Broken post nearly ruined Jimmy’sdreamcup debut
Nottingham Forest are hoping to pull of an FA Cup shock by beating Liverpool at the City Ground this evening.
You can be sure they’ll happily accept any stroke of luck to achieve a victory – even the goalposts collapsing!
It was a demolition of the woodwork that almost spoiled winger Jimmy Mcintosh’s debut in the competition.
It wasn’t long after he’d scored his first goal for Forest when team-mate John Winfield collided with an upright, and brought down the nets.
Their opponents, Luton Town, were able to reorganise during the 15 minutes it took to repair the posts.
Malcolm Macdonald then came up with an equaliser to earn the Second Division side a replay.
Jimmy recalled: “I was delighted to be playing in the FA Cup and found myself in a place where I rarely ventured – the six-yard box. My goal was just a tap-in.
“The day also sticks in my mind because I saw my team- mate, John Robertson, with his head in his hands after the game.
“It was the day of the Ibrox Disaster in January, 1971, and he was desperately worried about his family. Fortunately, they were OK.”
The replay at Kenilworth Road was another significant occasion for Jimmy.
He went on: “I wasn’t expecting to play because I had an ankle problem.
“I went with the team but had a big meal before kick-off. I recall having two plates of rice pudding.
“Then I was told that Ian Storey- Moore had declared himself unfit, and I was starting.
“I could hardly move due but fortunately we got a great 4-3 win, despite Malcolm Macdonald hitting a hat-trick for them.
“Peter Cormack, who had scored one of our goals, was modelling a new, long coat that he was very pleased with.
“Luton director, Eric Morecambe, strolled over, took a look at Peter and said: ‘ You look like a tall wallet’.”
Jimmy’s FA Cup exploits came just six months after he’d been playing junior football in Scotland with Arbroath Victoria.
He explained: “I joined Montrose and had only played a handful of matches for them when scouts from English teams spotted me.
“I thought I was going to Leeds United, then Forest appeared out of the blue.”
Jimmy spent six season at the City Ground. He went on: “I don’t think my progress was helped by having five different managers.
“I started with Matt Gillies and ended with Brian Clough.
“The worst for me was probably Dave Mackay. He didn’t seem to take to me, and that was a shame because he was a bit of a hero of mine.
“He didn’t tell me about a couple of bids for me, including one from Bolton Wanderers.”
When he started out at Forest, Jimmy was playing with men like Tommy Gemmell, Doug Fraser and Duncan Mckenzie.
By the time he left, the great European Cupwinning side was being formed with players including John Mcgovern, Martin O’neill and Viv Anderson.
Hull City signed the Scot in 1976 after he gave their left-back a tough time
He teamed up with former team- mate, George Lyall, and Billy Bremner at Boothferry Park.
He said: “I spent just over a year at Hull and then let my heart rule my head by joining Dundee United.
“It wasn’t a move that worked out. Jim Mclean said he couldn’t play Graeme Payne and I in the same team.
“After a few months, I went back to Montrose and played there until 1979.
“I retired at that point. I must admit that I regretted giving up quite early.”
Jimmy, now 71, worked for Timex in Dundee and then ran a Post Office in Girvan, Ayrshire.