11:35pm Tuesday 26th May 2009
By Michael Duffy
Along with 90,000 other Jocks I made the bi-annual pilgrimage to Wembley on this day 30 years ago.
I hired out a function room at a big pub called "The Century" ( a block of flats now I believe ) about 5 minutes from Wembley Park Tube and sold 70 tickets to old school mates, college buddies etc who came together to enjoy a glass of Pimms or 2 with quails eggs and canapes.
This was one of the years that pubs in Wembley weren`t allowed to open and large parts of London didn`t open either and the streets were full of bears roaming round on the hunt for a bevvy.
We`d been on the peev for an hour when the landlord came up to me to say there was a q outside of guys all claiming to have gone to school with me, he could open up another bar but to get round the police ban anybody who came in had to be a guest at a private party and known to the organiser.
He gave me a book of raffle tickets to make it look official so left to my own devices I stood on the door for 20 minutes and sold 150 for £1 a pop to all my new friends.
The walk up to the stadium was one seething mass of tartan & sideburns, in those days very few of us wore kilts to games, the tartan tammy was an accepted fashion statement as was the scarf wrapped round the wrists.
There was a bloke at the bottom of the stairs selling Lion Rampant flags and Jocks were parting with a quid to wave them all the way up the stairs before having them confiscated by Londons` finest at the top.
Going thru` the turnstiles I had a guy without a ticket jammed up behind me laying down a fiver for the turnstile operator and a guy crawling through our legs and under the turnstile.
The terraces were rammed with just enough room to stand on tippy-toe and we went crazy when John Wark opened the scoring after about 20 minutes, I really can`t remember too much else about the game except Keegan tearing us to pieces and a guy running on the pitch during a rare spell when we were getting on top and disrupting the play.
After the game we headed into London and The Royal Scot Hotel where my mate, Wee Billy, had sorted out the accommodation for our party of 7, I paid for the room whilst the other 6 hid round the corner before we all went up to our `executive` room with trouser press and ..............1 single bed.
We were only in there for 5 minutes when the door knocked, thinking it was hotel security the other 6 hid in the bath while I answered the door, it was a wee guy delivering the continental breakfast in a plastic box.
That night we went out to a restaurant called `The Baker & Oven` and the 7 of us saw off a good dinner plus 9 bottles of wine, 48 ports and 1 Tia Maria ( Wee Billy has been reminded about the Tia Maria for the last 30 years ).
Back at the hotel I slept in the bath wrapped in my flag and woke up in the morning in 6 inches of water flavoured with port & quails eggs
Happy days
Pre-match buffet £3.50
Match ticket £5
Pint about £1
Accommodation £45
Memories - Priceless
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