Cold Case Review

[Wintergreen]

Texting with a friend the other night we were discussing the own goal scored by Tottenham Hotspur's Sergio Reguilón. This lead us on to the Brian Arrowsmith own goal v Leicester in the FA Cup back in the 60s. As I remembered it, Brian attempted a clearance near the edge of the 6-yard area which he sliced horribly and it went in off the hapless Fred Else at his near post.

However, my mate claims a ferocious daisy cutter shot hit Brian on the boot and the ball ricocheted past Else. Now I’m pretty sure there will be at least twelve good men and true out there who also witnessed this event so maybe you could say how you remember it to decide who is losing it the most out of me and my bud.

[SKIPPER]

I was at the HSE so angles can be deceptive. It appeared to me that Arrers was stood on the byeline 6-10 feet from the goalpost. He attempted to clear the ball upfield but somehow sliced it goalwards (probably caught it with the outside of his boot ) much to the surprise of everyone particularly Fred Else. Not surprisingly it went in and would have been the goal of the season if it had been executed by an opposing striker.

[Jim]

I was at the HSE so angles can be deceptive. It appeared to me that Arrers was stood on the byeline 6-10 feet from the goalpost. He attempted to clear the ball upfield but somehow sliced it goalwards (probably caught it with the outside of his boot ) much to the surprise of everyone particularly Fred Else. Not surprisingly it went in and would have been the goal of the season if it had been executed by an opposing striker.

Yes that is pretty much how I remember it.

[MisterPleasant]

The game was discussed in this thread:
https://www.barrowafc.net/viewtopic.php?t=25696

but, unfortunately, @xerxes' scans of the Mail's report are no longer visible. No doubt Bob Herbert will have described it in all its gory detail. Sadly, my brain cells are so frazzled I can't remember with detail but my feeling is that you are right in your recollection.

[saltcellar]

I thought Brian was outside the penalty area when he attempted to clear the ball slicing an unstoppable shot past the helpless Fred Else at the Steelworks end of the ground.
It was certainly a better own goal than Regulion's.

[Man and Boy]

I was there, and my memory of the game is that Brian was outside the penalty area when he spectacularly sliced the ball past Fred Else and in to his own net.

[The Exile]

I was there, one of the highlights of watching Barrow. I remember him dropping to his knees head in hands as the ball went in. Still my hero though

[Fazered]

I was at the HSE so angles can be deceptive. It appeared to me that Arrers was stood on the byeline 6-10 feet from the goalpost. He attempted to clear the ball upfield but somehow sliced it goalwards (probably caught it with the outside of his boot ) much to the surprise of everyone particularly Fred Else. Not surprisingly it went in and would have been the goal of the season if it had been executed by an opposing striker.

I was also there at the HSE directly behind the goal and this is how I remember it

[Wintergreen]

Thanks for the feedback guys and I can't wait to point my mate in the direction of this thread. I'm with The Exile in so much as that BA was my hero too. I had previously been in Brian's company a few times since those days but wouldn't think of bringing the OG up. It was just so freaky as I seem to have correctly remembered it.

[McMark]

Also mentioned in this thread; https://www.barrowafc.net/viewtopic.php?t=24583
Picture of the great Peter Shilton making a save during the game; https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/ ... 1779453029

[xerxes]

I thought Brian was outside the penalty area when he attempted to clear the ball slicing an unstoppable shot past the helpless Fred Else at the Steelworks end of the ground.

Yes, I was in the popular side and that was my memory of it. He was close to the corner of the penalty area, and his attempted clearance rocketed across Fred Else and into the far corner of the goal.

I have attached the scans of the NWEM report and pictures (plus a bonus report from the previous week's league game v Mansfield). Bob Herbert's report concurs with the above, though doesn't actually mention where Brian was positioned. But the fact that he was trying to cut out a pass to the winger suggests that he was further out than the six yard box.

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[saltcellar]

I was there, and my memory of the game is that Brian was outside the penalty area when he spectacularly sliced the ball past Fred Else and in to his own net.

Yes he was at least 20 yards from goal.

[Newbarnsboy]

I was playing for Barrow under 18 team at the time and we were given seats inside the perimeter wall on the edge of the track, I had an perfect view and it was on the edge of the penalty area near the corner of the box. I played for Brian some years later in the reserve team and he said he was always slightly annoyed that he was always remembered for that incident first whenever asked questions on his brilliant career at Barrow. That's life!
But the fact that we are all on here remembering it says everything.

[pjdaly]

From my position behind the wall at the Holker Street End my recollection is that Brian was close to the edge of the area at the Steelworks End, more or less in a straight line from where the players walk out from the tunnel these days. As Bob Herbert's report suggests, he was trying to cut out a ball heading towards the Leicester winger over on the right hand side but ended up slicing it at an angle of maybe 45 degrees past Else. I would have said the shot travelled about 20 yards into the "Asda-side" corner of the net. But hey, memory can reconstruct. (I remember visiting Scarborough decades after a previous visit and being surprised to find that the buildings had been knocked down and built in exactly the same style on the other side of the street. Then it dawned on me that my memory had reconstructed.)

A pal of mine insisted (no wind-up) that he had seen grainy black-and-white movie footage of clips from the Leicester game, including Brian's own-goal, on You Tube some years ago. I've never been able to unearth anything. Maybe his memory reconstructed? Or maybe he's just crazy?

[MisterPleasant]

I thought Brian was outside the penalty area when he attempted to clear the ball slicing an unstoppable shot past the helpless Fred Else at the Steelworks end of the ground.

Yes, I was in the popular side and that was my memory of it. He was close to the corner of the penalty area, and his attempted clearance rocketed across Fred Else and into the far corner of the goal.

I have attached the scans of the NWEM report and pictures (plus a bonus report from the previous week's league game v Mansfield). Bob Herbert's report concurs with the above, though doesn't actually mention where Brian was positioned. But the fact that he was trying to cut out a pass to the winger suggests that he was further out than the six yard box.
IMG_1737a.JPGIMG_1738a.JPGIMG_1740.JPG

"blunder" and "Fred Else" is not something you'd see in the same sentence very often.