It was like an all day party that started when we caught the train from Burnley Central around breakfast time, offered champagne to travellers including one bloke who was going to work in Accrington. He almost got drowned in the stuff.
I might, on occasions, be able to remember football matches but where we stopped to partake in an occasional drink in Preston is now somewhat hazy, but I do know that we made Preston's Deepdale ground a long time before kick off and took our place on the Blackpool Road End which is, for younger readers, where the Bill Shankly Kop sits now.
We'd already clinched promotion but we needed a point from this last game of the season to ensure we won the title. As it happens, following a collapse in form, Preston needed a point to be certain of staying up.
They were worried. They were most worried about Leighton James and so made the decision to narrow the pitch by four yards to give him less room to play in. The new lines could be seen as could the lines that had been there all season. It almost akin to a big tennis court lacking only the net.
It was the second time I'd been to Preston to watch Burnley. In the previous season we'd all been squeezed into the other end but this time it was just a sea of Claret and Blue with the only Preston area being that to the side of the old Pavilion Stand.
I've read in the last week that there were at least 15,000 Burnley supporters in the crowd; I'd say that was a conservative estimate in a crowd of over 21,500.
The Preston North End team came out first and lined up to give the Burnley team a guard of honour and almost immediately the champions elect made their way out onto the pitch, turning towards our end to warm up (or kick in as it was called then).
We didn't get a classic, not by any means, but we got what we wanted. Right from the start, on a tense afternoon, we looked by far and away the better team. We weren't at our best but we didn't need to be against this Preston team.
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| Martin Dobson leads out the Clarets |
The home side struggled to come close to matching us in what looked as though it was going to be a goalless first half and their only tactic seemed to be to hit the ball as far down the pitch as possible and chase it.
We dealt with it all comfortably until two minutes before the break when they hit another long ball down their left. It was just too high for Billy Ingham to deal with effectively and he could do no more than head it in the air.
It fell just right for Alan Lamb who was clear of our defence. With us desperately trying to get back, Lamb ran 40-yards, pushed the ball to his partner Alex BRUCE who shot past Alan Stevenson from ten yards.
What a blow. The players went in for half time wondering what had hit them. We were all subdued and wondering whether, right at the death, we were going to let QPR in for the title.
We came out for the second half and just had to take the game to Preston, not as if we hadn't been doing in the first half. You sensed it might not be our day when Eric Snookes cleared a Paul Fletcher header off the line.
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| Goalscorer Waldron enjoys a celebratory drink |
Then, just eight minutes into the half, we scored the goal that won the title. From Frank Casper's throw in on the left, Martin Dobson sent an overhead kick to the edge of the penalty area for Waldron to head the ball forward.
It seemed to have been another disappointing attack when a Preston defender headed it out, but it was only half cleared back to WALDRON who hit a 25-yard volley that simply screamed into the top corner.
I had the opportunity to speak to Waldron earlier in the day and he, obviously, was able to recall the goal. Straight after the game he said: "Goal of the month? It must have been the goal of the season. I knew as soon as I hit it that it was a goal.
"The next moment I was being mobbed by the other players and then the fans came on and I collapsed under the weight of people. It wasn't so much that it was a good goal that pleased me, but just because it was the equaliser we needed."
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| The dressing room after the game |
Within a minute Doug Collins was within inches of firing us into the lead and almost immediately goalkeeper Alan Kelly denied Leighton James with a magnificent save. A Dobson shot was cleared off the line and Burnley were going for the jugular to get the game won.
But there was a sudden realisation that we didn't need to win the game and we started to play keep ball. As the clock moved on, far too slowly for my liking, the Burnley fans were getting over the walls and creeping to, and then over, the touchline.
Long before the final whistle I found myself in the six yard box, just about having a conversation with the underemployed Alan Stevenson.
The last few minutes were played out by both teams. Every player on the pitch knew their respective teams had got what they wanted.
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| Burnley fans on the Deepdale pitch |
And then, the final whistle blew and within no time at all the pitch was filling up with jubilant Burnley supporters. Even Bob Lord, from his perch in the directors' box waved down to the fans and then the players arrived alongside him to take the cheers.
The game was over, the season was over, but the day most definitely wasn't. I left home early that day but I've no idea what time I got home. After a few drinks in Preston it was time for the train and a night out in the one Lancashire town where it was party time.
We were going up as Champions and deservedly so. QPR won and moved to within three points of us with one game remaining. They couldn't catch us now. It had been our day. It had been our season and Burnley were heading for the top table of English football once more.
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| The 1972/73 Second Division Champions |
The teams were;
Preston North End: Allan Kelly, John McMahon, Eric Snookes, John Bird, Graham Hawkins, Stuart Baxter, Dave Connor, Alex Bruce, Alan Lamb, Alex Spark, Neil Young. Sub not used: Hugh McIlmoyle.
