1959–60 Birmingham City F.C. season explained

Club:Birmingham City F.C.
Season:1959–60
Manager:
Gil Merrick thereafter
Chairman:Harry Morris Jr
Stdtitle:Ground
Stadium:St Andrew's
League:Football League First Division
League Result:19th
Cup1:FA Cup
Cup1 Result:Third round
(eliminated by Watford)
Cup2:Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
Cup2 Result:Runners-up
(eliminated by Barcelona)
Season Topscorer:Johnny Gordon (19)
Highest Attendance:41,260 vs Wolverhampton Wanderers, 22 August 1959
Lowest Attendance: Fairs Cup semi-final,
Average Attendance:26,880
Pattern La1:_whiteborder
Pattern B1:_vneckwhite
Pattern Ra1:_whiteborder
Pattern So1:_top_on_white
Leftarm1:000099
Body1:000099
Rightarm1:000099
Shorts1:ffffff
Socks1:000099
Prevseason:1958–59
Nextseason:1960–61

The 1959–60 Football League season was Birmingham City Football Club's 57th in the Football League and their 33rd in the First Division. They finished in 19th position in the 22-team division. They lost their opening third-round 1959–60 FA Cup-tie to Watford. In the 1958–60 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup, Birmingham reached the final, in which they lost 4–1 on aggregate to Barcelona.[1]

Twenty-two players made at least one appearance in senior first-team competition, and there were fifteen different goalscorers. Half backs Trevor Smith and Johnny Watts played in 46 of the 47 first-team matches over the season, and Johnny Gordon finished as leading goalscorer with 19 goals in all competitions, of which 16 were scored in the league.

Pat Beasley resigned as manager at the end of May 1960,[2] to be replaced by club appearance record-holder Gil Merrick following his retirement as a player.[3]

Football League First Division

See main article: 1959–60 Football League.

DateLeague
position		OpponentsVenueResultScore
F–A		ScorersAttendance
22 August 195919thWolverhampton WanderersHstyle=background:#fccL0–141,248
26 August 195910thNewcastle UnitedHstyle=background:#cfcW4–3Stubbs, Gordon, Orritt, Hooper pen26,986
29 August 195912thTottenham HotspurAstyle=background:#ffcD0–045,243
2 September 195916thNewcastle UnitedAstyle=background:#fccL0–135,395
5 September 195916thManchester UnitedHstyle=background:#ffcD1–1Watts38,242
9 September 195916thChelseaHstyle=background:#ffcD1–1Larkin28,132
12 September 195919thPreston North EndAstyle=background:#fccL2–3Stubbs, Neal18,934
16 September 195921stChelseaAstyle=background:#fccL2–4Hooper pen, Scott og31,651
19 September 195922ndLeicester CityHstyle=background:#fccL3–4Hooper 2 (1 pen), Smith24,950
26 September 195922ndBurnleyAstyle=background:#fccL1–3Orritt23,848
3 October 195921stLeeds UnitedHstyle=background:#cfcW2–0Barrett, Taylor25,301
10 October 195921stSheffield WednesdayHstyle=background:#ffcD0–021,769
17 October 195918thNottingham ForestAstyle=background:#cfcW2–0Stubbs, Gordon24,904
24 October 195919thFulhamHstyle=background:#fccL2–4Gordon 226,691
31 October 195921stArsenalAstyle=background:#fccL0–334,430
7 November 195921stLuton TownHstyle=background:#ffcD1–1Barrett19,007
14 November 195921stEvertonAstyle=background:#fccL0–419,172
21 November 195919thBlackpoolHstyle=background:#cfcW2–1Larkin, Hooper24,783
28 November 195919thBlackburn RoversAstyle=background:#fccL1–2Barrett20,549
5 December 195919thManchester CityHstyle=background:#cfcW4–2Gordon 2, Barrett, Hooper18,661
12 December 195920thBolton WanderersAstyle=background:#fccL1–4Hooper16,074
19 December 195921stWolverhampton WanderersAstyle=background:#fccL0–222,363
26 December 195920thWest Ham UnitedHstyle=background:#cfcW2–0Astall, Hooper29,745
28 December 195921stWest Ham UnitedAstyle=background:#fccL1–3Astall26,154
2 January 196021stTottenham HotspurHstyle=background:#fccL0–127,558
16 January 196021stManchester UnitedAstyle=background:#fccL1–2Larkin47,606
23 January 196021stPreston North EndHstyle=background:#cfcW2–1Larkin, Neal24,160
6 February 196021stLeicester CityAstyle=background:#cfcW3–1Weston, Hume, Hooper25,896
27 February 196021stManchester CityAstyle=background:#fccL0–323,479
5 March 196020thNottingham ForestHstyle=background:#cfcW4–1Gordon 2, Neal, Hooper24,821
9 March 196020thLeeds UnitedAstyle=background:#ffcD3–3Neal, Hooper, McConnell og8,557
12 March 196020thFulhamAstyle=background:#ffcD2–2Gordon, Hooper25,208
19 March 196021stBolton WanderersHstyle=background:#fccL2–5Weston, Gordon24,183
26 March 196021stLuton TownAstyle=background:#ffcD1–1Weston13,620
2 April 196020thEvertonHstyle=background:#ffcD2–2Gordon, Astall24,872
9 April 196020thBlackpoolAstyle=background:#cfcW1–0Gordon13,595
16 April 196020thArsenalHstyle=background:#cfcW3–0Murphy 2, Gordon27,201
18 April 196020thWest Bromwich AlbionHstyle=background:#fccL1–7Gordon28,685
19 April 196020thWest Bromwich AlbionAstyle=background:#ffcD1–1Gordon37,894
23 April 196020thSheffield WednesdayAstyle=background:#cfcW4–2Murphy 2, Astall, Hooper25,310
27 April 196020thBurnleyHstyle=background:#fccL0–137,032
30 April 196019thBlackburn RoversHstyle=background:#cfcW1–0Gordon24,476

