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.
| 1971–72 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman |  Sam Longson | ||
| Manager | Brian Clough | ||
| Stadium | Baseball Ground | ||
| First Division | 1st (champions) | ||
| FA Cup | Fifth round | ||
| League Cup | Second round | ||
| Top goalscorer | League: Alan Hinton (15) All: Alan Hinton (20) | ||
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Season summary edit
Derby began the season with an unbeaten League run of five wins and seven draws 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 in their 13th match triggered a period of inconsistent league form that saw Derby lose five times in 11 matches, the last at Elland Road just after Christmas, but they lost just one of their next 13 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 on 57 points but could no longer win the league, 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 challengers.
Derby ended their season by beating Liverpool 1–0, 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 sixteen 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 aged just 16 years and 30 days.
Squad edit
- Substitute appearances indicated in brackets
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Transfers edit
| In | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos. | Name | from | Type |
| FW | Roger Davies | Worcester City | £12,000 |
| DF | Tony Parry | Hartlepool | £2,500 |
| DF | Alan Lewis | ||
| MF | Steve Powell | ||
| GK | Graham Moseley | Blackburn Rovers | |
| Out | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Pos. | Name | To | Type |
| DF | Dave Mackay | Swindon Town | |
| FW | Frank Wignall | Mansfield Town | |
| GK | Les Green | Durban City | |
| DF | Tony Rhodes | ||
| DF | John Richardson | ||
Competitions edit
Division One edit
League table edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Derby County (C) | 42 | 24 | 10 | 8 | 69 | 33 | 2.091 | 58 | Qualification for the European Cup first round |
| 2 | Leeds United | 42 | 24 | 9 | 9 | 73 | 31 | 2.355 | 57 | Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup first round[a] |
| 3 | Liverpool | 42 | 24 | 9 | 9 | 64 | 30 | 2.133 | 57 | Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round |
| 4 | Manchester City | 42 | 23 | 11 | 8 | 77 | 45 | 1.711 | 57 | |
| 5 | Arsenal | 42 | 22 | 8 | 12 | 58 | 40 | 1.450 | 52 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal average; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions
Notes:
- ^ Leeds United qualified for the European Cup Winners' Cup as the 1971-72 FA Cup winners.
Results by round edit
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss; = Leader, Qualification to 1972–73 European Cup; = Qualification to 1972–73 UEFA Cup; = Relegation to 1972–73 Second Division; c = Qualification for the Watney Cup
Matches edit
| 14 August 1971 1 | Derby County | 2–2 | Manchester United | Derby |
Hector  50'Wignall 60' |
14' Law 35' Gowling |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 35,386 |
| 18 August 1971 2 | Derby County | 2–0 | West Ham United | Derby |
| O'Hare 2' Wignall 7' |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 30,783 |
| 21 August 1971 3 | Leicester City | 0–2 | Derby County | Leicester |
| 64' Hector 67' (pen) Hinton |
Stadium: Filbert Street Attendance: 35,460 |
| 24 August 1971 4 | Coventry City | 2–2 | Derby County | Coventry |
| Joicey 39' Hunt 55' (pen) |
53' O'Hare 86' Wignall |
Stadium: Highfield Road Attendance: 27,759 |
| 28 August 1971 5 | Derby County | 2–2 | Southampton | Derby |
| McGovern 39' Hector 63' |
70'Stokes 83' (pen) Gabriel |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 28,498 |
| 31 August 1971 6 | Ipswich Town | 0–0 | Derby County | Ipswich |
| Stadium: Portman Road Attendance: 18,687 |
| 4 September 1971 7 | Everton | 0–2 | Derby County | Liverpool |
| 17' Hector 70' Wignall |
Stadium: Goodison Park Attendance: 41,024 |
| 11 September 1971 8 | Derby County | 4–0 | Stoke City | Derby |
| Todd 28' O'Hare 32'Hinton 49'Gemmill 89' |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 32,545 |
| 18 September 1971 9 | Chelsea | 1–1 | Derby County | Fulham |
| Baldwin 66' |
32' McFarland |
Stadium: Stamford Bridge Attendance: 42,872 |
