You hear their supporters calling it ‘The Kenny’
One side of it looks an old folks home or a crown green bowls club. That side is hilariously shit, as in genuinely shit. That side should be knocked down.
The rest of it is magnificent. It’s not as good as The Dell, which was probably the finest association football stadium anywhere, ever, but there’s no shame in that.
The jokes about the entrance to the away end at Kenilworth Road will never not be funny. These jokes occupy a particular part of the brain, a very juvenile part of the brain, but a sweet and generous part of the brain, the part filled with imagination, like a toddler.
Kenilworth Road used to have a very prominent electronic scoreboard, a bit like the one on the Nally Stand but more impressive. Kenilworth Road is the first Dublin road to become a Premier League ground. Kenilworth Road had a wonderful standing terrace and wonderful lights that lit up the people standing on that standing terrace.
Luton Town were a Division 1 team from 1982 to 1992. My conscious life began in 1982 and my childhood ended in 1992 when I left primary school. Real football ended in 1992 and football began. Luton Town were an integral part of my childhood, one of those things you never realised was an integral part of your childhood until, well, now.
This was Luton’s last game in the First Division. They lost at already relegated Notts County, managed by Neil Warnock. They would have stayed up had they won. Coventry stayed up at their expense. David Pleat was managing them and Brian Stein and Mick Harford and Chris Kamara were playing for them. Their captain was Trevor Peake, who played for Coventry when they won the FA Cup in 1987. The year before Luton were relegated, Mick Harford scored the key goal that helped them stay up. Harford was playing for Derby against Luton and put into his own net. The goal relegated his native Sunderland. Then a few months later Harford signed for Luton again. Notts County were promoted back to the Football League two weeks ago after six years out of it. They won their play-off final on a penalty shoot-out.
I love the way all these facts seem to knit into each other, like in a storybook.
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Mick Harford scores one of the great forgotten winners in the last minute of his first game after re-signing for Luton, after equalising a few minutes earlier. He could have signed for Manchester United instead. Folk hero.
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Ballix. Plenty of premier league players pose for photos and autographs. This tweet has shades of the GAA “where else would you get it” type posts…
The guy that relegated Luton in 1992 was Rob Matthews. It was his only ever top division appearance and he scored twice for Notts County, the second one an absolute beauty. Then three years later he signed for Luton, played 11 games, left Luton and then slid relentlessly down the divisions in his journeyman career.
@scumpot
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That lad is a always there. For the League Cup final no one hugged him until Casemiro did.
Shane McGuckian wouldn’t do it
Cerys Matthews played Give me Sunshine by Morecambe and Wise on her show this morning in honour of Eric Morecambe who was a Luton Town supporter. Cerys’s hubby is a Luton season ticket holder.
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A chastening return to the top flight today for The Hatters.
They have a tough few weeks ahead with no home game
They might be better off long term just keeping the spending in check and taking the premier league cash. A club of their size is doing well to be in the championship.
Plus, Sheffield United look absolutely shite so they only need two other clubs to have mental breakdowns and they might survive
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It’s going to be a long year
The auld PL money and the parachute payment if they go down might turn them into a yo yo club for a few years. Ala Burnley.
A lot of teams putting their hands up to be relegation candidates this year. Everton will be in the thick of it again, Wolves too. Forest might well be down there again. Hard to know how Bournemouth go.
I thought at least 4 deserved to go down last year. Everton stayed up but they look utterly doomed as a club unless they get their finances into some sort of order.
Could be packed down there this year with at least 5 candidates, and there’s always a bolter too. Some club that we thought will be good will end up a bit of a basket case.
That said, I still think Luton are fucked
I love a good “too good to down” relegation bolter.
Leicester were a beauty of the genre last year.
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Oh they were outstanding at being too good to go down. Like, they are filled with players who wouldn’t, and indeed haven’t, looked out of place in the champions league.