BEST AND MARSH: SHOW BUSINESS OR SOAP OPERA

Many (most) of you will not have heard of Tommy Trinder, who was a regular feature on television and who knew a lot about show business. He was chairman of Fulham FC and some of you may say that he alsoi did not know about football. I am talking about 1976 (on this day) when Fulham was a Second Division club, in the "old" style Football League. Tommy enjoyed show business and to prove his point, he signed George Best and Rodney in August 1976 (it was a very hot summer!!). Both these "super stars" had been lost to English football when they Best walked out of Manchester United in 1974 and Marsh out of City a year later. The pair next appeared in the USA, playing for Los Angeles Aztecs and the Tampas Bay Rowdies respectively. Trinder had got them signed on to play for Fulham in the NASL off-season.

In the first month of the English season, they made their mark with a signature performance in a "joyous riot" at Fulham's home, Craven Cottage, against Hereford United, as Best hit the post from 30 yards and Marsh scored twice, one a belter from 30 yards and curling the ball into the top right  corner, part of a 4-1 win. The abiding memory was Best, in the match, accidently taking the ball of team colleague Marsh and then Marsh going back to tackle his team mate to retrieve the ball. Amusing, for those at Craven Cottage, who had a sense of humour!! As the season went on Best got into the headlines for different reasons, as he became one of the first players to be given  the newly introduced "Red Card" being sent off at Southampton. He was then fined £75 in December for using an obscene gesture to a referee at Chelsea. He then drove his car into a lampost at Harrods at 4 a.m. one morning claiming that he had been at Tramps night club when he wasn't "breath tested" and he claimed he had only had 3 drinks all night. At the end of ther season they both went back to the USA! Best returned in 1977-8 for the new season but finances offered from Fulham stood in his way, so he and his "mate" Marsh returned to the States. (In the return League Fixture Fulham lost 1-0)