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Bob Day: 1956, my first match, Newcastle United v. Manchester City

 

My first game was on the 20th October 1956 against Manchester City. My Dad took me and my cousin and we sat on the wall on The Popular Side level with the eighteen yard box at the Gallowgate End. I was looking forward to seeing Manchester City German born goalkeeper Bert Trautmann. Unfortunately he was still injured after breaking his neck in the 1956 Cup Final.

Len White, legendary centre forward of the late fifties and early sixties was my first hero. Scorer of 153 goals in 268 appearances and a member of the 1955 cup winning team. Len never won an England cap which was a disgrace - the best uncapped centre forward ever! Len had his career cut short by a tackle by Dave Mackay of Tottenham Hotspurs which made him miss the final eight games of the 1960/61 season which resulted in Newcastle being relegated from the first division.

Season 1977/78 was a disaster and seemed to take an eternity to end. Ten games in a row lost at the beginning of the season saw us relegated from the first division. Oh dear!! It took us six seasons to return to the top flight.

The best manager, in my opinion, was Kevin Keegan who signed great players and who could motivate them. More importantly he showed that with the right investment and backing we could compete with the top clubs in the land.

Supporters of my age will never forget the wonderful Fairs Cup winning season of 1968/69. Exciting, magical nights where old St James' Park was filled with atmosphere and song. The night we beat Glasgow Rangers in the semi-final was an occasion that will never be forgotten not just because of the disgraceful behaviour of the Rangers fans but the way the team played in a spell bounding victory. Howway the Lads!

 

Bob Day

 

 

Newcastle United Foundation have a heritage project for fans of all ages called Toon Times.

Toon Times will culminate with a major Newcastle United exhibition at the Discovery Museum, Newcastle, although in the lead up to this event Toon Times wishes to reach out to all Newcastle United fans across the North East and further afield to get involved and share their memories, experiences, photos and memorabilia what people have collected over the years.

We are supporting the project by helping to collect NUFC memories online - fans can share their memories on the Replay Football website, simply select the Toon Times tag when submitting yours.

For more info contact the Toon Times Heritage Project Coordinator, Newcastle United Foundation, gavin.ferry@nufc.co.uk

Memory added on August 26, 2013

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