Burnley: Alan Stevenson, Billy Ingham, Keith Newton, Martin Dobson, Colin Waldron, Jim Thomson, Geoff Nulty, Frank Casper, Paul Fletcher, Doug Collins, Leighton James. Sub not used: Rah Hankin.
Referee: Mr J. Hunting (Leicestershire).
Attendance: 17,708.
Cardiff had dropped back into the relegation places but had games remaining which meant it could still be Huddersfield to go down. If so it would be relegations in consecutive seasons for the Yorkshire club.
Second Division Results
Saturday 28th April 1973
BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION 2 NOTTINGHAM FOREST 2
BRISTOL CITY 2 HULL CITY 1
CARLISLE UNITED 2 ASTON VILLA 2
HUDDERSFIELD TOWN 2 PORTSMOUTH 0
MIDDLESBROUGH 3 ORIENT 2
MILLWALL 1 CARDIFF CITY 1
OXFORD UNITED 2 LUTON TOWN 1
PRESTON NORTH END 1 BURNLEY 1
QUEENS PARK RANGERS 2 FULHAM 0
SUNDERLAND 1 BLACKPOOL 0
Burnley's Goalscorers (League Only)
15: PAUL FLETCHER
12: FRANK CASPER, MARTIN DOBSON
10: LEIGHTON JAMES
6: GEOFF NULTY
4: BILLY INGHAM, DAVE THOMAS, COLIN WALDRON
2: DOUG COLLINS
1: KEITH NEWTON, JIM THOMSON, OWN GOALS
Second Division Goalscorers
23: DON GIVENS (QUEENS PARK RANGERS)
19: GORDON BOLLAND (MILLWALL)
17: ALAN GOWLING (HUDDERSFIELD TOWN), STUART PEARSON (HULL CITY)
15: STAN BOWLES (CARLISLE UNITED & QUEENS PARK RANGERS)
15: STEVE EARLE (FULHAM), PAUL FLETCHER (BURNLEY), BILLY HUGHES (SUNDERLAND),
BRIAN JOICEY (SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY) , JOE LAIDLAW (CARLISLE UNITED) , ALF WOOD (MILLWALL)
14: VIC HALOM (LUTON TOWN & SUNDERLAND) ANDY McCULLOCH (CARDIFF CITY),
13: ALEX BRUCE (PRESTON NORTH END), HUGH CURRAN (OXFORD UNITED),
JOHN HICKTON (MIDDLESBROUGH), RAY TREACY (SWINDON TOWN)
12: FRANK CASPER (BURNLEY), MARTIN DOBSON (BURNLEY),
JOHN GALLEY (BRISTOL CITY & NOTTINGHAM FOREST), GERRY GOW (BRISTOL CITY),
BOBBY OWEN (CARLISLE UNITED), DENNIS TUEART (SUNDERLAND)
The League Table
| Team | pld | w | d | l | f | a | pts |
| BURNLEY | 42 | 24 | 14 | 4 | 72 | 35 | 62 |
| QUEENS PARK RANGERS | 41 | 23 | 13 | 5 | 78 | 37 | 59 |
| ASTON VILLA | 42 | 18 | 14 | 10 | 51 | 47 | 50 |
| MIDDLESBROUGH | 42 | 17 | 13 | 12 | 46 | 43 | 47 |
| BRISTOL CITY | 42 | 17 | 12 | 13 | 63 | 51 | 46 |
| BLACKPOOL | 42 | 18 | 10 | 14 | 56 | 51 | 46 |
| OXFORD UNITED | 42 | 19 | 7 | 16 | 52 | 43 | 45 |
| SUNDERLAND | 39 | 17 | 10 | 12 | 57 | 44 | 44 |
| FULHAM | 42 | 16 | 12 | 14 | 58 | 49 | 44 |
| SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY | 42 | 17 | 10 | 15 | 59 | 55 | 44 |
| MILLWALL | 42 | 16 | 10 | 16 | 55 | 47 | 42 |
| LUTON TOWN | 42 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 44 | 53 | 41 |
| NOTTINGHAM FOREST | 42 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 47 | 52 | 40 |
| HULL CITY | 41 | 13 | 12 | 16 | 62 | 59 | 38 |
| SWINDON TOWN | 42 | 10 | 16 | 16 | 46 | 60 | 36 |
| ORIENT | 41 | 12 | 11 | 18 | 48 | 52 | 35 |
| PORTSMOUTH | 42 | 12 | 11 | 19 | 42 | 59 | 35 |
| CARLISLE UNITED | 42 | 11 | 12 | 19 | 50 | 52 | 34 |
| PRESTON NORTH END | 42 | 11 | 12 | 19 | 37 | 64 | 34 |
| HUDDERSFIELD TOWN | 42 | 8 | 17 | 17 | 36 | 56 | 33 |
| CARDIFF CITY | 40 | 11 | 10 | 19 | 42 | 55 | 32 |
| BRIGHTON & HOVE ALBION | 42 | 8 | 13 | 21 | 46 | 83 | 29 |