Arsenal FA Cup Semi-Final v Stoke 1970-71

[@jasenwright1178]

I was in and amongst the Arsenal fans! Thousands had travelled from down south! I had travelled from the North. Great day out!

[@colincarroll5953]

As a Stoke fan this result still hurts like mad as we lost the replay and the chance of playing liverpool in the final of what was then the most famous cup competition in the world. I was a lad then but this stoke team is still my favourite ever as it was best team in our history fabulous memories. It was a fabulous era proper football then real men and characters and proper atmosphere. The modern game I'm afraid is artificial and garbage in comparison.

[@eddyvideostar]

Colin Carrol: Classic comment culled and curated. Calligraphed and cuneiform in clay. Correctly composed and created. Congruent with my cogitation. Certainly, communicable and commended.

[@yesihavereadit]

If an arsenal player was fouled badly the crowd would chant Storey, Storey and he would paw the ground with his studs looking at the player , and about 10 minutes later there would be a sickening crunch tackle (crowd would actually shudder) and Storey would leave the poor sod on the ground........but he was a great player as well

[@elgonm289]

I loved Peter Storey as a kid...dodgy geezer but an Arsenal Legend and proper cruncher

[@bretthigdon7860]

Storey’s first goal was an absolute rocket. What a goal. What the hell was Charlie George thinking on that back pass?

[@MarkDiffin]

Absolutely. But they only remember him for the winner in the final!

[@MrGipwagga]

Great to see this. Was standing down the Kop end with my Dad and remember him cursing the ball hitting the post when it had actually been handled, then his jubilation when the ref pointed to the spot. Wonderful memories.

[@grahamsharp513]

Listened to this live on the radio then went to Villa Park for the replay. Magic memories

[@oleggorky906]

Stoke should have won that game. They gave Arsenal some grief that season, walloping them 5-0 in the league and then dominating most of this game. But credit to Arsenal-resilient bastards!

[@grimupnorth]

I think the 'Lucky Arsenal' tag was definitely in the making at this point. Great game though, and brilliant commentary.

[@grimupnorth]

@John Jensen Probably no point in going into this further as I'm guessing you're an Aresnal fan. Any neutral watching it will understand exactly what I mean.

[@tommylucy4738]

What a team the Arsenal had never give in attitude won the Double that season !!!

[@barrywebb]

@stokey72 Looks like you are a Stoke supporter. Although I wasn't at the game, I remember watching it on the telly. Stoke should have buried Arsenal that day but credit to Arsenal for not giving up. That Stoke team under Tony Waddington was a very good team with some great players.

[@barrywebb]

@John Jensen Ah that's the thing about buried. It doesn't matter how the dirt arrives... stock could and should have been three goals up before arsenal scored. Coming back from two was hard enough. Three maybe too much

[@barrywebb]

@BORROVAN26 In 1971, Arsenal looked more like Stoke do today. Robust defending, long throws, plenty of high balls into the box for Radford and Kennedy. In fact, out of the two teams, Stoke probably played the better football in the seventies!

[@BilsonIslington]

The glory of Peter Storey! The Arsenal wouldn't have won the double in 1971 without this stupendous effort from Peter Storey. 'Great back pass... Charlie?' - Ha! I wonder what Frank McIntock's comments were at that moment?

[@tedwilson7487]

Frank was one of the best captains EVER, so for sure he encouraged CG

[@benzflynn]

