Gordon Milne (7 Viewers)

[phildownunder]

Just felt I had to react to sneering remarks about GM on the Proschwitz thread.

IMO Milne was one of the best managers we`ve had in the long time I`ve followed City.

He was an advocate of attacking football at a time when most other teams were obsessed with defence.

Sure, one or two of his signings didn`t come off such as Lloyd and Dave Jones, but no manager gets it right every time. How about some of the others he brought in ; Stein, Hutchison, Cross, Powell, Craven, Gillespie, McDonald, Beck, Holton, Daly, Hunt. Not a bad set of players that.

In his time as manager he put together a couple of teams which many of us believed were only a couple of players away from challenging the top teams of the day. Unfortunately he didn`t get the backing from the board that he should have done and had to put up with the likes of Dennis Mortimer being sold over his head "to balance the books" we were told.

At the time we used to go up to HR looking forward to being entertained and knowing that if things clicked we were capable of beating any team in the league. I have some great memories from those times and although it would have been nice to have won something I certainly don`t look back on his time at the club as a time of failure.

 

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[hill83]

Settle down grandad

 

[torchomatic]

Agree 100%, Phil. GM was manager when I first started going to watch City and I remember those days fondly and all the players he brought in. We could have done with Milne and Ron Wylie a few times over the years.

Just felt I had to react to sneering remarks about GM on the Proschwitz thread.

IMO Milne was one of the best managers we`ve had in the long time I`ve followed City.

He was an advocate of attacking football at a time when most other teams were obsessed with defence.

Sure, one or two of his signings didn`t come off such as Lloyd and Dave Jones, but no manager gets it right every time. How about some of the others he brought in ; Stein, Hutchison, Cross, Powell, Craven, Gillespie, McDonald, Beck, Holton, Daly, Hunt. Not a bad set of players that.

In his time as manager he put together a couple of teams which many of us believed were only a couple of players away from challenging the top teams of the day. Unfortunately he didn`t get the backing from the board that he should have done and had to put up with the likes of Dennis Mortimer being sold over his head "to balance the books" we were told.

At the time we used to go up to HR looking forward to being entertained and knowing that if things clicked we were capable of beating any team in the league. I have some great memories from those times and although it would have been nice to have won something I certainly don`t look back on his time at the club as a time of failure.

 

[lewys33]

Gordon who?

 

[ceetee]

Really. We used to sell our good players before SISU?. Surely some mistake.

 

[simonregis]

Totally agree GM was one of our best managers. I think it speaks volume of how pathetic CCFC supporters can be when they criticise without foundation

 

[Ashdown]

All the Milne boys live round my way as Gordon did, they're a decent enough bunch as well. Gordon is a legend in Istanbul after his success with Besiktas .

 

[hill83]

32.34% win percentage sounds brilliant to me.

 

[torchomatic]

Weird. My nostalgometer puts it at around 75%.

32.34% win percentage sounds brilliant to me.

 

[hill83]

Weird. My nostalgometer puts it at around 75%.

To be fair I don't know anything about him or his time as manager. And I suppose that as we were in the top division a low win percentage is to be expected. But people rattle on about win percentage all the time and 32.34% is hardly mind blowing is it?

 

[Esoterica]

I find it all a bit sick. Fat jaundiced 'bear' in nothing but a red crop top who just happens to get stuck arse out in a giant glory hole. Friends with a miserable castrated donkey and an egotistical self centred camp tiger.

 

[hill83]

I find it all a bit sick. Fat jaundiced 'bear' in nothing but a red crop top who just happens to get stuck arse out in a giant glory hole. Friends with a miserable castrated donkey and an egotistical self centred camp tiger.

 

[Grendel]

To be fair it was only one outbursts by said bear against Milne.

The win ratio is misleading as he was hugely up against it with dwindling funds. As the OP said he signed some great players for small fees. Wallace and Ferguson were strikers that top league defenders actually feared.

He was never allowed to build. Hill sold players at will. Then having come within an inch of Wembley he was booted. Then achieved promotion at Leicester and carried on as a highly respected coach.

The 77 season was the best in the clubs history.

 

[jimmyhillsfanclub]

To be fair it was only one outbursts by said bear against Milne.

The win ratio is misleading as he was hugely up against it with dwindling funds. As the OP said he signed some great players for small fees. Wallace and Ferguson were strikers that top league defenders actually feared.

He was never allowed to build. Hill sold players at will. Then having come within an inch of Wembley he was booted. Then achieved promotion at Leicester and carried on as a highly respected coach.

The 77 season was the best in the clubs history.

Surely the Second best.

 

[bezzer]

He kept us in Division 1 despite having to change his squad year on year.

I'll always be thankful for him giving us the Wallace/Ferguson partnership.

I know on occasion we can all put on a pair of Sky Blue tinted glasses but for me, the Milne era was a good time, a very good time.

 

[Ashdown]

To be fair it was only one outbursts by said bear against Milne.

The win ratio is misleading as he was hugely up against it with dwindling funds. As the OP said he signed some great players for small fees. Wallace and Ferguson were strikers that top league defenders actually feared.

He was never allowed to build. Hill sold players at will. Then having come within an inch of Wembley he was booted. Then achieved promotion at Leicester and carried on as a highly respected coach.

The 77 season was the best in the clubs history.

1977 was my first year watching the City live, no wonder I fell in love with it all.

