Sheffield Wednesday FC in the 60s

[Clifflad 10]

Have anyone any recollections of Sheffield Wednesday FC in the 1960s.

[mikeG 16]

I remember suffering watching the 1966 Cup Final. I worked in Barclays Bank, Hillsborough 1960-62. In the lunch hour I'd often walk up Langsett Rd to a park opposite which was a cafe run by Bronco Lane. We'd sometimes call in for a coffee and there, hunched over the juke box would be Bronco, Peter Swan and Tony Kaye no doubt discussing tactics for the coming Saturday match.

I remember seeing Derek Dooley play at Hillsborough around 1952. R.I.P.

[Clifflad 10]

I also went down to Wembly in 66 but without a ticket. We watched the game in a second hand shop full of tellys - he charged about 20 of us a couple of pounds each - and turned all his tellys on.

 

I never saw Dooley play but think I saw Redfern Froggett once or twice. The centre forward I remember though at that time was Keith Elliss.

 

Wednesday's captain was Don Megson who we nicknamed " the tank " .

[CHAIRBOY 10]

Have anyone any recollections of Sheffield Wednesday FC in the 1960s.

 

50's, 60's - how can I help you?

[soft ayperth 11]

I was a regular on the Kop up until '69 when I came to Canada. Hail, rain, or snow. I still have my copy of the program for the '66 Cup Final. I didn't see Derek Dooley play. The best manager Wednesday every had, Harry Catterick, led the Owls to 2nd place in the old First Division. If the Spurs hadn't had their record breaking season, we'd have been league champs that yr. Fantham, McCalliog, Craig, Finney, Ford, Mobley...If only we had the likes of them now.

[Clifflad 10]

I remeber the sad day Harry Catterick left to manage Everton and shortly afterwards signed Tony Kay for the Toffees.

 

The team I remember was.

 

Ron Springett

Peter Johnson

Don Megson

Tony Kay

Peter Swan

Gerry young

Derick Wilkinson

Keith Elliss

Johnny Fantham

Johnny Quin

[crookesey 631]

I was a regular on the Kop up until '69 when I came to Canada. Hail, rain, or snow. I still have my copy of the program for the '66 Cup Final. I didn't see Derek Dooley play. The best manager Wednesday every had, Harry Catterick, led the Owls to 2nd place in the old First Division. If the Spurs hadn't had their record breaking season, we'd have been league champs that yr. Fantham, McCalliog, Craig, Finney, Ford, Mobley...If only we had the likes of them now.

 

Your mixing up the early 60's side with the mid 60's side mate, no Craig, McCalliog, Ford or Mobley in the early 60's.

[CHAIRBOY 10]

A significant omission from those names is Alan Finney, who in season 60-61, played in all 42 games. Imagine that today?

As rogG mentions, that was an exceptional season under Catterick and only an outstanding Spurs 'double' side prevented Wednesday from winning the championship; the Owls beating Spurs 2-1 at Hillsborough - Billy Griffin netting the Owls first. Roy McLaren had a brilliant day in goal.

In the FA Cup, Wednesday won 7-2 at Old Trafford in a replay and Keith Ellis scored a hat-trick.

The previous season, I saw Wednesday lose the semi-final 2-1 against Blackburn at Maine Road when Blackburn and Derek Dougan seemed to have the referee on their side. Wednesday had a 'goal' disallowed and Dougan looked offside for both Blackburn's.

In September 1962 I saw Wednesday win 2-1 at Arsenal, the last time they won at Highbury - David Layne scored both goals. Sadly, he was to figure in the 2-0 defeat at Ipswich - a game I attended -in December which led to imprisonment but not before the following season when he scored at hat-trick at Portman Road in a 4-1 win - a memorable day for the right reasons.

1964 involved a very bad start. Another long journey to Newport to see the Owls losing 3-2 in the Cup after leading 2-0. McLaren had a nightmare. A couple of Wednesday players stood in the buffet bar and drank all the way back to Sheffield. This was the easy-going style of Vic Buckingham and it was soon to change to a stricter regime under Alan Brown who led them to Wembley in 1966 and another match, snatched from Wednesday's grasp!

