One Mick Jones

Stromberg was their bast player by miles.

He turned Peter Jones inside out to put the cross in for their equaliser.

Was it an afternoon game? Fuckin' hell I can't remember that and I was there!

They must have let everyone have a day off school because the ground was heaving that day.

you'd never be allowed that many people in a ground so flimsily done again (Garden Centre Fence wire around the pitch with Barbed wire top!! )

I was on the ferry to Ireland once and we were all waiting for the bags to come on the carosel and a Wrexham fan fuckin dived on his bag and then just wen off on the carosel, lying there is in a 'ah fuck it!' kinda way.

to the cheers of everyone.

He never came back out the other enterance (he must have been nabbed by the bag handlers behind the wall).

There were lots of boo's then.

mentioned Signorina Espostos website to Portexile before. She might not have James Richardson's one-liners but she's tremendous to look at .... 

"And New Year Eve, I went to parteee in Cape Town ..." - as you do

Both legs kicked-off at 6pm British Summer Time.  The floodlights were switched on during the second half at Pennydarren Park.

Stromberg was indeed Atalanta's best player and he captained them in the first leg, although he was not the club captain.  Cesare Prandelli - recently appointed the new Italy coach after leaving Fiorentina and a Champions' Cup winner with Juventus at Heysel in 1985 - was the club captain and returned to the captaincy in the second leg although he did play in both legs.

Last edited by James (Mon 12 Jul 2010 8:32 pm)

Was it Tongy and Baird the full backs? I always thought Baird was injured..but I stand corrected.
Tongy was one of the Martyrs best players at that time. Class.

It was definitely an evening KO and we had UEFA lights put in?

Lost the replay 2-0 but Kerry 'Georgie' Williams struck a beaut of a shot that everyone thought went in at the very end.

Welsh clubs used to good in Europe once upon a time...

Yes, Tong and Baird were the full backs.

Atalanta had been runners-up in the previous season's Coppa Italia, but because Napoli - who beat them in the final and were then captained by Maradona - had won their first league championship, Atalanta entered the Cup Winners' Cup.  They had also been relegated at the end of that season (1986/87, Trevor Francis had been in the squad), but earned promotion the following season (1987/88) when they played Merthyr.  They also reached the semi-finals of that season's European competition, so Merthyr's win in the first leg and overall performance was outstanding.

I have a recollection that, after the second leg,  Merthyr won their next league game 10:0 at home to Rushden Town (later to become Rushden and Diamonds) in the Southern (then sponsored by Beazer Homes) League Premier Division.  Can anyone vertify that?

Last edited by James (Mon 19 Jul 2010 10:30 pm)

eusebio wrote:

john charles is god wrote:

Welsh clubs used to good in Europe once upon a time...

I think it was more a case of games were played during the season and other European teams used to be a bit more shite.

They were good this week.

It's hard to like anything about TNS, especially that twat Mike Harris, but they looked a decent side on tuesday. They play good football too. Whilst they are up againts Anderlecht here at Wrexham tuesday, and should get knocked out, it's not the Anderlecht of 1976.

1st half last night I thought Bangor no chance, the Finns carved them open at will, but were rubbish up front, so only led 1-0. 2nd half Bangor really gave it a go, created a couple of chances, but I thought that would be it. Two goals in the last five mins, the fans going wild. Whistle goes - and the Bangor players just collapsed. They gave absolutely everything, they were utterly fucked. Great stuff.

Bangor only finished in mid table, qualifing as cup winners, so you can't judge the standards too much by them, but TNS were best side on the LOW last year and looked it tuesday. How the fuck their ground passes the UEFA inspection though. Both teams beat summer football outfits, so it can be done.

James.

We actually LOST the next game 4-1 at home to Moor Green (I was there! ha).

We went one nil up and then they scored 4!! It used to happen to that great Merthyr side a lot.
We'd beat someone in a big gameand then lose the next game heavily to someone awful..
(I remember we got stuffed at Buckingham 3-0 after hammering Swansea at Swansea).

Years later I spoke to my fav player of the time, Kev Rogers and said..

'What was the story with always getting smashed the game after we'd beat someone we shouldn't have?'

And he smiled and said...that Merthyr team knew how to celebrate so we'd go on the lash for a few days together...the next game was usually a nightmare for us! haha. The things you don't know about when you're a kid watching a team a?

Moor Green went on to run us all the way for the title that year...but we got there in the end. Great side that Merthyr team was..
Flew through those divisions and used to beat league teams in the cups for fun...

Yes it was the Midland division. I even went to Moor green that year (we took about 500) and I think we drew 2-2 up there.
(May even have lost that 2-1? I can never remember results).
Moor Green and Halesowen always had loads of Birmingham fans there.
Used to be a great atmosphere.
I remember at Halesowen being hit with a brick...'clonk' right on my head.
As I'm watching the game and I turn (I got a head like a Donkey so I didn't go down or anything) and this West Midlands copper goes..
'Hahaha! got yew a treat then didn't we Taff?'
I was like...we? Fuckin WM Police init?

I remember the 10-0 game...I was there for that home and the away game (which we amazingly lost! again cant remember score BUT we went up that game. It was against Rushden (this was before the Dr.Martin's guy took them over!).

In the away game at Rushden a load of Merthyr boys who were Cardiff fans also went to cheer on the Martyrs.
We all went in the Grandstand. The poor people there didn't know what his them.
There were lads in the directors box, jumping down the players tunnel...it was chaos, but funny too.

Merthyr is a great day out for away fans. Always was and always will be..No police and stuff.

I remember Leicester UNITED (not City!) away and the toliet of the club house backed onto the pitch and about 100 lads waited patiently to jump through the tiny toliet window just to avoid the £2.50 charge! Tight fuckers init?