15 December 1952 - The Prince Of Denmark Is Born

On this day in 1952, Danish international striker Allan Simonsen was born in Vejle. He went on to become the first player to score in all three of the European Cup, UEFA Cup, and Cup Winners' Cup finals, and was the first Danish player to be named European Footballer of the Year.

He started his professional career in 1971 with his hometown club, Vejle BK, where he helped the club to the Danish league title in his first season. They repeated as champions in 1972, complemented with a victorious Danish Cup campaign. Simonsen's play drew the attention of defending Bundesliga champions Borussia Mönchengladbach, who signed him later that year.

Although it took his a while to acclimate to his new German surroundings, he ultimately became a key player for his new club, scoring 76 goals in 178 league appearances between 1972 and 1979. Along the way, he won three Bundesliga titles (1975, 1976, 1977), two UEFA Cups (1975, 1979), and one German Cup (1973). They also reached the final of the European Cup in 1977, but lost 3-1 to Liverpool, with Simonsen scored the Germans' lone goal. His performance in that 1976-77 season made him the 1977 European Footballer of the Year.

In 1979, after scoring the winning goal in that year's UEFA Cup Final, he moved to Barcelona. In three seasons there, he added the Copa del Rey (1981) to his silverware collection, then scored another match-winning goal in European competition to beat Standard Liège in the 1982 Cup Winners' Cup.

After a short time with Charlton Athletic (1982-83), Simonsen finished his playing career back in Vejle, winning yet another Danish league title in 1984 before retiring in 1989. He has since moved into management with Vejle (1991-94), the Faroe Islands (1994-2001), and Luxembourg (2001-04), and is currently the general manager for Danish club FC Fredericia.

6 October 1956 - Charlton Beats Charlton

On 6 October 1956, Bobby Charlton started his record-setting Manchester United career in style, scoring a brace on his debut against Charlton Athletic.

The striker had been with the club since 1953, rising up through the youth ranks before signing a professional contract in 1954. He was just five days shy of his 19th birthday when manager Matt Busby gave him his inaugural start for the first team.

Played before a crowd of 41,439 at Old Trafford, the league contest matched first-place United against Charlton Athletic, who were dead last in the table. So it was a bit shocking when the visitors took the lead midway through the first half. But the lead last only a minute, as forward Johnny Berry quickly equalized for United. Then young Bobby Charlton struck twice before the break (32', 37') to put the hosts up 3-1.

They were the first of his record 249 goals for the club in a career that spanned 17 seasons. His 758 appearances (only 2 of which were as a substitute) also set a club record, though that one was broken by current record holder Ryan Giggs in 2008.

The match ended as a 4-2 United victory, with United's final goal coming from forward Liam Whelan.

1 April 2002 - Personally, I Like The Fish

On 1 April 2002, Charlton FC tricked hundreds of supporters with a clever April Fool's Day prank.

In the program for that day's contest against Arsenal, the club included a full-page announcement stating that they had received complaints about the sword featured in their current crest, which some people found inappropriately unfriendly. To address those concerns, Charlton presented three potential new designs and asked the fans to vote for the one they preferred.

The first option was a reproduction of the crest used by nearby rivals Fulham FC, simply replacing "FFC" with "CAFC." The other two options were very similar to the current crest, but one replaced the sword-in-hand with a smiling fish (representative of the club's "Addicks" nickname) and the other with a cartoonish bird (for their other nickname as the Robins). Over 300 people actually voted online, while hundreds more called the club to protest the change.

It was not the first hoax involving the Charlton crest, as a 1998 fanzine article claimed that the current sword-in-hand image came from the "Spencer-Percival" family crest. In fact, the design was the result of a fan competition in 1963.

           

21 August 1965 - He Looks Pretty Tall But His Heels Are High

On 21 August 1965, Charlton Athletic midfielder Keith Peacock became the Football League's first-ever substitute when he entered their match against Bolton in the 11th minute. Unfortunately for Peacock, he replaced Charlton's injured goalkeeper and Charlton lost 4-2.

For most if its existence, the League did not allow substitutions under any circumstances. But they decided for the 1965-66 season to allow a single substitution for injuries only. Charlton opened that season in Division Two away at Bolton and lost starting goalkeeper Mike Rose to an injury after only 11 minutes. Newly-appointed manager Bob Stokoe sent Peacock in and moved left back John Hewie into goal. Unfortunately for Charlton, the move did not prevent Bolton from winning by the score of 4-2.

After two seasons, the League again changed the substitution rule to allow switches for tactical reasons as well as injuries.

21 December 1957 - A Summers Day In December

On 21 December 1957, Charlton Athletic staged a record-setting comeback to beat Bill Shankly's Huddersfield Town in a Second Division match at the Valley.

The hosts got off to a difficult start when center half Derek Ufton went off injured in the 17th minute. The rules at the time did not allow for substitutes, so Charlton had to play on with only 10 men. Visiting Huddersfield took the advantage and were up 2-0 by halftime.

At the half, Charlton left winger Johnny Summers (pictured) moved to center forward. He also switched boots, throwing out his old ones for a new pair. The changes appeared to help, as, in the 48th minute, he scored to close the gap to 2-1. But Huddersfield responded and, by the 62nd minute, had extended their lead to 5-1. Then the momentum shifted. Within 19 minutes, Charlton were unbelievably in front 6-5, after four more goals from Summers and one from Buck Ryan.

Still, the drama had not ended. Huddersfield scored an 86th-minute equalizer, then, right before the whistle, Ryan powered the game-winner past the Huddersfield keeper. Charlton got the win, 7-6. It was the first and only time that an English league team scored 6 goals and lost.

After the match, Summers told reporters that he would hold on to those boots for the rest of his life. Sadly, he died five years later from leukemia. He was 32 years old.

