1980's Umbro City Shirts

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City_Shirts

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Although City didn’t set the footballing world alight during the 1980’s we certainly had some fantastic shirts produced during the decade by Umbro. As a big collector of City match worn shirts and with the 1980’s being by far the favourite period of City shirts for me I thought I’d use this thread to showcase some of the 80’s style match shirts in my collection.

Starting off with this 1983/84 Second Division Kevin Bond match worn away shirt.

The big centre-half would appear 35 times during the campaign as Billy McNeill’s side finished in 4th place.

This style of shirts was first used during the 1982/83 campaign, our first with a shirt sponsor when Swedish car manufacturers SAAB donned the front, initially with a black sponsor on both the home and away shirts. This was changed to white on the home at the request of SAAB, who claimed it would give the sponsor better visibility and was dropped altogether from the away shirt but reappeared again in black on the away shirt during the 83/84 season.

Feel free to add some pictures of your favourite style 1980’s City shirts.

saab.jpg
 
1985/86 First Division Paul Power match worn shirt from his final season at the club as a player.

Power would skipper the side making 36 league appearances before moving on to Everton who agreed to pay his City owed loyalty bonus as part of the deal to get the transfer over the line. Power was due the bonus on July 1st 1986 but chairman Peter Swales would refuse to pay if he left for Everton some four days earlier.

IMG_3805.jpeg
 
1986-87 First Division chequered design match worn away shirt with large PHILIPS sponsor.

This number seven shirt was worn by Gordon Davies, Robert Hopkins, David White and Andy May, who's featured below at Everton(05/05/87).

The style continued into the 87-88 campaign with the new sponsor Brother added and the addition of the white lining to the shoulders & arms.

IMG_3809.jpeg
 
1986/87 Ian Brightwell match worn shirt v Manchester United on 26th October 1986.

One off shirt with a larger PHILIPS sponsor designed for the first ever live televised Manchester Derby, worn Brightwell, who replaced Tony Grealsih during a 1-1 draw.

At the request of club sponsors PHILIPS, a one off set of shirts with a larger PHILIPS sponsor were produced for the fixture aimed at the new TV audience.

The full kit was then given away by City to a group of Australian fans who had watched City’s end of season tour games.

IMG_3813.jpeg
 
1989/90 First Division Ian Brightwell match worn away shirt.

A style worn only five times at Sheffield Wednesday, Spurs, Luton, Millwall & QPR and by Brightwell on each occasion.

The shirt design would be used again the following two campaigns with the new added collar.

A real holy grail of City shirts for collectors featuring Clive Allen in the picture at Luton Town.

IMG_3814.jpeg
 
1984/85 Second Division Paul Simpson match worn shirt v Charlton Athletic on 11th May 1985.

Simmo would score City’s fourth goal wearing this shirt as we clinched Promotion back to the First Division with a stunning 5-1 victory in front of a packed Maine Road.

This was the second of two campaigns the design was worn but the first with new sponsor PHILIPS who had replaced SAAB.

IMG_3820.jpeg
 
City_Shirts said:
1985/86 First Division Paul Power match worn shirt from his final season at the club as a player.

Power would skipper the side making 36 league appearances before moving on to Everton who agreed to pay his City owed loyalty bonus as part of the deal to get the transfer over the line. Power was due the bonus on July 1st 1986 but chairman Peter Swales would refuse to pay if he left for Everton some four days earlier.

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The first shirt I saw City play in so I'm bias this is the best.

:)
 
Kevin Reeves 1981 FA Cup Final Match Shirt

When skipper skipper Paul Power lashed home a 100th minute extra time FA Cup Semi-Final winning strike over Ipswich Town at Villa Park it secured an 8th FA Cup final appearance for City in the competition in what would be the Centenary 100th FA Cup final on Saturday 9th May 1981 and a first final since Neil Young’s solitary strike over Leicester City some twelve years earlier would give the blues a chance to add a fifth winner’s trophy to the cabinet following victory’s over Bolton(1926), Portsmouth(1934), Birmingham(1956) and Leicester City(1969).

