Manchester City

Manchester City FC is a professional football club that was originally founded as St Mark's (West Gorton) FC in 1880 before changing their name to Ardwick FC after the area of Manchester they played in, in 1887. 

The club were founder members of the Football League Second Division in 1892. The club re-organised in 1894 and became Manchester City. 

The 1898-99 season saw City crowned as Division Two champions and promotion to the top flight, but they suffered their first of many relegations in 1902 under manager Sam Omerod, who was nicknamed ‘The Wizard of Longsight’.

City retained their top flight status at the first attempt, and then went on to lift the FA Cup in 1904, by defeating Bolton Wanderers 1-0 at Crystal Palace as Tom Maley became the first non-Englishman to manage the Cup winners. The team came agonisingly close to completing the double, but ended up as League runners-up.

The 1908-09 campaign ended in relegation, but once again the Sky Blues went straight back up the following season. In 1926 City lost out 1-0 to Bolton Wanderers at Wembley in the FA Cup Final. It was to be a year of double despair as the team were also relegated.

In 1927 City returned to Division One before reaching the final of the FA Cup in 1933. Again it was to end in disappointment as Everton cruised to a 3-0 victory. Not to be outdone the ‘Citizens’ returned to the twin towers for the 1934 final to defeat Portsmouth 2-1. In 1936-37 City were crowned as League champions for the first time under the management of Wilf Wild. Unbelievably the team were relegated the following season!

City returned to the top flight once peacetime was restored after the War in the 1946-47 season, but they went down once more just three years later. Amazingly it would once again be just a one year sabbatical away from the top flight.

1955 saw a return to Wembley for the FA Cup Final. On this occasion it would be Newcastle United who took the honours with a 3-1 win. City were not about to sit down and mope. They returned the following year to lift the famous trophy 3-1 against Birmingham City in the game when legendary keeper Bert Trautman broke his neck, while Don Revie planned attacks from midfield.

In 1963 City were relegated once more to the second tier as gates hit an all-time low at Maine Road. Things were about to stir when Joe Mercer arrived as manager in 1965, with young coach Malcolm Allison following. The pair tapped into the club youth scheme and astutely signed the likes of Tony Book, Francis Lee and Collin Bell.

Mercer took the team straight back up to Division One and then led them to the League title for a second time in 1967-68. The following year a Neil Young goal defeated Leicester City at Wembley as the Moss Side club lifted the FA Cup for a fourth time. The run continued in 1969-70.

West Bromwich Albion were defeated 2-1 after extra time to win the League Cup, while Athletic Bilbao, Lierse, Academica Coimbra and  Schalke 04 were defeated in the European Cup-Winners Cup to set up a final in Vienna against Polish side Gornik Zabzre. City won the match 2-1 thanks to goals from Young and Lee.

They reached the semi-final of the same competition as holders the following season to eventual winners Chelsea. The 1971-72 looked like it would end in another league title. However, City blew their advantage. Many observers pointed to the signing of Rodney Marsh and the change in team style for the reason, even though Marsh was adored by the fans as Allison took control of team affairs.

After Allison moved on, Johnny Hart, Tony Book and Ron Saunders all had a go as manager. Saunders took the team to the League Cup Final in 1974, where they lost 2-1 to Wolverhampton Wanderers. City fans took consolation when a Denis Law goal at Old Trafford virtually sent rivals United down to the second tier.

Book returned as boss and built an excellent side. Former Sunderland FA Cup heroes Dennis Tueart and Dave Watson arrived. The League Cup was won 2-1 in 1976 following victory over Newcastle United. The following season saw City end as league runners-up.

In 1981 City lost in the FA Cup Final after a replay to Tottenham Hotspur, but by 1983 they were relegated once again, this time under John Bond who had come in to settle the ship after a return of Allison had gone expensively wrong.

Bond took his side back up two years later before departing in February 1986. Managers came and went as chairman Peter Swales became very unpopular with the Maine Road faithful. The team returned to Division One in 1989, before Peter Reid took the side to two top five finishes.

Francis Lee became Chairman in 1994 after buying Swales’ shares. He replaced Brian Horton as manager with his old pal Alan Ball. The move proved to be an error as City were relegated from what had become the Premier League. Four managers followed before Lee moved on to be replaced by David Bernstein. Joe Royle came in to try and rescue things on the pitch, but City were relegated to the third tier Division Two in May 1998.