@Paul James I've spent a while looking for "bad tackles" by Peter Storey but found only one from behind on Chivers in 73. Of course he was no joke. No full-back or defensive midfielder was then. But Ron Harris (who has said he regarded Storey as the hardest in his era) made a lot more wild tackles than Storey and these _are_ on video. You see a lot of determined clearances from behind an opponent but you see these today too. But Christ he was one helluva player after moving from right-back to midfield in 1969/70. He was everywhere - winning the ball, pushing forward, passing and getting in at the far post for an overhit centre. I know that no one likes the idea of a sporting hero being associated with a brothel. But I feel that it simply isn't good enough for a modern football club - and indeed its former players, especially the others of the Arsenal 70/71 squad - to just totally wash its hands of an ex-player for doing X (crimes affecting women) whilst extending the fatherly embrace to another for doing Y (alcoholism/drugs/gambling/assault/racist abuse/adultery). For those who don't know, children are the biggest victims of alcoholism and addiction. Everyone in the Arsenal 70/71 first-team bar Storey was a guest on Bob Wilson's _This Is Your Life._ Even a few peripheral squad members like Marinello and Nelson were there. Okay, that was in the late 90s when Storey's carry-on was still fresh in the public mind. Today I think it's fair to say that Storey's juices have simmered and he should get fair sporting mention for his crucial role in the Arsenal 60s and 70s teams - in public as well as in private.

[@steve7104]

Storey was a great player

[@stevestoddart4110]

As a Stoke supporter I was at this game with my Dad. Stoke scored twice and were the better team, but Arsenal never gave it up. We were virtually there, in an FA cup final for the first time until the faithful last minute penalty. As Storey ran up to take it, my Dad said "Banksy will save this" but it was not to be, Banks was not on top form that day! We had our chance, in the replay at Villa Park, Arsenal played like a team back from the dead, took their chances 2-0 by half time and Stoke just couldn't come back. Fabulous games! Still hurts 50 years on! We did give them a few spankings😃 in the Prem later on, Arsene could never accept the Potters giving his "Footballing purists" a good beating at the Brit! Happy Days!

[@celticwarrior1365]

Anyone else remember Arsenal's Bob McNab's appearance in the 70's sit-com "On the Buses?"

[@gregod806]

Yep and he weren't even the best player in the bus depot😂

[@kwameaboagye121]

Peter Storey was the hero who scored the two goals for Arsenal we where two goals down but we recovered.

[@andyprince6581]

Congratulations foul on Gordon for the second and if the pitch wasn't a ploughed field you bunch of southern tossers wood of been 3 down

[@WattySCFC]

Stoke city in the 70s were the best team to not win the FA cup

[@robertroberts2666]

Sir Gordon Banks ( RIP) seems to have had a 'mare of a game.

[@hauntboy]

Yeah, and WTF @ 1:26????

[@hauntboy]

Even if it was kicked out of his hands, which it wasn't, careless to roll it unnecessarily in a packed penalty box like that.

[@tomthomassony8607]

@@hauntboy reminds me of the England v Northern Ireland game in 1972? when George Best knocked the ball off Banks’ palm, as Banks was kicking the ball up field. Goal wasn’t given, but replays showed nothing wrong with Best’s challenge. Banks distribution in this game looked highly suspect!

[@joemorgan636]

Real real men hard as nails and proper gentlemen ah I’m from 80s but loved early football great sides about our rivalry was Leeds and Liverpool

[@fisherpeter695]

I was at the other FA Cup semi final this day when Everton played Liverpool at Old Trafford. My overriding memory from that game was Everton leading 1-0 at half time, and my friends, after the half time score came through from Hillsborough that Stoke were leading 2-0 all said it was a certain Everton / Stoke final. At full time, Everton had given an awful second half performance to allow Liverpool two goals from defensive errors, and Arsenal had gained a 2-2 draw. And went on the beat Liverpool in the final to completedouble. They were a great team. Strong defence, top finishers. My own team Everton had won the league a year earlier and never recovered from the semi final loss, days after going out of European Cup. If Greenhoff and Mahoney had scored from clear goal chances when 2-0 up, maybe a different history would have been written, Which shows the immense character of this Arsenal team.

[@stel3209]

Evans goal wasn't from a defensive error. Callaghan "equaliser" in first half should have stood - we hammered you in the second half. Is there anything your fanbase DOESN'T have myths about?

[@fisherpeter695]

@@stel3209 If you were at the game you will have seen two Everton defenders well out of position to deal with the cross that Evans turned in. Rankin tried to catch a high cross instead of punching out faced with the taller John Toshack. And put it on the plate for Brian Hall inside the box for the second goal. As for the second half, within minutes of the restart both Joe Royle and Alan Whittle were subject to high tackles, that even back then should have seen both Larry Lloyd and Emlyn Hughes sent off, as was the case for similar offences like these. Everton's forwards were too young to deal with these type of tactics. And as someone who saw many games at Anfield in the late 50s 60s and 70s fair credit to their success, and jibes about Everton's fan base were never the case for many years until recent times.

