Keep Fighting Page 5
The following 1962-63 season saw a marked improvement on the previous season's endeavours. A Second Division final placing of fifth was to provide the platform for greater things. For Bremner it was another season of solid performances topped with ten league goals: ‘The boss had us working as a unit, instilling self-belief in everything we did. He wanted us to be a big family, with complete trust in our fellows and team mates. Honesty and openness in debates and discussions were introduced to team talks and post-match inquests. To lighten up some of the meetings we would introduce card games and other lighthearted family games and entertainment. It was all good fun and the lads would look forward to the team meetings.’
The 1963-64 campaign was indeed a glorious one as Leeds romped to the Second Division championship, losing just three of their forty-two league games. Elland Road became a fortress as not a single league defeat was suffered at home. For Bremner it was a consistent season; he appeared in all forty-two league fixtures and four cup games.
‘It was a great season, one of the finest,’ he recalled. ‘The boss drafted a lot of youngsters into the team and we gelled and never really looked back. We knew we had to work for each other, not only as a team, but as a club. Everyone was committed to the cause and we got to know each other's game. At times it seemed almost telepathic. There was a real understanding between us as a group; more than anything I think it was the belief that the boss was behind us with everything we did and tried.
‘As for my role in that group, it just happened, I felt comfortable in midfield, with players like Jack Charlton, Norman Hunter and Johnny Giles playing alongside me, and with the presence of Bobby Collins, I couldn't really go wrong. To say that I was an influence on that side is unfair on the rest of the lads. I was still learning my trade, we were as one, and the entire team influenced and looked after each other. I think Bobby Collins was the main inspiration of that side, he was a competitor and didn't know when to stop. What many players would view as a lost cause, he would chase, hassle and harass, intimidating the opposition into virtual submission. The younger ones in that side learned a lot from Bobby, I know I did. We all seemed to realise that we were part of something very special at Leeds.
‘I've always had fond memories of the 1963-64 season not only because of what we were achieving as a group at Leeds, but because I finally found my favourite position at wing-half or half-back or, in the modern game, midfield.
‘It was also special because I got my first of what was to be four Scotland under-23 call-ups for a game against the “auld enemy”, England, at St James’ Park, Newcastle. It was a cold February night and it wasn't the most atmospheric of evenings, though more than a few Scots had made the journey over the border to cheer us on. We had a united belief within the Scotland team that we had the individuals who, if they could get it together on the night, could beat England. We went close to doing just that, and had it not been for the killer instinct of Everton and England centre forward Fred Pickering, we would have got at least a draw. Pickering was hard as nails, and was a real handful that night; he got himself a hat-trick. I had a good crack with him before, during and after the game. He could take a bit of stick, and he could give it too. He stood on my foot for a few moments when we were waiting for a corner to drop into the penalty area. So I pinched his arm really hard. I'll never forget it; he yelped like a dog and soon got off my foot, holding his arm like he had been wounded by a gunshot. The referee had seen the lot and was laughing at the pair of us.
‘Afterwards in the dressing room we couldn't believe we had lost 3-2 and vowed our revenge the next time we faced them. My other appearances for the Scotland under-23 team came against England (again) at Pittodrie, Aberdeen. In the England team were my Leeds pals Norman Hunter and Paul Reaney. I was working my butt off trying to keep Alan Ball in check, he was a livewire and I thought it funny that people often compared our game and style. For heaven's sake, he was English and couldn't possibly have the heart of a Scot. He was a good little player though and a right handful whenever I faced him. He had sprinting pace as a youngster and managed to turn me a couple of times, but kept away from me after I told him in no uncertain terms that he would end up in ‘row Z’ of the stands if he tried it again. The daft thing was, as soon as I said it, I heard a voice I instantly recognised, threatening to put me up there alongside him, if I tried it. When I looked round it was only Norman Hunter!
‘To be fair, the game was a bit of a non-event and we drew 0-0. I played and scored against Wales when we won 3-0. That match was played at Kilmarnock. It felt good scoring a goal for Scotland and although it was at under-23 level, it still meant a hell of a lot to me. I played in the game against France which we again won, this time 2-0. I don't think that's a bad under-23 international record; played four, won two, drawn one, lost one, scored one.’
5
MOVING ON UP
If the 1963-64 season was classed as a good one, then the 1964-65 one could only be described as unbelievable. The media, as is now generally the case, believed that the newcomers to football's top league would simply aspire to nothing more than stability. It was predicted that Leeds would find the pace and quality of the First Division vastly different from that of the Second Division and would struggle. Yet Revie and his players felt differently. Bremner recalls:
‘There was self-belief running throughout the team. We all knew that it wouldn't be an easy season, but we actually believed in each other, and that made a difference.
