Game #3298
Aston Villa
Wednesday, 16 October 1974
Won
3rd Round
WWDWW
League Cup 3rd Round Replay
Attendance: 24,007
Crewe Alexandra
Villa Park
Villa need a Chico Hamilton strike with 90 seconds of the game left to beat fourth division side Crewe in the League Cup third round replay.
Aston Villa
1-0
Crewe Alexandra
Assists(s) | Sammy Morgan | 88' |
KEY MAN
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MATCH TIMELINE
Wednesday, 16 October 1974
HT Aston Villa 0-0 Crewe Alexandra
67’ Sub off, Keith Leonard, Sub on, Brian Little
88’ Goal, 1-0, Chico Hamilton, Assist by Sammy Morgan
FT Aston Villa 1-0 Crewe Alexandra
ON THIS DAY
Ron Saunders' Villa leave it late to beat Fourth Division side Crewe in the League Cup third round to set up a last 16 tie with Hartlepool.
Aston Villa
Crewe Alexandra
League Champions: ❌
FA Cup Winners: ❌
League Cup Winners: ❌
Last Trophy: ❌
FIXTURE HISTORY
Crewe Alexandra
Previous 5 vs. Crewe: | - | - | - | 🟩 | 🟨 |
FIXTURE DETAILS
Season | 1974-75 |
Matchday | #16 |
Manager Game | #16 |
Wednesday, 16 October 1974
MATCH SUMMARY
Manager | Ron Saunders |
Referee | Peter Willis, County Durham |
FT Result | Won |
FT Score | 1-0 |
Last 5 Games | WWDWW |
MATCH OFFICIALS
Referee: Peter Willis | 🏴 | County Durham, 1972-1986
Previous 5:
Last Match:
Cards: None
CARDS
TEAM NEWS
John Gidman and Keith Leonard replace Neil Rioch and Leighton Phillips.
TEAM STATS
Starting XI Average Age
| 26.57 |
Oldest Player |
LB Charlie Aitken | 32.48 |
Youngest Player |
RB John Gidman | 20.78 |
MANAGER
MANAGER
Ron Saunders
Aston Villa
GK Jim Cumbes |
FB John Robson |
RB John Gidman |
CB Chris Nicholl |
CB Ian Ross |
LB Charlie Aitken |
M Chico Hamilton |
W Ray Graydon |
W Frank Carrodus |
F Sammy Morgan |
F Keith Leonard |
Crewe Alexandra
Crudgington (ex), Lowry, Keeley, Rowlands, Nicholls, Carter, Kinsey (Nelson), Reed, Humphreys, Riley, Duffey.
Manager: Jimmy Melia.
SUBSTITUTES
F Brian Little for F Keith Leonard | 67' |
SUBSTITUTES
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
None
UNUSED SUBSTITUTES
SQUAD STATS
MATCHDAY SQUAD
SQUAD STATS
MATCHDAY SQUAD
UNAVAILABLE
Injury | 3 |
M Pat McMahon, Ankle |
F Brian Little |
M Leighton Phillips |
UNAVAILABLE
Not Recorded
Player Abbreviations:
GK : Goalkeeper
LB, RB, FB : Left Back, Right Back, Full Back
CB, D : Centre Back, Defender
M, W : Midfielder. Winger
F, CF : Forward, Centre Forward
🟢 : Debut 🔴 : Final Game
Symbols:
⚽ | Goal
🔥 | Assist
🔁 | Substitution
🟨 | Booking
🟥 | Sending off
🆘 | Poor refereeing performance
DEBUT APPEARANCES
FINAL APPEARANCES
MATCH STATS
Not recorded
TABLE
PROGRAMME



MATCHDAY QUOTES
*Birmingham Daily Post*
Thursday, 17 October 1974
Chico Hamilton saved Aston Villa the embarrassment of extra time in last night’s third round League Cup replay, scoring with only 90 seconds left.
Until then Geoff Crudgington, the Fourth division side’s goalkeeper returning to Villa Park for the first time since his free transfer from Villa more than two years ago, had defied them.
Crudgington was aided by Villa’s wildly inaccurate finishing in the second half but when Hamilton took the ball from Sammy Morgan’s toes and shot from 23 yards he stood little chance as the ball dipped and swerved past him.
So Villa have the dubious pleasure of playing at Hartlepool in the last 16.
It is hard to argue that they didn’t deserve to win last night but they almost messed it up.
Crewe were on their knees by the end but until Hamilton tried his optimistic shot Villa had been unable to deliver the killing blow.
Jim Cumbes, the Villa goalkeeper, did not have a shot to save and his only anxious moment was in the 89th minute when Chris Nlcholl had to push the ball for a corner as Crewe made a last unavailing effort.
He can rarely have been more under-employed as he watched Villa push forward.
But there was little invention in midfield and the attack splintered on Phil Nicholls and John Rowlands in the centre of Crewe’s defence.
Rowlands, usually a striker but drafted in to mark Morgan, had a particularly effective game.
Crudgington could only watch as shots whistled wide in the first half, but in the second he made several class saves as Villa’s attack developed a sharper cutting edge.
After 61 minutes he saved brilliantly from John Robson and three minutes later capped this, arching backwards to tip Ray Graydon’s free kick over the bar.
This was a particularly fine save as the ball whipped through the wall and took a deflection.
With Brian Little on for Keith Leonard, Crudgington had to make another dazzling save after 71 minutes again from Robson.
Then came a stop from Frank Carrodus and a dash from his penalty area to block Little’s drive.
But he should have been beaten when Morgan was clear, only for the centre forward to lob the ball over both goalkeeper and the bar.
Time was running out when Hamilton lobbed over the bar in the 83rd minute but then, as at St. Andrew’s the previous night, the gods smiled.