Local Life - Wigan - October 2020
Wigan's FREE local lifestyle magazine.
Wigan's FREE local lifestyle magazine.
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MATCH<br />
to Remember<br />
WIGAN ATHLETIC 5<br />
PORT VALE 3<br />
MATCH FACTS<br />
VENUE: Springfield Park<br />
DATE: Friday 13th April 1979<br />
CROWD: 8,542<br />
WIGAN TEAM: Brown, Hinnigan, Smart,<br />
Gore, Ward, Fretwell, Corrigan, Wright,<br />
Houghton, Moore, Purdie Sub: Brownbill<br />
SCORERS:<br />
<strong>Wigan</strong> - Houghton(3), Brownbill, Moore.<br />
Port Vale - Todd (2), Wright<br />
69<br />
BACK DROP<br />
Going into the game, Latics were in 5th place in Division 4, a single point away from<br />
the promotion places with 8 games left to play in their inaugural season. Making<br />
his debut for the Valiants that day (alongside his brother Neville) was 17-year-old<br />
Mark Chamberlain, now an ex-England international and father of Liverpool’s Alex<br />
Oxlade-Chamberlain.<br />
Down 3-0 with just 20 minutes left to play, Latics staged an amazing comeback and<br />
won 5-3 in front of a 8,542 crowd though, 41 years on, some fans will still be kicking<br />
themselves after storming out of Springfield Park long before the match ended.<br />
This match was described by respected football magazine When Saturday Comes as<br />
‘The greatest comeback in the history of the game ever’ and rather inappropriately<br />
for a resurrection, it all happened on a Good Friday.<br />
VIEW FROM THE PITCH –<br />
PETER HOUGHTON<br />
I had scored in the previous few games so went into the match quite<br />
confident. We were in the promotion chase; it was a Bank Holiday and<br />
there was a good atmosphere at Springfield Park. It all changed when<br />
they went 3-0 up and we heard the booing when we came off at half time<br />
so the mood in the changing room was a bit deflated.<br />
Ian McNeill changed tactics and brought on another forward, Derek<br />
Brownbill. My first goal was like a consolation, then when my second and<br />
third goal went in, everything changed. Every time we went forward it looked like we would score. Two further<br />
goals from Derek and Mickey Moore finished Port Vale off.<br />
On this particular day most of my family were in the crowd, and as it used to be quite difficult to get family into<br />
the players’ lounge after the match, they all waited for me in the supporters’ club. I’ll never forget being carried<br />
shoulder-high into the supporters’ club by some of the fans, though my wife was in the ladies at the time and<br />
missed it!<br />
Over the Easter period, we had 3 games in 4 days – Good Friday, Saturday and Monday. I took a knock on my<br />
ankle on the Saturday game but still tried to play on the Monday. it didn’t work out and I didn’t play again that<br />
season. Such is the highs and lows of playing football.
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