Matchday Memories: On This Day 1995 – Sky Blues Empty The Tigers’ Tank In Hull
On this day (4th October) in 1995 the Sky Blues ‘gaffer’ ‘Big Ron Atkinson’ was experiencing a difficult start to the club’s Premiership season with only one win in the first eight league games, and last time out City had lost 3-0 at home to the ‘auld enemy’ Aston Villa. The only bright light so far was the Sky Blues results in the League Cup where they had started their campaign in the two legged Second Round with a 2-0 win at Highfield Road against Hull City a fortnight previously. The City scorers then had been experience midfielder Kevin Richardson and a young Ghanaian talent, and quite recent CCFPA recruit, Nii Lamptey. In truth, City should have done even better with the Tigers eventually going down to ten men after Kevin Dewhurst was sent off for apparently ‘standing on Nii’s head’!
Nii Lamptey in the Sky Blue
Nii had been brought in from Belgian club Anderlecht by Big Ron this season and was hoping to build a reputation in top flight UK football. He did his reputation more good in this evening’s second leg game at Boothferry Park by scoring the only goal of the game against a poor Hull City side after just ten minutes to give the Sky Blues the win on the night and take the tie 3-0 on aggregate. Nii’s goal was stunning as he confidently beat two defenders before sending an unstoppable drive past the Tigers’ ‘keeper Steve Wilson. Inexperience however showed as poor positioning led him to be caught offside too often – and generally, just as in the first leg, the Tigers should have received greater punishment from the Sky Blues.
Big Ron
The Sky Blues lined up as follows (CCFPA members underlined):-
This victory earned the Sky Blues a home tie in Round Three of the League Cup against Tottenham Hotspur and, once more we put the ‘Spurs out of a cup, beating them by the odd goal in three at Highfield Road (with goals from ‘Nuddy’, ‘Bussty’ and John Salako). City went out in the Fourth Round, however, at Wolverhampton Wanderers by the odd goal in three, Paul Williams second half goal being just a consolation.
Nii Lamptey ended up with eleven Sky Blue appearances (including three League Cup games) and both his goals came in this competition. Not just among CCFC fans (a podcast was named after him) Nii’s name became a bye-word for a precocious talent which briefly flared and burnt out too quickly due to the pressure of undue expectations!
CCFC 1995-96
In the Premier League in another nail biting finale, in their last four games the Sky Blues finished with two wins and two draws without conceding a goal and this was enough to get them a sixteenth place finish on the same points as fellow survivors Southampton in seventeenth and relegated Manchester City.
Queen’s Park Rangers and bottom club Bolton Wanderers also took the drop. Manchester United took the title four points clear of runners up Newcastle United.
Thanks to CCFPA’s Mike Young for sourcing the images.
