1983/84: Manchester United v Tottenham

There was very little hype. No cheerleaders on the pitch, no fireworks, no whole new ball game as Sky would have us believe at the start of the Premier League. The first live league match on the BBC on Friday December 16, 1983, was in many ways the complete opposite to what we experience now. An undersold product that on the pitch would exceed expectations.

The Division One fixture between Manchester United and Tottenham was an ideal beginning for live league football on the BBC. But circumstances would play a part in this. It had been intended that the Watford-West Ham match in October would be the first live league match on the BBC. But a technicians strike prevented this.

So it would be Old Trafford that welcomed the TV cameras for the first live league match on the BBC. Yet whether live television coverage was fully embraced appeared open to debate. Clubs, already concerned about declining attendances, worried that fans would stay at home if more and more matches were screened live. 

With just ten matches to be shown on BBC and ITV - nine after the technicians' strike - there seemed little chance of overkill. But the fact that a crowd of 33,616 turned up for the opening match on the BBC - the lowest league gate of the season at Old Trafford - seemed to justify the stance of club chairmen.

There was very little in the way of build-up and analysis of the match. Coverage would start just ten minutes before the 7:15pm kick off and end shortly after the final whistle. At 7:05pm that familiar theme tune kicked in and a new era for the sport in the UK was about to begin.

 

Jimmy Hill would be a busy man. Appearing as the main presenter, with Bobby Charlton as the expert beside him, Hill would later make a dash from his seat to be co-commentator during the match. John Motson was the main commentator, on a night of drama, comedy, entertainment, and goals galore.

Before the match kicked off, Motson introduced us to the teams. Garth Crooks, on loan from Tottenham, could not play against his parent club, so Norman Whiteside returned to the United starting XI. With Gordon McQueen injured, Mike Duxbury was shifted to centre back, Remi Moses moved to right back, with Arnold Muhren returning from injury to play in midfield.

 

Tottenham brought in Garry O'Reilly for the injured Chris Hughton at right back, and with Steve Archibald injured, Alan Brazil was given an opportunity to remind manager Keith Burkinshaw of his abilities up front. The biggest talking point was the return of Ossie Ardiles to the bench, the Argentine midfielder absent since February with a fractured shin injury.

Introducing the match as a tussle between the "aristocrats from the south against the glamour team from the north," Motson would be at his excitable best during a match that didn't disappoint from the outset. After United skipper Bryan Robson hit the bar, Mark Falco was unlucky not to be awarded a penalty, and just a minute later Tottenham were left rueing the decision by referee Alan Saunders.

The home team would take the lead in the 13th minute, although the circumstances behind the goal would have left most Tottenham fans shouting obscenities at their screens. There seemed little danger when Arthur Graham put in a cross with his left foot from the right flank. But when defender Gary Stevens and goalkeeper Ray Clemence left the ball for each other, the indecision proved costly.

If you missed the goal or switched on the coverage at 7:30pm, then there was every chance that you would not find out the score for another ten minutes or so. "In case you've joined the match late Manchester United leading by one goal to nil, a goal scored by Arthur Graham after 13 minutes," Motson helpfully informed the viewing public after 20 minutes of the match. Different times.

Another problem, that admittedly we didn't think of at the time, was a lack of a scoreboard permanently on the screen. After 35 minutes we were shown the score, but there would often be a frustrating period of trying to guess who was winning a match that you had joined late. 

 

It is also interesting to note the role of the co-commentator. Hill would speak on just five separate occasions in the first half, the first time being a minute after Graham's comical opener. He would up this to six contributions in the second half. It's arguable as to which approach is best - Hill's short, sharp work, or the relentless nature of today's co-commentators - but it didn't seem to hinder the coverage back in 1983.

With ten-minute breaks at half-time in this era, there was very little time to summarise the events of the first half. Plus there had been a big breaking story that day, with the announcement that Terry Neill had been sacked by Arsenal. Before you knew it, the players were back on the pitch for the second half, and Hill would once again have to switch from presenter to co-commentator.

