SUMMARY
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| Played | Won | Drawn | Lost | Ave Att: |
| 30 | 18 | 10 | 2 | 5,015 |
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Programme style from 1991/92
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This issue is for a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Hartlepool on 6th March 1992. Paul Baker, (many times a County nemesis), hit the winner. In early 1990 he scored 4 against us in a debacle at the Victoria Ground. The cover features the Club Call line (dial 0898 12 19 30) – on the pre-internet and messageboard days it was one of the few sources of County info – but hellish expensive!!.
The picture is of John Muir with Chris Beaumont in the background. More than likely it was taken at Brentford the previous week on what was his debut, (as a sub), after signing from Doncaster. His County career was brief. His 16th and last appearance was 7 months later at the Goldstone Ground, (Away Trip 62)
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WEMBLEY HEARTACHE … NOT ONCE BUT TWICE
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It was another full-house home record for me in 1992. 30 home games and I saw each one, and there simply can’t be any argument about the record. 18 wins; 10 draws, and only 2 defeats, (one at the hands of Hartlepool and then on the evening that Brian Clough was applauded by the vast proportion of people in the ground as he made his way to the dugout).
30 home games in a year and they included 6 cup ties of varying descriptions and a play-off semi final 1st leg against Stoke. We started the year with a 3-3 draw against Wigan. I remember being disappointed at the result but couldn’t argue about the entertainment on offer. After that there was a phenomenal run on the hallowed turf. 12 of the remaining 16 home games were won, and it provided the basis for the run to both the Autoglass and Play-Off finals.
One of the most memorable games in this run was on a stormy Friday night with snow and sleet in the air. Bournemouth were the visitors, masterminded by one Harry Redknapp. The game stood goalless when just on the half hour, Kevin Francis was taken out by the Cherries keeper. A cast-iron penalty. Jim Gannon placed the ball, walked back .. and one of the floodlights went out. The referee took the players off and it was a fair while before a sparky got the lights working again. Bournemouth had little heart on the resumption. Gannon stuck the penalty away and we added 4 more. We were scoring goals for fun, and one of the catalysts for that was Andy Preece.
Bergara had signed Preece, (below), just before Christmas 1991. He made his debut as a sub at Preston on Boxing Day, with his first start at Swansea, (picking up his first Hatters goal), a couple of days after that. He joined us from Wrexham with a fairly meagre return of 7 goals from 51 starts. But Bergara undoubtedly saw something. In the remainder of the season he forged a partnership with Francis when they got 25 between them. I particularly recall an evening game up in the mist at Feethams when Preece notched a hat-trick.
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Andy Preece – a vital addition
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The product over the next couple of years was self-evident. Bought for £15,000 and sold 29 months later for £350,000 his County career ended with 110 starts, (plus 10 sub appearances) in which he harvested 54 goals. He had a decent career after he left us, despite not making much an impact at Palace, featuring regularly for Blackpool and Bury, (where he became player manager).
Since leaving the Shakers he has managed a variety of non-league outfits and of course our paths have crossed in the last couple of years in our battles with Chorley, (where he has been assistant manager), in the National League North. Preecey is more than fondly remembered at EP. Most people will point to the stunning winner against QPR in the FA Cup in 1994, (click for the after match interview with him and footage of the goal), but it was just the icing on the cake for an outstanding contribution in that short period.
After beating Exeter on 10th April we stood second, a point behind leaders Stoke, with 4 ganes left. The next three games consigned us to the play-offs – only 2 points were won. The last league game provided a deal of satisfaction. Birmingham, (our visitors), were top, knowing that a win would secure them the title, and even a point might be good enough, if Brentford, (2nd), were to win but only by a single goal. The contest drew a crowd of 7,840, bolstered by a sizeable following from St Andrews. We denied them the title with a convincing 2-0 win, and in doing so confirming our place in the play-offs. The season ended with the double Wembley trip, and double heartache, (more fully dealt with in Away Trip 59), but despite the disappointment there was still much to savour.
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1992/93 Squad
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Back (l to r): Andy Preece; Alan Finley; Dave Redfern; Neil Edwards; Tony Barras; Jim Carstairs
Middle (l to r): John Sainty (Asst Mgr); John Muir; Martin McDonald; Dave Miller; Neil Matthews; Peter Ward; Jim Gannon; Paul Wheeler; Dave Jones (Coach)
Front (l to r): Rodger Wylde (physio); Kevin Francis; Chris Beaumont; Darren Knowles; Danny Bergara (Manager); David Frain; Lee Todd; Paul R Williams
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The 1992/93 season started well. Francis and Preece continued their partnership and by the time new year came round they had added a further 28 goals. Alan Finley, (from Shrewsbury), and Dave Miller, (from Carlisle) were the only additions to the successful squad from the previous season. By the end of September we had twice been to Chester’s new home, the Deva Stadium, (Away Trip 60), and won twice, and stood 2nd. There then followed a league spell of only 2 wins in 7 games, and a drop to 10th. There was progress in the Autoglass and two rounds of the Cup which allied to still indifferent league form saw us go into the New Year with a 15 point gap to be bridged to leaders Stoke.
