{"id":3457,"date":"2020-06-18T12:33:41","date_gmt":"2020-06-18T11:33:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/?p=3457"},"modified":"2025-06-10T19:13:09","modified_gmt":"2025-06-10T18:13:09","slug":"villa-park-aston-villa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/","title":{"rendered":"VILLA PARK  &#8211;  ASTON VILLA"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"is-style-stripes wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td>Only County Visit:<\/td><td>Wednesday 25th October 1995<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Competition:<\/td><td>Coca-Cola Cup &#8211; (Round 3)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Result:<\/td><td>Aston Villa 2 &#8211; 0 Stockport County<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Attendance:<\/td><td>17,679<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Away Trip:<\/td><td>72<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Away Day:<\/td><td>311<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>County Line-up<\/td><td>1 Neil Edwards; 2 Sean Connelly; 3 Lee Todd; 4 Tom Bennett (12 Michael Oliver); 5 Mike Flynn; 6 Jim Gannon; 7 Chris Beaumont; 8 Paul Ware (14 Jeff Eckhardt); 9 Marc Lloyd-Williams (13 Richard Landon); 10 Alun Armstrong; 11 Martyn Chalk<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Manager:<\/td><td>Dave Jones<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><\/td><td><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>County Visits:<\/td><td>1<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n<a class=\"maxbutton-11 maxbutton maxbutton-subtitle\" href=\"javascript:void(0);\"><span class='mb-text'>THE M6 WINS AGAIN<\/span><\/a>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"alignwide has-background wp-block-media-text has-very-light-gray-background-color\" style=\"grid-template-columns:18% auto\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"733\" height=\"1024\" src=\"http:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-733x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3459 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-733x1024.jpg 733w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-215x300.jpg 215w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-107x150.jpg 107w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-768x1073.jpg 768w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-1099x1536.jpg 1099w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-1465x2048.jpg 1465w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-scaled.jpg 1832w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 733px) 100vw, 733px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Visits to top tier grounds had been few and far between in the 18 or so years I had supplemented home games with away trips.&nbsp; <\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">We\u2019d been to Old Trafford, (although, of course, that was nominally a home game); Anfield and Maine Road, (another \u2018home\u2019 game!!).&nbsp; The trip to the Baseball Ground was after they had fallen out of the top tier, so the last away trip to a Premier League ground had been to Nottingham Forest three years before the win at Ipswich gave us a Coca-Cola 3<sup>rd<\/sup> Round tie at Villa Park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">There won\u2019t have been many, if indeed any, County fans who travelled to what is euphemistically called the \u201cSecond City\u201d that evening who had seen the previous encounter with Villa.&nbsp; That had been 58 years previously, in late 1937, when a 7-1 defeat was one of 22 in a season which saw us relegated at the first time of asking after promotion 12 months previously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">And after an exit from the Coca-Cola Cup we haven\u2019t met them again.&nbsp; But we could have.&nbsp; A scoreless draw at Gillingham in the 2<sup>nd<\/sup> Round of the FA Cup in November 2008, brought a replay at EP ten days later.&nbsp; By that time, we knew that the winners would face Villa, in a home game, and it had already been announced that the tie would be on national TV.&nbsp; A ready-made opportunity to cash in.&nbsp; There followed that evening one of the most bizarre performances it has been my misfortune to witness.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">I think that it\u2019s fair to say that most County fans would regard Jim Gannon as someone who wears his heart on his sleeve and is more than animated on the touchline.&nbsp; But the rumour mill at EP, had been in overdrive with all sorts of suggestions that Gannon and the Board were not seeing eye to eye. (By then the club was owned by the Trust, and was under the leadership of Norman Beverley, nominally, but as everyone knew the reality was that Mark Maguire was the one really pulling the strings).&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">That evening, with so much to play for, we just capitulated to a 2-1 defeat after going into the lead.&nbsp; This was a team which had done reasonably well after promotion the previous season, (standing in 8<sup>th<\/sup> place in League 1), losing to a team a Division lower.