[@stel3209]

@@fisherpeter695 i was at the game Peter - you're talking nonsense. Demented fanbase then....and even more so now. Goodnight lad.

[@walesdad]

@barrywebb Thanks for the reply,I might well give that book a read.It would appear that there was more to Peter Storey than the 'midfield destroyer' tag he has been labelled with.Cheers.

[@martynhanson]

hey guys, there were many of the Arsenal players in the side that my team - Birmingham City - knocked out in consecutive years 67 and 68 as a second div team. Oh those were the days, and I saw all three games -one was a replay and both were 5th round games

[@converse91970]

@barrywebb The funny thing about this clip is that Peter is chatting quite freely. Not that I knew him personally but I gather off the pitch he was a very shy character, prone to long silences when being ferried to training. Yes, I agree I would be happy to have his steely determination in the team now, with out diluting the passing game too much!

[@barrywebb]

@converse91970 I couldn't agree more. A vastly under appreciated footballer. Both for Arsenal and England. It's funny, but Peter would probably fit into the current Arsenal setup quite nicely as, with him living in France, he probably speaks fluent French! The stories that him and Arsene could tell with their respective lives behind the bar.

[@walesdad]

It really is interesting to see the interview with Peter Storey after the highlights.He comes across as an introverted sort of man.As one who is old enough to remember him in his playing days,I can say that of all the seventies 'hard man',the usual suspects of Hunter,Harris,Bremner,etc,I think that Peter Storey was the most uncompromising.This clip shows that he could play a bit as well.

[@williamrandall7290]

Jimmy Greenhoff next to Trevor Francis my favourite Birmingham player seen him 4 on his debut against Portsmouth fantastic player

[@kevkevkev59]

William Randall wasn't it Bolton?

[@tchkaia]

Jimmy was a legend for Stoke. I consider myself privileged to have watched him and Alan Hudson play together in the same team. The very definition of poetry in motion.

[@barrywebb]

@walesdad He was a very quiet man off the pitch which he talks about in his book. Well worth a read if you haven't had a change to get your hands on a copy. A very gifted footballer. In one England game, due to injuries, I saw him play in a more forward midfield role that he usually did for either England or Arsenal. It was a revelation. Hardly a misplaced pass all match. An, unlike many footballers today, he was truly two footed. One of my favorite Arsenal players of all time.

[@barrywebb]

@converse91970 I believe the 1970-71 squad was a pretty close knit group which always adds to both the team's and individual's confidence. The events after the end of his playing career must have taken a huge toll on him. But, as you would expect, he has emerged relatively unscathed. I always think of the Arsenal as a family and I am much happier now that Peter is closer to his footballing family. He was a greater 2 footed passer. A very underestimated player by many.

[@barrywebb]

@MarkB1ngham Not quite 13 but close. Goalkeepers: Wilson, Barnett Defense: Rice, McLintock, Simpson, Roberts, McNab, Nelson Midfield: Storey, Kelly, Graham, Armstrong, Sammels, Marinello, George Forward: Radford, Kennedy A total of 17 players. And in those days it was 22 teams in the first division (42 games), games in the FA Cup (plus multiple replays), League Cup and the Inter-City Fairs Cup. An amazing physical as well as sporting achievement.

[@johnhawkins6506]

Better those days!

[@pljms]

Peter Storey might have had a 'Hard Man' reputation but he comes over as shy and unassuming in the post-match interview.

[@stwads]

He sounds quite a nice chap. Nothing like his perceived shifty character!

[@johnsaunders2109]

He served Time twice after retiring! Once for Coining and once for running a Brothel, I believe !!

