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

[1961_vintage]

Schizophrenically oscillating from one ego-maniac of a manager who jettisoned experience in favour of youngsters to another ego-maniac of a manager who jettisoned youngsters over experience is high on the list of the "typical City" lunacy that characterised that particularly period of our history.

 

[jimharri]

The second half of that season was very good. At the very least, in comparison with the shitshow that was Allison's second coming. Pity it didn't carry on into the following season.

 

[BillCarlisle]

Much more to it. Bond walked away from the meeting with Swales, Clough & Forest’s chairman because of certain demands made byClough. Bond told Swales not to do business with Forest. Swales did a deal that Clough was happy with and told Bond that Francis would be first of several major signings Bond wanted. Bond believed him and told Francis that. Swales lied to both of them.

It's true that his last season went downhill big time, and he's not remembered in a good light largely because of that. On the other side of the coin John Bond was a guest at our SC Branch in Manchester at the time when he had dropped Nicky Reid in favour of Kevin Bond. From the floor I asked him outright as to why, and he answered that it was down to a mixture of application and ability. He also said that if I would care to approach him after the meeting he would buy me a pint and he would be happy to chat further. So I did, and sure enough he bought me a pint and went into detail about what had gone on. Basically, he claimed that some players at the club didn't train as well as he required, and their attitude wasn't right, Reid being one of them. He also said that he liked Reid and hoped that it would give him the kick up the arse to go out and win back his place. He was happy to talk a lot more about the way he felt the club was going and TBF he came across as a decent enough bloke. Much better than his public persona, in fact. Perhaps he might have done better at City if we had a chairman who delivered on his promises to the Manager.

 

[normskih]

He made three great signings in Bobby McDonald, Tommy Hutchinson and Gerry Gow. It transformed the team. Loved watching Tommy Hutchinson and Gerry Gow was a legendary.

And boy, did I love that team, then.

 

[normskih]

I’ll at least thank Bond for the turnaround in the 80/81 season and my first FA cup final which for many years looked like being my only FA cup final.
One memory of the disallowed Kevin Reeves goal in the LC semi was when he scored it, there was such a frenzied celebration in the packed out Kippax I didn’t know it had been disallowed till half time.

Dead right and my brother and I were right in the mix of it. That bloody referee.

 

[gordondaviesmoustache]

Schizophrenically oscillating from one ego-maniac of a manager who jettisoned experience in favour of youngsters to another ego-maniac of a manager who jettisoned youngsters over experience is high on the list of the "typical City" lunacy that characterised that particularly period of our history.

Very well observed.

Surprised no-one has mentioned that preposterous drop he did from the front of the director’s box, after we’d beat Norwich 6-0 in the Cup.

I think signing your own son, unless he’s world class, is far too replete with risk. Actually Kevin Bond wasn’t a bad footballer, but he was no Franco Baresi. And he displaced fan’s’ favourite, Nicky Reid. That was always going to accentuate any claims of nepotism. He scored an amazing goal against Everton though, and a penalty at Anfield in one of our only three wins there in the last 70 years. So not a complete disaster.

20 seconds in.

 

[Tarzan41]

John Bond we love you
John Bond we do though you may be far away we'll think of you
And one day when were champions we'll look back and say
There's no one quite like john Bond he helped us on our way.

At least i think those were the lyrics.

I remember it but completely forgot to say that when Sergio scored.

 

[Stelea]

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

I was reading back some Managers notes from the 1st programme in the 81/82 Season. He didn’t mind slagging off individual players in public. You would never get a Manager doing that nowadays

 

[Stelea]

Did he lose his first game at Maine road 0-1,Birmingham.

Archie Gemmill last minute 0-1

 

[Scaring Europe to Death]

I was reading back some Managers notes from the 1st programme in the 81/82 Season. He didn’t mind slagging off individual players in public. You would never get a Manager doing that nowadays

I remember the last home game of 81/82 when he wrote an end-of-season report on each player in the match programme

He was particularly scathing about 2-3 players and I remember imagining what they were thinking whilst sat in the changing room and reading that they couldn't cross a ball or lacked ability