1981 FA Cup Fifth Round: Peterborough v Man City

Despite a revival in the fortunes of the club since the appointment of manager John Bond in October 1980, many Manchester City fans would still have been apprehensive when they were drawn away to fourth division Peterborough United in the 1981 FA Cup fifth round. "There's no way Manchester City can afford to be complacent," Peterborough manager Peter Morris announced. 

City fans would have been nodding wisely at this advice. The previous two seasons had seen the club humilated against lower league opponents in Shrewsbury and Halifax, so there may have been a fair amount of trepidation amongst the 8,000 City supporters making the trip to London Road. The BBC were obviously hoping for a shock; Barry Davies and the Match of the Day cameras would be present.

There was a little more reason to be confident in February 1981, though. Bond had led the team away from relegation danger towards mid-table respectability, and just four days prior to the Peterborough match they had pushed Liverpool all the way in the League Cup semi-final. 

The FA Cup draw had certainly thrown up some interesting fixtures for Bond. In the third round he had seen off a Crystal Palace team managed by his friend and predecessor at City in Malcolm Allison. In the next round, former club Norwich had been thrashed, with his son part of the team that Bond had left behind.

The fifth round threw up another link with Bond's past. "I have a close connection with John," Peterborough boss Morris said. "He signed me for Norwich for £70,000 when I was 31, and then encouraged me into management at Mansfield. John's cup run this season has been about reunions of one kind or another and they have been happy ones so far. I hope we can change that."

Peterborough had joined the Football League in 1960, and had bounced between Divisions three and four since then. Morris took over in 1979 as the team slipped back into the basement, but the 1980/81 season brought encouragement in both league and cup.

Challenging for promotion, the team defeated Northampton, Barnet, and higher league opponents Chesterfield and Notts County in the FA Cup, evoking memories of their memorable 1964/65 run to the last eight in the same competition. 

Morris' Peterborough team was an ideal blend of youth and experience. Micky Gynn (19) and Trevor Quow (20) provided energy in midfield, with centre back Trevor Slack (18) rumoured to be on the radar of a number of top flight clubs. Skipper Billy Kellock (26) enjoyed a fine season, earning a place in the PFA Team of the Year, with winger Tommy Robson (36) and Alan Slough (33) ably supporting the younger players, the latter having made it to the final with Fulham in 1975.

But it was centre forward Robbie Cooke who was creating a lot of hype before the City match. The 23-year-old had previously played for Morris at Mansfield before dropping outside of the Football League. His prolific form at Grantham Town earned him a £12,000 move to Peterborough, and his 21 goals in all competitions was bringing him to the attention of the media.

With cup fever hitting Peterborough, the club took advantage, increasing ticket prices and bringing in receipts reportedly topping £40,000. For a club that had been losing £3,000 week a year before, the cup run had provided a boost, although many journalists were less than impressed with the hike in admission prices.

One man who would not be present at London Road was Bond. Struck down with influenza, he was forced to hand the managerial reins to assistant John Benson. The stand-in manager could at least bring Bobby McDonald, Gerry Gow and Tommy Hutchison back after they missed the League Cup match at Anfield due to being cup-tied. 

City's selection dilemmas centred on youth v experience: Tommy Caton or Tommy Booth at the back, Dave Bennett or Dennis Tueart in midfield. In the end, one of each was chosen - Booth and Bennett - with the former proving the match winner. But for large periods of the first half, City had to weather a storm that at points threatened to overwhelm them.

Sadly for The Posh, fate would decree Cooke and Kellock - with 32 goals between them that season - should suffer an off-day in front of goal. Yet the tone of the afternoon would be set immediately by the impressive Gynn, his determined run from midfield leading to a scramble in the City box which keeper Joe Corrigan was grateful to deal with.

 

 

Robson, the "grandad of the FA Cup", was a constant threat throughout the first half, providing a chance for Cooke which was headed wide. Kellock mistimed a header from another Robson cross, before Cooke spurned a chance to volley Peterborough in front. Gynn continued his good work, his mishit shot almost finding a way past Corrigan via a deflection off Nicky Reid.

City did put the ball in the Peterborough net, albeit after McDonald had quite clearly scooped it over the line with his hand. But in the 40th minute came the decisive goal of the match. From a City corner, Booth fired home after Paul Power's original shot had been blocked. The man who had played in the 1969 final - the last time City had got past the fifth round - celebrated in front of an ecstatic away end.

Peterborough fans may have felt hard done by, and a few minutes later their mood would not have been improved as Kellock missed a glorious chance when his close range header went wide. With that miss and the half-time whistle, all the wind seemed to disappear from Peterborough's sails. 

The second half was nondescript, as City managed the game superbly, and only decent saves from Keith Waugh denied Power and Steve MacKenzie. As the match petered out, it became clear that there would be no shock defeat for City this year. But the 27,780 present had seen them given a scare.

"As exits go, this one must have been particularly galling, for during the first half the home side genuinely outplayed their daunting opponents," Julie Welch wrote in the Guardian. Welch wasn't holding back on her criticism of City in the opening 35 minutes: "For much of the time, in fact, they played like well-disciplined carthorses."

Morris added to the general condemnation of City. "I thought City were rubbish. They did nothing. But we got frightened because we couldn't believe we could play so well. We had them at our mercy but didn't take our chances."

"We were fortunate not to be two or three down at half time," Benson admitted. Yet it was hard to be too scathing of City's performance. Playing away at a fourth division club that would just miss out on promotion at the end of the season, City may have got lucky at times. Yet that was more down to poor finishing on Peterborough's behalf. It was a case of job done.

There would certainly be no complaints from the City faithful. After a poor start to the season, momentum was building behind the team, and the FA Cup journey was all set to continue. The next stop would be Goodison Park, but unlike the League Cup, this time the road to Wembley would not finish on Merseyside.