Yep, everybody looked about 20 years older than they really were.

A pal of mine was an England international at schoolboy level. He played in the same team as Barry Bridges, Willy Carlin, Warick Rimmer, John Talbut etc. He was showing me his memorabilia one day and we came across a programme for Manchester Schools ( his team ) v Lancashire schools. F Pickering ( Blackburn ) was on the right wing for Lancashire schools believe or not ! I never had Fred down as a winger. If you remember Paddy Daly for Rovers he was in the Manchester team. My pal signed for United when he left school but he had a career ending knee injury at 17.

David Unsworth, who was talked about regarding the Roverd job, is the new manager at Oldham.

You missed a treat. We really went for it at 2-1 down. Bit different to todays lot. I remember getting in to Old Trafford about 5 minutes late and it was already 1-1. We were losing 2-1 with about 5 minutes to go and not looking like scoring so me and my pal decided to leave the game to find the coach. That game ended 2-2 !

I’ve lived around here ( Rochdale ) since I was 5 years old and the valley up from town through Whitworth, Facit, Britannia, Bacup etc has always been populated with mostly Burnley fans. Wether people could go Rovers is irrelevant, the fact is not many of them did.

Bacup and Whitworth have always been strongholds for Burnley. Back in the day I’d get the coach in Rochdale town centre and it would pick up lots in Whitworth and Bacup on the way to Burnley for games. I don’t recall any other Rovers fans getting on. I just kept my mouth shut and said nothing.

Jim Smith, who was Derby manager at the time, told the story that he’d heard that Hodgson was interested in Dailly. He passed it on to his chairman who said “ Remember Jim, not a penny less than £2 Million if they get on to you “. Apparently Hodgson’s opening offer was £5 Million and Jim Smith talked it up to £5.25 Million. £5 Million more than he was worth !

I should think so. Dailly was the pits. Awful player. What was Roy Boy thinking when he signed him ?

We’ve got a board ? Wow, when did that happen ?

Brown ?

Rovers v Everton 1962-63 season - Great games of the 1960’s. 47er mentioned the above game in the Luton thread but he had it a season or two later on. I went along to this as 13 year old kid on the old Ribble bus from Rochdale. It was played on Saturday Nov 17th 1962, a damp and cold afternoon. The pitch was a bit muddy but well rolled, at the beginning of the game anyway. Ex Rover Roy Vernon was captaining Everton and I remember watching him warm up and being impressed with the power of his shooting at goal. The first half was end to end but without a goal. Plenty of action around the goals but nothing on the score sheet. I’d been standing behind the goals at the Darwen End where Rovers were attacking but at half time I moved on to the half way line near the front of the Riverside. That was as far as I felt like going as there was a big crowd on with loads from Everton. ( 30,243 according to Mike Jackman ). The second half kicked off and after about 15 minutes Fergie got away down the right wing and crossed over a peach of a cross ball for Ian Lawther to head home. Lawther had the happy knack of being able to hang in the air and he easily out jumped Brian Labone, the Everton centre half. We’d only been in front for a few minutes when Everton got a corner. It was only half cleared and an Everton player fired the loose ball home through a crowded goal mouth. Fred Else in the Rovers goal totally unsighted. Rovers were shaken by that goal and within 5 minutes they had conceded another carbon copy of that type of goal. The ball fired through a crowded goalmouth with Else again having no chance. 2-1 down after being on top. Rovers were spurred into action by this and started to dominate the game again with Duggie pulling the strings in midfield. With about 10 minute to go Fred Pickering who was playing a similar role to what BBD plays for the current Rovers team got away up the left hand side and cut in down the goal line. With everybody, including Gordon West in the Everton goal, expecting a cross he fired the ball home from an acute angle. 2-2 and Rovers well on top. With only a minute or two to go Big Fred got away again in a similar position down the goal line. Before he could shoot again Everton’s Jimmy Gabriel brought him down - PENALTY. By this time the sleet from earlier on had turned to snow and it was really coming down. I could just about make out the goals at the Blackburn End. Dougie was the calmest man on the pitch as he placed the ball on the spot. He turned and walked back a few yards,turned, addressed the ball, and then sauntered up to shoot. The ball went in one bottom corner as Gordon West dived into the other corner. 3-2 to the Rovers and we’d won a classic. As things were at the time I’d turned up in a suit, collar and tie. Nobody had cagoules, anoraks or parkas then. No real outdoor gear. You turned up in your street clothes. Even as a 13 year old kid I was always dapper. In spite of this I didn’t feel the cold for a minute as jogged back to the Boulevard in the snow. Picked up the Last Sports and read it from cover to cover on the bus on the way home. Happy days indeed. Rovers team that day Else Bray, Newton Clayton, Woods, McGrath Ferguson, Lawther, Pickering, Douglas, Harrison. Everton ( from memory ). West Parker, Meagan Gabriel, Labone, Harris Bingham, Stevens, Young, Vernon, Veall I’ve written this from memory but somewhere in the house I still have the after match cutting from the Last Sports. I also thought we were 2-0 down until I re-read the cutting several years ago. This was just one of several really great games I remember from the first half of the 1960’s. Rovers v Burnley 1962, Man Utd v Rovers 1962, Rovers v Arsenal ( 5-5) 1962, Rovers v West Brom ( the Douglas wonder goal ) 1963, Rovers v Spurs ( the 3-0 and the 7-2 ) both in 1963 but different seasons, Rovers v Arsenal 1963. That’s just a few but by then I’d started playing youth football myself and I couldn’t attend games as often as I would have like to. I loved watching but it’s not nearly as good as playing yourself. I could write a bit about all of those games if anyone is interested ?

