May 5, 1973: "The Magic of the FA Cup" rears its head, as one of the great "Cup shocks" occurs in the Final at Wembley Stadium in West London.
Sunderland Association Football Club, in the North-East of England, won the Football League in 1936, and the Football Association Cup in 1937. But, for much of their history, they have been in the League's 2nd division, and had been relegated to it in 1970. They finished 6th in the 1972-73 season, and showed little sign of getting promoted back to the 1st division.
In contrast, Leeds United, of Yorkshire, were one of the top teams of the era. They won the Football League Division One in 1969; they finished 2nd in 1965, '66, '70, '71 and '72; finished 3rd in this 1972-73 season; were the holders of the FA Cup, and lost the Final in 1965 and '70; won the League Cup in 1968; and won the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, now known as the UEFA Europa League, in 1968 and '71.
In their run to successfully defend the FA Cup, Leeds beat Norwich City of Norfolk, Plymouth Argyle of Devon, West Bromwich Albion of the West Midlands, Derby County of the East Midlands in the Quarterfinal, and Wolverhampton Wanderers of the West Midlands in the Semifinal.
Sunderland's path to the Final included beating Notts County of Nottingham, Reading of Berkshire, Manchester City, Luton Town of Bedfordshire in the Quarterfinal, and Arsenal of North London in the Semifinal.
Leeds were known as the most aggressive team in England. But Sunderland weren't intimidated, tackling fiercely and defiantly with an unremitting determination from the kickoff. Leeds looked anxious, lacking their usual composure. The match itself was decided by two crucial moments that would be talked about for years to come.
After 32 minutes, Sunderland took the lead, when Vic Halom chested down a corner from Billy Hughes. Assisted by Dave Watson between two defenders, the deflected high ball was controlled by Ian Porterfield, who shot home from 12 yards. Leeds, shocked, battled back with predictable determination. Sunderland's goalkeeper, Jimmy Montgomery, defied Leeds with a string of fine saves, preserving his team's lead.
The turning point of the match came midway through the 2nd half. Montgomery dived to palm away a close range header from Trevor Cherry. It fell into the path of Peter Lorimer, who blasted goalward from 10 yards, but Montgomery managed to divert the ball on to the underside of the bar, and Dick Malone scrambled to get the ball clear. The save is considered one of the greatest of all time.
The North-East team survived more pressure from Leeds, and the 1-0 score held up, to secure a notable upset for "The Mackems." As a shipbuilding town, the slogan was, "We make them, and you take them" -- or, in their North-East accent, "We mackem an' you tackem."
At the final whistle, Sunderland manager Bob Stokoe -- who, ironically, spent most of his playing career with Sunderland's arch-rivals, Newcastle United -- could be seen running around the sideline. This presaged Jim Valvano of North Carolina State, 10 years later, running around the court of the NCAA Tournament Final, "looking for someone to hug"; and formed the basis of the statue of Stokoe that would be dedicated outside their new home, the Stadium of Light. (From 1898 until 1997, they played at Roker Park.)
Although I found plenty of pictures of Stokoe, and of his statue,
I couldn't find any of his run.
Bobby Kerr, Sunderland's Captain, received the Cup from Katharine, Duchess of Kent, as a representative of the royal family. It remains the team's last major trophy. Sunderland won Division Two in 1976, and got promoted to Division One. But they finished in 20th and last place in 1977, and were relegated again.
They were in the top flight again from 1980 to 1985, the 1990-91 season, 1996-97, 1999 to 2003, 2005-06, and 2007 to 2017. In 2002-03, they finished with 19 points, a record low for the top flight since a win was made 3 points instead of 2 in 1982. In 2005-06, they finished with 15 points, a new record low. That record was broken in 2007-08, when Derby County got only 11.
Only once since has a team from outside the 1st division won the FA Cup: West Ham United, of East London, defeating Arsenal in 1980. Bob Stokoe lived until 2004.
*
May 5, 1973 was a Saturday. Hockey goaltender Johan Hedberg was born.
The Kentucky Derby was run at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky. Secretariat won it, with a time of 1 minute, 59 and 2⁄5ths seconds, a new race record. He would go on to win the Preakness Stakes and the Belmont Stakes, also in record times, to win the Triple Crown. He still holds the records for the Derby and the Belmont.
American-style football was out of season. The NBA Finals were between Games 3 and 4, and the New York Knicks would beat the Los Angeles Lakers in 5 games. Game 4 of the American Basketball Association Finals was played at the Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum (still standing, now named the Corteva Coliseum) in Indianapolis, and the Indiana Pacers beat their arch-rivals, the Kentucky Colonels, 90-86. The Pacers would win the series in 7 games.
The Stanley Cup Finals were between Games 4 and 5. The Montreal Canadiens would beat the Chicago Black Hawks in 6 games. Game 4 of the World Hockey Association's 1st Finals was held at the Boston Garden. The New England Whalers beat the Winnipeg Jets, 4-2. The Whalers wrapped up the title the next day, 9-6, also at the Boston Garden.
And these Major League Baseball games were played:
* The New York Yankees lost to the Chicago White Sox, 4-0 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Eddie Fisher (not the singer) went 5 1/3rd innings, before being relieved by Terry Forster, and they completed an 8-hit shutout, to outpitch Fritz Peterson.
* The New York Mets lost to the Houston Astros, 9-2 at Shea Stadium. Don Wilson outpitched Jim McAndrew. César Cedeño and Johnny Edwards hit home runs for the 'Stros.
* The Montreal Expos beat the Cincinnati Reds, 8-6 at Jarry Park in Montreal. Pete Rose went 1-for-3 with 2 walks. Johnny Bench went 1-for-4 with an RBI.
* The Atlanta Braves beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 7-0 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Carl Morton pitched a 7-hit shutout, beating Steve Carlton. This was not "Win Day" for Carlton and the Phillies. Rookie Mike Schmidt went 1-for-3. Hank Aaron hit his 681st career home run.
* The California Angels beat the Baltimore Orioles, 3-1 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore. Brooks Robinson went 0-for-4. Frank Robinson, by this point with the Angels, went 0-for-3 with a walk.
* The Cleveland Indians beat the Oakland Athletics, 6-5 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Reggie Jackson went 2-for-4 with a walk.
* The Detroit Tigers beat the Texas Rangers, 2-0 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. Joe Coleman took a 5-hit shutout into the 8th inning, and it was saved by John Hiller, the 4th of 38 saves he had that season, a new major league record. Al Kaline hit a home run.
* The Kansas City Royals beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 9-7 at Milwaukee County Stadium.
* The Boston Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins, 5-1 at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. Boston Red Sox went 2-for-4 with a walk. Harmon Killebrew went 1-for-4. So did Rod Carew, who also drew a walk.
* The San Diego Padres beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 6-5 at San Diego Stadium (later renamed Jack Murphy Stadium and Qualcomm Stadium). Willie Stargell went 0-for-4 with a walk.
* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 11-3 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles.
* And the Chicago Cubs beat the San Francisco Giants, 7-4 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco.
No comments:
Post a Comment