During this off-season, we’ve experienced many ups, as in sensible, cost-effective recruiting, the impending departure of Nelson Oliveira and the announcement of very appealing home friendlies against Atalanta and Toulouse.
A temporary, short-lived down was relieved by the discovery that Ben Godfrey’s ankle injury is not as bad as first thought and Adam Idah, Patrick Roberts and Sam Byram have all contributed positively in Westphalia.
So right now only I could take MFW readers straight back to the catastrophic days of the English Civil War. Or more accurately, the Norwich City Civil War.
The fall of Robert Chase in 1995 is the equivalent of the battle of Naseby in 1645. These events were 350 years apart. Pigs’ bladders back in Charlie’s day and you couldn’t stamp Adidas or whatever on those of course.
Now in the real Civil War, King Charles I was a slightly built man of around four feet eleven. He was stubborn, economical with the truth and beheaded.
Robert Chase is neither slightly built or short of stature. Very much to the contrary in fact. To the best of my knowledge, he has never been conveyed to Tower Hill to meet the axe and anvil.
But something they share in common is that they both ignored the proles and had skin thicker than reinforced rhino hide.
I first encountered Mr Chase under slightly strange circumstances in around 1993.
I had a good friend called David Line who was a senior producer at Radio Norfolk. Over a beer or three in the BBC bar in Surrey Street he agreed to come to London to give our company’s staff the lowdown on how to deal with the local media – said staff never took me seriously, so David’s credibility and knowledge was a big bonus and he earned his fee indeed.
Afterwards, our train had just pulled out of Liverpool Street when this large gentleman descended on the seats opposite us, mopped his brow, opened his briefcase and extricated two mobile phones.
Dave and I looked at each other and you can imagine what we were thinking. I knew who this character was but Dave, not being a football fan, took a couple of minutes to cotton on.
After asking us “which phone should I answer first” he tried to offer us both tickets for that night’s game, against Arsenal, in the League Cup I believe. He seemed rather deflated when he observed that Dave and me had mobiles too.
I waved my previously-purchased ticket and politely declined, while Dave said no thanks as he preferred the 15-man oval ball game.
Three more times on that awkward journey he attempted to give us tickets. The bright red braces were doing a harder job than they feasibly should have done. Que sera and all that.
My second and final encounter with the Chairman should have been at the very end of his reign. For the only time in my life, I phoned Canary Call (long before the emergence of Bob Rutler).
Unfortunately, I won two VIP tickets for a game against either Coventry or West Brom for best call of the day, I honestly cannot remember which team we faced.
As I had tipped off my favourite media my mate Keith and I had a great interview with Richard Futter in the Mustard Pot (now the Fat Cat & Canary) on Yarmouth Road. Richard said “give the crew a wave at half time and we’ll see where you’re located and come to meet you after the game.
Half-time was surreal in the Directors’ Lounge or whatever they called it. VIP tickets? We had to buy our own drinks. No Chase. Jimmy and Albert Jones came over for a quick chat and were absolutely fine.
Either father or son said Chase wouldn’t show as he’d lost his bottle.
On the way back to our (outside) seats we were both effing and blinding about both the game and our reception.
One old girl turned round to Keith and said: “I’ve never heard language like that in my life and my husband was in the Navy”.
We went back to our usual seats in the Barclay. Right quick.
We never did see the Anglia crew afterwards, but they still ran about ninety seconds of the original interview on their Saturday evening bulletin.
The truth is out there (I’ve still got an old VHS clip somewhere).
Thanks to our MFW guest bloggers Don and Martin, I was inspired to scribble this.
I’ll leave the horses incidents to them should they choose to air their memories of that awful period in our history.
The ultimate irony for me was that my ex-father-in-law bought a house in Lingwood courtesy of Chase Builders.
Probably the only laugh we shared in nearly 20 years.
And, just this once, RG Carter weren’t involved.
