1971–72 Football League
The 1971–72 season was the 73rd completed season of The Football League.
Season | 1971–72 |
---|---|
Champions | Derby County |
Relegated | Barrow |
← 1970–71 1972–73 → |
Brian Clough, 37, won the first major trophy of his managerial career by guiding Derby County to their first ever league championship. They overcame Leeds United, Liverpool and Manchester City to win a four-horse race, with only a single point separating them. There were later bribery allegations from The Sun newspaper regarding Leeds manager Don Revie and Leeds' final opponents Wolverhampton Wanderers. The footballing authorities never investigated these allegations to decide whether they were true or not.
Nottingham Forest and Huddersfield Town lost their First Division status. By the end of the decade, Forest had made an explosive comeback to the top flight. 1971 – 1972 was Huddersfield's last season in the top flight until their promotion in 2016-17, and within a few seasons they would be in the Fourth Division — most of their existence since 1972 has been spent in the league's lower two divisions.
In the Second Division Norwich City and Birmingham City were promoted. This was the first time that Norwich City had reached the top flight. Charlton Athletic and Watford were relegated.
Aston Villa ended their two-year spell in the Third Division by gaining promotion as champions, and by the end of the decade would be firmly re-established as a First Division club. Brighton & Hove Albion followed Villa into the Second Division, but would not reach the heady heights that the midlanders would experience. Mansfield Town, Barnsley, Torquay United and Bradford City were relegated.
Grimsby Town, Southend United, Brentford and Scunthorpe United were promoted from the Fourth Division. Barrow were voted out of the Football League and replaced by Hereford United, who a short time earlier had achieved a shock FA Cup victory over Newcastle United.
Ernie Tagg sacked himself as manager of Crewe Alexandra because he felt that a younger manager should take charge of the club.
Final league tables and results
The tables below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation website[1] and in Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79,[2] with home and away statistics separated.
Beginning with the season 1894–95, clubs finishing level on points were separated according to goal average (goals scored divided by goals conceded), or more properly put, goal ratio. In case one or more teams had the same goal difference, this system favoured those teams who had scored fewer goals. The goal average system was eventually scrapped beginning with the 1976–77 season.
Since the goal average was used for this purpose for such a long time, it is presented in the tables below even for the seasons prior to 1894–95, and since the goal difference is a more informative piece of information for a modern reader than the goal average, the goal difference is added in this presentation after the goal average. During the first five seasons of the league, that is, until the season 1893–94, re-election process concerned the clubs which finished in the bottom four of the league. From the 1894–95 season and until the 1920–21 season the re-election process was required of the clubs which finished in the bottom three of the league. From the 1922–23 season on it was required of the bottom two teams of both Third Division North and Third Division South. Since the Fourth Division was established in the 1958–59 season, the re-election process has concerned the bottom four clubs in that division.[2]
First Division
Season | 1971–72 |
---|---|
