November 27, 1975: The Assassination of Ross McWhirter

The McWhirter Twins, 1974: Norris (left) & Ross

November 27, 1975: Ross McWhirter, with his twin brother Norris a sportswriter, co-founder of The Guinness Book of World Records, and a Conservative Party activist, is assassinated outside his home in Enfield, North London. He was 50 years old.

The twin brothers were born on August 12, 1925 in North London, and both served in the Royal Navy in World War II, on a minesweeper. They became sports journalists. In 1951, they published Get to Your Marks, and earlier that year they had founded an agency to provide facts and figures to Fleet Street, the catch-all name for British newspapers, even if they were no longer based on the London street of that name.

In 1954, Norris served as the public address announcer for the track meet at Oxford University in which Roger Bannister became the 1st man to run a mile race in under 4 minutes. Also competing that day was Christopher Chataway, who worked for the Guinness brewery, and introduced them to his boss, Sir Hugh Beaver.

The following year, the 1st Guinness Book of World Records was published, billed as the ultimate settler of bar bets. It quickly became the biggest-selling book in Britain, setting a world record itself, and eventually became more famous than the stout itself. In 1965, the twins were guests on the American panel game show I've Got a Secret, where they exhibited their memorization of their book.

Both brothers became Conservative Party activists. Both ran for seats in Parliament in the 1964 general election, but were unsuccessful. Norris tried again in 1966, and lost again. In 1972, Prime Minister Edward Heath, Leader of the Conservative Party, brought Britain into the European Common Market. Norris called it "treason." In a 2017 article in The Guardian, Stuart Jeffries called him "the original Brexiter":

Imagine, if you dare, that Katie Hopkins is also the status guru on Test Match Special. Or that Nigel Farage is renowned not just as the beef-faced broker who got us out of the EU but for his astute postgame analysis on Match of the Day.

Neither of these comparisons really does justice to Norris McWhirter. He was something else. He was alt-right before the term was invented. 

(For readers not familiar with British politics: Hopkins is a newspaper columnist, known for her anti-immigrant views; Farage was the longtime leader of the far-right UK Independence Party, and claims to be the person most responsible for Britain finally leaving the European Union, the process known as "Brexit"; Test Match Special is a TV show about cricket; Match of the Day, about soccer. And, yes, there is another show on British TV, called Soccer Saturday, so they don't always call that sport "football.")

Ross advocated and lobbied for various restrictions on the freedom of the Irish community in Britain, such as compulsory registration with the local police, and a requirement for signed photographs when renting flats or booking hotel rooms. If that sounds like something that Donald Trump would like, that's not my fault.

In 1975, Ross McWhirter offered a £50,000 reward -- in 2022 money, about £342,000; with the current exchange rate, about $415,000 -- for information leading to a conviction for several recent high-profile bombings in England that were publicly claimed by the Provisional Irish Republican Army (IRA).

On November 27, at 6:45 PM, he was shot by 2 members of the Balcombe Street Gang. The killers were Harry Duggan and Hugh Doherty. Duggan said later, "McWhirter thought he lived in Texas. He put a bounty on our heads. He asked to be killed."

No, he didn't. Being a right-wing jerk is not an invitation to murder. And killing him didn't accomplish anything.

Duggan and Doherty were captured 9 days later, and charged with his murder and 10 others. They were sentenced to life imprisonment, but freed in 1999 under the terms of the Good Friday Agreement. As of November 27, 2022, both men are still alive.

Norris McWhirter lived on, without his brother, as a union-bashing libertarian. With the election of the Conservatives, and of the twins' longtime friend Margaret Thatcher as Prime Minister, in 1979, his beliefs became, for the most part, official government policy.

He had medals cast and given to athletes boycotting the Olympics in Moscow in 1980, and publicly defended athletes who dared to resist the ban on playing sporting events in then-apartheid South Africa. Defenders of that state, in both Britain and America, defended by saying they weren't personally racist, themselves, but supported a regime that was openly anti-Communist. Of course, the implication was that the country's black activists were Communists.

Norris sold his interest in the Guinness Book in 1996, and died on April 19, 2004, at the age of 78.

*

November 27, 1975 was a Thursday. In America, it was Thanksgiving Day. Since 1934, that had meant that the Detroit Lions played at home. This would be their 1st T-Day game in the suburbs, and they lost, 20-0 to the Los Angeles Rams, at the Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan.

Since 1966, Thanksgiving had meant that the Dallas Cowboys played at home. But this year, and again in 1977 (but not in 1976), the NFL deviated from Dallas, giving the home game to the football version of the St. Louis Cardinals. The Cards lost to the Buffalo Bills, 32-14 at Busch Memorial Stadium. The NFL might have been motivated to give St. Louis the game not because of the Cardinals, but because of their opponents: The Bills featured the most popular player in the League, running back O.J. Simpson.

One game was played in college football, the rivalry known as "Clean Old-Fashioned Hate": Georgia, then ranked Number 15, beat Georgia Tech, 42-26 at Grant Field in Atlanta.

Baseball was out of season. There were 3 games played in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks beat the Washington Bullets, 96-90 at the Capital Centre in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland.

* The Kansas City Kings beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 95-91 at The Coliseum in the Cleveland suburb of Richfield, Ohio.

* And the Golden State Warriors beat the Milwaukee Bucks, 106-105 at the Milwaukee Exposition & Convention Center Arena, a.k.a. The MECCA. (It's now the UW-Milwaukee Panther Arena.)

