Memory Lane Old Photos of Southend United.

[westie]

Any relation to Mickey Staines?

Yes, he is Mick's younger brother. I also recognise Chris Heyburn, who went on to play locally for Fairfax and Customs & Excise.

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

Colin Staines bottom left penalty taker. He posts on here occasionally as well.

Colin's still about. I see him at ASDA sometimes, and in the summer he sits on the bench near The White Horse now and again. (The Walnut Tree, but everyone still says The White Horse).

 

[The Big Dady]

Colin Staines bottom left penalty taker. He posts on here occasionally as well.

Colin is @CHEMICO FC on here.

 

[graingerroad54]

Did you go to that first game at Roots Hall graingerroad54?

yes. started watching the blues the previous season at grainger road. roots hall in those days seemed huge. i was at the cup ties against man city & birmingham with over 30, 000 at both matches city & brum both reached the final and both lost!

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

yes. started watching the blues the previous season at grainger road. roots hall in those days seemed huge. i was at the cup ties against man city & birmingham with over 30, 000 at both matches city & brum both reached the final and both lost!

That's just fantastic graingerroad54. I bet it was just brilliant to be in the new stadium, as Grainger Road didn't look like a nice place to watch football, especially with the greyhound track around the pitch. Just out of interest, do you remember what stand you watched the first game against Norwich at Roots Hall? Those cup ties with those huge crowds must have been great as well.

 

[Up the Shrimpers]

View attachment 12018

Colin is @CHEMICO FC on here.

Not changed much has he

 

[Zeuss]

yes. started watching the blues the previous season at grainger road. roots hall in those days seemed huge. i was at the cup ties against man city & birmingham with over 30, 000 at both matches city & brum both reached the final and both lost!

Not so.The season they beat us,Man C won the Cup, beating Birmingham in the Final...remember Trautmann’s broken neck? We played Brum the following season ,when the Final was Villa v Manure.

 

[wildheart]

A better image, you can read about the other lads. Of course I remember Sean?

 

[graingerroad54]

That's just fantastic graingerroad54. I bet it was just brilliant to be in the new stadium, as Grainger Road didn't look like a nice place to watch football, especially with the greyhound track around the pitch. Just out of interest, do you remember what stand you watched the first game against Norwich at Roots Hall? Those cup ties with those huge crowds must have been great as well.

me and my mates stood behind the goal where the away supporters now sit . it was all standing and covered unlike the huge terracing behind the other goal. away fans mingled with us and it made for a great atmosphere (most times)!

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

me and my mates stood behind the goal where the away supporters now sit . it was all standing and covered unlike the huge terracing behind the other goal. away fans mingled with us and it made for a great atmosphere (most times)!

Ah, The North Bank. Excellent young man. I hope you still get to Roots Hall when possible. Apart from Cricko (I think he watched them at the Kursaal), I think you are the only person on here that was at that first game. Thank you for sharing it with us. May you stay safe and well, and live long. God bless you.

 

[graingerroad54]

Not so.The season they beat us,Man C won the Cup, beating Birmingham in the Final...remember Trautmann’s broken neck? We played Brum the following season ,when the Final was Villa v Manure.

should have put 1955/56 season, city beat us 1-0 and lost 3-1 to newcastle in the final. 1956/57 brum beat us 6-1 and lost 3-1 to man city

 

[graingerroad54]

Ah, The North Bank. Excellent young man. I hope you still get to Roots Hall when possible. Apart from Cricko (I think he watched them at the Kursaal), I think you are the only person on here that was at that first game. Thank you for sharing it with us. May you stay safe and well, and live long. God bless you.

thank you for your kind message! you might be interested in a few other recollections like average attendances of 14,000 for those early years at the hall. i remember two gates of 21,000 v coventry (a big team in the old 3rd division south ) and northampton (who got to the 1st division in a few years).

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

should have put 1955/56 season, city beat us 1-0 and lost 3-1 to newcastle in the final. 1956/57 brum beat us 6-1 and lost 3-1 to man city

Especially for you graingerroad54.

Southend v Manchester City FA Cup 4th Round 1955/56.

​

SOUTHEND UNITED 0 CITY 1 FA Cup 4th Round 28th January 1956 attendance 29,500 scorer Hayes ref E Crawford​

Southend Threadgold, Williamson, Howe, Duthie, Stirling, Lawler, Lockhart, McCrory, Hollis, Baron, McGuigan

City Trautmann, Ewing, Little, Barnes, Leivers, Paul, Spurdle, Hayes, Johnstone, Dyson, Clarke

