Memories are made of this

UNITED BEHIND LATICS . . . John and Christine Gilder shared a day to remember at Wembley.

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PARK LIFE: IT IS 20 years to the day since 30,000 Oldhamers made the long trip to Wembley to watch Athletic take on Nottingham Forest in the final of the Littlewoods Cup.

Many of you have sent us memories of their big day at Wembley — including lifelong fan John Gilder, our amateur soccer correspondent.

Here’s a selection...


Even the missus jumped to her feet

John Gilder


WHEN the world and my wife (to be) went to Wembley on that never-to-be-forgotten late April day in 1990, I can honestly say it didn’t really matter to me if Joe Royle’s side won or not.
Yes, of course, it is brilliant if your team wins, but at least, as a fan, you have got the satisfaction of seeing your side showcased at a major event.

My wife came with me on many coach trips to the capital.

Well, I say ‘my wife’ because we didn’t actually get married until some ten weeks after the final.

I’ve been a Latics fan since Adam was a lad, whereas the lovely Christine had only been to a handful of matches in the past – not really a football fan, you see.

But this was one not to be missed and, although the journey from Oldham to Wembley is now a bit of a blur, I can remember almost every key aspect of the final – Joe Royle and Brian Clough leading out their respective teams, the pitch, the sea of blue and white that was the thousands of Latics fans and the sheer atmosphere of it all.

But there was one stand-out moment for me when Roger Palmer’s late header produced a brilliant save from Steve Sutton in the Forest goal.

It was so close, so tantalisingly close, to what would have been a deserved equaliser.

And all the Latics fans were on their feet, heads in hands, even Christine.

Win or lose, it was always going to be a fantastic day and one that I (or should that be ‘we’) will cherish forever.

Always one for the big occasion, or rather any excuse to buy a new pair of shoes, Christine’s abiding memory of the big day is this: “I remember it was very hot and I also had a wedding to plan.”

Women, eh!



I WANTED my son’s very first football match to be a special one and so I didn’t take him until he was six-years-old.

When Latics got to Wembley I knew that was THE game we had been waiting for.

We queued up all day to buy the tickets and were walking away from Boundary Park, kissing our tickets, passing a football pitch which used to be at Westwood — where B&Q is now — when my son Paul asked if the match was going to be played there.

He thought we’d queued up all day to see a match on a park pitch, bless him!

When the day came we boarded the bus and set off for Wembley, singing: “We’re the famous Oldham and we’re off to Wembley!”

The coach broke down on the motorway so we ended up singing: “We’re the not so famous Oldham and we’re off to Wembley, eventually, eventually!”

Fortunately, we arrived at Wembley just in time for the kick-off.

DAVID WOOD


SIX months before the final, I booked a holiday to the Canary Islands. You don’t check the calendar when supporting Oldham.

I went to every game in the competition, both home and away.

As each round was completed the thoughts of the holiday got more real. I couldn’t cancel it.

There were four of us going and we were due home the Tuesday after the game. My plan was to fly home early and so I bought a ticket for the final.

But I couldn’t get home. The holiday rep at our hotel was useless — every day I asked him about the flight home, every day he said he would arrange it.

The last problem was that the final took place in the era before Sky and mobile phones. It took me all night to find out we had lost, as everyone I knew had travelled to Wembley.

I had it recorded on VHS at home, but it took me six months to sit down and watch it. I couldn’t bear it.

But at the end of the game during the lap of honour, into shot came my granddad whom I had travelled the country with to loads of games. It was quite surreal.

PETER


I CAN remember the trip to Wembley well. As a Latics supporter since the 1940s, I always said that I would never go to Wembley unless it was to support my team.

When they came out on to the pitch I had tears in my eyes.

Thank you, Joe, and the team, for making one of my dreams come true.

DOUGHBOY


LIKE all the other fans, I long for those days to return.

The whole town was buzzing and if you went abroad on holiday and people asked you where you came from, they would say in return: “Ah, Oldham Athletic.”

So where do we go from here? All the town needs to get behind the club is the building of the new stadium and to get Paul Scholes in as player-manager.

FAILSWORTHIAN


I WENT to every game on the Cup run — except the final!

I always said I would never visit Wembley without it being with Latics, but I had my ticket and coach travel booked.

Then in stepped the ex-wife to throw her special spanner into the works.

Fantastic days.

PAUL GUINAN


I REMEMBER my dad saying never go to Wembley unless either Oldham RL or Latics get there — otherwise that unique moment would be spoilt. I did as he asked.

Unfortunately, he was too ill to see Latics play there — I told him all about it when I got back — and he died back in the 1990s, never seeing Oldham get there either.

He didn’t expect them to and it will no doubt fail to happen in my lifetime as well.

However, we saw the boys in blue do the town proud.

Thanks for the good times!

Will we ever see the likes of those days — or those players and the management team — again?

OWDHAMFAN


WHAT great days those were! With great sadness, I do not see a repeat occurring in my lifetime. I hope I am wrong.

OLDHAM4LIFE


I SOMETIMES blow the dust off my copy of ‘The Road to Wembley’ VHS tape and marvel at the wonderful, exciting football we used to get served up.

Watching now makes me weep. Joe Royle was right a few weeks ago when he said it will never happen again.

The best we can hope for now is to get into the Champion-ship. Lest we forget, that is still Division Two no matter what fancy name they give it.

AUSTIABZ


THOSE were the days: A manager who had a clue, players willing to put everything on the line and fans who had something to be happy about!

MAINSTANDER


‘MEMORIES’. They are all we have at the moment.

Aspirations? Well, we know what we’d like but it’s hard to see what the future holds under this regime. Hope springs eternal.

DRAMASINGAPORE


WHAT about the first three years of Big Joe’s reign? In these days of the internet, message boards and clueless sheep who bleat at the first sign of adversity, he would have been long gone.

It isn’t just football which has changed. It is also the fans and the pressure they heap on to every club’s board of directors whenever things don’t go according to plan.

Incidentally, in the season we got promoted there were 4,500 to watch us play Birmingham at home.

LATICS4LIFE


GREAT day out, that! Walking on to Wembley Way after the match, I saw a Latics fan rip up his season ticket!

In the following promotion season, some fans were disgruntled because they believed that Big Joe had abandoned his trademark free-flowing, attacking football.

It goes to show that some people only go to football to moan, and they’re entitled to do so.

But happier times, all the same.

MENTAL MICKEY


WHAT wonderful memories I have of the final.
Travelling from Milnrow in the morning to board the specially-chartered train to London, the fans were out in force sporting their colours and waving greetings to each other as they made their way to their various points of departure.

I started watching Latics as a boy of 10, the year after World War Two ended, and that day was a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

SEPTO

See our news entries for a report of Latics’ celebratory dinner