Dave Collett goes back to a time when adversity forged heroes.
Gather a dozen Villa fans and you might get twelve different opinions on what the lowest point in history might be. June 2018 wasn’t much fun; in the early part of this century it looked like the Ellis Show had run out of road. For the purposes of this article, let’s settle for Villa circa 1967, when a few chickens had finally come home to roost.
A club that had prided itself on a vibrant youth system, which was regarded, without dispute, as the biggest in the Midlands, had closed down its youth development and just to add to the magic formula for sporting decline had also sold off the training ground. The reason? To save money, apparently…
While Villa wilfully starved themselves of young talent, other clubs in the area did the exact opposite and they rose just as Villa declined and the inevitable relegation followed. As ever, when the tears have dried, fans always cheer themselves up by the conviction that relegation will be a great thing. After all, the players that weren’t good enough to keep us up will suddenly thrive against lesser opposition. If only it were so simple. Similar sentiments were heard in 1967 as Villa prepared themselves for second division football. Surely Villa, a top club with great standing in the game, would take things in their stride?
The opening signs were daunting; five defeats in the first seven league games. As a ‘bonus’, they were convincingly beaten 3-1 by third division strugglers Northampton Town in the League Cup. When this was followed by two more defeats, it was clear that further relegation was more on the cards than a promotion campaign. Manager Tommy Cummings had already brought in Tommy Mitchinson from his former club, Mansfield Town. To address the dire absence of goal-threat, he then brought in not one but two strikers from preston North End. Brian Greenhalgh and Brian Godfrey were hardly well-known names but signing players like this was a reality that Villa had to deal with.
Both men started in the next game, at Middlesbrough, where a debut goal from Godfrey helped earn Villa a draw which at least halted the slide. Next up was the Second City Derby. The previous dismal one-goal defeat against Crystal Palace attracted a crowd of twelve thousand. The renewal of a local rivalry drew an attendance of over fifty thousand. In a return to what was then the reality, Villa lost 4-2 after leading twice, with Godfrey and Greenhalgh amongst the goals. The two strikers were on the mark again in the next match, where Villa ended Millwall’s long unbeaten home record at the unwelcoming Den. The home fans took great exception to this development, some of them running onto the pitch to attack referee Norman Burtenshaw. The goals and wins kept coming, with the two ‘Bee-Gees’ enjoying a long run of good form. Greenhalgh was especially prolific, until a January injury put an end to his scoring run.
Nevertheless, even the most misery-hardened Villa fan couldn’t complain too much about seven wins out of eight into the new year. Some even allowed themselves to wonder whether we might make a late run for one of the two promotion places. This being Villa, and these being the times, all such dreams were extinguished by a dismal run of one win in the next nine. There was a slight recovery before the season’s end to remove any relegation worries and Godfrey, with a dozen league goals, had done well in a struggling team.
It came as something of a surprise when in the run-up to the new season it was announced that Brian Godfrey was to be the new Villa captain – in midfield. Certainly, Godfrey had the combative style and stamina to take on the new role and his hatred of second-best would be a good thing in a side that had become used to losing. The switch ‘worked’ in that Godfrey played well enough; the problem was that Villa were so starved of goals that they couldn’t afford to be without Brian up front. Manager Cummings had to relent and put Brian back up front where he responded with a few goals, not enough to keep Villa out of the relegation spots or for Cummings to keep his job.
Villa looked doomed, even before the bleak financial state of the club was taken into consideration. All that changed as a new board and manager swept into Villa Park.
In time, Godfrey was to have plenty of problems with the new boss, but at first everything went perfectly. Brian was immediately put up at centre-forward where his hardworking style complemented the all-action play of the New Villa. He scored only five league goals all season, with a couple extra in a memorable cup run, including an unforgettable night in a replay against Southampton where Godfrey helped to set up the winner for Lionel Martin in front of fifty-nine thousand delirious fans.
With the threat of relegation long gone and with Villa fans exulting over the change that swept through the club, thoughts now turned to the immediate future. That February, a new share issue had raised £200,000, guaranteeing financial security. No doubt much of this would go to finance new signings to boost a hoped-for promotion campaign. Most of the new arrivals were strikers, young players who had never featured at this level before. It all looked exciting and cost a fair old wedge of cash (Villa’s small-time image now looked to have been banished under the new board and manager). A sharp reminder of these new times came when the new season photo-shoot showed a first-team grouping that didn’t feature one Brian Godfrey.