Gates remarkably held up at Maine Road as an average of 28,000 attended games. It was at this time that the fans song of ‘We’re Not Really Here’ was first sung, as they looked on with dark humour at their lot. In 1998-99 City reached the play-off final at Wembley against Gillingham. As the game entered stoppage time they trailed 2-0 after two late goals.

In one of the most famous few minutes in the clubs history, goals from Kevin Horlock and Paul Dickov sent the game into extra time, as many City fans were heading down Wembley Way. Nicky Weaver saved two penalties in the shoot-out as City won 3-1 to win promotion. Royle took the team back to the top flight the following season after a second place finish.

However, the team went straight back down at the first go. Kevin Keegan arrived to manage the team as goals flowed once again. The 2002-03 season was the clubs last at Maine Road, before they moved across town to the City of Manchester Stadium, which had formerly held the Commonwealth Games.

Stuart Pearce and then Sven-Goran Eriksson both had spells as manager as the club looked to build in their new surroundings. A controversial take over occurred in 2008 when the club was sold to former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. 

Star defender Vincent Kompany arrived from Hamburger SV. However, Shinawatra’s assets were frozen because of his political dealings back home. In August 2008, the club was purchased by the Abu Dhabi United Group.

Massive transfers started to arrive soon after and showed no sign of abating. Mark Hughes had taken over from Eriksson, but was shown the door in December 2009 by the impatient new owners. He was replaced by the former Italian star player Roberto Mancini.

Mancini signed many big name signings such as David Silva as the owners developed the area around the stadium to match the quality of the new players. The 2010-11 season was a landmark one for the club, as Champions League football was secured after a third place finish. To add to this the trophy drought was ended as City lifted the FA Cup at Wembley after beating Stoke City with a goal from star man Yaya Toure.

City renamed the City of Manchester Stadium to the Etihad Stadium in a huge sponsorship deal in the summer of 2011. The team had been boosted by the signings of Samir Nasri and Sergio Agüero amongst others, while Joe Hart cut a commanding figure in goal. City had qualified for the Champions League but went out at the first group stage.

The team went on to lift the Premier League in 2011-12, in a typically dramatic City finish, they trailed QPR with a minute remaining. Edin Dzeko headed in the equaliser before Sergio Agüero scored a stoppage time winner to deny their great rivals Manchester United another title.

The 2012-13 campaign would end in huge disappointment, as after another disappointing Champions League campaign, City ended as league runners-up as well as losing the FA Cup Final against all the odds to huge underdogs Wigan Athletic. Mancini paid for the failure with his job. The Chilean Manuel Pellegrini came in to replace him.

In Pellegrini’s first season, City lifted the League Cup following a 3-1 win over Sunderland and then went on to become Premier League champions for 2013-14. In 2014 City’s ownership was placed into the City Football Group, which had been created by the Abu Dhabi owners. 

New York City FC, Melbourne City FC and Yokohama F. Marinos were also purchased by the group as it looked to expand their global brand. The 2014-15 season saw City bow out of the Champions League against Barcelona before eventually finishing as league runners-up, while the Etihad campus was improved with the opening of a new stadium for the development and ladies teams.

The South Stand was extended with the addition of a new tier for the start of the 2015-16 campaign, to add to the beautiful new Academy Stadium across the road on Etihad Campus.

To greet the stadium extension Pellegrini was allowed to add to the already impressive squad with the big signings of Kevin De Bruyne, Nicolás Otamendi and Raheem Sterling arriving at the Etihad. 

The club entered into a fans consultation in October 2015 over the design of the club crest, while on the 1st December 2015 it was announced that the City Football Group had sold a 13% stake, worth £265m, to a consortium of Chinese investors, to further boost their infrastructure.

For some very special moments in City's history, click here, here and here:

The 2015-16 campaign saw City pick up the League Cup with victory over Liverpool on penalties as Sergio Agüero continued to bang in the goals. Pep Guardiola arrived as new manager at the Etihad for the 2016-17 season.

It was a season in which the Catalan would build his side as David Silva continued to spread his magic in midfield as the team finished in third place. Champions League glory was again denied, this time at the Round of 16.

