Eight years after being crowned League Champions, Derby, now under the management of Peter Taylor and Roy McFarland, found themselves in a struggle to avoid relegation to the Third Division and, going into the final day of the season, with nothing decided, were one of nine clubs who faced the drop depending upon results. This, however, was still a vast improvement in a season which had seen them bottom of the table in mid-March before going on a 13-match unbeaten run.

The Rams were 2 points clear of Bolton, Rotherham and Burnley who occupied the relegation places but only a win would guarantee survival. To complicate matters, opponents Fulham were locked in a battle with Leicester for the one remaining promotion place and a win would see the Cottagers return to the First Division for the first time since 1967. However, despite looking odds on for promotion earlier in the season, Malcolm MacDonald’s team had now slipped out of the top three for the first time since November.

Running up to the Fulham game, Derby had had two opportunities to secure their status with away fixtures at Blackburn and Crystal Palace, however defeats in both ended the unbeaten run and, to make matters worse, had seen a number of key players (Steve Powell being one) go down with injuries.

The build-up to the game had been peppered with comments from “Supermac” which were hardly going to endear him to Derby supporters, indeed it seemed to cast doubt more upon his own team’s collective mindset. Fulham were expected to bring a big away following and the occasion was set for a dramatic 90 minutes. As it turned out, though, this was an understatement.

For the match, Derby issued their usual 16 page newspaper-style programme costing 35p. This was Issue 308 (or, if you like, Vol 12 No.27) and, as it would turn out, also the very last time this format would be used. The Ram had an editorial style all of its own and at times the prose is more like what we would expect to see in a fanzine. It’s certainly refreshing re-reading all these old issues – 40 years on, football has become a lot more corporate in its communications and is no better for that (just my opinion, of course).

A big crowd, then, was expected and at this point I should deviate and state that not just did I travel down from Aberdeen for the match, but I also sneaked a disposable camera into the ground. Back then, taking pictures at a game was a big no-no due to Football League rules so I guess I did run the risk of getting chucked out if a steward had spotted me. I’ll show one or two of these photos which I took from my spot on the Popside.

Prior to kick-off, the Fulham contingent had released a whole load of black & white balloons and, as these filled the air, it gave a slightly surreal atmosphere to the proceedings, especially as Fulham appeared in their all-red away strip.

The crowd of 21.124 certainly made a tremendous noise though it was also odd seeing the lower Osmaston end uninhabited (due to segregation). As a spectacle, as often happens on these occasions, the match was rather mistake-laden with chances limited though my feeling was that Fulham could have played all day and not scored. On 71 minutes, however, a cross from the left was headed back into the penalty area by Mick Brolly and acrobatically volleyed home by Bobby Davison. Then the real drama began.

As the minutes ticked down, and safety looking assured, the fans began to gather on the touchline. Quite how this had been allowed to happen, with fencing surrounding much of the pitch, I’m not sure but what started off as a few very quickly became many to the point where players were unable to take throw-ins and corners. Indeed, the TV footage shows Fulham’s Robert Wilson being kicked by one spectator near the touchline.

On 89 minutes, the referee blew his whistle for an offside decision but the crowd took this as the final whistle and a major pitch invasion began with absolutely nothing the referee could do about it.

As I eventually managed to make my way out of the ground, wondering what I’d just witnessed, a rumour began that the match wasn’t finished and that the players were coming back out on to the pitch. I’d had my fill of excitement for the day and headed back into town for a quiet pint!

Fulham did appeal to the Football League to get the match replayed but were ultimately unsuccessful. To make matters worse for them, Leicester were held to a 0-0 draw by Burnley so a win at Derby would have promoted them. They would have to wait a further 17 years before eventually doing so.

As it turned out, Derby wouldn’t have gone down anyway as results elsewhere ultimately relegated Rotherham, Bolton and Burnley. In the end, though, it did only put off the evil day by 12 months.