Their first game was a tough one, against Devon, one of the top sides in the country. The result was a sensation: It finished Devon 4 New Zealand 55. They followed that with a 41-0 victory over Cornwall, and their third fixture was against Bristol. It kicked off at 3.30 at the County Ground, home of Gloucestershire cricket. The tourists repeated their Cornwall score against Bristol, 41-0, and the press were raving again: Their exhibition was a revelation - surpassing in individual and collective merit anything previously seen at the County Ground . Four miles away at Ashton Gate, Bristol City were playing Blackpool in Division Two, and their 2-1 victory was the fifth game of that record breaking start to the season in which they would win fourteen of their first fifteen games - a sequence still unsurpassed more than a century later (we have to beat QPR and Leeds to match it). This was the first real breakthrough for association football in the west country. In what was a rugby stronghold (like Leicester), the club would win the Division Two title that year, becoming the first from that part of the world to play in the top flight. The following season they finished second in Division One - the first team in the whole of the south of England to challenge for the title. Meanwhile, anticipation was growing in Leicester. The following Saturday the New Zealanders were due at Welford Road to play the Tigers. Local schools applied to have their rugby games swiched to a later kick-off so the boys could see the tourists play. Before the game, in midweek, they kept up their remarkable start to the tour by beating Northampton 32-0. The day arrived and what the local press described as 'the largest ever gathering at Welford Road', estimated at 16,000, saw another thrilling display of attacking rugby, New Zealand winning 28-0. Here's a couple of fine action shots from the game: Just like in Bristol a week before, it must have been hard for sports lovers to choose between the rugby and the football. Leicester Fosse were playing at home, and while unlike Bristol City, we had not made a good start to the season, the attractiveness of the fixture was provided by the opposition. A brand new club had just been formed in London, and they were visiting Leicester for the first time. This was 'Chelsea Football Club', who had hurriedly brought together a host of well-known stars to try and achieve instant success. The biggest star, in every sense, was William 'Fatty' Foulke, the famous goalkeeper, who weighed over 20 stone (almost certainly more than anyone in action at Welford Road that day). This was how the local press saw it: The appearance of Foulke, the biggest goalkeeper in the world, considerably increased the attendance, and those who went to see him perform got good value for money. His bulky figure reduced the space at which the Fosse had to shoot, and the ability with which he intercepted the ball when it did not go straight towards him was remarkable. Chelsea won 1-0 and would spend the season chasing Bristol City at the top of the table, ultimately finishing just out of the promotion places in third. They realised for the first, but not last time, that it takes more than just throwing money at the problem. Leicester Fosse struggled to make any impression throughout the autumn and winter. The next visitors to Filbert Street were - Bristol CIty, and they kept their run going with a 2-1 victory. As you'll recall from the last story, that run ended with our shock win at Ashton Gate in February. The All Blacks, as they gradually came to be known, continued their remarkable progress around the UK, steamrollering everyone in sight - apart from Wales, who beat them 3-0 in what has been called 'The Match of the Century'. So that's how the rugby and football narratives intertwined back in 1905. Bristol City were unbeaten throughout the whole four month span of the All Blacks' UK tour, and now, in 2023, Leicester City have won every League game they have played during the seven weeks the Rugby World Cup has been in progress. Let's hope we can still say that on Saturday night. Fortunately for those who love both codes, there will be no agonizing choice. There's time to get back from Loftus Road and see the Final at 8pm.

Fair comment - you were confident right through the run-in. I believe you. The significance of your comment (and the others) is that had Spurs indeed won their last four, the race would've gone to the last day of the season,

When Fulham lost that 13th game at home to Preston, guess who scored the winner: Craig's mate: He's telling Craig 'I meant it, you know':

Yeah - I decided to pass quickly over that one!

And while we're at it, with the Sunderland game coming up, let's ask two important questions: a) Did each of those clubs win game number 13? b) Were they promoted at the end of the season? 1894/95 Bury a) Yes they did, but then lost game fourteen at Notts County. b) Yes - as Champions. 1903/04 Preston a) No - they drew 1-1 at Bradford City then lost at Barnsley. b) Yes - as Champions. 1905/06 Bristol CIty a) Yes - and number 14 and 15 too. As we've seen, they had an unbeaten six month run until we beat them in February, b) Yes - as Champions. 1919/20 Tottenham a) No - they lost at Bury. b) Yes - as Champions, 1992/93 Newcastle United a) No - as we saw, they lost at Filbert Street. b) Yes - as Champions. 2000/01 Fulham a) No - they lost at home to Preston. b) Yes - as Champions. Believers in superstition will be nodding their heads. Game number 13 was often unlucky. But always just a blip on the way to the title.

