A punch in the face and a punch in the guts for Wolves
CLIVE CORBETT looks back at 1995 ... when an old adversary ruined their season in one infuriating game
WOLVES almost certainly went into the play-off semifinal with a sense of foreboding as they were paired with their nemesis, Bolton Wanderers.
Just three months earlier the Lancastrians had handed Wolves a 5-1 thrashing at Burnden Park. But surely that would have no influence on the outcome of a two-legged cuptie?
In a season when only one club was automatically promoted from Division 1 (champions Middlesbrough), the Trotters and Wolves had finished third and fourth in the table, separated by only a point. By this stage in the campaign injury had deprived Wolves boss Graham Taylor of a number of his expensive purchases, including John de Wolf, Geoff Thomas, Tony Daley and Steve Froggatt.
Nonetheless Wolves put on a stirring performance in the first game at Molineux, winning 2-1 through goals from Steve Bull and Mark Venus. Without an incredible goalkeeping display from 45-yearold Peter Shilton (deputising for the injured Keith Branagan) it could have been more and Wolves’ bubble was burst by a Jason Mcateer strike that gave the Trotters parity before Venus’s winner.
A Sunday afternoon crowd of over 26,000 saw Bull give Wolves the lead a minute before half-time, only for Mcateer to equalise a minute after the restart. Venus gave Wolves a slender first leg advantage just five minutes later.
To Wolves fans the pantomime villain of the piece was always going to be John Mcginlay, and so it proved in the second leg. A minute before half-time the Scottish striker levelled the aggregate score at 2-2.
At that point away goals would decide so the hosts knew that they would progress if there was no further scoring. As Sky’s Johnny Phillips recalled: “Then came the infamous fracas between the Scot and (Wolves striker) David Kelly. Watching the incident back today, that view (of six of one and half a dozen of the other) is backed up by the television footage which clearly shows Kelly made the first contact with his opponent’s face. They both remained on the pitch, and Mcginlay scored his second of the night to seal Bolton’s passage to the final.”
Phillips describes the enduring image of a forlorn Wolves boss at the end of extra time: “Graham Taylor, unable to hide the disappointment on his face, walked across the sodden turf. Pointing to a couple of thousand despondent visiting fans on the crumbling terrace at Burnden Park, he urged his devastated Wolves players to applaud the travelling support before they headed to the sanctuary of the dressing rooms.
“All around, Bolton’s players and fans were celebrating. None more so than their talisman in attack, John Mcginlay, savouring the cheers of his adoring public.
“Time is a healer, but those present in that away end, and the many more watching on a big screen back at Molineux, have never been able to purge the memory.” Bolton proceeded to the final where they recovered from a two-goal deficit to beat Reading 4-3 after extra time in a thrilling encounter. Future Wolves striker, Mixu Paatelainen, was amongst their scorers. It took Wolves eight years, four managers and two more failed playoff attempts to return to the top division.
This was how John Mcginlay saw it:
“If you read back into the history books there was a Nat Lofthouse–billy Wright rivalry and respect, it was fostered back then. It was revitalised in our era.
“It was just a great atmosphere whenever we played, whether at Burnden or Molineux. The more stick I got the better I played. It was the first game we looked for back then.
“In the first leg in 1995 we got battered, we really did. If Wolves had taken their chances they would have had four or five. We had Peter Shilton in goal that day. He made some great saves and I remember our defenders making some great blocks. Jason Mcateer’s goal kept us in the tie, they could have been out of sight.
“We had got to the stage with Wolves, where it was just meant to be! They had tried everything to beat us, and they were kicking us that day, but we could scrap as well. I think that was an all-or-nothing game for them going for the title and they lost it that day.
“The way it (the Kelly incident) happened was quite innocuous. A corner went to the far post and was knocked back across goal. (Keeper) Mike Stowell came for the ball and took it as one of the Wolves defenders pushed me on top of him.
“David actually grabbed me first and my reaction was to swing my arm and I connected. The referee was standing six yards away with an unobstructed view. Two thoughts flashed before me: Bruce Rioch is going to sack me, and I won’t be able to play at Wembley. I tried to shake David’s hand and asked the referee not to spoil a good game. Then the referee showed us both a yellow card. There was no reason why he didn’t show me the red card, and David probably should have been shown one as well.”
David Kelly saw it differently ...
“I got punched in the face by John Mcginlay. I actually said to the referee: ‘You are obviously going to send him off – he’s just punched me in the face and you saw it.’
“For some reason he didn’t and John went on to score the winning goal. The referee and officials obviously saw it, so how they didn’t take the proper
action I don’t know. I haven’t got anything against John, we were all jostling and pushing at a corner.
“In those days you were allowed to kick each other but you weren’t allowed to punch somebody in the face. It was a different game then – tackles were tackles. You got up and got on with it and then tried to get somebody back later in the game. These days it doesn’t happen.
“It was really disappointing to go back in the dressing room afterwards and feel like we had been cheated. I did feel that we had been cheated out of winning that game. They would have been down to ten men and quite probably we would have won the game and tie.
“Graham was absolutely livid. He kept his counsel but he was raging. It was a hugely disappointing end to a good season. It was taken away by that one act and, sod’s law, the person who shouldn’t be on the pitch scored the winning goal.
I said to the ref, ‘he punched me in the face and you saw it. You’re obviously going to send him off’ David Kelly