A well-established top flight side for much of the 1980s, the 1986-87 season saw Watford achieve a respectable 9th placed League finish. The main talking point of their season came in the FA Cup however as the Hornets battled past Maidstone, Walsall, Chelsea and Arsenal to reach the semi-final and leave themselves just 90 minutes away from the Final, where they had appeared just 3 years earlier. Alas, a goalkeeper crisis saw both Tony Coton and Steve Sherwood unavailable for the semi-final against Tottenham, so Graham Taylor was forced to make an emergency signing in the form of the recently retired Gary Plumley who happened to be the son of the club’s chief executive. With such an important position vulnerable, Watford’s Wembley dreams went up in smoke as Tottenham cruised to a 4-1 win.