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Spurs and the FA
Cup 4th Round
Many of the FA Cup ties that linger on the memory are
associated with the 3rd Round or the Semi-Final or Final while the
games in the intervening rounds tend to merge into one, as the 4th,
5th and 6th Rounds become indistinguishable as part of
the journey, which one hopes will lead to success. As always, there are exceptions with the
double spring spectaculars in 1985 at Southampton and Anfield.
Having overcome Cardiff
in the 3rd Round Replay, Spurs have been rewarded with a second
Cup visit from Southend United. This 4th
Round tie will probably be consigned to join the many games that are
overlooked in history unless it becomes memorable for all the ‘wrong’ reasons
in that the Championship side gain an unexpected victory or hopefully the
game has some spectacular goals which make it a step towards a Spurs’ victory
in the Final in May.
It is for the ‘wrong’ reasons that a recent 4th
Round game is remembered. Only three
years ago supporters were left reeling after Spurs managed to lose a three
goal half-time advantage to ten-man Manchester
City. At half-time supporters were contemplating
a 5th Round game at Old Trafford – Spurs were three ahead and City
had just had a player sent off - nothing could be more straight forward. But City staged the most unexpected of
come-backs to win the replay 4-3. The
lowest point in a very low season as Spurs with David Pleat as caretaker
manager, waited patiently for a new manager to replace Glenn Hoddle.
Unfortunately, even the greatest of managers can suffer
the ignominy of such defeats. In 1973,
with less than ten minutes to play, Bill Nicholson’s side were 3-1 ahead in
the 4th Round Replay against Derby
County at White
Hart Lane.
Spurs’ goals had come from Martin Chivers, Alan Gilzean and a Mike
England penalty but then the Derby
centre forward, Roger Davies came to life and scored twice to take the game
into extra time. He then scored a
third as Derby
completed a remarkable recovery to win 5-3 in front of 53,000 disbelieving
spectators.
In 1966 a visiting centre forward who also scored a hat-trick
in a 4th Round tie was less fortunate. Willie Irvine, a Northern
Ireland international scored three for Burnley
in a seven goal thriller but went home on the losing side when Alan Gilzean
matched his hat-trick and Frank Saul added a fourth for Spurs who had been
two down early on and were trailing 2-3 with only minutes remaining.
The repercussions from a shock defeat can sometimes be very unexpected. In
1970 Spurs were knocked out of the Cup by Crystal
Palace in a 4th
Round Replay. Only a few weeks earlier
Spurs had comfortably completed a League double over their London rivals and
so must have assumed that progress to the next round of the Cup would be
reasonably straight-forward. However,
Palace achieved a scoreless draw at White
Hart Lane and a single goal was enough in the
replay. Manager Bill Nicholson was
frustrated with the disappointing performance of his players and for the next
game made wholesale changes. Dropped
from the team were Alan Gilzean, Joe Kinnear, Cyril Knowles, Steve Perryman
and Jimmy Greaves. Through time four
players managed to regain their places but the other, Spurs’ leading goal
scorer, Jimmy Greaves, never played for Spurs again. By mid-March he had been transferred to
West Ham United as part of the deal to bring Martin Peters to Tottenham. Those supporters present at Selhurst
Park that night in
January didn’t realise that they were witnessing the demise and swan-song of
Spurs’ greatest goal scorer – Jimmy Greaves’ last appearance in a white
Spurs’ shirt.
However, games worthy of more favourable mention, include
the 2nd Round tie back in 1901, when no-one could accuse Spurs of
having an easy ride in the FA Cup.
Having removed 1st Division Preston from the competition in
the previous round, they were drawn against Bury, the FA Cup holders. In the previous year’s Final Bury had
brushed aside Southampton, Spurs’ rivals
from the Southern League. Spurs had
home advantage but 1st Division Bury took the lead within two
minutes, before some of the record crowd of 20,250 had taken their places
inside White Hart Lane. Bury then dominated the game putting Spurs’
defence under constant pressure but after half an hour Spurs managed to score
– very much against the run of play.
From a rare foray into the Bury half, winger Tom Smith centred from
the right and Sandy Brown scored the goal that completely changed the
game. Spurs were filled with
confidence and in the second half were a different team. Brown scored a second goal and while Bury
recovered to fight back in an effort to retrieve the situation, it was Spurs,
the non-League side, who were playing the cultured football and deservedly
progressed to the next round.
In 1921, the next occasion that Spurs won the FA Cup,
their early progress was quite straight-forward. It had been expected that their 1st
Division rivals, Bradford City would provide stiffer opposition than Spurs
had experienced in the previous round but despite their defensive display
holding Spurs in the first half, they were swept aside after half-time as
Spurs scored four goals without reply.
Jimmy Seed was the star, scoring twice in two minutes early in the
second half. He controlled the game
for Spurs and completed his hat-trick with a shot from twenty five yards,
after winger, Jimmy Banks had scored the third. It was Jimmy Seed who received the rave
reviews in the newspaper reports for his performance and his goals.
In 1961 Spurs had a home 4th Round tie against
the side they had met at the same stage of the competition twelve months
earlier. Then Spurs had been drawn
away and were relieved to come away from Gresty
Road with a 2-2 draw after Crewe Alexandra had
twice pulled back from being a goal behind and only a magnificent save from
Bill Brown prevented Spurs becoming the victim of a Cup upset. Les Allen and Cliff Jones scored in the
first game and both maintained their scoring in the replay, being responsible
for eight of the thirteen goals that Spurs scored that night. At half-time Spurs were 10-1 ahead and
added three more in the second half to record their highest win, 13-2. Allen scored 5, Bobby Smith got 4, Jones
scored 3 and Tommy Harmer completed the scoring. It is said that Crewe left London Euston
from Platform 13 and arrived in Crewe at
Platform 2.
