CITY 4 BOLTON WANDERERS 1
League Division 2
16th April 1966
Attendance 29,459
Scorers
City Kennedy(3), Connor(44), Crossan(48), Sear(85)
Bolton Hatton
City Dowd, Kennedy, Sear, Pardoe, Heslop, Oakes, Summerbee, Crosson, Doyle, Bell, Connor – Sub Cheetham
Bolton Hopkinson, Rimmer, Cooper, Beech, Napier, Lennard, Taylor, Greaves, Davies, Hill, Hatton – Sub Butler
… It turned out to be a romp for the Blues, with Irishman Johnny Crossan the chief plotter behind the Trotters’ 4-1 defeat. His ball control was magnificent in a tricky wind, and he appeared to float through tackles with ease.
Bolton deserved some sympathy as they were without their leading scorer for each of the past three seasons – one Francis Henry Lee – and they lost the services of later-Blue Wyn Davies with an ear infection at half-time. This had prevented him from heading the ball properly up to that point.
At the interval, City were two goals in front. The first came from right back Bobby Kennedy after only three minutes’ play. Alan Oakes spotted the Scot racing forward on an overlap and laid the ball into his path. Kennedy did what he was good at and planted a shot from fully 30 yards beyond Eddie Hopkinson.
Just before the break Mike Doyle tried a long pot at the Bolton goal, Hopkinson failed to hold the ball, and Dave Connor was there to tap it in. Crossan scored the third after the Bolton ‘keeper’s nightmare continued when he failed to grasp an effort from Oakes.
Left back Cliff Sear decided to get in on the act and scored the fourth to underline the lethal nature of City’s full back force! Wanderers scored a consolation goal through Dave Hatton with a minute left.
ADAPTED FROM AN ARTICLE BY JOHN MADDOCKS FROM THE CITY PROGRAMME 13TH APRIL 1996