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Here is Brian Judson's preview of the game
Full Record of Tottenham Hotspur -v- Chelsea
Premier Pl W D L For-Ag Pts
Home 9 0 4 5 7- 18 4
Away 9 0 3 6 6- 17 3
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Total (Prem)18 0 7 11 13- 35 7
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Football Lge
Home (Div 1)42 20 9 13 79- 57 51
Away (Div 1)42 19 6 17 63- 50 46
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Total(Div 1)84 39 15 30 142-107 97
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Football Lge
Home (Div 2) 2 1 1 0 7- 4 3
Away (Div 2) 2 0 1 1 1- 4 1
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Total(Div 2) 4 1 2 1 8- 8 4
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Total (Prem)18 0 7 11 13- 35 7
Total(Div 1)84 39 15 30 142-107 97
Total(Div 2) 4 1 2 1 8- 8 4
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Grand Tot 104 40 24 42 163-150 108
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Let us begin this preview by dealing with the most dismal aspect of it
first. The following is the dreadful sequence of results over the years
since 1986-87 :
SEASON HOME AWAY
1986-87 1-3 2-0
1987-88 1-0 0-0
1989-90 1-4 2-1
1990-91 1-1 2-3
1991-92 1-3 0-2
1992-93 1-2 1-1
1993-94 1-1 3-4
1994-95 0-0 1-1
1995-96 1-1 0-0
1996-97 1-2 1-3
1997-98 1-6 0-2
1998-99 2-2 0-2
1999-2000 0-1 0-1
2000-2001 0-3 0-3
I shall not dwell on these statistics as Declan will be covering them in
greater depth than I will be able to do so. Suffice to say here that there
is a growing number of Spurs fans who have never seen Spurs beat Chelsea!
I can say 'I was there' the day Jimmy Greaves made his debut for Spurs.(Further reading about my hero Jimmy Greaves can be found here) As
usual, Greaves did nothing for most of the match but put Chelsea ahead
after 75 minutes. He did it so lazily that no one could believe it was his
first goal for Chelsea. Spurs drew 1-1 that day when Alfie Stokes
equalised.
Due to my ill-health, I did not see Chelsea at Tottenham again until
February 1964. That was the day Tommy Harmer made his last appearance in a
competitive match at Tottenham, albeit in the blue of Chelsea. It had been
his goal that had secured Chelsea promotion during the preceding season
after they had almost thrown promotion away. Spurs lost 2-1 principally
because of the genius of Harmer The Charmer. Those who were fortunate
enough to see Harmer play will know exactly what I mean. Just a slight dip
of his shoulders could send a defence completely the wrong way. Tottenham
could do with Harmer today!
There were many great games between Spurs and Chelsea in the 1960s when
Tommy Docherty was their manager. I am convinced that it was the Docherty
impetuosity that cost Chelsea a championship when he sacked Venables and
dropped six other players after catching them breaking his curfew.
Venables was the hub of that Chelsea side and he was never replaced. Cooke
was a good player but, like McManaman, he tended to run into too many
cul-de-sacs. Venables was Chelsea in the 1960s! Those of you who saw him
as a player can see just how effective he could be when you recall his
performances for Chelsea and Queen's Park Rangers - he was brilliant! He
never settled at Tottenham because Nicholson never played Venables in the
role he was best at.
Another game that sticks out in my mind is the 2-2 draw between the two
clubs soon after the start of the 1968-69 season. Spurs had made an awful
start to the season (it was a rare event in those days!) and Spurs
travelled to the Bridge. Cliff Jones, now well into his elder statesman
role, was recalled to the team and scored one of the goals. Greaves (who
else?) scored the other.
The match that I rate the best of any game I have seen between the two
clubs was the one played at Stamford Bridge on 14th November 1970. The
heavens opened just before the kick-off and torrential rain cascaded down
on to the pitch throughout the match. The game was drifting to a 0-0 draw
when Mullery blasted a goal with less than a minute left. Spurs roared
onto the attack and Pearce nicked a second. There was still time for a
shot by Chivers to rattle the crossbar before the whistle ended the game.
It was a magnificent match. My only disappointment was that there were no
TV cameras there to cover the game as it would have been preserved for
posterity.
The most contentious game was probably the League Cup Semi-Final tie in
which Spurs hosted the 2nd Leg. I can still see Cyril Knowles failing to
prevent Chelsea from scoring the second equaliser of the night, thus
putting Chelsea in the Final. But Hudson should have had his goal
disallowed because the referee had indicated an indirect free-kick and no
one else touched the ball before it flew into the net.
Probably the most important match between the two clubs I have ever seen,
other than the 1967 FA Cup Final, has been the relegation battle that took
place near the end of the 1974-75 season. No one who was there will forget
it as the Chelsea fans invaded the pitch before the game had even started.
Referee Jack Taylor came out unescorted and made it clear the game would
go ahead even if he had to wait until midnight to start the match. That
was enough to clear the hooligans from the pitch! Spurs won the game 2-0
thanks to Alfie Conn, him of the long flowing hair and socks round his
ankles, and Perryman scoring his annual goal of the season. It more or
less ensured Spurs safety, although they still had to beat Leeds in their
final match, but Chelsea were condemned to relegation.
Another fine match between the two clubs was the Cup tie played at
Stamford Bridge in March 1982. Chelsea went ahead but Spurs scored three
goals in 10 minutes early in the second half through Hazard, Archibald and
Hoddle. Chelsea pulled one goal back but it was too late. The football
played in that purple patch was probably the finest from any Spurs side
since the 1960s.
And Sunday's match? It's too close to call. On the law of averages, we
must break our run of depressing results soon. Why not this Sunday?
COME ON YOU SPURS!
Cheers, Brian
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