On this day ...

Discussion in 'Tottenham Hotspur' started by pookspur, Apr 28, 2019.

  1. Phillyspur

    Phillyspur Member+

    Tottenham Hotspur
    England
    Mar 18, 2007
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
  2. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    63 years ago today …

    Tony Galvin was born in Huddersfield.

    … that's all I got.

    12 July, 1956
     
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  3. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    55 years ago today …

    Spurs' inside forward John White left training and headed out to Crews Hill Golf Course at Enfield. Playing alone, he took cover beneath a tree as a thunderstorm rolled in. The tree, and John White, were struck by lighting, the latter killed instantly.

    Having arrived in 1959, John White had been an instrumental component on the legendary 'double' side of '60-61, as well as the FA and CW Cup winners that followed. Notable for his goal-scoring, passing, and ball control, White's main attribute was his movement off the ball, a seemingly uncanny ability to find space in the box that earned him the nickname The Ghost. With White, Spurs never finished below 4th in the League, and in the 15 matches he missed while on the books at Spurs, we won only once.

    As influential as he was in the team, he was set to grow moreso, as manager Bill Nicholson had supposedly pegged White as the man through which to run the attack following the retirement of Danny Blanchflower that very summer. Folks are always quick to point out that the great Spurs teams of the early 60s were never the same after Blanchflower moved on, but it wasn't just the legendary Northern Irishman's exit that derailed the great Tottenham juggernaut. It was also the loss of John White.

    21 July, 1964
     
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  4. Golara

    Golara Member+

    Aug 3, 2007
    I remember that indirectly because my grandmother would always tell us that story to warn us to stay inside whenever there was thunder brewing.
     
  5. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    25 years ago today …

    As Spurs were readying for their friendly at Bristol City, a bombshell hit from out of the blue. Jurgen Klinsmann, who had just starred for Germany in USA'94, had met with Chairman Alan Sugar on his yacht in Monte Carlo where they had personally (Klinsmann didn't trust agents) done a deal to bring the world class striker to White Hart Lane. Perhaps no bigger international star - at the pinnacle of his powers - has ever come to Spurs. This would be, arguably, our highest profile signing ever. He would go on to win the Prem's Player of the Year award and cement himself as a legend amongst the WHL faithful.

    29 July, 1994
     
  6. Phillyspur

    Phillyspur Member+

    Tottenham Hotspur
    England
    Mar 18, 2007
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    137 years ago today...
     
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  7. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    … subscriptions for the new Hotspur Football Club were due from members of the Hotspur Cricket Club. Subscriptions were received on the day from J Anderson (for 5d), and H Casey, E Beavon, and F Dexter (all for 6d). The club's first expenditure, recorded by Treasurer L Casey, was 2s 6d for goal posts, 1s for flag posts, and 6d for the flags.

    From these humble beginings …
     
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  8. soccernutter

    soccernutter Moderator
    Staff Member

    Tottenham Hotspur
    Aug 22, 2001
    Near the mountains.
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    United States
    5d? 6d? What does the "d" stand for? (I know the "p" is for pence)
     
  9. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    's' is for shilling, and 'd' is for pence.

    not sure why. from Latin, I think.
     
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  10. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    137 years ago today …

    Further subscriptions were received by J Thompson, R Buckle, and D Davis. The juggernaut picks up steam …
     
  11. Phillyspur

    Phillyspur Member+

    Tottenham Hotspur
    England
    Mar 18, 2007
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
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  12. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    60 years ago today …

    Spurs went up to Old Trafford in the League and put in a legendary performance, signaling what Bill Nicholson's sides were going to unleash upon English football over the years to come, and earning a standing ovation from the United fans after the fulltime whistle.

    The game was effectively won during a ten-minute stretch in the first half that saw rapid-fire goals from Dave Dunmore, Bobby Smith, and Tommy Harmer. United pulled one back just before halftime, and appeared to be offered a lifeline when Smith was unable to turn out after halftime due to injury. This being the pre-sub era, Spurs would start the second half with ten men. Spurs defended well, being pegged in their own half for much of the last 45. Then with three minutes left on the clock, Bobby Smith, having returned to the pitch, scored on a counter and Dave Mackay followed a minute later with his first goal for the club, leaving Spurs to run off as 5-1 winners at the Theatre of Dreams.

    Manchester United 1-5 Spurs
    12 September, 1959
     
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  13. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    45 years ago today …

    Spurs announced their replacement for the retiring legendary manager Bill Nicholson. That Nicholson, himself, had interviewed Danny Blanchflower was common knowledge, and it was presumed that the legendary right half had an endorsement that the board was sure to rubber stamp. Imagine the fans' surprise - and dismay - when the replacement turned out to be not Blanchflower, but ex-Arsenal player Terry Neill!

    According to legend, Spurs chairman Sidney Wale was angered that Nicholson had contacted Blanchflower (and Johnny Giles, who was supposed to come in as a player coach) without his consent, and therefore went another (and very different) direction. Nicholson had intended, as well, to stay on at the club in an advisory role, but Wale chose to sever all ties and send off the great Bill Nicholson with a quick 10k-quid payoff, denying him a testimonial in the process - a sad reward for perhaps the club's greatest ever servant.

    As a post-script, it is worth noting that when Keith Burkinshaw became manager two years on, one of his first moves was to request that Nicholson be brought back to the club as a consultant. He would show his worth in that capacity, particularly in spotting talent, getting credit for recommending to Burkinshaw the likes of Graham Roberts, Tony Galvin, and Gary Mabbutt.

