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1957–58 in English football

The1957–58 seasonwas the 78th season of competitive football inEngland.

The season ended with Wolverhampton Wanderers as First Division champions after scoring 103 goals and Bolton Wanderers asFA Cupwinners. However, the season is remembered most for the Munich air disaster which occurred on 6 February 1958 and involvedManchester Unitedon the return flight from a European Cup quarter-final win inYugoslavia. 23 people died as a result of their injuries in the crash, including eight of the club’s players.

Football in England
Season 1957–58
Men’s football
First Division Wolverhampton Wanderers
Second Division West Ham United
Third Division North Scunthorpe & Lindsey United
Third Division South Brighton & Hove Albion
FA Cup Bolton Wanderers
FA Amateur Cup Woking
Charity Shield Manchester United
← 1956–57 England 1958–59→

Overview

[1]In this season, Sunderland were relegated for the first time in their history. This was the last season in which Division 3 was split, North and South. Teams finishing between 2nd and 12th were placed in Division 3 the following season, the remainder in Division 4

Diary of the season

31 August 1957: The Manchester derby at Old Trafford seesUnitedbeatCity4-1 with goals from Duncan Edwards, Tommy Taylor, Johnny Berry and Dennis Viollet.[2]

18 September 1957: In the First Division,Nottingham Forestbeat Burnley 7–0, the first time they have scored seven without reply since 1950 in the Football League Third Division South.[3]

28 September 1957: Wolverhampton Wanderers beat Manchester United at home 3-1 with two goals from Dennis Wilshaw and one from Norman Deeley.[4]

10 October 1957: The England squad to face Wales is announced, and features three newcomers. They are Bolton Wanderers goalkeeper Eddie Hopkinson, Blackburn Rovers’ Bryan Douglas and Don Howe of West Bromwich Albion.[5]

16 November 1957: Champions-to-be Wolverhampton Wanderers lose their 100% home record to local rivals West Bromwich Albion in a 1-1 draw. Until then the home team had won 8 successive home games scoring 27 goals against 5.[4]

1 December 1957: Harry Gregg becomes the world’s most expensive goalkeeper in a £23,500 transfer from Doncaster Rovers to Manchester United.[6]

7 December 1957:Everton‘s Dave Hickson is sent off from their all-North West clash with Manchester City.[7]

13 December 1957: Evertonian Tony McNamara heads across Stanley Park to joinLiverpool.[8]

25 December 1957:Tottenham Hotspurin their 1-0 home victory become only the second team (Everton did so in the first game of the season) in the whole season to prevent the Champions-to-be Wolverhampton Wanderers from scoring.[4]

3 January 1958: Liverpool add “much-wanted” Hibs inside forward Jimmy Harrower to their ranks, paying a fee that “tops £10,000”.[8]

9–10 January 1958: Dave Hickson is suspended by the Football Association for 21 days, their disciplinary committee taking into account “the player’s record on previous misconduct”; Everton order him not to comment.[7]

15 January 1958: Manchester United manager Matt Busby accepts an offer to become manager of the Scotland national football team, while attending the under-23 international at Goodison Park between England and Scotland. Reports suggest Busby will assume command before the match between Scotland and a Scottish Football League XI on 3 February.[9]

1 February 1958: A thrilling First Division match at Highbury sees Manchester United defeatArsenal5–4.[10]

5 February 1958: Manchester United reach the European Cup semi-finals with a 3–3 draw (5–4 win on aggregate) in the quarter-final second leg against Red Star Belgrade inYugoslavia.

6 February 1958: The Manchester United team plane crashes at Munich Airport inWest Germany. 21 people are killed, including seven of the team’s players (Roger Byrne, Geoff Bent, Eddie Colman, Bill Whelan, Tommy Taylor, David Pegg and Mark Jones) and three club officials (secretary Walter Crickmer, coach Tom Curry and trainer Bert Whalley). Also among the dead is journalist Frank Swift, the former Manchester City and England goalkeeper. 10 other players are injured, with doctors being particularly concerned about the conditions of winger Johnny Berry and left-half Duncan Edwards.[11]Manager Matt Busby is also seriously injured.[12]

19 February 1958: In their first game since the Munich air disaster, Manchester United (with a side mostly made up of reserve players) defeat Sheffield Wednesday 3–0 in theFA Cupfifth round at Old Trafford. However, the victory is overshadowed by news from Munich that the condition of Duncan Edwards has deteriorated once more.[13]

21 February 1958: Duncan Edwards (aged 21) dies in hospital from injuries sustained 15 days ago in the Munich air disaster.

