Having just won their first (and only) league title, Nottingham Forest had the privilege of playing in the new-season curtain-raiser, the Charity Shield match at Wembley stadium 40 years ago. It's called the Community Shield these days and Forest showed very little charity to Ipswich that day as they blasted their way to a very impressive 5-0 win.
As Forest launch into the 2017-2018 season full of the kind of optimism we haven't experienced for decades, I'm going to continue to provide anyone interested with a little nostalgia for the glory years - when Forest reached the pinnacle of European football, winning the top club prize two years running. Let's be honest: No matter how much money Evangalos Marinakis pumps into the club and no matter how well Aitor Karanka uses that cash to build a great squad, it's unlikely Forest will ever reach those heights again.
I don't think I'll be doing these as regularly as last season but I hope to cover all the European Cup and League Cup games as well as many significant others, such as this.
So, what's coming up here? A summary of Forest's activity in the transfer market forty years ago - markedly far less active than this year. A summary of the World Cup which had taken place in Argentina, rather than Russia where Scotland, rather than England, had represented the UK.
I'll take a look at the history of the Charity Shield and, of course, report what little I remember about our second visit to Wembley.
All quiet on the transfer market
100 days had passed by since Forest finished their glorious 1977-78 league campaign with a gritty 0-0 draw at Anfield, the home of the club Forest had deposed from the throne of English football. Forest had stayed in the top 6 of the current form (last three home and away) games all season and kept their standards up, even when the title was in the bag. They played their last 12 league games in 40 days and their last three in 5, which also included a tough away game against West Bromwich Albion, the only team to have beaten Forest that season (a 2-0 win in the quarter finals of the F.A. Cup at the Hawthorns.) If you are under any doubt about how important a player John Robertson was for Forest during these glory years, you must read that post.
Anyway, at Anfield, Forest managed to hold Liverpool back, even with a makeshift defence as Kenny Burns was off duty collecting his Player of the Year Award.
You'd think the experience would have highlighted to Brian Clough and Peter Taylor the fact that their squad was a little light. Forest had won the league with a squad of only 16 players. Now, with the prospect of European Cup football just around the corner, surely it was the perfect time to strengthen the squad.
But this was clearly not the priority for Clough & Taylor. Not one single signing was made by Forest in the 1978 close season. Contrast that with today, when Karanka has bought a whole team's worth.
It's certainly a different world today.
Argentina '78!
Some things are similar though. In 1978, like now, the football world was still sighing with satisfaction after a great World Cup. I write this on the back of the best holiday ever, when I visited 16 countries, including 10 former Soviet republic, surrounding Russia and their first World Cup. (See my blog on that.)
In Russia, Gareth Southgate's England impressed us all. Not so, Ally McLeod's Scotland in Argentina though.
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| We all agree, Southgate is better than MacLeod |
Despite being handed probably the best squad of Scots ever - players such as John Robertson - surely the best of the bunch, Kenny Dalglish, Graeme Souness, Willie Johnson, Kenny Burns, Archie Gemmill, Joe Jordan and Bruce Rioch - Scotland failed to even get out of the group stage.
Typically, Scotland struggled against relatively lowly Peru and Iran but beat eventual finalists Holland. The game included a great goal from our Archie, but alas, it wasn't going to be enough.
Robbo was only played in one game. He surely should have been integral to the side.
After the group phase, rather than a straight knock-out, qualification to the final was decided on the result of two more groups. The way this was organised left much to be desired as it left Argentina knowing that they had to beat Peru by four goals to overtake Brazil, who had played earlier, to reach the final. They won emphatically, 6-0 in the end, but it didn't take away a bad taste from the mouth.
In the final, Argentina beat Holland 3-1 in one of the classics.
The F. A. Charity Shield
So, we'd had 100 days to think about the prospect of another visit to Wembley and the Charity Shield match. When I was a lad, the Charity Shield was the famous season opener played at Wembley between the last season's League Champions and the F.A. Cup winners. So it was a privilege to have your team playing in such a match.
Although, to me, the Charity Shield format was, pretty much, laid in stone, it was only because I was so young and could not have appreciated that, it was only just a few years earlier when the game became a Wembley fixture.
The "Sheriff of London Charity Shield" was introduced in 1898, as an amateurs versus professionals match and in 1908 the Football Association Charity Shield was designed to replace the original but in a "modern" way - where the football league first division champions played the winners of the Southern League.