    Meanwhile, Neill would manage Spurs for two years before being poached by his old club, Arsenal, which created the vacancy that Burkinshaw would fill.

    13 September, 1974
     
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  14. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    48 years ago today …

    Spurs took to the pitch in Iceland for the first leg of the first round of the UEFA Cup - the club's first venture into Europe since going out of the '67-68 Cup Winners Cup to Lyon on away goals. An Alan Gilzean hat-trick, a Mullery brace, and a solo from Ralph Coates saw Spurs easily though, and making the 2nd leg a mere formality.

    Of perhaps greater significance - in hindsight - was Mullery's replacement on the 74th minute. This match marked the first and only first-team appearance of Graeme Souness for Tottenham. Having signed on as an apprentice at 15 under Bill Nicholson, Souness was by this time becoming frustrated by his lack of chances with the first team, and would by the end of the seaon demand a transfer. Reluctantly, but eventually, the manager acceded to his wish, selling him to Middlesbrough for 32k pounds, where he would gain the reputation that eventually won him a spot at Liverpool, and ultimately a prominent place within their dynasty that would dominate English and European football during the late 70s/early 80s. Considering the qualities of Spurs' early 80s teams, the thought of their inclusion of Graeme Souness is one massive 'what if?'.

    At any rate, Spurs were on their way in what would be an eventful UEFA Cup campaign.

    Keflavic 1-6 Spurs
    14 September, 1971
     
  15. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    68 years ago today …

    70,882 - the largest attendance in the history of White Hart Lane - turned out when Manchester United came to Spurs in the League. Arthur Rowe's title holders ran out 2-0 winners (Bennett and Medley), but it would not be enough to hold off United this season, as they would knock Spurs down to second in the '51-'52 final table.

    Spurs 2-0 Manchester United
    22 September, 1951
     
  16. Phillyspur

    Phillyspur Member+

    Tottenham Hotspur
    England
    Mar 18, 2007
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
    42 years ago today...
    Since there have been some musings about what it would be like to be relegated.

     
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  17. Golara

    Golara Member+

    Aug 3, 2007
    It's bad, but it ain't that bad...we can still call on old 'Arry to keep us up!
     
  18. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    81 years ago today …

    Alan Gilzean was born in Coupar Angus, Perthshire (Scotland). Gilzean is the kind of player that any fan who is really into the history of the club will know … but who may slip between the cracks for those less inclined to dig. Names like Hoddle and Greaves will come to any yiddo over time, whether you look for them or not. But players like Gilzean, a forward who scored over 130 goals for the club over ten seasons, is a true Spurs legend without being ubiquitous amongst the faithful. The problem is that, during roughly the first half of his tenure at the club, he was overshadowed by his fellow forward, the legendary Jimmy Greaves, and during the second half, by the more illustrious Martins - Chivers and ('66 World Cup winner) Peters. But Gilzean was the real thing - as not only his goal totals, but the countless contributions to those of his better-remembered strike partners, will attest.

    He died last summer at 79, after being diagnosed with a brain tumor weeks before.

    23 October, 1938
     
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  19. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    damn. Mark Falco turned 59 yesterday. I've been asleep at the switch.

    nice cover, though, Philly. :thumbsup:
     
  20. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    47 years ago today …

    Martin Peters scored all four of Tottenham's goals as Spurs headed up to Old Trafford to give Man United a good thumping.

    Manchester United 1-4 Spurs
    28 October, 1972


    note: I was going to point out that it was a single-game club record Peters shared until Jermain Defoe's five-goal performance v Wigan a few years back (I seem to remember the latter being proclaimed a club record). But in verifying this presumption, I discovered that five-goal performances had happened thrice, prior to Defoe: Ted Harper (1930 v Reading, Div 2), Alf Stokes (1957 v Birmingham, Div1) and Les Allen (1960 v Crewe, FA Cup). Presumably Defoe's performance was only a 'club record' in the context of the Premier League, prior to the inception of which modern commentators are oblivious.
     
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  21. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    58 years ago today …

    League and Cup double-holders Spurs went to Rotterdam for the first leg of the 2nd round* of the European Cup against Feyenoord. That Tottenham ran out 1-3 winners belies the competitiveness of the match, with the hosts hitting the bar twice in the closing minutes. Frank Saul had a brace in his European club debut, with Terry Dyson getting the other. But the manager - Bill Nicholson, of course - was less than happy with the performance. "We muddled through. That's all you can say. Our mistake? There were so many, I don't know where to start."

    This would be the first of what would be many matches against the Dutch club that would come to be our nastiest rival in Europe. Almost 60 years on, they still do not like us ... and we definitely don't like them.

    Feyenoord 1-3 Spurs
    1 November, 1961


    *technically, this was called the tournament's first round, but we had seen off the Polish champs, Gornik Zabrze, in a preliminary round, so it does not represent Spurs' first experience in Europe.
     
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  22. Phillyspur

    Phillyspur Member+

    Tottenham Hotspur
    England
    Mar 18, 2007
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    Nat'l Team:
    England
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  23. pookspur

    pookspur Moderator
    Staff Member

    Nov 3, 2001
    Indiana
    Club:
    Tottenham Hotspur FC
    85 years ago today …

    an excellent contribution!
     
  24. Golara

    Golara Member+

    Aug 3, 2007
    February 11th 2012: Spurs 5-0 Newcastle
     
  25. Funkfoot

    Funkfoot Member+

    May 18, 2002
    New Orleans, LA
    What a game by Adebayor. I just saw he signed for a team in Paraguay.
     

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