Premier League Rewind: 6th-7th May 1994

Results: Aston Villa 2-1 Liverpool FC, Blackburn Rovers 0-0 Ipswich Town, Chelsea 3-2 Sheffield United, Everton 3-2 Wimbledon, Newcastle United 2-0 Arsenal, Norwich City 1-1 Oldham Athletic, Sheffield Wednesday 1-1 Manchester City, Swindon Town 0-5 Leeds United, Tottenham Hotspur 1-2 Queens Park Rangers, West Ham United 3-3 Southampton, Manchester United 0-0 Coventry City

With Manchester United having been crowned Premier League champions for the second successive season four days earlier, all the drama on the final weekend of the 1993-1994 season was at the bottom of the table. Swindon Town were already relegated but there were still two relegation spots to be filled.

With an inferior goal difference to their rivals, Oldham Athletic needed a minor miracle. They had run out of steam at the wrong point in the season. Incredibly, their final match of the season against Norwich City was their sixth game in just 14 days! The Latics could certainly complain about the fixture backlog and their FA Cup semi-final agony at the hands of Manchester United had affected them mentally too. They had to win by at least three clear goals and hope results went their way. Sean McCarthy did give them a 13^th minute lead but there would be no great escape this time around. Rob Ullathorne’s equaliser 17 minutes from full-time ensured the points were shared in a 1-1 draw and confirmed Oldham’s drop to Division One.

Oldham were down but there was one spot up for grabs and it was between Everton, Ipswich Town, Southampton and Sheffield United. Everton’s season had been a nightmare. Having topped the table after three matches, they had seen Howard Kendall quit in December and highly-rated Mike Walker unable to stop the slide. Only a win against in-form Wimbledon would give them a chance of beating the drop. It looked hopeless after just 20 minutes. A Dean Holdsworth penalty and Gary Ablett’s unfortunate own goal had Wimbledon 2-0 ahead. With the Dons unbeaten in nine matches, Everton’s fate looked to be sealed. However, divine inspiration came in the form of Graham Stuart. His penalty in the 24^th minute gave the home side some hope after Anders Limpar’s ‘dive’ won the spot-kick. Barry Horne scored a belter to level the scores and then, with nine minutes left, Stuart’s second of the afternoon somehow eluded the grasp of Hans Segers. Everton were infront and held on for a 3-2 victory. A pitch invasion at the full-time whistle confirmed they had survived but only just.

Everton’s comeback meant Ipswich Town were very vulnerable. Having been 12^th in the table after beating Aston Villa on 12^th Match, the Tractor Boys had collected just two points from their next nine matches. They had a testing trip to Blackburn Rovers who were already guaranteed the runners-up position. Blackburn had the better of the chances but couldn’t find a way through. The match ended goalless. However, that would have sent them down if scores remained the same in the two games based in London involving Southampton and Sheffield United.

For the second successive season, Matt Le Tissier produced some magic on the final day. His two goals helped Southampton to a pulsating 3-3 draw at Upton Park with West Ham United, despite Ken Monkou’s late own goal costing them three points. The Saints were safe. It looked like Sheffield United would also be celebrating safety. They led twice at Stamford Bridge against Chelsea and going into stoppage-time, a 2-2 scoreline was good enough for the Blades. Then, Mark Stein snatched a late winner for Chelsea and results elsewhere meant it was Dave Bassett’s club who were relegated in devastating circumstances. It had been an afternoon full of contrasting emotions.

Elsewhere, Leeds United’s 5-0 victory away at Swindon Town meant the Premier League debutants became the first and so far, only side to concede 100 goals in a top-flight season since 1992. Aston Villa’s 2-1 success at home to Liverpool FC ensured their pipped Midlands rivals Coventry City to a top 10 finish. The Sky Blues might have lost that battle with the Villans but still earned a creditable 0-0 draw at Old Trafford in the final match of an exciting weekend.

What else happened in May 1994?

• In joyous scenes across the country, Nelson Mandela is inaugurated as South Africa’s first black president.
• UK politics is suspended after the sudden death of the Labour leader John Smith. He suffered a massive heart attack on 12^th May and dies aged 55.
• Three-time world Formula One champion Ayrton Senna is killed in an accident whilst leading the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola. He was just 34-years-old.
• The Channel Tunnel, which can get people between Britain and France in 35 minutes, is open to the public for the first time.
• In late May, Scottish group Wet Wet Wet reach no.1 with Love Is All Around. It will spend 15 consecutive weeks on top of the UK music charts.
• The film Four Weddings and a Funeral is released in the UK.
• Malawi holds its first multiparty elections.