‘One enigma was South African winger, Albert Johanneson. Albert had joined the club in 1961; in training the things he could do with a football amazed us. Ball juggling, flicks and tricks, he could control a football like no other person I had seen. He had the potential to become one of the game's greatest players of the era. We called him the Black Flash because he was so quick, and he weighed in with goals too. The problem was he had very little self-confidence. No matter what we told him, as soon as an opposition player or the fans got onto him, he began to doubt his ability and would hide in games where we needed him. We all had belief in him, none more so than the boss. Saying that, we had players of real quality who couldn't get a regular first-team place, we had strength in depth and the best supporters in the land to back us.’
The season began with a 2-1 win over Aston Villa at Villa Park; this was followed by a midweek Elland Road clash against reigning league champions, Liverpool, as Bremner explained:
‘I don't believe we openly classed the Liverpool game as any different from any other league clash, although it's always nice to beat the reigning champions. The supporters were relishing the chance to see us match them. Privately, I think the boss and the rest of us saw it as a benchmark of how we would cope with life in the first division. It was a great game to play in, a real battle from start to finish, and something else to win 4-2. We left the field that night absolutely drained but emotionally high. The belief and confidence we gained from that one result set us up for the rest of the season.’
An eighteen-match unbeaten run between late November and mid-April proved Leeds’ resilience to cope with top-flight football. Two defeats in April, at home to Manchester United (0-1), and away at Sheffield Wednesday (0-3), coincided with the two league games Bremner missed that season.
‘Oh, I don't think you can relate my absence to those two defeats. Manchester United was a strong side, always capable of beating anyone on their own turf. As for Wednesday, it was just one of those games, they unsettled us, and Hillsborough is a tough place to go when you are Leeds – Yorkshire rivalry and all that. Those two results effectively killed off our championship aspirations.’
Despite the undoubted quality of the football they consistently delivered, the media, fuelled by information contained within FA News, condemned the club for their ‘dirty’ style of play. The FA News had published a league table of clubs with the worst disciplinary record for the previous 1963-64 season, Leeds were top. The club ignored it and declined to comment on the abuse directed at the
m from certain quarters of the press and also from their opponents, many of whom would refer to them during games, particularly the Southern-based sides, as ‘dirty northern bastards’ or ‘cheating Yorkshire thugs’.
Bremner in particular found himself identified as an instigator of the so-called ‘dirty Leeds’ style:
‘I remember being asked by one journalist why I was such a dirty player and why I seemed to encourage my colleagues to kick lumps out of the opposition. It came as something of a surprise to be confronted by such inane and insulting questioning. I was really offended by the accusation thrown at me and it hurt. Without thinking, I asked him why he was such a shit writer and why he wasn't writing for one of the top national newspapers. He went bright red and didn't answer, he couldn't. I followed this up by advising him that it was because he lacked any professionalism and that as long as he had a hole in his arse he would never make a good football correspondent. For good measure I told him that he was a complete and utter wanker and not to be bother me again. He was obviously very upset by my comments as he abruptly turned on his heels and walked away.
‘I wasn't always a dirty player, sure I was tough and I always wanted to win, and yes, I admit it, I was enthusiastic, perhaps a little too overenthusiastic on occasions, but I firmly believe that every footballer should give his all for his club. He gets to wear the club shirt on a match day because he has earned the right through individual qualities. That reporter was intimating that I possessed little in the way of talent and had got to where I was through fouling, cheating and kicking. To my knowledge, I never saw him again.
‘Don't get me wrong, I have nothing against football journalists or writers, many of them are extremely good at what they do, but there are limits as to how far anyone should pre-judge any individual, especially when the majority have never played professional football.
‘I remember Chelsea players (again) trying to have a go at us during a game at Elland Road. Each time we went into a tackle they would hit the ground as though they had been struck by a scythe; they were shouting out “cheats” and “dirty northern bastards” so the referee could hear. It was ridiculous. Eventually I had a word with the referee and explained that Chelsea were play acting. He told me that from where he stood, I needed to calm my players down, as they were being overtly clumsy in the challenge. What a prat – “overtly clumsy” – what kind of stupid talk is that! Why did he not come out and say – “I think you are dirty northern bastards too''? I told the boss at half time and he went to speak with him about some of his decisions. A minute later the boss reappeared shaking his head from side to side. He looked at me and said, “Bill, we're playing against twelve men today, the ref has to be a Chelsea fan. He can see no wrong in anything they do and he says we are abusing and intimidating them.”
‘That was it. In my short time in the game so many incidents were Chelsea related. I knew that Chelsea and I were never going to get along. As we came out for the second half one of the linesmen said to me, “Don't worry Billy, we've spotted the play acting and are onto it.” So tell me, in these instances who actually were the cheats, Leeds, Chelsea or the match official? It still pains me that the “dirty Leeds” tag stuck with us long after we had all finished playing, and still continues.’
