The Watford Observer has again teamed up with its friends at The Watford Treasury to share stories from previous issues.
Although seven different goalkeepers appeared for Watford during the 1970s, the position was dominated by one man. Andy Rankin was Watford’s player of the decade, writes Geoff Wicken.
To be a Watford supporter in the early and mid-1970s was, mostly, a dispiriting experience. The six seasons starting from 1971/72 saw almost continuous decline. There were two relegations, in 1971/72 and 1974/75, followed by two years of stasis in Division Four. Then everything changed. The turnaround inspired by Graham Taylor’s arrival brought the two consecutive promotions of 1977/78 and 1978/79. Those six years of gloom were followed by two of dramatic upturn, and by autumn 1979 Watford were back in Division Two, where they had been eight years earlier.