Champions | Derby County (1st English title) |
Relegated | Huddersfield Town, Nottingham Forest |
1972–73 European Cup | Derby County |
FA Cup winners 1972–73 European Cup Winners' Cup | Leeds United (1st title) |
1972–73 UEFA Cup | Liverpool, Manchester City, Stoke City Tottenham Hotspur |
Matches played | 462 |
Goals scored | 1,160 (2.51 per match) |
Top goalscorer | Francis Lee (Manchester City), 33 [3] |
Biggest home win | Everton – Southampton 8–0 (20 November 1971) |
Biggest away win | Sheffield United – Arsenal 0–5 (29 January 1972) |
Highest scoring | Everton – Southampton 8–0 (20 November 1971) |
← 1970–71 1972–73 → |
Pos | Team | Pld | HW | HD | HL | HGF | HGA | AW | AD | AL | AGF | AGA | GR | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Derby County | 42 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 43 | 10 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 26 | 23 | 2.091 | 58 | European Cup |
2 | Leeds United | 42 | 17 | 4 | 0 | 54 | 10 | 7 | 5 | 9 | 19 | 21 | 2.355 | 57 | European Cup Winners' Cup |
3 | Liverpool | 42 | 17 | 3 | 1 | 48 | 16 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 16 | 14 | 2.133 | 57 | UEFA Cup |
4 | Manchester City | 42 | 16 | 3 | 2 | 48 | 15 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 29 | 30 | 1.711 | 57 | |
5 | Arsenal | 42 | 15 | 2 | 4 | 36 | 13 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 22 | 27 | 1.450 | 52 | |
6 | Tottenham Hotspur | 42 | 16 | 3 | 2 | 45 | 13 | 3 | 10 | 8 | 18 | 29 | 1.500 | 51 | UEFA Cup[lower-alpha 1] |
7 | Chelsea | 42 | 12 | 7 | 2 | 41 | 20 | 6 | 5 | 10 | 17 | 29 | 1.184 | 48 | |
8 | Manchester United | 42 | 13 | 2 | 6 | 39 | 26 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 30 | 35 | 1.131 | 48 | |
9 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 42 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 35 | 23 | 8 | 4 | 9 | 30 | 34 | 1.140 | 47 | |
10 | Sheffield United | 42 | 10 | 8 | 3 | 39 | 26 | 7 | 4 | 10 | 22 | 34 | 1.017 | 46 | |
11 | Newcastle United | 42 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 30 | 18 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 19 | 34 | 0.942 | 41 | |
12 | Leicester City | 42 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 18 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 10 | 23 | 35 | 0.891 | 39 | |
13 | Ipswich Town | 42 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 19 | 19 | 4 | 8 | 9 | 20 | 34 | 0.736 | 38 | |
14 | West Ham United | 42 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 31 | 19 | 2 | 6 | 13 | 16 | 32 | 0.922 | 36 | |
15 | Everton | 42 | 8 | 9 | 4 | 28 | 17 | 1 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 31 | 0.771 | 36 | |
16 | West Bromwich Albion | 42 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 22 | 23 | 6 | 4 | 11 | 20 | 31 | 0.778 | 35 | |
17 | Stoke City | 42 | 6 | 10 | 5 | 26 | 25 | 4 | 5 | 12 | 13 | 31 | 0.696 | 35 | UEFA Cup[lower-alpha 2] |
18 | Coventry City | 42 | 7 | 10 | 4 | 27 | 23 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 17 | 44 | 0.657 | 33 | |
19 | Southampton | 42 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 31 | 28 | 4 | 2 | 15 | 21 | 52 | 0.650 | 31 | |
20 | Crystal Palace | 42 | 4 | 8 | 9 | 26 | 31 | 4 | 5 | 12 | 13 | 34 | 0.600 | 29 | |
21 | Nottingham Forest | 42 | 6 | 4 | 11 | 25 | 29 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 22 | 52 | 0.580 | 25 | Relegated |
22 | Huddersfield Town | 42 | 4 | 7 | 10 | 12 | 22 | 2 | 6 | 13 | 15 | 37 | 0.458 | 25 |
Notes:
- Tottenham Hotspur qualified for the 1972–73 UEFA Cup as winners of the inaugural competition in 1971–72.
- Stoke City qualified for the 1972–73 UEFA Cup by winning the 1972 League Cup.
