Most liked posts in thread: Can you remember your first City home / away game?

I can't remember specifically which were my first home and away games.

My dad has always said that he started taking me in the early 70s, when I was a 3 or 4 year old and lifting me over the turnstiles down at VP and then sitting on his knee. Barnsley must have been my first away game as again dad has said I went with him as a nipper and sat on his knee!!

Both still going 50 years later and now my eldest lad has done about 20 years too!!

 

1955/56 season for me. Division 3 North.
August, Wrexham at home - won 4- 3 as I remember!
We were getting 10 - 15k gates even in those days. As a young lad I remember it was a tight squeeze getting out, my grandad used to protect me!

As Dave says, every player a hero!
To add to the list, Geoff Hudson, David Gray, George Williamson, Willie Robb, Kelly, Les Samuels and my absolute hero - Johnny Simm on the left wing!!

The reserves played in the Midland League and when the first team were away, the up to date score would be announced every fifteen minutes!

Great days.

 

First home game I think was Rotherham, 1-1 draw, 8th April 1985. Was too young to remember it properly, but the one I really class as my first was Grimsby, we won 4-2, 7th Feb 1987.

First away game 18th August 1987 at Oldham, we won 2-0.

My Dad took me to the home games, and I went to Oldham with a friend from our street. Fast forward 40 years or whatever it is, my Dad doesn’t bother anymore, and I go with my wife and kids. They’re not as ”into” City as me but my eldest, nearly 17, is pretty City mad which I’m proud of!

 

I can't remember what I had for tea last night never mind my first home or away game, I started attending home games in the late 50s where the likes of the Jackson twins, Martin Bakes, David Boyle, Malcolm Currie, Jimmy Lawlor,George Mulholland, Geoff Smith, Bobby Webb, Jock Whyte were my boyhood hero's.

 

Same with me, too long ago to recall the actual match. All I know is I had taken an interest in City due to my older brother and dad going but I was deemed too young to go at six, but as soon as I got to seven I was old enough! This was in the March of 1969 so my first match was towards the end of our promotion winning season. I remember the elation in our house with the win at Darlington, which my brother, dad, uncle and cousin went to but I again wasn't allowed!!
It was the following season in Div3 that I started going regularly and we started to go to away matches also on a regular basis, so much so that I had totted up to 70 odd away grounds at one point. I think the first away was a night match at York but I wouldn't swear to it. I just remember being dazzled by the lights and the sounds and smells of games in those days as a young kid. I was hooked and there was no going back!

 

I went to that game with my dad and uncle Gordon (a Rotherham fan).

We went one nil down and grief from my uncle, we went on to score 5.

A great day.

 

Feb 1989 v Plymouth at VP. 1-1. Last min equaliser by Peter Costello.

Similar to @Brucie the Bantam we'd also moved to South Wales (Cowbridge). My old man is a Leeds fan and used to take me to Elland Road with him a lot, but something clicked in 1986 and I started supporting the team from the city of my birth. Fair play to him, he didn't try and change my viewpoint. Took another three years of supporting via Ceefax before I saw them in the flesh. Sadly, it set a pattern of me being only able to get to VP when I was in the area, but it was an absolute given that if I was in Bradford visiting relatives, attending funerals or whatever, that we'd stay on a few extra days or arrive early if City were playing on Saturday or midweek. Can't wait to take my three kids to their first ever VP visit. Been a long time coming, and I hope it is this season.

 

1-1 home draw vs Brum in 1995. Free school tickets

 

https://www.11v11.com/matches/bradford-city-v-bury-08-march-1958-158307/ First away Avenue

 

We used to go to BPA sometimes as well, my dad was a Bradford Sports fan and spent a lot of time at PA, albeit mainly at the cricket. We went to both BPA's last home NP league match and the last match at PA, which I believe was a West Riding Cup match v City. If I recall City won 4.3

 

I used to hate Keith Edwards with a passion.

 

First home game v Reading May 4th 1985. We lost 5-2 but I’m sure we were already Champions.

first away game was Hudders , 7th Sep 1985. We lost 2-0. Still have the 20 loyalty points! Lol

 

My next door neighbour Mark was a massive City fan.
He had his own business which sponsored the club.
With me not having my dad around as a kid, he knew I loved football as I was out in the street playing all the time, and said would I like to go watch Bradford City play??
I was straight in at the deep end.
He went to City with a load of die hards.
Saturdays consisted of meeting at the Cartwright Hotel at noon and watching everyone get tanked up.
We sat in what was then the Natpros stand, Morrisons stand now. As sometimes stood on the kop for the bigger matches.
I was going to away matches with them pretty much straight away.



First home match.
Oxford fa cup 3rd round 1988.
Won 4-1

First away match was Sheffield United or Man City 1988.
Can't remember which order but they were around the same time.

Won 2-1 at Bramall Lane.
Drew 2-2 at Maine Road.

The nearly season.
I was hooked from there on in.

 

My first City match was the home League Cup tie against Man Utd in November 1982. Evening game which we drew 0-0.
I was a student at Bradford Uni and probably went along because one of my student housemates was a United fan. We sat in the old wooden main stand - the only time I ever did that.
I don't remember much about the game, except that Ces Podd and Joe Cook both played in it.
It was only after I finished uni that I started going to City games more regularly, in the 84/85 promotion season.

 

Saturday, 26th April 1986.

My first ever live game as a 12 year old lad, tickets won via a competition in the T&A, can't remember the question but remember it being answered on a postcard style envelope.
To that point, I had embraced another team east of Pudsey. Won the game 3-1, I believe we was 3-0 up at half time with goals from Sticks and Don Goodman. And for odsal, it was a pleasant Saturday afternoon in the sunshine!!!

Got the old city circle bus up to odsal with a friend (can't remember whom at this point ) and was bought in instantly. The excitement of live football was straight in my blood and god knows how many live games I've attended since but spans from Exeter to Newcastle.

I do remember my mum being so relieved when I got home due to the 80s epidemic of violence. She tried to get me to stop going after the Leeds game in September 86 and truthfully, I had to lie to get to games for a period after that...it also confirmed my dislike/hatred/contempt for them from that point.

 

Doncaster home August 1966 league cup tie, our goalkeeper punched into his own net, we missed a penalty but drew 1-1

 

11 September 1974. A midweek game.
Home v Carlisle in League Cup. Carlisle were in the top division then, but got relegated at the end of the season.
Still got the programme somewhere.
We lost 0-1.

 

One of the 1st home games I can remember was the 8-1bournemouth game and away at Notts County early seventies think we lost 3 0 and County won the league that year

 

HOME - 1990 - Tranmere - 1-2. Super Sean's debut. Scored. Missed pen. Red card.
AWAY - 1990 - Grimsby - 1-1. Weekend in Cleethorpes with the old man.