City played some of best football in living memory as they swept all aside to win the Premier League by nineteen points in 2017-18 as Bernardo Silva was added to the mix along with goalkeeper Emerson and Gabriel Jesus.

Arsenal were defeated as City lifted the retitled EFL Cup but Liverpool ended hopes of European glory as they defeated City in the quarter final of the Champions League. Agüero would top the scoring again in 2018-19 as the team held off Liverpool to lift the Premier League crown. City also retained the EFL Cup with a win on penalties against Chelsea.

The domestic treble was completed when City equalled the record score in an FA Cup final when Watford were defeated 6-0 as Jesus and Sterling both netted twice to add to goals from De Bryne and Silva.

City ended as league runners-up in 2019-20 and once again fell short in the Champions League, going out in the quarter finals. However, the EFL Cup was lifted once again following a 2-1 win against Aston Villa. The brilliant David Silva departed as young starlet Phil Foden began to make his mark. 

The 2020-21 season saw City once again lift the Premier League crown and went all the way to the final of the Champions League played at Estádio do Dragão in Porto. Chelsea won the all English final 1-0. Jack Grealish was then added to the squad for a record fee.

Question marks continued to be raised over the breaches over Financial fair Play that the club was charged with in record numbers. A UEFA ban had earlier been overturned in court, which was instead turned into a large fine.

City were crowned as champions of England for an eighth time in 2012-22, prior to embarking on their greatest ever season in 2022-23. They retained their league title to make it three in a row prior to completing the double with a 2-1 win against Manchester United in the FA Cup final. The Champions League was finally lifted when Internazionale were defeated 1-0 at the Atatürk Olympic Stadium through a Rodri goal.

The Premier League announced their own investigation into the finances at the club going back many seasons. City became the first club to lift the title four times in a row in 2023-24 but were denied the double when neighbours Manchester United defeated them 2-1 in the FA Cup final.

Manchester City FC will play in the Premier League in the 2024-25 season.

My visits

Manchester City 2 Hull City 0 (Full Members Cup Semi Final Second Leg) Wednesday 11th December 1985 (att: 10,180)

I went in the back of a transit van to this game with a group of Tigers fans from Bridlington and Scarborough. No one had a real clue of the quickest way to the ground but we somehow found it. We parked in a side street near to the away section and some local lads kindly offered to "look after" the van for a fee. 

The Full Members Cup was for teams in the top two divisions and was divided into a northern and southern section. This was the second leg of the semi final with Hull leading 2-1 from the first game at Boothferry Park with the winners going on to the final at Wembley. Even tough there was a lowish crowd, there was a decent atmosphere. 

We were in the end section of The Kippax, a huge covered terracing down one side. To the left was the Platt Lane Stand which was a big stand behind the goal that had been converted to have bench seating. 

The Main Stand opposite had a fairly new unusual roof and was totally seated, as was the North Stand behind the far goal. Main Road was a massive venue which saw the record at an English venue outside Wembley when 84,569 fans watched an FA Cup tie against Stoke City. I really liked the place. 

The game itself was heading for extra time until City broke The Tigers hearts with a last minute winner which led the home fans into song as we went to search for our van which was miraculously still in one piece. We had a few hairy moments trying to negotiate our way from Moss Side as City fans looked on suspiciously!

Manchester City 0 Aston Villa 2 (Division Two) Saturday 23rd January 1988 

I was in a car along with my brother Nick, Mick Young and driver Doomy on our way to Newport County to watch Scarborough when we rang South Wales in treacherous conditions in the Midlands to find out the pitch was covered in snow and the match was off. 

We scanned the fixtures in my paper and quickly plumped for a game that would definitely be on. As we knew Maine Road had under soil heating we made that our destination. After a couple of pints we went to park near the ground with the ridiculous notion that we could get in another pub before kick off. 

These were the days when football fans were generally treated like filth and the pubs would only allow City season ticket holders in. Even worse, Main Road had been divided up into members only sections. 

The only place that wouldn't hammer us financially that we could get into was in a seated section between the Main and North Stands. It was a poorish view and ridiculous reasoning as half the rest of the ground was empty. An impressive Villa side ran out 2-0 victors on their way to promotion at the end of the season.

We eventually got back after an interesting ride back over The Pennines in extremely dodgy conditions.

