A game I almost missed. It was my cousin's wedding and there we were at the reception. Suddenly my dad said: "Come on, I've got a taxi. Get out before your mum notices."

I did, we got to the Turf just in time to see us destroy Leeds 5-1 with our young players. We were brilliant with the goals coming from Ralph Coates, Frank Casper(2), John Murray & Steve Kindon.

The teams that day were;

Burnley: Harry Thomson, Fred Smith, Les Latcham, Martin Dobson, Colin Waldron, Colin Blant, Dave Thomas, John Murray, Frank Casper, Ralph Coates, Steve Kindon. Sub not used: Sammy Todd.

Leeds: Gary Sprake, Paul Reaney, Terry Cooper (Peter Lorimer 73), Billy Bremner, Jack Charlton, Norman Hunter, Mike O'Grady, Johnny Giles, Mick Jones, Paul Madeley, Eddie Gray.

I was OK when we got home. It was my dad who got the bollocking. He said it was worth it.

A very tolerant woman Mrs Scholes senior!

Yes it was one ofthe best days ever to be on the Turf. Especially to thrash the dirtiest team ever seen on the Turf (maybe apart Napoli). I can still see Kindon leaving Charlton for dead.

That was a superb match. The Burnley Babes I think they were called in the press.

i can 't remember smith nor murray! must be alzheimers coming on. whilst we have a very decent team now, personally, i don't think we'll have so many top class players in a team ever again. i doubt leeds will, neither.

Wasn’t Kindon’s goal a rocket at the Cricket Field end?

Scintillating performance that day, Steve Kindon was like a runaway train, Dave Thomas showing all and sundry (especially Don Revie) what a wonderfully balanced footballer he was.
That team played without fear and no amount of intimidation from dirty Leeds could stop them.
John Murray had a purple patch of goalscoring then practically disappeared without trace.

Went with my dad, I was already a committed Claret by then, my little brother and his mate were still wavering tending to favour Leeds, not unusual as we were from Skipton. Both of them lifelong Clarets after that game.

I recall being at that game for a variety of reasons.

I think most folk were expecting us to get beat but we turned in a performance
and a result that nobody expected that got us labelled as the 'team of the seventies' I think it was.

And also for my only act of football related violence if I can call it that.
At half time I was having a pie and some Leeds fans started hurling abuse at us
I think there was a fence separating us but for whatever reason I decided to throw
my half eaten pie in their direction and it hit one of them right in the face!

Cant recall the reaction but it certainly shut him up.
Ending up regretting it and thinking it was a waste of the pie.

fantastic performance that day with so many players standing out but above them all was Ralph Coates at his imperious best.

Didn't we do em 5...1 in the early seventies as well?

Brilliant memories: Casper, Coates, Kindon and Thomas were sublime and Murray always underrated. Most frightening moment was when, at 5-1, Ralph took the ball to the corner flag and sat on it. Cue for the Leeds neanderthals at the back of the Longside to start throwing sharpened coins (halfpennies of course).

Reading this post prompted me to get out my season ticket for 1968-1969 season, cost £2 5s 0d I was number 107, I always filled in the scores in the back and it brings back so many great memories the 9 game winning spell was absolutely brilliant and that season I got as close as I'll ever get to seeing every single game in league and cups I missed the very last one at Old Trafford of all places in hospital with hepatitis one newspaper said of John Murray he could head a ball with the strength of a kick from a mule, great days.

I can remember my dad saying J Murray,was like a gazelle?

Write up from a Leeds perspective.

http://www.mightyleeds.co.uk/matches/19681019.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

BFCmaj wrote:Write up from a Leeds perspective.

http://www.mightyleeds.co.uk/matches/19681019.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Yes, 5 "likes" - one for each of the 5 Burnley goals.

What a memorable game!

I'd been on when Lpool thrashed us 0-4. That was a bad result.

I was at the top of the Bee Hole for the Leeds game, using the railings to gain extra height and see over all the taller people around me. The whole team was fantastic that day.

Didn't John Murray sign for Blackpool a few weeks after the Leeds game, or maybe another west Lancs club? or am I just mixed up?

EDIT: Thanks, Murray to Blackpool 1970.

And another 14 year old in Oct-1968. Has age got anything to do with the impression the game made on us - or our memories today?

UTC

Always count this as one of the best games I have attended on the Turf. Leeds had a very good side and were flying and they brought thousands with them.

We simply destroyed them. Ralph Coates was brilliant and the team were outstanding.

tim_noone wrote:Didn't we do em 5...1 in the early seventies as well?

