Just wondering if people would like to write a few memories to commemerate the 80 year anniversary to appear on the website. can be anything in importance from '83 final/ '94 treble winning season comical moments that stand out, anything at all that sticks out in your mind from whatever era. The idea would be to get 12 and have once a month during the year . PM me if you're interested.
Cork (a) last season
I remember the pitch invasion in 94 and a night in Ballyboefy around then
RIP JOHNNY
anything will do lads. 300-600 words if you can
Rovers 3 Nantes 3
who scored 2 for us that day some midfielder bit of a hardmanOriginally Posted by Soper
was it lee thew
johnny kennys goal againts home farm first game underlights
class goal set us on our way to the trible
Brugge at home
RIP JOHNNY
A very novel idea.
Have been thinking about it today while I toiled.
Eighty years old, the club that is
I guess when I think back over my association with the Rovers I'm very fortunate to have been there for all the good times: League winners '76/77, Cup Winners '83, Treble Winners '93/'94 and League Cup Winners '97. Along with that I was present at Three FAI Cup Finals that we lost. The epic 1970 Cup Final that went to three replays and eventually lost to Bohemians. Two League Cup Final defeats at the hands of Limerick and the old enemy Shams when Mick Leach scored the winner in the dying seconds of the game in Dalymount Park. I think that was 1976, we beat Drogheda in Oriel Park in the Semi-Final and that was the night the national press sat up and took notice of the red army as we marched across the country. Rovers won 5-0 that night and Mick Leonard scored a hat-trick.
I had such great times following the Rovers down through the years but sadly the bad times way out number the good times. I suppose that's what makes following the Rovers so special. When the good times does come our way we appreciate it and grab the opportunity to party with total passion.
Memories, I could write a book. Just on the great characters that followed the Rovers. Ah Frazer Browne ... who out there remembers Frazer? Then there was Nancy Callaghan, Mrs Carrolene (not sure of the spelling), Joe Burns, The McLoughlin brothers, Bernie Fallon, Johnny Roycroft, Dawsie Fallon, Frostie Callaghan, Bee Fallon and Mrs Gaffney. The club was blessed with supporters, people that knew what the word support ment. Many's a time when the club was ready to fold the buckets came out and collections took place all over the town and county and the club pulled back from the brink. Over and over and over it happened and the loyal supporters pulled it back. In the mid 70's when the ground was almost lost to the banks it was the ordinary supporters that dug deep into their pockets to repay the debt. 90 odd people that put their love for the Rovers first. The ground was saved and put into trust so as the nightmare could never happen again. What a great gesture by ordinary working class people, many of them dead but there should be some form of monument erected in the grounds in their memory. It wouldn't take much!
That was thirty years ago, many of ye young people may not be aware of that great sacrifice but I'm sure you're well aware of another great supporter that was among us up to a couple of years ago. Another man that knew no bounds when it came to supporting his beloved Bit of Red. Mark Brindly was the ultimate away supporter. He travelled all the way from Stoke-on-Trent to every home game in the Showgrounds. Even in death he remembered the Rovers leaving the club he loved so well all that he had to his name. The amount was never publicised. His name was never remembered by the club. Like the 90 odd 30 years before his memory goes unmarked.
80 years and we have great memories. Fago lifting the Cup in the rain in Dalymount. Foxy lifting the Bass Trophy in 1977. Gavin Dykes lifting not one but three trophies in 1994.
Great memories and I was fortunate enough to be there for them all. I count myself lucky. Hopefully we'll have some more good times, god knows we deserve it.
Great piece clubman
RIP JOHNNY
sligo rovers 1-0 derry city
the end
is that ok rory?
Rovers 3 Nantes 3
Originally Posted by roversman
The following is totally from memory and is open to contradition.who scored 2 for us that day some midfielder bit of a hardman
was it lee thew
It was an Inter Toto Cup fixture, a Saturday evening kick-off (5pm) and a beautiful summer’s day. It was also the middle of the Euro 96 Championships in England and there was a game on that afternoon, it may have been England v Spain which England won after a penalty shoot-out.
At the time of kick-off the ground was only about one third full and those days Nantes were a top team and had just been beaten in the semi-final of the Champions League by eventual winners Juventus.
We went one up after ten minutes through Johnny Kenny following some good work by James Mulligan. We then went two up five minutes later thanks to a Dale Hawtin header. Nantes took their tip-off and went straight down the pitch and pulled one back. After twenty minutes it was 2 - 2 and Nantes were running riot. They laid siege to our goal for the remainder of the half but Paul Matters who was on trial in goals pulled off miracle save after miracle save to keep it level at the break.
By the start of the second half word got around town that a real cracker was taking place in the Showgrounds and the crowd had now doubled.
We started the second half well and for the first twenty minutes we dominated proceedings. Then Daniel Moreno a 6ft 4inch black lad full of enthusiasm but not too much football who was over from Holland courtesy of Tohers, gave away the penalty he always threatened to and Nantes went 3 - 2 up. There seemed no way back as the Rovers team, most of whom had just arrived in Sligo the previous week - Mark Hutchison et al - were not even into pre-season training yet and were out on their feet but with three minutes to go there was a scramble in the Nantes penalty box and Lee Thew scrambled the ball home to give Rovers a deserved draw.
At this stage the ground was full and the team received one of the biggest ovations I can ever remember as they left the pitch.
Such was the impact of the result, when we went back to the pub to watch the evening match in the Euro 96 Bill O'Herlihy gave out the scoreline at half time and believe me in those days that was something.
Fair play Redie , Dale Hawtin was a good player as I recall
He was an excellent player. Like most of that team it was just his second game with the club, the first was against Heerenveen which was played the previous week in the Showgrounds - that also was a good game, finished 0 - 0. I Think he played at least Two seasons with us but not sure if he was there when we we got relegated with Cassidy?Fair play Redie , Dale Hawtin was a good player as I recall
Also, I'm sure I've spelt his surname incorrectly.
I remember at that Nantes game, I wore a Cantona mask for the whole match...what a silly 9/10 year old I was.
Nah , He only stayed the one season , He wasnt there in 98-99 when we had the Great Escape
I remember most of the Rovers team had just arrived in town and were staying in the Southern and drinking in Carrs, there were a few French lads over for the game and a French radio station did a few interviews in the week leading up to the fixture. Those results are up there with the best of the LOI in Europe and were virtually ignored by the national media.
Great piece from Redie....sadly i am old enuff to remember these people and episodes (although thankfully not as old as Avenalaff)...i too have had many great times with the bitored but sadly many more bad times. My favourite game was Brugge away as it was always a dream of mine to see my team play away in europe and Great craic also.
But all trophies and european games were great just to be involved but the main games i remember most vividly was trying to beat the all conquering shams teams of the 70's and 80's - nearly unbeatable in LOI standards.
Red Away, I have reported you to Simprered.
Did Claude Makelele definitaly play in the Nantes game?
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