On This Day (26 March 1988) Drama And Chaos At Bootham Crescent As Smith Makes Unhappy Return
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After admitting his months-long pursuit of John Byrne was unlikely to come off before the transfer deadline, Denis Smith moved onto plan B. While a fee had been agreed with QPR and personal terms agreed with the player, Byrne’s ‘golden handshake’ to leave Loftus Road couldn’t be resolved, and Smith moved on in the transfer market.
And reinforcements were needed as Sunderland’s Third Division campaign looked to be coming off the rails a little. The lads had fallen to second place in the table, and with Walsall just three points behind, any further slips could see the team fall out of the automatic spots, albeit with a couple of games in hand.
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Earlier in the week, talks had taken place to bring 24-year-old Nick Pickering back to the club, but after meeting Smith at Roker Park the former Sunderland favourite turned down the move – paving the way for the arrival of 22-year-old Welsh international Colin Pascoe from Swansea.
Pascoe’s signing came very much out of the blue – hot on the heels of the loan arrival of Celtic’s Dougie Maguire, who’d greatly impressed in the reserves and was in line to start the fixture 38 years ago today at York City’s Bootham Crescent.
Colin knows I was after a First Division player, but I have worked hard over a period of time to sign him. He knows I couldn’t afford both as I have to find more cash if I decide to sign Doug Maguire on a permanent basis.
I now know what sort of cash Celtic want and I expect to sort something out next week.
But Viv Busby and chief coach Peter Whinham have wanted me to sign Colin for some time. They have seen him play recently, but I have only seen the lad once this season.
Smith was looking forward to his hotly anticipated return to North Yorkshire, to face his former club now managed by Bobby Saxton. And, with Pascoe set to be on the bench, hopes were raised.
However, as the sound of the final whistle approached, the large, angry Sunderland contingent continued to chant ‘What a load of rubbish’ – as they had done for most of the second half.
The sentiment was justified, with the lads 2-1 down to relegation threatened York. Sunderland’s goal had come from debutant Pascoe, who replaced fellow new boy Maguire, who’d turned in a poor display, at half time – a nice finish from a clever Gates backheel. But by that point Sunderland were two down, a first half goal from striker Ian Hellawell and a second from fellow front man Dale Banton.
However as much action had taken place off the field as on it. A 5000 strong Sunderland contingent had travelled to Bootham Crescent – York, understanding the potential pay-day, had made it an all ticket game and increased the prices by £1. Back in those days it was around a 30% increase in admission, so understandably supporters weren’t happy.
And, only minutes into the game, a section of the travelling supporters next to the home fans began tearing down temporary wiring separating the two factions, while some visitors spilled onto the pitch.
Some matchgoers climbed onto structures within the ground while others attempted to get to the press box, while other supporters clashed with police.
Order was restored after play had been stopped for five minutes, during which that group of supporters were moved to an empty stand elsewhere in the ground. But the edge was never too far away – and as the game entered injury time, feelings boiled over.
Over the past few weeks in our On This Day pieces, I’ve recounted Sunderland’s frustration with referees – the team were denied points at Preston and Wigan, and at home to Blackpool and Notts County by debatable, or downright incorrect, refereeing decisions.
This time, with seconds remaining, Gordon Armstrong equalised with a header, only for the referee Paul Danson – yes, the same referee that sent off Martin Scott, Paul Stewart and Peter Reid at Highbury less than a decade later – to spot some pushing and disallow the goal.
Then, what looked like a clear foul in the penalty box on Marco Gabbiadini deep in injury time was waved away.
That decision lit the blue touch paper, and the group of fans originally moved stormed the pitch – and Sunderland fans from across the ground joined in.
A crossbar was snapped, disruption lasted for more than 10 minutes as police eventually got in control of the situation, with Denis Smith and Bob Murray entering the playing field in an attempt to calm matters down.
A furious Smith said afterwards:
I could understand being disappointed by our defeat and our poor performance but there’s no excuse for this kind of behaviour.
However, come Monday, Sunderland chairman Bob Murray was laying the blame firmly at the door of York – with some justification.
We made representation to York City, the Football League and the police over the decision to make the match all-ticket for Sunderland supporters, to charge them an extra £1 and to cage them in.
We warned them there could be possible trouble because of their actions, which can only be described as profiteering, but they refused to take any notice.
Our supporters were disgusted with the price increase and far too many were penned in like cattle. The two decisions made by the referee at the end of the match did not help either.
A supporter from Penshaw who contacted the Sunderland Echo and told the paper’s Geoff Storey.
It was potentially a Heysel Stadium disaster all over again. Supporters only climbed over the fence in fear for their own safety.
We had tickets for admission to one of eight turnstiles, but only two were open. We were told Sunderland supporters would be admitted by ticket only, yet one gate was open for them to pay at the turnstiles.
Eventually when it became clear all the supporters would not get in before the kick-off, the police opened two big exit gates to let them in. There must have been several hundred who were admitted free.
The temporary fencing was a disgrace. If the flimsy improvements had been inspected, I am sure they would have been condemned. In my view York City were to blame for what happened.
And, come the Monday, Smith – who had also been subjected to abuse by fans – came out fighting; threatening to quit if he wasn’t allowed to do the job his way.
The fans pay their money and have a right to their say, but it is all non-productive. That is the trouble here, everybody thinks they can do better than the manager.
When I came here in the summer there was talk of the club going straight through the Third Division and into the Fourth.
We have no divine right to go up, but we are in pole position, despite a run of poor results.
I want to win every game, but if it means destroying what I believe in, then I will get out of the game altogether.
I asked when I came here to be judged on what happened over a season, and that is the way it should be.
There is only one way to play the game. There is no way I will change our tactics just to get a result. I will not resort to hoofing and chasing the ball – I will stick to what has got us to level on points with the top team with a game in hand.
As it was, it was the end of the Sunderland road for Maguire, who’d failed to impress, leading Smith to question his ability, and stating he’d made a mistake selecting him. Maguire returned to Celtic shortly after, and although signing for top flight Coventry the following summer, only made a handful of appearances before returning to Scotland playing more than 100 games for Queen of the South before retiring at 29.
Despite the York result making it just one win in seven for the lads, Sunderland remained in second place, thanks to Walsall also dropping points – but after such a build up of negativity, it makes what was to follow even more remarkable…