Results
Maps
Second Division
Season | 1971–72 |
---|---|
Champions | Norwich City (1st title) |
Promoted | Birmingham City |
Relegated | Charlton Athletic, Watford |
Matches played | 462 |
Goals scored | 1,194 (2.58 per match) |
Top goalscorer | Bob Latchford (Birmingham City), 23 [3] |
Biggest home win | Burnley – Orient 6–1 (28 September 1971) Cardiff – Charlton Athletic 6–1 (23 October 1971) Blackpool – Charlton Athletic 5–0 (29 April 1972) Blackpool – Watford 5–0 (1 January 1972) Orient – Sunderland 5–0 (8 January 1972) Sunderland –Watford 5–0 (17 April 1972) |
Biggest away win | Sheffield Wednesday – Bristol City 1–5 (21 April 1972) |
Highest scoring | Birmingham – Portsmouth 6–3 (8 January 1972) Portsmouth –Fulham 6–3 (23 October 1971) |
← 1970–71 1972–73 → |
Pos | Team | Pld | HW | HD | HL | HGF | HGA | AW | AD | AL | AGF | AGA | GR | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Norwich City | 42 | 13 | 8 | 0 | 40 | 16 | 8 | 7 | 6 | 20 | 20 | 1.667 | 57 | Division Champions, promoted |
2 | Birmingham City | 42 | 15 | 6 | 0 | 46 | 14 | 4 | 12 | 5 | 14 | 17 | 1.935 | 56 | Promoted |
3 | Millwall | 42 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 38 | 17 | 5 | 10 | 6 | 26 | 29 | 1.391 | 55 | |
4 | Queens Park Rangers | 42 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 39 | 9 | 4 | 10 | 7 | 18 | 19 | 2.036 | 54 | |
5 | Sunderland | 42 | 11 | 7 | 3 | 42 | 24 | 6 | 9 | 6 | 25 | 33 | 1.175 | 50 | |
6 | Blackpool | 42 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 43 | 16 | 8 | 1 | 12 | 27 | 34 | 1.400 | 47 | |
7 | Burnley | 42 | 13 | 4 | 4 | 43 | 22 | 7 | 2 | 12 | 27 | 33 | 1.273 | 46 | |
8 | Bristol City | 42 | 14 | 3 | 4 | 43 | 22 | 4 | 7 | 10 | 18 | 27 | 1.245 | 46 | |
9 | Middlesbrough | 42 | 16 | 4 | 1 | 31 | 11 | 3 | 4 | 14 | 19 | 37 | 1.042 | 46 | |
10 | Carlisle United | 42 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 38 | 22 | 5 | 3 | 13 | 23 | 35 | 1.070 | 43 | |
11 | Swindon Town | 42 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 29 | 16 | 5 | 6 | 10 | 18 | 31 | 1.000 | 42 | |
12 | Hull City | 42 | 10 | 6 | 5 | 33 | 21 | 4 | 4 | 13 | 16 | 32 | 0.925 | 38 | |
13 | Luton Town | 42 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 25 | 24 | 3 | 10 | 8 | 18 | 24 | 0.896 | 38 | |
14 | Sheffield Wednesday | 42 | 11 | 7 | 3 | 33 | 22 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 18 | 36 | 0.879 | 38 | |
15 | Oxford United | 42 | 10 | 8 | 3 | 28 | 17 | 2 | 6 | 13 | 15 | 38 | 0.782 | 38 | |
16 | Portsmouth | 42 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 31 | 26 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 28 | 42 | 0.868 | 37 | |
17 | Orient | 42 | 12 | 4 | 5 | 32 | 19 | 2 | 5 | 14 | 18 | 42 | 0.820 | 37 | |
18 | Preston North End | 42 | 11 | 4 | 6 | 32 | 21 | 1 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 37 | 0.897 | 36 | |
19 | Cardiff City | 42 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 37 | 25 | 1 | 7 | 13 | 19 | 44 | 0.812 | 34 | |
20 | Fulham | 42 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 29 | 20 | 2 | 3 | 16 | 16 | 48 | 0.662 | 34 | |
21 | Charlton Athletic | 42 | 9 | 7 | 5 | 33 | 25 | 3 | 2 | 16 | 22 | 52 | 0.714 | 33 | Relegated |