It looked like the new broom had cleared the way for some of the more experienced players to leave Villa Park. If that was the fear it didn’t quite materialise, as Villa got off to an awful start and some of the ‘forgotten men’ like Godfrey and Lew Chatterley stepped up from the reserves to help settle the first team down. For Brian, it was a question of plugging the nearest gap; left wing, sub, defensive midfielder and up front, either down the middle or further out wide, where he responded with a couple of goals.
If this all sounds a bit confusing, Godfrey was one of the lucky ones, at least keeping his place in the team most weeks. Many were the players discarded suddenly under Docherty’s scattergun approach to team selection. This approach helped resentments to fester when the squad went into training. According to one former player, three different factions were formed; those who had been signed by the Doc who still believed in his party line, however worn out it had become; those who were subjected to his policy of forcing certain players out of the club through the use of open humiliation; and those in the middle, resentful at not being given a chance to show what they could do. While not always competitive at the weekends, things could get a bit juicy between games.
In the end the board delivered the inevitable verdict and Docherty was on his way. Replacement Vic Crowe’s immediate policy was to select the senior players, understandable when so many of the young ones had lost their confidence. Godfrey was in the first few line-ups, then lost his place as the team continued to flounder. By the time he returned, the Big Fight was on, a win at St Andrews on Easter Monday giving new hope. Goalless games against Oxford and Leicester (though Pat McMahon might disagree) meant we were more or less down, but wins in the last two home games against high-fliers Middlesbrough and Sheffield United could still make survival possible.
By this time, Crowe’s only signing, Andy Lochhead, had failed to register a single goal after joining in February and Godfrey was brought in at centre-forward. Villa were totally dominant throughout the match, a sign of their real improvement, when an incident could have cost Villa vital points and Godfrey a lengthy ban. To say the season had been a frustrating one for Brian was to state the obvious (he should have tried standing on the terraces) but midway through the second half he was close to being sent off. The decision that provoked the issue was as bad as can be imagined. The ‘Boro full-back Jones clearly and deliberately handled the ball well inside the penalty area.
The crowd went up with a big shout, a sign of the optimistic mood, as we had not been awarded a home spot-kick all season. The ref didn’t give it but then consulted the linesman and awarded a free-kick about an inch outside the area. Some in the crowd near me laughed but for Godfrey it wasn’t that funny. He launched himself at the ref and had to be restrained by several team-mates from delivering rough justice at this truly inept verdict. Within minutes, tempers having cooled somewhat, Brian found himself on the end of a through-ball and no doubt took great pleasure in sticking his shot past Willie Whigham.
Godfrey had done enough to keep his place for the vital last game against the Blades which was a much keener contest. After an hour, Lochhead came on in place of Brian and had a hand in the move that led to Pat McMahon’s winner at the feet of the delighted Holte Enders. This brave result gave us hope – for twenty-four hours. Then the news filtered through that Charlton Athletic had beaten Bristol City and Villa were a third division side.
The board did well enough to give Crowe and his new assistant Ron Wylie a big enough squad to deal with the rigours of forty-six league games. Where exactly Godfrey was to fit in wasn’t immediately clear. Brian Tiler, playing just in front of the back four, was one of several players who had finished the previous season in fine form, his confidence restored. It then became apparent that Tiler would be suspended for the start of the season, so a replacement would be needed. Realising this, Crowe played Godfrey there for the last pre-season game against the Albion. He responded in the best way possible, by being the outstanding player on the pitch and scoring Villa’s leveller in a 1-1 draw. Godfrey duly kept the spot for the season-opener at Chesterfield and was to stay there for the rest of the season.
If this seems harsh on Tiler, please spare your tears. Villa’s squad soon came under pressure, as no fewer than three first-team starters had to go under the knife for cartilage operations: Bruce Rioch, Michael Wright and George Curtis. Lew Chatterley was soon out of the team as well, which left Tiler and the reliable Fred Turnbull to form a partnership that lasted the rest of the season. Curtis’s absence was felt even more acutely as he was the skipper, a player who made sure the other ten would be at it for ninety minutes. It was no surprise when Godfrey stepped up to take the armband, missing only two games in what was the first successful season this fan had experienced. Villa were consistent enough to be well in the promotion chase as December approached, a good 2-0 win against fellow contenders Fulham looking like a statement of intent.
By this time, Villa fans had other thoughts on their minds thanks to the League Cup. Convincing wins against Notts County and first division Burnley were a pleasant distraction from the bread-and-butter of league fare. The bump in the road came in the next round where Villa were lucky to escape at Northampton, though the replay was negotiated with few problems. The fourth round draw gave Villa a home tie against a strong Carlisle United side from the division above. Carlisle paid Villa the highest compliment of playing as if they were only interested in the draw, but couldn’t deny Villa the right to go through to the quarter-finals.
