Newcastle United and Anarchy in the UK – Back to the 1970s | OneFootball

I have had a nostalgic look back at the punk rock/new wave era yesterday, trying to match a few of the songs up with some of my football memories from the mid to late 1970s.

‘Anarchy in the UK’ was the Sex Pistols breakthrough hit in 1976. There was also nearly anarchy in the Gallowgate when Gordon Lee sold Supermac to Arsenal.

Chants of “Sack the Board” and “Westwood must Go” regularly reverberated around St James’ Park in the 1976/77 season, but Newcastle United surprisingly finished 5th in the old First Division against all the odds and secured a place in the UEFA Cup.

‘Teenage Kicks’ by the Undertones was the archetypal and treasured anthem for adolescents, released in 1978, after a dismal season for the Toon had ended in abject humiliation and relegation.

The dulcet tones of Feargal Sharkey helped me to forget about football for a little while, whilst my attention temporarily switched to girls.

That phase quickly passed though and by now us young pups had a new hero in the great Peter Withe.

When Jimmy Pursey of Sham 69 belched out the lyrics of ‘If the Kids are United’, this record made a profound impact on me at the time, which has prevailed throughout my adult life.

In the same year of 1978, the Jam’s ‘Down in the Tubestation’ hit the charts. It also coincided with my first disturbing experience outside an away ground (Elland Road with my Da, after I had been representing North Tyneside against Leeds youth).

By the time of the ‘Winter of Discontent’ the Pistols had broken up, although old stalwarts like the Damned, the Ramones and the Stranglers kept me going into Leazes Arcade for vinyl.

I was also now a young member of the NSAB (the older lads were commonly referred to as the Crew and there was undoubtedly a Fish Quay connection in there).

St James’ Park was our fortnightly fix and lifelong friendships were forged on the terraces with other lads from different areas. At away games the NME was a formidable force to be reckoned with 45 years ago, and even now Grandads are still proud of their decade spanning association.

By the time Thatcher was swept into Downing Street the music scene was changing.

There were some decent new bands and good songs from the likes of the Skids, Generation X and the Members (‘Sound of the Suburbs’ was a particular favourite of my Shields pals and me).

Things weren’t just depressing from a political point of view though, Newcastle United finding it hard to adjust to the Second Division. Having Bill McGarry as manager didn’t help one bit, though there was the silver lining of having the Withe/Shoulder partnership up front.

By the 1979/80 season the Toon seemed to be getting on the right track. We still had the canny capabilities of Tommy Cassidy, Terry Hibbitt and Zico Martin to provide the bullets for our ‘Little and Large’ combo up top.

After New Year’s Day we were top of the division following a convincing 3-1 home win against Sunderland.

The Police, the Tourists and the unmistakable Pretenders were all enjoying chart success in the UK.

It then all went downhill for McGarry’s Newcastle and our demise also coincided with the definitive demise of punk (if the truth be known, it had been fizzling out since ’78).

Newcastle United fell away in 1980 and it was the mackems who eventually were promoted.

Sid Vicious had already been dead a year and Ska (which had originally been Blue Beat) was making a comeback.

A new decade needed a new sound but it would be another two years before Newcastle United would be reborn and have a new tune to dance to.