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West Bromwich Albion |
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| Bob 70-71 | 1969-70The following picture and article are from the League Cup Final programme from 7th March, 1970. Held at Wembly in front of 100,000 people, West Bromwich Albion lost to Manachester City 2-1 after extra time the scores being level at 1-1 after 90 minutes.
Back row (left to right) : Nick Kryzwicki (see Huddersfield Town), Lyndon Hughes, Dennis Martin, Jeff Astle, John Osborne, John Talbut, Graham Williams and trainer Jimmy Dunn. Front row : Asa Hartford, Tony Brown, Ray Wilson, Alan Ashman (Manager), Doug Fraser (Captain), Colin Suggett and Bobby Hope. WELL, they're back again! West Bromwich Albion, the team who take to Cup football like a Black Country factory worker to a Majorcan beach, seem to have been to Wembley so often in the past few years that they are happily thinking of today's clash with Manchester City as a "home" match. They were here in the 1967 League Cup final. . . and lost to Queen's Park Rangers. But they were back again the following year to beat Everton in the FA Cup. Last year they almost made it again but were beaten in the F A Cup semi-final at Hillsboruugh by Leicester City. Now they are back again bidding to win the League Cup for the second time in five seasons. by NEVILLE FOULGER (Birmingham Evening Mail) In these five seasons of Cup glory Albion have lost only five out of 27 League Cup games and four out of 19 FA Cup matches. They have also tasted European soccer with entry to both the Fairs Cup and the Cup-Winners Cup. They enjoyed it so much that it is the reward of a Fairs Cup place again which will be driving them on today. Yet Albion are truly a "Jekyll and Hyde'. side. At their best they are magnificent with fast fluent football that can take the breath away and scoring potential second to none in the First Division. At their worst they can look like a team composed of total strangers trapped in a baffling web of errors. Albion's go-ahead young Manager Alan Ashman has wrestled with this problem of inconsistency without quite finding the solution but there are plenty of managers who would be happy to swap their particular troubles with his. For the first time since taking over from Jimmy Hagan at the Hawthorns Ashman went into the transfer market in a big way before the start of this season. He spent 100,000 pounds to bring Colin Suggett from Sunderland and then with player plus cash deals captured Danny Hegan from Ipswich and Allan Glover from Queens Park Rangers. It is the Suggett signing which is really beginning to payoff however. He made an unspectacular start and quickly gathered one or two critics. Ashman remained unworried and convinced that his judgement was right. Suggett, he said, had the class. to become another Jimmy Greaves in and around the six yards area. Now his words are beginning to ring true. Suggett has at last struck up an understanding with England centre-forward Jeff Astle that is threatening to rip apart many defences in the. First Division. He is an exciting player with an eye for the half chance and the speed and skill to create openings for his colleagues from tight situations in the goalmouth. The wide open spaces of Wembley should suit the Astle-Suggett combination. They will also be ideal for the mid-field skills of Bobby Hope and Asa Hartford. These are the two players who really make Albion tick. They are both Scots. He made an immediate impact when he began to win a regular place last season but then seemed to suffer from the pressure and publicity. His game went to pieces and it took the guidance of Manager Ashman to put it together again. Now Hartford is playing better than ever with a style that is reminiscent of Denis Law a few years ago. One minute he is back in the defence and the next fighting for the ball in the other penalty area. With Hope alongside Hartford to provide those "killer" 40 yard passes Albion have never looked better equipred in mid-field. They also have Tony Brown of the bullet-Iike shot acting as the spare man and giving Astle and Suggett the assistance they need near goal. Defensively things have also improved with John Talbut and John Kave completely dominating the route down the middle. West Midland fans firmlv believe that Kaye should be a candidate for Mexico. So Albion are a team almost overflowing with talent yet lacking that consistency which makes teams like Leeds and Liverpool so great. But they are good to watch and today will be determined to produce one of their "spectaculars" for the 100,000 crowd and television viewers. The last time they were here in 1968 they beat Everton in a match that lacked sparkle. This time they want to show supporters outside the Midlands just how good they can be. |
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