To be drawn away to a third division side in a cup quarter-final could hardly be the cause for complaint. The trouble was this particular team was Bristol Rovers, already one of the few outfits to turn up at Villa Park to try to win the game, rather than desperately hope not to lose it. Rain laced down all through the match but somehow, twenty-two heroes contrived to put on a show that belied the conditions. With twenty minutes to go, the ref called the captains, Godfrey and Don Megson together to ask if they wished to continue. Both agreed to carry on and the teams received a deserved ovation from a 28,000 crowd as the game ended one-all. In one of those classy moments that should be recalled whenever the iniquities of the modern game are revealed, Rovers manager Bill Dodgin Sr sent champagne into the away dressing-room, a gesture as grand as the match itself had been.
The replay generated a bumper crowd of 37,000. Along with the temptation of a semi-final place, both teams by now were aware that the winner would face Manchester United in a two-leg tie. Was the size of the prize on offer the reason that this game did not approach the standard of the first one? It was all a bit cagey when, with extra time looming, Chico Hamilton (always the man for the big occasion) curled in a shot from the edge of the box. Dick Shepherd, the former Albion ‘keeper, did well to get both hands to it but he couldn’t hang onto the ball and the onrushing Pat McMahon knocked it into the net.
The excitement of the draw had dissipated a little by the time the games rolled around, delayed by a week thanks to a national electricians’ strike. By now, realism had taken a grip. The best hope seemed to be that if Villa could avoid a towelling at the Theatre of Dreams (vomit), there was an outside chance they could at least inconvenience their illustrious opponents. What no-one predicted was that Villa would, by common consent, be the better side on the night.
The second leg saw Villa, after an iffy start, proving too good for the star-studded visitors. There’s little doubt that the experienced men like Gibson, Lochhead and Godfrey held things together through the early struggles and the celebrations after the last whistle were loud and memorable.
The income from the cup run meant a lot in terms of glory and extra cash. Inadvertently, it may also have damaged Villa’s promotion prospects. At first, Crowe and his players handled the situation well, a 3-0 defeat on a frozen Fellows Park pitch aside. Completing the double over Fulham meant Villa were top and looking, disbelievingly, at the prospect of their very own league and cup double.
In fact, Villa were to win only one of their next nine league games, a set-back from which they were unable to recover. Some blamed the distraction of Wembley, others pointed out that Lochhead and McMahon couldn’t score after the new year; a third theory was that those extra cup games had simply tired the squad out and there was nothing left in the tank when things began to go wrong. By the time the last Saturday home game of the season came round, the last chance of promotion had gone. Wrexham were the visitors, and for this game Crowe put Bruce Rioch into a deeper midfield position, allowing Godfrey more freedom to get forward. Brian responded by scoring two spanking goals from distance, showing the unselfishness of the player in foregoing the attacking side of his game in order to get down to a season of the dirty work further back. Unsurprisingly, Brian was awarded the Terrace Trophy by grateful fans at the end of season gathering.
Over the summer, the disappointment of missing out began to fade and thoughts turned to what was needed to do better second time around. Could we bring in a more consistent goalscorer than Lochhead? Did we need a bolder keeper who would be happy to come off his line? Crowe and Wylie’s solution to the Lochhead ‘problem’ was not to get rid of the player but to improve his service. So it was that they brought in a player who had made a positive impression on Villa supporters in the last year, Bristol Rovers winger Ray Graydon. His running and crossing would mirror Willie Anderson on the other side, ensuring that Andy would have plenty to feed off.
This all seemed like positive news, until the details of the transfer were revealed. Rovers manager Dodgin would only agree to the sale if Godfrey went the other way. Crowe offered a number of other names, but Dodgin insisted. Crowe knew he needed Graydon, so reluctantly allowed his skipper to depart.
History tells us that the Graydon transfer was one of the best in the last sixty years. His runs and crosses helped Lochhead to twenty-five goals that season, and he was well into double figures himself in what was the start of a long, successful career in the Midlands. The way Brian Godfrey began his Rovers career demanded attention. In a more advanced midfield role he was a regular scorer, even notching a hat-trick against Blackburn. He couldn’t keep that rate up, of course, but remained a first-team regular and got a wonderful reception when he returned to Villa Park on Easter Monday, before a crowd of over 41,000.
Villa fans may have their faults, but ingratitude to those who stepped up when the club needed it isn’t one of them. Brian, fondly remembered at Exeter as the manager who took them to an FA Cup quarter-final, is still recalled by those who saw him play. While we demand – and get – maximum effort from today’s well-remunerated players, they’ll never be able to outdo the likes of Brian Godfrey in that regard.