[@Redhotsaycool123]

What a comeback by Arsenal..😘

[@barrywebb]

He was a great goalie but this was not his best game. I think the thought of Stoke making it to Wembley got the better of him. By the way, that was the 1970 World Cup you're thinking of, the year before this game.

[@barrywebb]

I hope your Dad's still supporting the Gunners. Although the 1970-71 Double team was a great team, the boys under Wenger's tutelage are something special. Another great reult today against Newcastle in the Carling Cup. I bought my dad Peter Storey's book, "True Storey, Myy life and crimes as a football hatchet man" from Amazon in the UK. He thought it was a brilliant read.

[@converse91970]

I must buy that book too.....Peter Storey is Arsenal Legend!

[@barrywebb]

@vordman Perhaps so. But at the time he was considered the best goalkeeper in the World. I think he was genuinely taken by surprise partly because Storey didn't hit the ball that well. But it's often harder for a keeper to stop a ball that is close to you (including through the legs) than it is if it had been better struck.

[@dobl-ys3jg]

And Gordon Banks didn’t wear gloves....imagine that today

[@barrywebb]

@LiterallyMad Perhaps we need someone a little faster! When you look at those old clips, you realize how much faster the modern game has become. But judged on skill, commitment and heart alone, he would be perfect. And as an added bonus, he can speak French!

[@johnhawkins6506]

Why did both teams change their kits? Arsenal's Red wouldn't have clashed with Stoke's White and Stoke's Red & White stripes wouldn't have clashed with Arsenal's yellow!!

[@benzflynn]

Both teams in a semi-final of the cup changed whenever there was a shirt clash. This was to give neither team any "home" support advantage. Same idea as making FA Cup semi-finals played at a large "neutral" ground like Hillsborough, Villa Park, etc.

[@barrywebb]

@Poopingbotham So true. The score could have been 4 - 1 to Stoke at one point and I don't think Arsenal were coming back from that. For those whose football knowledge doesn't extend beyond the Premier League, Stoke, under Tony Waddington, were a very good side. Banks had a nightmare. I can't remember seeing him that excited before. The prospect of an FA Cup final must have got the better of him. The penalty: Considering how good a keeper Bank's was, he didn't move at all.

[@tedwilson7487]

stoke had a very good and entertaining side then, but their two goals in this game was very lucky ones

[@jeannotschumacher1024]

He still prevented arsenal from coming back in the first half twice. Otherwise....

[@Eggmanjames]

Stoke should’ve won that easily

[@barrywebb]

I agree. They could/should have been 3 - 0

[@JfK--OBJECTivE]

Brian Moore keeps insisting , Banks is 'World's number 1'. Not true, by then he was over the hill and making too many silly mistakes. Maier and Mazurkiewicz were much better keepers by 1971.

[@Supreme_321]

Back in his home city at the Mecca of Sheffield football as well...

[@Ruda-n4h]

Had bad game here but was back to his best in 1972.

[@converse91970]

@LiterallyMad So true!

[@raysharp7695]

4 their away games very rarely they wore red on away games

[@davidmorrissey5075]

FA CUP rules stipulated at the time in event of a clash both would revert to away colours and if they also clash flip a coin for first choice on away while other changed to a third

[@mendipstokie]

Why were both teams in their change strips?

[@barrywebb]

You know, I never noticed that before. Both teams played (and still play) in red and white so someone had to change. Typically the away team has to change. But as this was an FA Cup semi-final it was played on a neutral pitch, Hillsborough. By the way, what insanity was that making both teams travel North to find a suitable venue. Anyway, maybe the rules were that both teams had to change in the event of a clash. Makes some sense at it fits in with the neutral venue idea.

[@mendipstokie]

Barry Webb Odd about the venue as the replay was at Villa Park

[@1948richo]

mendipstokie talking about the venue the crowd attendance that day was 55.000 I was at the 1963 semi at Hillsboro Leicester v Liverpool also the 1967 semi notts forest v spurs both crowds attendance were 65.000 and I felt safe so what really happened in1989 Hillsboro disaster when this great venue had hosted semi finals and other big games England v france euro qualiflier in 1962 I was there great venue

[@craigeast3682]

keith richardson Differences:-No fences at the front no segregated pens and 19 years of social problems.