4-1 at Elland Road in 1973-74, late in the season.

I think I am right in saying that this defeat for Leeds was one of only two games they lost all season the other being against Man City. Puts how good we were that day in context. Sadly we lost the game at Leeds 6 1!!

I was there. Probably the best game I've ever been to. Better even than the 4-1 win at Elland Road.

LordBob, I think it was 8 wins in succession with 2 of them being League Cup games. The run ended at TM against Wolves with a 1-1 draw, then we had a bad run.

John Murray did go to Blackpool but in 1970. And then on to Bury and elsewhere.

I was there as a fourteen year-old Clarets fanatic. An incredible game, Leeds - a hugely talented but ruthlessly vicious side - were simply dismantled by our speed, power and skill.

Quicknick wrote:4-1 at Elland Road in 1973-74, late in the season.

I'm not as old as I thought then...remember the 1..4. But sure we beat them 5..0 5..1 at turf around the same year.

We beat them 3-0 at home in the late 60s once, but only the one 5-1 triumph and no 5 nils, tim.

No cricket field stand that day it was demolished and rebuilding of the new stand had not started. I used to help the young kids at Junior Clarets and I was in charge of the ball boys behind the CF goal. What a day we had. Will never forget walking off the pitch and up the tunnel behind the Leeds players. Bremner kicked a hole in the dressing room door. Utterley brilliant and one of my best ever Claret memories
Crowd was over 26000 with no CFS.

I was also there as a 14 yr old Clarets fanatic Pete.

I was also there as a 14 yr old Clarets fanatic Pete.

One of my first matches...Destroyed Leeds...They couldn't live with us...I also remember a home game v Leeds a few years after this one when Gordon McQueen tried to bully a young Ray Hankin...Hankin wasn't having it and gave McQueen more than he was expecting and both of them got sent off...Cant remember the score...Can anyone help me out ?

FCBurnley wrote:Crowd was over 26000 with no CFS.

26,434

BFCmaj wrote:Write up from a Leeds perspective.

http://www.mightyleeds.co.uk/matches/19681019.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Surprisingly magnanimous quotes from Don Revie in there

Remember going on this one. Fantastic day for the young Clarets. Cricket field stand under development. Revie enthusing over our performance ( he desperately wanted to sign Dave Thomas ) John Murray having a purple patch around this time, so much so, that he was called up to the England u23 squad. Leeds ended up Champions and, as stated on an earlier post, they lost only 2 games all season; this one and at Manchester City.

So about 19-20,000 between the Longside and Bee Hole. Likely 12,000 on the Longside?

I'd have thought it must have had 20,000+ packed into the Longside at certain points in time?

Quicknick wrote:We beat them 3-0 at home in the late 60s once, but only the one 5-1 triumph and no 5 nils, tim.

I was there! I thought it was later.

I really can’t remember Fred Smith at all. Am I missing something.

dermotdermot wrote:I really can’t remember Fred Smith at all. Am I missing something.

Fred Smith was a reserve team footballer who made 84 appearances for the first team between 1964 and 1970. I remember him well. In the reserve team, the other fullback at the time was Mick Buxton. Smith looked particularly good. And remember, this was first division football. He left for Portsmouth which means he probably played in the same Pompey side as Ray Pointer.

Fred Smith still lives locally and he's one of two Burnley players I'm aware of born on Christmas Day (the other is Trevor Meredith), and he'll be 75 this year. He was usually deputy for John Angus but actually played just over half (22 out of 42) of the league games in that 1968/69 season. He played, as Quicknick posted, 84 league games for Burnley and 107 appearances if you include cup competitions. Those cup games included 4 in the Fairs Cup in 1966/67. He went on to play for Portsmouth and Halifax.

Mick Buxton, mentioned in the post above, had gone by then, he left in the summer of 1967 having made just 19 appearances. His only other club was Halifax but he went on to manage Huddersfield, Scunthorpe (twice) and Sunderland in 20 years of management. Mick is 74 now but still works for the Premier League.

Quicknick wrote:Fred Smith was a reserve team footballer who made 84 appearances for the first team between 1964 and 1970. I remember him well. In the reserve team, the other fullback at the time was Mick Buxton. Smith looked particularly good. And remember, this was first division football. He left for Portsmouth which means he probably played in the same Pompey side as Ray Pointer.

Was a little dark haired fella he's in the memory bank...can't imagine he'd do the half time draw. Who???

tim_noone wrote:Was a little dark haired fella he's in the memory bank...can't imagine he'd do the half time draw. Who???

