OK, really random... but I'm going for
Jonny Hunt's goal in a 2-1 defeat to promotion-bound
Crystal Palace at Roots Hall on 6th April 1994.
I remember it being an almost surreal evening as I approached the game. Carlton TV were either covering the game live or providing extended highlights, and so the game was surrounded by ultra-bright lights and loads of TV cameras.
In a crowd of nigh-on 10,000, Palace had brought
loads - they filled the South Stand and half the East - well over 2,500, I reckon - and well they might. With Bright and Armstrong up front, manager Alan Smith was taking the Eagles back up to the top flight.
Sure enough, the head-banded Eric Young put Palace 1-0 up in an evenly fought first half from a corner in front of the North Bank. Palace went delirious, Alan Smith danced on the pitch, and I felt miserable.
However, after half time, the Blues came out buzzing... and 5 minutes after the restart, we had a sweeping move up the pitch. The ball broke to Jonny Hunt on the edge of the area, near the East stand, and he lashed it into the top corner in front of the North Bank.
The North Bank erupted. We had been tightly packed in there anyway, but with that goal - a true Roy of the Rovers net-busting larrup, as I recall it - we went bananas. We were standing cheek by jowl, we surged forward as the ball went in the net, and I was screaming myself hoarse.
Suddenly, I became aware that the periphery of my vision had gone black, and the bit in the middle - that I could see - was swimming. This didn't seem right... what was going on? Oh, I thought, after a couple of seconds of trying to work it out...
I'm bloomin' well fainting!
My knees buckled, although luckily my mate Will - all 6'5" of him - was alongside me on the terrace. I grabbed on to him, trying to work out what was going on and how to fix it, when it dawned on me.
With all the surging, all the screaming, all the leaping up and down... I had forgotten to breathe in well over a minute!
I took in a lungful, whereupon my eyesight was restored and my knees stopped buckling. To be honest, it didn't really matter that Armstrong later scored Palace's winner... after that goal, and that celebration, I knew I'd had my money's-worth that evening.
Only one other goal has come close, and that was Freddy's goal at the Millennium Stadium. Plenty cite Juppy's goal as their "moment" from the play-off final, but for me, it's Freddy's goal. In a similar vein to the Jonny Hunt goal, when it went in, I actually had a "white out". I couldn't see for about 5 seconds. Instead, all I could do was feel... perceive. And all I felt was simply:
<span style='font-size:17pt;line-height:100%'>
"YES!"</span>
It is slightly scary when it happens, but truly amazing and awe-inspiring when it does. I've had two such occurrences in 15 years, which ain't bad going.
But I'll leave someone else to claim Freddy's play-off goal - my all-time favourite SUFC goal is Jonny Hunt's against Palace.
Matt
