Who remembers League Division 4?

THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK · Oct 7, 2019

Rob Noxious said:
Workington were the team who we played in the first game I remember at Roots Hall on a sunny Friday evening in the spring of '68. I got a bit spoilt that night as we won 7-0.

I was there as well Rob. A big crowd as well.

Ex-Member1 · Oct 7, 2019

Me as well, Eddie Clayton scored with a very long range header as I recall.

RobM · Oct 8, 2019

Yes, I was there too - also recall beating Bradford PA 5-0 too.

Rob Noxious · Oct 8, 2019

RobM said:
Yes, I was there too - also recall beating Bradford PA 5-0 too.

I once played for a team with PA in its name - though it didn't stand for Park Avenue.

Up the Shrimpers · Oct 8, 2019

stewart said:
Yes closest we came to promotion from div 3 south was 1953 , only 2 teams were promoted back then , southend finished 3rd beaten by 1 point for promotion, and who pipped us yeah it was borient .

Think you are talking about 1949/50 season? We finished 3rd but it was Northampton who were second. Both teams had 51 points but they went up on goal average. We actually had a better goal difference than Northampton.

ozzie · Oct 8, 2019

was at that 7-0 WTFC game as well,also our 6-1 v Exeter,think that was Billy Bests first hat-trick for us

LBBlue · Oct 8, 2019

THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK said:
I'm sure we played Workington in the snow at RH. Wouldn't be allowed nowadays. Think it was in December. They had red shirts and white shorts.

I think you may be thinking of this

Nov 29 1969 - a 2-2 draw Best and Clayton. Only 2,887 turned up -we weren't doing well. I think this game may have been John McKinven's last appearance for us as he struggled to get back after his broken leg.

LBBlue · Oct 8, 2019

A few more from the snow:

RobM · Oct 8, 2019

LBBlue said:
A few more from the snow:

View attachment 9317

View attachment 9318

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View attachment 9320

Dual? Duel!

LBBlue · Oct 8, 2019

RobM said:
Dual? Duel!

Well we still haven’t got the typos in the programme eliminated 50 years on .....

Chairman Trigg · Oct 8, 2019

LBBlue said:
I think you may be thinking of this

View attachment 9316

Nov 29 1969 - a 2-2 draw Best and Clayton. Only 2,887 turned up -we weren't doing well. I think this game may have been John McKinven's last appearance for us as he struggled to get back after his broken leg.

Remember this game well as the gate was by far the lowest I had seen at the Hall. They just cleared the lines and got on with game.... How many of us as kids played on frozen rock hard pitches without a care in the world...eeeh we were woz hard back then

blues exile · Oct 8, 2019

Chairman Trigg said:
Remember this game well as the gate was by far the lowest I had seen at the Hall. They just cleared the lines and got on with game.... How many of us as kids played on frozen rock hard pitches without a care in the world...eeeh we were woz hard back then

What a game for McKinven making his first full appearance since his broken leg. It wouldn't happen nowadays, the game would have been called off and surely no manager would ever put a player in that position either. Shame it was his last game, he deserved to have a proper send off after nearly a decade of appearances.

ozzie · Oct 8, 2019

was at that game as well.The South bank was closed because of snow,was in the West side,think that was Bill Garners first game for us or at least his first home game for us.???

THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK · Oct 8, 2019

LBBlue said:
I think you may be thinking of this

View attachment 9316

Nov 29 1969 - a 2-2 draw Best and Clayton. Only 2,887 turned up -we weren't doing well. I think this game may have been John McKinven's last appearance for us as he struggled to get back after his broken leg.

Similar scenes, but we were in the all blue kit. Looking it up it was the 1-1 draw with Workington on the 4th Dec 1970. There was a lot more snow about in those days. A lot of fog as well in the autumn, which you rarely see now.

LBBlue · Oct 8, 2019

ozzie said:
was at that game as well.The South bank was closed because of snow,was in the West side,think that was Bill Garners first game for us or at least his first home game for us.???

Yep Bill's first home game -he scored his first goals on Boxing Day against Lincoln when Phil O'Connor and Paul Vickery played because of a sickness bug.

LBBlue · Oct 8, 2019

blues exile said:
What a game for McKinven making his first full appearance since his broken leg. It wouldn't happen nowadays, the game would have been called off and surely no manager would ever put a player in that position either. Shame it was his last game, he deserved to have a proper send off after nearly a decade of appearances.

According to Peter Mason's book he had played at Wrexham in a 4-0 defeat on October 4th and came on as sub at Gillingham in the cup replay.

He joined us in 1960, when he was 19, played just over 300 games scoring 66 goals. A real club legend.

He left for Cambridge United and played 18 times in 1970/71 in their first season in the League.

Daily Mirror. London. 8 October 1968. p. 31. Southend left winger John McKinven, the victim of a late tackle, was carried off with a fractured leg in the eighth minute. Graham Taylor playing for Lincoln -the only way he could stop him..

John passed away 5 years ago aged 73.

LBBlue · Oct 8, 2019

THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK said:
Similar scenes, but we were in the all blue kit. Looking it up it was the 1-1 draw with Workington on the 4th Dec 1970. There was a lot more snow about in those days. A lot of fog as well in the autumn, which you rarely see now.

There's no match photos in the 70/71 programmes. Think I must have been in Southampton at the time as I can't recall the game at all.

blues exile · Oct 8, 2019

LBBlue said:
According to Peter Mason's book he had played at Wrexham in a 4-0 defeat on October 4th and came on as sub at Gillingham in the cup replay.

He joined us in 1960, when he was 19, played just over 300 games scoring 66 goals. A real club legend.

He left for Cambridge United and played 18 times in 1970/71 in their first season in the League.

Daily Mirror. London. 8 October 1968. p. 31. Southend left winger John McKinven, the victim of a late tackle, was carried off with a fractured leg in the eighth minute. Graham Taylor playing for Lincoln -the only way he could stop him..

John passed away 5 years ago aged 73.

Always a pleasure to watch, one of the reasons I became a Blues supporter.

THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK · Oct 8, 2019

LBBlue said:
There's no match photos in the 70/71 programmes. Think I must have been in Southampton at the time as I can't recall the game at all.

Found this. Someone posted on twitter saying it's from the 1970 game.

Chairman Trigg · Oct 8, 2019

Talking about that gate of 2800 being by far the lowest gate I had seen up to that date ,reminded me of a Essex Senior Cup game against Chelmsford with a similar gate around that time.Shows how times have changed and that competition doesn't even figure in today's supporters minds.Also have a memory of carrying Terry Johnson on our shoulders celebrating winning the same trophy must have been early 70s?