And there was 1 game in the American Basketball Association: The Utah Stars beat the Kentucky Colonels, 128-126 in overtime at the Salt Palace in Salt Lake City, Utah. Despite the defeat, William "Bird" Averitt of the Colonels led all scorers on the night with 43 points. Ron Boone led the Stars with 34.

There were 2 games in the NHL. The Montreal Canadiens beat the New York Islanders, 2-1 at the Nassau Coliseum. And the League's Missouri teams played each other: The Kansas City Scouts beat the St. Louis Blues, 3-2 at the Kemper Arena (now the Hy-Vee Arena) in Kansas City. This may have been the Scouts' high point: A year later, they moved to Denver, becoming the Colorado Rockies. In 1982, they moved again, becoming the New Jersey Devils.

And there were 4 games in the World Hockey Association:

* The Indianapolis Racers beat the Winnipeg Jets, 3-1 at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis.

* The Minnesota Fighting Saints beat the Cincinnati Stingers, 5-3 at the St. Paul Civic Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.

* The Calgary Cowboys beat the Phoenix Roadrunners, 5-1 at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix.

* And the San Diego Mariners beat the Quebec Nordiques, 5-1 at the San Diego Sports Arena (now the Pechanga Arena).

October 13, 1972: Derry City Withdraw From the Irish Football League

Brandywell Stadium

October 13, 1972: Derry City Football Club withdraw from the Irish Football League, the governing body for soccer in Northern Ireland, after what turned out to be the hardest year of "The Troubles" in that "country."

The conflict was especially dangerous in their own city, known as Londonderry to the governments in Belfast and London, but as simply "Derry" -- or, perhaps, "Free Derry" -- to the Catholic people who lived there. Ireland has had a few days in its history known as "Bloody Sunday," including "The Battle of the Bogside," earlier in the year in Derry.

Founded in 1928, and nicknamed the Candystripes for their shirts of red and white stripes, and playing in Brandywell Stadium on the west bank of the River Foyle, 3 miles from the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, Derry City won their only title in the IFL in the 1964-65 season. They had also won the Irish Cup, Northern Ireland's version of England's FA Cup, in 1949, 1954 and 1964.

Surviving in junior football for 13 years, Derry City entered the Republic of Ireland's football system for 1985-86, joining its 2nd division, known as the League of Ireland First Division. They were an immediate success. On February 23, 1986, "the randy Brandywell," as its fans call the stadium, hosted 9,800 fans, still a record attendance for a League of Ireland team, for an FAI Cup Second Round match against Finn Harps of County Donegal. In Ireland, Derry vs. Finn Harps is known as the Northwest Derby.

Derry City won the title in their 2nd season, 1986-87, and were promoted to the actual first division, known as the Premier Division, winning the title in 1989 and 1997. In 1989, 1995, 2002 and 2006, they won the ROI's version of the FA Cup, the FAI Cup. (The Republic's governing body is the FAI, the Football Association of Ireland. Northern Ireland's is the IFA, the Irish Football Association.)

The Cup win over 1989 meant that they won their adoptive country's "Double." They also won the League of Ireland Cup that year, so their victory in the FAI Cup Final on April 30, 1989, at Dalymount Park in Dublin, the last of the three trophies available, gave them a domestic "Treble."

The club was expelled from the LOI in November 2009, when it was discovered there were unofficial secondary contracts with players. It was reinstated a few weeks later but, as punishment, was demoted to the First Division.

The club eventually won its way back to the Premier Division. Although they have not won the league since 1997, they have won the FAI Cup again in 2012 and 2022. More importantly, there has never been a violent incident at a Derry City game since they entered the LOI in 1985. In 2018, the stadium was renamed the Ryan McBride Brandywell Stadium, in memory of McBride, Derry's Captain, who died in his sleep, without explanation, the year before. He was only 27 years old.

As I said, Derry City have won the top division of Republic of Ireland football twice. Teams from County Dublin have won 58 titles, while all other Counties combined have won 41.

Shamrock Rovers, of Tallaght, south of Dublin, have won it 20 times. Shelbourne, of North Dublin, have won 13. Bohemian, or "Bohs," of North Dublin, have won 11. St. Patrick's Athletic, of Inchicore, west of Dublin, have won 8. Drumcondra, of North Dublin, have won 5. St. James's Gate, of South Dublin, have won 2. Dolphin, of Dolphin's Barn in South Dublin, won the title in 1935 and finished 2nd in 1936, but the Depression meant that it couldn't pay wage increases, and went out of business.

Dundalk, of County Louth, have won 14 titles. Waterford, of the County of the same name, have won 6. Sligo Rovers, of County Sligo, have won 3. Limerick, of the County of the same name, have won 2. Athlone Town, of County Roscommon, have won 2. Drogheda United of County Louth won the title in 2007.

In County Cork, Cork United won 5 before going out of business in 1948. Cork Athletic, intended as United's replacement, won 2 before going out of business in 1957. Cork Hibernians won the title in 1971, and Cork Celtic won it in 1974, before going out of business in 1977 and 1980, respectively, and being replaced by Cork City in 1984. Cork City have won 3 titles.    

In Northern Ireland, the Irish Football League was reorganized into the NIFL Premiership in 2008. Overall, Linfield, of South Belfast, have won 56 titles, more national league titles than any team in any country; Glentoran, of East Belfast, have won 23; Belfast Celtic, of West Belfast, won 14 before withdrawing from the League in 1949, for reasons similar to Derry City's, and went out of business in 1960; Crusaders, of North Belfast, have won 7; Distillery, of West Belfast, won 6 titles, the last in 1963, before moving to South Belfast and becoming Lisburn Distillery, and haven't won one since; Cliftonville, of North Belfast, have won 5; Portadown, of County Armagh, 4; Glenavon, of Lurgan in County Armagh, 3, the last in 1960; Coleraine, of County Londonderry, 1, in 1974; Queen's Island, of South Belfast, 1, in 1924, and went out of business in 1929; and Ards, of Bangor in County Down, 1, in 1958.

