1971–72 Derby County F.C. season
1971–72 season | |||
Manager | ![]() |
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Stadium | Baseball Ground | ||
First Division | 1st (Champions) | ||
FA Cup | Fifth round | ||
League Cup | Second round | ||
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The 1971–72 season was Derby County's 72nd in the Football League and their 45th season in the top flight. They won their first ever league title to qualify for the 1972–73 European Cup, as well as winning the Texaco Cup. In addition, their reserve side won the Central League for the first time since 1936.
Contents
Season summary
Derby began the season strongly with a 12 match unbeaten run in the League although they did exit the League Cup at the second round stage, beaten 2-0 in a replay at Leeds. Defeat at leaders Manchester United triggered a period of inconsistent league form that saw Derby lose five times in 11 matches, the last of these at Elland Road just after Christmas, but they lost just one of their next 13 matches and a 2-0 victory against Leeds at the Baseball Ground over Easter took them to the top of the table. They remained there despite losing to Newcastle in the next match, their only home defeat of the season, and then drawing with West Bromwich Albion but had now played a game more than the three teams below them (Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester City) with only two points separating the four.
Two victories followed but defeat at Manchester City in their penultimate match of the campaign saw Derby slip to third with the title race still wide open. City, having completed their fixtures, now led the table with 57 points with Derby and second-placed Liverpool both a point behind and separated only by goal average. Crucially, the two would meet at the Baseball Ground in Derby's final match although the Reds still had a further game in hand. Leeds lay fourth on 55 points, also with two matches remaining and a superior goal average to the other three challengers.
Derby ended their season with a 1–0 win over Liverpool, John McGovern netting the winner, leaving them on 58 points with Leeds (who beat Chelsea 2-0 on the same night) on 57 and Liverpool on 56. Derby's destiny was not in their own hands and they left the country to escape the pressure - Brian Clough holidayed with his family in the Isles of Scilly while Peter Taylor went to Majorca with the players. Leeds needed a draw and Liverpool a win to overtake Derby. In the event, Wolverhampton Wanderers beat Leeds 2–1 at Molineux and Liverpool could only manage a 0–0 draw at Arsenal. The league was unusually close throughout the campaign and the final table saw Derby champions just one point ahead of the teams in 2nd (Leeds), 3rd (Liverpool) and 4th (City).
Clough had built a balanced team at Derby, one in which every player knew his job. They rarely swept away the opposition, instead building on the foundations of a strong defence, although there were some memorable performances, notably in 4–0 defeats of Stoke and Nottingham Forest at the Baseball Ground and away to Sheffield United.
Although Derby reached the FA Cup fifth round, losing 1–0 to eventual runners-up Arsenal in a second replay at Filbert Street, their primary cup success for 1971–72 came in the Texaco Cup, a competition between 16 English, Scottish and Irish clubs who were not in European competition. With home gates consistently over 20,000, Derby beat Dundee United (8–5 on aggregate), Stoke (4–3 agg.) and Newcastle (4–2 agg.) before playing Airdrieonians in the final. After a 0–0 draw at Broomfield Park, Derby beat their Scottish opponents 2–1 in the second leg at the Baseball Ground with Roger Davies, signed for £12,000 the previous summer from non-league Worcester City, grabbing the decisive goal to give Derby their second cup win in as many seasons.
Record signing defender Colin Todd claimed the club's Player of the Year while Alan Hinton finished the season as top scorer with 15 goals. Kevin Hector netted his 100th for the club in a 6–0 FA Cup fourth round win over Notts County and Alan Durban became the club's most capped international, overtaking Sammy Crooks, with his 27th and final appearance for Wales. Steve Powell became Derby's youngest ever player, a record he held for almost 30 years, when he made his debut in a Texaco Cup tie against Stoke City aged just 16 years and 30 days.