Manager John Bond had arrived during October 1980 and was quickly stamping his mark on the club who were at the time, falling fast. Bond added some much-needed grit to the squad with the experienced Bobby McDonald, Tommy Hutchison and Gerry Gow arriving. City’s impressive run to the final saw victories over Malcolm Allison’s Crystal Palace, Norwich City, Peterborough, Everton, (following a replay) and Ipswich Town, hitting 17 goals along the way.

For the showcase final City kit manufactures Umbro produced just one set of match shirts which included the Centenary Cup Final Wembley 1981 embroidered into the shirt just below the Manchester Coat of Arms crest. City used this Crest for all Cup finals which was the case until 2011. The players would receive two shirts each with the choice of a long sleeve and short sleeve option with one additional unnumbered long sleeve spare also produced, which was known as the blood shirt. Striker Dave Bennett was the only player to appear in both finals using the long sleeve option while defender Nicky Reid would use the short sleeve for the first and the long sleeve in the replay, played five days later. Opponents Tottenham Hotspur, whose kit was supplied by future City manufactures Le Coq Sportif would have two sets of shirts supplied for them for the final.

This short sleeve number eleven was worn by striker Kevin Reeves in both finals of which he would score a penalty during the Thursday night replay. With most of the players keeping the shirts as mementos from the finals, and with just the one set being produced, making these a real collector’s item and holy grail for any City collection. Although Reeves shirt was very nearly surplus to requirements after being discarded by a Manchester United supporter who had won it during a raffle during the late 1980’s - Fast forward to 2022 when I was contacted via social media by a family member of the supporter who had won the shirt, which had now been laid in a bin liner in a garden shed for a number of years and was on it’s way to the local waste recycling centre before he checked the bag before throwing it out !!! A good wash and some serious TLC ensured the shirt was back to its full glory and safely secured into the collection……….PHEW !!!!


IMG_3837.jpeg
 
City_Shirts said:
Kevin Reeves 1981 FA Cup Final Match Shirt

When skipper skipper Paul Power lashed home a 100th minute extra time FA Cup Semi-Final winning strike over Ipswich Town at Villa Park it secured an 8th FA Cup final appearance for City in the competition in what would be the Centenary 100th FA Cup final on Saturday 9th May 1981 and a first final since Neil Young’s solitary strike over Leicester City some twelve years earlier would give the blues a chance to add a fifth winner’s trophy to the cabinet following victory’s over Bolton(1926), Portsmouth(1934), Birmingham(1956) and Leicester City(1969).

Manager John Bond had arrived during October 1980 and was quickly stamping his mark on the club who were at the time, falling fast. Bond added some much-needed grit to the squad with the experienced Bobby McDonald, Tommy Hutchison and Gerry Gow arriving. City’s impressive run to the final saw victories over Malcolm Allison’s Crystal Palace, Norwich City, Peterborough, Everton, (following a replay) and Ipswich Town, hitting 17 goals along the way.

For the showcase final City kit manufactures Umbro produced just one set of match shirts which included the Centenary Cup Final Wembley 1981 embroidered into the shirt just below the Manchester Coat of Arms crest. City used this Crest for all Cup finals which was the case until 2011. The players would receive two shirts each with the choice of a long sleeve and short sleeve option with one additional unnumbered long sleeve spare also produced, which was known as the blood shirt. Striker Dave Bennett was the only player to appear in both finals using the long sleeve option while defender Nicky Reid would use the short sleeve for the first and the long sleeve in the replay, played five days later. Opponents Tottenham Hotspur, whose kit was supplied by future City manufactures Le Coq Sportif would have two sets of shirts supplied for them for the final.

