Matchday Memories: On This Day 1982 – A Magic Melrose Treble & Two ‘Thommos’ Trouble the Toffees!
Dave Sexton, CCFC’s gaffer
Les Sealey fronts the programme
On this day (25th September) in 1982 the Sky Blues were facing their seventh Division One fixture of the season under Dave Sexton. Though his team had achieved two narrow 1-0 home victories since the season began (against Southampton on the opening day and Sunderland) CCFC’s away performances had been poor, losing at Swansea, Ipswich Town and Birmingham. The 2-0 defeat to the Arsenal last time they had a game at Highfield Road confirmed there was a Sky Blues goal drought (only four goals in their first six league games). Thankfully this was about to change today and Everton were the victims in front of a Highfield Road crowd of only 9,297!
Jim in the Sky Blue 1982
Steve in the Sky Blue brown!
One change factor was that our new Scottish forward signing from Leicester City, Jim Melrose was making his home debut. Jim had arrived at Highfield Road as a result of a swap deal with the Foxes that took young Tommy English (now Jim’s fellow CCFPA member) to Filbert Street. Jim immediately endeared himself to Sky Blues home fans by knocking in a home debut hat-trick (21, 53 and 67 minutes)! City were dominant both in the air (thanks to our forceful centre-forward Garry Thompson) and on the deck (thanks to the trickery of Steve Hunt, just returned from the USA). Both now are also Association members.
The City had roared into a 4-1 lead by the 67th minute, Steve notching our other goal on fifty minutes. Future Sky Blue assistant manager (later caretaker) Adrian Heath got the Toffees’ first goal, an equaliser, on 26 minutes. Their second, the last goal of the game, with just over twenty minutes left came from Everton’s Andy King.
Keith in the Sky Blue
Garry in the Sky Blue
The Evertonians also included influential future Sky Blue midfielder Kevin Richardson in their eleven.
When substitute Keith Thompson replaced Steve near the end of the game he joined brother Garry in the Sky Blues forward line, the only time they played together in the Sky Blue first team and the first time brothers had played together for CCFC since the 1920s! Keith also later joined CCFPA.
Sexton’s Sky Blues that day comprised (CCFPA members underlined):-
The late Les Sealey, Danny Thomas, Brian Roberts, Steve Jacobs, Paul Dyson, Gary Gillespie, Steve Whitton, Gerry Francis, Jim Melrose, Garry Thompson and Steve Hunt (sub. Keith Thompson)
Howard Kendall‘s Toffeemen lined up as follows:-
Neville Southall, Kevin Richardson, Michael Walsh, Mark Higgins, Billy Wright, Steve McMahon, Trevor Ross (sub. Alan Irvine), Adrian Heath, Graeme Sharp, Andy King and Kevin Sheedy Referee:- J.Key
CCFC 1982-83
The Toffees got a bit of revenge at Goodison the following May beating the Sky Blues by the only goal of the game scored on 76 minutes by Graeme Sharp. However, City just about managed to avoid relegation at the end of the season finishing in nineteenth, one point and one place above the drop (taken by Manchester City, Swansea and bottom club Brighton).
Everton were very comfortable in seventh spot, though they won’t have been happy that the other team in their home city, Liverpool were crowned as clear cut Division One Champions in 1982-83 (a full eleven points clear of runners up Watford)!
Thanks to CCFPA’s Mike Young (& Dean Nelson) for sourcing the images.