UPDATE: In the LOI, Shamrock Rovers won a 21st title in 2023, and a 22nd in 2025. Shelbourne won a 14th title in 2024. In the NIFL, Linfield won a 57th title in 2025. Larne, of County Antrim, which had never won the title before, have now won 3: In 2023, 2024 and 2026.

*

October 13, 1973 was a Friday -- a Friday the 13th. Summer Sanders, winner of 2 Gold Medals in swimming at the 1992 Olympics in Barcelona, was born on this day.

Also on this day, a Friday the 13th, Uruguayan Air Force Flight 571, taking off from Uruguay's capital of Montevideo and intending to land in Chile's capital of Santiago, crashes in the Andes Mountains outside Malargüe, Argentina. Of the 45 people on board, only 24 survived the crash.

The passengers were members of Old Christians, a rugby team from Montevideo, traveling to play Santiago team Old Boys. Those who survived did so as best they could, but their food ran out quickly. Eventually, they turned to cannibalizing the bodies of those killed. On October 29, 8 of the survivors were killed in an avalanche.

By the time they were finally rescued on December 23 -- a Christmas miracle -- only 16 of the passengers were still alive. Incredibly, 48 years later, 15 of those 16 are still alive. In 1993, the film Alive, starring Ethan Hawke, dramatized the events.

In sports: Baseball was between its Playoffs and the World Series. The Oakland Athletics went on to beat the Cincinnati Reds in 7 games.

There were 7 games played in the NBA:

* The Boston Celtics beat the Los Angeles Lakers, 112-104 at the Boston Garden.

* The Buffalo Braves beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 104-101 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.

* The Baltimore Bullets beat the Atlanta Hawks, 115-98 at the Baltimore Civic Center (now the CFG Bank Arena).

* The Houston Rockets beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 109-108 at the Cleveland Arena. Austin Carr scored 40 in defeat for the Cavs.

* The Detroit Pistons beat their arch-rivals, the Chicago Bulls, 100-91 at Cobo Hall (now Huntington Place) in Detroit.

* The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Phoenix Suns, 117-105 at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix. Kareem Abdul-Jabbar led all players on the night with 41 points.

* And the Seattle SuperSonics beat their arch-rivals, the Portland Trail Blazers, 92-84 at the Portland Memorial Coliseum. Spencer Haywood scored 35 points and grabbed 16 rebounds for the Sonics.

And there were 3 games played in the American Basketball Association:

* The New York Nets beat the Kentucky Colonels, 114-90 at the Nassau Coliseum.

* The Carolina Cougars beat the Indiana Pacers, 106-88 at the Indiana State Fair Coliseum (now the Corteva Coliseum) in Indianapolis.

* And the Denver Rockets beat the San Diego Conquistadors, 109-100 at the Peterson Gym on the campus of San Diego State University.

There were no games scheduled in the NHL. The World Hockey Association's Quebec Nordiques played their 1st home game at Le Colisée de Québec. They beat the Alberta Oilers 6-0. They would reach the WHA Finals in 1975 and win the title in 1977.

Not so lucky are fellow their fellow WHA home debutantes, the Philadelphia Blazers. First, they were frozen out of using Philly's new arena, The Spectrum, because it was owned by Flyers owner Ed Snider. So they had to use the much-older Convention Hall of the Philadelphia Civic Center.

Then, their 3 biggest acquisitions all got hurt in preseason: John McKenzie (also their head coach) and Derek Sanderson, from the 1970 and '72 Stanley Cup-winning Boston Bruins; and former Flyers goalie Bernie Parent. Then, on October 12, they lost their 1st regular-season game, 4-3, to the New England Whalers at the Boston Garden, where, presumably, some people had bought tickets expecting to see McKenzie and Sanders.

But on this night, when the Zamboni was driven onto the playing service, the improperly made ice could not support its weight, and it cracked. The game was postponed. They ended up losing their 1st 7 games, including their eventual home opener, on October 25, 8-2 to the Cleveland Crusaders. Their 1st win finally came on October 27, 5-4 over the Los Angeles Sharks.

Incredibly, they went 38-33 (no ties) the rest of the way, and make the Playoffs, but are swept by the Crusaders. So few people came out to see them that they moved to Vancouver for 1973-74, and had to sell Parent back to the Flyers, where he helped them win back-to-back Stanley Cups. The Blazers became the Calgary Cowboys in 1975, and folded in 1977.

The Minnesota Fighting Saints, named for their home city, lost their debut, 4-3 to the Winnipeg Jets at the St. Paul Civic Center. And the Houston Aeros and the Los Angeles Sharks made their debuts, against each other, with the Aeros winning, 3-2 at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena.

May 23, 1972: Northern Ireland Beat England at Wembley

Captains Terry Neill (left) and Bobby Moore,

May 15, 1971, Windsor Park, Belfast. England won, 1-0.

They were the captains again a year later.

May 23, 1972: The national football (soccer) team of Northern Ireland beat England, 1-0 at Wembley Stadium in London, as part of the British Home Championship games. The goal is scored by centreback Terry Neill, who was also the Ulstermen’s manager at the time, playing his club football for Hull City in England, previously playing for Arsenal player. He would later manage Arsenal as well.