As is so often the case, it's someone else's contribution that triggers a new voyage down the rabbit hole that is Leicester CIty history. @Phube posted this on the 'crazy stat' thread over the weekend: It's a fascinating graphic, isn't it? But looking at it I sensed there was something more there - perhaps an acrostic message - you know, like the famous example of the Luton Town director using his programme notes to spell out 'Watford are sh**'. Then I realised - it's not so much the letters as the numbers. There's a story in there. Let's look at those seven seasons one by one. 1894/95 Bury The season started on September 1st, and Bury began their great run with a 4-2 win over Manchester City at Gigg Lane. That was the first ever game for 'Manchester City', who had just changed their name from 'Ardwick FC'. And that day was also momentous for another club. Leicester Fosse were playing their first ever Football League game. We had been elected at the AGM in June, the club receiving great praise for 'having 1,200 members in what had been a hot bed of rugbyism'. Now, instead of regular fixtures against the likes of Burton, Kettering and Mansfield in the Midland League, the world opened up, and we'd be heading all over the country, up to the North East to play Newcastle and down to South London to play Woolwich Arsenal. Our first fixture was at Grimsby Town's Abbey Park ground. We lost 4-3, but we'd taken the very first step on the journey that would lead to the miracle 122 years later. We were in the same division as Bury, but in their opening run of eleven wins out twelve, we were not one of their victims. We had to wait until Christmas Day to play our first ever game at Gigg Lane, and we lost 4-1. A couple of weeks later we were back - and they knocked us out of the FA Cup. 1903/04 Preston In Preston's great start to the season we were one of the teams they beat - 4-3 at Deepdale in game seven. Later in the season they walloped us 4-1 at Filbert Street. And it wasn't just Preston that beat us. Nine years after our baptism in the Football League, this season marked a low point. We'd been trying and failing to get out of Division Two all that time, and now it looked like we might be heading out the wrong exit. We finished rock bottom of the League and had to apply for re-election. Surely we wouldn't be back in the Midland League? Fortunately, the club had developed a reputation as a band of thoroughly decent chaps and we comfortably topped the re-election vote. 1905/06 Bristol City The Robins actually opened their season in disastrous fashion - losing 5-1 at Old Trafford, but then they reeled off eleven wins in a row, the seventh of those being a 2-1 win at Filbert Street. They kept that going right through till February, a total of 24 League games unbeaten. Football fever was mounting in the west country,, and the next visitors to Ashton Gate were Leicester Fosse. . Surely that great run wouldn't be threatened by the team who had achieved absolutely nothing in their twelve seasons in the Football League. We headed to Bristol on the Friday, and the man from the Leicester Daily Post went with them. As he reported: The players were frequently told of their impending fate in phrases something like this: 'Yah! You're goin' to be whacked!'. But amid all the verbal opposition, they grew in strength. On Saturday, the unthinkable happened. The result was Bristol CIty 1 Leicester Fosse 2 - their six month unbeaten run finally over. That seemed to be a turning point. If we could 'whack' a team like Bristol City, surely we could whack anyone. The followng season we finished just out of a promotion place, and the year after that we finally did it - Fosse were in Division One. 1919/20 Tottenham Hostpur It was the first day of League football for four years after the suspension during the War. Spurs' great run began in startling fashion - a 5-0 win at Coventry. It was also a truly momentous day for us - the first game played by 'Leicester City Football Club'. Fosse were no more, and our new life began with a 2-1 defeat at home to Wolves. Our first away game was actually at White Hart Lane. As the players arrived at Marylebone Station on the way to the game they were met by a man who'd just traveled down from Scotland. This was Mr. Peter Hodge, who we had just appointed as manager, and who was meeting his players for the first time. Hodge watched us lose 4-0 to Spurs, then ten days later, Spurs came to Filbert Street and won 4-2. Those results were nothing to be ashamed of - this was a truly great Tottenham line-up, fired by the injustice of Arsenal having taken their place in the top flight on completely spurious grounds when League football resumed. In the coming years, Hodge would assemble the first truly great Leicester side. 1992/93 Newcastle United We had to wait more than seventy years for the next instance. During those seven decades Leicester City went up seven times and came back down again seven times. You could call it a kind of consistency, but here we were back in the second tier - though now the thing that changed its name was not the club, but the Division itself. With the advent of the Premier League, it was now called 'Division One' Keegan's team were playing scintillating football, and having won eleven out of twelve, they came to Filbert Street for game number thirteen. It was a pretty special occasion: Our season finished dramatically of course with the unrivalled drama of the Swindon Play-Off Final. 2000/01 Fulham Finally an example of a club whose fixture list that season didn't include Leicester City. We were in the top flight. In fact, as Fulham were racing clear at the top of 'Division One', guess who was sitting pretty in the Premier League? Of course, it was Peter Taylor's boys - we were top of the pile for the first time in almost 40 years. A false dawn, of course. 2022/23 Leicester City And so we're up to date. There we have it - no acrostic message, but a compact Leicester history. Seven seasons of peaks and troughs - each of them a milestone along this crazy journey.

That season was also very special for Nigel Pearson. At New Year in 1982/83, if anyone was going to chase down Fulham for the thrid promotion spot it looked like it would not be us, but Shrewsbury Town. The Shrews went to Craven Cottage on January 3rd knowing that a win would take them level on points with Fulham. Steve Cross even put them ahead - but then Fulham came back to win 2-1. That's where the Shrews' challenge ended. They didn't win again until March, and the chase was taken up by Leicester City instead. Here''s Pearson on the day he first caught people's attention, in September 1982. It's a great story. Here's a reminder:

But look at the bookies after the Stoke game - hardly known for being hysterical. Spurs had come in to 7-4. We were still favourites, but to say there was no race at all is to downplay the drama of those days in late April. Just so pleased they blew it the following week with Craig Dawson's goal at WHL.

Wow - talk abour rewriting history. Do people not remember how this forum was split down the middle in mid-Aprl 2016? Half were saying 'Don't worry we'll do it!' The other half were crapping themselves thinking we were going to blow it. I think I may have been in the latter camp! Have a look at these comments after Spurs won 4-0 at Stoke (the day after Vardy was sent off v West Ham): Did we honestly think it would be that easy? @Ric Flair I'm not so confident of winning the title after tonight. @Cornish Lair It's all gone pear-shaped. @Kasey Keller Spurs look superb. I don't think they'll drop another point. @Dan LCFC Jonathan Moss could've just cost us the League title. @Leicesterpool Anything but a win on Saturday and we have probably blown it. Can't see Spurs losing. @Larry_LCFC If we don't beat Swansea I fear it's over. @adam ***in hell I'm scared. Can't see Spurs dropping points. @Brooksy But no - somehow this myth has taken hold that Spurs were never in it.