BLAST FROM THE PAST
From an Exe-Directory article. 
We took a look at one of Steve Neville's memorable games in an earlier edition, but seeing as it's his benefit year, we're going to spoil him. 

Monday 2nd May 1983

Football League Division Three

EXETER CITY 4 SOUTHEND UNITED 3

Any football moralists who consider that supporters should think of entertainment value as more important a factor than a successful side would have been appalled at the events outside St James Park on 23rd April 1983. A large group of supporters gathered outside the Main Stand to bellow for the head of manager Brian Godfrey, despite the amazing flow of goals in the club's matches.

Certainly in modern times the Football League has not seen anything like it. During that 1982/83 campaign, City's games yielded a bumper harvest of 185 goals, quite comfort- ably the highest total of goals scored and conceded in a single season since Bradford Park Avenue's total of 194 in 1965/66 (and look what happened to them!).

Our matches during the current campaign have only included one game of six goals or more in 1982/83 there were thirteen such cases. On nine separate occasions City con- ceded four or more goals, while six times they managed to net four or more themselves. One crazy ten day spell saw us draw two away matches 4-4 (Bristol Rovers and Gillingham were the opponents), but the biggest goal rush came towards the end of the season.

City had remained in the bottom half of the table all through the campaign, but had usually managed to keep out of the bottom four. However, having only conceded one goal in each of their previous four games, we were thrashed 7-1 at the Park by Brentford (to complete an 11-1 aggregate success for the West Londoners that season), thus the afore- mentioned unhappy scenes outside the stand. The defence, obviously feeling sorry for the manager after he had been serenaded with choruses of 'Godfrey Out', cleaned up its act at Brisbane Road the following week and only lost 5-1 to Orient. Having played 43 league games, City had now conceded the magic 100 goals. For the first time since winning promotion to the Third in 1977, the club's future in the division looked very much under threat, thereby ensuring that the season's final three games would be of high importance. The first of these was against mid-table Southend United at the Park on the Bank Holiday Monday evening, two days after the thrashing at Orient. 2,956 turned up, which was pretty much the regular size of audience to watch our home games that season, with only the bumper crowds for the Bank Holiday visits of Bristol Rovers and Plymouth boosting the end of season average above 3,000. Those who did turn up were rewarded with a memorable performance from leading scorer Neville. Steve had been re-signed from Shef- field United during the previous October, but despite his late start to the season in City colours, he led our scoring charts with fourteen goals. This game saw him move further ahead of his contemporaries as he netted a hat-trick. His first goal came on nine minutes, and he had good reason to thank his striking partner Ray Pratt. Keith Viney had played the ball across to the much maligned Welshman on the left, and Pratt surprised everyone by volleying a cross perfectly for Neville to head in from close range on the far post. Seven minutes later he scored again, this time doing most of the spadework himself. Viney played the ball to him on the left wing (that's two goalscoring moves which Viney started) and Nevs turned a defender, sprinted towards the area and with a bit of weaving thrown in for good measure, shot powerfully past Melvyn Cawston in the United goal. The ground was buzzing at this point, but in a season such as this, there was no way that City would go on to record a conclusive victory. And so it proved, with goals from Ron Pountney in the nineteenth minute, and a Danny Greaves header on 34 minutes, levelling the scores. After such a conclusive start, City were obviously shaken up by this quick change in events, and in the first stages of the second period in particular they were very tentative. However, Neville helped to ease the nerves by running on to a through ball, again from Viney, and slotting it coolly past the advancing keeper on the hour. His trickiness had been a consistent problem for Southend and Warren May and Garry Nelson, later of Argyle fame (should that really be fame ?), were both booked for using foul means to stop Nevs in his tracks. Speaking of things foul, Steve Phillips was playing up front for the Shrimpers, and being the nice kind of guy he is, he performed his usual trick of scoring against us. City had a terrible record of conceding goals from corners that sea- son, as can be clearly shown by our defence letting that little stit Phillips steal in to head an equaliser from a corner kick. Looking back in hindsight, it would have been no surprise to see Sumo Steve virtually seal our place in the Fourth Division, judging from our past experiences when playing against him, but on this occasion his goal did not matter. Southend's leading goalscorer last season David Crown was on loan from Portsmouth and he came on to replace Tony Kellow in the 74th minute. There were just three minutes remaining when Crown picked up the ball on the left wing from a pass by the soon to depart John Delve, and he went on to shoot past a fumbling Cawston. He should have saved it I certainly, but who were we to hold it against him ?

City went on to defeat Doncaster 3-0 five days later, and Peter Rogers' equaliser with three minutes left in the final game at Newport prevented Brian Godfrey from having the ignominy of taking us down. That task was left to Gerry Francis in the following campaign, but even if it was only a premature escape, it was fitting that such an entertaining and unpredictable side such as that of the 1982/83 vintage retained its higher status for another year.

CITY TEAM
Bond M.Rogers Phillips McEwan Viney Delve Harle P.Rogers Neville Pratt Kellow
Crown.

ATTENDANCE 2,956