The first Charity Shield match was between Manchester United and Queens Park Rangers. Man U won 4-0 after a replay, the only time the charity shield has had to be replayed. When they won it again three years later they beat Swindon 8-4, still the highest ever scoring Charity Shield match.
The first time the match played was between the champions and the F A Cup winners was in 1921, but it largely remained a Professionals v Amateurs fixture until the 1930s when Arsenal's domination of English football showed itself here too.
For much of the Charity Shield's history, it was played at various times during the season but from 1959, the fixture switched to become the season opener.
This was the earliest image of a programme I've found: Ipswich Town v Spurs, in 1962.
The earliest video clip of an old Charity Shield match was that in 1967 between Spurs and Manchester United.
There were a few occasions when the fixture ended up being played between two teams who I would have thought should have been embarrassed being asked.
In 1971 Leicester City, Division Two champions, played Liverpool, F. A. Cup runners-up, rather than Arsenal, who won the double. And the next year, both league champions Derby County and cup winners Leeds United declined to play, so it ended up being Manchester City (4th in the first division) and Aston Villa (third division winners). The next season Manchester City, who finished 11th, played second division champions Burnley.
We have to thank the much-maligned Ted Croker for sorting out this debacle. It was only in 1974 when, as Football Association secretary, he was instrumental in establishing the format that I became familiar with.
Although, to me, the Charity Shield format was, pretty much, laid in stone, it was only because I was so young and could not have appreciated that, it was only just a few years earlier when the game became a Wembley fixture.
The "Sheriff of London Charity Shield" was introduced in 1898, as an amateurs versus professionals match and in 1908 the Football Association Charity Shield was designed to replace the original but in a "modern" way - where the football league first division champions played the winners of the Southern League.
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| Sunderland 3 Corinthians 0 - 1903 Sheriff of London Charity Shield Winners |
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| Manchester United - First F.A. Charity Shield winners in 1908 |
The first Charity Shield match was between Manchester United and Queens Park Rangers. Man U won 4-0 after a replay, the only time the charity shield has had to be replayed. When they won it again three years later they beat Swindon 8-4, still the highest ever scoring Charity Shield match.
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| Charity Shield games before World War I |
The first time the match played was between the champions and the F A Cup winners was in 1921, but it largely remained a Professionals v Amateurs fixture until the 1930s when Arsenal's domination of English football showed itself here too.
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| Arsenal's trophies include the Charity Shield in 1931. |
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| Charity Shield between the wars |
For much of the Charity Shield's history, it was played at various times during the season but from 1959, the fixture switched to become the season opener.
This was the earliest image of a programme I've found: Ipswich Town v Spurs, in 1962.
The earliest video clip of an old Charity Shield match was that in 1967 between Spurs and Manchester United.
There were a few occasions when the fixture ended up being played between two teams who I would have thought should have been embarrassed being asked.
In 1971 Leicester City, Division Two champions, played Liverpool, F. A. Cup runners-up, rather than Arsenal, who won the double. And the next year, both league champions Derby County and cup winners Leeds United declined to play, so it ended up being Manchester City (4th in the first division) and Aston Villa (third division winners). The next season Manchester City, who finished 11th, played second division champions Burnley.
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| Second Division Champions Leicester City - Charity Shield Winners in 1971 |
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| Martin Dobson with the Charity Shield in 1973 Burnley were also Second Division Champions |
We have to thank the much-maligned Ted Croker for sorting out this debacle. It was only in 1974 when, as Football Association secretary, he was instrumental in establishing the format that I became familiar with.
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| Ted Croker |
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| Postwar matches |
The Match
I have to admit I have no memory of the match at all. Thank "God" for YouTube.
We must have got a Barton's or some other bus down to Wembley from Kirkby.
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| Wem - ber - ley |
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| The Kirkby lads arrive at Wembley |
Ipswich, by all accounts, started well drawing a couple of good saves from Peter Shilton, but once Martin O'Neill had put us 1-0 up, we just went from strength to strength.
One of the classic stories surrounding the game was how Brian Clough decided to take Martin O'Neill off after he'd scored two goals, thereby denying him the chance of a Wembley hat-trick. One can't help but imagine some dark spiteful motive from Clough.
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| The teams |
Forest's five goal margin remains the highest ever (jointly with three others... 1913, English Professional XI 7 English Amateurs XI 2; 1925, English Amateurs XI 6 English Professional XI 1 and 1968, Manchester City 6 West Brom 1. )
The Programme
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