Noel Blake's own goals

With Vince Hilaire mentioning Noel Blake and his habit of cancelling out Vince's goals with diverting the ball into his own net I decided to trawl the archive to an article I wrote some seventeen years ago.

Noel Blake was a much loved Pompey star of the mid eighties and was voted player of the season when Pompey were promoted in 1986/87.  He always gave 100%, which is probably best typified in the trilogy of League Cup battles with Spurs where Blake scored the only goal to settle the tie eventually with a towering header. It fact in 144 games Noel managed 10 goals at the right end; the problem was Noel had a habit of finding his own net.

Research shows me that Noel’s first OG was in his short career at Aston Villa when in May 1980 as an eighteen year old he scored for Liverpool.

Pompey OG #1 Wimbledon (A) 20 October 1984 lost 2-3.
Perhaps the most famous of them all. Let a neutral Palace fan at the game describe it – ‘The Dons had scored near the end of the first half and Portsmouth kicked off from the centre circle. The ball was passed to Noel Blake who idly clipped it back to their goalie, Alan Knight. Problem was that Knight had chipped a toenail or something, and was scrutinising his foot on the outside of his area paying no attention whatsoever to the game. The ball went straight past him, not at any great speed, despite the massed Pompey fans at the old Wandle End screaming at him and trickled gently into the corner of the net for 2-0. Sadly this was before every game was videoed, but it was priceless and we were in hysterics’.

Pompey lost the game 2-3 with Kevin Dillon having a penalty saved by Dave Beasant and a 10 game unbeaten run was gone.

Pompey OG #2 Blackburn (H) 01 December 1984 drew 2-2.
In this game a brace from Blake and Tait gave Blackburn a 2-0 interval lead!! Noel this time diverting a rebound off the post back into his own net. Dillon and Hilaire (on debut) earn Pompey a point.

Pompey OG #3 Brighton (H) 6 April 1985 drew 1-1.
Neil Webb puts Pompey in front but Noel doing a good job on returning hero Alan Biley diverts a Danny Wilson cross into his own net.

That season 1984/85 Pompey conceded only 50 goals and an incredible 6 were OG’s. Blake (3), Tait, Stanley and Waldron.

Pompey OG #4 Wimbledon (A) 31 January 1987 lost 0-4 FA Cup 4th Round .
Noel’s only Cup OG comes again at Plough Lane with a header past Knightsie after 20 minutes. Out of the cup and on for promotion.

Pompey OG #5 Sunderland (H) 28 March 1987 won 3-1.
Pompey were ahead through Hilaire when after nearly two barren years in the league, Noel rediscovered the knack and diverts a Mick Kennedy clearance past Alan Knight. However disaster is averted when 20 minutes later Noel puts Pompey back in front before Hilaire seals the win.

Five own goals and I saw them all, little Alan Knight could have done about them. Is he the record own goal scorer? I don’t know but it is likely.

Dave Taylor

November 2007