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Despite three red cards at Oakwell that nearly resulted in a riot in the stands, Richard Darn feels that referees don't deserve the abuse they get 

In just 40 tragic minutes, Mr Willard, a “top” referee from Worthing, was crossed off 16,500 Christmas card lists in Barnsley. His crime was to cack-handedly preside over a home defeat at the hands of Liverpool. For most of the crowd, a bit of foul-mouthed bellowing sufficed. Others were moved to throw coins and spit. A few carted their beer-inflated carcasses onto the pitch to exact instant revenge.

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Kevin Bartholomew looks at how Brighton ended up being at the bottom of the Football League

On a Thursday evening in May 1983, Brighton lost 4-0 to Manchester United in the FA Cup Final replay. The outstanding memory of that day for many Brighton followers was the support the team received. Despite the result, by the end of the match Albion fans were, incredibly, outsinging the Red Army. This was in recognition of the Seagulls’ achievements in the FA Cup that season: the campaign had included victories over Newcastle, Man City and Liverpool, and we had come agonizingly close to beating United in the first attempt at the Final. But it also demonstrated the affection held for a club that had risen from being a mediocre lower division outfit to a side able to do battle with the best teams in the country.

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Dear WSC
During his career Bobby Charlton did get a proper booking as opposed to one meted out by a FIFA official in the stand (Six of the Best,WSC No 112). It happened during the FA Cup Quarter-Final against Stoke City at Old Trafford in March 1972. As I recall, he hammered a direct free kick into the net but had the ‘goal’ disallowed because the kick had been taken too quickly. Charlton refused to retake the kick and was booked for dissent. The match ended 1-1 and Stoke won the replay 2-1. If you print this letter I might write again to tell you about the time I pinched Nobby Stiles’ backside after the Man Utd v Middlesbrough Third Round Cup tie in 1971. He played only five more games for United after this and I’ve been feeling guilty about a possible connection for more than 25 years…
Gareth Davies

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