League Cup Tales - West Ham

This League Cup tale takes us back to a game at the start of February 1987 when we put West Ham out of the competition by beating them 5-0 at White Hart Lane. 

Although a great team performance on the night by David Pleats side it was one player who stole the headlines. Clive Allen scoring a hat trick in just nine minutes. 

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This was the season David Pleat introduced a five man midfield playing behind Clive Allen in the season he clocked up 49 goals. The earlier rounds had seen Spurs knock out Barnsley, Birmingham and Cambridge.  The fifth round would see us travel to West Ham, the first game being postponed because of a frozen pitch. Then that game ended 1-1. Clive Allen having opened the scoring just before the break and them leveling just after.

The replay was another cold night and saw Nico Classen open the scoring after six minutes when Ossie Ardiles slipped the ball through and he clipped the goalie. With White Hart Lane under the lights and the fans right behind their team (gate - 41,995) Spurs controlled most of the game.  It wasn’t until the 71st minute however that we made the game safe when Hoddle curled one into the corner from 20 yards.

It was then that Clive Allen struck a hat trick in nine minutes.  With ten minutes to play Clive’s cousin Paul centered and Clive slid home. With four minutes to play Paul was brought down in the box and Clive struck his second. Paul Allen was involved in the fifth goal of the night coming in for the right to set Clive up for a tap home.
Left - Clive in the replay.

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The team that night - Clemence; D. Thomas, M. Thomas, Ardiles, Gough, Mabbutt, C. Allen,
P. Allen, Waddle, Hoddle, Claesen.

The semi final would involve a three game thriller with Arsenal before we went out.  Spurs would also reach the FA Cup final and lose to Coventry and finish third in the League.  Not a bad season (57 games)  but one that promised so much more.

As for Clive Allen that season he scored 12 goals in the competition (a record that still stands). He also went on to win the PFA and Sports writers’ Player of the Year awards and that summer won his only competitive England cap (with a disallowed goal). Winning five in total, two at Spurs.

'Allen  trivia' – Paul was the youngest player to appear in a FA Cup Final in 1980 at 17. Clive was born two weeks after his father Les won the Double and Les won the league Cup with QPR in 1967. Clive once signed for Arsenal and was transferred out after 63 days having not played a competitive game. He scored three hat tricks for Spurs (all that season) in a total of 84 goals for Spurs.

COYS
Keith Harrison.
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Other League Cup Tales are @ http://www.indiaspurs.com/blog/hotspur-towers-the-archive