I remember the first time I ever went to the Lane like it was yesterday. My dad, a life long West Ham fan bought two tickets for me and him for my 9th birthday. I was so excited to go and see the players I had only previously seen the year before in the FA Cup final of 1981. He had tried to get me to support West Ham but I wasn't having it and as surprise he arranged to take me to the game.
We drove to the ground in our dark blue Maxi and parked outside a friends house who lived near the ground. He was a Spurs fan for over 60 years and schooled me in the history of Spurs. The first thing I remember is the size of the ground. To a 9 year old boy it was absolutely massive and very daunting. I had butterflies in my stomach as we walked past the street vendors selling scarves and hats, declaring us FA Cup winners 1981. I was treated to a new scarf and we made our way to the turn style to get into the ground.
I walked slowly up the concrete steps to the seats in the upper North Stand and was shocked at how high we were. It looked even bigger inside than it did outside. The grass was a brilliant green, the white lines on the pitch freshly painted and the noise of our fans starting their chants wafted around me, then the PA kicked in and announced the teams for the day. I watched as the players went through their warm up routines, which in those days was basically walking around with a ball and show boating a bit.
No matter how may times Ive been back since, no matter how many times Ive passed the new stadium being built over the past year I will never forget that first time. Ive had some great memories at the lane down the years, as I'm sure many of you have had as well.
Seeing us get beat 3-1 by Liverpool and seeing John Barnes score with a back heel annoyed the hell out of me, however seeing a coach load of Liverpool supporters stranded as their coach broke down made up a little for it. The bloke who was brave enough (or stupid enough) to walk in the pub with Jason Dozzell embezzled across the back of his shirt and the stick he got was another memory I wont forget. However they all pale into insignificance to the day I met Gazza, Lineker, Walsh and Venables, sharing a beer with them and a friendly chat and my biggest regret of my footballing life.
A friend at school had managed to wangle his way into Spurs for his work experience, me I got a vets in Dagenham, he ended up at Spurs!. It wasn't all bad though as he managed to get me a free ticket on the shelf for our game against Villa in 1989. After the game I was to meet him outside the ground and bring a tie. A little bit of problem with that as on the way to the game Id bought a Teenage Nina Tottenham Hotspurs t-shirt of a street vendor and was proudly wearing that. He wasn't impressed but told me to put the tie on and follow him into the ground via the main entrance.
I did as I was told and he led me upstairs along this corridor with security at the end of it, They looked at him and smiled, then looked at me with the t-shirt on and a tie around my neck and looked at him again. I thought Id blown it but they laughed and said go on in but don't annoy anyone. I walked through the door straight into the players lounge. The first person I saw was Nigel Kennedy, a massive Villa fan, then Derek Mountfield, that man had the second best mustache in football behind Terry McDermott, followed by David Platt drinking his pint as quick as he could.
I followed my mate as quickly as possible as we went through another door and there he was patting Terry Venables on the stomach and telling him how fat he was. Gazza, my favorite player at the time, looked straight at me and said 'fucking hell son no one told me it was fancy dress' I didn't know whether to laugh or cry, I just stood there staring at him, he came over and said hello to my mate and then asked for my t shirt. I looked at him not sure what to do, Terry Venables came over and said hello, as Gazza asked again for my t shirt. I just nodded and took it off and handed it to him. Now here comes my biggest regret!
He was wearing a Spurs tracksuit top and handed it to me to put on whilst he wore my t-shirt. He walked around in it for a bit, showing it to the other players who had arrived, a few of them signed it, , David Howells, Mitchell Thomas, and Paul Walsh amongst them. He then came back took the tshirt off and handed it back to me, I started to take the track suit top off and hand it back to him and he said 'Nah you re alright son you keep it' to which I replied 'No thanks Gazza, I just want me t-shirt back' what an absolute tool! I had Gazza's tracksuit top given to me on a plate and I handed it back to him!. He just laughed and offered me a beer!
I spent the next two hours getting hammered with the Spurs first team. A memory I will forever cherish.
