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Say What You See - Meadow Lane

What do old photographs get you thinking? Olly Wicken gives us a stream of consciousness on a shot from April 1981.

"I recognise Luther Blissett. I recognise Meadow Lane, Notts County. I loved Luther. He used to chase down everything and never give up. You don’t see it from strikers these days.

Isn’t the goalkeeper Raddy Avramovic? Is this him making that hideous goalkeeping error in the last minute when we won 2-1? Didn’t he spill the ball from a back pass? It left Luther free on goal, wide on the right, and none of the County players noticed. Luther ended up running along the byeline and somehow got the ball in, from about an inch out, as two defenders eventually ran back to cover, off their shins probably.

I was on the terrace behind the goal, I think. I definitely wasn’t at the other end. Look at the state of it. Half of it derelict, half missing. That was the state of football grounds in the early 80s.

Even the advertising on the front of the stand is falling apart. My mate Big Ted started a chant to the tune of “Come On You Orns”, as if he was reading the broken advert. We sang “Tubor He Gr” every time we went to Meadow Lane after that. It was funny at the time. So was Luther’s goal. So was Big Ted. Was that the Notts County game when he’d sold a car in the morning and came to the match with £400 in his shoes for safe keeping?

We always seemed to win at Notts County. There was the 5-3 when Cally scored a couple. Amazing game. Great trips. Not too far, but far enough to be proper. We always went to the Portland Arms. When Big Ted bought a round he always bought two for himself because he knew we couldn’t keep up.

God, I love football. Can we have it back, please?"