Retro Football: Leeds Midfielder Johnny Giles Shown Yellow Card For Punching Kevin Keegan Square In The Face During Charity Shield Match, 1974 (Video)

Chris Wright

9th, April 2018

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The 1974 Charity Shield match at Wembley has since gone down in football folklore as one of the most volatile examples of the fixture ever played.

With no love lost between the two clubs beforehand, the match that saw Bob Paisley and Brian Clough both take charge of their new teams for the first time started in exactly the same vein it would continue, with ‘industrial’ tackles flying in from the off.

Things reached a pitch on the hour-mark when Kevin Keegan lost his temper and became embroiled in a fully-fledged fist fight with his man-marker, Billy Bremner.

Keegan’s fit of pique was fairly understandable, given that the Liverpool star had come in for some particularly rough treatment in the minutes leading up to his expulsion.

Indeed, shortly beforehand, Leeds midfielder Johnny Giles got a free-ish pass from referee Bob Matthewson for clocking Keegan square in the face with a brazen punch…

In fairness, Giles didn’t escape entirely without punishment – picking up a yellow card for thumping an opponent in full view of the match official.

Dirty bloody Leeds.

The match went on to finish 1-1 with Liverpool going on to win on penalties in the first ever Charity Shield game to be decided via shoot-out.

Previously, draws saw the shield shared between the two competing sides for six months apiece.