One of the results of lockdown is often finding things to fill the spare time that would otherwise have been devoted to the minutiae of ‘normal life’. Some have used lockdown to learn new skills or catch up with longstanding ‘to do’ lists. Having decorated my home to within an inch of its life, I have found that more and more of my ‘extra’ time is now being devoted to trips down memory lane. Whilst recently looking through stored boxes of, well… ‘stuff’, I came across a treasure trove of old Argyle Football Combination team sheets.
My infatuation with my football team spanning over half a century was by no means confined to first team matches. As a kid I also persuaded my father to take me to Reserve team fixtures. Normally these alternated with the first team games. If Argyle were away on a Saturday then that would be the time the Reserves would be playing at Home Park.
In those days Argyle were members of the Football Combination. This was a league for the reserve teams of clubs based in the south. Naturally, there was a heavy London bias, with teams from Spurs, Arsenal, Chelsea, West Ham, QPR and others. The reserve teams would be a mix of up-and-coming youngsters - who were total unknowns - as well as established first team players. Of course, the rise and fall of a footballer’s career could sometimes be predicted by exactly when he started to regularly appear in reserve team games. The exciting new prospect would definitely be considered to be ‘on the way up’ whereas the old battle-hardened household name may well be moving in the opposite direction. To be fair, the latter may just have been temporarily out of favour or tentatively testing their fitness following a long-term injury. Occasionally there would be a superstar name in the top-flight reserve teams visiting Home Park, and that would trigger the saliva glands no end.
I rarely missed a Reserves fixture in the 70s and I kept many of the flimsy team sheets that were obtained from a solitary programme seller, for the princely sum of 2 pence. Looking back over them now triggers a wealth of nostalgia and recollections of having seen some serious footballing names in the flesh.
Fixtures with West Ham over the years threw up such names as Alan Curbishley, Bobby Gould, Billy Bonds and Frank Lampard (Senior, of course!) Arsenal were always good for the odd ‘name’ or two. David O’Leary, Frank Stapleton, Bob Wilson and Alan Hudson were all privileged to have graced the, more often than not, quagmire of Home Park over the years. In November 1970 their reserve line-up included Peter Marinello and Charlie George in the same team; a hefty transfer tally on show that afternoon! Spurs were always a big draw and the regular 100 or so Argyle fans for most Combination games could guarantee to be swelled when Tottenham came to town. The legendary ‘Jimmy Greaves Match’ that boasted an attendance of around 12,000 was before my time, but there was still a healthy interest in their subsequent line-ups. They included Gerry Armstrong, Ralph Coates and Martin Chivers – oh, and let’s not forget a certain Joe Kinnear.
On the subject of Marmite managers, a Bristol Rovers reserve team in 1974 featured Tony Pulis, whilst a later one included Ian Holloway. I would also have seen Dario Gradi turn out for Chelsea Reserves, although to me he was just another unknown then. Other players I watched take on the young kids and veterans of Argyle Reserves included Clive Allen (Crystal Palace), Harry Redknapp (Norwich), Gary Sprake (Birmingham) and Kevin Beattie (Ipswich). Another Ipswich Reserves player that I must have seen was referred to on the team sheet as ‘Steven McCall’ – very posh! :lol:
Of course, it wasn’t the opposition that lured me out to a virtually deserted Home Park on (often) cold, wet or windy Saturday afternoons - or even colder Tuesday evenings in January. I went to watch Argyle – and it made no difference to me whether it was the first team (‘the Chiefs’) or the Reserves. This was my team. There was a difference, of course, with stakes – and attendances - being far higher in Football League matches. However, with the pressure being dialed down a little, watching the Reserves was often just as rewarding. It afforded an opportunity to actually enjoy a game of football without biting your nails down to the quick.
‘Talent spotting’ was another fringe benefit. Which of the Argyle youngsters was going to ‘make it’? And, if they did, how satisfying that you were able to smugly say, ‘Well, actually, I watched his progress in the Reserves and I never doubted he would make it…’ After many accumulated uncomfortable hours at Home Park with a handful of fellow embattled enthusiasts it was a special moment when ‘one of our own’ made it into the first team. With chest proudly stuck out at his Football League home debut I could announce to anyone within earshot about how good ‘my’ player had been before anyone else got to see him.
There were the George Fosters and the Mike Trussons that broke through the ranks from time to time and, of course, I took the credit for those, :lol: but my crowning glory was at the beginning of the 1973/74 season. We had just signed a rangy centre forward from a non-league side in Lancashire and he turned out for the Reserves in the first home match of that season’s Combination League. Well, Stevie Wonder could have seen the potential of this guy. His all round play and goal-scoring prowess was making the Reserves a far more entertaining afternoon out than the Chiefs. Something quite magical and special was happening in front of our very eyes and we were privileged to literally have a Grandstand view.
Thankfully, it was not only the few of us who turned up to see the Reserves who were convinced that we had unearthed ‘the real deal’. Tony Waiters was clearly of a similar mind and Paul Mariner – along with two other of ‘our’ youngsters, Brian Johnson and Alan Rogers – was ‘blooded’ in a 5-0 thrashing of Rochdale on the 9th of November 1973. No Argyle fan there that night could have failed to be impressed by all three debutants, but there was an extra special bounce in the step of all regular attendees of the Combination League matches. Those players ‘belonged’ to us - and always would. Happy days. :scarf:
Any other Football Combination fans out there?