Maine Road after my visits

In an attempt to update Maine Road and make it all seater for the demands of top flight football, City made a few changes before the ground was totally disregarded. The Platt Lane Stand was demolished in 1992 to be replaced by the soulless Umbro Stand which was a single tier of seats with a few layers of corporate boxes at the rear. 

The Kippax was next to go after the final home game in 1994 against Chelsea to be replaced by a massive three tiered stand. It meant that the ground was a little awkward to join up as all the stands were of different sizes. 

Some temporary seats were added to the vacant corners for the last couple of seasons. The very last game was on 11th May 2003 in a game against Southampton. Typically, City lost 1-0!

My visits to the City of Manchester Stadium

Tuesday 22nd August 2006

Scarborough were playing at Stalybridge Celtic in the Conference North and I had a couple of days off. I decided to book into a Manchester hotel and catch the train on the morning of the match. I booked in and decided to walk to the COM to see if I could get on a tour of the stadium. It took about half an hour to walk there and I was delighted to know I was in time for the last tour of the day.

I had a look in the museum while waiting for the tour to start. City care about their image greatly and want to be seen as a club up their with the times. Indie tracks played out constantly in the museum. 

Our guide appeared. It was genuinely nice to see it was a youngish bloke who was obviously a massive fan of the club who also heavily approved of me supporting my local club. After a brief introduction we got inside the stadium. 

It was extremely impressive. After the Commonwealth Games had finished, the track was removed with an extra tier of seating added as well as stands being extended behind both goals. The stadium is bowl-shaped, with two tiers all the way around the ground and a third tier along the two side stands having a capacity of 48,000.

We were taken in the changing rooms and saw all the corporate facilities behind the scenes. It was nice to see the club had a lot of community facilities. I was especially impressed with the slogan seen in a lot of places of "Our City, Our Club". I have done quite a few stadium tours but the love shown by the staff of the club shone through rather than a guide just going through the motions as in other places.

I finished off by having a look outside. The club have created a memorial garden for relatives to sit and think about City fans no longer with us. Opposite is a small athletics stadium which held some City junior games.

I took the bus back into the city, ready to go on to Stalybridge having being thoroughly impressed with what I saw and heard.

Manchester City 1 Napoli 1 (Wednesday 14th September 2011) Champions League Group Stage (att: 44, 026)

As I was off work for a couple of days after night shift, I went about planning a couple of days up north. I always wanted to go to a game at Accrington Stanley and they were at home against Rotherham United on the Tuesday evening. 

This fitted in well as I was also keen on visiting a few clubs in the area. I looked at fixtures for the Wednesday evening and City were at home in their first Champions League game, which was ideal as I booked a budget hotel in the city.

I'd registered on the website but the club would not allow anyone to purchase a ticket for the game if they didn't have a previous purchasing history with them. I tried every trick I knew. I rang up, emailed and rang again offering to buy a League Cup ticket for the Birmingham game first, all to no avail. I decided to turn up on the night.

The fellas on reception at my Salford hotel told me that they knew that there were definitely tickets about so I walked to Victoria and took a cab to the Etihad Stadium as it was now called. Crowds were already gathering and I found the matchday sales office. 

After explaining that I had a fans number I was sold a ticket for the third tier of the East Stand for just £25. I was ever so slightly delighted! 

Next on the list was finding a bar. I had toyed with the idea of taking a bus to Droylsden where I'd been with Scarborough and knew there was a decent selection of pubs, but the traffic was getting heavy. Instead I went behind the North Stand where the new City Square had been developed at the end of Joe Mercer Way. 

There was huge screens showing Sky Sports News and then old Citeh (as the locals seem to call them) matches. I showed my match ticket and was allowed into a cordoned off area with bars under a protective roof. It was £3.40 a pint, but the service was excellent and they had pies!

I got talking to a City fan from Northampton and everyone was in good spirits. I was told to get in front of two blokes at the bar as they said they arrived after me. You don't find that at many places! At around 7.20 it was time to go in. 

It was a good walk up one of the circular tower pathways all the way to the top tier, but I wasn't bothered. The facilities on the concourse were first class with plenty of room and everything a fan could want. Well nearly everything, as it was designated an alcohol free game under UEFA rules so it would have to be a pie and bovril at half time.  

The view from my seat was superb as I looked down on probably the noisiest set of away fans I've ever heard. The City fans were giving it their best as well with some quality songs. Their legendary gallows humour shone through all night and it was a pleasure to be amongst them.

