CITY 4 BLACKPOOL 2
League Cup 2nd Round 2nd Replay
15th October 1962
Attendance 12,237
Scorers
City Dobing(1), Harley(5 & 60 pen), Oakes(65)
Blackpool McPhee(25 & 78)
Ref L Tirebuck
City Dodd, Benson, Sear, Kennedy, Leivers, Oakes, Young, Dobing, Harley, Hannah, Hayes
Blackpool Waiters, Prentis, Martin, Crawford, Gratrix, Durie, Watt, McPhee, Charnley, Parry, Horne
[Alex Harley] provided much delight and amusement as his penalty goal against Blackpool on Monday night. After bending almost as if in prayer over the ball on the spot for a couple of minutes while the preliminaries and protests were being dealt with he finally turned, walked back slowly just two paces then swung round like lightning and in one movement literally blasted the ball into the net.
The move not only astonished spectators but must have completely taken the luckless Blackpool goal- keeper by surprise as he hardly had time to see the ball much less move before it was bulging the back of the net. Although the move must have come as something new to the vast majority of spectators it is in fact an old Soccer tactic not primarily based on surprising the goalkeeper. The idea is for the penalty taker not to take his eyes off the ball once he has put it on the spot, no matter how long it might be before he gets the all clear from the referee, until he turns to take his run up. Then only the briefest turn is made, hence Harley’s two steps, and when the penalty taker swings round to take the kick he sees, in theory, at least, the goal looking yards wider than it actually is and scoring is made that much easier. Certainly the theory worked in practice last Monday and it will lend even extra drama the next time Alex takes a penalty.
From an article published in the City programme 20th October 1962