This short sleeve number eleven was worn by striker Kevin Reeves in both finals of which he would score a penalty during the Thursday night replay. With most of the players keeping the shirts as mementos from the finals, and with just the one set being produced, making these a real collector’s item and holy grail for any City collection. Although Reeves shirt was very nearly surplus to requirements after being discarded by a Manchester United supporter who had won it during a raffle during the late 1980’s - Fast forward to 2022 when I was contacted via social media by a family member of the supporter who had won the shirt, which had now been laid in a bin liner in a garden shed for a number of years and was on it’s way to the local waste recycling centre before he checked the bag before throwing it out !!! A good wash and some serious TLC ensured the shirt was back to its full glory and safely secured into the collection……….PHEW !!!!


View attachment 99764
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Same shirt for both games, bet many of todays players dont wear the same shirt for both halves of a game
 
City_Shirts said:
1986-87 First Division chequered design match worn away shirt with large PHILIPS sponsor.

This number seven shirt was worn by Gordon Davies, Robert Hopkins, David White and Andy May, who's featured below at Everton(05/05/87).

The style continued into the 87-88 campaign with the new sponsor Brother added and the addition of the white lining to the shoulders & arms.

View attachment 99732
Click to expand...
My first ever City kit complete with shorts and socks. I loved it
 
City_Shirts said:
Kevin Reeves 1981 FA Cup Final Match Shirt

When skipper skipper Paul Power lashed home a 100th minute extra time FA Cup Semi-Final winning strike over Ipswich Town at Villa Park it secured an 8th FA Cup final appearance for City in the competition in what would be the Centenary 100th FA Cup final on Saturday 9th May 1981 and a first final since Neil Young’s solitary strike over Leicester City some twelve years earlier would give the blues a chance to add a fifth winner’s trophy to the cabinet following victory’s over Bolton(1926), Portsmouth(1934), Birmingham(1956) and Leicester City(1969).

Manager John Bond had arrived during October 1980 and was quickly stamping his mark on the club who were at the time, falling fast. Bond added some much-needed grit to the squad with the experienced Bobby McDonald, Tommy Hutchison and Gerry Gow arriving. City’s impressive run to the final saw victories over Malcolm Allison’s Crystal Palace, Norwich City, Peterborough, Everton, (following a replay) and Ipswich Town, hitting 17 goals along the way.

For the showcase final City kit manufactures Umbro produced just one set of match shirts which included the Centenary Cup Final Wembley 1981 embroidered into the shirt just below the Manchester Coat of Arms crest. City used this Crest for all Cup finals which was the case until 2011. The players would receive two shirts each with the choice of a long sleeve and short sleeve option with one additional unnumbered long sleeve spare also produced, which was known as the blood shirt. Striker Dave Bennett was the only player to appear in both finals using the long sleeve option while defender Nicky Reid would use the short sleeve for the first and the long sleeve in the replay, played five days later. Opponents Tottenham Hotspur, whose kit was supplied by future City manufactures Le Coq Sportif would have two sets of shirts supplied for them for the final.

This short sleeve number eleven was worn by striker Kevin Reeves in both finals of which he would score a penalty during the Thursday night replay. With most of the players keeping the shirts as mementos from the finals, and with just the one set being produced, making these a real collector’s item and holy grail for any City collection. Although Reeves shirt was very nearly surplus to requirements after being discarded by a Manchester United supporter who had won it during a raffle during the late 1980’s - Fast forward to 2022 when I was contacted via social media by a family member of the supporter who had won the shirt, which had now been laid in a bin liner in a garden shed for a number of years and was on it’s way to the local waste recycling centre before he checked the bag before throwing it out !!! A good wash and some serious TLC ensured the shirt was back to its full glory and safely secured into the collection……….PHEW !!!!


View attachment 99764
Click to expand...
My Dad gave me his 1981 shirt last year when he moved house. The embroided badge. It is immaculate.

Got it in a frame over the stairs with my centenary cup final flag. First trip to Wembley aged 10.
 
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