[CHAIRBOY 10]

Please allow the self-indulgence but in the second half of the 60-61 season, Wednesday demolished the old North Stand to make way for the cantilever stand ahead of the '66 World Cup.

I was one of a handful of ball-boys brought in to retrieve balls going on to the building site and down pile-driving holes.

MOTD was called "Sports Special" in those days and one game against Leicester, 8 April, featured on the programme on Saturday evening. Consequently, I was continually picked-up by the camera. The match was a 2-2 draw and Frank Mclintock scored the Leicester goals, one of which was a Leppings Lane penalty,

I was paid a sum of 2/6d for that work - but that was of little importance!

 

1962 - the visit of Santos and Pele to play at Hillsborough. I've seen very few games at Hillsborough from the Spion Kop but that was one of them, thus a great view of the Pele penalty.

 

A sad memory from 1960 was a Boxing Day draw 1-1 at Highbury - another match attended. The Wednesday coach crashed near Huntingdon A1, on the return trip, and Dougie McMillan had to have a leg amputated. Swan had damage to his shoulder.

[CHAIRBOY 10]

The secretary of the SW supporters Association at that time was Reg Crapper and many matches, we went by coach or train. When Wednesday played an autumn match at Blackpool, we went by coach as it incorporated a trip through the illuminations.

One such occasion in 1964 ended with a 1-0 defeat for the Owls. The great Ron Springett was brilliantly out-witted with a deft chip from a Chinese player called Cheung Chi Doy.

1961 I saw Wednesday win 6-1 at Fulham after going a goal behind.

There is another game I recall in the 1959-60 when West Ham came to Hillsborough at the head of the old First Division. Eire international, Noel Dwyer, was in goal and was beaten four times in the first nineteen minutes, Wednesday going on to win 7-0 as the scoreboard on the roof of the Leppings Lane stand couldn't cope as the operative tried to fit in the scorers with those yellow numbers!

[crookesey 631]

A significant omission from those names is Alan Finney, who in season 60-61, played in all 42 games. Imagine that today?

As rogG mentions, that was an exceptional season under Catterick and only an outstanding Spurs 'double' side prevented Wednesday from winning the championship; the Owls beating Spurs 2-1 at Hillsborough - Billy Griffin netting the Owls first. Roy McLaren had a brilliant day in goal.

In the FA Cup, Wednesday won 7-2 at Old Trafford in a replay and Keith Ellis scored a hat-trick.

The previous season, I saw Wednesday lose the semi-final 2-1 against Blackburn at Maine Road when Blackburn and Derek Dougan seemed to have the referee on their side. Wednesday had a 'goal' disallowed and Dougan looked offside for both Blackburn's.

In September 1962 I saw Wednesday win 2-1 at Arsenal, the last time they won at Highbury - David Layne scored both goals. Sadly, he was to figure in the 2-0 defeat at Ipswich - a game I attended -in December which led to imprisonment but not before the following season when he scored at hat-trick at Portman Road in a 4-1 win - a memorable day for the right reasons.

1964 involved a very bad start. Another long journey to Newport to see the Owls losing 3-2 in the Cup after leading 2-0. McLaren had a nightmare. A couple of Wednesday players stood in the buffet bar and drank all the way back to Sheffield. This was the easy-going style of Vic Buckingham and it was soon to change to a stricter regime under Alan Brown who led them to Wembley in 1966 and another match, snatched from Wednesday's grasp!

 

He did mention Finney, you should have gone to Specsavers.

[CHAIRBOY 10]

I remeber the sad day Harry Catterick left to manage Everton and shortly afterwards signed Tony Kay for the Toffees.

 

The team I remember was.

 

Ron Springett

Peter Johnson

Don Megson

Tony Kay

Peter Swan

Gerry young

Derick Wilkinson

Keith Elliss

Johnny Fantham

Johnny Quin

 

I see no Finney? Strangely, I was at HS Eyecare at 11am!