Sunday Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Keegan is flattened and shirty
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THE Wembley crowd were stunned when, after an hour of the 1974 Charity Shield, a football match broke out.
The clash between champions Leeds and Liverpool always promised to be emotionally charged.
Bill Shankly was saying goodbye to Anfield, Brian Clough was promising a revolution at Leeds – and Kevin Keegan was a marked man.
Keegan reckoned: “They were out to get me.”
He felt he became a target after an incident during a match at Anfield the previous season.
“I had the nerve to knock the ball one side of Terry Cooper before running round the other side to whip in a cross.”
Following what he called that “schoolboy” trick, Keegan felt the Leeds heavies wanted to “sort me out”.
Johnny Giles sensed Keegan “seemed to be in a bit of a mood. He was in a temper. I still shouldn’t have done what I did...”.
What Giles did was swing a right hook that connected with Keegan’s jaw, leaving him flat on his back.
Ref Bob Matthewson only booked Giles.
“I got away with it,” he said. And, minutes later, he launched a challenge at Keegan that the Kop idol later described as “diabolical”.
Keegan was fuming – and Billy Bremner decided to get involved. Keegan remembered: “Billy suddenly appeared and I took the law into my own hands. I clocked him and he took a swing back.”
This time, both players were sent off.
Keegan and Bremner ripped their shirts off in disgust on their way off the pitch.
Both were each fined £500 and then banned for 11 matches.
The match? Liverpool won on penalties.