13 March 1958: Liverpool’s leading goalscorer, Tony Rowley, signs for Tranmere Rovers.[14]

12 April 1958: Woking win the FA Amateur Cup after victory over Ilford in the final 3–0, in front of a young Martin Tyler.[15]

26 April 1958: Wolverhampton Wanderers are crowned Champions after scoring their 103rd goal but are beaten by already-relegated Sheffield Wednesday in their last league game of the season, while in the Second Division the Anglo-Welsh derby between Bristol City and Swansea Town goes the way of the Welsh club.[16]Meanwhile, two England representative teams are in action, as the schoolboys win 3–1 over their Scottish equivalents at Wembley Stadium in front of 90,000,[17]while the England amateurs drew 1–1 against France.[18]

3 May 1958: Nat Lofthouse scores both goals as Bolton Wanderers beat Manchester United 2–0 in the Final at Wembley to win the FA Cup for the fourth time.

Notable debutants

24 August 1957: Jimmy Greaves, 17-year-old forward, scores once on his debut forChelseain a First Division fixture againstTottenham Hotspur.[19]

28 September 1957: Gerry Byrne, 19-year-old left-back, makes his debut for illness-ravaged Liverpool.[20]

21 December 1957: Kenny Morgans, 18-year-old winger, makes his debut for Manchester United in First Division home match against Leicester City.[21]

19 February 1958: Shay Brennan, 20-year-old winger, scores twice on his debut for Manchester United as they beat Sheffield Wednesday 3-0 in the FA Cup third round, their first game after the Munich air disaster.[22]

Honours

Competition Winner Runner-up
First Division Wolverhampton Wanderers (2) Preston North End
Second Division West Ham United Blackburn Rovers
Third Division North Scunthorpe & Lindsey United Accrington Stanley
Third Division South Brighton & Hove Albion Brentford
FA Cup Bolton Wanderers (4) Manchester United
Charity Shield Manchester United Aston Villa
Home Championship Shared byEngland&Northern Ireland

Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour. * indicates new record for competition

Awards

Football Writers’ Association

Top goalscorer

Football League

First Division

The First Division title went to Wolves, still captained by Billy Wright and managed by Stan Cullis. Preston North End finished runners-up, while Tottenham Hotspur finished third thanks largely to the influence of captain and Footballer of the Year, Danny Blanchflower. West Bromwich Albion finished fourth and the top five was completed by Manchester City, who became the first and so far only club to both score and concede 100 goals in a league season. After the Munich air disaster, Manchester United won only one more league game and dipped to ninth place, although they did reach the FA Cup final, where they were beaten by Bolton Wanderers.

Sheffield Wednesday propped up the First Division and were the first side to go down, being joined soon after by a Sunderland side who had enjoyed the longest run in the First Division totaling nearly 70 years.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Wolverhampton Wanderers 42 28 8 6 103 47 2.191 64 Qualified for the European Cup
2 Preston North End 42 26 7 9 100 51 1.961 59
3 Tottenham Hotspur 42 21 9 12 93 77 1.208 51
4 West Bromwich Albion 42 18 14 10 92 70 1.314 50
5 Manchester City 42 22 5 15 104 100 1.040 49
6 Burnley 42 21 5 16 80 74 1.081 47
7 Blackpool 42 19 6 17 80 67 1.194 44
8 Luton Town 42 19 6 17 69 63 1.095 44
9 Manchester United 42 16 11 15 85 75 1.133 43
10 Nottingham Forest 42 16 10 16 69 63 1.095 42
11 Chelsea 42 15 12 15 83 79 1.051 42
12 Arsenal 42 16 7 19 73 85 0.859 39
13 Birmingham City 42 14 11 17 76 89 0.854 39
14 Aston Villa 42 16 7 19 73 86 0.849 39
15 Bolton Wanderers 42 14 10 18 65 87 0.747 38
16 Everton 42 13 11 18 65 75 0.867 37
17 Leeds United 42 14 9 19 51 63 0.810 37
18 Leicester City 42 14 5 23 91 112 0.813 33
19 Newcastle United 42 12 8 22 73 81 0.901 32
20 Portsmouth 42 12 8 22 73 88 0.830 32
21 Sunderland 42 10 12 20 54 97 0.557 32 Relegated to the Second Division
22 Sheffield Wednesday 42 12 7 23 69 92 0.750 31

Second Division

West Ham United topped the Second Division to secure First Division football for the first time in the postwar era, while Blackburn Rovers finished one point behind them in second place. Charlton Athletic missed out on an immediate return to the First Division by a single point, while Liverpool missed out on promotion by two points.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 West Ham United 42 23 11 8 101 54 1.870 57 Promoted to the First Division
2 Blackburn Rovers 42 22 12 8 93 57 1.632 56
3 Charlton Athletic 42 24 7 11 107 69 1.551 55
4 Liverpool 42 22 10 10 79 54 1.463 54
5 Fulham 42 20 12 10 97 59 1.644 52
6 Sheffield United 42 21 10 11 75 50 1.500 52
7 Middlesbrough 42 19 7 16 83 74 1.122 45
8 Ipswich Town 42 16 12 14 68 69 0.986 44
9 Huddersfield Town 42 14 16 12 63 66 0.955 44
10 Bristol Rovers 42 17 8 17 85 80 1.063 42
11 Stoke City 42 18 6 18 75 73 1.027 42
12 Leyton Orient 42 18 5 19 77 79 0.975 41
13 Grimsby Town 42 17 6 19 86 83 1.036 40
14 Barnsley 42 14 12 16 70 74 0.946 40
15 Cardiff City 42 14 9 19 63 77 0.818 37
16 Derby County 42 14 8 20 60 81 0.741 36
17 Bristol City 42 13 9 20 63 88 0.716 35
18 Rotherham United 42 14 5 23 65 101 0.644 33
19 Swansea Town 42 11 9 22 72 99 0.727 31
20 Lincoln City 42 11 9 22 55 82 0.671 31
21 Notts County 42 12 6 24 44 80 0.550 30 Relegated to the Third Division
22 Doncaster Rovers 42 8 11 23 56 88 0.636 27