I had heard that Chase was less than generous as your directors’ box story suggests. When you say he tried to ‘give ‘ you tickets, do you mean he tried to flog them to you?
I’ve been a guest in 2 directors’ boxes. The first time was at Albion Rovers v Elgin City, my cousin was sponsoring the game. The hospitality was a few bottles of Stella before and after the match with soup and bread at half time. My cousin had paid £200 sponsorship which seemed good value. I can’t remember the score.
The second time was at Burton v Norwich. The hospitality was brilliant; a friend of mine is from there and his family provides legal advice to the club. The directors were generous with their time and it was interesting to see Ed Balls and Delia work the room (Michael stayed firmly by his bottle of red wine looking grumpy). We lost the match 2-1, Timm made a howler which led to one of their goals-a Villa supporting mate said they had seen him and a few other City players being far from professional the previous night at the Belfry.
I went to a Scottish lower league game with my wife’s uncle, as her cousin was playing for Cowdenbeath against East Stirling. We had to queue up to collect our complimentary terrace tickets, and the queue to pick up comps was twice as long as the queue for paying customers! (Cowdenbeath got stuffed 6 – 1, the Stirling striker who was about 5 foot 4 got four of them, up against a six foot centre half!). Neither team’s style of play would have suited Daniel Farke!
I used to go to Albion Rovers games quite regularly when I was a kid. Paying to get in was a lifestyle choice! By the way, their manager is Kevin Harper who came to Norwich on loan at the same time as Crouch and Hucks
I remember Kevin Harper – he got sent off against someone I now forget and,like Crouchy, left in the January.
Hi Jim
I have been fortunate enough to see Celtic at Parkhead a few times over the years.
However in the early 1980s a friend was getting married in Kirkcaldy, Fife, and three or four of us made a VERY long weekend of it.
One of the local guys who worked at our hotel in Kirkintilloch took bridegroom John and myself to see Raith Rovers against the Lord knows who.
One old boy gave John his scarf as a souvenir with an advisory: “Don’t do it. It will never work with a Kirkcaldy girl”.
We had a terrific time – and no, John’s marriage didn’t last very long so maybe the scarf-donor knew something we didn’t.
Pie and Bovril? Oh yes.
Thanks.
Hi Don
That sure resonates with me.
When I was “fortunate” enough to be Sports Ed on the Harlow Gazette non-League Harlow Town embarked on an incredible FA Cup run – drawing at Southend, beating them in the replay.
Then drawing with Leicester, yes Leicester and… beating them in the replay. Harlow’s home ground was a council funded Sportscentre. Primitive wasn’t the word.
In what I guess must have been the Third Round they faced Watford away and it really put things into perspective for me.
The press box was full of those old stainless steel coffee dispensers with the tap. And typewriters, telephone points and enough copy paper to sink a battleship.
Waiters and waitresses kept the sarnies coming all game and said if there was anything we wanted just to ask – including bottled beers.
Harlow eventually lost 4-3 (could have easily equalised at the death) but the press activity took place on the pitch. John Motson (highlights were on MotD) and the national journos had (quite rightly) first dibs with Graham Taylor and Harlow manager Ian Wolstenholme.
On our way off the pitch I asked Graham Taylor what he honestly thought of Harlow.
He was gracious enough to give me a three or four minute one-to-one analysis of the game and genuinely wished Harlow Town all the best..
An absolute gentleman and a wonderfully welcoming club.
I didn’t realise Tim liked a bevvy!
Thank you.
A thoroughly interesting article, Martin. Certainly gleaned some insight into those years and looks like I’ve piqued your Sense of nostalgia for Mr Chase.
As a 15 year old exile, my recollections will be somewhat limited, but I’ll try and weave something into my next few articles.
Hi Martin
I must say that Mr Chase was the original “once met, never forgotten” type of chap!
I’ll very much look forward to reading your take on those days.
Thank you.