In addition to Neill, the team consisted of goalkeeper Pat Jennings from Tottenham Hotspur, and right back Pat Rice and left back Sammy Nelson from Arsenal, all of who would play for Neill on Arsenal and win the 1979 FA Cup; centre-half Allan Hunter of Ipswich Town; left have David Clements of Coventry City; centre-forward Derek Dougan and outside right Daniel Hegan, both of Wolverhampton Wanderers; inside right Alex McMordie of Middlesbrough; inside left Willie Irvine of Brighton & Hove Albion; and outside left Tommy Jackson of Nottingham Forest.

Despite having recently been considered by some to be the best player in the world, being a native of Belfast, and having previously played for the Norther Ireland team, Neill did not select Manchester United superstar George Best for the Home Championship.

Coming just 4 months after "Bloody Sunday" in Derry, this was a huge boost to the people of Northern Ireland. It showed them, and just as importantly showed England, that they could beat them at their own game, on their own soil.

On May 20, England had beaten Wales, 3-0 at Ninian Park in Cardiff, while Scotland had beaten Northern Ireland 2-0 at Hampden Park in Glasgow, with both goals coming in the last 5 minutes of regular time. This game should have been played at a place of Northern Ireland's choosing, as each team played 3 games, and got 1 home game. Most likely, it would have been at Windsor Park in Belfast. But death threats mailed in led to the game being moved. The 1972 Five Nations Rugby Championship (precursor to today's Six Nations) was also canceled.

Northern Ireland then beat England on May 23. On May 24, Scotland beat Wales, 1-0 at Hampden, on a 78th minute goal by Leeds United star Peter Lorimer.

And on May 27, England beat Scotland, 1-0 at Hampden, on a goal in the 28th minute by Alan Ball, then with Arsenal; while Northern Ireland could only manage a 0-0 draw with Wales at the Racecourse Ground in Wrexham. With 2 points for a win and 1 for a draw, England ended up winning the tournament, anyway, with 4 points, and a superior goal difference to Scotland, also with 4. Northern Ireland had 3, and Wales had 1.

Had Best been selected, a goal he scored or set up against Wales would have given Northern Ireland the tournament. But his disciplinary issues meant that his not being selected by Neill was his own fault.

*

May 23, 1972 was a Tuesday. These games were played in Major League Baseball:

* The New York Yankees lost to the Cleveland Indians, 3-0 at Yankee Stadium. Gaylord Perry pitched a 4-hit shutout, outpitching Mel Stottlemyre. Rich McKinney, the guy who was supposed to be the answer to the Yankees' 3rd base problem, got 2 of those 4 hits. After this failed season, he would be dumped for Graig Nettles, who went 0-for-3 with a walk for the Indians in this game.

* The New York Mets lost to the Chicago Cubs, 2-1 at Wrigley Field in Chicago. Gary Gentry had a nice start for the Mets, but in the bottom of the 8th inning, Tug McGraw gave up a single to Carmen Fanzone and a double to Paul Popovich. Fergie Jenkins went the distance for the win. Popovich and Glenn Beckert each got 3 hits for the Cubs. For the Mets, Rusty Staub went 4-for-4 with their only RBI. The newly-acquired Willie Mays did not play.

* The Montreal Expos beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 6-2 at Jarry Park in Montreal.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Baltimore Orioles, 6-5 at Fenway Park in Boston. Rico Petrocelli singled Reggie Smith home with the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning. Smith and Tommy Harper had hit home runs earlier. Carl Yastrzemski did not play. Brooks Robinson went 1-for-4.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Cincinnati Reds, 2-1 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. Phil Niekro went the distance, and won the game himself with a home run. Hank Aaron went 0-for-3, but drew 2 walks. Pete Rose went 1-for-4. Johnny Bench went 0-for-2, then drew a walk, and was removed for a pinch-runner.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Detroit Tigers, 3-0 at Tiger Stadium in Detroit. Jim Lonborg pitched a 4-hit shutout, outpitching Joe Coleman Jr. Al Kaline went 0-for-4.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 6-2 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Roberto Clemente went 2-for-5 with an RBI. Willie Stargell went 0-for-5. Lou Brock went 1-for-5.

* The Chicago White Sox beat the Texas Rangers, 2-1 at Arlington Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas.

* The Houston Astros swept a doubleheader from the San Diego Padres, 7-0 and 2-1 at San Diego Stadium (later Jack Murphy Stadium and Qualcomm Stadium). Tom Griffin pitched a 4-hit shutout in the opener.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat their arch-rivals, the San Francisco Giants, 8-5 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Don Sutton went the distance for the win. Frank Robinson, in his only season with the Dodgers hit the 507th and 508th home runs of his career. Willie McCovey did not play.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the California Angels, 3-2 at the Oakland Coliseum. Reggie Jackson won it with a home run in the bottom of the 9th inning, off Eddie Fisher. (Maybe the Angels should have started Dean Martin instead.) It ruined a nice start for Angel pitcher Rickey Clark, and made a winning pitcher out of Rollie Fingers in relief of John "Blue Moon" Odom.

* And the Kansas City Royals and the Minnesota Twins were rained out at Kansas City Municipal Stadium. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on September 8. The Royals swept, 5-0 and 3-2. Tom Murphy pitched a 6-hit shutout in the 1st game, outpitching Bert Blyleven.

Harmon Killebrew went 0-for-3 with a walk in the 1st game, and drew a walk as a pinch-hitter in the 2nd game. Over the 2 games, Rod Carew went 2-for-7 with an RBI.