 

[wingy]

To be fair I don't know anything about him or his time as manager. And I suppose that as we were in the top division a low win percentage is to be expected. But people rattle on about win percentage all the time and 32.34% is hardly mind blowing is it?

Most teams set set up for a draw away from home back then
Only two points for the win.

 

[phildownunder]

To be fair it was only one outbursts by said bear against Milne.

The win ratio is misleading as he was hugely up against it with dwindling funds. As the OP said he signed some great players for small fees. Wallace and Ferguson were strikers that top league defenders actually feared.

He was never allowed to build. Hill sold players at will. Then having come within an inch of Wembley he was booted. Then achieved promotion at Leicester and carried on as a highly respected coach.

The 77 season was the best in the clubs history.

Totally agree Grendel. Although to be a little pedantic, it was two posts that got me going esp the second one.

 

[Suffolkskyblue]

Thoroughly enjoyed my time watching city under GM. Always seemed to be entertaining football - win or lose.

 

[hill83]

Most teams set set up for a draw away from home back then
Only two points for the win.

Ah, didn't think of that. Good point.

 

[Alan Dugdales Moustache]

To be fair I don't know anything about him or his time as manager. And I suppose that as we were in the top division a low win percentage is to be expected. But people rattle on about win percentage all the time and 32.34% is hardly mind blowing is it?

We finished 7th under GM in the top division. No manager has bettered that since. Enough said.

 

[WiganSkyBlue]

We finished 7th under GM in the top division. No manager has bettered that since. Enough said.

1969/70 season - finished 6th - best ever season in the top flight

Ahhh ....................... memories

 

[Macca]

Gordon who?

Back in the days when we had a club. Worth educating yourself about the history of CCFC makes interesting reading

 

[Hobo]

gordon Milne was a good period despite a limited budget. Top flight, tried to be entertaining, good scouting system and we were good at producing our own talent. You always felt we weren't that far off the pace and a slightly bigger squad wouldn't sort out.

 

[Irish Sky Blue]

Loved watching Gordon Milnes team's Exciting. Attacking Football with lots of goals. He deserves legend status for lots of reasons. However, the fact that he brought Tommy Hutchison to our club would put him beyond criticism in my eyes.

 

[oakey]

I too started watching ccfc when GM took over and bought Hutch and Stein.
He was, without a doubt, the best City manager in that 43 year period... His teams were better than the 87 and 96/8 teams.

I genuinely feel sorry for our fans that missed the 70s. The 60s was our best, 70s next, then 80s ... You can guess the rest. The 87 cup win was, in all honesty, a bit of a fluke, as all cup wins by "also ran" teams inevitably are.

 

[You'll Never Beat McPake]

Not to forget that if it hadn't been for Ipswich beating Arsenal in 77 cup final we would have qualified for Europe. GM was a great manager that also unearthed some great youth team players who formed the basis of our squad in the early 80s with the likes of Tom English, Garry Thompson, Danny Thomas, etc

 

[letsallsingtogether]

Agree 100%, Phil. GM was manager when I first started going to watch City and I remember those days fondly and all the players he brought in. We could have done with Milne and Ron Wylie a few times over the years.

Funk off Torch!
You'll make me look bad as I have to agree with you☺

 

[Calista]

I too started watching ccfc when GM took over and bought Hutch and Stein.
He was, without a doubt, the best City manager in that 43 year period... His teams were better than the 87 and 96/8 teams.

I genuinely feel sorry for our fans that missed the 70s. The 60s was our best, 70s next, then 80s ... You can guess the rest. The 87 cup win was, in all honesty, a bit of a fluke, as all cup wins by "also ran" teams inevitably are.

Can’t agree with that – our 87 team was without doubt among the best in the country at the time. We played superbly well in the league that season, and won the FA Cup purely on merit. It was fully deserved and no fluke.

 

[Calista]

The 77-78 season was brilliant entertainment, basically playing 3-3-4 and abandoning any pretence of defending. We missed out on Europe by a whisker, and if I’m not mistaken we scored 75 and conceded 76! Some of the wins were indeed among the best performances in the club’s history. On the other hand, when it went wrong it really did go wrong – I was at Goodison Park for the 6-0 defeat and didn’t find it very entertaining at all. If we went a few goals down we’d just throw caution to the wind and adopt an even more attacking formation. The 7-1 loss at the Hawthorns the following year was similar, and it’s easy to see why Gordon Milne got criticised at times - but what I’d give to have a team like that again.

 

[derbyskyblue]

cant believe terry yorath hasn't been mentioned in this thread.

 

[phildownunder]

To Hill 83.

Maybe you`ve learned something on here, sonny boy !

 

[sly_old_fox]

Gordon Milne got us (LCFC) promoted to the top flight in 1983, he then kept us there on a limited budget. He upset some of the supporters when he swapped Jim Melrose for Tommy English (tbh neither of whom were particularly good). some fans demanded a change and they got their wish in 1986 when he was replaced by Bryan Hamilton, who promptly got us relegated.

 

[SkyblueBazza]

Really. We used to sell our good players before SISU?. Surely some mistake.

In those days it was the odd one. Not all of them...as soon as they could show a 10% mark-up like this lot do!

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[SkyblueBazza]

To be fair I don't know anything about him or his time as manager. And I suppose that as we were in the top division a low win percentage is to be expected. But people rattle on about win percentage all the time and 32.34% is hardly mind blowing is it?

God knows we would have taken it many times in the years since his era ended.

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