Colin Murphy

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Originally Posted by marky

Yeah I remember being at our play off semi final and for some reason the Blackpool v Bradford game finished before ours and I was telling everyone around me that B radford had got through and people were looking at me in amazement. I also went to the final and it really was the worst experience I have ever had at a football match, we were heavily outnumbered, I remember how walking up to the twin towers there was the 2 sides with the Bradford side packed and our side very little and there were even a few Bradford fans walking up our side, in the ground was horrible too when they constantly kept on doing the mexican wave and when it got to our end it looked awful. The game and result was horrible as well and after the game people were fighting in our end.

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Notts fans fighting among themselves?

I went to every single home game that season, including League Cup 1st Round 1st Leg, yet I didn't go to the final, which probably says quite a lot.

The last regular home league match of that season we still had a chance of auto promotion on the back of an unbeaten run of 5 games, it was 0-0 at half time and the team was booed off the pitch. The frustration had been boiling under the surface due to what had happened since we'd chucked away a position of safety in the top flight and the complete farce on and off the pitch of the 1994/95 season, Murphy and Thompson bore the brunt of it. Probably was inevitable that they were going to get the sack the following season as soon as the FT whistle blew at Wembley.

I think we were a victim of our own success in many ways. Had we not gone straight up from tier 3 to tier 1 and instead consolidated in tier 2, we'd have probably been better off in the long run, not having the hubris nor being in quite so much of a rush to re-build the ground on all sides. Having said that, Pavis had made the decision to re-build 6 months before the Brighton Play off final, so whether or not the time frame would have been any different, I don't know. I think the plans were altered at some point however for a larger capacity.

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Originally Posted by upthemaggies

Notts fans fighting among themselves?

I went to every single home game that season, including League Cup 1st Round 1st Leg, yet I didn't go to the final, which probably says quite a lot.

The last regular home league match of that season we still had a chance of auto promotion on the back of an unbeaten run of 5 games, it was 0-0 at half time and the team was booed off the pitch. The frustration had been boiling under the surface due to what had happened since we'd chucked away a position of safety in the top flight and the complete farce on and off the pitch of the 1994/95 season, Murphy and Thompson bore the brunt of it. Probably was inevitable that they were going to get the sack the following season as soon as the FT whistle blew at Wembley.

I think we were a victim of our own success in many ways. Had we not gone straight up from tier 3 to tier 1 and instead consolidated in tier 2, we'd have probably been better off in the long run, not having the hubris nor being in quite so much of a rush to re-build the ground on all sides. Having said that, Pavis had made the decision to re-build 6 months before the Brighton Play off final, so whether or not the time frame would have been any different, I don't know. I think the plans were altered at some point however for a larger capacity.

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I seem to recall the fighting getting even worse the following season toward the end of the Murphy/Thompson reign - with one especially vile atmosphere during an away game at Luton.

R.I.P Colin, l think your brief was to slash the wage bill and work miracles and you nearly did it against Bradford in the playoff final.

I wonder if the minutes of the 1990s board meetings still exist. Those would make for fascinating reading.

Despite announcing plans to re-develop Meadow Lane in late 1990, the ground share with Fword was still being talked about in October 1991 (with the club in the top flight by then)..... "Chairman Mr Derek Pavis today predicted that Nottingham would get a “super stadium” and talked about the acute problems he faces in trying to redevelop Meadow Lane."
So this confirms that us getting promoted to the top flight did very much change the course of history in terms of the ground, finances, re-building and the ramifications for being able to stabilise as a top 2 tier club.

[QUOTE=TedBovisPie;40354798]“I realise that not many possess the wisdom of the Mandala, but at times persiflage is not comprehensible. However, don’t worry, we shall defeat the diphthongs.”

Well, that's a new word for me:
persiflage
/ˈpəːsɪflɑːʒ/
noun FORMAL
light and slightly contemptuous mockery or banter.
"an air of persiflage"

Some very good players in that list of recruits. All I remember of that era is listening on radio to the Bradford final... A real downer.

RIP Colin.

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Originally Posted by nw6pie

I seem to recall the fighting getting even worse the following season toward the end of the Murphy/Thompson reign - with one especially vile atmosphere during an away game at Luton.

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I was at that game, the atmosphere amongst the Notts fans was not good and the walk back to the station with bricks being thrown at us was even worse, horrible ground.

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Originally Posted by upthemaggies

I wonder if the minutes of the 1990s board meetings still exist. Those would make for fascinating reading.

Despite announcing plans to re-develop Meadow Lane in late 1990, the ground share with Fword was still being talked about in October 1991 (with the club in the top flight by then)..... "Chairman Mr Derek Pavis today predicted that Nottingham would get a “super stadium” and talked about the acute problems he faces in trying to redevelop Meadow Lane."
So this confirms that us getting promoted to the top flight did very much change the course of history in terms of the ground, finances, re-building and the ramifications for being able to stabilise as a top 2 tier club.

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I think Cloughie’s “over my dead body” stance was ultimately the thing that killed the super stadium idea. If Forest had been keen, I’m sure we’d have rolled along with it.