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38 years ago, Watford were on the precipice of the most exciting period in their history.
They entertained Leicester City in the last home game of a season that saw them promoted to the top division for the very first time. They won 3-1 flooring Leicester with three first half goals.
Having emigrated, that was my last visit to Vicarage Road – until last Sunday when Watford entertained Southampton. Watford lost 3-1.
Four eternal and immutable rules of football die at Vicarage Road
Much has changed. Here I look back at that day when Watford celebrated their third promotion in five years.
“Jenkins coming on to the near post, Blissett just behind him. Blissett gets up. There’s a flick on there. And Barnes tries to make it. And Jenkins! I think it was already over the line by Barnes. John Barnes got it in. So the 18-year-old who played such a part in the youth cup success.. coming in behind Jenkins and Blissett passed it over the line.”
“It hits the defender on the arm but was it international? The referee said yes and it’s a penalty. Penalty now to be taken by Luther Blissett. He’s having a conversation with Andy Peake. He always turns round before he takes them. Great stop by Wallington but Blissett puts it in. Well how many more things can go against Leicester?”
– John Motson – May 8, 1982
20,859 watched that match, Watford’s last home game of a promotion winning season that took them into the top tier for the first time.
Having achieved their third promotion in five years, it was a fantastic time to be a Watford fan. In that push, they won 105 games and lost just 55; scored 333 goals, conceding just 223, a goal difference of 110.
They finished second in their first year up in (what was then called) Division 1 and therefore played in European competition for the first time in 1983–84. There they beat Bundesliga club Kaiserslautern and Levski Sofia before falling to Sparta Prague. Those were heady days for Elton John’s Taylor Made Army.
Their stay in the top tier was a commendable six years before the altitude of finance dictated otherwise.
As well as Europe, there was an FA Cup Final appearance at Wembley.
The successes launched manager Graham Taylor and strikers Blissett and Barnes to England fame.
48 days after coming on as a substitute against Leicester, Gerry Armstrong scored his country’s most famous goal in history when he netted the only score in Northern Ireland’s 1-0 win over Spain in the 1982 World Cup.
You could also argue that Barnes’ goals against Brazil at the Maracana was England’s greatest goal, as does one YouTuber. That was one hell of a side with so much character. Armstrong’s compatriot Pat Rice was at the end of his career but still found time to score for the Hornets in their first game in the top division, having previously won the Double with Arsenal.
Les Taylor’s and Nigel Callgahan’s sported fantastic perms. The referee had sideburns. For Lecicester, a young man called Gary Lineker was at the start of his admirable career but was substituted that day for Peter Welsh who was Scottish, one of the many in Jock Wallace’s gritty Leicester side. They also had Steve Lynex.
Leicester came to Hertfordshire with a strong chance themselves of promotion but were blown away and within half an hour, their fans were singing the Python anthem “Always Look on the Bright Side of Life”. Their season withered and died and they only took one point out of the last 12 and finished eighth.
Grimsby, Shrewsbury and Orient and were all relegation threatened sides and in fact Orient were already down when they thumped Leicester 3-0 on the final day of the season. The home defeat to Grimsby saw the Mariners survive the drop at the expense of Cardiff City. Leicester finished just five points off promotion, Norwich City being the lucky beneficiaries of their slump.
Off the players on show yesterday, Danny Ings has the potential to achieve for England what Lineker did. He’s strong, defends well and can pass the ball. For me, he’s already a better player than Harry Kane. Ryan Bertrand has the touch of an Ashley Cole about him but so convincingly and he nullify the threat of Ismaila Sarr, he even enjoyed the opportunity to get forward.
The statue of Graham Taylor outside Vicarage Road showing a sign of the times
Troy Deeney had a woeful day and may be lucky to be playing in this division next year if Watford go down. The others, bar Kiko Femenia and Craig Cathcart, were so off form that it would be unfair to draw too many conclusions about their future impact.
Naturally, the other massive difference yesterday was the absence of fans.
This was my first game at an empty stadium. It saddened me that nobody was there, but my sorrow for fans was soon swamped by the thought of how many people had perished from the Virus. Going through the daily routine, you can risk becoming immune to the thought that over 40,000 people have died in England alone.
The pictures of the number of gatherings on the beaches, illegal street parties in cities and Liverpool fans gathering at the Liver Building to celebrate the title, suggest that a second spike may be coming if that is evidence of how careless people are being on camera.
This article is not the place to contrast the actions or lack of action of Boris Johnson’s government with those of leaders in Germany, South Korea, New Zealand, Australia and even Scotland. Nor is it the place to debate the effect of the Prime Minister’s defending the behaviour of Special Adviser Dominic Cummings who put himself above a law he participated in writing. But in that moment’s silence before kick off for the victims of this virus, I did.
Running concurrently with that tragedy, are thoughts about the continuing scourge of racism across the planet. It would not be honest to omit that in the days of watching Watford in 1982, there was no shortage of homophobic chants aimed at Elton John and indirectly at Graham Taylor.
Watford and Southampton players take a knee for racial justice and equality
Such chants are unlikely nowadays but individuals are still collared for catcalls at games. Racism is still present in English football but if I am totally honest with the readers, no-one from Glasgow should be giving lectures to anyone English about bigotry inside football stadia, even if I personally don’t support either of the Old Firm.
Top Scottish policeman says football violence has increased since repeal of anti-bigotry law
That four of our five political parties united to repeal the first political attempt to tackle bigotry inside the stadia remains a cause for national shame.
The empty streets around the stadium yesterday would spook many but I’ve spent many years living around football stadia, notably Wembley and Firhill, and am used to seeing these temples of greatness empty. Having attended the odd reserve game, I’m also used to watching football when there are few people there.
Generally, people who say football was better in the 1980s were either not there or have faulty memories. There was more racism, the lingering menace of violence, the ritual herding of away fans, and an unsafe environment for children.
But on Sunday, I could not help yearning for better days. Certainly Watford could have done with Nigel Callaghan bursting up the wing, Ross Jenkins rising tallest to get the flick on and one of the Killer Bees, Barnes and Blissett, finishing the move off for the Hornets.
Southampton had their Gary Lineker in Danny Ings. He’s now a staple of Match of the Day which brings me neatly back to where we started, John Motson.
I respectfully leave him the last word on my trip down the Vicarage Road of Memory Lane.
“Jenkins a threat again. It was away by O’Neill. Here’s Callaghan. He was blocked there by Peake, but he’s still there. Blissett on the near post.
Barnes! 3-0!
What a marvellous week for Watford. Elton John applauds the goal.”
– John Motson – May 8, 1982
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