The game was an excellent advert for European football, with slick passing and counter attacking. City were probably a bit too elaborate, but with players like Edin Dzeko and Sergio Aguero up front there is always a case for not just humping it forward. 

It was goalless at half time, but thoroughly entertaining. The music choice at half time was the best I've heard at a ground with all the Manchester favorites blasting out. Napoli got more into the second half as it progressed and broke away to get the opener through Edinson Cavani. 

The Neopolitans behind the goal went berserk. They were already standing and had squeezed into a confined area. When the ball went in some breached the barrier at the front and jumped into the huge net erected to protect the goal mouth from missiles as the stewards and police struggled to maintain order. I was positive that the City fans would't be afforded such soft handed treatment over in Naples.

Within minutes City equalised with a stunning Aleksandar Kolarov thunderbolt free kick dipped over the visitors wall. Both sides looked for a winner but a draw ended up being a fair result.

I decided, rather foolishly in hindsight, to wait for a bus to take me back into the city. The police on patrol let traffic move from everywhere, apart from our bus which was marooned across the other side of the traffic lights. It was extremely frustrating as even the away fans were been let out and escorted back into the city. 

Eventually our driver could collect us and we went on our slow way. The police were absolutely on the ball as a few local youths decided they were going to infiltrate the away fans and offer them more than a goodnight hug. 

We eventually reached Piccadilly where a City fan apologised to the driver for the behaviour of some of his fellow fans. He was no shrinking violet himself but he shook his head in disgust at the bad name the morons were giving his beloved club.

I quickly worked out my route to my particular favourite, The City Arms and then The Waterhouse for some welcome lubrication before heading back to the hotel. It had been a superb evening out, which continued the next morning before my train home.

Manchester is a great city and I was gutted to be heading back to London. It's always a delight to visit.

Thursday 2nd February 2012 - Maine Road

I was thankfully back in Manchester having stayed in Salford Quays the previous evening, using a Travelodge as my base to attend the Bolton Wanderers v Arsenal game.

The following morning I had a few hours to kill before my train back down south. I had caught a bus to Whalley Range, where I managed to get some photos of Maine Road FC. However, after studying my IPhone map and checking the time I decided it would be good to have a brisk walk in the cold morning sun and see what has become of Maine Road.

I walked past Alexandra Park and over Princess Road and found myself in amongst the warren of terraced streets. The back cobbled lanes all had modern metal gates for security, something that would have stopped a lot of hooliganism in the days of the old stadium. I noticed police patrol cars on a few occasions, which must have been good for locals. Moss Side looked as though it was trying hard to clean its act up.

After a wrong turning I walked up Lowthorpe Street. Instead of the huge Main Stand being in view at the end, there was now a modern housing block. It was designed quite nicely if truth be told, but I didn't see any plaques to remind future generations of the millions of fans who'd trampled the tight streets to see their team. 

A new road named Blue Moon Way was the only reminder. A show house and sales office stood near to where the North Stand once dominated, trying to tempt potential buyers to invest in a property at The Maine Place. A whole new community and village was destined to spring up over the following years, although much of the ground was still untouched at the time of my visit.

I continued up to the top of the road and noticed there were no street signs for Maine Road. I would guess that they'd been 'secured' by a fan many blue moons previously. I caught a bus with the mixed community back into the city from Claremont Road.

My visit had reminded me of days gone by and my mind soon raced back to times when visiting Maine Road as a non City fan could be quite an interesting experience. It also took me back to days when grounds were the heart of the community.

The Etihad Stadium was an incredible venue and there's no doubt City had prospered since moving north, but I thought it a shame for the locals and I hoped that City had carried on their excellent community work in the area.

Manchester City 4 Hull City 1 (Tuesday 1^st December 2015) League Cup Quarter Final (att: 38,246)

The Tigers had reached the last eight of the League Cup for the first ever time. Man City had given a 5,500 away ticket allocation, so it was easy for Frazer to book us a few seats together.

My night shifts had finished on the morning of the game, so after a few hours kip I caught the train from Euston to Manchester. A tram ride from Piccadilly with one change dropped me at Trafford Bar, where I booked into the Trafford Hall Hotel.

