Highbury Memories - Aston Villa 2 May 1981

We now take for granted big games at Highbury but i remember times when it was a real event to have 57,000+ at the ground. At the end of 1981 we had had a relatively average season but we had the opportunity to get into the UEFA cup provided we won our last game of the season. It was against Villa, who needed to win (or get the same result as Ipswich) to win the league. Villa were given the whole of the clockend, Pele was a guest of honour and fighting was ongoing in the west and east lower stands all game! We won 2-0 and at the end of the game because of the fact that Ipswich had lost at Middlesbrough both sets of fans were delighted. There was a mass pitch invasion and the police set up a line across the halfway line to keep the supporters apart (cue more fighting in the lower east stand, where they could get at each other).