CITY 0 LEEDS UNITED 1
League Division 1
27th October 1973
attendance 45,346
Scorer Bates(76)
Ref Iorwerth Jones
City MacRae, Pardoe, Donachie, Doyle, Booth, Oakes, Summerbee, Bell, law, Lee, Towers – sub Leman(74)
Leeds Harvey, Cherry, Madeley, Bremner, McQueen, Hunter, Lorimer, Clarke, Jones, Giles, Bates – sub Jordan(28)
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FROM THE PRESS BOX
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PETER GARDNER’S “VERDICT” IN THE MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS FOOTBALL PINK FINAL 27TH OCTOBER 1973
City’s stubborn and glorious resistance was snapped this afternoon by a 76th minute goal from Mick Bates in a magnificent battle of tactics before a 45,000 crowd, Maine Road’s biggest by a long way this season.
But that thorny old problem of the lack of punch in front of goal remains. Leeds had the same problem, for both Clarke and Jones missed good chances.
City played splendidly at the back, with Doyle once more outstanding and MacRae making some good reflex saves. Oakes and Bell worked prodigiously in midfield, but Summerbee could get little change out of Madeley and McQueen, who gave little away in the middle of an equaly solid Leeds defence.
City’s stubborn and glorious resistance was snapped this afternoon by a 76th minute goal from Mick Bates in a magnificent battle of tactics before a 45,000 crowd, Maine Road’s biggest by a long way this season.
But that thorny old problem of the lack of punch in front of goal remains. Leeds had the same problem, for both Clarke and Jones missed good chances.
City played splendidly at the back, with Doyle once more outstanding and MacRae making some good reflex saves. Oakes and Bell worked prodigiously in midfield, but Summerbee could get little change out of Madeley and McQueen, who gave little away in the middle of an equaly solid Leeds defence.
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I’m American and I went to this match when I was 17 years old. What I remember most was my friends older brother who drove us there from Lytham rolling down his window after the match when we had stopped and asking a teenager girl covered in City wear, “How about that Leeds, eh?”. Her reply. “Fucking shitty Leeds”. Teenage girls supporters in American don’t use the words fucking and shitty to describe an opponent. What it did tell me was the ferocious loyalty to a sports team English supports have for their teams that I would experience for the next two years.
I had just arrived in England. You’re country changed my life forever in regards to my new found obsession with football.