Robert Exley
Over the summer, while on the other side of the Atlantic, the first ever Pop Music Festival took place at Monterey in California, after much protesting Arsenal decided to reintroduce the white sleeves to their shirts, with high hopes that it would bring back an Arsenal return to their thirties style prominence, as enjoyed under Herbert Chapman. Arsenal’s away kit meanwhile changed to a dark navy blue with white shorts. Bertie Mee’s second season in charge of Arsenal kicked off on the last day of July 1967, again with the regular behind closed doors friendly with Watford at Arsenal’s London Colney training ground, where the Gunners run out 4-0 winners. Seven days on, the first game in front of an audience had been the regular visit of Rangers in early August, lining up for the Gers that day would be none other than future Man United boss Alex Ferguson.
Events off the pitch however put the long term future of the fixture in doubt, as a running battle occurred on the North Bank between Rangers and Arsenal fans, involving glass bottles thrown. Some observers claimed there was more to it, as the areas surrounding Highbury by this point contained a lot of first and second generation Irish and with the Gers longstanding links with Protestantism, both sets of fans had spent much of the day provoking trouble. One upshot however was that it would be another thirty years before Rangers would visit Highbury again and following the game, Arsenal banned the sale of all bottled and canned beer and beverages in the ground.
In the match day programme for the next home game, blame was levelled at the Rangers fans, stating: ‘Incidents such as the one which occurred on the North Terrace when we played Rangers cannot be tolerated and unless strong action is taken the terraces of football grounds will be occupied only by thugs; decent people will stay away. Although on this occasion the trouble was caused by a group of Rangers’ supporters there was enough evidence from last season for us to know that it could happen again’. In the match itself, Arsenal enjoyed a comprehensive 3-0 win, courtesy of goals from George Johnston and two from Jon Sammels. The following Wednesday saw another home friendly, with a fixture against a Maccabi Select XI from Israel. In front of a crowd of just 6,335, Arsenal ran out 1-0 winners, with another from George Johnston.
On the last Saturday before the start of the 1967/68 League season, as Pat Jennings would score for Spurs from a drop kick at Old Trafford in the Charity Shield, Arsenal headed to Germany to face Hertha Berlin. George Johnston’s third goal in as many games gave the Gunners a first half lead, however with two second half goals for the Germans Arsenal would crash to a 1-2 defeat. Forty eight hours on, the Marine Offences Act came into effect, meaning that Pirate Radio stations such as North Sea based Radio London, were forced off air.
The following Saturday, Arsenal’s league season kicked off with a visit from Stoke City on the penultimate Saturday of August 1967. In front of a crowd of 27,144, goals for George Graham and Jon Sammels earned the Gunners a 2-0 win. Three days on, Arsenal headed to Anfield to face a Liverpool side whose opening game with Man City ended in a goalless draw. An attendance of 52,033 turned out for the game. A Liverpool Echo write up of the game stated: ‘Arsenal Stun Kop – but oh, how they need a marksman’. That however is exactly what Liverpool had in their favour. Two Roger Hunt goals inflicted a 0-2 defeat on Arsenal.
The following Saturday, Arsenal headed to the City Ground to face Nottingham Forest. The Gunners crashed to a 0-2 defeat as a result of two goals from Alan Hinton. Forty eight hours on, Arsenal would play Liverpool again back at Highbury, on the late August Bank Holiday Monday. It would be the fourth time in four months that the two sides would meet in the League and just forty eight hours prior, Liverpool enjoyed a thumping 6-0 win over Newcastle at Anfield. An attendance of 33,420 would turn out for the occasion. An own goal from Tony Hateley (father of eighties AC Milan and England star Mark) gave Arsenal a first half lead. In the second half, Jon Sammels doubled Arsenal’s lead.
Also, 1967/68 would be the first season in which substitutions would be permitted for tactical reasons rather than for injuries, as had been the case for the previous two seasons. The first such occurrence for an Arsenal player occurred in this match, with George Johnston coming on for John Radford. With no further scoring, Arsenal ran out 2-0 winners over Liverpool. Arsenal ended August 1967 in ninth place and three points behind league leaders Spurs, who had won three and drew one of their first four games. September 1967 started with a visit to Highbury from Coventry City. The Sky Blues were promoted to the old First Division for the first time the season prior under the management of former PFA Chairman and prime mover behind the abolition of the maximum wage – Jimmy Hill.
