i was 7 and my own memory is vague but
my grandad gave me a city rossette and sat me in front of the black and whiteb tv,and apparently i was
inconsolable when we lost 3-1.the first game i actually
attended was i think in 62/63 and we got hammered.
most of my mates were reds buti instantly fell for the blues,and became a lifelong supporter.

My first game watching City was in 1953 when I was age 6. My elder brother Barry took me to Maine Road and we stood behind the vast number of City fans waving rattles around at the old scoreboard end. City won 3-1 but funnily enough I can only remember two players on the Charlton side! One was a cultured left half called John Hewie, I think he was South African, and the other was their goalkeeper Sam Bartram. Nevertheless a lifelong association with City was founded and still continues from my seat in the East stand. My two sons also have season tickets but I’m still waiting to introduce a grandson to the topsy turvy world of City. Incidentally I was one of the 8000 for citys lowest attendance in George Poysers days.

City beat United 2-0 in front of nearly 75,000. My father had to hold me on his shoulders unde the old scoreboard. My mother had taken my sister to the ballet at the Palace so I insisted on my treat at Maine Road. The same day Liverpool played Everton in the Cup in front of 72,000. The score was also 2-0. This must be some kind of record.

20th December 1951. My father took me to Maine Roead to see City play Stoke City. He took me into the main stand (which was the only covered and seated area at that time.I was hooked for life. The game wasn’t memorable only for Bert Trautmann being in goal. City lost 1-0, my father teased me that he wouldn’t take me again, but he took me many times

It was a Wednesday afternoon game and my teacher Miss Bird,I think her first name was Pat,took me as a reward for doing well in my exams at Brindle Heath School in Pendleton. My mother took me to meet her in Manchester, from there we took the bus from Aytoun Street to Maine Road.Miss Bird must have been well connected with the club because we had drinks in the boardroom before the game.We lost 5-4 but that was me hooked for life.I was ten at that time,and I am now 61yrs and I still go to this day,along with my son and grandaughter.

The first time I went on my own to Maine Road was for a FA Cup third round replay against Newcastle on a cold afternoon in January 1957. I was a rather small, skinny 11-year-old and didn’t realise that standing in the middle of the Kippax was not a good idea.(At least it didn’t rain, as this was the last season that the Kippax did not have a roof!) Some kind soul lifted me on his shoulders and I saw City take a 3-0 lead in the first half. It seemed that all we needed to do was to attack and we would score. A red-haired centre forward for Newcastle, Alex Tait who was deputising for the great George Milburn,began to play havoc with our defence. I saw very little of the second half as my exhausted helper had to put me back down on the terrace. Thus I did not actually witness the three goals that Newcastle scored before the 90 minutes were up. At that point, not realising there would be extra time, I left. Outside the ground, I heard the roar when City regained the lead. Subsequent groans, however, announced that the worst had happened. Despite the defeat, the sheer drama had me hooked. I went to the next league match I could (and sat on the wall at the foot of the Kippax) and, guess what, City beat Charlton 5-1. A fifty-year roller coster ride had well and truly begun.

My parents came down to Manchester from Scotland in the early 1930’s and the first thing they did was to seek out Maine Road to start the Hamilton dynasty of City supporters. I was 5 when they took me to my first game, Easter Saturday 31 March 1956 1-1 draw with Birmingham City, Hayes the scorer. It was an early 6th Birthday present as I had been nagging to go with them for sometime. The excitement was intense as I prepared for that first visit, get out the scarf and new bobble hat, off to catch the bus at Minsterley Parade, Woodhouse Park to see this great team play in the largest stadium in England. The bus arrived at Princess Road Depot, off we got and took my first of many trips down Bowes Street towards the ground. On arriving, I couldn’t get over how large the outside was and on entering the Main Stand Block H my first view of the pitch took my breath away, by this time in the season the green turf had been worn away the surface was mainly brown but that didn’t matter I was here. This was the pitch my brother had played on with Dennis Violet and Eddie Lewis when they all played for Manchester Boys. They of course went on to become Busby Babes whilst Ian joined City but didn’t reach the heights of his friends, he earned more money working in a bank than playing for City, changed times. I can’t remember much of the match, but the team was the one that was to play in the Cup Final against the same team, except that Spurdle played in place of Johnstone. I can remember looking around the crowd of 44,777 and thinking this was amazing, looking across at the Kippax which was about to get its roof and thinking how vast the terrace was. My hero was Big Bert and I still rate him as the best goalkeeper I have ever seen, some of those saves he made were unbelievable. Dave Ewing was a rock in defence and Ken Barnes using his guile to prompt each City attack. I was hooked but was most upset to be left at home come May when off to Wembley they went. I was left at home in my sky blue kit watching on the small black and white tv. I have since seen all the highs and lows which followed and the dynasty continues, with my son, daughter, nephews, son in law, grand daughters all blues. I just wish my parents had still been here to witness our current stadium and new found riches.

My first City match was in April 1955 not long before the FA Cup final between City and Newcastle United which sadly resulted in a 3-1 victory for the Magpies. This first City game was against Blackpool at Maine Road when I was taken there by my father when I was 8 years old (I’m 62 now). We stood in the Kippax stand I recall. I think he took me to this match mainly because the legendary Stanley Matthews was playing for the Tangerines that day. He always used to say that the day that he and my mum got married was the day City won the FA Cup back in 1934. I only have vague memories of the game but I will never forget the final score and sometimes I mention this in conversations with people. The half time score was City 1 Blackpool 0 – a goal from a free kick by a player called “Fagan” I think. But, the FINAL SCORE was a complete turnaround – City 1 Blackpool 6 (Yes SIX).
About 10-15 years ago I wrote to the club at Maine Road about this game asking if they could look into their records and give me the full details for this particular result and they very kindly sent me a full summary with both teams, scorers, attendance figures etc. The next time I went a match was not until about 1967 when that great team under Joe Mercer and Malcolm Allison was on the rise to glory. This was primarily because we were rugby league supporters of our local team Swinton, who were one of the best sides in the game during the ’60s.

Keith J. Smith

49 Danesway
Pendlebury
MANCHESTER
Lancashire
M27 4JS

I remember my first game very well and would like to write about it, but I forget exactly when it was and the final score! It was away at Preston in the late 50s. We won and scoreed 5 I think it was 5 -1. We had George Hannah, and Billy Macadam scored – maybe a hat trick, not sure. If you have anyone who could kindly fill in the details for me I would be thrilled.

the first match I went to was with my dad on the 29th April 1959 aged 11, against Leicester. We were in the Main Stand. All I can remember is We had to win our match and Aston Villa had to lose against West Bromwich Albion. There match kicked off 15 min earlier than ours and I remember a man kept us informed by running up the steps to the scoreboard and putting the latest score up. I will never forget the atmosphere and especially the noise when it was announced that Villa had been beaten. I went to a couple of more games with my dad the following season( he couldn’t afford a seat all the time and would not take me to the standing part.Sadly he died in the January of 1961 and I talked my mam into letting me go on my own in the February of that year. I have been going to City ever since, My daughter has been going since she was 3 and now my two grandchildren go. I still look back on my first match and thank my dad for taking me.