League table
P | W | D | L | F | A | GA | Pts | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Derby County | 42 | 24 | 10 | 8 | 69 | 33 | 2.091 | 58 |
2 | Leeds United | 42 | 24 | 9 | 9 | 73 | 31 | 2.355 | 57 |
3 | Liverpool | 42 | 24 | 9 | 9 | 64 | 30 | 2.133 | 57 |
4 | Manchester City | 42 | 23 | 11 | 8 | 77 | 45 | 1.711 | 57 |
5 | Arsenal | 42 | 22 | 8 | 12 | 58 | 40 | 1.450 | 52 |
6 | Tottenham Hotspur | 42 | 19 | 13 | 10 | 63 | 42 | 1.500 | 51 |
7 | Chelsea | 42 | 18 | 12 | 12 | 58 | 49 | 1.184 | 48 |
8 | Manchester United | 42 | 19 | 10 | 13 | 69 | 61 | 1.131 | 48 |
9 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 42 | 18 | 11 | 13 | 65 | 57 | 1.140 | 47 |
10 | Sheffield United | 42 | 17 | 12 | 13 | 61 | 60 | 1.017 | 46 |
11 | Newcastle United | 42 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 49 | 52 | 0.942 | 41 |
12 | Leicester City | 42 | 13 | 13 | 16 | 41 | 46 | 0.891 | 39 |
13 | Ipswich Town | 42 | 11 | 16 | 15 | 39 | 53 | 0.736 | 38 |
14 | West Ham United | 42 | 12 | 12 | 18 | 47 | 51 | 0.922 | 36 |
15 | Everton | 42 | 9 | 18 | 15 | 37 | 48 | 0.771 | 36 |
16 | West Bromwich Albion | 42 | 12 | 11 | 19 | 42 | 54 | 0.778 | 35 |
17 | Stoke City | 42 | 10 | 15 | 17 | 39 | 56 | 0.696 | 35 |
18 | Coventry City | 42 | 9 | 15 | 18 | 44 | 67 | 0.657 | 33 |
19 | Southampton | 42 | 12 | 7 | 23 | 52 | 80 | 0.650 | 31 |
20 | Crystal Palace | 42 | 8 | 13 | 21 | 39 | 65 | 0.600 | 29 |
21 | Nottingham Forest | 42 | 8 | 9 | 25 | 47 | 81 | 0.580 | 25 |
22 | Huddersfield Town | 42 | 6 | 13 | 23 | 27 | 59 | 0.458 | 25 |
Results
First Division
Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F – A |
Scorers | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
14 August 1971 | Manchester United | H | 2–2 | Hector, Wignall | 35,386 |
18 August 1971 | West Ham United | H | 2–0 | O'Hare, Wignall | 30,783 |
21 August 1971 | Leicester City | A | 2–0 | Hector, Hinton (pen) | 35,460 |
24 August 1971 | Coventry City | A | 2–2 | O'Hare, Wignall | 27,759 |
28 August 1971 | Southampton | H | 2–2 | McGovern, Hector | 28,498 |
31 August 1971 | Ipswich Town | A | 0–0 | 18,687 | |
4 September 1971 | Everton | A | 2–0 | Hector, Wignall | 41,024 |
11 September 1971 | Stoke City | H | 4–0 | Todd, O'Hare, Hinton, Gemmill | 32,545 |
18 September 1971 | Chelsea | A | 1–1 | McFarland | 42,872 |
25 September 1971 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 0–0 | 30,628 | |
2 October 1971 | Newcastle United | A | 1–0 | Hinton | 32,077 |
9 October 1971 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 2–2 | Todd, McFarland | 35,744 |
16 October 1971 | Manchester United | A | 0–1 | 53,247 | |
23 October 1971 | Arsenal | H | 2–1 | O'Hare, Hinton (pen) | 35,480 |
30 October 1971 | Nottingham Forest | A | 2–0 | Hinton (pen), Robson | 37,170 |
6 November 1971 | Crystal Palace | H | 3–0 | Bell (og), Wignall, Hector | 30,388 |
13 November 1971 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 1–2 | O'Hare | 32,957 |
20 November 1971 | Sheffield United | H | 3–0 | Hector, Hinton 2 (2 pens) | 35,326 |
27 November 1971 | Huddersfield Town | A | 1–2 | McGovern | 15,329 |
4 December 1971 | Manchester City | H | 3–1 | Hinton (pen), Webster, Durban | 35,384 |