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The Clubs: Swindon Town

All-Time Premier League Record

Played	Won	Drew	Lost	Scored	Conceded	Goal Difference	Points	No of Seasons
42	5	15	22	47	100	-53	30	1

 

Most Premier League Appearances

Player	Appearances Total
Shaun Taylor	42
John Moncur	41
Kevin Horlock	38
Nicky Summerbee	38
Jan Aage Fjortoft	36
Adrian Whitbread	35
Martin Ling	33
Paul Bodin	32
Luc Nijholt	32
Andy Mutch	30

 

Most Premier League Goals

Player	Goals Total
Jan Aage Fjortoft	12
Paul Bodin	7
Andy Mutch	6
Shaun Taylor	4
John Moncur	4
Keith Scott	4
Nicky Summerbee	3
Craig Maskell	3
Adrian Whitbread	1
Martin Ling	1

 

Biggest Premier League Victories

Match	Date	Season
Swindon Town 3-1 Coventry City	5th February 1994	1993-1994
Queens Park Rangers 1-3 Swindon Town	30th April 1994	1993-1994
Swindon Town 2-1 Southampton	18th December 1993	1993-1994
Swindon Town 2-1 Tottenham Hotspur	22nd January 1994	1993-1994
Swindon Town 1-0 Queens Park Rangers	24th November 1993	1993-1994

 

Worst Premier League Defeats

Match	Date	Season
Newcastle United 7-1 Swindon Town	12th March 1994	1993-1994
Swindon Town 0-5 Liverpool FC	22nd August 1993	1993-1994
Aston Villa 5-0 Swindon Town	12th February 1994	1993-1994
Swindon Town 0-5 Leeds United	7th May 1994	1993-1994
Everton 6-2 Swindon Town	15th January 1994	1993-1994
Southampton 5-1 Swindon Town	25th August 1993	1993-1994
Swindon Town 0-4 Arsenal	27th December 1993	1993-1994
Wimbledon 3-0 Swindon Town	6th November 1993	1993-1994
Leeds United 3-0 Swindon Town	27th November 1993	1993-1994
Manchester United 4-2 Swindon Town	25th September 1993	1993-1994

 

Managers

Player	Seasons in charge
John Gorman	1993-1994

 

Highest Home Attendances

Match	Date	Attendance Figure	Season
Swindon Town 2-2 Manchester United	19th March 1994	18,102	1993-1994
Swindon Town 0-4 Arsenal	27th December 1993	17,651	1993-1994
Swindon Town 0-5 Leeds United	7th May 1994	17,539	1993-1994
Swindon Town 0-5 Liverpool FC	22nd August 1993	17,017	1993-1994
Swindon Town 2-1 Tottenham Hotspur	22nd January 1994	16,563	1993-1994

 

Intro

Swindon Town graced the top-flight of the Premier League in 1993-1994. The Wiltshire-based club broke many records – for the wrong reasons. The Robins conceded 100 goals in their 42 matches during the season, the most by any side in a Premier League season. They were relegated three games from the end of the campaign with just five wins. Nevertheless, they did provide plenty of entertainment and recorded the occasional eye-catching result.

 

1993-1994

Having defeated Leicester City 4-3 in the play-off final, Swindon reached the top-flight and were hoping to have a successful spell with Glenn Hoddle in-charge. The former Tottenham Hotspur playing legend was in a player-manager capacity and had been instrumental in helping Swindon to promotion. However, he left the club to take the managerial vacancy at Chelsea and offered his assistant manager, John Gorman the chance to join him.

Swindon chairman Ray Hardman was desperate not to lose Gorman as well, so offered him the managerial position, something which he accepted. The fans were delighted as he was a popular figure in the area when he arrived on the coaching staff in 1991.

Life would be tricky for Gorman and he found out pretty quickly how tough life at the highest level of English football would be. Swindon lost their first four matches, shipping five goals in back-to-back games against Liverpool FC and Southampton. They didn’t get their first point until 28^th August, when they earned a 0-0 draw away at Norwich. This was one of only four clean sheets they kept all campaign.

Swindon were winless for the first 16 matches of the season and were quickly rooted to the foot of the table. They had just six points on the tally until beating Queens Park Rangers at the County Ground 1-0 in late November. Keith Scott, a recent arrival from Division Three side Wycombe Wanderers scored the only goal. This victory gave the Robins some confidence. Scott scored again at Anfield in mid-December as Swindon came mighty close to shocking Liverpool FC on Merseyside. Mark Wright scored a late header to ruin what would have been one of the biggest shocks in Premier League history.

