Today I'm going back 42 years to 1980 and York City's Fourth Division fixture against Stockport County at Bootham Crescent. The attendance in these dark hooligan affected days was just 2,135.
Stockport's manager, Jimmy McGuigan, had taken over from predecessor Mike Summerbee in November 1979 and he was destined to stay in charge until April 1982 despite County's disappointing form. In fact Stockport County were the last club to be managed by McGuigan and he had taken his first management position as long ago as 1960 at Crewe Alexandra before stints at Grimsby Town, Chesterfield (where he won the Fourth Division title) and Rotherham United. McGuigan died aged 64 in 1988.
Both sides went into the featured match in the lower half of the table with York in 19th position, just three points clear of bottom placed Halifax Town (this was back in the days of two points for a win) and Stockport County not faring much better in 15th place with just one more point than York. City manager Barry Lyons' programme notes noted the departure of legendary keeper Graeme Crawford to Rochdale because Lyons could not promise him first team football, such was the form of first choice Eddie Blackburn. City's reserve keeper was now 16-and-a-half year old Mike Astbury. The programme was also advertising the forthcoming trip to Wigan Athletic's Springfield Park at a bargain price of £2.80. Certainly I was unable to resist it!
Eddie Huitson Blackburn was Barry Lyons first signing for York. He came from Hull City for the princely sum of £5,750 in April 1980 and became York's Clubman of the Year in 1980/81 (I guess he got a lot of focus as York finished bottom of the Football League that season). He went on to make 87 appearances for York before being displaced by Denis Smith's signing of Roger Jones. Eddie moved to Hartlepool United where he would go on to make 175 appearances before a short spell in the Swedish top flight playing for Halmstads BK.
City won the featured game by a goal to nil with the goal being scored by Ian McDonald but the season ended up being a disastrous one for York who finished six points short of safety and obliged to apply for re-election. Stockport narrowly avoided a re-election fate by finishing in 20th place just one clear of the bottom four. As was usually the case, the bottom four (Tranmere Rovers, Hereford United, Halifax Town and York) all survived thanks to the old pals act with Altrincham, Alliance Premier League champions and the only Non-League applicant to apply to make the step up, receiving less than one third of the votes that York City managed.
CRB Match No. 104
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