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Gannon, normally so animated, spent the game leaning against the pitch-side fence, and played no part in motivating his team; shouting instructions, or handing out the bollockings we are so familiar with.&nbsp; It is the only time I have seen him like this and was noticed by all in the Main Stand.&nbsp; It was almost as if he had gone on strike.&nbsp; Whether there had been a row about the use of the TV and gate money from the potential Villa game I have no idea.&nbsp; But it is not beyond the realms of possibility that Maguire <em>et al<\/em> had told him that he wouldn\u2019t be getting any use of the cash.&nbsp; The Club finances must have been in a perilous state.&nbsp; Within 3 months the fatal loan from David Farms, negotiated by Maguire, had come to haunt us.&nbsp; We were in administration.&nbsp; Four years later it was regional football.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Turning to the game, or at least that part that we\nsaw.&nbsp; The M6 was its usual self.&nbsp; On the Fingerpost Flyer that late afternoon\nwe got down to Stafford in good time, at which point traffic ground to a halt,\nand having halted, we then didn\u2019t move for well over an hour.&nbsp; The clock was ticking around to 6.45pm, (with\nkick-off an hour off), and we were still well over 40 miles away.&nbsp; All sorts of chat went around the coach, centring\non whether the match would be delayed.&nbsp; I\ncouldn\u2019t see that as in any way possible and the news on the radio confirmed\nthis to be the case.&nbsp; Finally, there was\nmovement, and we sped down the M6, past the Bescot Stadium, onto the Aston\nExpressway, and parked up.&nbsp; The coach disgorged\nits occupants and there was a dash for the turnstiles.&nbsp; The game had already been underway for 15\nminutes.&nbsp; (it was the only time I\u2019ve\nmissed that much at the start of game until a sorry trip to Huish Park, Yeovil\n14 years later). <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"aligncenter size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"674\" height=\"248\" src=\"http:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-1970.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3460\" srcset=\"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-1970.png 674w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-1970-300x110.png 300w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-1970-150x55.png 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 674px) 100vw, 674px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"has-text-align-center has-very-light-gray-background-color has-background has-small-font-size\"><strong>Villa Park at the time of my first visit in 1975, and the view that I had from the Witton End<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">It wasn\u2019t my first visit to Villa Park.&nbsp; Back in 1976, my brother, then 16, badgered me to take him to see Manchester United in a league game.&nbsp; The ground that I saw in 1995 had changed immensely.&nbsp; I stood on the Witton End for the first trip. A huge open terrace, (although nowhere near as big as the Holte End).&nbsp; Concrete terracing for the most part, but more just a rough slope at the top.&nbsp; It rained constantly through the game \u2013 a most unpleasant experience.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">I have only one real memory of the game.&nbsp; It marked the debut of Peter Coyne, who had been a schoolboy prodigy for Manchester Boys, with a phenomenal goalscoring record.&nbsp; He didn\u2019t score that day, but did in his only other United appearance,&nbsp; Little did I know that within 12 months I would be watching him play for Ashton United, and seeing him regularly in Ashton pubs on a Friday evening.&nbsp; Not drinking, but as one of those \u2018pub to pub\u2019 seafood vendors.&nbsp; He was doing that as part of a deal with a company which backed Ashton United at the time.&nbsp; He did of course move onto League football, hitting the net over 80 times for Crewe and Swindon.&nbsp; But all that is an aside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"alignwide has-background wp-block-media-text has-very-light-gray-background-color\" style=\"grid-template-columns:38% auto\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"600\" src=\"http:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-Trinity-Road-and-Holte-End.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3461 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-Trinity-Road-and-Holte-End.jpg 800w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-Trinity-Road-and-Holte-End-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-Trinity-Road-and-Holte-End-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-Trinity-Road-and-Holte-End-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><strong>Villa Park at the time of my County visit<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">To the left the Holte End, and on the right the Trinity Road Stand<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">The terraced Witton End by 1995 had been replaced by a two-tier\nconstruction and renamed as the North Stand.