Back-to-back home victories were recorded in early 1994 over Tottenham Hotspur and Coventry City and there was a thrilling 3-3 draw at Hillsborough with Sheffield Wednesday where Craig Maskell scored twice. Maskell would leave though in late January to join Southampton and it was left to Jan Aage Fjortoft to come up with the goals. The Norwegian scored 12 times and his treble against Coventry was the first hat-trick from a Scandinavian player in the Premier League.

There was a fighting 2-2 draw with champions Manchester United in March but still, Swindon took some heavy beatings. They lost 5-0 to Aston Villa and caved in 7-1 at Newcastle United. Five points from their last eight games sealed their fate. Despite completing a league double over Queens Park Rangers with their only away win of the season on the penultimate weekend, Gorman’s men were already down. A 4-2 home loss to Wimbledon a week earlier had proved to be the final blow. A final day 5-0 defeat at home to Leeds ensured Swindon became the first – and so far – only side in Premier League history to concede 100 goals in a season.

The Robins are now in League Two so they are some way away from achieving the heights of playing Premier League football again but their one-season stay in the top-flight will be one fans from the County Ground will remember.

Iconic Moments: Jensen scores…at last! (December 1994)

Arsenal midfielder John Jensen developed a cult reputation. He joined the club only weeks after his spectacular goal in the 1992 European Championship final playing for Denmark. He was seen as a replacement for the popular David Rocastle, who was moving to reigning champions Leeds United.

Although he won the FA Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup whilst at Highbury, he became more known for his inability to find the back of the net. 97 games and over two years had passed before Arsenal hosted Queens Park Rangers on a dreary New Years’ Eve afternoon. George Graham’s side hadn’t won at home in two months and his side put in a dire performance and lost the game comprehensively 3-1. However, QPR’s win is not remembered by many.

That is because in this match, the unthinkable happened. John Jensen scored a goal for Arsenal! It was the equaliser and it came in his 98^th match in all competitions for the north Londoners. Whenever he got near goal, Arsenal fans urged him to ‘shoot!’ This time, he was spot-on, bending a shot into the far top corner in front of the North Bank.

T-shirts were printed in Jensen’s honour. One of the tabloid newspapers ran the following headline in their sports section: SOUVENIR SPECIAL: After 98 games, 2 years, 4 months, 2 weeks, 2 days, 1 hour and 19 minutes, JENSEN SCORES!

He left in 1996 to return to his native Denmark after 138 games but achieved cult hero status for this goal.

The Managers: Mike Walker

Premier League Clubs Managed: Norwich City (1992-1994), Everton (1994)

Mike Walker turned 72 in late November 2017. He had a professional career that nearly spanned 700 games and is remembered fondly by Norwich City fans as one of their finest-ever managers. By contrast, Everton fans remember his 10-month reign at Goodison Park for all the wrong reasons. He is widely considered by many supporters on Merseyside as Everton’s worst boss.

During his playing days, Walker played as a goalkeeper and this was something that ran through his family. His son, Ian Walker would later be capped at international level by England and play in the Premier League in-goal for Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City. He most notably played for Colchester United, spending 10 seasons as their first-choice goalkeeper. He played 451 times for the club and also turned out in the Football League for Shrewsbury Town, York City, Watford and one appearance for Charlton Athletic.

Taking Norwich to the brink

The highlight was being a part of the Watford side that knocked out Bill Shankly’s mighty Liverpool FC outfit from the FA Cup in 1970. He saved a spot-kick too which endeared himself to many Everton fans. 24 years later, they wouldn’t be so endearing after his ghoulish Goodison reign.

Having ending his playing days with Colchester in 1983, his first managerial role came at the Essex club three years later. Colchester were top of the Fourth Division table in November 1987 and Walker had won 35 of his 79 games in charge, yet was mysteriously sacked by owner Jonathan Crisp to the amazement of everyone at Layer Road. He had just won Manager of the Month honours for the previous month too.

Norwich City were quick to snap Walker up following his shock exit from Colchester. He took charge of their youth team which was a role he would keep until 1992. He was promoted to take control of the first-team just two months before the start of the inaugural Premier League campaign. The Canaries were considered among the favourites for relegation but they continued to defy the odds all season. They beat the likes of Arsenal, Chelsea and Southampton in the season’s early weeks to top the table and they remained top of the pile at Christmas. Eventually, Manchester United and Aston Villa managed to wear the East Anglian club down but Norwich still finished a fabulous third, despite ending with a negative goal difference.