The building was mid refurbishment and was formerly Trafford Town Hall. The floodlights of Old Trafford Cricket Ground were just a short walk away. After freshening up, I was back on the tram for a ride past the Etihad Stadium to Droylsden.

My brother Nick was driving with young Stan, along with John Groombridge and his lad, Harry. Locally based Frazer was bringing his boys Dan and Billy. Ideally we would all meet up for a drink. As the area around the stadium isn’t the best for away fans, we decided the King’s Head at Droylsden was a reasonable choice. I’d used it many years earlier when watching Scarborough play next door.

Unfortunately traffic was against the meet up. I sat on the set of ‘Early Doors’ for four pints of Holts Bitter and IPA. The locals were friendly and had a chat when I unveiled my Hull City polo shirt.

Nick had parked at Ashton Moor park and ride, where Frazer had arrived. I met up with them all on the tram. They could tell that I’d had a couple of beers! I think they were jealous.

A band played in the fans park behind the North Stand, with screens showing their performance, while supporters used the outdoor bars. It wasn’t dissimilar to the German model. We walked to the far end where the away section was located.

The security was as stringent as I’d ever seen at a British ground. We had to place any possessions in small airport type baskets while being frisked. Hats had to be removed. Some City fans were moaning, but it wasn’t the stewards faults. They did their job pretty well.

We had been located the entire newly build third tier, which meant quite a walk up the stairs. Unbelievably there were no pies left at the bars. Surely they knew how many tickets that they’d sold? Up in the seating, our view was magnificent. We were very high up but the steep rake let us see all the action. The Hull support was loud and must have given the players a boost?

Unfortunately it would seem that City came with just one plan; to restrict and frustrate Man City and to capitalise on a miracle goal or a cock up. The defenders were doing a fine job, the midfield weren’t bad if lacking ambition, but the forwards were either scared or not good enough to go forward. It resulted in one way traffic.

David Silva was running the game for the Sky Blues who’d been boosted earlier in the day by a multi-million pound Chinese investment into the City Football Group. Sooner or later a goal was coming. It came on just twelve minutes when a low shot from Kevin De Bruyne hit the foot of the post, only for Wilfried Bony to slot home the rebound.

The rest of the half was mainly Man City, with an occasional break, which generally gave way near the edge of the box. One long range shot was saved easily by home keeper Willy Caballero.

Just before half time I dashed downstairs to meet Chewy who’d kindly got the beers in. I reciprocated and got myself a very good meat and potato pie. However, for all  it’s quality, it did not merit £4. I asked the lad behind the counter whether they’d shrunk in the oven?

To be fair to the Tigers, they gave it their best. Harry McGuire at the back was outstanding and several other players didn’t look out of place. It was just that they lacked the same pace and quality of the home team. There was a good atmosphere at times from the travelling hordes but most were resigned to the fact that it wasn’t going to be. 

The introduction of long term injury victim Rob Snodgrass raised the volume even louder, but the game was more or less over soon after he came on. Substitute Raheem Sterling used his pace to whip in an excellent cross for fellow replacement Kelechi Iheanacho to nip in between two defenders to turn the ball home with ten minutes remaining.

Within two minutes De Bruyne capitalised on a weak back pass header to score past oncoming City keeper Eldin Jakupovic to make it three. We called it a night shortly afterwards.

While I don’t generally like leaving early, the game was as good as done. Nick had a long drive and needed to get on a tram as soon as possible. I also had my eyes on the clock as I fancied a few pints. I remembered just how long it took me into town the last time I’d been to the Etihad.

On the walk round to the Etihad Campus tram stop we missed a free kick from De Bruyne that made it 4-0, before Any Robertson grabbed a fine consolation. I caught up with all the goals the following evening on Channel 5’s highlights show. It confirmed the one sidedness of the match and highlighted the excellent noise from the away end.

By 10.15 I was in Chorlton where I enjoyed the beer at the Marble Beer House. A quiz was just about to conclude, so I sat outside. It was remarkably mild for the first day of December. I finished off with a couple of fine ales at Pi, before taking the tram a stop back to Trafford Bar from Furswood to end the evening with a lovely pizza.

I must have been tired as I didn’t wake up until 9.40 the next morning, just in time to head into town for a spot of shopping and to grab some food and reading for the train. As ever, I’d enjoyed my short visit to Manchester.

 The photos on this page of Maine Road have been taken from the internet.