Revisiting The History of Goal Nets series on World Cups - starting with Chile 1962
The Chilean FA told FIFA they had to give Chile the World Cup "because we have nothing else." So Chile won the rights to host the 1962 tournament and they got plenty in return: Garrincha in his prime, the Italy v Chile Battle of Santiago and these stanchions of almost perfect quarter circumference on which to hang the tournament's nets.
Though football on TV was in its infancy and the matches at the '62 finals were not broadcast live, the influence of the tournament could be seen in the stanchions installed at stadia as diverse as Estadio Bernabeu, Madrid -
The Big Match from the past weekend is Chelsea v Blackpool, from the first week in March, 1977.
Check out the ball hitting the much-loved and much-missed Bridge stanchions at the two Chelsea goals, and the remarkable ball retention of the nets at Blackpool's opener - scored today, it'd have rebounded to the halfway line!
This week's Match of the Day features two Southampton v Tottenham Hotspur games and the history of goal nets at the Dell.
Our first game is on an 1989 gluepot of a pitch. It's a victory for Spurs played out between the much-loved and much-missed old stanchions at the Dell.
Our second game is from ten years later. Though the old stanchions have given way to Continental D's, the ground staff still have very little area in which to hang and pin the nets.
As an early Christmas present, look out for a Matt Le Tissier special to equalise for Saints about 4:00 in. Merry Christmas.
This week's Match of the Day is the Merseyside derby.
A personal, all-time favourite goal is Andy King's half volley at Goodison Park in 1978. Not so much the shot itself which, with all the time in the world brings to mind Jose Mourinho's thoughts on Wayne Rooney's passing - you can tell me it's amazing, but mine is amazing too, without any pressure - but the way the ball hits the net.
The shot into the top corner probably hits the side netting then the A-frame stanchion and given the power with which it was struck, it wouldn't be unreasonable to expect a huge rebound.
Yet somehow the 1970's technology clings to the ball, and somehow keeps it behind the line so Ray Clemence has to walk the walk-of-shame to retrieve it.
The Big Match for the first week in December is the 1976 clash between Fulham and Oldham at a frozen Craven Cottage.
The match features a magisterial performance from George Best crowned with a wonderful chipped goal and the often overlooked hardware at the Craven Cottage. A little bit Wembley lookalikes, they're quintessentially English in shape and perfectly set off by the software, hung snug around its shoulders.
While Arsenal and Manchester United played out a 1-1 draw between the box nets at Old Trafford on Saturday, the sides also met on the same weekend 41 years ago.
This week's Big Match is that game from 22 November, 1975, a 3-1 win for the Gunners featuring a great dig by Stuart Perason, a crazy OG and an early Alan Ball goal that rebounded off the classic green stanchions at Highbury.
This week's Match of the Day previews the north London derby - Arsenal v Tottenham.
As Arsenal are at home this Sunday, Match of the Day would usually highlight a game from an Arsenal home game - Highbury - and the wonderful history of goal nets there.
However a game from White Hart Lane - though painful for Spurs fans - offers different angles of focus, so this week's Match of the Day is the 0-5 from December 1978.
Second, given his spectacular goals for 0-4 (and the Motson commentary) you probably always remembered this game as the Liam Brady game. Then poor Alan Sunderland, who scored a hat trick!
Lastly, in this era of Guardiola pressing and Klopp heavy metal football, check out Brady pressing the defender and stealing the ball for his goal. Plus ca change...
Remember the premise behind the 101 Great Goals series?
What constitutes a Great Goal? As this is The History of Goal Nets, simply any goal can be considered Great if we enjoyed the aesthetics of ball striking net so much that we are moved to nominate that goal.
With this in mind, the next goal I'd like to study in terms of a greatness perceived immediately by the commentary and sold into folklore is Steven Gerrard's against Olympiakos.
In terms of technique and ball placement, the Gerrard goal is remarkably similar to the vastly underrated Graeme Souness goal v Manchester City (at 6.04) below.
The difference is, though scored in the Champions League, Gerrard's goal is pure EPL in terms of hyperbole.
Two things have conspired to transform a good Gerrard goal into a wonder strike.
