"What many supporters would regard as singularly the worst day supporting Halifax Town" - When The Shaymen were humbled by Marine in the FA Cup back in 1992

Halifax Town historian Johnny Meynell looks back on that game ahead of the clash between the teams at The Shay on Saturday.

When Marine arrive at The Shay for the FA Cup fourth qualifying round tie next Saturday, they will no doubt be looking to do better than on their only other appearance there.

That was on April 16, 2011 when both they and FC Halifax Town were members of the Unibond Premier Division.

Then, a Danny Holland goal was enough to separate the sides, though from a Town perspective, the 6-0 win at Marine the previous November, with James Dean and Jamie Vardy both netting a brace, was perhaps a little more satisfying.

That was a result that went some way to exorcising the ghost of the only other trip a Halifax Town side made to Rossett Park, an infamous FA Cup tie on November 14, 1992.

Back then, Halifax Town were members of the old Third Division – the fourth tier – but wouldn’t be for long.

The 1992-93 was one which would end up with relegation to the GM Vauxhall Conference, though by the time Halifax Town were drawn away at Northern Premier League Marine in the first round of the FA Cup, such thoughts were far from anyone’s mind.

At the time, the Shaymen were lying fifteenth in the table, with bottom club Gillingham some seven points adrift.

But Town did go into this match in something of a rut, having just been defeated at home by Torquay United, a result which stretched a losing streak to three matches.

The game against the Gulls was watched by a paltry 1,651, and with attendances falling, Town chairman Jim Brown was fearful of the club’s actual existence, with debts mounting.

On the eve of the cup tie at Marine, his comments that should Town lose they might wrap up the club could not have been less timelier, and announced an emergency board meeting two days after the cup match regardless.

Defeat for Halifax Town at Marine, was, therefore, unthinkable, but with recent losses to non-league opposition Kettering Town, Darlington and Witton Albion still fresh in the minds of the supporters, not without foundation.

So what the fans who travelled that day experienced was surely one of the worst any could have imagined.

Defeat by Marine, and the manner of it, was met with a mixture of anger and embarrassment. The whole day was nothing short of a shambles and one that would never be forgotten.

Manager at the time was John McGrath, a former stopper centre-half in his playing days with Bury, Newcastle and Southampton, who had moved into coaching and management, turning around the fortunes of ailing Port and Preston.

But he would find being manager of Halifax Town a whole different kettle of fish. Pitting his wits against him was Marine boss Roly Howard, Crosby’s most famous window-cleaner, among his customers being Liverpool legend Kenny Dalglish.

Howard had been at the helm of the non-league outfit since 1972 and would go into the record books as the longest-serving club manager, totalling 33 years by the time he stepped down in 2005.

The defeat of Halifax Town was one of his finest hours, whilst for McGrath, it would represent his darkest and would hasten his departure three weeks later.

So what exactly happened when the two sides took to the field at Rossett Park that dreary, dank, cold afternoon 31 years ago?

Clearly, Marine were fired up and tore into the Town side a mixture of youth and experienced players, among them Mick Matthews, John Thomas and former Liverpool legend Jimmy Case, by then 38-years-old, back at his stomping ground, having been on the books of South Liverpool in his younger days, South Liverpool another non-league side who had put Halifax Town to the sword back in 1964.

Despite all his knowledge and experience, however, Case couldn’t rally his team mates, nor could a large Town following, a contingent of which provided the afternoon’s only hilarity by sporting yellow firemen’s helmets for reasons known only to them.

They watched on helpless as the tie slipped away from the Shaymen in a ten-minute spell towards the end of the first half, with the opening goal being scored by Tony Ward in the 31st minute, firing into the roof of the net from six yards after Chris Camden had swivelled and delivered the low ball across the box.

It was Case who conceded the free-kick seven minutes later, floated in by John Roche, to which keeper Lee Bracey reacted too late, coming for the ball but beaten to it by the head of John Gautrey.

Then, further disaster befell the Shaymen as first skipper Russell Bradley was forced from the game in the 39th minute with an ankle injury, and when his substitute Kevin Megson gave away a free-kick near the left-hand corner flag a minute later, Bracey was caught in no-man’s land yet again when he came for Eddie Murray’s delivery, stranded as Graham Rowlands headed over him into an unguarded net to give Marine an insurmountable 3-0 lead.

There was little respite for Town in the second half, Marine adding a fourth through Chris Camden, on hand to fire home after Bracey only parried a shot by Brian Ross, who had broken through the Town defence with consummate ease.

The tie was over without a doubt, and it could have been worse, if that was possible. Both Dudley Lewis and Lee Wilson were forced to clear off the line before Town scored a consolation, probably the best goal of the day. It came from the boot of substitute David German – he had replaced injured Jason Peake just before the interval – two minutes from time, a vicious first-time volley following Thomas’ pull-back.

By then, many Town fans had deserted the ground, some finding a tipple in the neighbouring hostelry The Edinburgh a little more comforting. And it wasn’t just the fans who had headed for the pub.

Some were aghast to find non-playing team members Ronnie Hildersley and Alan Kamara already at the bar, suggesting at best a lack of camaraderie, at worst, that they just didn’t care.

The final whistle signalled the end of what many supporters would regard as singularly the worst day supporting Halifax Town, and there had been many dark times in the club’s not-so illustrious past.

Manager McGrath and chairman Brown bore the brunt of the stick from the angry fans who had witnessed the capitulation, and the embarrassment was added to when the goals were shown on BBC TV’s Match of the Day later that evening.

Halifax Town barely recovered from the defeat. The board duly met two days later and vowed to review the situation again in the New Year, by which time McGrath had departed, replaced by likeable club physio Mick Rathbone, who would sadly fail to stem the tide, and saw his team relegated following last day defeat by Hereford in May.

There was nothing the Town fans could take with any pride from such a disastrous campaign, the defeat at Marine being the absolute nadir.

Teams:

Marine - O’Brien, Ward, Johnson, Roche, Draper, Gautrey (McDonough 66 mins), Murray, Rowlands, Ross, Camden (Grant 78), Dawson.

Halifax Town - Bracey, Lewis, Wilson, Lucketti, Thompstone, Bradley (Megson 39), Matthews, Case, Thomas, Peake, Peake (German 44).

Referee - James Rushton (Stoke)

Attendance - 1,892