20
Years Ago....
 The
season of 1979/80 arguably produced the most successful Saints team ever (if you don't
count the Scottish Cup wins). The manager at the time was Jim Clunie who inhereted
an excellent squad from Alex Ferguson. Saints attacking style of football was hailed
by many at the time and Love Street was attracting an average crowd of around 8,000.
The term 'Swashbuckling Saints' and 'Super Saints' were commonly used and Saints
became media darlings. Well, Chick Young was about even in those days!
Saints success this season has been compared this
period in Saints history so this feature will give younger surfers a flavour of the good
times and the players who featured in this successful side.
We feature the home game on 24 November 1979 - 20
years to the day at the time of writing. Saint's were scheduled to play Hibernian
who were struggling at the foot of the Premier Division. What should have been just
another routine league game was hyped up by the Hibs signing of George Best who was
commanding a huge appearance fee in the region of £2,000 per game. (You could buy lots of
drink in 1979 with £2,000!!)
 Best
even at this time was fast approaching his sell by date but not enough to prevent the
national media frenzy which even made the Ten O'clock news.
One would have been forgiven for thinking that Hibs had turned into world beaters
overnight however Super Saints had other ideas.
This was Jim Clunie's words in the match day programme.
WE'RE picking up the points now . . . Our first nine
games produced six points out of 18 but our next five have given us seven points out of
10, which is a good
improvement.
Yet we haven't really improved our position in the League table. We are still third bottom
with 13 points but we are now joined by Dundee United and Rangers. Such is the Premier
League that only four points separate third and second bottom!
That is why it is important to pick up more points, because in the last two quarters of
the League it is going to be 'dog eat dog' for survival.
If any two teams get isolated at the bottom it is going to be very difficult to make up
ground.
Our opponents today are a bit adrift from the rest of the League with five points. They
have now got George Best, one of Britain's best ever footballers in their team, to try to
give them a lift.
I am sure he will give a bit of inspiration to the rest of the team. In his days with
Manchester United he was a tremendous player. I watched him play many times and admired
all his skills . . . pace, aggression and goal scoring ability.
Older he may be but he won't have lost his skill on the ball nor his vision to see passes.
We will have to be sure he doesn't get too much room. Hibs, of course, are not going to be
a one-man team. They have some skilled players but things haven't gone too well for them
this
season.
No doubt Eddie Turnbull will be trying his hardest to start with a win here today. 1 will
be just as determined that we can keep up the good work we have shown in the last few
weeks. It promises to be a really good game.
Jim Clunie |
The Saints squad that day was:
Billy Thomson, John Young, Iain Munro, Lex Richardson, Mark Fulton, Jackie Copeland
Jimmy Bone, Billy Stark, Doug Somner, Frank McDougall, Peter Weir, Billy Abercrombie, Alex
Beckett, Robert Torrance.
Note the absence of Tony Fitzpatrick and Frank
McGarvey who had by then departed to Bristol City and Liverpool respectively.
We have compiled a photo montage as a tribute
to one of Saints 'classic' teams. To view click the thumbnail.
The game finished 2-1 to the Saints with two goals
from Doug Somner. Best was pretty much anonymous in the game although he popped up
in the 89th minute to net Hibs a consolation goal.
In the remainder of the season Saints were to go on
to glory by becoming the first (and only) Scottish team to lift the Anglo Scottish Cup and
were to finish in 3rd place in the Premier League and secure a place in the UEFA cup.
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