First Southend game???

[shrimperian]

SUFC v Rochdale December 1967.....first away game was at Gillingham either that same year or possibly the following year....I was only 5

 

[Firestorm]

Aldershot at home in 1967, a 1-1 draw. I share this honour with a regular poster on here from Thorpe Bay (cant remember his name at the moment). Those were the days of (hard) cushions in the East Stand and fans leaving their programmes on the seats after the game finished. They cost 6d at that time.

ME !!

Cushions on the pitch if things were not going well, IIRC it was a shilling to transfer gtom the paddock in the east to the seats above

 

[Floval Flyer]

I would hazard a guess of Halifax in the 1978/79 season?

Think Alan Moody, Ron Poutney, Dave Cusack etc were in the side back then.....

I also remember the 31K at Roots Hall when Liverpool (The European Champions) came to RH, we held then 0-0 !

WOW !!

 

[Firestorm]

As a slight aside, anyone else recall the Sunday games in the 70's (power strikes ?) when it the Sunday trading laws at the the time meant that you could not buy a ticket for the game (or buy admittance) but you could buy programmes , so the game was admittance by programme only (which effectively meant they gave you a programme at the turnstile ) York City rings a bell (off to Robins site to check)

Edit....

Yep 73.-74
Home to
Wrexham 1-1 Guthrie
Shrewsbury 2-0 Moody Brace
York 3-3 Brace 2 Elliot

and Charlton Away 1-2 Silvester

 

[yogi bear up the cagire]

My first game was back in 1959 (9 years old) and I think it was a friendly against the hammers as I do remember standing at the bottom of the west stand and looking up at John Bond - he was a big b.....r. My main reason though for the message is that I took my 3 year old grandson to his first football match in Nov last year - Blues v Accrington Stanley.... not a lot to boast about in his future life. But interestingly we were in our usual haunt, the Blues lounge, and one of the other regulars came across and announced that his first ever match was Southend v Accrington Stanley in 1957 , and he hadn't had a blighted life. So we had a nice photo taken with him, we won a signed match ball and all the team signed my grandsons programme. Hopefully now we have another little shrimper for the future; I say hopefully because his uncle and cousins are all Leeds season ticket holders.:sad: so I have my work cut out.

I was at that game as well! Don't know how new you are to looking on SZ but about two years ago I posted the inside of the match programme, showing club notes on John Bond, Noel Cantwell, Andy Smillie, Phil Woosnam, Noel Dyer, Malcolm Musgrove and an up and coming youth player called Bobby Moore......amongst others.
There was publicity for dancing at the Kursaal (by the Dome it's known) to Howard Baker and his band as well as offering badmington and winter indoor cricket (that must have been fun!). You could also catch Marty Wilde who was appearing at the Odeon for six days in, "Boy meets you."........those were the days!

 

[MR BLUE]

Boxing Day season 1946/7 at home to Watford a 5-0 win.The day before, yes in those days matches were played on Christmas Day we were beaten at Watford I seem to remember 4-0 Those were the day's Christmas Dinner then football in the afternoon. But the poor players did'nt have much of a Christmas.

 

[SantaShrimp]

Bit more up to date than most on here, our first match Exeter 0 - 0 draw last March, taken my 9 year old to 5 home matches since and never seen us lose! Maybe he's a luck charm :o) We'll be there Saturday, hope the run continues :o)

 

[Blue_Wes]

Millwall at home 95/96, 2-0 win with keith dublin & mark mcnally on the score sheet. Was a kid a quid promo in the south lower with half the form class going. Been a proud shrimper ever since, albeit I sit in the east these days.

I remember being on work experience for this game. I was immensely pleased that I'd outsmarted my school and fellow students (foolishly gaining work experience at places that might help shape their careers) by gaining work experience at Southend United. Free entrance to games, we were fortunate enough to have two in a row for the two weeks I was there, the 2-1 win against Portsmouth the week before being the other, Mcnally scored in that game as well.

It was cracking though as the Millwall game was the day before my 16th birthday, I had free entry to the game, a free programme, met all the players and a voucher for a free hot dog - what more could a very soon to be 16 year old ask for?

During my time there, I also got to tidy up the storeroom which had programmes going back years in it, of which I was allowed to take my pick, plus other memorabilia, remember those cards of the players you could collect for autographs? Yearbooks, and my personal favourite a hand painted caricature of Chris Powell, it was a dream for me. The only dampener on this was that Powell had left during my time there, although I did get to say goodbye to my favourite ever player as he was leaving the club, as an impressionable young teen, it was all I could do not to well up. I remember saying something like 'it's well gutting you're going but good luck' as I shook his hand, when in truth all I wanted to do was cling to his legs and cry out 'DON'T LEAVE, I WON'T LET YOU GO' ha.

then I saw him and Grids at the second DV final, and whilst having a picture taken, I relayed the story, and he claims to remember, such a top bloke. Sorry I went a bit of topic.