Third Division North

Scunthorpe & Lindsey United sealed the Third Division North title by a comfortable margin and secured their place in the Second Division, while runners-up Accrington Stanley had the consolation of at least being able to play in the third of the league’s fourth tiers following the decision to reorganize into four national divisions for the 1958-59 season.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Scunthorpe & Lindsey United 46 29 8 9 88 50 1.760 66 Promoted to the Second Division
2 Accrington Stanley 46 25 9 12 83 61 1.361 59 Qualified to the Third Division
3 Bradford City 46 21 15 10 73 49 1.490 57
4 Bury 46 23 10 13 94 62 1.516 56
5 Hull City 46 19 15 12 78 67 1.164 53
6 Mansfield Town 46 22 8 16 100 92 1.087 52
7 Halifax Town 46 20 11 15 83 69 1.203 51
8 Chesterfield 46 18 15 13 71 69 1.029 51
9 Stockport County 46 18 11 17 74 67 1.104 47
10 Rochdale 46 19 8 19 79 67 1.179 46
11 Tranmere Rovers 46 18 10 18 82 76 1.079 46
12 Wrexham 46 17 12 17 61 63 0.968 46
13 York City 46 17 12 17 68 76 0.895 46 Transferred to the Fourth Division
14 Gateshead 46 15 15 16 68 76 0.895 45
15 Oldham Athletic 46 14 17 15 72 84 0.857 45
16 Carlisle United 46 19 6 21 80 78 1.026 44
17 Hartlepools United 46 16 12 18 73 76 0.961 44
18 Barrow 46 13 15 18 66 74 0.892 41
19 Workington 46 14 13 19 72 81 0.889 41
20 Darlington 46 17 7 22 78 89 0.876 41
21 Chester 46 13 13 20 73 81 0.901 39
22 Bradford Park Avenue 46 13 11 22 68 95 0.716 37
23 Southport 46 11 6 29 52 88 0.591 28 Re-elected to the Fourth Division
24 Crewe Alexandra 46 8 7 31 47 93 0.505 23

Third Division South

Brighton & Hove Albion won promotion to the Second Division as champions of the Third Division South.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Brighton & Hove Albion 46 24 12 10 88 64 1.375 60 Promoted to the Second Division
2 Brentford 46 24 10 12 82 56 1.464 58 Qualified to the Third Division
3 Plymouth Argyle 46 25 8 13 67 48 1.396 58
4 Swindon Town 46 21 15 10 79 50 1.580 57
5 Reading 46 21 13 12 79 51 1.549 55
6 Southampton 46 22 10 14 112 72 1.556 54
7 Southend United 46 21 12 13 90 58 1.552 54
8 Norwich City 46 19 15 12 75 70 1.071 53
9 Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic 46 21 9 16 81 74 1.095 51
10 Queens Park Rangers 46 18 14 14 64 65 0.985 50
11 Newport County 46 17 14 15 73 67 1.090 48
12 Colchester United 46 17 13 16 77 79 0.975 47
13 Northampton Town 46 19 6 21 87 79 1.101 44 Transferred to the Fourth Division
14 Crystal Palace 46 15 13 18 70 72 0.972 43
15 Port Vale 46 16 10 20 67 58 1.155 42
16 Watford 46 13 16 17 59 77 0.766 42
17 Shrewsbury Town 46 15 10 21 49 71 0.690 40
18 Aldershot 46 12 16 18 59 89 0.663 40
19 Coventry City 46 13 13 20 61 81 0.753 39
20 Walsall 46 14 9 23 61 75 0.813 37
21 Torquay United 46 11 13 22 49 74 0.662 35
22 Gillingham 46 13 9 24 52 81 0.642 35
23 Millwall 46 11 9 26 63 91 0.692 31 Re-elected to the Fourth Division
24 Exeter City 46 11 9 26 57 99 0.576 31

Top goalscorers

First Division

Second Division

  • Tommy Johnston (Leyton Orient / Blackburn Rovers) – 43 goals[23]

Third Division North

  • Alf Ackerman (Carlisle United) – 35 goals[24]

Third Division South

  • Derek Reeves (Southampton) and Sammy McCrory (Southend United) – 31 goals[24]

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