Because it’s practically impossible to come up with Wycombe Wanderers questions for the earlier years of my time supporting City, I’ve decided to forego the quiz just this once and, instead, ask if anyone can help me in my search for team details, scorers etc. from the game in the title of this piece.
We did actually beat Manchester United by 5-1 on 25 August 2007, but I should tell you that it was at Academy (under 18) level. I was there to see it as were quite a few others, because the crowd that day was by far and away the biggest I’ve seen for a game at Treforest – the venue for all home matches in the early days of City’s Academy side.
Mind you, if you were going by the results of quite a bit of Internet research into the game on my part, you would wonder if it ever took place were it not for this one piece from Wales Online dated November 2013. Right at the bottom of the article is a photo of the game and talk of a “Jon Brown inspired” Cardiff in what was the last meeting between the two clubs before their first Premier League encounter a few days after the piece appeared.
My memory of the match is very hazy now I’m afraid, but I can confirm that Bridgend born Brown, who made a couple of substitute appearances for our first team in league matches later on in 07/08 was the inspiration behind an amazing second half which saw us turn a 1-0 deficit into that 5-1 win – I’m pretty sure Brown scored one of the goals, but I can’t remember who got the others.
Given the size of the of the club, you would have thought I would have been able to at least find out who was playing for Manchester United that day, but, no, although I can remember seeing the side they put out a few years ago online somewhere, I can’t find it now. In fact, all I could come across is this, which confirms that Danny Welbeck, James Chester and ex City players Danny Drinkwater and Magnus Wolff Eikrem were all with their Academy that season, but my recollection was that I was somewhat disappointed with the lack of big names in their side when I saw it and I’m fairly sure none of those I’ve listed played.
As for City, I think Aaron Ramsey played, but the likes of Chris Gunter and Darcy Blake would have been too old by then I’m sure. Names from around that period that I remember who could well have played are left back Matt Smith, English born captain and centreback Bradley Middleton, striker Sam Wade and winger Rhys Kelleher who, sadly, passed away a couple of years ago at the age of just twenty eight.
Any additional information anyone can provide would be very much appreciated – if you have programmes from that season, I’d guess that the ones for either the Watford match on 19 September or the Preston game three days later would be the ones which carried a report and, hopefully, teams from the game .