11 December 1971 | Liverpool | A | 2–3 | O'Hare 2 | 44,601 |
18 December 1971 | Everton | H | 2–0 | Hinton 2 | 27,895 |
27 December 1971 | Leeds United | A | 0–3 | 44,214 | |
1 January 1972 | Chelsea | H | 1–0 | Gemmill | 33,063 |
8 January 1972 | Southampton | A | 2–1 | O'Hare, Durban | 19,321 |
22 January 1972 | West Ham United | A | 3–3 | Hinton, Durban, Hector | 31,045 |
29 January 1972 | Coventry City | H | 1–0 | Robson | 29,385 |
12 February 1972 | Arsenal | A | 0–2 | 52,055 | |
19 February 1972 | Nottingham Forest | H | 4–0 | Hinton 2, O'Hare, Hector | 31,801 |
4 March 1972 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | 2–1 | Hinton (pen), McFarland | 33,456 |
11 March 1972 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 1–0 | Hinton (pen) | 36,310 |
18 March 1972 | Leicester City | H | 3–0 | O'Hare, Durban, Hector | 34,019 |
22 March 1972 | Ipswich Town | H | 1–0 | Hector | 26,738 |
25 March 1972 | Stoke City | A | 1–1 | Durban | 33,771 |
28 March 1972 | Crystal Palace | A | 1–0 | Walker | 21,158 |
1 April 1972 | Leeds United | H | 2–0 | O'Hare, Hunter (og) | 38,611 |
3 April 1972 | Newcastle United | H | 0–1 | 38,119 | |
5 April 1972 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 0–0 | 32,439 | |
8 April 1972 | Sheffield United | A | 4–0 | Gemmill, Hector, Durban, O'Hare | 38,238 |
15 April 1972 | Huddersfield Town | H | 3–0 | McFarland, Hector, O'Hare | 31,414 |
22 April 1972 | Manchester City | A | 0–2 | 55,023 | |
1 May 1972 | Liverpool | H | 1–0 | McGovern | 39,159 |
Football League Cup
Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F – A |
Scorers | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
8 September 1971 | Second Round | Leeds United | H | 0–0 | 36,023 | |
27 September 1971 | Second Round Replay | Leeds United | A | 0–2 | 29,132 |
Texaco Cup
Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F – A |
Scorers | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 September 1971 | First Round First Leg | Dundee United | H | 6-2 | Durban, Hector, Walker, O'Hare, Hinton, Robson | 20,059 |
29 September 1971 | First Round Second Leg | Dundee United | A | 2-3 | Hinton, Butlin | 6000 |
20 October 1971 | Second Round First Leg | Stoke City | H | 3-2 | O'Hare 2, Hector | 21,487 |
3 November 1971 | Second Round Second Leg | Stoke City | A | 1-1 | Wignall | 23,461 |
24 November 1971 | Semi-Final First Leg | Newcastle United | H | 1-0 | O'Hare | 20,021 |
8 December 1971 | Semi-Final Second Leg | Newcastle United | A | 3-2 | Walker, McGovern, Todd | 37,140 |
25 January 1972 | Final First Leg | Airdrieonians | A | 0-0 | 16,000 | |
26 April 1972 | Final Second Leg | Airdrieonians | H | 2-1 | Hinton (pen), Davies | 25,102 |
FA Cup
Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F – A |
Scorers | Attendance |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 January 1972 | Third Round | Shrewsbury Town | H | 2–0 | Hector 2 | 33,463 |
5 February 1972 | Fourth Round | Notts County | H | 6–0 | Robson, Hector, Durban 3, Hinton (pen) | 39,450 |
26 February 1972 | Fifth Round | Arsenal | H | 2–2 | Hinton (pen), Durban | 39,622 |
29 February 1972 | Fifth Round Replay | Arsenal | A | 0–0 | 63,077 | |
13 March 1972 | Fifth Round Second Replay | Arsenal | N | 0–1 | 40,000 |