My sister, who is married to a Chelsea fan, gave me an old Palace programme for Palace v Chelsea on 27 Dec 1969. Palace team listed is: Jackson, Sewell, Hoadley, Payne, McCormick, Hynd, Dawkins, Kember, Hoy, Queen, Vansittart.
But the Chelsea line-up is so good:
Bonetti, Webb, McCredie, Hollins, Dempsey, Harris, Cooke, Hudson, Osgood, Hutchinson, Houseman.
We lost 5-1! (Osgood 4)

We have now sunk to a depth at which the restatement of the obvious is the first duty of intelligent men. [Orwell]

This was a terrible day for me.

Sat in the main stand as a treat for my accompanying cousin. Me - full of expectation (blind hope) that I would at last have something over the 90% of my schoolmates who were diehard Chelsea fans and that I wouldn't have to run their gauntlet of derision back at school. Oh God oh God - I can still remember that 109 bus ride back to SW16 after the game (walked to the Pond - 159 Clock Tower run too busy) in a packed yet totally silent double-decker of doom.

I was inconsolable.

Quality memory Al on all accounts & a shame we signed Charlie Cooke just a bit too late to keep us up for a 5th year in the top flight a few years later.

A stockbroker urged me to buy a stock that would triple its value every year. I told him, at my age, I don't even buy green bananas!