Walker was seen as one of the most promising managers in British football. His Norwich side were attack-minded, positive and never afraid to take teams on at their own game. It made them one of the most attractive sides in England. In October 1993, Norwich produced one of the biggest shocks in the history of the UEFA Cup. They stunned Bayern Munich in their own backyard to beat them 2-1 in the second round. They became the first English team to win at the Olympic Stadium. A draw back at Carrow Road was enough to see the Bundesliga heavyweights eliminated. They were edged out in the next round by the eventual winners of the competition that season, Inter Milan.

However, relations had soured between Walker and his owner Robert Chase. The manager wanted to take the club forward but couldn’t as Chase was more interested in cashing in on the most prized assets. With Ruel Fox on the verge of being sold to Newcastle United in January 1994, that was the final straw for Mike and he abruptly quit, taking over as Everton manager. Everton had been without a manager for a month before his arrival and they had to pay substantial compensation to Norwich for Walker’s services.

The nightmare of Merseyside

His first game was an exciting 6-2 victory over Swindon Town but it wouldn’t get much better than that. Everton were in the midst of a relegation battle and went into the final day of the season in the bottom three. They needed to beat Wimbledon and hope results went their way. It started disastrously with the Toffees 2-0 down inside 20 minutes but they produced a remarkable recovery to win 3-2. Results did go for the Merseysiders and they stayed up with Sheffield United going down instead.

Walker had signed Anders Limpar and in the summer of 1994, added Vinny Samways from Tottenham Hotspur and Nigerian Daniel Amokachi who had starred at the World Cup. However, fans were annoyed to see fan favourites Peter Beagrie and Tony Cottee discarded so easily. Everton fans were desperate to see the ‘Silver Fox’ as he was nicknamed succeed but his lack of defensive principles and refusal to change tactics would cost him his job.

Everton started 1994-1995 so poorly. They made their worst start to a league season in their proud history and were propping up the table. With four clubs going down that campaign, desperate action was required. A win did arrive at home to West Ham United in early November but the damage had already been done.

Three days after earning a gutsy 0-0 draw at his former club Norwich in a dire game of football, Walker was sacked. On leaving, he said he was “disappointed” and believed the club had “turned the corner.” He took charge of 35 league matches, losing over 50% of these games and winning just six times. It remains the worst reign of any Everton manager in terms of statistics since the end of World War II. After his dismissal, Everton would eventually survive and win the FA Cup under the guidance of Joe Royle.

None of the players would miss him. Mark Ward, who had been a senior figure before his arrival and was eventually banished to the reserves said in his autobiography: “He was a phoney from the start and, although he’d had an impressive 18 months at Norwich, I knew this job was just too big for him.”

With Norwich on a stiff decline, fans at the Norfolk club were very keen to see Walker come back to the club. They had been relegated by the time he was back at the helm in June 1996. He stayed with the Canaries for two seasons but couldn’t rediscover the winning formula from his first reign and left via mutual consent in April 1998 after they failed to return to the Premier League. Since leaving Norwich, Walker has had a spell managing in Cyprus for APOEL, where he resides to this day.

Iconic Moments: Everton escape the drop (May 1994)

On Saturday, 7 May 1994, Everton’s Premier League future looked in severe jeopardy. They began the day in the bottom three after a shocking campaign and faced the real prospect of being relegated to the Endsleigh League Division One.

On the final day, they faced Wimbledon at home. The Crazy Gang were the most in-form side in the division coming into the game, having won seven of their last nine matches. After 20 minutes, things looked very gloomy for the Toffees’ faithful. A Dean Holdsworth penalty and an own goal by Gary Ablett had the home side 2-0 down.

A lifeline was thrown by Graham Stuart’s own penalty in the 24^th minute but at half-time, Everton were the only team of the strugglers to be losing. They were going down at this stage.

With nothing to lose, manager Mike Walker threw everything available to him off the bench. On 67 minutes, Barry Horne hit the goal of his life. The Welshman’s rocket into the top corner made it 2-2 and gave the supporters real belief of the great escape. With nine minutes left, ecstasy swept the ground.

Stuart played a fairly untidy one-two combination with Tony Cottee and the midfielder took a weak shot on which somehow squirmed past Hans Segers and into the net. This moment came under further scrutiny when the Dutchman became at the centre of match-fixing allegations less than a year later. In his autobiography, ‘The Final Score,’ his claim was: “He (Stuart) hit a shot that took a deflection off another player’s leg, so that made the ball change direction slightly. The pitch was uneven and the ball hit a bump and spun beyond my control as I dived.”

