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Down White Hart Memory Lane

Seeing those pictures of the East Stand in the stadium thread take me back to my days as a teenager up on the Shelf and kicking the boarding in time to Dave Clark's "Glad All Over". How did Palace get that as their song?
 
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season ticket holder from 1960 up till Sky messed me up with work commitments by changing match dates for broadcast purposes.

occasional visits thereafter culminating in my final visit to our grand old ground tomorrow.

myself and my fellow geriatric Arthur who through the years have traipsed the length and breadth of this country following our team will have our last misty-eyed view of WHL graced by in our view potentially the best set of players since the fabulous double team.

we have made a vow with each other that we will be there in our fabulous new stadium, even if one of us has to surreptitiously bring the other pals ashes in 2018.

by the way Arthurs first game was April 30th 1949

Spurs v Fulham 1-1 draw.
 
terryalan said:
season ticket holder from 1960 up till Sky messed me up with work commitments by changing match dates for broadcast purposes.

occasional visits thereafter culminating in my final visit to our grand old ground tomorrow.

myself and my fellow geriatric Arthur who through the years have traipsed the length and breadth of this country following our team will have our last misty-eyed view of WHL graced by in our view potentially the best set of players since the fabulous double team.

we have made a vow with each other that we will be there in our fabulous new stadium, even if one of us has to surreptitiously bring the other pals ashes in 2018.

by the way Arthurs first game was April 30th 1949

Spurs v Fulham 1-1 draw.
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So envious because Arthur would have been one of that priveleged but ever-dwindling number who got to witness us winning our first ever League Champions trophy in 1951, something I completely missed out on as my first visit to WHL was in 1953.
 
As mentioned in other threads the Bournemouth game was my proper final last time at The Lane. And I got to take my 11 year old son. His only previous live Spurs game was when he was a mascot at the Seattle friendly and walked out with Tom Carroll in front of 55,000. But to share the looks of joy on his face from the moment we picked up our tickets through to the end of the day was priceless.

That ground has so many memories and such a good spirit, especially with this team. It's perhaps worth all the dross and heartache we've had to endure that our final moments at this special arena is graced by this team.

While so many of us will miss it and the memories we all have the new ground, growing as it has and incorporating some of the space of the old, will be a shiny new fortress.

Big love to all on here who have been lucky enough to have watched our Lilywhite shirted heroes (and zeroes) run out on that beautiful green rectangle and play (or not quite play) the Spurs way.

Farewell to The Lane and hello to the Corporate Naming Rights Stadium!!

COYS!!!
 
The Bournemouth game was my last time at The Lane. And I got to take my 5 year old son. It was his first time at a football game, and was all a bit much for him. As the pre-match videos/audio got louder and louder he put his hands over his ears and shrank against me, upset and scared. I coaxed him through that, then came the Star Wars music and the teams coming out. Again, fingers in the ears and a cry of "I want to go home daddy". I coaxed him through that and the game started and I pointed out number 10 Harry Kane and his friend 20 Dele Alli - that cheered him up a bit and he was interested for a few minutes.

Then after 5 minutes, "can we go home yet daddy?" and then a bloke behind started shouting "Cam on Tot-nam!" and "Jan wants it!" and "Toby wants it!" and my son was intimidated and shrinking and scared, sat on my knee, needing a hug.

Then after 15 minutes Dembele scored and that was fine and good, he enjoyed that. The guy in front turned round and spoke to him, as did the old lady in front and the man next to him, so gradually he warmed up a bit to the whole thing.

Another goal, all good, then after about 35 minutes he's bored and wants to go home again. I gave him a massive Haribo injection at half time and expected him to pep up, but he was pretty bored, I think he's a bit tired after a long term at school in his first year. He nestled into me, head on my lap to try to sleep, and then spent the last 20 minutes watching "Go Jetters" on the iPlayer on my iPhone.



So in terms of his first experience and excitement... not so much.

But I was pretty happy with a thronking win, Janssen's first real goal was a brilliant moment, nothing bad happened, I saw the new ground of course and said goodbye to the old one. The old ground looks so old and brown and rusty and 80s outside... but still looks pretty damned good inside, a real shame to just smash all that to pieces.


On the way out of the ground we walked north to the north circular to get picked up. We bumped into some local nutter coming out of William Hill. He had a 70s brown pimp suit and gangsta walk and proclaimed himself to be the King of Tottenham and lectured us on how to live our lives, not to let others get us down and to be proud, all the while pulling a live rabbit along on a trolley whilst my son cowered away from the King's Staffordshire Bull Terrier. Ah, Tottenham.
 
