Football: ...old boys...

That Was The Weekend That Was

It may have been the date on which Wrexham beat Arsenal five years ago, but 4 January has not always brought a smile to the lips of the Welsh club's manager, Brian Flynn.

On 4 January, 1975, he was on the wrong end of a giant-killing, as a member of the Burnley side ousted by the upstarts of Wimbledon, driven by the influence of their future manager, Dave Bassett. Wimbledon were the first non-League side to beat First Division opposition away from home for 65 years.

Bassett, as it happened, knew about giant-killing, having helped Walton and Hersham to a 4-0 victory over Brighton the previous season.

So, too, did Micky Mahon, the geography teacher whose left-foot shot from 18 yards four minutes into the second half gave the contest its only goal. Mahon had been in the Colchester team responsible for the demise of Leeds in 1971.

The real hero at Turf Moor, however, was a tally clerk from the London docks who spent his weekends as Wimbledon's goalkeeper. Burnley were the top flight's leading scorers, but on this day they could find no way past Dickie Guy.

He made brilliant first-half saves from Ray Hankin and Keith Newton and followed up with more after the break. His only real error came when he agonisingly dropped a last-minute shot by Paul Fletcher. Happily for him, Doug Collins fired the rebound over the top.

In the next round, with Wimbledon drawn away to Leeds, Guy saved a Peter Lorimer penalty but his luck ran out in the replay, which Leeds won 1- 0, thanks to a goal deflected past Guy off Bassett.