At the full-time whistle, fans ran onto the pitch in celebration. Everton’s win meant they were safe as long as the other teams they were fighting with all hadn’t won. None of them did. Sheffield United’s late loss at Stamford Bridge meant the Blades went down instead with Oldham Athletic and Swindon Town.

It wouldn’t be the only escape Everton would have against the drop in the 1990s on the final day either. This one was down to fighting spirit, luck and a very poor piece of goalkeeping.

Premier League Rewind: 15th-17th October 1994

Results: Arsenal 3-1 Chelsea, Aston Villa 1-1 Norwich City, Blackburn Rovers 3-2 Liverpool FC, Crystal Palace 0-1 Newcastle United, Everton 0-2 Coventry City, Leeds United 1-1 Tottenham Hotspur, Leicester City 4-3 Southampton, Manchester United 1-0 West Ham United, Queens Park Rangers 1-2 Manchester City, Ipswich Town 1-2 Sheffield Wednesday, Nottingham Forest 3-1 Wimbledon

Whilst Blackburn Rovers and Manchester United were the two teams who would go on to dictate the destiny of the Premier League title in season 1994-1995, it wasn’t so clear who would be the team to beat in mid-October 1994. Kenny Dalglish and Alex Ferguson’s sides were in the chasing pack, but behind a couple of hot pacesetters.

Going into the weekend’s matches, Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest still held unbeaten records and these were maintained through contrasting fashions. Kevin Keegan’s Magpies’ had dropped just four points all season but their trip to Selhurst Park for a match with Crystal Palace wasn’t all about style and swagger. This time, it was about grit and determination to get all three points. They managed to achieve this with a minute to go. Palace defended brilliantly all day but Peter Beardsley produced a special effort to beat Nigel Martyn and ensure the visiting fans went home happy and still on top of the table.

Nottingham Forest had to wait until the Monday evening to respond. Frank Clark’s side were in live action on Sky Sports and played a Wimbledon side that had made a sluggish start to the season. Stan Collymore scored one of the goals of the season at the City Ground. Collecting possession from just inside the Wimbledon half, the striker went on a mazy run and as the space opened up, went for goal. The shot flew past Hans Segers as Forest went on to record a 3-1 victory and maintain their impressive start on their Premier League return.

The two sides that Dalglish cared about the most in English football clashed at Ewood Park and Blackburn Rovers prevailed in a five-goal thriller with Liverpool FC. John Barnes might have scored the goal of the weekend with a stunning acrobatic kick that rolled back the years to his prime days. It wasn’t enough though for the visitors’ to grab a share of the spoils. Two goals from Chris Sutton ensured Dalglish’s current side beat his old employers 3-2.

Liverpool FC stayed in the top four but the nightmare continued across Merseyside for Everton. Still without a win and the pressure continued to mount on the beleaguered Mike Walker. New signings Duncan Ferguson and Ian Durrant played at home to Coventry City but made little impact on the contest. Dion Dublin was among the scorers in an easy 2-0 win for Coventry. Walker insisted he wasn’t under pressure from the board afterwards but his time was almost up in the Goodison Park hotseat.

Another side that had been struggling were Leicester City but the newly-promoted Foxes’ achieved a second victory of the term in an entertaining 4-3 triumph at home to Southampton. Franz Carr scored the goal of the match as Brian Little’s side held off a late fightback from their opponents to claim all three points. It would be the last victory Little achieved with Leicester. He would walk out on the club five weeks later to take over at Midlands’ rivals Aston Villa.

Elsewhere, Arsenal beat Chelsea 3-1 in a London derby, Manchester United sneaked past West Ham United through an Eric Cantona goal and David Hirst scored an 89^th minute winner as Sheffield Wednesday beat Ipswich Town 2-1 on Super Sunday despite a late red card for Des Walker.

What else happened in October 1994?

• Fernando Henrique Cardoso is elected president of Brazil.
• Yasser Arafat, Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres are awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for their efforts in keeping peace in the Middle East.
• The USA defeats Europe 13-7 in the Solheim Cup.
• BSkyB launch two new channels; Sky Soap and Sky Travel.
• The conclusion of the Sharongate storyline in EastEnders as Grant finds out Sharon has been having an affair with his brother, Phil. An estimated 25.3 million watch the drama unfold.
• Former Academy Award winner Martha Raye dies in Los Angeles aged 78.
• Two trains crash head-on in heavy fog in Kent after a driver passes a red signal. Five are killed and 13 injured.