League table (part)

Pos!scope="col"
ClubPldWDLFAGAPts
17thBlackburn Rovers421652160700.8637
18thChelsea421491976910.8337
19thBirmingham City4213101963800.7936
20thNottingham Forest421392050740.6835
21stLeeds United4212102063800.7134
KeyPos = League position; Pld = Matches played;
W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost;
F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points
Source[4]

FA Cup

See main article: 1959–60 FA Cup.

Inter-Cities Fairs Cup

See main article: 1958–60 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup and 1960 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup Final.

The early rounds of the 1958–60 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup were completed during Birmingham's 1958–59 season, leaving the semi-finals and final to be played this season. In the semi-final, Birmingham beat Belgian club Union Saint-Gilloise 4–2 in each leg to reach the final, in which they played Barcelona, who had eliminated them at the semi-final stage in the previous edition of the competition.

The first leg of the final was played in "bitter, slanting rain" on a St Andrew's pitch that "almost from one goal to the other down the centre, was a series of little lakes".[5] Birmingham played a "fast, open game" more suited to the conditions, while Barcelona's technical superiority was blunted both by the mud and by the "hard-tackling, grafting, bustling Birmingham defence, in which Smith and Neal in particular stood out like rocks long before the end".[5] In the second half, Barcelona tired; El Mundo Deportivo noted that they had played a league match in Seville only 48 hours earlier and the players were not machines.[6] The home side had three good chances: Ramallets dived at Hooper's feet, Weston ran the ball out of play when under no pressure, and a "sliding tackle from nowhere by Gensana turned away what looked like a certain goal", again for Weston.[5]

The Times correspondent's fears that Birmingham had missed their opportunity – "here was a setting that favoured Birmingham's particular style, and they did not win"[5]  – were realised in the second leg. In a one-sided match in front of a crowd of 75,000, Barcelona were two goals up after six minutes, and doubled their tally before Murphy broke down the left and sent a long pass towards Hooper, whose mobility helped him beat Ramallets to the ball and score with a header.[7]

RoundDateOpponentsVenueResultScore
F–A		ScorersAttendance
Semi-final 1st leg7 October 1959Union Saint-GilloiseAstyle=background:#cfcW4–2Hooper, Gordon, Barrett, Orritt20,000
Semi-final 2nd leg11 November 1959Union Saint-GilloiseHstyle=background:#cfcW4–2Gordon 2, Larkin, Hooper14,152
Final 1st leg29 March 1960BarcelonaHstyle=background:#ffcD0–040,524
Final 2nd leg4 May 1960BarcelonaAstyle=background:#fccL1–4Hooper75,000

Appearances and goals

Key to positions: GK – Goalkeeper; FB – Full back; HB – Half back; FW – Forward

Players' appearances and goals by competition
NameLeagueFA CupFairs CupTotal
GoalsGoalsGoalsGoals
data-sort-value=1GK20001030
data-sort-value=1GK4001030440
data-sort-value=2FB3601030400
data-sort-value=2FB4001040450
data-sort-value=2FB80001090
data-sort-value=2FB10000010
data-sort-value=3HB3931030433
data-sort-value=3HB4111040461
data-sort-value=3HB4111040461
data-sort-value=4FW1941020224
data-sort-value=4FW1041021135
data-sort-value=4FW391600434319
data-sort-value=4FW1100010120
data-sort-value=4FW391311434417
data-sort-value=4FW82000082
data-sort-value=4FW1941011215
data-sort-value=4FW74001084
data-sort-value=4FW1620021183
data-sort-value=4FW40000040
data-sort-value=4FW1831000193
data-sort-value=4FW810020101
data-sort-value=4FW1630020183

See also

References

General

Specific

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Fairs' Cup 1959–60 . Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF) . Zea . Antonio . Haisma . Marcel . amp . 27 June 2007 . 25 April 2012 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20121101072852/http://rsssf.com/ec/ec195960det.html . 1 November 2012 . dmy .
  2. News: Sports news in brief . The Guardian . 24 May 1960 . 11.
  3. Matthews (1995), p. 62.
  4. Web site: Birmingham City 1959–1960: English Division One (old) Table . Statto Organisation . 26 April 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151022053705/http://www.statto.com/football/teams/birmingham-city/1959-1960/table . 22 October 2015 . dead . dmy-all .
  5. News: Birmingham And Mud Check Barcelona . The Times . London . 30 March 1960 . 16.
  6. News: Tras el empate de Birmingham el Barcelona tiene buéna opción a renovar su título . The draw with Birmingham gives Barcelona good prospects of retaining their title . es . Carlos . Pardo . El Mundo Deportivo . 30 March 1960 . 3.
  7. News: Barcelona, 4 – Birmingham, 1 . es . Jimeno . E.L. . El Mundo Deportivo . 5 May 1960 . 3.
    News: Cronometrando el partido . Clockwatch . es . El Mundo Deportivo . 5 May 1960 . 3.

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