Video - That Peter Ward shirt! - Brighton v Blackpool highlights 1977-78 - 5 mins

[Goldstone Rapper]

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The Peter Ward shirt on auction on Sunday is the one in this famous end-of-season clash in 1977/78. I thought it timely to upload this now.

Watch Ward bamboozle the Blackpool defence (including Pete Suddaby) time after time while wearing that beautiful yet nipple-scratching Bukta shirt with the number 8.

Being a mere nine days old, I wasn't at the Goldstone for this game. Were you?

 

[Driver 8]

Yep I was there aged 13 and still haven't forgiven Southampton and Spurs.

 

[BRIGHT ON Q]

I was there in the East stand.Happy days.

 

[Gwylan]

I was there. I'd come down from Bradford just for the game and went straight back again afterwards.

One thing I hadn't recalled was the state of the pitch. This was in May, so not exactly the depths of winter, yet there was enough sand around the centre circle to stage The Desert Song.

 

[Mr Blobby]

Yep I was there with my Mum, Dad (RIP) and two sisters, so that was 5 of the 33,431 that had packed into the Goldstone. We used to stand on the south west tearrce, down at the front near the dugouts.

 

[Seagulls over Lewes]

Yep I was there standing on the east terrace about the half way line with my parents and sister.
If I remember correctly Blackpool were mid table after this game but due to ammount of games still to be played by teams below them they got relegated and could do nothing about it.

 

[Moshe Gariani]

I was there, aged 9, in the Chicken Run (with my 3 brothers and sister?) having been locked-out of the North Stand despite queuing from probably about 1.00pm... our Mum (who had only decided to go as a one-off) managed to get into the North as she went through an adult turnstile and had to spend the whole game in there on her own!

 

[Moshe Gariani]

fantastic video goldstone-rapper...

I'd forgotten the near SILENCE that often greeted an away goal at The Goldstone in the 70s - obviously not for this Blackpool match, but normally for the visit of a Northern outfit, you'd look across to the North-East corner and see a tiny handful of away fans cavorting about their underpopulated enclosure but you'd hear almost nothing...

 

[withdean62]

this was the first time i saw brighton play,i was living in london,only 16,and supported them ever since!!!

 

[bardo]

Yep I was there aged 13 and still haven't forgiven Southampton and Spurs.

Yes, remember it well - we'd just bought our (still current) house in Seaford from the parents of Tony Funnell, who was then playing up front for the Saints. He'd scored in the previous game for them and I was willing him to score against Spurs in that final game. In the event they contrived a 0-0 draw so that they both went up and we missed out ..... until the following season.

Great memories seeing Mr Ward burst through from the half-way line, which was where most of his trademark goals emanated, and I still felt the same adrenaline rush watching the video as I did at the time whenever he got the ball there.

 

[skipper734]

STH. I was posh then.

 

[Ecosse Exile]

i was there as an 11 year old boy standing on the roof of the toilets in the south west corner, the police used to come and tell you to get down and then as soon as they were gone wed all climb back up there

 

[glasfryn]

Northern end of the east terrace and that has bought back some great memories,sad that one of those I used to stand with (we worked together also) is no longer with us.

If you are up there somewhere Dougie blow one in for us tomorrow.

 

[Peter Grummit]

I was there in the Chicken Run with my parents and sister. Ward was so sharp, even by today's standards. Top memory!

PG

 

[Goldstone Rapper]

Glad the video brought back so many memories. If only I could get hold of the southamton v spurs vid to see how much of a fix it was.

One question for everyone there: what was the atmosphere like after the final whistle? I heard Alan mullery made a speech to the crowd...

 

[UaeGull]

Thanks for this! Oh yes I was there on the Chicken Run with friends. Living in Cheshire at the time. Down and back the same day! A great atmosphere at the Goldstone. Met some scoucers at Euston on the way back who sympathised, but claimed to have been 'mugged' outside Upton Park! Surely not?

 

[MJsGhost]

I was but a wee bump at the time, and my mum didn't fancy the game when pregnant!

 

[smudge]

Yes. Stayed in the boozer for 1 too many & couldn't get in to the North Stand so had to go in the North East.

These days there would probably be an enquiry into the Soton-Spurs goings on.

 

[seagullwedgee]

yep i was there aged 14 on the shelf half way up the east terrace, marvellous scenes and rammed in there.

gates shut about 1.30pm with 33000 inside, oh for the days when you could turn up early with no ticket and get your space.

devastated when the news came in on the radio from soton spurs (there were no mobiles then of course).

 

[lasvegan]

Crammed in the North Stand, sick to my stomach when the other result was confirmed. Half the crowd seemed to have a pocket transistor radio with them.