44 Years Ago… Johnny Bond, Johnny Bond, Johnny Bond

[stan bowles]

What was it with Swales bringing in Norwich City managers ? Ron Saunders, John Bond, Mel Machin. It was like his default search every time we needed to bring someone in.

 

[stan bowles]

The problem with any discussion about Bond's time at City is that we tend to forget the 81-82 season and how it finished so badly with only 5 wins from the last 22 games, falling attendances, and a sense that some of the short term heroes from the previous season were now slow and ageing.

Instead it's easier to blame the excesses and stupidity of the Malcolm Allison regime and celebrate the memories of the 81 Cup run (undoubtedly exaggerated because we didn't have another decent cup run for 30 years)

Bond didn't trust young players and quickly replaced Roger Palmer with Phil Boyer

He then sold Tony Henry, Steve Mackenzie, and Dave Bennett, whilst publicly lambasting Nicky Reid and Clive Wilson in the match programme.

None of these players were necessarily world beaters, but equally Palmer, Henry, and Mackenzie had all scored in Manchester derbies and were a damm sight better than most of the dross that followed for literally the rest of the decade.

None of this mitigates the self inflicted damage of the late 70s, but the squad that Bond inherited was considerably more talented than the one that capitulated at Brighton in the FA Cup

Bond had Phil Boyer with him at Bournemouth, Norwich and then us. Must have had a hard on for him.

 

[1961_vintage]

What was it with Swales bringing in Norwich City managers ? Ron Saunders, John Bond, Mel Machin. It was like his default search every time we needed to bring someone in.

The biggest irony being that if I am not mistaken Norwich City are the Club against which we have the best record.

 

[stan bowles]

The biggest irony being that if I am not mistaken Norwich City are the Club against which we have the best record.

Saunders had won nothing when we brought him in, Bond had got Norwich to one League Cup Final which they lost to Saunders' Villa team. City's was Machin's first proper management appointment. I can only imagine Swales and the Board thinking that, if they (Saunders and Bond) can hold their own at a backwater like Norwich, imagine how good they'll be at a big club like City - and appointed them on that basis.

 

[ancoats]

John Bond was the right man for City at that time, He had a great turnaround and a great start to the next season

But at City there was a big problem, Swales
The Chairman and the Board fucked up big time under Big Mal by giving him the money and letting him sell Peter Barnes and Gary Owen and dismantle Tony Books team that finished runners-up the season before,

For the Life of me, Why did Tony Book just let Swales demote him from being the Manager and still be happy in a role under Big Mal, Tony Book should have stayed Manager and Big Mal coach and Kept Big Mal from controlling the money side of the game with new signings and selling players.

Once Swales had blown all the money on Big Mal's ideas City was finished, John Bond was only going to patch up the team because Swales and City were financially ruined, Even the Trevor Francis gamble was a step too far for the club to handle and had to sell to balance the books,

John Bond was lied to by Swales and City was in trouble financially, from that moment on City became a YOYO club and done as a top team, City had to start clearing out players and bring in cheap replacements and youth,

They say when it goes, it goes fast, how right were they,
From being top of the League at Christmas in the 1981/82 season to getting relegated in 1982/83 season

Funny enough I would never want to swap a single thing, I Loved being a City back then, Yes City was struggling and never knowing what was just around the corner from week to week. The One big thing that stood out was we knew our level and just got on with it and turned up week after week home and away.

Unlike the Scum over the road, they thought they were still a big club that would win the title every season,
Happily, Liverpool would shit all over them as well until the Sky's Premier League

 

[dennishasdoneit]

To be honest I think it was a lot of young lads who enjoyed playing football and a few good older heads who pulled them together, I spoke to Tony Book about 30 years ago and he said him and malc had enquired about Gow and were quoted eye watering money, we started 81/82 very well think we were top at Christmas then he started bringing in well past it pros and we dropped like a stone. 82/83 away from home we were bloody awful and I went to em all don't think we won a game no wonder he was sacked team he left us with was dreadful.

Tbh, I have to admit if you were a match going fan 82/83 your analysis of JB is going to be sharper than mine..at the time I was a City daft ,out of town teenager relying on Sunday newspaper match reports and radio 2 match bulletins , to try and get a grip on what was happening.

Looking at the stats tho, we d won 10 out of 25 games before he was sacked,not brilliant but compared to just winning 3 more matches and being relegated after he was sacked ,maybe just May be I'd have preferred JB to have lasted the remainder of that season...

The point you make about us losing nearly every away game is ,as you can appreciate, not just a JB trait, We were terrible away from home season before he came and well after he'd gone...years and years of capitulation when not backed by big home support..

I absolutely loved John Bond and the way he galvanised us and turned us into a solid battling outfit after being terrible at the start of the 1980/ 81 season, he joined when we must have been bottom of the league and winless (?) , going absolutely nowhere but down...,left us mid table, and then we did go down.....

The 2-2 draw at Everton in the fa cup quarter final 1981, with the last min goal from Paul Power, the 3-1 replay win at Maine rd,the win over Ipswich Town in the semi final, against one of the most accomplished teams in the country was also sensational ,and of course we were so unlucky at Wembley with Tommy Hutch....these memories still constitute one of the most exciting times for me ,when we signed Bobby McDonald Hutchinson and Gerry Gow ,it was bizzare ,I just knew without seeing any of them play live before, that he'd made 3 Brilliant signings , Gow just looked as tho he meant business, and Tommy Hutch was an ageing left winger with an exciting up and at em style of play...
The 6nil win over Norwich in the cup 4th round,, the 4nil demolishing of Crystal Palace the round before, the last min Tommy Booth winner at Peterborough( doing a John Stones well b4 it was trendy for our centre backs to win games) all exciting memories ..Bond joined us bottom of the league and left us mid table, when ,as far as as I could make out in later years ,he'd by taken his eye off the ball by then and was involved in an unhealthy relationship .......

Not forgetting the signing of Trevor Francis. Wow.just Wow.