Len Cantello Testimonial Match

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Len Cantello Testimonial Match
  • West Bromwich Albion XI v Cyrille Regis & Laurie Cunningham XI
  • Whites vs. Blacks
Len Cantello testimonial match programme cover.jpg
West Bromwich Albion XICyrille Regis & Laurie Cunningham XI
23
Date15 May 1979 (1979-05-15)
Venue The Hawthorns, West Bromwich, Sandwell, England
Referee John D. Hough
Attendance7,023

The Len Cantello Testimonial Match, (West Bromwich Albion XI v Cyrille Regis & Laurie Cunningham XI), was a testimonial football match that took place in May 1979 to celebrate West Bromwich Albion player Len Cantello, who played for the club over 300 times between 1968 and 1979. The teams were selected based on the colour of the players' skin. The West Bromwich Albion XI was composed of White British and Irish players while the Cyrille Regis & Laurie Cunningham XI was composed of Black British players. [1]

Contents

The West Brom XI team featured Tony Godden, Paddy Mulligan, Derek Statham, Tony Brown, John Wile, Bryan Robson, Johnny Giles, John Trewick, Alistair Brown, Len Cantello, David Mills, David Stewart, Martyn Bennett and Kevin Summerfield.

The Cyrille Regis & Laurie Cunningham XI featured Ian Benjamin (Sheffield United), Vernon Hodgson (West Bromwich Albion – a trialist [2] ), Brendon Batson (West Bromwich Albion), Derek Richardson (QPR), Stewart Phillips (Hereford United), George Berry (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Bob Hazell (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Garth Crooks (Stoke City), Winston White (Hereford Utd), Cyrille Regis (West Bromwich Albion), Laurie Cunningham (West Bromwich Albion), Remi Moses (West Bromwich Albion), Valmore Thomas (Hereford United). Benjamin, Phillips, Crooks and White would go on to sign for West Bromwich Albion later during their playing career. Roger Palmer was expected to play but was not available.

Match details

Line up according to the match programme.

West Bromwich XI2–3Cyrille Regis & Laurie Cunningham XI
Robson Soccerball shade.svg
Al. Brown Soccerball shade.svg		 Cunningham Soccerball shade.svg
Crooks Soccerball shade.svg
Phillips Soccerball shade.svg
The Hawthorns
Attendance: 7,023 [3]
Referee: John D. Hough (Macclesfield)
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Kit left arm.svg
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Kit body.svg
Kit right arm navylower.png
Kit right arm.svg
Kit shorts.svg
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Kit socks long.svg
Kit left arm.svg
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GK Flag of England.svg Tony Godden
RB Flag of Ireland.svg Paddy Mulligan
CB Flag of England.svg John Wile
LB Flag of England.svg Derek Statham
RM Flag of England.svg Tony Brown
MF Flag of England.svg Len Cantello (c)
MF Flag of England.svg Bryan Robson
MF Flag of Ireland.svg Johnny Giles
LM Flag of England.svg John Trewick
CF Flag of Scotland.svg Alistair Brown
CF Flag of England.svg David Mills
Substitute:
GK Flag of Scotland.svg David Stewart
CB Flag of England.svg Martyn Bennett
CF Flag of England.svg Kevin Summerfield
GK Flag of England.svg Derek Richardson
RB Flag of England.svg Brendon Batson
CB Flag of Wales (1959-present).svg George Berry
CB Flag of England.svg Larry May
LB Flag of England.svg Bob Hazell
RM Flag of England.svg Winston White
CM Flag of England.svg Remi Moses
CM Flag of England.svg Vernon Hodgson [4]
LM Flag of England.svg Laurie Cunningham
CF Flag of England.svg Garth Crooks
CF Flag of England.svg Cyrille Regis (c)
Substitute:
DF Flag of England.svg Valmore Thomas [4]
CF Flag of England.svg Ian Benjamin [4]
CF Flag of England.svg Stewart Phillips [1]

Documentary

The match was the basis of a BBC documentary entitled Whites Vs Blacks: How Football Changed A Nation. [5] The documentary was aired on BBC Two on 27 November 2016. [1]

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "The match that pitted white players against black players". BBC News. 17 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  2. ↑ "The story behind the Blacks vs Whites West Brom game « Express & Star". www.expressandstar.com. 19 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
  3. ↑ Burnton, Simon (November 24, 2016). "The West Brom testimonial when black players took on a team of white players | Simon Burnton" – via www.theguardian.com.
  4. 1 2 3 Paul Rees. The Three Degrees: The Men Who Changed British Football Forever. pp. 188–89.
  5. ↑ "Premiere documentary screening of 'Whites Vs Blacks' – featured as part of BBC Black and British Season". Mac Birmingham. 7 November 2016. Retrieved 22 November 2016.
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