Other memories spring to mind, the local chip shop outside the ground putting hand written prices up for his food on match days, the packed trains from White Hart Lane Station, Glory, Glory, Tottenham Hotspur playing at the end of a game we've won. Being the first English club to take down the fences around the ground after Hillsborough, I could go on.
They say you never forget your first, whether its a girl you kissed, a car you bought, or a film you'll never forget. For me I will never forget my first ever game at the Lane. We played Stoke on the 10th October 1981, 5 days before my 9th birthday and we won 2-0. I fell in love for the first time that day and its lasted all of my life.
I wont be there tomorrow, work and fiances don't allow me to go as often as I would like nowadays, but a part of me will always be in that old ground, a place where I have hugged strangers in joy and wept tears of bitterness at a defeat. Where I have sung with thousands who I will never know the names of, but where I know I will always belong. To me its like losing an old friend, Ill miss the history of that ground, the place where I chose as a 9 year old kid I wanted to spend the rest of my life.
White Hart Lane, thank you for some very special memories, Ill miss you.
Saturday 13 May 2017
Wednesday 10 May 2017
Farewell the Lane: My greatest Spurs team 1981-2017
Sunday sees our final game at White Hart Lane as we know. The demolition will begin on Monday and a new stadium will take its place. Taking that into consideration I've decided to do a series of blogs saying farewell and sharing some of my memories of the place that feels like a second home to me.
The first of these is my all time favourite players that I've seen play since I started supporting Spurs in 1981. I started this three days ago and am now in a darken room gently rocking back and forth trying to get all my favourite players into the team. Forget the current team, the dark days of the 90's and 00's we've had some outstanding players down the years and here is my team of the last 36 years.
You may disagree, you may agree, let me know in the comments and well see if we can come up with an all time team for our page. For now though this is my team, taking a leaf out of the Ossie Ardiles school of management, i.e. you score 1 well score 3, I've gone with a 4-1-2-1-2 formation. Lots of goals in this team and some of the best defenders I've ever seen. So lets start with the keeper.
Who do I chose? Ray Clemence? So good he shared the England goalkeeper slot with Peter Shilton on an alternative basis as there was nothing between them. Tony Parks? Heart over head due to his UEFA Cup heroics? Ian Walker? Another England goalkeeper or how about Hugo Gomes? No sorry kidding with that one. My all time favourite keeper inspired me as kid when I played in goal. He was a monster, huge hands, a booming voice and was brilliant on his day, nothing got past him. I've gone for Erik Thorsvedt. Our keeper between 1989-1996. He was, in my opinion underrated due to the utter shite that he had to play behind, he never got the credit he deserved. He was and still is my No1 all day long.
Defenders is a tough one, we've hit the highs with Gary Stevens, Steve Perryman, Richard Gough, Kyle Walker, Toby Alderweireld, Dean Richards to name but a few but my defence has pace, knowledge and players able to read a game and turn it from defence to attack in the blink of an eye.
At right back there is only one, Danny Thomas, I've already written about Danny and I cannot add anymore than that. Playing a short while, 1983-1988 for us I will never forget him and as good as Kyle Walker is, in my opinion the only player who has come close to Danny, there is no other choice for right back.
In the middle is Mr Tottenham himself, Ledley King, to think the player he was with his knackered knees, not training all week and then going into battle against the best every week is legendary. He is also the captain of this team and one of the best I've ever seen at this position.
Next to him is in my opinion a very underrated player, never bragging of what he achieved, struggling with diabetes and still performing to the level he did is Gary Mabbutt. I loved watching him play, a quiet man off the pitch he was a lion on it. A great player for us for 16 years. 1982-1998.
Left back I'm going with Danny Rose and the only current player to make this team. Danny is quick, knowledgeable and has come on leaps and bounds since Poch has been his manager. To me there is no one better than him and therefore he makes my team and I'm not having anyone say we've had a better left back.
