Drink A Drink For Colin The KIng This December 26th 2021

Great article.
I missed that game but I saw him playing in an away match that season when he smashed a goal in with a pile driver from the corner of the penalty area. Pretty sure it was away at Leeds. Anyone remember it? Not sure if my memory's playing tricks on me.
Cheers to the King!
 
City_Shirts said:
Sometimes an anniversary slips by without so much as a nod or a wink, if you are a married man and you have forgotten your wife's special day, you'll know what I mean. But I doubt if any City supporters privileged to be witnesses will ever forget one football anniversary, which will be 44 years ago this December, that took place at Maine Road on Boxing Day, December 26th 1977, when City played Newcastle United.

For two frustrating years Colin Bell had refused to bow down to the fact that he was out of the game for life. Bell had hardly played a senior match since he critically damaged his knee playing against Man.Utd on a November night in 1975. The pain and torment of his long and lonely battle for fitness would have put paid to lesser determined characters. Bell's demanding and tedious fight for fitness continued throughout two summers when most players were enjoying their holidays. But on that Boxing Day 1977 his courage and dedication were rewarded, When City's physio Roy Bailey displayed the number 6 card to call off the injured Paul Power, on trotted City sub Colin Bell at the start of the second half to a deafening roar from the 45,811 spectators.
City were level pegging with Newcastle at 0-0 when but all of a sudden the Maine Road’s atmosphere was transformed by the appearance of the long-absent idol of all true blue fans at the time, a spontaneous demonstration of warmth and affection for a great player who had fired the imagination, there has rarely been anything quite so stirring as the ovation accorded to Bell that afternoon. Even the normally unemotional old hands in the press box got that pulse-tingling feeling of magic in the air - The King Was Back.
Everyone loves a fighter and it seemed that every supporter at the game was willing Bell to do well. His presence proved to be an inspiration to his team-mates and City coasted to a 4-0 victory. Bell went on to play 20 full games that season, 16 in the league, 2 FA Cup and 2 League Cup games.

The following season he had a recurrence of the injury and only played 16 senior games plus one as a sub. Four appearances in his last season for City were in the UEFA Cup, he came on as sub against Dutch side FC Twente and scored in a 3-2 win at Maine Road to help City into the next round on a 4-3 aggregate. He played twice against Standard Liege in the next round, and again, against AC Milan. On August 21st 1979, he reluctantly announced his retirement from the game after a stern warning that he could be crippled for life if he continued.
Whenever football fans in general, and City fans in particular talk about great names who have graced the famous England and City shirt's, Colin Bell's name is spoken with reverence.
The final fitting farewell for Bell came on Tuesday September 11th 1979, just three weeks after he had made his retirement known. A combined Manchester team met a similar eleven from Merseyside in his testimonial match at Maine Road. On a dismal night, 23,936 admirers turned up to pay tribute to a player whose wide-ranging talent had played a big part in City's successful trophy triumphs of the 60's & 70's.

For the record Bell signed for City from Bury in March 1966 for £45,000, then a record fee for a teenager. Within 48 hours he had made a goal scoring debut in a 2-1 win at Derby County as City stormed towards the Second Division Championship. Bell was capped 48 times for England and with City he won First and Second Division championship medals, FA Cup and League Cup winners medals and European Cup Winners' Cup medal. He made 393 League appearances and scored 119 League goals.

Legend - So on December 26th 2020 raise your glasses and 'Drink a Drink a Drink To Colin The King'.

RIP Colin ‘The King’ Bell………The King of the Kippax

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Was there that day on my 16th birthday never heard such noise and emotion from the Kippax and will be there on my 60th raising a glass to the King.
 
City_Shirts said:
When City's physio Roy Bailey displayed the number 6 card to call off the injured Paul Power, on trotted City sub Colin Bell at the start of the second half
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I hate to be a pedantic twat, but I'm afraid the above isn't right. Bell entered the fray at half time, and for half time subs in those days, they checked the studs before the teams came out so the sub just ran out with the rest of the team. Unlike when a sub came on during play, at half time there was no card displayed by the physio. Commentators used to have to try to look round the teams as they lined up for kick off to spot whether there were any changes.

The way it actually unfolded is that, as the team came out at the start of the second half, a roar went up in the middle of the Kippax because, being directly opposite, they could see him in the tunnel before he emerged onto the pitch. And that spread right round the ground as more and more people realised that Colin Bell was coming on. It turned into a huge, rapturous ovation from literally everyone there (I didn't see anyone round me not joining in). To be fair, the Geordies applauded and cheered him as well.

It went on for several minutes, but even when it subsided the atmosphere for the whole second half was incredibly charged and the team responded. Newcastle were a really poor side that season (they went down, winning only four league games in the entire campaign) and had showed it in the first half, but we'd looked no better. Once Bell had made his entry, the atmosphere spurred us on and we looked like scoring every time we attacked.

I've watched a lot of football in my time, including many non-City matches in different parts of England and in various locations abroad. I've never experienced another atmosphere remotely like the one at Maine Road that afternoon.
 
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