That's him, and quite long hair last time I saw him.

ClaretTony wrote:Fred Smith still lives locally and he's one of two Burnley players I'm aware of born on Christmas Day (the other is Trevor Meredith), and he'll be 75 this year. He was usually deputy for John Angus but actually played just over half (22 out of 42) of the league games in that 1968/69 season. He played, as Quicknick posted, 84 league games for Burnley and 107 appearances if you include cup competitions. Those cup games included 4 in the Fairs Cup in 1966/67. He went on to play for Portsmouth and Halifax.

Mick Buxton, mentioned in the post above, had gone by then, he left in the summer of 1967 having made just 19 appearances. His only other club was Halifax but he went on to manage Huddersfield, Scunthorpe (twice) and Sunderland in 20 years of management. Mick is 74 now but still works for the Premier League.

My memory failed me regarding Mick Buxton. So he came first, then. I thought Fred Smith was very good. My father really rated him.

I remember when I was young, I was doing a little quiz with a mate. My question: 'Who is Burnley's reserve right back?' 'How am I supposed to know that (he was a Huddersfield fan, so he had a point)'? he said, pausing for a minutes before saying, 'Fred Smith.' He just pulled what he regarded as a common name out of the air.

Freddie Smith was born in Northumberland. I have relatives and friends up there and a couple of them were really good friends with Freddie when he was playing youth football. He was chosen to play for East Northumberland Boys aged about 15 and was so pleased that,according to his mates, Freddie wore the jacket given to him by them at every available opportunity. One of his friends is the brother of a much travelled Geordie footballer whose name escapes me at the moment but he played for Stoke against us at home at the start of the 94-95 season and scored their last minute equaliser. He also spent a while playing for Luton .............. still can't recall his name. Anybody know?

I think we won our next 6 games after beating Leeds - but I could be wrong.

John Dreyer was the name I was looking for a couple of posts earlier.

[quote="Quicknick"]I was there. Probably the best game I've ever been to. Better even than the 4-1 win at Elland Road.
Got to disagree Nick that 4-1 game is one of my all time favorite Clarets games just a smidge ahead of the 5-1 on my personal list. Especially because of the "three angry Yorkshiremen" walk back to the car,followed by ******* ourselves laughing when we got there. And the Paul Fletcher goal.

summitclaret wrote:Yes it was one ofthe best days ever to be on the Turf

I replay that match in my head many many times.

The Ralph Coates Show!

What made it so special was who we were playing. Top of the League and only lost twice all season.

It was an eight match run of wins, I believe, if you count two League Cup wins. Murray scored in all but one of those wins.

Putneyclaret wrote:Most frightening moment was when, at 5-1, Ralph took the ball to the corner flag and sat on it.

Thanks Putney.

That has always been my memory too but I have been challenged about it so many times with people insisting "That was the Blackburn game"

Well he did it at t'Turf against Leeds too

avalondreamer wrote:I think we won our next 6 games after beating Leeds - but I could be wrong.

That 5-1 win against weeds was the 4th game of a 8 match winning run.

I think the first defeat after that run of games was the League Cup semi final first leg at home to third division,Swindon. An unexpected 1-2 defeat.

After that winning run we only won 5 of the last 24 league games.
Potts should have been sacked

Freddie Smith,came from Seaton Sluice,they still talk about him, in Seaton Sluice Club,now!

Hope my memory serves me OK but I recall Fred Smith being famous at the time he played for being a full back who always got the better of George Best. (I'm not sure how many times he played against him, can't have been more than a couple.) There is a newspaper clip of him and George Best shaking hands after a game and Best holding one of his boots that had come off in a tackle.

avalondreamer wrote:I think we won our next 6 games after beating Leeds - but I could be wrong.

The run was

West Ham (h) 3-1 - Murray, Kindon, Dobson
Stoke (a) 3-1 - Blant, Murray, Coates
Leicester (h) 4-0 - Thomas, Murray(2), Casper (League Cup)
Leeds (h) 5-1 - Coates, Casper(2), Murray, Kindon
Leicester (a) 2-0 - Casper(p), Murray
Crystal Palace (h) 2-0 - Casper(p), Murray (League Cup)
Ipswich (h) 1-0 - Blant
QPR (a) 2-0 - Murray, Casper


It was the same team for all eight games apart from Sammy Todd playing in the first of them with Ralph Coates replacing him at Stoke after coming back from injury.