For February 27th I'm going back 39 years to 1982 and my first visit (of 2) to the Victoria Ground, Stoke-on-Trent to see Tottenham play Stoke City in League Division 1.
!981/2 was one of Tottenham's better seasons. Under the management of Keith Burkinshaw they finished 4th and qualified for the following season's UEFA Cup. Stoke on the other hand struggled all season and eventually survived relegation by only 2 points finishing 18th out of 22 with Leeds, Wolves and Middlesbrough falling through the trapdoor.
Stoke's team that day included England international Dave Watson, future York City player David McAughtrie, Sammy McIlroy and future league title winners Lee Chapman (Leeds) and Paul Bracewell (Everton). Tottenham won this game 2-0 with both goals being scored by former Stoke boy and programme cover star Garth Crooks. Crooks was awarded an OBE for his services to football punditry (as opposed to football itself!) in 1990 and, perhaps bizarrely, hosted Top of the Pops in 1982 and also was a presenter on the BBC's political show Dispatch Box. A TV natural?
CRB Match No. 153
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