This article on The Mag inspired me… | OneFootball

I read this superb article on The Mag on Friday, ‘Years that meant a lot to me as a Newcastle United fan – Taking you back to 1984’,  Bazoox often hits the mark with his articles and this one was no different.

Judging by the comments section, there were others that shared my sentiment.

The 1983/84 season for Newcastle United fans was very special.

No, we didn’t win a trophy, in fact our attempts at progressing in both cup competitions were extinguished at the first hurdle, exiting the Milk Cup to Third Division Oxford United in the second round and First Division Liverpool in the third round of the FA Cup, on an emotional evening at Anfield.

What Newcastle United achieved that season was a third-place finish in the old Second Division. This was before the introduction of the play-off system, so that coveted third place meant automatic promotion to the top flight.

Promotion was ultimately achieved with a 2-2 draw at Leeds Road, Huddersfield on Monday 7 May 1984. Typical Newcastle, we had to fight back from two goals down to secure that point, to put us back in the big time after an absence of six years.

After beating Leeds at Elland Road in the season’s curtain raiser thanks to a John Anderson strike, we then suffered defeats at home to Shrewsbury and away at Ayresome Park. By early September, whilst handily placed in seventh, we were somewhat off the early pacesetters, Sheffield Wednesday and Manchester City.

Our season more than perked up during October and into early November. Six successive wins had propelled us into second place after David Mills and Kenny Wharton’s late, late show gave us a dramatic victory against Malcolm McDonald’s Fulham on bonfire night. In between, we had won in South Wales twice in the space of three days, first in the hastily rearranged Sunday fixture at the Vetch Field after heavy rain had postponed the game the previous day, then at Ninian Park in midweek. At the time, those back-to-back wins so far from home felt really significant, but we’d also beaten Charlton Athletic in horrible conditions in front of the MOTD cameras, King Kev scoring twice, and Manchester City had been swept aside 5-0 on the night the clocks went back, Peter Beardsley scoring a fabulous hat-trick with Kevin Keegan and Chris Waddle also on the scoresheet.

There’s no doubt we have seen some brilliant players at Gallowgate over the years, some of our current crop of players are no exception, but that trio of Keegan, Waddle and Beardsley take some beating. With King Kev scoring 27 goals that season, this trio racked up 65 goals between them as Newcastle United secured promotion.

After starting his professional career with Carlisle United, Beardsley plied his trade with Vancouver Whitecaps and after a circuitous journey that briefly took him to Old Trafford, he eventually signed for Newcastle United in September 1983 for £150,000. Beardsley would score many memorable goals in that promotion season but the one he got where he danced through Portsmouth’s defence in the 4-1 win at Fratton Park in February 1984 is the one that stands out for me.

Waddle had arrived in 1980 for a fee of £1,000 from Tow Law Town. The former sausage factory worker scored 52 goals for Newcastle United in 191 appearances, before leaving for the bright lights of London in a move that took him to White Hart Lane in the summer of 1985. During that 1983/84 promotion campaign, Waddler found the net on 18 occasions.

After that brilliant run of form, in the space of a week in mid-November, Newcastle United were brought crashing down to earth. On the 12th, we were hammered 4-0 at Stamford Bridge by a rampant Chelsea and then lost to league leaders Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough the following week, conceding another four goals, although we did manage to get on the score sheet twice in a 4-2 reverse. At a time when English football was in the doldrums, those two matches attracted over 70,000 spectators. I didn’t get to Hillsborough that season but those I know who did, commented so presciently about the claustrophobic and downright scary tunnel at the Leppings Lane End.

On Boxing Day, we sat third in the table following a 1-1 draw against Blackburn Rovers, but then conspired to lose 3-1 at Brunton Park, before ending the year with a win at Oldham Athletic on New Year’s Eve thanks to two early strikes from King Kev.

After the FA Cup defeat in January at Anfield, when Keegan decided to hang up his boots at the end of the season, promotion back to the top flight became the priority.

On 18 February 1984, I attended my first Newcastle United away match at Maine Road, Manchester along with 41,766 other hardy souls. What an experience for a fifteen-year-old, both on and off the pitch! That 2-1 win, courtesy of goals from Keegan and Beardsley, was vital because it put us level on points with Man City who were now up to third in the table. Defeat would have taken the wind out of our sails and might have signaled the end of our assault on the top three.

Buoyed by the win in Manchester, an eight-match unbeaten run followed, including a 1-1 draw at home to Chelsea who went top of the table. Terry McDermott had returned to St James’ Park to reacquaint himself with his old mate King Kev and he contributed the vital equaliser that afternoon, as well as a fabulous strike in the 3-1 home win over Middlesbrough the following week.

A crowd of 31,222 saw us do the double over Leeds United in a 1-0 win at Gallowgate, the same evening the Milk Cup final replay between Liverpool and Everton at Maine Road was beamed live across the nation. What fantastic support as crowds in our promotion run in rarely dipped below the 30,000 mark.

On 14 April, a late strike at the Leazes End by Gary Shelton gave Sheffield Wednesday all three points as they struck a decisive blow in the race for promotion. Had we won that day, Newcastle United would have been joint top, with only goal difference separating us from the side from South Yorkshire. As it was, Wednesday were now six points clear of us, although we did have a four point advantage over fourth placed Manchester City.

John Trewick’s late equaliser gained a crucial point on Good Friday at Ewood Park, another away match I attended where I nearly starved to death because my Catholic guilt wouldn’t allow me anywhere near the hotdogs and burgers on offer in the Darwen End.

This set us up for a massive encounter with Carlisle United on Easter Monday at St James Park. Two goals to the good in glorious bank holiday sunshine, we conceded a penalty early in the second half against the Cumbrians who were very much dominating possession at the time and were themselves no slouches, having beaten us at their place in December and still with an outside chance of securing that third automatic promotion place. At this point in the game, it had the potential to go horribly wrong but Kevin Carr saved the spot kick, Waddle then instantly carried the ball down the right flank and crossed for Keegan to head in our third. Cue pandemonium in the Gallowgate corner and all around the stadium, save for the little enclave in the corner of the Leazes, where the Carlisle fans were congregated. The game ended 5-1 and I can still recall the headline in the Evening Chronicle, ‘United are Up, Say City’ who had contrived to lose 3-2 at home to Huddersfield.

What happened next will not be lost on followers of Newcastle United, because in our following match, we suffered a 1-0 reverse at bottom of the table Cambridge United.

Thankfully, Manchester City lost again (at the Baseball Ground against Derby County) so our seven-point lead over them remained intact. The defeat at the Abbey Stadium represented a lost opportunity to all but seal promotion.

We didn’t have to wait very long though. Man City lost again, this time on Friday 4 May at home to Chelsea who were slugging it out with Sheffield Wednesday for the title. Less than 24 hours later, a 4-0 win over Derby County where the TV gantry at the Leazes End was invaded by teenagers wearing Benetton rugby shirts, Pringle jumpers and bleached jeans, saw Newcastle United back in the big time, barring a mathematical miracle.

The point at Huddersfield made matters certain and we finished the season with a real flourish, beating Brighton and Hove Albion in fabulous style; how fitting it was that Keegan, Waddle and Beardsley each scored in the 3-1 win.

In his article, Bazoox perfectly captured the mood at the time, also drawing on the politics and music scene from 1984, as well as what was happening on the pitch.

For me, that season epitomises why supporting Newcastle United is such a privilege. We haven’t won a trophy since the year of my birth and whilst that might matter, in some ways it doesn’t. We could have won the European Cup that season but I’m pretty sure the feelings and the memories would have been no different.