Opening league matches were becoming an issue for Arsenal as the Division One evolved into the Premier League. Since winning the league title so memorably at Anfield in May 1989, the club had suffered from first day nerves, losing 4-1 at Old Trafford, scraping a draw at home against QPR, and being humiliated by Norwich at Highbury.
But surely the 1993/94 campaign would be different. Starting the season at home against Bobby Gould's Coventry, the 4/1 odds on an away victory highlighted the difficulty of the task ahead for the Sky Blues. Graham's team may have developed into a cup team - the first to win both domestic cups in the same season in 1992/93 - yet some experts wondered if Arsenal were ready for another tilt at the title.
Priced as second favourites at 5/1 to win the newly sponsored Carling Premier League - behind Manchester United at 15/8 - a Guardian article previewing the new season predicted that Graham would be winning his third title. But Arsenal's tight wage structure held the club back in the transfer market, and a lack of investment in the squad hardly suggested a title challenge was on the cards.
Linked with moves for Roy Keane, Gary Speed, and Andy Sinton, only Eddie McGoldrick arrived at Highbury for a fee of £1 million. David Lacey, writing in the Guardian, had a more realistic take on Arsenal's prospects: "But even with Sinton in the side, Graham's team would still be short of the flair of their immediate rivals."
The previous season may have been trophy-laden, but it confirmed that Arsenal were now set up perfectly for the one-off nature of cup ties rather than the weekly struggles of a league campaign. A miserly defence and the over reliance on the brilliance of Ian Wright was ideal for knockout football. But winning the league with such a lack of creativity in the team seemed fanciful.
If there was not much change on the pitch at Highbury, then off it there was plenty of action. The Coventry match would be the first played in front of the brand spanking new North Bank stand, with its cushioned seats and multiple food/drink outlets contained within. However, the opening of the stand went just as smoothly as Arsenal's performance on the day.
With many seats not in place, some fans were forced to stand during the match. As the redevelopment of the Clock End continued, large chunks of Highbury resembled a building site. The previous season had seen the infamous mural hide the construction of the North Bank. During the Coventry match, many Arsenal fans in the new stand may have wished they had left it in place.
Choosing to play with three centre backs - Phil Babb, Peter Atherton and David Rennie - Gould's tactical approach would stifle an Arsenal team that would often struggle to break teams down. Former Arsenal player Stewart Robson cleared an Andy Linighan effort off the line, and Tony Adams would also go close, but as the first half progressed it was clear that Coventry were comfortable.
Despite losing Robson to a knee cartilage injury - summer signing Steve Morgan taking his place - it would be Coventry that struck first in the 34th minute. A backheel from Flying Postman John Williams found its way to Peter Ndlovu, and when a clumsy foul from Lee Dixon led to a penalty, Quinn fired past David Seaman to stun the majority of the 24,897 crowd.
Quinn and Williams may have celebrated with an embarrassing Funky Chicken dance, yet there was more shame coming the way of Arsenal's usually reliable defence. Just after the hour, a delightful backheel from Roy Wegerle on the edge of the Arsenal box fell to Quinn. In the blink of an eye Quinn's left-footed effort flew into the top corner of the net in front of Arsenal's new stand.
Wegerle would again be the provider as Quinn completed his hat-trick just three minutes later. Moving on to a pass on the right hand side of Arsenal's area, Quinn pulled back his right foot and hammered a strike past Seaman that the keeper possibly should have saved. Nevertheless, a delighted Quinn broke out into that dance again, as the opening day script had well and truly been ripped up.
It is interesting to note the reaction to Quinn's hat-trick. Most reports mentioned Quinn's weight - 13st 6lbs in case you care - and Frank McGhee called him the "Michelin Man" in his Observer article. It is true that Quinn was affectionately known as Sumo, and he played up to his image - notably stating that he was "the fastest player over a yard" - but fat shaming was still a thing back in the 1990s.
Quinn seemed to take it in his stride. "I couldn't give a damn about my weight as long as the ball goes in the back of the net," he said after his hat-trick at Arsenal. He even missed a couple of more chances to try and match his opening day achievement for Newcastle against Leeds in 1989. Not for the first time, Quinn had started the season in spectacular fashion.
Back in an era where footballers were allowed a flutter, Quinn admitted that he had placed £50 on himself being top scorer in the Premier League at odds of 50/1. "I'm a betting man and thought it was good value," he revealed. But it took Quinn until November to score another league goal. His next strike after that was the winner in early December as Coventry completed the double over Arsenal.
By that time, Gould had departed. Despite a decent start to the season, a 5-1 defeat at QPR in October, and rumoured disputes with the board, saw Gould resign in the toilets at Loftus Road. Assistant Phil Neal took over and led Coventry to a respectable 11th place finish. In September 1994, Neal would bring Dion Dublin to the club. Quinn's time at Coventry was effectively over.
Arsenal did bounce back from their opening day collapse. Winning five of their next six league matches - including a 1-0 victory at Tottenham just two days later - Arsenal pulled level with Manchester United. But a 1-0 defeat at Old Trafford, and four 0-0 draws in a thrilling October, put an end to any hopes of a championship challenge. Salvation would come in a European tour.
Coventry's first match back in the top flight since 2001 will see a repeat of their opening day fixture of August 1993. Quinn's hat-trick was Coventry's last win away at Arsenal, and it seems highly unlikely that this run will end on August 21. If it does, then Frank Lampard and his players could be forgiven for dancing like funky chickens inside Arsenal's stadium, just like the Mighty Quinn back in 1993.
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