After his success in abolishing the maximum wage in 1961, Hill quit playing and was no longer involved with the PFA. He was then appointed boss of Coventry City and in six seasons took them up from the third tier to the top flight. Just ahead of the 1967/68 season however, Hill decided to quit Coventry rather than try his luck in the top flight. Jimmy’s attentions had been drawn to the presentation of Football on television and first became the technical adviser to the BBC’s thrice weekly football based drama series ‘United’. The show was unpopular with the viewers as it was not deemed a realistic enough portrayal of the game for traditional male football fans, while also being too male in its subject matter for female soap viewers.
In 1967, it was axed by the BBC and all 147 episodes of the show were wiped. Within a few months after its axing, Hill was then appointed as Head of Sport at David Frost’s fledgling ITV franchise London Weekend Television, where along with commentator Brian Moore he helped develop their successful regional football highlights show ‘The Big Match’ – their answer to the BBC’s ‘Match of the Day’. On Hill’s exit from Highfield Road, former Man United and West Ham full back Noel Cantwell took over the reins. The Sky Blues however had failed to win any of their first four fixtures in the top flight – drawing two and losing two and stood second from bottom of the table.
Highlights of the game were shown on ATV London’s ‘Star Soccer’. Coventry took a first half lead with a goal from Bobby Gould. With twelve minutes to go, George Graham equalised for Arsenal. No further scoring meant that the game ended in a 1-1 draw. The midweek saw a trip to the Hawthorns to face West Brom. Goals for George Armstrong, Colin Addison and Jon Sammels earned Arsenal a 3-1 victory, with Clive Clark on target for Albion. The following Saturday, Arsenal headed to Bramall Lane to face tenth place Sheffield United in front of 14,939 spectators.
Goals for Colin Addison, Frank McLintock and two for George Graham earned Arsenal a 4-2 victory, with future Leeds United star Mick Jones and future Chelsea star Alan Birchenall on target for the Blades. Three days on, Arsenal kicked off their League Cup campaign with a trip to Highfield Road to face Coventry City. Goals for George Graham and Jon Sammels earned Arsenal’s passage to the third round with a 2-1 victory, while Ernie Machin was on target for Coventry. The following weekend had been the North London Derby at Highbury against a Spurs side that had won five of their first seven league games.
An added element to this Derby had been that on the morning of the match it had been the wedding of George Graham to a model by the name of Marie Zia at Marylebone Town Hall. His best man that day was his old Chelsea team mate Terry Venables, who was now turning out for Spurs. Later that day, they met on the pitch. Highlights of the game were covered by ATV London’s ‘Star Soccer’. George also scored on the pitch, along with Colin Addison, John Radford and a Terry Neill penalty as Arsenal ran out 4-0 winners – only Arsenal’s second North London Derby victory of the 1960s and their biggest win over the Auld Enemy for fifteen years.
A week later, Arsenal had another home fixture with the visit of Mercer and Allison’s Man City, highlights of which featured on the BBC’s ‘Match of the Day’. The Blues were riding high having won five of their first eight games. In front of a crowd of 41,567, a John Radford goal gave Arsenal a 1-0 win which pushed them up to second in the table and only kept off of the top by Liverpool on goal average. On the last day of September 1967, Tony Blackburn launched Radio One by playing ‘Flowers in the Rain’ by the Move. Later that day, Arsenal’s winning run came to an end on the last day of September, with a trip to St. James’s Park to face thirteenth place Newcastle United. Goals for Bryan ‘Pop’ Robson and Wyn Davies meant Newcastle inflicted a 1-2 defeat on Arsenal, while George Graham would be on target for the Gunners.
Arsenal’s first fixture of October 1967 meant a trip to Old Trafford to face reigning League Champions Man United in front of a crowd of 60,201, which would be captured by the BBC’s ‘Match of the Day’. A headed goal for John Aston inflicted a 0-1 defeat on Arsenal. A running battle between Ian Ure and Denis Law also saw the pair sent off with eight minutes left to play. The Gunners however got back to winning ways in midweek on meeting Reading in the third round of the League Cup. A goal for Peter Simpson meant a 1-0 win over the Royals, in front of a crowd of 27,866 at Highbury to put the Gunners through to the last sixteen. Back in the League, Arsenal faced a visit from Sunderland in front of 30,864 spectators. Goals for George Graham and John Radford meant a 2-1 victory for Arsenal, while George Kinnell was on target for Sunderland.