May 17, 1974: The UVF and the SLA

May 17, 1974: A violent day, on both sides of the Atlantic. The Dublin and Monaghan bombings are carried out by the Ulster Volunteer Force, when they explode four car bombs in counties Dublin and Monaghan in the Republic of Ireland.

The UVF were a Protestant paramilitary group, who committed terrorist attacks targeting Catholics in Ireland, both in the Republic and in Northern Ireland. On this day, their attacks killed 33 civilians and wounded almost 300, the highest number of casualties in any single event during "The Troubles."

The UVF declared a ceasefire in 1994, accepted the Good Friday Agreement in 1998, and officially disbanded in 007.

Meanwhile, in Compton, California, a shootout broke out between members of the Los Angeles Police Department and the Symbionese Liberation Army terrorist group. The firing of tear gas canisters into the residence was followed by a fire that killed six of the SLA members.

The shootout and fire were broadcast on live television in Los Angeles, preempting national news programming. Three SLA members escaped: William and Emily Harris, and the 20-year-old socialite they had kidnapped, Patty Hearst.

The Harrises were eventually arrested, convicted of their part in the Hearst kidnapping, and served eight years in prison.

*

May 17, 1974 was a Friday. Elsewhere in Ireland that day, in Dundalk, County Leith, Andrea Corr was born. She and her siblings formed music group The Corrs, and she was the lead singer.

The European Cup Final was held that day. Bayern Munich won the European Cup for the first time, defeating Atlético Madrid, 4-0, at Heysel Stadium in Brussels, Belgium. (The same stadium that hosted the 1985 Final, when it shouldn't have.) Uli Hoeness and Gerd Muller each scored 2 goals for Bayern. They subsequently made West Germany's team for the World Cup on home soil, along with Bayern teammates Franz Beckenbauer, Sepp Maier, Paul Breitner, Hans-Georg Schwarzenbeck and Jupp Kapellman. I have a separate entry for this event.

Game 3 of the World Hockey Association Finals was played. The Houston Aeros, led by Gordie Howe and his sons Mark and Marty, beat the Chicago Cougars, 7-4 at the Sam Houston Coliseum in Houston. They completed the sweep 2 days later.

Football was out of season. The Stanley Cup Finals were between Games 5 and 6. The Philadelphia Flyers beat the Boston Bruins in Game 6, to win the Cup. The NBA Finals ended 5 days earlier, with the Boston Celtics beating the Milwaukee Bucks in 7 games. The ABA Finals ended 2 days before that, with the New York Nets beating the Utah Stars in 5 games.

And these Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 3-2 at Milwaukee County Stadium. George "Doc" Medich outpitched Clyde Wright. Rookie Rick Dempsey caught for the Yankees instead of Thurman Munson. Rookie Robin Yount had a single and a sacrifice bunt before being pinch-hit for.

* The New York Mets beat the Montreal Expos, 5-0 at Shea Stadium. Tom Seaver pitched a 5-hit shutout, walking none, striking out 13. Rusty Staub hit a home run.

* The Baltimore Orioles led the Boston Red Sox, 6-0 after 6 innings at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, when the umpires called the game due to rain. Mike Cuellar had a 6-hit shutout going. Tommy Davis hit 2 home runs for the O's. Brooks Robinson went 1-for-3. For the Sox, Carl Yastrzemski also went 1-for-3.

* The Detroit Tigers beat the Cleveland Indians, 4-3 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Al Kaline, in his last year as a player, went 1-for-4 with an RBI.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Chicago White Sox, 10-4 at Comiskey Park in Chicago. Reggie Jackson did not play.

* The Minnesota Twins beat the California Angels, 2-1 at Metropolitan Stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. Harmon Killebrew and Rod Carew each went 1-for-3 with a walk. Frank Robinson, then with the Angels, did not play in the game.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs, 9-8 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Lou Brock went 1-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base.

* The Kansas City Royals beat the Texas Rangers, 6-4 at Royals Stadium (now Kauffman Stadium) in Kansas City. Rookie George Brett went 2-for-2 with 3 RBIs.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Houston Astros, 4-2 at the Astrodome in Houston. Pete Rose went 2-for-5. Johnny Bench went 2-for-4 with a walk and an RBI.

* The Atlanta Braves beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 5-3 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles. Mike Lum doubled home the winning runs in the top of the 11th inning. Hank Aaron, then with 720 career home runs, went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The San Diego Padres beat the San Francisco Giants, 7-3 at Candlestick Park in San Francisco. Nate Colbert hit a grand slam. Rookie Dave Winfield went 0-for-3 with a walk, and an RBI on a sacrifice fly. For the Giants, Bobby Bonds went 4-for-5 with 2 RBIs.

* And the Philadelphia Phillies and the Pittsburgh Pirates were rained out at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. The game was made up 2 days later, as part of a Sunday doubleheader. The Phils won the opener, 3-2. Jim Lonborg outpitched Dock Ellis. The Bucs won the nightcap, 2-1. Jerry Reuss outpitched Dick Ruthven. Over the 2 games, Mike Schmidt went 0-for-8, and Willie Stargell went 2-for-8 with an RBI.

May 5, 1981: The Death of Bobby Sands

May 5, 1981: Bobby Sands, Member of Parliament for Fermanagh and South Tyrone, dies at Her Majesty's Prison Maze in County Down, Northern Ireland, 66 days after starting a hunger strike there. He was 27 years old.

He was 15 when the Northern Irish civil war known as "The Troubles" began in 1969, and, as a Catholic, he discovered that Protestant kids who once considered him a friend would no longer even talk to him. He dropped out of school, and took a job building buses. Members of a Loyalist "Tartan gang" found him on the job, held him at gunpoint, and told him never to come back if he valued his life.