My infatuation with my football team spanning over half a century was by no means confined to first team matches. As a kid I also persuaded my father to take me to Reserve team fixtures. Normally these alternated with the first team games. If Argyle were away on a Saturday then that would be the time the Reserves would be playing at Home Park.
In those days Argyle were members of the Football Combination. This was a league for the reserve teams of clubs based in the south. Naturally, there was a heavy London bias, with teams from Spurs, Arsenal, Chelsea, West Ham, QPR and others. The reserve teams would be a mix of up-and-coming youngsters - who were total unknowns - as well as established first team players. Of course, the rise and fall of a footballer’s career could sometimes be predicted by exactly when he started to regularly appear in reserve team games. The exciting new prospect would definitely be considered to be ‘on the way up’ whereas the old battle-hardened household name may well be moving in the opposite direction. To be fair, the latter may just have been temporarily out of favour or tentatively testing their fitness following a long-term injury. Occasionally there would be a superstar name in the top-flight reserve teams visiting Home Park, and that would trigger the saliva glands no end.
I rarely missed a Reserves fixture in the 70s and I kept many of the flimsy team sheets that were obtained from a solitary programme seller, for the princely sum of 2 pence. Looking back over them now triggers a wealth of nostalgia and recollections of having seen some serious footballing names in the flesh.
Fixtures with West Ham over the years threw up such names as Alan Curbishley, Bobby Gould, Billy Bonds and Frank Lampard (Senior, of course!) Arsenal were always good for the odd ‘name’ or two. David O’Leary, Frank Stapleton, Bob Wilson and Alan Hudson were all privileged to have graced the, more often than not, quagmire of Home Park over the years. In November 1970 their reserve line-up included Peter Marinello and Charlie George in the same team; a hefty transfer tally on show that afternoon! Spurs were always a big draw and the regular 100 or so Argyle fans for most Combination games could guarantee to be swelled when Tottenham came to town. The legendary ‘Jimmy Greaves Match’ that boasted an attendance of around 12,000 was before my time, but there was still a healthy interest in their subsequent line-ups. They included Gerry Armstrong, Ralph Coates and Martin Chivers – oh, and let’s not forget a certain Joe Kinnear.
On the subject of Marmite managers, a Bristol Rovers reserve team in 1974 featured Tony Pulis, whilst a later one included Ian Holloway. I would also have seen Dario Gradi turn out for Chelsea Reserves, although to me he was just another unknown then. Other players I watched take on the young kids and veterans of Argyle Reserves included Clive Allen (Crystal Palace), Harry Redknapp (Norwich), Gary Sprake (Birmingham) and Kevin Beattie (Ipswich). Another Ipswich Reserves player that I must have seen was referred to on the team sheet as ‘Steven McCall’ – very posh! :lol:
Of course, it wasn’t the opposition that lured me out to a virtually deserted Home Park on (often) cold, wet or windy Saturday afternoons - or even colder Tuesday evenings in January. I went to watch Argyle – and it made no difference to me whether it was the first team (‘the Chiefs’) or the Reserves. This was my team. There was a difference, of course, with stakes – and attendances - being far higher in Football League matches. However, with the pressure being dialed down a little, watching the Reserves was often just as rewarding. It afforded an opportunity to actually enjoy a game of football without biting your nails down to the quick.
‘Talent spotting’ was another fringe benefit. Which of the Argyle youngsters was going to ‘make it’? And, if they did, how satisfying that you were able to smugly say, ‘Well, actually, I watched his progress in the Reserves and I never doubted he would make it…’ After many accumulated uncomfortable hours at Home Park with a handful of fellow embattled enthusiasts it was a special moment when ‘one of our own’ made it into the first team. With chest proudly stuck out at his Football League home debut I could announce to anyone within earshot about how good ‘my’ player had been before anyone else got to see him.
There were the George Fosters and the Mike Trussons that broke through the ranks from time to time and, of course, I took the credit for those, :lol: but my crowning glory was at the beginning of the 1973/74 season. We had just signed a rangy centre forward from a non-league side in Lancashire and he turned out for the Reserves in the first home match of that season’s Combination League. Well, Stevie Wonder could have seen the potential of this guy. His all round play and goal-scoring prowess was making the Reserves a far more entertaining afternoon out than the Chiefs. Something quite magical and special was happening in front of our very eyes and we were privileged to literally have a Grandstand view.
Thankfully, it was not only the few of us who turned up to see the Reserves who were convinced that we had unearthed ‘the real deal’. Tony Waiters was clearly of a similar mind and Paul Mariner – along with two other of ‘our’ youngsters, Brian Johnson and Alan Rogers – was ‘blooded’ in a 5-0 thrashing of Rochdale on the 9th of November 1973. No Argyle fan there that night could have failed to be impressed by all three debutants, but there was an extra special bounce in the step of all regular attendees of the Combination League matches. Those players ‘belonged’ to us - and always would. Happy days. :scarf:
Any other Football Combination fans out there?
used to go partly as the only way to keep up to date with the away scores in those days was keeping an eye on that window! Used to spend almost as much time looking at the window! So often in 74/5 it was the second board that moved to 1 or 2. (Or SEVEN at Bournemouth) followed by a cheer trickling around the terraces.