From TRAUTMANN THE BIOGRAPHY by Alan Rowlands
Eric Thornton of the Manchester Evening News telephoned Southend to find out some facts about the club and was amazed to hear that the match might be postponed. Thornton

travelled down to Southend, arriving in torrential rain that had been pouring over Essex for days and in his words “I booked a taxi for the ground and gazed upon a fantastic scene. Workmen were digging up the pitch. The chairman, a farmer, was watching the operation and he explained that the ordinary drains were not taking sufficient water. A zig zag trench was being cut across the pitch. The pipes were being opened, and tons of cockleshells were being tossed into them before the soil was shovelled back all over again.”
When Thornton’s story appeared in the Evening News the nationals picked up the story and the Southend tie became the story of the fourth round.
The City team arrived in Southend on Friday 27th January, the day before the match, and were more than a little worried about the pitch. The press with predictable headlines, had screamed about the pitch being a great leveller and they were looking for a shock win by the third division side. The Manchester players’ trepidation was confirmed when they saw the playing area for the first time and the ‘Sand And Cockleshell Heroes’ headlines began to loom before them.
Roy Paul wrote afterwards “The pitch was dreadful to play on and most of the lads came off with skinned knees caused by sand and shells. One man got us through the match, Bert Trautmann. Many people consider Trautmann’s display that day . the finest exhibition of goalkeeping they had ever witnessed. The 29,500 crowd were in awe of his breathtaking reflexes, the Southend players were used to playing on a quagmire and City could not master the conditions. Shots flew at Trautmann from every angle, he was diving headlong at opposing forwards with heartstopping bravado and he caught, punched or tipped away everything the United forwards threw at him. Joe Hayes broke away to score the only goal and Manchester were through to face Lverpool in the 5th round. As the players were trudging wearily off the pitch, Paul commiserated with one of the Southend players, particurlarly about a penalty decision in which the referee had denied them. “Don’t worry Roy, Bert would have blooming saved it anyway!”

 

[THE SEVENTIES NORTH BANK]

And this.
FROM AN ARTICLE BY HOWARD SOUTHWOOD, PUBLISHED IN THE SOUTHEND PROGRAMME 23RD SEPTEMBER 1986
TORRENTIAL rain turned the Roots Hall pitch into something closely resembling a ploughed field, water lay in huge pools all over the surface. Fans and officials were amazed that referee Mr. E. Crawford from Doncaster gave the thumbs up to a pitch which hardly looked Iikely to become the setting for one of the most gripping Cup clashes ever seen in the town. ·
…The match turned into an epic one which is still talked about when long standing Southend fans meet in the pub.
…A then record 29,500 people packed into the ground like sardines and witnessed one of the most amazing goalkeeping displays of all time. City’s former German Paratrooper Bert Trautmann chose that unlikely setting to turn in what he later described as “possibly the finest performance” of his career, no Blues fan present would argue with that. He twisted and dived to keep out a more or less incessant barrage of shots and headers, the most memorable being a save from a Roy Hollis shot which had goal stamped all over it.
lt seemed doubly cruel that the 23rd minute goal which eventually beat Southend was one of the softest seen at the ground before or since. Little Joe Hayes stabbed the ball goalwards through the sticky mud. Harry Threadgold had it covered until it struck full-back Arthur Williamson and trickled over the line.
Hardly a goal in keeping with the pulsating action which kept supporters enthralled for 90 nail-biting minutes, …City’s Welsh International Roy Paul said afterwards: “This was the toughest match so far for me. City will never have a tougher game either in Cup or League. These Southend boys gave everything they had in the second half and then kept coming.”
The then Southend boss Harry Warren told Pressmen: “Our boys fought magnificently. I am very proud of them. Manchester City had the luck and Trautmann”.

 

[Zeuss]

should have put 1955/56 season, city beat us 1-0 and lost 3-1 to newcastle in the final. 1956/57 brum beat us 6-1 and lost 3-1 to man city

Wrong again ! You have the 2 Southend ties in the correct seasons BUT Cup winners were as follows:
1954-5. Newcastle
1955-6. Man C
1956-7. A.Villa

 

[Chairman Trigg]

Came across this on another site .Phil Chisnal a class player for us in his Man U youth days....playing alongside Nobby and Johnny Giles.Also F Haydock ? who was also with us for a short spell

 

[eaststander]

Ah, The North Bank. Excellent young man. I hope you still get to Roots Hall when possible. Apart from Cricko (I think he watched them at the Kursaal), I think you are the only person on here that was at that first game. Thank you for sharing it with us. May you stay safe and well, and live long. God bless you.

I was at 1st game at Roots Hall! Went with 3 or 4 mates from school - aged 9! Remember going in wrong gate and stood in the then called Paddock in front of East stand. I have season ticket in the East now and sit not far from where I stood that 1st game !!

 

[LCBB72]

Came across this on another site .Phil Chisnal a class player for us in his Man U youth days....playing alongside Nobby and Johnny Giles.Also F Haydock ? who was also with us for a short spellView attachment 11992

I know he is not in the picture , but Sammy McMillam also played for Southend , in fact they all played in the same Southend team .

 

[graingerroad54]

Wrong again ! You have the 2 Southend ties in the correct seasons BUT Cup winners were as follows:
1954-5. Newcastle
1955-6. Man C
1956-7. A.Villa

hands up! you are right. put it down to old age!

 

[Zeuss]

hands up! you are right. put it down to old age!

Cheers. I don’t expect I’m that much younger,my parents,who still had West Stand season tickets up to their 90’s, didn’t take me to my first game till I was 6,that was FA Cup v QPR November 1955 ?