In 1971, he joined the Provisional Irish Republican Army. He served 3 years in prison on a gun charge. He and a colleague planned the bombing of the Balmoral Furniture Company in Dunmurry in 1976. A gun battle ensued, and Sands was among those arrested trying to escape. He and 3 other men were sentenced to 14 years in prison -- not for the bombing, but for possession of the gun used in the ensuing shootout. It was as if they were giving him the bombing's punishment for the much smaller charge.

Conditions at Maze were brutal. Guards frequently took prisoners, including Sands, and stripped them naked and beat them. This was in response to the end of "Special Category Status," as they began to be treated like any other criminal, and not like a political prisoner, and thus forced to wear prison uniforms.

A committee of prisoners, led by Sands, presented a list of demands, including the right not to wear a prison uniform, and more blankets for the Winter months. These demands were flat-out refused. On March 1, 1981, Sands began his strike, saying he and the other prisoners would not eat until the demands were met.

Four days later, Frank Maguire, Member of Parliament for the district of Fermanagh and South Tyrone, died of a heart attack, forcing a by-election for his seat on April 9. In solidarity, some potential candidates withdrew, and threw their support to Sands, who was unable to campaign, and was in no position to even intend to. He won, 30,493 votes to 29,046 for a Loyalist candidate, a 1,447-vote margin of victory, 51.2 percent of the vote.

But he would never be able to take that seat. He remained in prison, and his strike went on and on. Because of the large Irish presence in America, the national news here covered this story day after day, counting up the days just as they did with the recently-ended Iran Hostage Crisis.

On Day 55 of the strike, ABC World News Tonight showed the photograph above, showing what Sands looked like before his conviction, and then, not having access to a current photograph, showed an artist's depiction of what he looked like at this point. I can't find that drawing on the Internet, but he looked like images I'd seen of newly-freed prisoners from the Nazi Holocaust. The only photograph I've seen shows him with a long beard that obscures how skinny he'd gotten, and it isn't clear how close to the end he was.

People from all over the world, including Pope John Paul II, head of the Roman Catholic Church, contacted British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, begging her to give in to the demands, rather than let a duly-elected Member of Parliament die. A Protestant and a hard-right-wing Conservative, she flat-out refused.

On Day 66, May 5, Sands died. Thatcher's official response, while addressing Parliament: "Mr. Sands was a convicted criminal. He chose to take his own life. It was a choice that his organization did not allow to many of its victims."

Over 100,000 people lined the route of Sands' funeral, and he was buried not far from his parents' home, in Milltown Cemetery in West Belfast.

The 1981 British Home Championships were canceled, because the "national" soccer teams of England and Wales refused to play away to Northern Ireland, not because they opposed Sands (not officially, anyway), but because they were afraid they would be attacked by the home fans.

In New York, the International Longshoremen's Association announced a 24-hour boycott of providing service to British ships; and the Archbishop, Terence Cardinal Cooke, offered a Mass of Reconciliation. Perhaps the greatest tribute was an agreement of the City's Irish bars: For 2 hours, they closed.

In New Jersey, the General Assembly, the lower house of the State legislature, voted 34-29 for a resolution honoring Sands' "courage and commitment." Just 28 miles away, in East Brunswick -- and with towns named Milltown and Old Bridge, also the names of towns in Northern Ireland, on either side -- the 11-year-old version of me couldn't understand why Thatcher let it happen.

President Ronald Reagan, an American of Irish descent, but a Protestant one, survived an assassination attempt during the hunger strike (although that had nothing to do with it), and made no public statement about Sands' cause, and made no statement on the occasion of Sands' death.

Another 9 hunger strikers would die, before the remaining strikers gave up. What did they gain? Publicity and sympathy, but nothing else.

On July 2, Parliament passed the Representation of the People Act 1981, automatically disqualifying anyone from election if they were serving more than one full year in prison. On August 20, a by-election for Sands' seat was held, and Owen Carron, a Sands ally, won with 49.1 percent of the vote, but with a larger margin of victory than Sands. Although never officially connected with terrorism, he lost his bid for re-election in 1983.

On October 5, James Prior, newly installed as the British government's Northern Ireland Secretary, agreed to Sands' original demands for the remaining political prisoners.

Thatcher remained Prime Minister until 1990. The Good Friday Agreement, not even remotely possible as long as she remained in office, ended The Troubles in 1998. HM Prison Maze was closed in 2000, and demolition began in 2006. Had the British government shown some humanity, and accepted his reasonable demands, Bobby Sands would have been 52 years old.

In 2013, Thatcher died, and while half of Great Britain, including the Protestant sectors of Northern Ireland, went into deep mourning, the other half, including the Catholic sectors of Northern Ireland, cheered. There was no holding of tongues by her opponents, as happened in America in 2004 upon Reagan's death.

Also in 2013, the Maze site was redeveloped into Balmoral Park, a showgrounds. With some irony, the main tenant is the Balmoral Show, an agriculture exhibition.

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May 5, 1981 was a Tuesday. Actress Danielle Fishel was born. She played Topanga Lawrence on the sitcom Boy Meets World, and later, having married the earlier show's protagonist, Topanga Matthews on the sequel sitcom Girl Meets World.

These games were played in Major League Baseball:

* The New York Yankees lost to the California Angels, 6-2 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). Barry Foote hit a home run, but Reggie Jackson went 0-for-4, and Tom Underwood was removed when he couldn't get an out in the 4th inning. Brian Downing later hit a home run for the Halos.