My first game was three years earlier at home to Forest when Crossley had his leg broken, Otto had a very rough introduction to Roots Hall after being smashed early doors by England legend Stuart Pearce (who later netted a pen) and Sussex scored a very dubious opener. I was in the North Bank and I could never have imagined how much fun it was, me and my friend egging each other on to try and start the chants we found so amazing. I had been nagging my step Dad to let me go, ever since seeing Collymore tear Millwall (I think) apart on Telly, and in the end gave up, got a paper round and took myself.

My first away game was the following season (or maybe the one after) when we lost 4-2 at Portsmouth, I went on my own having struggled to find friends at school who could understand my new found obsession. Luckily later that year I managed to meet some people were frequented away games and got to go more regularly, we still sit together now as Season Ticket holders in the West. I remember Thommo scoring twice on what I think was his debut, and Tilly finding the top corner of our own net.

Happy days - cracking thread, I love a bit of nostalgia!

 

[Angell Delight]

I was 6 or 7 when my Dad took me. First home game was Bolton, we won 2-0 on the first day of the season (1987/88 I think?).

First away game was Aldershot early in the 1989/90 promotion season. We won 5-0 with two cracking own goals too, one of them a bullet header from one Steve Wignall!! :smile:

 

[Up the Shrimpers]

Boxing Day season 1946/7 at home to Watford a 5-0 win.The day before, yes in those days matches were played on Christmas Day we were beaten at Watford I seem to remember 4-0 Those were the day's Christmas Dinner then football in the afternoon. But the poor players did'nt have much of a Christmas.

Just checked SUFC Database and the crowd was 15,254 at your first ever match, the crowd the previous day at Watford was only 6,849. I think the last Christmas Day games were in the the late 1950's.
Did you go to many away games in the 40's or 50's?

 

[Up the Shrimpers]

Home to Liverpool in January 79.

Freezing cold, seem to remember being up a flood light so I could get a view of game. 0-0, don't remeber much more other than the snow and coloured ball and being in awe of seeing such a great team in action![/QUOTE]

Yeah, and Liverpool were not too shabby either.

 

[MR BLUE]

Just checked SUFC Database and the crowd was 15,254 at your first ever match, the crowd the previous day at Watford was only 6,849. I think the last Christmas Day games were in the the late 1950's.
Did you go to many away games in the 40's or 50's?

Thanks for the info I now wonder if I saw much of the game I did'nt think they could squeeze 15,000 in the old Greyhound Stadium Too young in the 40's. But I went to many in the 50's

 

[shrimp in orbit]

My first game was away to Coventry in 1962. It was early in Jimmy Hill's career there as manager. It was amazing - we were 3-1 down, then scored three to win 4-3, with a last minute goal from Mike Beesley, who got a hat trick. My first home game soon after wasn't so good - lost 3-2 to Colchester.

 

[Rob Noxious]

On a sunny spring Friday in 1968, my brothers did take me onto the South Bank to see our game v Workington. I was rather spoilt that evening. We won 7-0 and I've had to scale down my expectations ever since.

 

[silentshrimper]

1996 I think, home to norwich, drew 1-1 and they got a last minute penalty, sat in the south upper. It was pretty much that day that I realised I might need glasses, as I could hardly see a thing.

 

[Daventry Blue]

Away to Leicester in the FA Cup was mine. Southend lost 2-0 and i think it was January 97.

I only went due to family connections and really enjoyed it so went to quite a few more over the years that were close to home in the Midlands, and the odd home game on trips to visit family.

Hadn't been for a few years as busy following my local team. However went again to the Northampton away game and will be making the effort to start going more regularly again.

 

[Crowstone Crevette]

Thanks for the post...but memories broken by rob 1920 and lordlumpinton brilliant - is was there!

i remeber travelling to layer road to see the blues (playing in yellow) win late on with a break away morris goal

but my first memory is the easter '73 double. it was a double programme - with two team sheets (identical for sufc) - and i still have! cant see double match progs being a big option today.

although that was my first memoarble match/s i know and remember being carried through the trunstiles at the top of the old south bank...

happy days at The Hall

 

[AdamTheShrimper]

My earliest memory is a game in the late 90's, maybe 1997? I remember that mark stimson was playing and scott forbes came on as a sub, I have no idea what the score was but everyone booed at the final whistle.

 

[Up the Shrimpers]

My earliest memory is a game in the late 90's, maybe 1997? I remember that mark stimson was playing and scott forbes came on as a sub, I have no idea what the score was but everyone booed at the final whistle.

I don't think Stimson & Forbes ever played in the same team. I think Stimson had left by the time we had Forbes. Need to check the good old SUFC Database for more details.

 

[AdamTheShrimper]

I don't think Stimson & Forbes ever played in the same team. I think Stimson had left by the time we had Forbes. Need to check the good old SUFC Database for more details.

Probably thinking of two completely different games, I was young!