Manchester United 3–5 West Bromwich Albion (1978)

The first fixture between Manchester United and West Bromwich Albion in the 1978–79 Football League First Division season was played on 30 December 1978 at Old Trafford, Manchester.[1] The scores were level at 3–3 at half-time, before West Brom scored twice in the second half to win the match 5–3. As winners, they received two league points in the 1978–79 Football League First Division.

Manchester United vs West Bromwich Albion (1978)
Event1978–79 Football League First Division
Manchester United West Bromwich Albion
3 5
Date30 December 1978
VenueOld Trafford, Manchester
RefereeGwyn Pierce Owen (Anglesey)
Attendance45,091
WeatherVery cold, snow

The game was described at the time as "Game of the Century" and is still regarded as one of the greatest games of English football. The West Brom team featured three Black British players – Cyrille Regis, Laurie Cunningham and Brendon Batson; nicknamed "The Three Degrees" after the African-American vocal group, they blazed a trail for black footballers in England and were frequently the subject of racist abuse, including "audible boos" from Manchester United fans in this game.[2]

Background

Before the game commenced, West Bromwich Albion were at the top of the First Division, while Manchester United were in 10th place. West Brom were on a roll, having won games in December 1978 against Valencia (2–0, in the UEFA Cup), Middlesbrough (2–0), Wolverhampton Wanderers (3–0) and Arsenal (2–1). United, on the other hand, were coming off consecutive 3–0 defeats against Bolton Wanderers and Liverpool and had dropped several positions in the table.

The game was televised with extended highlights on Granada Television with commentary by Gerald Sinstadt.[3]

Match

Details
Manchester United3–5West Bromwich Albion
B. Greenhoff  21'
McQueen  30'
McIlroy  32'		 Report T. Brown  27', 45'
Cantello  28'
Cunningham  76'
Regis  84'
Attendance: 45,091
Referee: Gwyn Pierce Owen (Anglesey)
Manchester United
West Bromwich Albion
GK1 Gary Bailey
LB3 Stewart Houston
CB2 Brian Greenhoff
CB6 Martin Buchan (c)
RB5 Gordon McQueen
LM7 Steve Coppell
CM4 Sammy McIlroy
CM10 David McCreery
RM11 Mickey Thomas
CF8 Jimmy Greenhoff 46'
CF9 Andy Ritchie
Substitute:
MF12 Tom Sloan 46'
Manager:
Dave Sexton
GK1 Tony Godden
RB2 Brendon Batson
CB5 John Wile (c)
CB6 Ally Robertson
LB3 Derek Statham
RM4 Tony Brown
CM7 Bryan Robson
CM10 Len Cantello
LM11 Laurie Cunningham
CF8 Alistair Brown
CF9 Cyrille Regis
Manager:
Ron Atkinson
Match officials
Match rules
  • 90 minutes
  • No extra time or penalties
  • One named substitute

Legacy

The league season ended in May 1979 with West Brom finishing third and United ninth.[4]

Len Cantello's volleyed goal was voted Goal of the Season for 1978–79 on ATV's Star Soccer show.[5]

In May 2013, former players (Tony Brown, John Wile, Cyrille Regis, Brendan Batson and manager Ron Atkinson from West Bromwich Albion; Gordon McQueen and Martin Buchan from Manchester United)[6] reunited at The Hawthorns (West Brom's home ground) to commemorate the famous match, as part of the Celebration Statue 1979, culminating on 15 July 2014 with the unveiling of a sculpture of Albion's iconic trio Cyrille Regis, Laurie Cunningham and Brendon Batson. Batson described the 5–3 win as "a seminal game [for black players] in many respects because of how well we played."[7][8]

In The Guardian in 2013, Scott Murray described the game as the "signature performance" of Cunningham and of that great West Brom team.[9]

Nick Constable, in Match of the Day: 50 Years of Football (2014), described it as one of the greatest games ever, saying "Cunningham on the ball was the enduring memory of the game — shrugging off pathetic racist boos with a performance that oozed class, grace and pace. If ever a winger was art in human form, it was Cunningham that night."[10]

References
  1. "Manchester United - West Bromwich Albion 3:5 (Premier League 1978/1979, 23. Round)". worldfootball.net.
  2. "Classic Moments: Man Utd 3-5 West Brom, 1978 - Who Ate all the Pies". Who Ate all the Pies.
  3. "Video of the Day: Manchester United vs West Bromwich Albion, December 1978 - Twohundredpercent". twohundredpercent.net.
  4. "Football Statistics Archive". www.rsssf.com.
  5. Matthews, Tony (15 July 2013). West Bromwich Albion: The Top 100 Matches. Amberley Publishing. ISBN 9781445616315 – via Google Books.
  6. "West Brom heroes remember 5-3 win over Manchester United". origin.expressandstar.mna.arcpublishing.com.
  7. Lepkowski, Chris (7 December 2012). "Level of abuse was a big shock recalls West Brom legend Brendon Batson".
  8. "Statue to honour WBA's black trio". 1 August 2012 – via www.bbc.com.
  9. Murray, Scott (27 September 2013). "The Joy of Six: Manchester United and West Bromwich Albion - Scott Murray". the Guardian.
  10. Constable, Nick (15 September 2014). Match of the Day: 50 Years of Football. Random House. ISBN 9781448142538 – via Google Books.

See also
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