Now, I will admit that I’m not old enough to remember the Stoke team of the 70’s, the 1972 League cup win or when England regulars were playing in the Potteries.
My first real memory of Stoke was the 2001/02 promotion season when Stoke beat Brentford at Wembley to go up into what is now the Championship. Whilst that itself was a great memory, the 2007/08 season will always stand out further.
After sitting on top of the table for most of the season, many fans thought Stoke had squandered their chance of being promoted, but after beating Bristol City (And Sidibe doubling his score tally) the Potters realised it was their year and on May 4th a 0-0 draw with Leicester saw Stoke rise back up where they belonged.
The following year was a case of proving the doubter’s wrong – whilst also beating Arsenal and Manchester City, I think they were just by-products of a great debut season. After that the 2010/11 season with the 5-0 win at Wembley to put Stoke into the FA Cup final, qualifying for Europe and the following years European tour. Who can say Stokies haven’t had anything to shout about lately?
Many analysts fans thought this would be a season where Stoke would be battling for survival. A season where transitional football would be the headline in every paper. But it’s not been like that, yes Stoke started off pretty poorly and the Mark Hughes Out protests began. But look at Stoke now, two games on TV in a matter of weeks, playing flowing football, already on the 40 point mark and could be on course for their highest ever finish and point tally.
Wins against Chelsea, Manchester United, Arsenal and a draw against title chasing Manchester City have been the highlights at The Britannia Stadium whilst Stoke have been pretty woeful on the road, but have they ever really travelled well?
The win at Aston Villa last weekend was only the second away win this term and it was probably one of the best wins Stoke have ever amassed. Other football fans were talking about how well the Potters played and how exciting the team is to watch. There was no mention of the terms “long ball” or “rugby team.” Regardless of whether Stoke do finish in the top ten (which I believe they will) or if they break the team’s points record, this season has been one of excitement, discovery and sheer ecstasy.
As far as the best season ever, no. Even me who is too young to remember “the good old days” knows that this season will probably only go down in history as Mark Hughes’ first. But the history papers and the records don’t state what the fans remember and for sheer entertainment purposes… this season should be up there, in the top five surely? And certainly the best in a long time.
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