&nbsp;\nWe were allocated the bottom of it.&nbsp;\nGiven that it was a fairly recent construction, (late 70\u2019s), the design\nwas appalling.&nbsp; Entering through the\nturnstiles, we were confronted by a relatively narrow passageway, which was rendered\neven more difficult to pass through by programme and refreshment kiosks.&nbsp; It led to the seating, which had initially\nbeen a standing terrace onto which seats had been bolted.&nbsp; There was no depth, and the view was beyond\npoor.&nbsp; Not much higher than pitch level,\neven at the back of this seating, there was no real opportunity to see the\naction at the far end, with absolutely no meaningful perspective on the\ngame.&nbsp; My research tells me that the\nconstruction of this stand had been bedded in controversy with various\ninvestigations into the provenance of the architect which resulted suspended\nsentences.&nbsp; Villa had also been\novercharged for the job, and there had been attempts to obtain money by\ndeception from the Football Ground Improvement Trust.&nbsp; (In later years the installation of a new PA\nsystem at EP was cast under a similar cloud\u2026.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">Down at the far end was the Holte End.&nbsp; On my first visit it had been a magnificent\nterrace, (holding 20,000 even as late as 1994), very impressive, and I can only\nimagine the atmosphere when filled to capacity.&nbsp;\nBy 1995 a large structure was there, but now it was a two-tiered affair,\nall seated of course, but still impressive.&nbsp;\nEven today, when viewed from the M6, there\u2019s a real impression of the\nsize of it.&nbsp; Even after the new stand was\nbuilt, (and had been completed in the space of 8 months), it held just short of\n14,000.&nbsp; Putting things in perspective,\nthe Cheadle End at EP dwarves the rest of the ground.&nbsp; The Holte End was nearly three times as big!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"alignwide has-background wp-block-media-text has-very-light-gray-background-color\" style=\"grid-template-columns:38% auto\"><figure class=\"wp-block-media-text__media\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"500\" height=\"205\" src=\"http:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-view-from-North-Stand-1.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-3463 size-full\" srcset=\"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-view-from-North-Stand-1.jpg 500w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-view-from-North-Stand-1-300x123.jpg 300w, https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/Aston-Villa-Villa-Park-view-from-North-Stand-1-150x62.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\" \/><\/figure><div class=\"wp-block-media-text__content\">\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><strong>Villa Park<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\"><em>The Holte End seen from the North Stand visitors accommodation, and that&#8217;s just about the perspective we had that night. It didn&#8217;t make for the best viewing.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">On our left as we looked down the pitch was the Witton Lane\nStand.&nbsp; Yet another new construction, (as\nVilla Park prepared to host ties in the Euro 96 competition), it had been opened\nabout 12 months or so before we visited.&nbsp;\nLike the North Stand and Holte End, it was two tiered, as was the\nTrinity Road Stand to our right.&nbsp; Later developments\nhave filled in the corner between the Holte End and Trinity Road Stand so the\nground we see on TV today is slightly changed from the one we played at in\n1995.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">I\u2019m a great critic of some of the developments at grounds.&nbsp; Character can be removed in the pursuit of uniformity.&nbsp; Not so at Villa Park \u2013 to my eye anyway.&nbsp; Up until that point my experiences of away grounds had, in general, been at the smaller provincial lower league clubs.&nbsp; Seeing County play at an arena like Villa Park was an experience.&nbsp; It was a ground which had seen some of the great occasions, being a regular selection for FA Cup semi-finals; a venue for games in the 1966 World Cup, and also, a few months after we visited, for Euro 96.&nbsp; It\u2019s one of the joys of watching an unfashionable club that Cup competitions provide this kind of chance.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">As we look to recover from Covid-19 I wonder if these will be further marginalised?&nbsp; Semi-finals at Wembley; no replays; clubs being exempted as throw themselves on the altar of the Champions League.&nbsp; Football will undoubtedly change as a result of the pandemic; sadly, it was already changing, for the worse, beforehand.&nbsp; In the page on <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/2020\/home-games-2020\/\">Home Games in 2020<\/a><\/strong> I have reflected in more detail as to how I believe that English football should develop in order to preserve not only its integrity, but also to reframe itself and return to being the \u2018game of the people\u2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">By the way we lost the game 2-0!!