The First Time I Went To St Andrews.

It was an FA Cup sixth round match against Tottynam Hotspur in April 1967 with over 50,000 in the crowd. Even then, I was not a great fan of top-flight football. After all, why bother going to watch the tinpot First Division when you could watch John Charles at Edgar Street? However, the opportunity to watch the "G-men" (Greaves and Gilzean) was too good to miss so a train to Birmingsham it had to be. Freshly cooked doughnuts in the newly opened Bullring, an underage pint then a brisk 20-minute walk out to the ground. The game ended in a 0-0 draw but I do remember the Bluenoses singing "Keep right on to the end of the road", the southerners singing "When the Spurs go marching on" and a huge clock in one corner of the ground. I have to say the atmosphere that day was a bit special....opposing fans mingled together outside the ground before and after the game and I can't recall seeing any trouble despite several "conversations" concerning a few of Dave MacKay's tackles. The "extra time" came by way of a replay on the following Wednesday at White Heart Lane which saw Spurs crush The Blues 6-0 with goals from Greaves (2), Gilzean, Saul and some bloke called Venables (2).

I'll happily settle for the Brummies conceding just one in extra time next Tuesday so long as we keep a clean sheet.

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