I need some steel in this team of mine and there is no one who compares to Graham Roberts. I'm moving him up from his natural centre half position because I know he would and could thrive in the defensive midfielder role. A true combatant on the field, fair as well as hard, he used to get my blood pumping watching him tackle. A great team player, he wouldn't accept anything other than full 100% commitment for the team he was playing for. 1980-1986
In the middle I've gone for flair, Ginola? nope, Bale? nope, Ardiles?, nope, Villia? nope, Hazzard? nope, Waddle? nope. There can only be two in my team and who wouldn't want to watch Hoddle and Gascoigne at their absolute peak playing alongside each other?
We would have Gazzas enthusiasm and work rate, alongside Hoddles skill and flair. One to take the game by the scruff of the neck, the other to ping a pass to split a defence. Who wouldn't want to play with these two behind you? Which brings me onto my link man.
Teddy Sherringham was the best link man Ive ever seen in a Spurs shirt. He would look like a bloke taking a stroll on a Sunday then bang its in the net. Not blessed with a huge amount of pace with which to beat defenders, he had a brilliant football brain and could read a game way before anyone else. He could knock a ball at his colleagues feet or dummy a pass brilliantly and its a shame we were never good enough to keep him.
Up front who do I choose? Archibald? Falco? Allen? Crooks? Kane? Rosenthal? Hey I loved rocket Ronnie! For me it has to be Lineker and Klinsmann. Gary Lineker joined from Barcelona in the summer of 1989 signed by his former manager Terry Venables. A league winner with Everton he joined us in one of our most traumatic times. Issues of the pitch meant that any progress was hindered and he eventually left to finish his career in Japan. Not before he had won us over with his skill and goal scoring exploits. A true 6 yard finisher if there ever was one.
Jurgen Klinsmann was a diver and cheat, if you believe all those that spoke about him when he joined us. A German International he was tarnished with the label all foreign players who came here at the time got. He may not have left in the best of circumstances but he bought me a lot of fun whilst he was here. Scoring his first goal he raced across the pitch and dived along the floor! Perfect answer to his critics. Plus don't forget he resigned for us when we were on the brink of relegation as well. A special player deserving of his place in this team.
So that leaves the manager and there can be only one and that is Keith Burkinshaw. I believe he would have got the best out of this group of players, having won 2 FA Cups and the UEFA Cup with us this team would be unstoppable. So that's my best team in the years I've been supporting Spurs what's yours?
Erik Thorsvedt GK 89-96
Danny Thomas RB 83-88 Gary Mabbutt CB 82-98 Ledley King CB (Cpt) 99-12 Danny Rose LB 07-
Graham Roberts DM 80-86
Glenn Hoddle AMF 75-87 Paul Gascoigne AMF 88-92
]
Teddy Sherringham AMC 92-97 and 01-03
Gary Lineker ST 89-92 Jurgen Klinsmann ST 94-95and 97-98
Manager: Keith Burkinshaw 76-84
The first of these is my all time favourite players that I've seen play since I started supporting Spurs in 1981. I started this three days ago and am now in a darken room gently rocking back and forth trying to get all my favourite players into the team. Forget the current team, the dark days of the 90's and 00's we've had some outstanding players down the years and here is my team of the last 36 years.
You may disagree, you may agree, let me know in the comments and well see if we can come up with an all time team for our page. For now though this is my team, taking a leaf out of the Ossie Ardiles school of management, i.e. you score 1 well score 3, I've gone with a 4-1-2-1-2 formation. Lots of goals in this team and some of the best defenders I've ever seen. So lets start with the keeper.
Who do I chose? Ray Clemence? So good he shared the England goalkeeper slot with Peter Shilton on an alternative basis as there was nothing between them. Tony Parks? Heart over head due to his UEFA Cup heroics? Ian Walker? Another England goalkeeper or how about Hugo Gomes? No sorry kidding with that one. My all time favourite keeper inspired me as kid when I played in goal. He was a monster, huge hands, a booming voice and was brilliant on his day, nothing got past him. I've gone for Erik Thorsvedt. Our keeper between 1989-1996. He was, in my opinion underrated due to the utter shite that he had to play behind, he never got the credit he deserved. He was and still is my No1 all day long.
