On This Day today looks at the Luton Town programme from the 1983/84 season. Read our review of the Luton issue below and see the other 1983/84 top-flight programmes here.
One of the larger Division One issues for the 1983/84 season, Luton Town’s programme contained 20.5 pages of content. This provided plenty of space for some noteworthy articles.
‘Hatters Who’s Who’ was an in-depth look at former Luton players, with the focus in this issue on forward Don Givens, who played for the club in the early 1970s, ultimately making more than 400 appearances in the Football League. ‘Memory Lane’ was a shorter historical feature, here recalling the Luton career of Les Jones, who played for the club in the 1950s.
A feature headed ‘Luton’s Future’ discussed the club’s plans for a new stadium, as part of what would have been the UK’s first indoor sports and leisure complex. Interestingly, the article noted that, at the time, the last purpose-built stadium to be constructed in the UK was Wembley in the early 1920s. Some 35 years later, it appears that the club’s wait to move from Kenilworth Road may finally be over!
‘John’s Journal’ from Club Secretary John Wilkinson discussed the recent decision by the League that, from the start of the 1984/85 season, clubs would be able to keep their own attendance receipts. The impact on Luton’s finances was expected to be severe with Mr Wilkinson noting, perhaps presciently, that “this could be the first step to the much talked about Super League.”
There was a range of other content too. ‘Scene on One’ by Tony Pullein predicted a likely title challenge from Lawrie McMenemy’s Southampton team, as well as assessing the early season fortunes of other top-flight clubs. ‘Town Focus’ profiled Luton full-back Mal Donaghy, who was then in his sixth season with the club. The article included a full-page colour picture of the player, together with his career record stats.
Manager David Pleat offered his thoughts in a one-page column, while ‘Coach Report’ contained news from youth team matches, noting the goalscoring form of a young Mark Stein. There was a two-page ‘Newsdesk’ article that featured updates on various matters off the pitch at Kenilworth Road. There was also a mix of black and white and colour action pictures from recent games, and the usual stats section was included at the back of the programme with results and tables for the club’s various teams.
Two pages of the programme were given to coverage of Luton’s visitors Aston Villa, under the heading ‘Villa Shape for Title Bid’. The article discussed the club’s prospects, noting the transfer activity conducted by boss Tony Barton, and the club’s promising early season form.
Despite being among the more expensive programmes in the league in 1983/84, the Luton issue certainly provided value for money with a host of readable features, with a welcome mix of historical and contemporary articles.