Keeping up with events in the second half would prove tricky. Five goals - one brilliant, another a calamity - and the pantomime booing of the returning Ardiles combined to leave you hoping that all live matches would be like this forevermore. Forget the 37 back-passes in the match - yes, I counted them all, and this is my particular favourite - this was a rare treat for us football lovers in the 80s.

Clemence's saves from Frank Stapleton and Graham looked crucial when a piece of magic from Brazil levelled the scores. After O'Reilly had headed on a chipped ball from Glenn Hoddle, Brazil's left-footed overhead kick left Gary Bailey with no chance. It must have impressed United manager Ron Atkinson; six months later Brazil would join United.

 

 

Tottenham's joy was short-lived. Clemence tipped a deflected Stapleton shot round the post - possibly the 78th time that night that Motson had said "Annnnnd Stapleton" - and just a minute after Brazil's goal, Kevin Moran arrived in the six-yard box to sweep in Muhren's corner.

Clemence would deny Stapleton on two further occasions, the second save again resulting in a corner that ended with the ball in the back of the Tottenham net. Ray Wilkins' corner was flicked on by Moran, allowing Graham to head home at the back post. With just 15 minutes remaining it looked as if Atkinson's men would be heading to the top of the table.

Yet for the second time on the evening, a team would score a minute after conceding. Ardiles was introduced from the bench, loud boos echoing around Old Trafford, the fans inside the ground unable to forgive the little midfielder for the basic fact that he was born in a country that had tried to reclaim the Falklands Islands the year before. Motson later described it as "a mixed reception": that was a rare understatement.

Ardiles would have an instant impact, heading a ball into United's area, allowing Falco to fire past a hesitant Bailey, who was lambasted by his defenders for his uncertainty. "The sort of match you'd expect between two teams who have always gone forward whenever they can," Motson stated. It was fast turning into a night to remember for the armchair viewers.

There was one last incident that would add to the general madness of the evening. Graham Roberts was booked for a cynical foul on Robson, and the free kick would end in humiliation for Clemence. Dropping a Stapleton header, the keeper looked on in horror as Moran scored his second of the evening. Clemence buried his face in the mud; with eight minutes left, there was no way back for the visitors.

The win put United top, albeit only for 24 hours, as Liverpool would win the next day. Atkinson was delighted with the display. "We played some marvellous stuff. Some of our midfield work, particularly from Arnold Muhren, was out of this world." Understandably, Burkinshaw was less impressed.

"From my point of view we were ridiculous and diabolical. If our defence keep playing like that, they will get nothing this season." Clemence came in for criticism, despite keeping Tottenham in the game with some fine saves. The fact that he had made a clanger to seal Tottenham's fate, in front of millions of TV viewers, did little to help his cause.

 

Viewing figures revealed the first live league match did not enter the top ten for BBC One programmes that week. But it was the low attendance at Old Trafford that caused the greatest concern. "It just proves that live television does have an adverse affect on attendances," Atkinson said. United chairman Martin Edwards declared that he would be seeking compensation (based on a crowd between 48,000-50,000) from a League fund set up for lost gate receipts in this situation.

For a wide-eyed young football enthusiast, these issues didn't really enter my thoughts. Neither did the fact that a football match rearranged for a Friday night would be inconvenient for the fans who wanted to attend, especially Tottenham supporters. Now this is the norm, and it is a major headache when matches are shifted for the sake of TV. But the needs of supporters have never really been a concern for television bosses.

The excitement of sitting down to watch a live football league match back in 1983 was hard to explain. With so little football on our screens, it was a real event, and the chance to watch matches under the lights on a Friday night was special. Now we have wall-to-wall coverage, countdown clocks to fixtures, stats galore, one-hour build-ups, multiple co-commentators, and post-mortems that last for weeks.

Less is sometimes more though. Don't get me wrong, I am more than content to feast on the hours of live matches that we get the chance to view now. But when something is so rare, you appreciate it more. That's why nights like December 16, 1983, stick in the memory.