Noisy Neighbours - the Man City thread

[Cf]

In a sense city were a bigger club back 15 years ago when they were in the lower divisions. Similar to Chelsea it feels like there's something fake about them when their success is built on money magicked from thin air.

[tikay]

In a sense city were a bigger club back 15 years ago when they were in the lower divisions. Similar to Chelsea it feels like there's something fake about them when their success is built on money magicked from thin air.

That could be said of many teams. Leeds, back in the day, for example.

[Archer]

I like City more than any of the current Champions League clubs for two reasons:

1. They aren't United, Chelsea or Arsenal.

2. David Silva plays for them.

I approve of this post

I'm a veteran City supporter of approaching 1000 live games and he is the best I've seen and my all-time favourite player. He was seriously off his game last night tho.

I am a fan of old man city, as a football watcher

does your 1000 games stretch back as far as bell, summerbee and franny lee?

i remember maine road fondly...a very wet wednesday we won 1-0 there with huge puddles on the pitch, mark robins with the winner....93/94 it might have been. we went down anyway!

saw us get done 5-1 and 6-1 there too mind...

One of my early recollections was the 1969 Cup Final v Leicester.  I was only a young lad then and watched that on TV but did go to Wembley for the first time in 1970 for the League Cup Final. I became a fully fledged Maine Rd regular from 1974. So, yes does stretch back as far as Bell, Summerbee and Lee.

I've looked up the Leicester game you mentioned and it was 1994/1995. We followed you down a couple of years later.  I can't  remember the game at all but another Summerbee was playing then - his son Nick.

[Archer]

I have always wondered where you would place Manchester City historically in terms of club size? 10 years ago they was a nothing club and now they are a something club. Has the ground made a huge impact also?

Are Man City bigger club historically then Everton? WHU? Newcastle? Spurs? I am curious to see what people think when you think about Man City's recent success

I would say so, yes - their Honours Board is pretty decent.


http://www.11v11.com/teams/manchester-city/tab/honours

Can Everton, Spurs, Newcastle & WHU beat that?

City have a proper history, one that pre-dates the current regime, one that stands comparison with Spura and Everton, and surpasses Newcastle and WHU.
Bell, Summerbee, Lee were greats of their time.
Mind you, they used to buy our discarded strikers back then too
http://www.corbisimages.com/images/Corbis-42-36073673.jpg?size=67&uid=f90cb3c1-1ec7-4fb0-9667-9ee64c4da74e

I was at Old Trafford in 74 when Denis Law famously scored against United and they were subsequently relegated. A horrible day for football violence that one.

[Doobs]

definitely a big club. diffuclt to compare to everton, newcastle etc but that sort of size

fa cup winners in the 60s

top 2 in the league in the 70s

fa cup finals in the 80s

only went downhill late 80s-90s etc and stayed there until the money came in

City were even big when they went down.  I am sure Maine Road was more or less full in the 3rd division.  Back then Manchester was split about 50/50 reds and blues.  You found a higher proportion of United fans as you headed out of Manchester into Cheshire and down into Surrey.

I can't remember many big clubs holding on to most of their crowd like that.  Leeds didn't and not sure Newcastle did, albeit they may have had a bigger average attendence.  

[hhyftrftdr]

Yep, we had 32k at Maine Road for the opening day game vs Blackpool, we won 3-0 if memory serves me correct. Our average across the season was something like 28/29k in what was a 33k or so capacity, the support really was amazing to say we were watching shite (the opposition and us!). If the away end was full every week we might have nudged 30k average for the season.

In a weird way, a vintage season, topped off by Dickov on his knees at Wembley vs Gillingham. Pulis is still bitter about that game to this day

[77dave]

Which is more significant in city history

Beating gillingham in that playoff final or

Manchester winning the bid for the Commonwealth Games.

Didn't city have a 100k gate back in the day?

[hhyftrftdr]

Which is more significant in city history

Beating gillingham in that playoff final or

Manchester winning the bid for the Commonwealth Games.

Didn't city have a 100k gate back in the day?

Good question! I think Gillingham trumps any event in our recent history (yes, even QPR). If we hadn't got out of Division 2 at the first attempt then we were doomed. And we made a real mess of it but eventually stumbled over the line.

