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How Oldham Athletic's pinch-me season won over a nation


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Fantastic times! And the last 15 years or so has taught me how lucky I have been to have lived through that period in the clubs history. It was an age when you went to the game not thinking whether or not we would win, but it was a case of by how many!!! I can also remember my Dad telling me to enjoy it, as he'd followed Latics for 40 years by that point, and never experienced anything like it, I made sure I did by going to virtually every game. And it seems he was right by suggesting it was likely never to happen again.

 

It's really sad how we have a generation of fans only knowing us as a crap team, I just hope one day we can get some of that back to reward those who have kept or are keeping the faith through these disappointing times.

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On the one hand it's great to have the occasional reminder of those days. At the same time though, it serves as a reminder of what we had; what we so nearly went on to become; and the stark fact that we'll never enjoy anything like that again.

 

Edit: [blub]

Edited by Stevie_J
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Fantastic times! And the last 15 years or so has taught me how lucky I have been to have lived through that period in the clubs history. It was an age when you went to the game not thinking whether or not we would win, but it was a case of by how many!!! I can also remember my Dad telling me to enjoy it, as he'd followed Latics for 40 years by that point, and never experienced anything like it, I made sure I did by going to virtually every game. And it seems he was right by suggesting it was likely never to happen again.

 

It's really sad how we have a generation of fans only knowing us as a crap team, I just hope one day we can get some of that back to reward those who have kept or are keeping the faith through these disappointing times.

I echo pretty much everything you've said there.

 

I'm just so glad I experienced those great days as a Latics fan, I would go to BP fully expecting us not just to win but to win well, and I was rarely disappionted, 3-0 and 4-1 scorelines were commonplace and we really used to put teams to the sword.

 

Football has changed to such a great extent that we are highly unlikely to ever experience those great times again, but those of us old enough to have experienced it will always have some great memories.

Edited by Hometownclub
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I echo pretty much everything you've said there.

 

I'm just so glad I experinced those great days as a Latics fan, I would go to BP fully expecting us not just to win but to win well, and I was rarely disappionted, 3-0 and 4-1 scorelines were commonplace and we really used to put teams to the sword.

 

Football has changed to such a great extent that we are highly unlikely to ever experience those great times again, but those of us old enough to have experienced it will always have some great memories.

 

Some stats for you during the gung ho years from February '88 - May '93 at home…(Feb '88 was really when the goal avalanche properly arrived)

 

League and Cup Record at HOME

 

P147 W82 D48 L17 F321 A169 Clean Sheets 32 FTS 9

 

Scored 7 Twice

Scored 6 Three times

Scored 5 SIX times

Scored 4 15 times

 

One 0-0 draw v Exeter in the League Cup, Boundary Park saw only one 0-0 draw between September 1987 and October 1993…..

 

 

Average goals per game for 2.18

Average goals against per game 1.15

Average goals per game total 3.33

 

Times came from 2 goals down to win or draw 9

 

 

Biggest win Cup 7-0 v Scarborough (October 1989)

 

Biggest win League 6-1 v Brighton (December 1990)

 

Biggest Defeat Cup 0-2 v Everton (November 1988) Our only cup defeat in this period at BP

 

Biggest Defeat League 3-6 v Manchester United (December 1991) 2-5 v Man City (May 1992) 1-4 v Chelsea (October 1988)

 

It was a great time to be a fan, and I echo the sentiments, it was not IF we would win but by how many. I remember our first defeat back in the top flight vs Palace (we lost 3-2 Sept '91) I walked out of the RRE as a 14 year old, numb with shock. In five years and about 60 odd games i'd seen us lose at home three time previously. I couldn't believe a team had the audacity to beat us at BP!!!!

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I remember the odd defeat to Sheffield United (89-90) and Hull (90-91) just with that numb rare feeling. It was just expected that we'd win, or at the very least be treated to a 2-2 draw. But usually a win.