* The New York Mets lost to the San Francisco Giants, 9-7 at Shea Stadium.

* The Montreal Expos beat the San Diego Padres, 4-3 at the Olympic Stadium in Montreal.

* The Philadelphia Phillies beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 8-7 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Manny Trillo homered, and Mike Schmidt and Pete Rose each had a 2-RBI double.

* The Baltimore Orioles beat the Minnesota Twins, 3-2 at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore.

* The Houston Astros beat the Chicago Cubs, 4-3 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

* The St. Louis Cardinals beat the Atlanta Braves, 4-1 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis.

* The Kansas City Royals beat the Boston Red Sox, 2-1 at Royals Stadium (now Kauffman Stadium) in Kansas City. George Brett went 1-for-4 for the Royals, while Carl Yastrzemski did not play for the Red Sox.

* The Texas Rangers beat the Chicago White Sox, 6-1 at Arlington Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas.

* The Oakland Athletics beat the Detroit Tigers, 6-2 at the Oakland Coliseum.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Seattle Mariners, 4-1 at the Kingdome.

* The Cincinnati Reds and the Pittsburgh Pirates were supposed to play each other at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh, but were rained out. The game was made up as part of a doubleheader on May 7, and the Pirates won both games, 3-1 and 7-1.

* The Cleveland Indians and the Toronto Blue Jays were supposed to play each other at Exhibition Stadium in Toronto. This game was never made up, due to the Strike of '81.

Football was out of season. The NBA Playoffs were in the Conference Finals. In the East, the Boston Celtics beat the Washington Bullets, 131-126 in double overtime at the Boston Garden, to move on to the Conference Finals. And the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 110-98 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia. But, 2 nights later, the Sixers beat the Bucks to advance to face the Celtics.

In the West, the San Antonio Spurs eliminated the Seattle SuperSonics, 109-103 at the Kingdome in Seattle, setting them up to play the Los Angeles Lakers, who had already wrapped up their Conference Final berth. (Yes, the Kingdome hosted baseball and basketball on the same day.) In the NBA Finals, the Lakers beat the 76ers.

The Stanley Cup Playoffs were approaching their climax. The day before Sands' death, the New York Islanders had wrapped up their 3rd straight Finals bid, completing a 4-game sweep of the Quebec Nordiques. The day after his death, the Vancouver Canucks clinched their 1st Finals appearance, beating the Chicago Black Hawks in 5 games.

February 15, 1995: The Lansdowne Road Riot

February 15, 1995: Lansdowne Road Stadium in Dublin is the venue for a soccer game between the Republic of Ireland and England, a matchup fraught with political implications.

Ireland took the lead in the 22nd minute on a goal by David Kelly -- ironically, a native of England who, within the rules, chose to play for Ireland due to his ancestry, since he was unlikely to make the England team, which was then good. A lot better than it is now.

Lansdowne Road

Most likely, what happened next was due not to Kelly's choice, but to a reaction against the perception that the Ireland team supported the Irish Republican Army's attacks on Great Britain. Between the relationship between the countries, and the fact that it was a night game and there was more time for fans to drink before the game, something bad was bound to happen.

It did. A group of right-wing extremists calling themselves Combat-18 started a riot. The game was abandoned, and the 2 countries would not play each other again until 2013, a 1-1 draw at the new Wembley Stadium.

It's worth noting that, at the time, Ireland's manager was Jack Charlton, one of the heroes of English soccer's signature triumph, the 1966 World Cup (as was his brother Bobby). There had been some resistance in the Republic to his hiring by the Football Association of Ireland (FAI), but his working-class ways won the fans over. When Ireland and England next played each other, the Republic's manager was Martin O'Neill, Northern Ireland-born, -raised and -capped, but there was no resistance.

Lansdowne Road has since been demolished, and the new Aviva Stadium has been built on the site. Officially, these 2 teams have faced each other 16 times through February 15, 2022: England have won 6 times; the Republic of Ireland twice, a famous 1949 win at Everton's Goodison Park in Liverpool and at Stuttgart in Euro 88; and there have been 8 draws, including at the 1990 World Cup in Italy. (UPDATE: In 2024, England won 2 games for the 2025 UEFA Nations League, increasing their advantage to 8-2.)

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February 15, 1995 was a Wednesday. Rapper Meghan Thee Stallion was born.

Baseball and football were out of season. There were 7 games played in the NBA:

* The Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 101-97 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.

* The Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Orlando Magic, 100-99 in overtime at the Gund Arena (now the Rocket Arena) in Cleveland.

* The Indiana Pacers beat the Detroit Pistons, 114-88 at the Market Square Arena in Indianapolis.

* The Chicago Bulls beat the Washington Bullets, 107-92 at the United Center in Chicago.

* The Phoenix Suns beat the Portland Trail Blazers, 120-113 in overtime at the America West Arena (now the Mortgage Matchup Center) in Phoenix. Charles Barkley led all scorers on the night with 35 points.

* The Los Angeles Lakers beat the Seattle SuperSonics, 102-96 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California.

* The Boston Celtics beat the Golden State Warriors, 116-115 at the Oakland Coliseum Arena.

And there were 8 games in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers beat the Buffalo Sabres, 2-1 at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.

* The New Jersey Devils beat the Washington Capitals, 4-2 at the Brendan Byrne Arena at the Meadowlands.

* The Hartford Whalers beat the Montreal Canadiens, 4-1 at the Hartford Civic Center (now the PeoplesBank Arena).