Firstly, the aesthetics of the goal. Most pertinent for us who understand how the aesthetics of ball striking net can affect how a goal is rated, Gerrard's shot rebounded ridiculously off the software like a ball in pinball machine.
That's right - off the software - as there wasn't an atom of aluminium within a metre of the corner of the net.
Rebounds off the hardware can be ridiculously spectacular.
But as always argued that rebounds off 21st century box-nets pulled taut and made of trampoline are simply ridiculous and are ruining the aesthetics of the game.
Then there's the commentary from Andy Gray, which has become almost as famous as the goal itself. Though it must be remembered he was there to sell "product," it must rate as highly doubtful that the Souness goal - which rebounded normally off the A-frame - would elicit such an immediate response from the commentator.
If you think it unlikely that the legend of Stevie G is down to poor ball retention at Anfield, ask yourself, does anyone remember the Graeme Souness shot which was the exact same goal without the rebound?
I was recently in touch with Hearts historian and archivist David Speed regarding the wonderful stanchions that once supported the Gorgie goal nets. His reply to my enquiry is as below.
Dear History of Goal Nets, thanks for your enquiry about the goal nets and frames. This is indeed an interesting question. Th nets and stanchions to which you refer were installed at the start of 1965-66 and, as you say, were dismantled at the end of 1983-84. Sadly I was not involved in preserving the club's history at that time and they were not retained. I checked this with the club groundsman and there is nothing of this nature in the store. I have also checked the club minutes and no reason is given for the change of goals. This must have been a fashion issue. Regarding the change in 1983-84, it is only a personal observation but perhaps the change was due to the fact that the ground was struggling to comply with the Safety of Sports Ground Act. In this connection, more space was required around the perimeter for the police and stewards. The D-shape stanchion achieved this.
David supplied the marvellous photo below for our pleasure.
You get a better, albeit brief, glimpse of them here, in 1935.
By the 1960's, the Hammers had installed a classic set of A-frames.
The skinny curved stanchions of yore were installed in the 1967/68 season.
And so commenced the glory years of spectacular rebounds out of the Boleyn goal nets, till the appearance of box nets in the aftermath of the Spain 1982 World Cup.
Selhurst Park - like those at Coventry's Highfield Road at the time of Clive Allen and the blind referee - was a long time home to classic English-style A-frames.
While something more boxy (or more Manchester City) were thought to be required for the 70's and the visit of Pele
The boxy white stanchions were eventually replaced by distinctive black hardware that served Home Park from the mid-90's to stadium redevelopment (and boxnets) in 2002.
Check out the old film clip below, where the ground staff are filmed erecting the cross bar, beautiful.
FCB have a glorious history of goal nets and, like NK Maribor, went to extreme lengths to keep their stanchions when box nets were deemed a necessary requirement.
In the mid-60's Brugge sported stanchions of a curve that suggested the Latin influence of Madrid and Santiago and would lead to similar at Feyenoord.
By the late 70's FCB were a force in European football and played between skinny A-frames that were classically Low Country.
The A-frames were still there in the mid-90's and the era of box net homogeneity. Exactly like those at NK Maribor, Brugge maintained their identity by draping the box nets over the stanchions.
While their Bahian league games are hosted at WC 2014 venue Arena Fonte Nova with it's box-nets, the bread and butter of Serie A is played out between these wonderful A-frames at their home Estadio Manoel Barradas.
Aren't these similar to the mid-70's stanchions at Manchester City?
It was only last night so everybody knows that Bayern were crowned 2013 champions at Wembley Stadium. But 50 years from now, could anyone looking at a clip of Arjen Robben's winner be sure of the venue?
Is there anything in the colour HD to 100% identify Wembley?
50 years ago, in the 1963 final, Milan beat Benfica.
The footage is grainy black and white but half a century later, all it takes is one sighting of the goal nets and YOU KNOW it's Wembley.
A glance at this season's Copa Libertadores affords as good an idea of what's trending in South American goal nets design as any hashtag #whatswiththeboxnets.
Though there are a half dozen other clubs in the tournament who've retained their L-supports, Ecuador's CS Emelec are alone in not morphing their L into supporting box nets.