22 | Watford | 42 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 15 | 25 | 0 | 4 | 17 | 9 | 50 | 0.320 | 19 |
Results
Third Division
Season | 1971–72 |
---|---|
Champions | Aston Villa (1st title) |
Promoted | Brighton & Hove Albion |
Relegated | Barnsley, Bradford City, Mansfield Town, Torquay United |
Matches played | 552 |
Goals scored | 1,407 (2.55 per match) |
Top goalscorer | Ted MacDougall (Bournemouth), 35 [3] |
← 1970–71 1972–73 → |
Pos | Team | Pld | HW | HD | HL | HGF | HGA | AW | AD | AL | AGF | AGA | GR | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Aston Villa | 46 | 20 | 1 | 2 | 45 | 10 | 12 | 5 | 6 | 40 | 22 | 2.656 | 70 | Division Champions, promoted |
2 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 46 | 15 | 5 | 3 | 39 | 18 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 43 | 29 | 1.745 | 65 | Promoted |
3 | Bournemouth | 46 | 16 | 6 | 1 | 43 | 13 | 7 | 10 | 6 | 30 | 24 | 1.973 | 62 | |
4 | Notts County | 46 | 16 | 3 | 4 | 42 | 19 | 9 | 9 | 5 | 32 | 25 | 1.682 | 62 | |
5 | Rotherham United | 46 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 46 | 25 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 23 | 27 | 1.327 | 55 | |
6 | Bristol Rovers | 46 | 17 | 2 | 4 | 54 | 26 | 4 | 10 | 9 | 21 | 30 | 1.339 | 54 | |
7 | Bolton Wanderers | 46 | 11 | 8 | 4 | 25 | 13 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 26 | 28 | 1.244 | 50 | |
8 | Plymouth Argyle | 46 | 13 | 6 | 4 | 43 | 26 | 7 | 4 | 12 | 31 | 38 | 1.156 | 50 | |
9 | Walsall | 46 | 12 | 8 | 3 | 38 | 16 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 24 | 41 | 1.088 | 48 | |
10 | Blackburn Rovers | 46 | 14 | 4 | 5 | 39 | 22 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 15 | 35 | 0.947 | 47 | |
11 | Oldham Athletic | 46 | 11 | 4 | 8 | 37 | 35 | 6 | 7 | 10 | 22 | 28 | 0.937 | 45 | |
12 | Shrewsbury Town | 46 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 50 | 29 | 4 | 5 | 14 | 23 | 36 | 1.123 | 44 | |
13 | Chesterfield | 46 | 10 | 5 | 8 | 25 | 23 | 8 | 3 | 12 | 32 | 34 | 1.000 | 44 | |
14 | Swansea City | 46 | 10 | 6 | 7 | 27 | 21 | 7 | 4 | 12 | 19 | 38 | 0.780 | 44 | |
15 | Port Vale | 46 | 10 | 10 | 3 | 27 | 21 | 3 | 5 | 15 | 16 | 38 | 0.729 | 41 | |
16 | Wrexham | 46 | 10 | 5 | 8 | 33 | 26 | 6 | 3 | 14 | 26 | 37 | 0.937 | 40 | Welsh Cup winners, qualified for 1972–73 European Cup Winners' Cup: First round |
17 | Halifax Town | 46 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 31 | 22 | 2 | 6 | 15 | 17 | 39 | 0.787 | 38 | |
18 | Rochdale | 46 | 11 | 7 | 5 | 35 | 26 | 1 | 6 | 16 | 22 | 57 | 0.687 | 37 | |
19 | York City | 46 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 32 | 22 | 4 | 4 | 15 | 25 | 44 | 0.864 | 36 | |
20 | Tranmere Rovers | 46 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 34 | 30 | 1 | 9 | 13 | 16 | 41 | 0.704 | 36 | |
21 | Mansfield Town | 46 | 5 | 12 | 6 | 19 | 26 | 3 | 8 | 12 | 22 | 37 | 0.651 | 36 | Relegated |
22 | Barnsley | 46 | 6 | 10 | 7 | 23 | 30 | 3 | 8 | 12 | 9 | 34 | 0.500 | 36 | |
23 | Torquay United | 46 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 31 | 31 | 2 | 6 | 15 | 10 | 38 | 0.594 | 32 | |
24 | Bradford City | 46 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 27 | 32 | 5 | 2 | 16 | 18 | 45 | 0.584 | 32 |
Results
Fourth Division
Season | 1971–72 |
---|---|