Oh yeah, my son was singing "We've got Alli.... Dele Alli... I just don't think you understand... he only cost five mil, he's better than Ozil... we've got Dele Alli" this morning

Although he somehow got it mixed up with his school's Easter song "I'm a real spring chicken and I'm having a ball... chicken and a chicken and I'm having a ball".
 
Spoke to a chap after the game who said his first game at WHL was in 1944. Said he'd be at Wembley next week too. Just wish I could have pumped him for a few more memories but he needed to be on his way.

Someone needs to make a point of sitting these veterans of WHL down and recording their memories.
 
Spur of the moment said:
Spoke to a chap after the game who said his first game at WHL was in 1944. Said he'd be at Wembley next week too. Just wish I could have pumped him for a few more memories but he needed to be on his way.

Someone needs to make a point of sitting these veterans of WHL down and recording their memories.
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A good idea for a book.
 
My last game was Watford.

Hadn't been in a while and I haven't been loads of times like a lot of you chaps.

My first was the 0-0 against Feyenoord in the Lineker era.

Over the years I'm pretty sure I've sat in the upper and lower tiers of all four stands, lucked out with hospitality when my wife worked for the club, been in the dressing room and met a couple the old players; had a beer with Steve Sedgely and Paul Allen. :D

I've seen us play in the PL, FA Cup, CL and UEFA league and watched players like Ginola, Teddy, Mabbutt, King, Modric, Berba, Bale and Jose Dominguez, as well as the current crop.

What a pleasure. All of it.

Hopefully many more great memories yet to come in the new place.
 
I've been going since 1958 and in that time I've some of the greats of the game, but I never got to see my Dad's favourite players Ron Burgess and Tom Finney. There was a real excitement when I first started going to football as there was no TV coverage and the only way you got to see players was at a match, now everybody seems to know every thing about all the players in the world (expect the bloke behind me, who can't even identify some of our team at times), to me a bit of the magic had died with that.
 
My first game was 1987 cup 4th round vs Palace. Nico Claesen scored a couple that day as we ran out easy 4-1 winners - my brother (also Spurs) took me with a Forest supporting mate, who was tinkled off when he found out Forest were playing Charlton and made us leave early so I missed the last two goals. I stood on the shelf and got to watch GHod, Waddle, Mabbs in the flesh for the first time. I was so pleased I got to see Ghod in the white shirt (my boyhood hero)

I've been all over the Lane, every stand except West Upper, my favourite spot it probably the Park Lane lower.

The best game I ever attended was the famous 5-1 battering of Arsenal - I remember turning to the bloke next to me when Adebayor scored to make it 4-1 with about 20mins to go and saying with dread, "oh brick, here we go.....". I have never experienced an atmosphere like that (before or since) - 15mins before k/o the roof was lifting off "old girl". Goosebumps now just thinking about it.

I remember watching Gazza destroy Notts County in a Cup q/f (I think 1991?)

Watching brilliant players such as Ginola, Teddy, Klinsmann, Ledders, Berba, Keane, Modders, Bale, VdV etc.

I am pleased to say that I heard the Champs League music played over our tannoy - another emotional moment.

I love the place and will miss it, but I cannot wait to go to the new ground, with a brilliant squad, a fantastic manager - possibly the brightest future our team have ever had. Right now, I am sure Billy Nic will be looking down with pride at what have become of his great club.
 
Re Bullet's 5 year old and the right age to take a child to WHL...it varies but even at 7 and 8 some of them are as interested in the Mascots as the game itself...still nothing like getting them to understand from an early age that there is only one team to support :)
 
lurker of old said:
Re Bullet's 5 year old and the right age to take a child to WHL...it varies but even at 7 and 8 some of them are as interested in the Mascots as the game itself...still nothing like getting them to understand from an early age that there is only one team to support :)
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True. If Spurs sign Lego Batman to play up front, we would secure 3 million young fans immediately
 
Back in 1982 - to my later regret - I decided against taking my 6yo son with me to the League Cup final at Wembley vs Liverpool. Despite the fact we lost he has never forgiven me, especially as his 6yo friend, also a Spurs fan, was taken by his dad.

However the boot is now totally on the other foot because my son now has a 6yo of his own who is already an ardent Spurs fan. When he had the chance to take him to WHL for his first ever game vs Bournemouth the other day, guess what, he decided against it! We both agreed he would have been a bit overwhelmed by the noise, especially the excessively booming announcements just prior to k/off. He does intend to take him to Wembley next season though - but by then he'll be 7 so it should be okay.

I do think the club should rethink that pre-match build-up, to my mind it is way OTT. Would go down much better if they chose a slightly more understated approach.
 
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