'I thought I’d better apologise to the Leeds players. I popped my head around the dressing room door, said, ‘Sorry, lads’ and got out as quickly as I could!' Alfie Conn recalls the iconic moment he sat on the ball

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The Spurs playmaker proved he had the guts to match his skills when taking on the ferocious Leeds United side of the 1970s

October 1974 ,White Hart Lane, Alfie Conn of Tottenham Hotspur. (Photo by Ray Wright/Offside via Getty Images)
Alfie Conn signed for Spurs in 1974 (Image credit: Getty Images)

It took a brave man to antagonise the likes of Billy Bremner and company at Leeds United in the 1970s.

But former Rangers midfielder Alfie Conn was not your run-of-the-mill player and when he arrived at Tottenham in 1974, it soon became clear that Spurs had someone special in their ranks.

His full debut in January 1975 couldn’t have gone better. Away to Newcastle and needing a win, Spurs were 4-0 up by half-time and ended up winning 5-2, Conn scoring a hat-trick. “My dad and grandad came down from Glasgow and I went back up with them afterwards,” he recalls to FourFourTwo.

The day Alfie Conn antagonised Leeds United

05/05/73 SCOTTISH CUP FINAL.CELTIC v RANGERS (2-3).HAMPDEN - GLASGOW.Alfie Conn is tackled by Celtic defender Danny McGrain as Billy McNeill (left) looks on. (Photo by SNS Group via Getty Images)

Conn had joined Spurs from Rangers in 1974 (Image credit: Getty Images)

“We all had a few drinks on the train trip back. When the ticket inspector came round, my grandad said we were celebrating my hat-trick and then ended up taking over his duties!”

Conn soon established himself as a fans’ favourite, taking over the King of White Hart Lane honour from Alan Gilzean. “I couldn’t believe it the first time I heard it – that sort of thing makes your chest stick out,” he says. “I got on great with the fans. I still think of Tottenham as my club.”

Leeds' Norman Hunter (centre) and referee Bob Matthewson restrain Liverpool’s Kevin Keegan (second left) after he and Billy Bremner had clashed

Reigning Division One champions Leeds were not afraid to get stuck in

But a run of eight defeats from nine during the run-in meant that Spurs needed to win their final game of the season to survive. That game was against reigning champions Leeds United, who had just seen off Barcelona to reach the final of the European Cup and had almost signed Conn as a teenager.

Jimmy Armfield’s men will have wished they did, as Conn pulled the strings and was the architect of three Spurs goals that put the hosts in control of the match.

Then he sat on the ball to taunt Bremner, Hunter & Co. What was going through his mind?

“Nothing!” he chuckles. “I don’t know why I did that. But as soon as I looked round and saw big Pat Jennings shaking his head, I thought, ‘What have I done?’

05/05/73 SCOTTISH CUP FINAL.CELTIC v RANGERS (2-3).HAMPDEN - GLASGOW.Alfie Conn (left) is kept in check by Celtic's Davie Hay (10) and George Connelly. (Photo by SNS Group via Getty Images)

Conn in action during the 1973 Scottish Cup Final for Rangers against Celtic (Image credit: Getty Images)

“The Leeds players suddenly turned it on. It was a relegation battle for us and I could have been the villain rather than the hero. Luckily we won 4-2 [Conn scored the fourth] and stayed up.

“I thought I’d better apologise to the Leeds players,” he adds. And how was that received?

“I don’t know – I popped my head around the dressing room door, said, ‘Sorry, lads’ and got out as quickly as I could!”

‘What’s It All About? The Alfie Conn Story’ by Jeff Holmes is available now

Joe Mewis
Joe Mewis

For more than a decade Joe Mewis has worked in football journalism as a reporter and editor, with stints at Mirror Football and LeedsLive among others. He is the author of four football history books that include times on Leeds United and the England national team.