Requested by the police.
Can’t remember exactly why, probably other big games in the area on the Saturday I’d imagine.
Bury played Darlington on the following Saturday to secure a place in the play offs.
I think our game had been called off earlier in the season, so this was the rearranged date.
Update, just found a programme on eBay dated 28th January for the original match, so guess it was called off for the weather.
With the fixture backlog, we had to play the match before all the league matches ended on Saturday 6th May, hence the match being played on the Thursday night.
I think the Scarborough match was also a rearranged game on the Tuesday night.
It was rearranged from an earlier date after a postponement due to the weather. Unfortunately the game at Scarborough had already been brought forward to the Tuesday night (it was supposed to be on the Saturday with all the other final games in D4, but the police had a blanket ban on games being played at seaside resort towns on bank holiday weekends following the Leeds riot at Bournemouth) and we had to play it on or before all the other final games - and this was the only date we could fit it in.
4 Likes
I don’t think Chris thought much of Bury. Two comments I remember, that amused me, one was after the home fixture, a 0-1 defeat when he accused them of playing “parasite football”, and pre that famous Thursday night he said we were going to “out-Bury Bury”.
1 Like
I wasn’t there.
I’d already put my name down to act as a Poll Clerk on the elections - safe in the knowledge that we never play football matches on a Thursday.
I had a brief conversation with myself about whether to duck out and go to the match, but my commitment to the democratic rights of the people of Walsall won out.
I spent the day in the Sea Cadets Hall in Marlow Street, and listened to the match on the radio.
I think we struggled to reach 20% turnout for the election - I guess everyone else was in Bury.
3 Likes
This was a wonderful time to be a Walsall fan. The bury away promotion followed relatively quickly by 2 promotions to the championship. This will never be repeated.
1 Like
Yeah, that would be about the time the top league reduction to 20 was working its way through.
The bottom club stayed up too. All very strange.
We got promoted by playing only 42 matches, as the fourth division had for a few seasons, since Aldershot and Maidstone were mislaid. In 95-96 it was back to a 46 game season.
The Premier League went from 42 games in 94-95 to 38 the following season, and, amusingly, Palace were relegated in 94-95 with 45 points.
1 Like
I was at both Scarborough and Bury with my Father. We got to Bury hours before kick off (he was always keen on arriving early - we were once 18 -hours early for a ferry in Spain) and went for a pint in the pub just down from the ground. There was just one old guy serving - and when we explained just how many people were heading up the M6 he seemed rather surprised!
I can’t remember any of the match - but I can remember the phenomenal noise inside that low-roofed stand they put us in. It was bedlam for the entire match - non stop singing and chanting. It seemed like the football league had conspired against us to make us play a run in of Saturday-Tuesday-Thursday, but it all worked out for the best in the end!
I can remember going back to university the next day and realising that for everybody else outside of the Walsall family, nothing special had happened at all!
1 Like
I remember not being able to see much of the game. It was a strange away end.
Terracing, not a steep incline, it finished way below pitch level and then you had the wall and fence.
Remember coming out the ground and these two Bury fans grumbling behind us that they can’t believe we’d gone up ahead of them. The old man was quick to point out that the table doesn’t lie after 40 odd games !
1 Like
I remember the drive up there and the joyous drive back but the game is a haze. Watching the video reminded me of Walkers save from the free kick and now remember the ball boy picking the ball up mentioned earlier in the thread.
Was even surprised that we took over 3.5k there. Just don’t remember there being that many. I was just trapped in my own bubble of nervous anxiety and excitement! Proper great days to be a Saddlers fan.
Wasnt the original game called off at our request because Wilson and Wood had been called up to play for Northern Ireland that weekend, or have I mis-remembered
Hmm - not sure. I thought it was the weather but maybe …
Having looked - no. Wood only played once for NI and that was in October 1995. And can’t find any record of NI playing anyone in January 1995.
Even if he didn’t play could still have been in their Squad ? I remember him being called up a few times I think
The game was scheduled for January, but was called off, presumably for weather. It was then rearranged for the end of April, but Wood and Wilson were in the Norn Iron squad and iirc Wilson played, although Wood didn’t. Anyhow, the fixture was moved again to May 4th, and the rest is history.
1 Like
Cheers. That means we’re both right - weather AND international call-ups. 
2 Likes
Went to the match wearing a white T-shirt with the badge printed on the front. Enjoyed a few beers on the night and as others have said, it was a very warm night.
Waking up next morning, somewhat jaded, thought it would be a good idea to go to work in the same T-shirt. On arriving at the office, I noticed it was rather grubby with beer stains and sweat marks.
Unearthed it a couple of years ago, but couldn’t throw it out, so I framed the badge for posterity.
5 Likes