| 25 September 1971 10 | Derby County | 0–0 | West Bromwich Albion | Derby |
| Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 30,628 |
| 2 October 1971 11 | Newcastle United | 0–1 | Derby County | Newcastle-upon-Tyne |
| 62' Hinton |
Stadium: St. James' Park Attendance: 32,077 Referee: Ivan Smith |
| 9 October 1971 12 | Derby County | 2–2 | Tottenham Hotspur | Derby |
| Todd 52' McFarland 82' |
62' Chivers 87' Pearce |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 35,744 |
| 16 October 1971 13 | Manchester United | 1–0 | Derby County | Greater Manchester |
| Best 53' |
Stadium: Old Trafford Attendance: 53,247 |
| 23 October 1971 14 | Derby County | 2–1 | Arsenal | Derby |
| O'Hare 9' Hinton 44' (pen) |
22' Graham |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 35,480 |
| 30 October 1971 15 | Nottingham Forest | 0–2 | Derby County | Nottingham |
| 58' (pen) Hinton 78' Robson |
Stadium: City Ground Attendance: 37,170 |
| 6 November 1971 16 | Derby County | 3–0 | Crystal Palace | Derby |
| Bell 2' (o.g.) Wignall 48'Hector 87' |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 30,388 |
| 13 November 1971 17 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 1–2 | Derby County | Wolverhampton |
| Richards 44' Richards 76' |
22' O'Hare |
Stadium: Molineux Attendance: 32,957 |
| 20 November 1971 18 | Derby County | 3–0 | Sheffield United | Derby |
| Hector 2' Hinton 14' (pen)Hinton 68' (pen) |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 35,326 |
| 27 November 1971 19 | Huddersfield Town | 1–2 | Derby County | Huddersfield |
| Worthington 64' J Lawson 77' |
78' McGovern |
Stadium: Leeds Road Attendance: 15,329 |
| 4 December 1971 20 | Derby County | 3–1 | Manchester City | Derby |
| Hinton 22' (pen) Webster 36'Durban 38' |
66' (pen) Lee |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 35,384 |
| 11 December 1971 21 | Liverpool | 3–2 | Derby County | Liverpool |
| Whitham 14', 44', 53' |
42' O'Hare 49' O'Hare |
Stadium: Anfield Road Attendance: 44,601 |
| 18 December 1971 22 | Derby County | 2–0 | Everton | Derby |
| Hinton 49', 55' |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 27,895 |
| 27 December 1971 23 | Leeds United | 3–0 | Derby County | Leeds |
| Gray 5' Lorimer 20', 57' |
Stadium: Elland Road Attendance: 44,214 |
| 1 January 1972 24 | Derby County | 1–0 | Chelsea | Derby |
| Webb 84' (o.g.) |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 33,063 | |||
| Note: Some sources registered the goal as scored by Gemmill. | ||||
| 8 January 1972 25 | Southampton | 2–1 | Derby County | Southampton |
| O’Brien 13' |
44' O'Hare 89' Durban |
Stadium: The Dell Attendance: 19,321 |
| 22 January 1972 26 | West Ham United | 3–3 | Derby County | Upton Park |
| Lampard 42' B Robson 48'Brooking 80' |
4' Hinton 66' Durban 87' Hector |
Stadium: Boleyn Ground Attendance: 31,045 |
| 29 January 1972 27 | Derby County | 1–0 | Coventry City | Derby |
| 46' Robson |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 29,385 |
| 12 February 1972 28 | Arsenal | 2–0 | Derby County | Highbury |
| George 45' (pen) George 90' |
Stadium: Highbury Park Attendance: 52,055 |
| 19 February 1972 29 | Derby County | 4–0 | Nottingham Forest | Derby |
| Hinton 34' O'Hare 36'Hinton 49'Hector 75 ' |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 31,801 |
| 4 March 1972 30 | Derby County | 2–1 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | Derby |
| Hinton 50 ' (pen) McFarland 72' |
8' (pen) McCalliog |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 33,456 |
| 11 March 1972 31 | Tottenham Hotspur | 0–1 | Derby County | Tottenham |
| 88' (pen) Hinton |
Stadium: White Hart Lane Attendance: 36,310 |
| 18 March 1972 32 | Derby County | 3–0 | Leicester City | Derby |
| O'Hare 17' Durban 67'Hector 87' |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 34,019 |
| 22 March 1972 33 | Derby County | 1–0 | Ipswich Town | Derby |
| Hector 15' |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 26,738 |
| 25 March 1972 34 | Stoke City | 1–1 | Derby County | Stoke-on-Trent |
| Greenhoff 48' (pen) |
52' Durban |
Stadium: Victoria Ground Attendance: 33,771 |
| 28 March 1972 35 | Crystal Palace | 0–1 | Derby County | South Norwood |
| Walker |
Stadium: Selhurst Park Attendance: 21,158 |