Champions | Grimsby Town (1st title) |
Promoted | Brentford, Scunthorpe United, Southend United |
Failed re-election | Barrow |
Matches played | 552 |
Goals scored | 1,496 (2.71 per match) |
Top goalscorer | Peter Price (Peterborough United), 28 [3] |
← 1970–71 1972–73 → |
Pos | Team | Pld | HW | HD | HL | HGF | HGA | AW | AD | AL | AGF | AGA | GR | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Grimsby Town | 46 | 18 | 3 | 2 | 61 | 26 | 10 | 4 | 9 | 27 | 30 | 1.571 | 63 | Division Champions, promoted |
2 | Southend United | 46 | 18 | 2 | 3 | 56 | 26 | 6 | 10 | 7 | 25 | 29 | 1.473 | 60 | Promoted |
3 | Brentford | 46 | 16 | 2 | 5 | 52 | 21 | 8 | 9 | 6 | 24 | 23 | 1.727 | 59 | |
4 | Scunthorpe United | 46 | 13 | 8 | 2 | 34 | 15 | 9 | 5 | 9 | 22 | 22 | 1.514 | 57 | |
5 | Lincoln City | 46 | 17 | 5 | 1 | 46 | 15 | 4 | 9 | 10 | 31 | 44 | 1.305 | 56 | |
6 | Workington | 46 | 12 | 9 | 2 | 34 | 7 | 4 | 10 | 9 | 16 | 27 | 1.471 | 51 | |
7 | Southport | 46 | 15 | 5 | 3 | 48 | 21 | 3 | 9 | 11 | 18 | 25 | 1.435 | 50 | |
8 | Peterborough United | 46 | 14 | 6 | 3 | 51 | 24 | 3 | 10 | 10 | 31 | 40 | 1.281 | 50 | |
9 | Bury | 46 | 16 | 4 | 3 | 55 | 22 | 3 | 8 | 12 | 18 | 37 | 1.237 | 50 | |
10 | Cambridge United | 46 | 11 | 8 | 4 | 38 | 22 | 6 | 6 | 11 | 24 | 38 | 1.033 | 48 | |
11 | Colchester United | 46 | 13 | 6 | 4 | 38 | 23 | 6 | 4 | 13 | 32 | 46 | 1.014 | 48 | |
12 | Doncaster Rovers | 46 | 11 | 8 | 4 | 35 | 24 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 21 | 39 | 0.889 | 46 | |
13 | Gillingham | 46 | 11 | 5 | 7 | 33 | 24 | 5 | 8 | 10 | 28 | 43 | 0.910 | 45 | |
14 | Newport County | 46 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 34 | 20 | 5 | 3 | 15 | 26 | 52 | 0.833 | 44 | |
15 | Exeter City | 46 | 11 | 5 | 7 | 40 | 30 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 21 | 38 | 0.897 | 43 | |
16 | Reading | 46 | 14 | 3 | 6 | 37 | 26 | 3 | 5 | 15 | 19 | 50 | 0.737 | 42 | |
17 | Aldershot | 46 | 5 | 13 | 5 | 27 | 20 | 4 | 9 | 10 | 21 | 34 | 0.889 | 40 | |
18 | Hartlepool | 46 | 14 | 2 | 7 | 39 | 25 | 3 | 4 | 16 | 19 | 44 | 0.841 | 40 | |
19 | Darlington | 46 | 9 | 9 | 5 | 37 | 24 | 5 | 2 | 16 | 27 | 58 | 0.780 | 39 | |
20 | Chester | 46 | 10 | 11 | 2 | 34 | 16 | 0 | 7 | 16 | 13 | 40 | 0.839 | 38 | |
21 | Northampton Town | 46 | 8 | 9 | 6 | 43 | 27 | 4 | 4 | 15 | 23 | 52 | 0.835 | 37 | Re-elected |
22 | Barrow | 46 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 23 | 26 | 5 | 3 | 15 | 17 | 45 | 0.563 | 37 | Failed re-election |
23 | Stockport County | 46 | 7 | 10 | 6 | 33 | 32 | 2 | 4 | 17 | 22 | 55 | 0.632 | 32 | Re-elected |
24 | Crewe Alexandra | 46 | 9 | 4 | 10 | 27 | 25 | 1 | 5 | 17 | 16 | 44 | 0.623 | 29 |
Results
Maps
See also
References
- "England 1971–72". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 1 June 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2010.
- Ian Laschke: Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79. Macdonald and Jane’s, London & Sydney, 1980.
- "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 31 October 2010.
- Ian Laschke: Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79. Macdonald and Jane’s, London & Sydney, 1980.
External links
- Season 1971-72 complete lineups, tables and squads at Historical Football Lineups