A year later, Crewe determined not to suffer another heavy
defeat gave a credible account of themselves before losing 5-1 to the Spurs
team that was well on the way to recording the first League and Cup ‘double’
of the twentieth century. Crewe
must have feared the worst when Terry Dyson put Spurs ahead after four
minutes but their goalkeeper, put in an outstanding performance. Smith scored Spurs’ second but three
minutes later Crewe pulled a goal
back. Dave Mackay scored a third
before the interval and second half goals from Jones and Allen completed
Spurs’ victory.
The 4th Round draw in 1962 took Spurs on the
long journey to Plymouth
who were in the 2nd Division. Spurs won 5-1 with goals from Terry Medwin,
John White, Jimmy Greaves (2) and Cliff Jones.
The 1967 4th Round game saw Portsmouth
as the visitors to Tottenham. In the 2nd
Division, Portsmouth
held Spurs through the first half in spite of early Spurs’ chances and
pressure. It was two goals inside a
minute from Alan Gilzean early in the second half that changed the game. Greaves added a third before Portsmouth
scored their consolation goal.
The 100th F.A.
Cup competition in 1981 saw Spurs with a home tie in the Fourth Round against
Third Division strugglers, Hull
City. Going into this game, Spurs were in a
period of impressive form with Archibald and Crooks taking the chances
created by a midfield including Hoddle, Ardiles and Galvin, so the result
should have been a formality. However,
Hull gave
Spurs a scare and the deadlock was only broken when substitute Garry Brooke,
who had replaced Ardiles, scored with seven minutes remaining. Brooke then forced another save from the Hull
keeper and set up Steve Archibald’s last minute goal. It was with relief that
Spurs progressed to the next round.
The following year Spurs faced 1st Division
opposition in a home game with Leeds United.
As in the previous round against Arsenal, it was a very tight game and
it was Garth Crooks who again provided the goal which took Spurs through to
the next round for their third game against 1st Division
opposition, Aston Villa.
The 1991 FA Cup triumph was achieved amid the financial
difficulties encountered by the club and the events off the pitch were a
major distraction. However, Paul
Gascoigne managed to single-handedly turn everyone’s thoughts back to the
football with his outstanding performances in the Cup games, in spite of
needing a hernia operation. It was
hoped that he could be nursed through to the end of the season and against
Oxford United he showed no ill effects from the problem by scoring twice to
give Spurs a comfortable passage to the next round. The other goals in a 4-2 win were scored by
Gary Mabbutt and Gary Lineker.
While Terry Venables masterminded Spurs’ FA Cup success in
1991, his first three seasons at White
Hart Lane were not so distinguished. Spurs were knocked out in the early rounds,
showing none of their traditional Cup winning characteristics, including a 4th
Round exit in 1987 to Port Vale. The 3rd
Division side, fifty two places below Spurs were two goals ahead after twenty
five minutes. When Spurs wakened up
after half-time they scored through central defender Neil Ruddock mid-way
through the half but it was too little too late and their humiliation was
complete – from finalists at Wembley the previous May to Cup fodder for lowly
opposition eight months later – the FA Cup is no respecter of anyone’s
reputation.
Spurs’ progress in January, 1979 was proving
problematic. They had the good fortune
to receive a home tie in both of the opening rounds but after being taken to
a replay by non-league Altrincham, Wrexham also managed to earn a draw at White
Hart Lane in the 4th Round. The replay win over Altrincham had been
Spurs’ first FA Cup success for six seasons, since defeating another
non-League side, Margate,
in 1973 which had been Bill Nicholson’s last FA Cup win as manager. Spurs and Wrexham shared six goals in the
first game with Glenn Hoddle, Chris Jones and an own goal accounting for
Spurs’ quota. Wrexham were deserving
of the replay and Spurs were grateful to a hat-trick in successive rounds
with centre forward Chris Jones providing the much needed goals to see Spurs
through by 3-2 after extra time.
A memorable game from recent times when Spurs’ FA Cup
success has been minimal was back in 2001.
Spurs were drawn away to fellow Premiership side Charlton who had won
the earlier league game by a solitary goal and had earned a scoreless draw at
Tottenham a few days earlier. Spurs
found themselves two goals behind early in the second half but staged a
remarkable comeback to score three goals inside six minutes to change the
game. Gary Doherty, Darren Anderton
and Oyvind Leonhardsen got the goals while a late strike from Sergei Rebrov
sealed the victory.
A defeat in the 4th Round of the FA Cup often
signals an early ‘end’ to the season.
This year Spurs are fortunate that they still have the UEFA Cup games
and the second leg of the Carling Cup to maintain interest in their season as
well as endeavouring to close the gap on those European places for next
year. However, defeat to Southend is
not a prospect that anyone at White Hart Lane would want to contemplate so
while the temptation will be there to rest important players ahead of next
week’s Carling Cup game, Southend must be given they respect they are
due. They showed in the Carling Cup
that they will compete for every ball so Spurs must be prepared to dig deep
and produce the required effort and application to keep alive the hope that
it will be another stepping stone on the road to Wembley.
COYS
Logan
Holmes
http://tottenham-spur.blogspot.com/
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