[Lord Snooty]

October 2:

On this date in 1999, the great half a season under the management of Steve Bruce got back on track with a 4-1 win against Sheffield United at the McAlpine Stadium. I say back on track because we had lost surprisingly 4-2 at Barnsley in the previous week.

This one though was magnificent. Some of the matches in this first half of the season were possibly the best football ever seen at the new stadium and we got off to great start when Chris Beech scored after 13 minutes. Clyde Wijnhard made it two on 28 mins and the Terriers led 2-0 at half time.

Shaun Murphy, an Aussie defender not a tubby snooker "magician", pulled one back for the Blunts just after the break. But then a true magician, Marcus Stewart made it 3-1 in the 57th. And he cast another spell on the United defence in injury time to finish the game off as a 4-1 win for the Town.

Incidentally, the Sheff Utd side had Martin Smith up front, who would join Town later in the season when Town controversially let magic Marcus go to Ipswich.  

On this date in 1955, Town's Bill McGarry won the third of his four England caps in a friendly match away in Denmark. The match was played at the Idrætsparken Stadium in Copenhagen and the Three Lions won it 5-1.

Goals came from a penalty scored by the future Leeds statue Don Revie and a couple from Bolton's Lofty the Lion, Nat Lofthouse, to make it 3-0 at half time.

Revie made it 4-0 before the Danes pulled one back. The fifth England goal was scored by Geoff Bradford. Not a very well known name outside of Bristol. He was a one club man, playing his entire career at Bristol Rovers and this was his one and only game for England. He is the only Rovers player to represent England whilst at the club.

This was McGarry's first game back in the England team after last year's World Cup Finals in Switzerland and he must've done alright as he kept his place for the next one in the Home Internationals against Wales.

Here's a picture of him with the unmistakable devil eyes of Don Revie poking up at the bottom of the photo.......