As the 1964-65 season progressed it was evident that the race for the Football League Championship was going to be between Leeds and Manchester United. Leeds had beaten the Red Devils in a replayed FA Cup semi-final so had one eye on the club's first ever FA Cup final appearance at Wembley stadium. Incredibly, the final game of the league season had seen Leeds needing to win to win the league. It wasn't to be, as a ten-man Birmingham City side, with nothing to lose or play for other than pride, were 3-0 up after 51 minutes of the game. The title dream was dwindling away, but not the Leeds spirit. In an incredible fight-back, goals from Johnny Giles, Paul Reaney and Jack Charlton earned a 3-3 draw and a solitary point, insufficient to secure the championship. Leeds had to be satisfied with the runners-up spot:
‘The game against Birmingham City wasn't the reason why we weren't league champions that year. We couldn't afford to lose two of our last five games and then expect to win the league, especially as one of those defeats was against our closest rival, Manchester United. Yes it was disappointing, yet when I look back and think of what we had achieved in a relatively short space of time, it was quite incredible. We were seen as serious contenders and despite what our critics and the cynics said, we played some really good football and won games because we outplayed our opponents in every position.’
The FA Cup provided a real opportunity for the team to collect some silverware. First Southport, then Everton (after a replay), followed by Shrewsbury Town and Crystal Palace were suitably dispatched, before Manchester United, proclaimed by the media to be the mightiest team in the land, were slain in the semi-final:
‘I loved playing in the FA Cup, it was never easy going to smaller clubs and those nasty little grounds where it was impossible for us play our usual football. We were building a decent reputation for ourselves as a team and club, and some lower league teams saw us as a team they couldn't compete with football wise. Instead, they would resort to trying to kick lumps out of us. It was hilarious to see supreme footballers, like Albert Johanneson, skipping past players trying to kick him into the stands, dancing past and round them like he was Rudolph Nureyev. Albert had all the football skill in the world and the dirtiest of players couldn't get anywhere near him when he was on his game.
‘Then there was Terry Cooper. The sight of him with his head down and in full flow, sprinting up the wing with the ball at his feet, he would leave everyone in his wake. I swear, sometimes Terry didn't know where he was going to end up when he set off on those mazy runs. Invariably he got a cross into the penalty area where we had forwards who could stick away half a chance. It was exceptional and, when I look back, so many teams simply couldn't compete with what we had in our armoury.’
The Manchester United FA Cup semi-final was no classic. Indeed, it took a replay to decide the issue. Both games were littered with niggling little incidents which detracted from what many had hoped would be an epic encounter. The first game was played at Hillsborough before 65,000 spectators. One reporter recorded that during the game there had been ‘32 fouls, 2 bookings, 7 prolonged injuries and no goals’.
The match referee, Mr R. H. Windle, suffered heavy criticism in the pages of the national press. His all-too-lenient approach to both sets of players was deemed to have encouraged the ill-tempered attitude displayed by both sides. At one point a group of seven players, four from Manchester and three from Leeds, squared up to each other and included in that mob was, of course, Billy Bremner:
‘I was being kicked all over the place by Paddy Crerand and little Nobby Stiles. My legs, my arse and even my back was covered in cuts and bruises. I took what I could until it was time to put a stop to it. It was a bit of a tame challenge that caused me to have a go in return, Paddy had been winding me up all game, kicking at my calfs and grabbing my shirt, holding tight onto me so I couldn't move, adding “f—— off Bremner” when he released the hold.
‘I decided to have a dig back at him, it was a simple elbow to his ribs, not hard but just a reminder that he shouldn't mess with me. Then it all kicked off, name calling, slapping, shirt pulling, but there was not one punch thrown, we had far too much respect for each other to punch. Everything else was okay, but no punching.’
Despite the continual skirmishes all over the pitch and the media damnation of the referee, surprise surprise, the Football Association stood by the match official and announced that he would officiate the replay at Nottingham Forest four days later.
The replay was by far and away the better of the two games; from the first whistle both sides attacked and defended in equal proportion; more importantly, both played some neat passing football. The two teams were deadlocked and it was going to take something very special to win the tie.
There was a num
ber of fine individual performances, none more so than that from the most outstanding player on the field that night, Billy Bremner. He covered every blade of grass and totally controlled the midfield area of the pitch and beyond. From defence to attack, Bremner was involved with everything for Leeds. The Yorkshire Post reporter, Eric Stranger, said of his performance; ‘Bremner had one of his most outstanding games.’
It was somewhat fitting that with just two minutes of the game remaining the familiar form of Billy Bremner latched onto a forty-yard free-kick that had been lofted deep into the Manchester penalty area by Johnny Giles. The irrepressible midfield dynamo launched himself toward the ball, twisting and stretching every muscle and sinew in his neck and upper body, in a desperate attempt to make contact. He succeeded, the ball bulleted off his head and into the roof of the net, giving Leeds the lead, and ultimately a place in the 1965 FA Cup final.