&nbsp; The nearest I\u2019ve been to Villa Park since then is to pass it as I drive along the Aston Expressway on the way to Rob\u2019s house.&nbsp; I\u2019d like to go again \u2013 maybe an FA Cup run, and a favourable draw will provide the opportunity!! <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-small-font-size\">June 2020<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"color:#ffffff\" class=\"has-text-color has-background has-medium-font-size has-vivid-cyan-blue-background-color\"><strong>VISITS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"is-style-stripes wp-block-table\"><table><tbody><tr><td><strong>Day<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Date<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Competition<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Tier \/ Round<\/strong><\/td><td><strong>Opponents<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Res<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>F<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>A<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\"><strong>Crowd<\/strong><\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-right\" data-align=\"right\"><strong>Away Day<\/strong><\/td><\/tr><tr><td>Wed<\/td><td>25\/10\/95<\/td><td>Coca-Cola Cup<\/td><td>Round 3<\/td><td>Aston Villa<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">L<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">0<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">2<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-center\" data-align=\"center\">17,679<\/td><td class=\"has-text-align-right\" data-align=\"right\">311<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p style=\"color:#ffffff\" class=\"has-text-color has-background has-medium-font-size has-vivid-cyan-blue-background-color\"><strong>ON MY JOURNEY WITH COUNTY AROUND 180 GROUNDS<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-white-color has-text-color\">..<\/p>\n\n\n<a class=\"maxbutton-9 maxbutton maxbutton-previous-away\" href=\"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/portman-road-ipswich-town\"><span class='mb-text'>Previously &#8211; PORTMAN ROAD<\/span><\/a>\n\n<a class=\"maxbutton-10 maxbutton maxbutton-next-away\" href=\"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/goodison-park-everton\"><span class='mb-text'>Next stop &#8211; GOODISON PARK<\/span><\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Only County Visit: Wednesday 25th October 1995 Competition: Coca-Cola Cup &#8211; (Round 3) Result: Aston Villa 2 &#8211; 0 Stockport County Attendance: 17,679 Away Trip: 72 Away Day: 311 County Line-up 1 Neil Edwards; 2 Sean Connelly; 3 Lee Todd; 4 Tom Bennett (12 Michael Oliver); 5 Mike Flynn; 6 Jim Gannon; 7 Chris Beaumont; [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3457","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-1990s"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>57 Hatters Years : VILLA PARK - ASTON VILLA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Stockport County - a single visit to Villa Park for a League Cup tie in 1995. A late arrival; a poor view and a defeat.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"57 Hatters Years : VILLA PARK - ASTON VILLA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Stockport County - a single visit to Villa Park for a League Cup tie in 1995. A late arrival; a poor view and a defeat.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"57 Hatters Years\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2020-06-18T11:33:41+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-10T18:13:09+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-scaled.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1832\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2560\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Estimated reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"9 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/aa26248e8f6fd6e38e85ac0b95fb3f23\"},\"headline\":\"VILLA PARK &#8211; ASTON VILLA\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-06-18T11:33:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-10T18:13:09+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1838,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/aa26248e8f6fd6e38e85ac0b95fb3f23\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-733x1024.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"1990's\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/\",\"name\":\"57 Hatters Years : VILLA PARK - ASTON VILLA\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-733x1024.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2020-06-18T11:33:41+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-10T18:13:09+00:00\",\"description\":\"Stockport County - a single visit to Villa Park for a League Cup tie in 1995. A late arrival; a poor view and a defeat.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-733x1024.