The result, however was not the main topic of interest. Looking at the cover of the programme, the Post was struck by two things: one, the price; two, the kick-off time. Inside the programme there are references to "tonight's game", but the front cover has the game advertised as starting at 1.30pm. The initial assumption was that this was the result of a printing error, but it was then noted that January 1974 was the height of the three day week. The Heath government was going head-to-head with the miners and the working week was curtailed in order to save electricity as the pits and coal-fired power stations ground to a halt.
So was it a misprint, or was the game brought forward to the afternoon in order to avoid the need for floodlighting? On the one hand, a game kicking off at 1.30pm in mid-January would just about finish in daylight. On the other, I don't see how either my father (a public sector employee and therefore not subject to three day working) nor my older brother (still in school at the time) could have attended a match at that time and bought the programme. One for the experts...
By way of a footnote, a look inside the programme shows the Division One standings at the time: Leeds were eight points clear at the top with Chelsea in 18th place and Manchester United struggling two places above Norwich who, while they may have put on a good show in the cup, sat stone bottom of the league and on course for relegation from the top flight.
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