September 23 – The Reds Score a Hat-full
THESE days whenever a big Premier League club is paired with a League 2 minnow in an early round of one of the cups, the manager of said Premier League team will spout off about the match not being a foregone conclusion, and that their lowly opponents must still be treated with respect.
“They’re a good side,” the manager will say, “It won’t be a walk in the park, that’s for sure.”
They say all this, despite everyone else wondering just how many the top strikers will stick past the hapless ‘keeper in the Smallfry FC goal, because they are covering their own backs just in case something goes wrong, and the plucky little semi-pros pull off a draw or even a win.
We are getting used to this happening now, I’m thinking of Manchester United in particular and certain embarrassments they’ve endured at the hands of the likes of Exeter, Burton Albion and so on.
There was a time, a simpler time, when these ‘sure things’ were exactly that. A big day out for the part-timers to a proper stadium, and little more than a training match for the big boys, in which they would often net a good few goals.
It was on this day in 1986 that this happened and Liverpool get to double figures against a very pre-Mohammed Al Fayed Fulham side.
To set the scene, it is the second round of the League Cup, and third division Fulham, managed by Ray Lewington, were drawn against the mighty reds.
To use a classic football cliche, it was men against boys as the scousers tore their London opponents to shreds. The Cottagers manfully rallied in the second leg at Craven Cottage, managing to only lose 2-3 but the result still stands as a League Cup record for the biggest defeat.
Despite their utter dominance of this tie, Liverpool did not go on to lift the trophy as they eventually lost 2-1 to Arsenal in the final. Oh well, can’t win ‘em all.
That’s all for now folks, but log on tomorrow to see which massive Spanish club that isn’t Real Madrid were moving into a shiny new home back in the fifties.
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September 23 - Blue Moon | On This Football Day on September 23rd, 2008
[...] here for a little round-up of the game, and check this one time to see what else happened on this day in football history. SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: “September [...]