[@tdonovan4735]

@@barrywebb One team is given "home team" status. For example - in the final there was a colour clash - but Liverpool wore red and Arsenal wore yellow. Maybe in semi's both teams change.

[@cameron6072]

I remember banks,the greatest goalie inthe world,according to brian moore,not in this game ,he looks like a school goalie,the year before he made that wonder save from the great Pele,but he looks a mess in this game.

[@tedwilson7487]

even the best of players has their off-days

[@jeannotschumacher1024]

He saved twice nevertheless in the first half. Otherwise....

[@joemorgan636]

I just realised Arsenal beat Stoke City in 2 FA Cup Semi Finals 70-71 and 71-72 at Villa Park both Replays and Arsenal smashing them both times

[@BilsonIslington]

Note the average price of a ticket. £1.60p

[@tdonovan4735]

2 months after decimalisation. (£1 12s 0d)

[@chrismaynard6016]

As an Arsenal fan, good ol' reliable Storey eh. Imagine donkey Jon Walters taking it or any of the so called modern lot who keep MISSING from the spot?? I had forgotten how GOOD 70's footie was despite the hype about Premier League. Great.

[@pj5517]

Donkey Jon Walters had a great goalscoring record in the Prem. Just because he isn't a Arsenal type modern day fairy

[@pj5517]

What a moronic comment

[@millwallholdings]

Never seen Banks play so poorly. Loads of silly errors

[@jackthegamer4019]

millwallholdings That penalty was rolled right by him.

[@martinburke362]

I've watched a lot of these reruns from this era, god the football was primitive no wonder we never won the world Cup again and the pitches aaaggghh!! wouldn't play rugby on most of them, we just couldn't see it at the time though, because that's all we knew!!

[@raysharp7695]

most of the time arsenal wore yellow

[@raysharp7695]

he didnt have a good day stoke should have won 4-1

[@barrywebb]

Ray Sharp I think that Stock could have won 3 -1 after Arsenal gave them a two goal lead. But they didn't and lost the replay 2 - 0. That was a good Stoke team. And I'm happy to say that Stoke have another good team in the making. I hope that they continue to play good football under Mark Hughes. I'm looking forward to Arsenal visiting the Britannia Stadium this year. We owe you a good game after season. Try and keep Charlie Adams in his kennel this time!

[@tedwilson7487]

Stoke got two very sloppy goals

[@raysharp7695]

stoke had the greatest goal keepe r in english history gorden banks

[@barrywebb]

Ray Sharp Perhaps the greatest English goalkeeper but there may be others that argue Peter Shilton was better. But you have to admit, this was not Banksy's finest day was it?

[@tchkaia]

Banksy looked really nervous in this game. Shilton played for Stoke after Banks retired but he was never as good as Gordon. He moved on to Forest where he was absolutely outstanding

[@sodthong]

When football was played by real men.

[@pj5517]

Arsenal and real men don't belong in the same sentence

[@vordman]

Banks should have saved that penalty, it was practically down the middle.

[@jimmann8290]

I know watt you mean but storey knew watt he was doing he let banks make the first move and he was under a lot of pressure to he from farnom in surrey watt was it like is a up market our just working class some told me in Belfast it was a bit snobby it was a london guy

[@originalherdsman3524]

We are RED WE ARE WHITE WE ARE FUCKING DINIMITE LA LA LA YOU ARE MY ARSENAL MY ONLY ARSENAL !!! WHEN THE RED AND WHITE TRAIN COMES OVER THE HILL !!! WHEN IT RAINS WE GET WET KNOW ONE HAS TAKEN THE CLOCKEND YET !!1 😂😅😂😘😂😅

[@Redhotsaycool123]

Great days...no women

[@Ruda-n4h]

Quite a few in the crowd - they've always gone to football.

[@andygeorgiou7753]

The best team in England won moaning stoke fans

[@glenmorgan4597]

Banks was useless

[@JohnJohn-zn8ib]

Gee Stoke were given that 2nd goal.