After winning the FA Cup in May, at the expense of promotion, the pressure was on Lyall to secure a return to the top flight at the third attempt. Recognising that Stuart Pearson might be starting to show his age a little, Lyall spent another club record £800,000 on Paul Goddard from QPR.
A master stroke which would prove to be the final piece of the jigsaw and complete one of the most iconic West Ham line-ups of all time. Iconic also because of a swanky new kit from Adidas which made West Ham look the part, at least.
The campaign didn’t start well though. A perhaps expected narrow defeat at Wembley in the Charity Shield against Liverpool was followed by a home defeat to Luton Town on the opening day that started a long-term battle with the Bedfordshire club that more often than not West Ham would lose.
Two away draws followed at Bristol City and Preston which offered no suggestion that anything had changed. But the League Cup campaign provided the opportunity for the team to finally hit their stride.
A 2-0 win at Turf Moor was followed by a 4-0 win in the second leg. In between, convincing wins over Notts County and Shrewsbury at home, and a 1-0 win at Stamford Bridge put the Hammers in third place, two points behind early leaders Blackburn and Derby.
It was always going to be a marathon of a season, but a trip to Spain to play Castilla in the European Cup-Winners’ Cup could have been a major unwarranted distraction. It seemed that the distraction would not be long term as the Hammers succumbed 3-1 to Real Madrid’s ‘B’ team at the Bernabeu on a night marred by crowd trouble which saw a West Ham fan killed outside the stadium when he was hit by a coach.
Returning home with collective tails between legs and with the fans unhappy with some of Billy Bonds’ comments about their behaviour, UEFA also took a dim view and ordered that West Ham play the return leg at least 200km away from the Boleyn Ground. With the services of Middlesbrough’s Ayresome Park secured, West Ham’s appeal was successful and was commuted to a fine and an order to play the game at Upton Park behind closed doors.
The famous ‘Ghost Match’ was played on 1 October 1980 in front of an official attendance of 262, mainly press, officials and relatives. The eerily quiet atmosphere prompted Chairman Len Cearns to come to the dressing room at half time to ask Lyall to tell the players to mind their language as it could clearly be heard in the directors’ box.
West Ham won the game 5-1 to progress to the next round and proved that they were in no mood to prioritise the league. And why would they? With the team Lyall had assembled, they appeared capable of beating anyone placed before them.
Indeed, they continued unbeaten in Division Two and progressed in the League Cup with wins over Charlton and Barnsley. In November a memorable 5-0 win over Bristol City at Upton Park saw the Hammers hit the front in the promotion race, a lead they would not relinquish.
The Hammers also progressed to the last eight of the Cup-Winners’ Cup with a 4-1 aggregate win over Poli Timișoara of Romania. Fortunately, the quarter-finals were not scheduled until March which would allow Lyall to concentrate on just the three competitions.
Luton proved the fly in the ointment once again, becoming the first team to beat the Hammers since they had done so on the opening day with a 3-2 win at Kenilworth Road.
A 2-0 defeat against Derby at the Baseball Ground indicated there might be a little wobble but this was a solid team which flair in the form of Brooking, Devonshire and Paul Allen, industry from Geoff Pike, an international class goalkeeper in Phil Parkes, a back four that rolls off the tongue of Stewart, Lampard, Bonds and Martin, and a lethal strike force of Cross and Goddard.
Tottenham were beaten 1-0 in the quarter-finals of the League Cup at Upton Park before a tenth straight home league win over Sheffield Wednesday cemented their pace at the top of the table. After a 3-0 defeat at Loftus Road on Boxing Day, Lyall challenged the team not to lose another league game for the rest of the season and they duly obliged. They would go on to drop only one point at home over the rest of the course of the campaign.
Coventry City were beaten in the semi-final of the League Cup. After losing a 2-0 lead at Highfield Road, the Hammers lost 3-2 in the first leg. But goals from Neighbour and Goddard gave West Ham a 2-0 win in the second leg and a 4-3 victory on aggregate which booked a date at Wembley against Liverpool in the final.
The defence of the FA Cup failed at the first hurdle. On paper a home tie against Wrexham looked a formality but a 1-1 draw meant a replay at The Racecourse ground, which also ended in a draw. A second replay was required, also away, which Wrexham won 1-0.
The league form continued to be imperious, with a 4-0 win over Chelsea and a 4-2 win over Cambridge United as well as a 5-0 win over Preston which made it on to Sunday Afternoon’s ‘The Big Match’. But as March approached, the Hammers were about to be taught a footballing lesson in the form of Dinamo Tbilisi in general and Alexandr Chivadze in particular.
The first leg of the Cup-Winners’ Cup quarter final ended 4-1 to the Soviets, a scoreline they fully deserved, reflected in them receiving a standing ovation from a generous Upton Park crowd. The second leg was won 1-0 by the Hammers in Georgia, but the tie was over after the first leg and West Ham were out.
At Wembley, Liverpool were hot favourites to win their first League Cup title – but after 90 minutes the game was still locked at 0-0 and heading for a replay. Alan Kennedy took a shot from outside the box which travelled past a prone Sammy Lee lying injured in the six-year box in an off-side position.
He moved his head to allow the ball to travel past Phil Parkes and into the net. Referee Clive Thomas was the only person in the stadium who thought it was a goal. Unfortunately, his opinion was the only one that mattered. Lyall was incensed. Although a late Stewart penalty earned a replay, Lyall’s comments after the game landed him in hot water with the Football League.
Lyall was accused of calling referee Thomas a cheat but what he actually said was: ‘We feel cheated’ which is not the same. Lyall requested a personal hearing; the matter was closed and Lyall took Thomas for lunch afterwards.
The replay, however, was not so memorable. Although Neighbour crossed for Goddard to put the Hammers 1-0 up, Liverpool turned it around by half time and won the cup 2-1. But it was an indication that when the inevitable promotion came, West Ham would more than hold their own in Division One.
Indeed, promotion was secured three days later with a 2-0 win over Bristol Rovers, which just left two targets, the title and a record points total. The existing record for Division Two – under two points for a win – was 65 set by Jack Charlton’s Middlesbrough just a few years earlier.
The Hammers sat on 55 with six games to go, so 12 available and a possible 67. They showed their intent with a 5-1 win at Grimsby, David Cross scoring four. The title was secured after a 1-0 win over Wrexham at Upton Park, and after a nervous draw at Cardiff, a win was needed at Sheffield Wednesday in the final game to secure the record. Reserve striker Nicky Morgan scored the winner which gave West Ham the points record of 66, the title and most importantly, promotion.
The Hammers had smashed the league campaign, losing just four games out of 42, reaching the final of the League Cup and the last eight in Europe. Everything looked good for the return to the First Division. Could Lyall keep the Hammers back where they belonged?
My YouTube series ‘The John Lyall Years’ follows the fortunes of the club during John Lyall’s tenure, merging match footage with interviews, newspaper cuttings, news items, music, TV, and cinema from the time. It is a must for anyone who remembers those heady days, or those who are curious to learn. 1980-81 is covered in Episodes 27-32 – see @westhamhistory
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