đď¸ THROUGH THE ARCHIVES: Best Away Days
Long-time Luton fan reflects on his most memorable away days following Luton, for the right reasons, from the plastic pitch at Loftus Road to being high up in the gods in the north east with over 7,000 fellow Hatters.
It was just over 51 years ago that I attended my first away game, and seeing the Town on the road during the past five decades has resulted in some moments of extreme euphoria, as well as some eminently forgettable ones. Everyone has their special memories of watching Luton from the away end â perhaps other supporters would like to nominate their own choices, along with reasons (other than the Hatters winning).
In chronological order, therefore, my top ten begins with the first time I watched Luton somewhere other than Kenilworth Road. It was the promotion season of 1973-74, and the Hatters prevailed 2-1 at Crystal Palace. Although I was standing with Luton supporters on the âawayâ terrace, I soon learnt that itâs advisable not to say too much or show a lot of emotion when youâre not totally sure who is around you.
The next memorable awayday came the same season, on 27th April 1974 at The Hawthorns, when The Hatters secured the point required to win promotion to the First Division, due to a goal from Barry Butlin and some resolute defending. Other than the result and its significance, however, the game had little to remember it by.
That one season in the topflight provided little to cheer about on our travels, but a notable exception was the demolition of Birmingham City, 4-1, at St Andrews on 19th April 1975, in which Jimmy Husband enjoyed what was probably his finest moment in a Luton shirt.
Over four and a half years passed until my next away game worthy of inclusion, but what a game it was. Boxing Day 1979, and Kirk Stephens confirmed his place in Luton Town folklore with a last-minute header at the back post in front of those supporters who had made the short trip to Watford. âHark now hearâŚ..â indeed.
The first league game ever to be played on an artificial pitch is next up. QPR fans, I am sure, expected their team to win handsomely on a surface which provided a very untrue bounce of the ball, especially when they took the lead through ex-Hatter Andy King. Luton, however, stuck to David Pleatâs principles and kept the ball on the nylon, and when Ricky Hill added to Mark Aizlewoodâs equaliser we were in heaven.
West Ham were the opponents for the next two special days out, the first being a 3-2 win on 4th January 1983, with Paul Walsh scoring all three Luton goals. The team was fighting against the prospect of relegation â nothing new there, then - and showed immense spirit and resolve.
For the next one, circumstances were very different as Luton defended the Littlewoods Cup that they had won the previous April. The semi-final first leg took place on 12th February 1989 at Upton Park, and home fans were leaving well before the end of a 3-0 Luton victory. The Townâs superiority was a joy to behold, and it is very possible that the West Ham âkeeper, Allan McKnight, still has nightmares about facing Mick Harford, particularly in the air.
Fast forward nine years, and when Kevin Keeganâs Fulham faced Luton on 3rd October 1998 at Craven Cottage they were blown away by a Town team that just clicked in a way that weâd liked to have seen every week. As memory serves, Steve Davis was particularly imperious in a 3-1 victory, and Keegan was very generous in his praise of the Hattersâ performance.
The final two best awaydays are from the relatively recent lower league era. On 16th September 2017 we were heading for defeat at Wycombe Wanderers, whose fans started to believe they were actually going to win a home game against us. Then, in the last few moments Scott Cuthbert equalised from close range, and during added time James Collins headed the winner. That was a good journey home!
Another very enjoyable journey home followed the match at Oxford âDonât call it the Kassam Stadiumâ United on 2nd October 2018. Luton bossed the game, and we all thought Dan Potts had won it for us late on but for the referee to disallow the effort. Within minutes, the same player headed home an almost identical goal, which this time did count, and we went on our merry way with justice having been done.
The above notwithstanding, a great awayday isnât always dependent on the Town winning, although it does help. A lot. The experience of being amongst the 7,500 Luton supporters at St Jamesâs Park on 6th January 2018 for the FA Cup third round tie with Newcastle was truly memorable, and might have been even more so had Danny Hyltonâs effort to make the score 3-2 not been wrongly disallowed.
Obvious exclusions to the aforementioned matches are the final games of the season at Manchester City in 1983, and Derby County in 1990 â simply because I wasnât there, and those played at a neutral venue, as they tend not to feature the same levels of antagonism and rabid bias that we experience as visiting supporters.
Next upâŚthe worst away experiences (if I am not too traumatised by the recollections).