The Gunners’ penultimate fixture for October 1967 was a trip to Molineux to face Wolves, delayed by forty eight hours due to the Home Internationals/Euro 1968 double headers on the weekend. Goals for George Armstrong and George Graham were not enough to prevent a 2-3 defeat for Arsenal, with Alun Evans on target for Wolves and two for Derek Dougan. This would be Arsenal’s final game with Dave Sexton as First Team Coach. Chelsea’s poor form under Tommy Docherty led to the exit of the former Arsenal Right Half, with Sexton taking over as boss at Stamford Bridge. Sexton’s exit meant that Don Howe was promoted to First Team coach.
Five days later, Arsenal’s final game of October 1967 would be a visit to Highbury from bottom of the table Fulham. The 29,867 which turned out for this London Derby were rewarded with an eight goal thriller. A hat-trick for John Radford and two goals for Colin Addison meant a 5-3 victory for Arsenal, while Jimmy Conway, future Chelsea star John Dempsey and future Leeds forward Allan Clarke among the goals for Fulham. The Gunners ended October 1967 in fifth place, though just three points behind league leaders Liverpool. The first day of November saw a visit to Highbury from second tier Blackburn Rovers in the fourth round of the League Cup.
20,044 people turned out for the tie. Goals for Colin Addison and George Graham gave Arsenal a 2-1 victory and their passage to the Quarter Finals. Arsenal’s first League fixture in November was a visit to Elland Road to meet eighth place Leeds United. Mick Jones headed home his first League goal for Leeds United from an Eddie Gray corner after 25 minutes. This would be his second goal against Arsenal in two months after transferring from Sheffield United, however the former Blades man limped off injured at half time. Peter Lorimer added a second from the penalty spot eleven minutes into the second half. A deflected effort by McLintock deceived Gary Sprake in the Leeds goal to pull one back for Arsenal. Nine minutes from time however, Eddie Gray slammed home a Jimmy Greenhoff centre to complete a 1-3 defeat for Arsenal.
The trip to West Yorkshire would be the final appearance of Colin Addison in an Arsenal shirt, before transferring to Sheffield United, after the Blades sold both Mick Jones and Alan Birchenall. As Addison would explain in his own words in an interview with the Nottingham Post in 2013: ‘I got a few goals (at Arsenal) but I got a few injuries and it didn't work out for me in London. I never really settled. Bertie Mee was as straight as a dye and a great man-manager and, after about 20 months, he decided it might be best for me to move on’. One week later, Arsenal faced a visit from sixth place Everton to Highbury, who were just two points above Arsenal in seventh place. The game would be covered by the BBC’s ‘Match of the Day’.
Scenes from the game would also be used for the BBC’s ‘Wednesday Play’, in the Ken Loach directed docu-drama ‘The Golden Vision’. Jimmy Husband gave Everton the lead, before goals from Jon Sammels and George Johnston put Arsenal a goal up at half time. In the second half, an equaliser from John Hurst earned Everton a 2-2 draw. In midweek, Arsenal headed to Rotterdam to play a friendly with Dutch side Feyenoord. A crowd as big as 60,000 turned out for the game. Jon Sammels scored twice for Arsenal, however the Dutch side inflicted a 2-3 defeat on Arsenal. The penultimate league fixture of November 1967 for Arsenal was a trip to Filbert Street to meet Leicester City.
Highlights of the game would be covered by ATV London’s ‘Star Soccer’ (though again ATV London footage from 1967/68 seems to be unavailable on the internet’s video sharing websites, presumed wiped). Goals for John Radford and George Johnston earned Arsenal a 2-2 draw, while Frank Large and Jackie Sinclair were on target for the Foxes. Three days on, Arsenal would face another friendly away fixture, this time to face Portsmouth. Arsenal crashed to a 0-2 defeat. Arsenal’s last league fixture in November would be West Ham’s visit to Highbury, covered again by ATV London’s ‘Star Soccer’. The Hammers would be languishing within the relegation zone, the game however ended in a 0-0 draw.
