When the Wolves goalkeeping master John Burridge re-united with apprentice Tim Flowers

Forty years ago on Sunday, Wolves went to Craven Cottage and beat Fulham 2-1 infront of a crowd of 7,049.

Second half goals from Mark Buckland and Ian Cartwright, who is sadly no longer with us, secured the points after Ray Houghton opened the scoring for the hosts early on. In goal for Wolves that afternoon, under the stewardship of Tommy Docherty, was Tim Flowers. 

Just 17, Flowers was 19 games into a professional career which would eventually lead to a Premier League title with Blackburn, League Cup success with Leicester, 11 senior England caps and a place in the squads for Euro ‘96 and the 1998 World Cup. Quite a collection.   

But life back then, for Wolves and Flowers, who was following in the goalkeeping glove prints of John Burridge, was not quite as successful. 

“Wolves were pretty much on the way to going bust at the time, and had no money,” recalls Flowers. 

“The Doc came in, Budgie (Burridge) moved on, and so we didn’t have many keepers left. 

“I was given my debut at 17 as the last man standing, having been given my pro contract, on the same dough mind you! 

“I probably wasn’t ready and we were a really poor team.   We got relegated, I must have conceded 120 goals, but still got Player of the Season, which probably tells you everything you need to know!” 

That Fulham win was one of just eight mustered by Wolves in the second division that season, as they completed the second of three successive relegations which saw them tumble from topflight to bottom in the blink of an eye. 

What’s more, it would prove another 21 games in all competitions until Wolves would win again, including a scarcely believable run of seven in a row when they didn’t even trouble the scorers. 

What is the opposite of a magnificent seven? “I still remember the day that run came to an end when we finally won again, beatingCarlisle 1-0 at Brunton Park,” adds Flowers. 

“We were dancing around in the middle of the pitch like we’d won the FA Cup! 

“It was embarrassing really, ridiculous given the circumstances, and we’d have been better off just getting back on the bus and getting off home!” 

The young Flowers, whilst admitting his inconsistencies when reflecting on his spell as a Teen Wolf, was producing a level of performance that certainly suggested he was destined for bigger and better things, as was eventually demonstrated. 

But his ‘coming into bloom’ was in no small part thanks to the drive and passion of his successor in the Wolves shirt, and also a previous Player of the Year winner, in Burridge. 

The ever-effervescent Burridge now lives in Oman after a coaching career which has taken him far and wide across different parts of the globe, but the two were reunited last week at an event at the Mount Hotel organised by Wolves fan and memorabilia collector Carl Falconer, which raised an incredible £10,000 for Pancreatic Cancer UK and Birmingham Children’s Hospital. 

Catching up over a pint prior to the formalities of the night of a Q&A with event host Steve Saul, the two quickly transported themselves back over those four decades, to the time Flowers arrived as a fresh-faced apprentice, travelling in from Coventry to learn his trade with Burridge as his mentor. 

From his perspective, even all these years on, he couldn’t have had a better education. 

“I was coming in from Coventry on the train on the Monday, staying in digs for the week and then playing for the youth team at Cosford on a Saturday morning before apprentice duties if the first team were at home,” Flowers explains. 

“I’d then go back to Coventry before coming back to do it all again from the Monday, and I absolutely loved it. 

“On top of that, Budgie would drive me around and take me to watch games, as well as down to training as we’d get changed at Molineux before heading down to Castlecroft, usually an hour before the outfield players. 

“There were no such thing as full-time goalkeeping coaches back then, Jim Barron (Wolves’ assistant manager) would do a few bits with us but to all intents and purposes Budgie oversaw our training. 

“I loved him, he was a proper number one who would help all the young lads out, even with giving us gloves and looking after us when he could.