GORDON DAVIES scored Fulham’s second goal in their last victory at Chelsea, a 2-0 win in 1979.
Davies, now 68, joined the Blues for a season in the mid 1980s and here he tells of his memories of the West London clash…
The fact I was the last player to score a goal in a Fulham side that won at Chelsea is a statistic I would love to see finally put to bed today.
It’s information that is over 44 years old and bear in mind I retired from playing 30 years ago!
So it’s not something I enjoy being associated with.
We went into that game at Stamford Bridge having lost our previous five matches, so we needed a result to lift confidence in the dressing room.
And while we were really struggling at the wrong end of the table, Chelsea were chasing promotion back to the top flight.
As a local derby it was being played in front of their biggest crowd of the season.
It was one of those fixtures where the longer it stayed 0-0 the greater the chance we had of getting something from the game.
On the hour mark, John Beck hit a wonderful goal from outside the box to put us ahead.
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As far as my goal was concerned, we had worked on a corner routine in which defender Tony Gale would get to the near post and flick on the ball, so I could hopefully get on the end of it.
With five minutes to go, it worked a treat. I managed to pick up Galey’s ball and from about three or four yards out scored to seal the victory.
I cannot talk about this game without mentioning keeper Perry Digweed, who played his first league game for us that season at Stamford Bridge and was an absolute hero.
The footnote was Perry was a big Chelsea fan, which made it an even more amazing performance.
Fulham may have recorded eight draws and 12 defeats in their last 20 games at Chelsea since winning, but it would be no surprise if the visitors won today.
After the Blues’ 1-0 defeat at Middlesbrough on Tuesday night in the Carabao Cup semi-final there is now even more pressure on boss Mauricio Pochettino and his side.
But while both Chelsea and the Cottagers — who lost 2-1 against Liverpool — are chasing one-goal deficits to reach Wembley I still feel this is a great time for Marco Silva’s side to be meeting the Blues.
When I joined Chelsea I remember walking out to a crescendo of boos when introduced
Gordon Davies
I have always thought the rivalry between the two clubs differs.
Don’t get me wrong, Chelsea have always wanted to beat Fulham, but I believe they want their neighbours to be successful as long as they beat them when the two clubs meet.
For Fulham, however, it’s almost as though Chelsea are the big brother.
And as the younger sibling there is this need to put one over them whenever possible.
I was lucky enough to play for both clubs but it was very top heavy in terms of games, with nearly 400 league games for Fulham, compared with just 13 for Chelsea.
Having spent six years in my first spell at Craven Cottage, when I joined the Blues I remember walking out to a crescendo of boos when introduced!
All I could do was applaud the Shed End. I hoped I could win them over by scoring goals.
Fortunately I netted on my debut and also recall hitting a hat-trick in a 4-3 win at Everton.
As a result, I am grateful to those same Blues fans who, to this day, still fondly remember me for those goals.