15 December 1952 - The Prince Of Denmark

On this day in 1952, Danish international striker Allan Simonsen was born in Vejle. He went on to become the first player to score in all three of the European Cup, UEFA Cup, and Cup Winners' Cup finals, and was the first Danish player to be named European Footballer of the Year.

He started his professional career in 1971 with his hometown club, Vejle BK, where he helped the club to the Danish league title in his first season. They repeated as champions in 1972, complemented with a victorious Danish Cup campaign. Simonsen's play drew the attention of defending Bundesliga champions Borussia Mönchengladbach, who signed him later that year.

Although it took his a while to acclimate to his new German surroundings, he ultimately became a key player for his new club, scoring 76 goals in 178 league appearances between 1972 and 1979. Along the way, he won three Bundesliga titles (1975, 1976, 1977), two UEFA Cups (1975, 1979), and one German Cup (1973). They also reached the final of the European Cup in 1977, but lost 3-1 to Liverpool, with Simonsen scored the Germans' lone goal. His performance in that 1976-77 season made him the 1977 European Footballer of the Year.

In 1979, after scoring the winning goal in that year's UEFA Cup Final, he moved to Barcelona. In three seasons there, he added the Copa del Rey (1981) to his silverware collection, then scored another match-winning goal in European competition to beat Standard Liège in the 1982 Cup Winners' Cup.

After a short time with Charlton Athletic (1982-83), Simonsen finished his playing career back in Vejle, winning yet another Danish league title in 1984 before retiring in 1989. He has since moved into management with Vejle (1991-94), the Faroe Islands (1994-2001), and Luxembourg (2001-04), and is currently the general manager for Danish club FC Fredericia.

6 October 1956 - Charlton Beats Charlton

On 6 October 1956, Bobby Charlton started his record-setting Manchester United career in style, scoring a brace on his debut against Charlton Athletic.

The striker had been with the club since 1953, rising up through the youth ranks before signing a professional contract in 1954. He was just five days shy of his 19th birthday when manager Matt Busby gave him his inaugural start for the first team.

Played before a crowd of 41,439 at Old Trafford, the league contest matched first-place United against Charlton Athletic, who were dead last in the table. So it was a bit shocking when the visitors took the lead midway through the first half. But the lead last only a minute, as forward Johnny Berry quickly equalized for United. Then young Bobby Charlton struck twice before the break (32', 37') to put the hosts up 3-1.

They were the first of his record 249 goals for the club in a career that spanned 17 seasons. His 758 appearances (only 2 of which were as a substitute) also set a club record, though that one was broken by current record holder Ryan Giggs in 2008.

The match ended as a 4-2 United victory, with United's final goal coming from forward Liam Whelan.

1 April 2002 - Personally, I Like The Fish

On 1 April 2002, Charlton FC tricked hundreds of supporters with a clever April Fool's Day prank.

In the program for that day's contest against Arsenal, the club included a full-page announcement stating that they had received complaints about the sword featured in their current crest, which some people found inappropriately unfriendly. To address those concerns, Charlton presented three potential new designs and asked the fans to vote for the one they preferred.

The first option was a reproduction of the crest used by nearby rivals Fulham FC, simply replacing "FFC" with "CAFC." The other two options were very similar to the current crest, but one replaced the sword-in-hand with a smiling fish (representative of the club's "Addicks" nickname) and the other with a cartoonish bird (for their other nickname as the Robins). Over 300 people actually voted online, while hundreds more called the club to protest the change.

It was not the first hoax involving the Charlton crest, as a 1998 fanzine article claimed that the current sword-in-hand image came from the "Spencer-Percival" family crest. In fact, the design was the result of a fan competition in 1963.

21 August 1965 - He Looks Pretty Tall But His Heels Are High

On 21 August 1965, Charlton Athletic midfielder Keith Peacock became the Football League's first-ever substitute when he entered their match against Bolton in the 11th minute. Unfortunately for Peacock, he replaced Charlton's injured goalkeeper and Charlton lost 4-2.

For most if its existence, the League did not allow substitutions under any circumstances. But they decided for the 1965-66 season to allow a single substitution for injuries only. Charlton opened that season in Division Two away at Bolton and lost starting goalkeeper Mike Rose to an injury after only 11 minutes. Newly-appointed manager Bob Stokoe sent Peacock in and moved left back John Hewie into goal. Unfortunately for Charlton, the move did not prevent Bolton from winning by the score of 4-2.

After two seasons, the League again changed the substitution rule to allow switches for tactical reasons as well as injuries.

21 December 1957 - A Summers Day In December

On 21 December 1957, Charlton Athletic staged a record-setting comeback to beat Bill Shankly's Huddersfield Town in a Second Division match at the Valley.

The hosts got off to a difficult start when center half Derek Ufton went off injured in the 17th minute. The rules at the time did not allow for substitutes, so Charlton had to play on with only 10 men. Visiting Huddersfield took the advantage and were up 2-0 by halftime.

At the half, Charlton left winger Johnny Summers (pictured) moved to center forward. He also switched boots, throwing out his old ones for a new pair. The changes appeared to help, as, in the 48th minute, he scored to close the gap to 2-1. But Huddersfield responded and, by the 62nd minute, had extended their lead to 5-1. Then the momentum shifted. Within 19 minutes, Charlton were unbelievably in front 6-5, after four more goals from Summers and one from Buck Ryan.

Still, the drama had not ended. Huddersfield scored an 86th-minute equalizer, then, right before the whistle, Ryan powered the game-winner past the Huddersfield keeper. Charlton got the win, 7-6. It was the first and only time that an English league team scored 6 goals and lost.

After the match, Summers told reporters that he would hold on to those boots for the rest of his life. Sadly, he died five years later from leukemia. He was 32 years old.