So I was scrolling through some old football forums yesterday, right? Kept seeing random mentions of Tottenham smacking Ipswich back in the day. Got me curious. How bad was it really? Figured I’d actually sit down and dig through the history properly, match by match. No assumptions, just the facts. Boy, was I wrong about it just being routine wins.
Getting Started & First Surprises
First thing I did was grab my laptop, fired up a bunch of tabs. Headed straight for a few trusted football history sites and club archives. Searched “Tottenham v Ipswich Town all results”. Simple. Expected to just see a list of Spurs wins, maybe a few draws sprinkled in. The early stuff kinda matched that. Found results from like, the 60s. 1962 FA Cup semi-final? Spurs won 3-1. Okay, expected. Then 1971, Ipswich got relegated, Spurs beat them 1-0. Nothing crazy yet.
Kept scrolling down the list. Things started looking… familiar? Hold up. 1975. Tottenham 4 Ipswich 0. Big win, sure. But then later that same season? Ipswich 8 Tottenham 2. EIGHT. My jaw literally dropped. Completely wiped that smug “Spurs always win” thought clean outta my head. Right there, lesson learned: never assume.
The Rollercoaster Ride
Got properly invested then. Needed to see how lopsided this really was. Made notes of every single time they played in the top flight, focused on the hammerings. The wins swung both ways, hard:
- The Tottenham Smashings:
- Jan ’77: Tottenham 4 Ipswich 0 (Another big one at White Hart Lane)
- Aug ’83: Tottenham 4 Ipswich 0 (Post-promotion party for Ipswich, ruined)
- Aug ’92: Tottenham 4 Ipswich 0 (Start of the Premier League era, same story)
- The Ipswich Thunderbolts:
- That ’75 massacre: 8-2. Just insane.
- Sep ’79: Ipswich 3 Tottenham 0 (Shut ’em right out)
- Dec ’81: Ipswich 3 Tottenham 0 (Another clean sheet battering)
- Aug ’94: Ipswich 3 Tottenham 1 (Even after dropping down and coming back, they still had Spurs’ number sometimes)
Couldn’t believe how often Ipswich, supposedly the “smaller” club, absolutely dominated these games. Those 3-0 wins? Not flukes, looking at the records. Convincing.
Wrapping Up & Realisations
Sat back after about an hour and a half of this. List was long. My main takeaway? That first gut feeling was way off. This fixture is way more interesting than people make out. Yeah, Spurs have racked up some proper demolitions, especially at home – that 4-0 scoreline kept popping up like a recurring nightmare for Ipswich fans.
But the real story is those Ipswich upsets. That 8-2 is obviously legendary, one of the biggest wins against Spurs ever. But even beyond that one freak result, Ipswich consistently turned up and delivered bloody noses. Those multiple 3-0 wins aren’t just stats; they’re proof that Portman Road was a genuine fortress against the Lilywhites for a good stretch.
Honestly, this little research rabbit hole was a blast. Forgot how fun just digging into the raw numbers can be. Shows you – football history isn’t just about the giants winning. Sometimes the underdog bites back, hard. And this fixture? Proof. Keeps you humble.