| 1 April 1972 36 | Derby County | 2–0 | Leeds United | Derby |
| O'Hare 16' Hunter 70' (o.g.) |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 38,611 |
| 3 April 1972 37 | Derby County | 0–1 | Newcastle United | Derby |
McFarland  45' |
Report | 70' Cassidy |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 38,119 |
| 5 April 1972 38 | West Bromwich Albion | 0–0 | Derby County | West Bromwich |
| Stadium: The Hawthorns Attendance: 32,439 |
| 8 April 1972 39 | Sheffield United | 0-4 | Derby County | Sheffield |
| 12'Gemmill 18' Hector 64' Durban 83' O'Hare |
Stadium: Bramall Lane Attendance: 38,238 |
| 15 April 1972 40 | Derby County | 3–0 | Huddersfield Town | Derby |
| McFarland 15' Hector 22'O'Hare 52' |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 31,414 |
| 22 April 1972 41 | Manchester City | 2–0 | Derby County | Moss Side |
| Marsh 24' Lee 67' (pen) |
Stadium: Maine Road Attendance: 55,023 |
| 1 May 1972 42 | Derby County | 1–0 | Liverpool | Derby |
| McGovern 63' |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 39,159 |
League Cup edit
| 8 September 1971 Second round | Derby County | 0–0 | Leeds United | Derby |
| Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 34,023 |
| 27 September 1971 replay | Leeds United | 2–0 | Derby County | Leeds |
| Lorimer 35', 65' |
Stadium: Elland Road Attendance: 29,132 |
Texaco Cup edit
| 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 edit
| 15 January 1972 Third round | Derby County | 2–0 | Shrewsbury Town | |
| Hector 68' Hector 85' |
Attendance: 32,463 |
| 5 February 1972 Fourth round | Derby County | 6–0 | Notts County | Derby |
| Robson 19' Hector 44'Durban 56'Durban 58'Hinton 62' (pen)Durban 74' |
Stadium: Baseball Ground Attendance: 39,450 |
| 26 February 1972 Fifth round | Derby County | 2–2 | Arsenal | |
| Hinton 47' (pen) Durban 88' |
41', 79' Charlie George |
Attendance: 39,622 |
Statistics edit
Players statistics edit
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Division One | League Cup | FA Cup | Other | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||||
| GK | ENG
|
Colin Boulton | 57 | 0 | 42 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 8 | 0 | |
| DF | ENG
|
Ron Webster | 50 | 1 | 38 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| DF | ENG
|
Roy McFarland | 47 | 4 | 38 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| DF | ENG
|
Colin Todd | 53 | 3 | 40 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 1 | |
| DF | ENG
|
John Robson | 54 | 4 | 41 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 1 | |
| MF |  SCO
|
John McGovern | 52 | 4 | 39+1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 6 | 1 | |
| MF |  WAL
|
Alan Durban | 41 | 12 | 31 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 4 | 2 | |
| MF | SCO
|
Archie Gemmill | 50 | 3 | 40 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 0 | |
| MF | ENG
|
Alan Hinton | 53 | 20 | 38 | 15 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 8 | 3 | |
| FW | ENG
|
Kevin Hector | 55 | 17 | 42 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 6 | 2 | |
| FW | SCO
|
John O'Hare | 52 | 17 | 40 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 4 | |
| GK | ENG
|
Graham Moseley | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| DF | WAL
|
Terry Hennessey | 27 | 0 | 17+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 8 | 0 | |
| FW | ENG
|
Frank Wignall | 16 | 6 | 10+1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | |
| DF | ENG
|
Jim Walker | 10 | 3 | 3+3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2+2 | 2 | |
| MF | ENG
|
Steve Powell | 6 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0+1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| DF | ENG
|
Tony Bailey | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2+1 | 0 | |
| DF | ENG
|
Peter Daniel | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | |
| DF | ENG
|
Alan Lewis | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| DF | ENG
|
Tony Parry | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| FW | ENG
|
Jeff Bourne | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| FW | ENG
|
Barry Butlin | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | |
| FW | ENG
|
Roger Davies | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |