Just for a change, the summer Coventry City Diamond Club Lunch was held a month earlier than usual in order to coincide with the 30th anniversary of that famous FA Cup win over Spurs in 1987. The day saw record numbers of members attending this very special occasion with around 240 in attendance
Special guests for the occasion were members of the side that beat Spurs 3-2 including goalscorer Dave Bennett, manager John Sillett, striker Cyrille Regis, goal keeper Steve Ogrizovic and midfielder Michael Gynn. The other guest for the day were the composers of the the Sky Blues FA Cup song, Go For It City, Steve and Heather Taylor.
A letter of apology, from George Curtis, for not being able to attend the event was read by the chairman.
Before the lunch was served Joe Elliott and Billy Bell interviewed Dave Bennett and Michael Gynn. Dave spoke affectionately about the event saying it was a wonderful occasion. He also said the players of 1987 still keep in touch with each other and regularly get together to reminisce about past glories.
He retold the story of the night before the FA Cup final when the team was staying at the Complete Angler hotel in Marlow when he and a few other players sneaked out of the hotel and went to a nearby off licence to buy some beer and how they sneaked back in trying to avoid John Sillett and George Curtis , who were in the lobby and heard the tell tale chink of bottles and cans as the players crept back to their rooms.
Michael Gynn said he thought current players could learn something from the camaraderie and team spirit of those days as he believed it would build a bond that would help the team to succeed. Michael remembered the depth of the baths at the old Wembley stadium as being rather deep and as he was only 5''5", he could only stand in the bath, he said he would proably drown if he sat in a bath that deep.
Dave Bennett was asked to relive his cup final goal and he said it was just a goal and he had to concentrate on getting on with winning the game. It was not until the game had ended that he realised what they had done.
Mark O'Shea of the catering company Compass, was thanked for his continuing work for the Diamond Club. It was revealed that Mark is a Lincoln City fan and is looking forward to the first visit to The Ricoh of his team Lincoln City next season.
Diamond Club members Terry and Lynn McAuley were congratulated on the occasion of their 43rd wedding anniversary.
Joe then spoke to John Sillet and Seve Ogrizovic. John said that when he took over the running of the team he inherited the greatest bunch of playersa manager could ever wish to have. John had previously managed the youth team before handing over the responsibilty to Mick Coop. The youth team won the FA Youth Cup a few days before the senior side won the FA Cup.
Steve Ogrizovic admitted that he though City would do well in the cup after they had beaten Manchester United 1-0 at Old Trafford in Round 4. Steve''s daughter was born two days before the Cup Final and 30 years later she is to be married next week.
Cyrille Regis said the that all the players just clicked and praised the way in which the management duo of John Sillett and George Curtis ran the team. He said the reception the team received on their return to Coventry was fantastic and that it was a proud day for the team and for the city.
Steve said that although Spurs were the overwhelming favourites to lift the famous trophy, especially as their side was filled with international talent such as Glen Hoddle, Chris Waddle, Ossie Ardiles, Ray Clemence and the prolific goalscorer Clive Allen, he had belief that Coventry would win, after all they had already beaten them 4-3 in the league that season.
Steve recalled the strict instructions from John Sillett before they went onto the pitch and that was to keep it tight for the first ten minutes. Less than two minutes into the game Steve was picking the ball out of the net as Clive Allen scored for Spurs. His thought swere what the manager was going to say at half time.
John Sillet, who was a room mate at Chelsea with Jimmy Greaves recalled that Greavsie was a gambler who nearly always lost. Jonh asked Greavsie who he backed to win the cup and he said he had backed City to lose and that was when John knew City were going to win.
John recalled the storey about how the team came to spend the night before the final at the Compleat Angler hotel in Marlow. He said he asked George Hudson which hotel he had booked for the team and when he was told it was the hotel on Wembley way he said they would get no rest at all as it would be mayhen around that area. So for three hours they travelled round looking for soemwhere to stay when they came across the Complete Angler. John went in and asked if they had any rooms going on the night before the FA Cup final and the hotel manager asked if he was John Sillett and if he was going to bring the team to his hotel as he was a massive Sky Blues fan. John said he got good terms for the stay and they had the best treatment possible.
When John spotted the church on the opposite bank of the river, he asked the hotel manager if there was a wedding on the Saturday as superstition said it was lucky to meet a bride before a game. The manager made enquiries and there was a wedding on that day and he arranged for the happy couple to cross the river and meet the team. Captain Brian Kilcline had the envious task of removing the bride''s garter from her leg. In return the happy couple recived a signed football as a wedding present.
During lunch we watched a rerun of the highlights of the semi final against Leeds and of course, the final itself.
Singer songwriter duo Steve Taylor and his wife Heather, recalled how they came to write the Cup Final song Go For IT City and how the City team recorded it at their house in Keresley because EMI wouldn not allow the team to use one of their recording studios.
Steve than entertained the Diamond Club members to some songs, including his two compositions for the Sky Blues, Keeping The Dream Alive, recorded for the Checkatrade Trophy final and then Go For It City. He then sang some Buddy Holly classics and then closed with a rendition of the Sky Blues Song.
The raffle ended what was a fantastic day for all of those who attended.
The date for the next Diamond Club lunch is Thursday September 21st. I hope to see you there.
Pictures copyright of Pete Chambers BEM