* The Florida Panthers beat the Ottawa Senators, 2-0 at the Miami Arena.

* The Edmonton Oilers beat the Toronto Maple Leafs, 4-1 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

* The Detroit Red Wings beat the Winnipeg Jets, 5-1 at the Winnipeg Arena.

* The Los Angeles Kings beat the Dallas Stars, 3-1 at the Reunion Arena in Dallas.

* And the San Jose Sharks beat the Vancouver Canucks, 3-1 at the San Jose Arena (now the SAP Ceter).

January 30, 1972: Bloody Sunday In Derry

A commemorative mural in Derry

January 30, 1972: The Bogside Massacre occurs in Derry, Northern Ireland. It is one of many events in Ireland's history to be known as "Bloody Sunday."

NOTE: This event should not be confused with the Battle of the Bogside, also in Derry, a 3-day riot in August 1969.

Ireland had been controlled by England since 1649, until the settlement of the Irish War of Independence in 1922 founded the Republic of Ireland, and left only 6 Counties still under British control: Antrim, Armagh, Down, Fermanagh, Londonderry (including the city that the British call Londonderry and the Irish call simply Derry) and Tyrone. The capital of Northern Ireland, Belfast, straddles Antrim and Down.

By 1969, angry at the continued oppression they faced from the Protestant British establishment, and inspired by the Civil Rights Movement for black Americans, the Catholics of Northern Ireland had begun to assert their rights. The government, through the police, known as the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC), fought back, and what became known as "The Troubles" began.

An offshoot of the original Irish Republican Army (IRA) began attacking the RUC. In response, paramilitary groups like the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF) began a campaign of atrocities. Each side kept upping the ante. The IRA had started out as a defensive force, but were, by no means, innocent.

An explosion was destined to happen. Hoping to avoid it, British Prime Minister Edward Heath sent the British Army in to keep the peace. Some Catholics accepted this as better than the RUC and the UVF. Some saw that the Army was every bit as hostile and biased.

On January 18, 1972, Prime Minister Brian Faulkner of Northern Ireland banned all political demonstrations -- Protestant and Catholic alike -- for the rest of the calendar year. But on January 22, a march was made to the internment camp at Magilligan Strand near Derry. The Army blocked the way. The marchers threw rocks, and the soldiers charged and beat people with their batons.

It was decided to hold another march on January 30. The Army decided to allow it to reach the Bogside, a neighborhood outside the old city walls of Derry, but not to reach Guildhall Square. About 15,000 people marched, and the peaceful nature of it was broken when some protestors, again, began throwing rocks at the soldiers.

This time, as with the Boston Massacre of 1770, British soldiers responded to the throwing of rocks by opening fire. There were 26 people wounded, with 13 dying immediately, and a 14th later dying of his injuries.

In April, the Widgery Tribunal issued a report, blaming the protestors, who were not only throwing rocks, which was true; but bombs, and were shooting, which was denounced as a lie.

With his band Wings, Paul McCartney, like the other ex-Beatles an Englishman of Irish descent, released a song: "Give Ireland Back to the Irish." It was banned by the BBC. Ex-Beatle John Lennon released a song titled "The Luck of the Irish," singing, "If you really had the luck of the Irish, you'd wish you were English instead." He wrote another song about the incident, "Sunday Bloody Sunday." Geezer Butler of Black Sabbath followed this by writing "Sabbath Bloody Sabbath." In 1983, the Belfast-based U2 released a different song titled "Sunday Bloody Sunday."

In 1998, the Good Friday Accord finally put an end to The Troubles. In 2010, the Saville Inquiry -- having nothing to do with the notorious English entertainer Jimmy Savile -- released a report saying that none of those shot on Bloody Sunday '72 were armed, no bombs were thrown by the protestors, and that the Army's shooting was "unjustified" and "unjustifiable." Prime Minister David Cameron offered an official apology on behalf of the British government.

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January 30, 1972 was, as I said, a Sunday. Baseball and football were out of season. There were no games played in the American Basketball Association that day. But there were 6 games played in the NBA: 

* The Boston Celtics beat their arch-rivals, the Philadelphia 76ers, 130-114 at the Boston Garden. Billy Cunningham scored 41 in defeat for the Sixers.

* The Milwaukee Bucks beat the Baltimore Bullets, 116-112 at the Baltimore Civic Center (now the CFG Bank Arena). In a rematch of the previous season's NBA Finals, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar socred 39 for the Bucks.

* The Buffalo Braves beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 99-98 at the Cleveland Arena.

* The Chicago Bulls beat the Detroit Pistons, 109-99 at the Chicago Stadium.

* The Phoenix Suns beat the Atlanta Hawks, 105-103 at the Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix.

* And the Los Angeles Lakers beat the Portland Trail Blazers, 153-131 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California.

There were no games played in the ABA that day. But there were 6 NHL games played:

* The New York Rangers played the Minnesota North Stars to a tie, 1-1 at Madison Square Garden.

* The Boston Bruins beat the St. Louis Blues, 5-2 at the Boston Garden. Yes, the old North End barn hosted the Celtics and the Bruins on the same day.

* The Philadelphia Flyers beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, 4-0 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia.

* The Buffalo Sabres played the Los Angeles Kings to a tie, 2-2 at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium.

* In an "Original Six" matchup, the Chicago Black Hawks beat their arch-rivals, the Detroit Red Wings, 4-2 at the Chicago Stadium. Yes, the old West Side barn hosted the Bulls and the Hawks on the same day.

* And the California Golden Seals beat the Vancouver Canucks, 2-0 at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver.