Memories of White Hart Lane

[Don Diaz]

Since this is our last (proposed) season at the old girl, and she's already lost a corner, I thought she deserved a thread of her own... where we can post our favourite memories of matches, experiences, photo's or indeed anything else you like....

I can't remember my favourite match, there have been too many, but if I had to narrow it down, it would have to be the UEFA cup final against Anderlecht, the 5-1 beating of Arsenal in the League Cup semi final second leg, or maybe beating Bayern Munich. But then there are some fantastic Hoddle, Bale, Ginola goals, Ossie Ardiles and Graham Roberts, Jimmy Greaves and Dave Mackay amongst many others, Sir Bill Nicholson, Keith Burkinshaw, Terry Venables and now Poch.....

Loads of good stuff to reminisce about over the course of this season....Here's one to get you started..

fire away.

 

[skiathospurs]

Yeah 84 was as good as anything ever,the whole day was an incredible beerfest and then the game itself and drama.
League games i remember in 86/87 when we played west ham in the league and cup a couple of weeks apart and we smashed them both times 5 and 4 nil and OFC `83 5-0 against woolwich and the revenge for 78.

 

[Flump]

I'll post frequently in this thread because I have so many great memories of the greatest football ground on earth.
My first is my first game, August 78 vs Aston Villa. The players still came out of the corner of the Old West stand, the shelf was beyond magnificent, full to the rafters, we had 2 new players from what seemed like outer space to a 7 year old, there was ticker tape to welcome them, and Aston Villa thumped us 4-1, Hoddle scored for us but I don't remember the game tbh. I was hooked and couldn't wait to go again.

 

[Don Diaz]

Yeah I remember the ticker tape days, I was 15 in '78 so had been to a few by then. My first game was Ipswich Town I think(!) a 0-0 draw, sat at the back of the North Stand, old wooden seats with my Dad. My memories are a bit clouded from back then, but I can remember a game against Sheffield United when I was down at the front of the East Stand and they had a bloke called Woodward playing on the wing with grey hair...which I found fascinating. Just after half time they used to post the scores from the other games on numbered metal plates near the corner flags...it was always exciting to see what the scores from other games were. At that time I rememeber Alan Gilzean and Martin Chivers.

As time went on my dad started to get tickets in the East upper, we would always stay on after the game and move to the TV gantry and watch the commentator/reporter do their live report of the game. He said it was 'to miss the traffic'....I think he wanted to suck every last second out of the visit.....I now have the same addiction.

 

[Thfcire]

Don't know what year but I remember Watford beating us 1-0 at the lane and my da calling elton John a speeky poof

 

[skiathospurs]

Don't know what year but I remember Watford beating us 1-0 at the lane and my da calling elton John a speeky poof

LOL we took revenge at villa park in 87 semi final,we was in the witton road end and we gave elton dogs all game!
Anyway back on track another game stood out was the 1st home game 85/86 when we unveiled paul allen and waddle,we demolished watford 4-0,waddle literally put their left back on his arse,he did a quick dozen stepovers the full back just felll over and waddle merely walked passed him,was a beautiful sunny day and a sign of good seasons to come!

 

[Flump]

The 5-0 demolition of Arsenal in 83 was another cracker. Falco's volley into the Paxton Rd has always been a personal favourite goal of mine.

 

[Don Diaz]

Someone more savvy with IT may want to merge this thread with Havocc's newer thread?

For me it's difficult to beat the UEFA cup final, but there have been many great nights at the Lane.

A couple more from deep in the memory and also more recently....

The League cup semi final win over Chelsea 5-1, the ground was rocking that night...but not as much as when we beat Inter Milan with the infamous 'taxi for Maicon'....a truly brilliant night, when for me we knew Spurs were back on the major European stage.

 

[Liam]

One of my favourite memories is actually nothing to do with the game we attended (can't even remember who we played) but my Dad, my cousin and I used to often sneak back into White Hart Lane after a game as my cousin is a wheelchair user and there are no disabled toiled outside the lane to use (there was one in the old garage at the time but we conveniently forgot that one) so weused to approach the iron gates, show our memberships and say that my cousin needed to use the toilet and they would the my cousin and my dad in and because I was a kid they would let me into the car park too and we could use the disabled facilities in the corner by the away stand. After my cousin had used the toilet (or pretended too) we'd go to the players car park and wait for the squad to start trickling out, but on this occasion we decided to walk down the side of the pitch and have a butchers round the stadium, there was a couple of kids running round on the pitch then we noticed at the bottom of the tunnel a TV camera interviewing Ginola so we waited for the interview to finish and had a good chat with Ginola (after my Dad had embarrassed himself by telling Davids kids to get off the pitch) had out photo taken with him and of he went up the tunnel. We had a look round and the place was empty, so we thought fuck it and walked up the tunnel too. We went past the changing rooms and stuck our head round the changing room door (it fucking stank of BO in there) then we wandered out the glass doors where the players exit the stadium.the old guy that worked on the doorlooked shocked when walked out, saw the player area with loads of cool stuff in there like signed lienekar boots, gazza shirts, and bill nics big bronze head. So this security obviously wanted to kick us out of the players car park as we were taking the piss then out comes Steffen Freund, he grabbed my cousins wheelchair and said "no sir these guys are with me", then pushes the wheelchair towards his car (a porche if i remember that correctly) then he spends aboutn 20-30 minutes with us talking all things Tottenham. I have to say that Ginola was hero at the time but looking back meeting Freund was just as collas he was so friendly and up for a laugh it was unbelievable. None of my friends at school believed me until I could go into town the following weekend and get the picture printed. The look on the security guards face was priceless.

 

[Flump]

Brilliant story mate. Blatant misuse of a disabled person though. Shame on your dad.

 

[Liam]

Brilliant story mate. Blatant misuse of a disabled person though. Shame on your dad.

It was probably my cousins idea to be fair.

 

[skiathospurs]

Brilliant story mate. Blatant misuse of a disabled person though. Shame on your dad.

When you meet the pair and he runs you over in a beer garden,you`ll understand trust me True story !!!

 

[Don Diaz]

I can't match Liam's account...which is brilliant, but aside of my banner good intentions at the time, from a few years ago, I have also been lucky enough to stand in the centre circle with the head groundsman - a good mate sells state of the art football pitches including Spurs.

It was after the Arsenal game that finished 2-2 some years ago, a Robbie Keane penalty saving the day but not the league title going to the scum back in 2004. I've got to say that even in an empty stadium, 40 minutes after the final whistle it's a scary place. The stands seem so close and huge, couldn't possibly imagine what it's like playing in front of a full house on a matchday or night.

One of the things that you don't realise is that the pitch is slightly 'domed'...you cant actually see one touchline from the other, so when a pass is played across the pitch it requires a great deal more skill than you might imagine from your seat in the stand. Any way it was a great honour and privilege to be able to do it and a memory that will stay with me forever.

I'm now working on the same contact to get me into the training ground, my mate visits regularly.....keep you posted.

 

[Liam]

I can't match Liam's account...which is brilliant, but aside of my banner good intentions at the time, from a few years ago, I have also been lucky enough to stand in the centre circle with the head groundsman - a good mate sells state of the art football pitches including Spurs.

It was after the Arsenal game that finished 2-2 some years ago, a Robbie Keane penalty saving the day but not the league title going to the scum back in 2004. I've got to say that even in an empty stadium, 40 minutes after the final whistle it's a scary place. The stands seem so close and huge, couldn't possibly imagine what it's like playing in front of a full house on a matchday or night.

One of the things that you don't realise is that the pitch is slightly 'domed'...you cant actually see one touchline from the other, so when a pass is played across the pitch it requires a great deal more skill than you might imagine from your seat in the stand. Any way it was a great honour and privilege to be able to do it and a memory that will stay with me forever.

I'm now working on the same contact to get me into the training ground, my mate visits regularly.....keep you posted.

Getting that banner sorted out was the stuff of legend mate. When it was all going on I was so chuffed to see that on the telly!!!