Matchday Memories: On This Day 1992 – See CCFC & Canaries Stalemate (Including Nuddy’s Corker)!
Gould R the ‘gaffer’
On this day (26th September) in 1992 the Sky Blues were well into their 1992-93 season in the newly titled Premier League under ‘Cov Kid’ former player turned manager Bobby Gould (now a CCFPA member). The Sky Blues had only lost two and won six of their first nine league games and were looking to keep the great start going today at Highfield Road in second place. The team standing in their way happened to be top-of-the-table side Norwich City and the Canaries also featured one former Sky Blue 1987 F.A.Cup winning hero and a future ‘gaffer’ in their starting XI.
Nuddy in the Sky Blue
Match Of The Day cameras were there along with a 16,425 crowd to watch proceedings and, in truth, the battle between the Premier League top two failed to live up to expectations apart from the quality of the Sky Blue goal scored in the 37th minute to equalise the opener which came after thirteen minutes from Norwich’s Ian Crook (a decent strike capitalising on loose defending by City).
David Phillips
The Sky Blues’ ‘Goal Of The Month‘ contender came from our ‘Bulawayo Bullet’, Zimbabwean Peter Ndlovu. Nuddy brought the house down with a mazy dribble, bamboozling three defenders, before dummying Canaries’ ‘keeper Bryan Gunn to net. The side from East Anglia boasted in wide attack ex Sky Blue (now CCFPA member) David Phillips and heading up their forward line was current Sky Blue ‘gaffer’ Mark Robins. Both sides had their chances to break the deadlock but the Canaries were a decent side whose slick passing unnerved the Sky Blues defence at times. A draw was probably a fair result and left the away team as table toppers and the Sky Blues slipped to third.
The Sky Blues’ team this day was (all team members apart from Phil later became CCFPA members):-Steve Ogrizovic, Brian Borrows, Kenny Sansom (sub. Phil Babb), Peter Atherton, Andy Pearce, Peter Ndlovu, Lloyd McGrath, Lee Hurst, Robert Rosario, Kevin Gallacher and John Williams.
Phil Neal, the Gouldfather’s Assistant (who would go on to take over the gaffer’s chair from Bobby the following season) became part of the England set up this season.
Mark Robins in Canaries kit
Mike Walker‘s Norwich City lined up:-
Bryan Gunn, Ian Culverhouse, Mark Bowen, John Polston, Chris Sutton, Darryl Sutch, Ian Crook, Rob Newman, Mark Robins, Jeremy Goss and David Phillips. Referee: Alf Buksh
CCFC connections with the Canaries today, apart from (now CCFPA member) David Phillips and Mark Robins, Norwich City‘s club captain this season (though not playing today) Ian Butterworth was an exciting Sky Blue talent from 1981-85 and is now an Association member.
The score between the two sides in the return at Carrow Road in mid January was exactly the same (1-1) with a goal from Sky Blue ‘Sumo’ Mick Quinn (another Association member today) cancelling one out from Chris Sutton.
CCFC 1992-93
Both sides slipped from their high spots in September, CCFC much more than the Canaries who finished third. The Sky Blues eventually completed the Premier League season in fifteenth spot three points clear of the drop zone which contained the relegated Crystal Palace, Middlesbrough and bottom club Nottingham Forest.
Manchester United took the title fully ten points clear of runners up, Aston Villa.