 

As someone says, them days are long gone and never to return. Maybe the odd cup shock, but nothing on the level that was at.

 

And, as much as anyone says it weren't, but the plastic pitch was a clear advantage in our favour, only because we had the players who knew how to play on it.

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I remember the odd defeat to Sheffield United (89-90) and Hull (90-91) just with that numb rare feeling. It was just expected that we'd win, or at the very least be treated to a 2-2 draw. But usually a win.

 

As someone says, them days are long gone and never to return. Maybe the odd cup shock, but nothing on the level that was at.

 

And, as much as anyone says it weren't, but the plastic pitch was a clear advantage in our favour, only because we had the players who knew how to play on it.

Without a doubt it was massive advantage, people are kidding themselves if they think otherwise.

 

We could still play on grass, but the plastic pitch gave us a huge home advantage.

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Why not?

 

As much could change in the next 20 years as in the last 20.

 

You're maybe right, but we'd need the arse to completely fall out of the Premier League and about 12 clubs to practically go bust. The gulf between 1st & 2nd division was relatively small at the time, most clubs who were promoted hung around for a few years if not more. Not like the yo-yo bull:censored: we see now.

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Without a doubt it was massive advantage, people are kidding themselves if they think otherwise.

 

We could still play on grass, but the plastic pitch gave us a huge home advantage.

 

The better teams, particularly those that won promotion and Spurs in the Cup, came to BP and were victorious on the plastic. Derby won at BP in the League and ZDS. Lesser teams were afraid of it, even though many of them trained on plastic.

 

I remember singing "We can play on grass as well" as Latics beat Chelsea 3-0 in the first the top flight game at BP for 68 years. Happy days! :grin:

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The better teams, particularly those that won promotion and Spurs in the Cup, came to BP and were victorious on the plastic. Derby won at BP in the League and ZDS. Lesser teams were afraid of it, even though many of them trained on plastic.

 

I remember singing "We can play on grass as well" as Latics beat Chelsea 3-0 in the first the top flight game at BP for 68 years. Happy days! :grin:

 

The Derby league defeat was the first time I ever saw Latics lose; 4-1 on a freezing day at BP in early '87. After being top for most of the season we wilted after that and had to settle for third - especially after losing late on in the season 3-0 at our rivals for the second automatic spot Portsmouth. Oh and the other Derby defeat was in The Full Members Cup, it then became the Simod Cup the year after (battered 3-0 at home to Big Ron's WBA) before becoming the Zenith Data Systems Cup in 1989 before being scrapped in 1992, as there was no longer a need for it as English teams were fully allowed back into European Competition.

 

We had an awful record in that competition!

 

FMC '86 Derby (H) L0-1

SC '87 WBA (H) L0-1

SC '88 Middlesbrough (A) L0-1

ZDSC '89 Newcastle (A) L0-2

ZDSC '90 Sheff Utd (A) L2-7 (After being 2-0 up)

ZDSC '91 Everton (A) L2-3

Edited by oafcprozac
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Without a doubt it was massive advantage, people are kidding themselves if they think otherwise.

 

We could still play on grass, but the plastic pitch gave us a huge home advantage.

Yeah it did, but how does it compare to the advantage the likes of Man U and Liverpool have with their big gates. Didn't Man U go a couple of seasons without having a penalty given against them at OT, something which strikes me as an anomaly and its a brave ref that turns down a possible penalty claim for Liverpool in front of the Kop now, nevermind then. Or how about Stoke and their very narrow pitch at the Brittania, I'm guessing when they loose their long throw in men it might get wider.

 

Home advantage is what you make of it, it wasn't like they turned up to find the heating off in the middle of winter, the opposition could have prepared for it and on many occassions their preparation was lacking +/- they were beaten by the better side.

 

Even that year the two games we played at top flight opposition we drew, Arsenal the reigning champions lost at both grounds in the league.

 

Im surprised no one has commented on the mention of Nick Henry's disallowed goal that the officials had a bias towards to opposition.

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