Defenders is a tough one, we've hit the highs with Gary Stevens, Steve Perryman, Richard Gough, Kyle Walker, Toby Alderweireld, Dean Richards to name but a few but my defence has pace, knowledge and players able to read a game and turn it from defence to attack in the blink of an eye.
At right back there is only one, Danny Thomas, I've already written about Danny and I cannot add anymore than that. Playing a short while, 1983-1988 for us I will never forget him and as good as Kyle Walker is, in my opinion the only player who has come close to Danny, there is no other choice for right back.
In the middle is Mr Tottenham himself, Ledley King, to think the player he was with his knackered knees, not training all week and then going into battle against the best every week is legendary. He is also the captain of this team and one of the best I've ever seen at this position.
Next to him is in my opinion a very underrated player, never bragging of what he achieved, struggling with diabetes and still performing to the level he did is Gary Mabbutt. I loved watching him play, a quiet man off the pitch he was a lion on it. A great player for us for 16 years. 1982-1998.
Left back I'm going with Danny Rose and the only current player to make this team. Danny is quick, knowledgeable and has come on leaps and bounds since Poch has been his manager. To me there is no one better than him and therefore he makes my team and I'm not having anyone say we've had a better left back.
I need some steel in this team of mine and there is no one who compares to Graham Roberts. I'm moving him up from his natural centre half position because I know he would and could thrive in the defensive midfielder role. A true combatant on the field, fair as well as hard, he used to get my blood pumping watching him tackle. A great team player, he wouldn't accept anything other than full 100% commitment for the team he was playing for. 1980-1986
In the middle I've gone for flair, Ginola? nope, Bale? nope, Ardiles?, nope, Villia? nope, Hazzard? nope, Waddle? nope. There can only be two in my team and who wouldn't want to watch Hoddle and Gascoigne at their absolute peak playing alongside each other?
We would have Gazzas enthusiasm and work rate, alongside Hoddles skill and flair. One to take the game by the scruff of the neck, the other to ping a pass to split a defence. Who wouldn't want to play with these two behind you? Which brings me onto my link man.
Teddy Sherringham was the best link man Ive ever seen in a Spurs shirt. He would look like a bloke taking a stroll on a Sunday then bang its in the net. Not blessed with a huge amount of pace with which to beat defenders, he had a brilliant football brain and could read a game way before anyone else. He could knock a ball at his colleagues feet or dummy a pass brilliantly and its a shame we were never good enough to keep him.
Up front who do I choose? Archibald? Falco? Allen? Crooks? Kane? Rosenthal? Hey I loved rocket Ronnie! For me it has to be Lineker and Klinsmann. Gary Lineker joined from Barcelona in the summer of 1989 signed by his former manager Terry Venables. A league winner with Everton he joined us in one of our most traumatic times. Issues of the pitch meant that any progress was hindered and he eventually left to finish his career in Japan. Not before he had won us over with his skill and goal scoring exploits. A true 6 yard finisher if there ever was one.
Jurgen Klinsmann was a diver and cheat, if you believe all those that spoke about him when he joined us. A German International he was tarnished with the label all foreign players who came here at the time got. He may not have left in the best of circumstances but he bought me a lot of fun whilst he was here. Scoring his first goal he raced across the pitch and dived along the floor! Perfect answer to his critics. Plus don't forget he resigned for us when we were on the brink of relegation as well. A special player deserving of his place in this team.
So that leaves the manager and there can be only one and that is Keith Burkinshaw. I believe he would have got the best out of this group of players, having won 2 FA Cups and the UEFA Cup with us this team would be unstoppable. So that's my best team in the years I've been supporting Spurs what's yours?
Erik Thorsvedt GK 89-96
Danny Thomas RB 83-88 Gary Mabbutt CB 82-98 Ledley King CB (Cpt) 99-12 Danny Rose LB 07-
Graham Roberts DM 80-86
Glenn Hoddle AMF 75-87 Paul Gascoigne AMF 88-92
]
Teddy Sherringham AMC 92-97 and 01-03
Gary Lineker ST 89-92 Jurgen Klinsmann ST 94-95and 97-98
Manager: Keith Burkinshaw 76-84
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)