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2020\\\/06\\\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-733x1024.jpg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/index.php\\\/1990s\\\/villa-park-aston-villa\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"VILLA PARK &#8211; ASTON VILLA\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/\",\"name\":\"57 Hatters Years\",\"description\":\"Supporting Stockport County: From Carlisle to Brighton and Plymouth to Blyth\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/aa26248e8f6fd6e38e85ac0b95fb3f23\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":[\"Person\",\"Organization\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/57hattersyears.co.uk\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/aa26248e8f6fd6e38e85ac0b95fb3f23\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/14db0a34ee8176cbbfe296cfea245ccd54871bf8a13c3bf219070eca58b87631?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/14db0a34ee8176cbbfe296cfea245ccd54871bf8a13c3bf219070eca58b87631?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/14db0a34ee8176cbbfe296cfea245ccd54871bf8a13c3bf219070eca58b87631?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"logo\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/14db0a34ee8176cbbfe296cfea245ccd54871bf8a13c3bf219070eca58b87631?s=96&d=blank&r=g\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"57 Hatters Years : VILLA PARK - ASTON VILLA","description":"Stockport County - a single visit to Villa Park for a League Cup tie in 1995. A late arrival; a poor view and a defeat.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"57 Hatters Years : VILLA PARK - ASTON VILLA","og_description":"Stockport County - a single visit to Villa Park for a League Cup tie in 1995. A late arrival; a poor view and a defeat.","og_url":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/","og_site_name":"57 Hatters Years","article_published_time":"2020-06-18T11:33:41+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-06-10T18:13:09+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1832,"height":2560,"url":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-scaled.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Estimated reading time":"9 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/aa26248e8f6fd6e38e85ac0b95fb3f23"},"headline":"VILLA PARK &#8211; ASTON VILLA","datePublished":"2020-06-18T11:33:41+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-10T18:13:09+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/"},"wordCount":1838,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/aa26248e8f6fd6e38e85ac0b95fb3f23"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-733x1024.jpg","articleSection":["1990's"],"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/","url":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/","name":"57 Hatters Years : VILLA PARK - ASTON VILLA","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-733x1024.jpg","datePublished":"2020-06-18T11:33:41+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-10T18:13:09+00:00","description":"Stockport County - a single visit to Villa Park for a League Cup tie in 1995. A late arrival; a poor view and a defeat.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-733x1024.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/06\/72-VIlla-Park-Aston-Villa-733x1024.jpg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/1990s\/villa-park-aston-villa\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"VILLA PARK &#8211; ASTON VILLA"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/#website","url":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/","name":"57 Hatters Years","description":"Supporting Stockport County: From Carlisle to Brighton and Plymouth to Blyth","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/aa26248e8f6fd6e38e85ac0b95fb3f23"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/#\/schema\/person\/aa26248e8f6fd6e38e85ac0b95fb3f23","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/14db0a34ee8176cbbfe296cfea245ccd54871bf8a13c3bf219070eca58b87631?s=96&d=blank&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/14db0a34ee8176cbbfe296cfea245ccd54871bf8a13c3bf219070eca58b87631?s=96&d=blank&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/14db0a34ee8176cbbfe296cfea245ccd54871bf8a13c3bf219070eca58b87631?s=96&d=blank&r=g","caption":"admin"},"logo":{"@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/14db0a34ee8176cbbfe296cfea245ccd54871bf8a13c3bf219070eca58b87631?s=96&d=blank&r=g"}}]}},"featured_image_src":null,"featured_image_src_square":null,"author_info":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/author\/admin\/"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3457","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3457"}],"version-history":[{"count":14,"href":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3457\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11564,"href":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3457\/revisions\/11564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3457"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3457"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/57hattersyears.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3457"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}