The last game of the year, (a draw with Leyton Orient), saw us introduced to a new capture. A midfielder, Brian McCord, (left), came to us from Barnsley. It was to be an all too brief County career; lasting but 10 weeks. He’d made six starts and five sub appearances when he played in an away game at Swansea. It was to be a leg-breaking and ground-breaking event. McCord suffered the injury after a tackle by John Cornforth, in a challenge which Bobby Gould, the Wales manager who was in the director’s box, said in his opinion that Cornforth intended to strike the player not the ball. “It was one of the worst tackles I have ever seen,” Gould said.
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Brian McCord – a sadly brief County career
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It ended McCord’s career and eventually resulted in a court case with McCord being awarded £250,000 damages and was the first time a judge had awarded compensation to a professional player for injuries received during a game. County fans were hugely disappointed to lose a player who had undoubtedly shown he had the skill to contribute to what was an ever improving team.
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Back to 1991 Forward to 1993 Home Games Summary Page Away Games 1992..
THE HOME GAMES I SAW THIS YEAR
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| Day | Date | Competition | Tier / Round | Opponents | Res | F | A | Crowd | Home Game |
| Wed | 01/01/92 | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Wigan Athletic | D | 3 | 3 | 4,149 | 380 |
| Sat | 04/01/92 (Highlights) | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Brentford | W | 2 | 1 | 4,421 | 381 |
| Tue | 07/01/92 | Autoglass Trophy | Northern Preliminary Round | York City | W | 3 | 0 | 1,397 | 382 |
| Sat | 18/01/92 | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Darlington | W | 2 | 0 | 4,186 | 383 |
| Tue | 04/02/92 | Autoglass Trophy | Northern Round 2 | Hartlepool United | W | 3 | 0 | 2,255 | 384 |
| Fri | 07/02/92 | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Huddersfield Town | D | 0 | 0 | 7,596 | 385 |
| Tue | 11/02/92 | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Reading | W | 1 | 0 | 3,720 | 386 |
| Sat | 22/02/92 (Highlights) | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Hull City | D | 1 | 1 | 4,490 | 387 |
| Fri | 06/03/92 (Highlights) | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Hartlepool United | L | 0 | 1 | 4,473 | 388 |
| Fri | 13/03/92 (Highlights) | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | AFC Bournemouth | W | 5 | 0 | 3,576 | 389 |
| Fri | 27/03/92 | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Fulham | W | 2 | 0 | 4,654 | 390 |
| Tue | 31/03/92 (Highlights) | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | West Bromwich Albion | W | 3 | 0 | 6,090 | 391 |
| Fri | 10/04/92 (Highlights) | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Exeter City | W | 4 | 1 | 4,546 | 392 |
| Wed | 15/04/92 (Highlights) | Autoglass Trophy | Northern Final (2nd Leg) | Burnley | W | 2 | 1 | 8,260 | 393 |
| Mon | 20/04/92 | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Stoke City | D | 0 | 0 | 8,129 | 394 |
| Sat | 02/05/92 | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 | Birmingham City | W | 2 | 0 | 7,840 | 395 |
| Sun | 10/05/92 (Highlights) | Barclays League Division 3 | Tier 3 Play-Off Semi-Final (1st Leg) | Stoke City | W | 1 | 0 | 7,537 | 396 |
| Tue | 18/08/92 (Highlights) | Coca-Cola Cup | Round 1 (1st Leg) | Chester City | D | 1 | 1 | 2,785 | 397 |
| Sat | 22/08/92 (Highlights) | Barclays League Division 2 | Tier 3 | Burnley | W | 2 | 1 | 4,953 | 398 |
| Sat | 05/09/92 | Barclays League Division 2 | Tier 3 | Exeter City | D | 2 | 2 | 3,759 | 399 |
| Sat | 12/09/92 (Highlights) | Barclays League Division 2 | Tier 3 | Hull City | W | 5 | 3 | 4,216 | 400 |
| Wed | 23/09/92 (Highlights) | Coca-Cola Cup | Round 2 (1st Leg) | Nottingham Forest | L | 2 | 3 | 7,968 | 401 |
| Fri | 25/09/92 | Barclays League Division 2 | Tier 3 | Fulham | D | 0 | 0 | 4,755 | 402 |
| Sat | 03/10/92 | Barclays League Division 2 | Tier 3 | Swansea City | D | 1 | 1 | 4,943 | 403 |
| Fri | 16/10/92 | Barclays League Division 2 | Tier 3 | Blackpool | D | 0 | 0 | 5,682 | 404 |
| Fri | 30/10/92 | Barclays League Division 2 | Tier 3 | Huddersfield Town | W | 5 | 0 | 5,405 | 405 |
| Tue | 03/11/92 | Barclays League Division 2 | Tier 3 | Preston North End | W | 3 | 0 | 4,860 | 406 |
| Fri | 20/11/92 (Highlights) | Barclays League Division 2 | Tier 3 | Plymouth Argyle | W | 3 | 0 | 5,377 | 407 |
| Tue | 15/12/92 | Autoglass Trophy | Northern Preliminary Round | Chester City | W | 2 | 0 | 2,062 | 408 |
| Mon | 28/12/92 | Barclays League Division 2 | Tier 3 | Leyton Orient | D | 1 | 1 | 6,368 | 409 |
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