The Legends of Manchester City by Ian Penney

Author:Ian Penney [Penney, Ian]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781908234667
Publisher: Derby Books Publishing Company Ltd
Published: 2011-04-14T23:00:00+00:00

Bobby Johnstone – part of Wembley folklore

WHATEVER he lacked in inches, there was no doubting Selkirk-born Bobby Johnstone’s stature as a professional footballer. In a Maine Road career spanning four and a half years, the diminutive Scottish international with a shrewd footballing brain became a hugely popular player with the City supporters.

Before joining City he had already proved himself north of the border with Hibernian, his first professional club. As a member of a renowned forward line – The Famous Five – Johnstone had won three Scottish championships, been runner-up on three other occasions and had been capped 13 times by the time he arrived at Maine Road on 2 March 1955. His fee was £20,700; a fairly high sum at the time but manager Les McDowall knew what a good player Johnstone was. Within a few short weeks, so too would the Blues fans standing on the terraces.

Injuries to Johnny Hart and Roy Clarke gave Johnstone his debut just two weeks later (and probably a little earlier than even McDowall thought) in a 4-2 win against Bolton Wanderers. The equally diminutive Joe Hayes was so delighted with having someone else alongside of him who caused him little neck discomfort, that he celebrated the Scot’s arrival with a hat-trick.

Less than two months after his debut, Johnstone was playing in an FA Cup Final at Wembley. For all his successes in the League in Scotland, he’d never made it to a Scottish FA Cup Final. Although the wait was over, he would be disappointed with his first one; 10-men City lost 3-1 to Newcastle United. Johnstone scored City’s goal with a diving header, admitted later he should have scored a second but soon put all footballing thoughts out of his head and concentrated the rest of the summer on his second sporting love, cricket. He continued to play league cricket in and around his adopted Oldham until after his 50th birthday. Not surprisingly because of his passion for the summer game, Johnstone became great friends with his City teammate and Lancashire player Jack Dyson.

On 2 January 1956 Johnstone scored his first hat-trick for City in a 4-1 win against Portsmouth at Maine Road. Ken Barnes is quoted as remembering Johnstone had celebrated the New Year with far too much gusto (as is the way for the majority of Scots) and arrived for the game “stinking of booze”. After the game – and Johnstone’s hat-trick of headers – Barnes suggested he should prepare every week in the same way!

City’s next venture into the FA Cup took them back to Wembley, this time with more success. Johnstone’s personal contribution to the Cup run consisted of goals against Blackpool in the third round, Everton in the sixth round and another header was enough to finish Tottenham in the semi-final. Arguably though he saved the best until last; the Final itself. Following Trautmann’s long clearance and Dyson’s flick, Johnstone shrugged off the challenges of two Birmingham defenders before scoring City’s third – and decisive – goal.

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