I've just twigged that today is the 50th anniversary of my first visit to the Vic! I went along with some mates from primary school who were already veterans of at least two games, they said I should go too cos it was brilliant. We got the train from Carpenders Park To Bushey & Oxhey, walked across Watford Fields, up to Cardiff Road and up past the allotments. Through the turnstiles into the Rookery and watched the Hornets draw 2-2 with Mansfield (?) If I could get into the loft I could get my programmes out and tell you the team, but I can't. I think Pat Jennings may have played, and Ron Saunders at centre forward, but this is very hazy now. just a bunch of ten year olds spending their pocket money. Different world now! Ah, jumpers for goalposts.....
Congratulations Gordon. The world is very different now. Have you seen pictures of Mansfield town's current CEO?
It certainly is hazy GG - we won that match 3-1 thanks to 2 goals from Jimmy McAnearney & 1 from Ron Saunders (you got that bit right ) Team: Frank George, Bobby Bell - Duncan Welbourne, George Catleugh - Terry Mancini - Ken Nicholas, George Harris - Jimmy McAnearney - Ron Saunders - Ken Oliver - Brian Owen.
Well done GG. Once you have the bug it doesn't leave. Pat Jennings is someone that my to be wife remembers well from the days that she joined me on the Rookery terrace. "The lad really should have had his ears pinned back" was her comment before long hair became fashionable. When I moved here my programmes had to go which was a shame, as I had some single sheet ones that had been duplicated for reserve games. I doubt that many survived.
Congrats, thought you might be playing cricket from the title or something! Do you remember how much it was to get in?
Congratulations GG. - I've still got 3 years to go to my half century. There are a lot of us here around the same age group - then we didn't know each other (?) but now, thanks to the internet, we do - great memories. My first game was a dour 1-0 win over Southend but I was hooked immediately. Even now when I go back to the Vic (not as often as I would like) I always walk to the ground - if possible along the same streets as then.
big conrats to gg my 1st was 66 and i think we beat swindon 2 nil . i remember duncan w and brian o (was he jim b grandson) i was 13 so yes a lot of us on here are about the same age
Quite desperate times in my first season. We had to apply for re-election and I remember thinking that something I had just found to be so exciting could be taken away from me. I believe the first game was against Leyton Orient that we won 2-0, but it didn't get much better than that. Last game of the season was against Swindon and 3,658 fans turned up to watch us lose again 1-2. Of course you realise that I was very young. The cost of a programme was 3d and we were still "The Blues".
Mine was 0-0 v Tranmere in 1992. Next game was the infamous Bristol City game when they had 3 sent off and we got 5 goals. Well done for the 50 years!
I'm fairly sure my first game at Watford was 50 years ago. I cannot remember the opposition but do remember sitting in the old main stand when a drunk guy threw a bottle onto the pitch from the back of the stand. To a youngish boy his arrest by a couple of burly coppers was fascinating. Anyone else recall this incident?
I have got about 5 years to dig out the programme of my first match - will let you know in due course. I was older than GG. Congrats on this milestone.
Congratulations GG - I missed my Golden Anniversary - it was on 18th April this year - we beat Reading 1-0 but I cannot remember who scored
My first game was a 1-0 win against Aldershot in March 78, when I was 5. jerzeypie's first was the 1-0 win against Bristol City on Boxing Day 1998, a month before his 3rd birthday.
