What were you doing the day we were relegated to the old 3rd

[Dyed Petya]

I went to Platt Lane. They had a big screen up in the bar upstairs. The place was obviously packed out with blues. If I remember correctly, Portsmouth had a say in how the day went. If they lost, and we won, we would stay up. Sky kept going backwards and forwards to the Portsmouth game, and after a while, it became apparent that we were going down.
The atmosphere at Platt Lane was weird.We were all happy to have won so well, and most people were pretty drunk, but as the result from the Portsmouth game came in it was like being at a funeral! It really was absolutley terrible...
Going through that kind of turmoil made the wins at Wemberly, and then Blackburn the following years so much sweeter!!
Up the blues!

Like I said, I was abroad following it on the web, so was getting updates from all three games. Basically, we had to win, and we needed either Port Vale (away to Huddersfield) or Portsmouth (away to Bradford) to lose or draw.

Port Vale went two up very early and it was obvious that they were going to win. But I seem to recall that there were a couple of minutes after we took the lead through Goater around the half hour when we were winning and Pompey were drawing so we were in a position to stay up.

It lasted only two minutes or so. Pompey scored, then got another one quickly, so it was obvious even before half time we were down whatever we did. In the end Port Vale won 4-0 and Pompey 3-1, but the one came right at the end, after they'd led by three for most of the second half.

Basically both the home clubs just rolled over, and at Bradford the home and away fans were all on the pitch chanting about us going down.

The irony was that Pompey had been about five points behind us in the January when they appointed a new manager. He managed to save them at our expense. His name? One Alan Ball. You may be familiar with him.

 

[leicsbluebird]

Crying my eyes out at home watching it on the box. Bad days

 

[Pam]

Oh the shame. I couldn't bring myself to talk to anyone about it, even with other blues. Actually, I went that entire close season not being able to talk about it, right the way up to our first third tier fixture in history V Blackpool at Maine Road the following August. I went to that game as well.

 

[Revol]

Drooling over pictures of Posh Spice.

I didn't get into league football and City til my teens, I was seven and only really into the World Cup/Euro tournaments. But I have read about how it was the worst day in the history of City. No footage of the match on Youtube that I can find but there is highlights from the Gillingham qualifying match the following season, when we bounced back to Division One.

 

[Blue Streak]

As I've said previously I was at the game. I can't remember exactly how we knew that Port Vale and Pompey were both winning but we did. I assume it was the reaction of fans who had radios etc. I certainly didn't have a mobile phone until 1999 so I wasn't recieving any texts updating me of the other scores etc and I'm sure they didn't get displayed on the scoreboard.

What I do remember is with 10 minutes left we knew our destiny and it was a horrific feeling. As we left our seats and went under the stand to head for the exits I remember someone screaming he wanted Alan Ball's head on a skewer.

Reading some of the shit on here tonight because we have lost considering the position we are in makes me laugh when I think back to this day.

 

[dick slexia]

Im still in denial about that day and the following season so it never happened. My biggest heartbreak was the Luton result that relegated us.

 

[kippaxwarrior]

Im still in denial about that day and the following season so it never happened. My biggest heartbreak was the Luton result that relegated us.

I went to that, was 7 at the time and it was the 1st time i cried at a football match
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyAUkaC6nsI[/youtube]

Fucking david pleat

 

[Joycee Banercheck]

Im still in denial about that day and the following season so it never happened. My biggest heartbreak was the Luton result that relegated us.

I went to that, was 7 at the time and it was the 1st time i cried at a football match
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyAUkaC6nsI[/youtube]

Fucking david pleat

West Ham in 87 (or 86 - its shit that you get confused about relegation years being a blue innit?) did me over. Watched me nan die and us get relegated in one day. Long haul. what a fuckin ray of sunshine I was that day.

 

[Blue Streak]

Im still in denial about that day and the following season so it never happened. My biggest heartbreak was the Luton result that relegated us.

I went to that, was 7 at the time and it was the 1st time i cried at a football match
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XyAUkaC6nsI[/youtube]

Fucking david pleat

I also went to that and I was 8 and heartbroken. I had a fucking massive smile on my face when Luton became a non league club and I still don't fucking care that it disgusts people. Karma and those horrible twats have had it back in spades. Anyone who was at Maine Road that afternoon knows the utter feeling of devastation.

 

[flinty123city]

Watching The goat come to life on TV - whilst checking that others had conspired to relegate us. Cursing Alan Ball (God rest his soul) and Franny Lee for dragging us into this situation. I remember wondering if we would ever get back into the top flight in my lifetime - Thankfully, we have - and now i'm dis-satisfied about losing today and chucking away the chance to threaten the top 4, wheras then i was grateful of draws at Walsall Blackpool etc.