I’ll carry this topic on in the nostalgia thread if it’s ok with you ?

So we get “ more value “ into players and then they leave for nothing or get sold for a fee that rarely gets invested in the playing staff. Around and around we go like a dog chasing it’s tail. Never really moving forward. That’s until the bad season comes along and down we go.

He’s a similar player in as far as running with the ball is concerned but as you say - he doesn’t get as many goals as BBD.

Me too.

This, and the Rugby League forums, are the only social media I use plus an engineering site for business.

You mean a right wanker ?

He was all we could afford. It’s just a shame Jack wasn’t around then, we could have won a trophy with a bit of investment. We had maybe 9 really good players and then that was it. Any injuries and we were struggling. It makes me smile when we’re talking about transfer windows today. Back then a close season would go by and we wouldn’t sign anybody, not one single player ! I think we’ve said all that needs to be said about the Luton game. We didn’t turn up, is there anything else to be said?

Rod used to be on Brentford’s books as a lad.

I rated Darling. He had it all, he was quick, could beat a man, two good feet, and for a guy with average height he had a good spring. On the downside he was a bit on the slight side, but so was Denis Law. I remember him getting a true hat trick against Portsmouth in the FA Cup. Right foot shot, left foot shot, and a header. I think the crowd got on his back for some reason. He had a long career in the lower leagues after he left Ewood. I saw him playing for Rochdale many times and he was always a threat. Didn’t we swap him for that stump Conlon ? Norwich saw us coming there.

Their first game at Ewood was early in the 62-63. We won that one 1-0 courtesy of a Bryan Douglas goal. The next season, 63-64, it was the opening game and it was chaos all around the ground with lots of shops getting raided and robbed. They won 2-1. Mike Harrison scoring our goal. The game I was referring to was early in the 64-65 season. We won 3-2 after being 2-0 down with goals from Byrom, Harrison pen, McEvoy. Rovers Else Newton, Joyce. Clayton, England, McGrath Ferguson, McEvoy, Byrom, Douglas, Harrison. Att 26, 865.

Tell me about it ! I was behind the goals at the Blackburn End. No segregation then. When the third goal went in a Rovers fan who was celebrating got head butted by a scouse guy right in front of me !

He used to cross the ball like a rocket as well. Straight as an arrow. Get the slightest bit of head on it and it was a goal. He had a skill you never see today, he could cross the ball whilst at full gallop down the wing without breaking his stride.

No, he didn’t take so many. I remember his first against Liverpool at the Blackburn End in a 3-2 win after being 2-0 down ! Those were the days when we did comebacks. I was right behind the goals and he side footed it in like a rocket.

Let their worst passer have the ball and mark up every where else. That’s not exactly a new way of playing is it ?