Winning the CG was certainly a happy accident as I know the club were on the lookout for a new stadium (anyone who went to Maine Road in our final few seasons there will understand why, what with the open stands in the corners!), and there is a trail of increased fortune since moving in at Eastlands, but I'm not sure that trail would have started had we been stuck in Div 2 heading into the new millennium.

Yeah I mentioned it above, we still hold the record home attendance, though it was more like 86k than 100k, vs Stoke in a cup game many years ago. Wonder how long that record will last?

My post count has rocketed today, blame Tikay

[77dave]

I'm sure Charlton had a 100k gate

[DMorgan]

First big football match I ever went to the '99 final, 10 years old. Broke my heart. Didn't the ref turn up in the paper partying with Man City fans after or something like that?

[Archer]

Which is more significant in city history

Beating gillingham in that playoff final or

Manchester winning the bid for the Commonwealth Games.

Didn't city have a 100k gate back in the day?

Good question! I think Gillingham trumps any event in our recent history (yes, even QPR). If we hadn't got out of Division 2 at the first attempt then we were doomed. And we made a real mess of it but eventually stumbled over the line.

Winning the CG was certainly a happy accident as I know the club were on the lookout for a new stadium (anyone who went to Maine Road in our final few seasons there will understand why, what with the open stands in the corners!), and there is a trail of increased fortune since moving in at Eastlands, but I'm not sure that trail would have started had we been stuck in Div 2 heading into the new millennium.

Yeah I mentioned it above, we still hold the record home attendance, though it was more like 86k than 100k, vs Stoke in a cup game many years ago. Wonder how long that record will last?

My post count has rocketed today, blame Tikay

Just looked on Wiki and it was 84,569 v Stoke in 6th round of cup in 1934.

The 2nd highest attendance was also at Maine Rd involving the raggish lot from Old Trafford after OT had been bombed in the war - 83,260 in 1948 v Arsenal in the league.

[Archer]

I'm sure Charlton had a 100k gate

Charlton's official highest attendance at the Valley was 75031 in 1938. I'm not so sure "official" attendances were very reliable in those days! The photos suggested there were more than 75000 there - I think Tighty has posted pics of this in the past.

[Archer]

First big football match I ever went to the '99 final, 10 years old. Broke my heart. Didn't the ref turn up in the paper partying with Man City fans after or something like that?

Mark Halsey - he certainly had a drink with City fans staying in the same hotel!

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Football%3A+Gills+call+for+replay+after+ref's+City+party.-a060452551

[tikay]

Which is more significant in city history

Beating gillingham in that playoff final or

Manchester winning the bid for the Commonwealth Games.

Didn't city have a 100k gate back in the day?

Good question! I think Gillingham trumps any event in our recent history (yes, even QPR). If we hadn't got out of Division 2 at the first attempt then we were doomed. And we made a real mess of it but eventually stumbled over the line.

Winning the CG was certainly a happy accident as I know the club were on the lookout for a new stadium (anyone who went to Maine Road in our final few seasons there will understand why, what with the open stands in the corners!), and there is a trail of increased fortune since moving in at Eastlands, but I'm not sure that trail would have started had we been stuck in Div 2 heading into the new millennium.

Yeah I mentioned it above, we still hold the record home attendance, though it was more like 86k than 100k, vs Stoke in a cup game many years ago. Wonder how long that record will last?

My post count has rocketed today, blame Tikay

Well at least it's keeping you out of trouble next door, right?

Am pleased with how Day One of this thread has gone, very pleased. The real test comes after the gloss wears off.

Am still a little surprised at the prices for Man C v West Ham this weekend. I'm not sure about "value", but there's not much meat on the bone with Man C @ 1/4 or thereabouts, whereas West Ham @ up to 14/1 must be close to value. West Ham have looked really lively this year - I fancy their new Manager is a bit handy. Be even handier if we could understand what he was saying.     

[tikay]

Talking of Managers, the Media told us that Pelligrini was on his way out of the door at the end of last season, & it would not have been a surprise.

Next I heard, he had been offered, & signed, a new Contract.

How that work?