1958–59 in English football

Diary of the season

August 1958: The Football League season begins with the new national Third and Fourth divisions that have been created from the old Third Division North and Third Division South.

30 August 1958: The Football Association snub Manchester United's wish to participate in the 1958–59 European Cup.[1]

September 1958: Manchester United pay a national record fee of £45,000 for Sheffield Wednesday inside-forward Albert Quixall.[2]

12 November 1958: Wolverhampton Wanderers play their first European Cup game, drawing 2–2 at home to Schalke 04 in the first round first leg.

18 November 1958: Wolverhampton Wanderers lose 2–1 to Schalke 04 in the European Cup first round second leg in West Germany, ending their hopes of being the first team other than Real Madrid (winners of the first three competitions) to win the European Cup.

15 January 1959: Second Division Liverpool suffer a shock FA Cup third round exit when they lose 2-1 to non league Worcester City.[3]

4 April 1959: Jeff Hall, 29, right-back for Birmingham City and England, dies from polio, prompting widespread takeup of the polio vaccine.[4]

2 May 1959: Nottingham Forest defeat Luton Town 2–1 in the 1959 FA Cup Final.

Notable debutants

8 September 1958: Bobby Moore, 17-year-old wing-half, makes his debut for West Ham United against Manchester United in the First Division.[5]

Notable retirements

May 1959: Billy Wright, 35, Wolverhampton Wanderers and England captain, after more than 500 appearances for his club and a record 105 for his country.[6]

June 1959: Jackie Blanchflower, 26, Manchester United and Northern Ireland centre-half, who announced his retirement as a player after failing to recover sufficiently from injuries sustained in the Munich air disaster 16 months earlier.[7]

Honours
CompetitionWinnerRunner-up
First DivisionWolverhampton Wanderers (3)Manchester United
Second DivisionSheffield WednesdayFulham
Third DivisionPlymouth ArgyleHull City
Fourth DivisionPort ValeCoventry City
FA CupNottingham Forest (2)Luton Town
Charity ShieldBolton WanderersWolverhampton Wanderers
Home ChampionshipShared by  England &  Northern Ireland

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

Awards

Football Writers' Association

Football League
Main article: 1958–59 Football League

First Division

In the last season of captain Billy Wright's playing career, Wolves retained their First Division title - the third time they had been league champions in six seasons. There was every reason to hope for continued success in the post-Wright era, though, with younger players like Bobby Mason and Mickey Lill excelling in the team. Manchester United enjoyed a good return in the season following the Munich tragedy, as new signings and younger players integrated with crash survivors to achieve runners-up spot in the league. Arsenal, Bolton Wanderers and West Bromwich Albion completed the top five, while newly promoted West Ham United recorded their highest league finish yet by finishing sixth.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Wolverhampton Wanderers 42 28 5 9 110 49 2.245 61 Qualified for the European Cup
2 Manchester United 42 24 7 11 103 66 1.561 55
3 Arsenal 42 21 8 13 88 68 1.294 50
4 Bolton Wanderers 42 20 10 12 79 66 1.197 50
5 West Bromwich Albion 42 18 13 11 88 68 1.294 49
6 West Ham United 42 21 6 15 85 70 1.214 48
7 Burnley 42 19 10 13 81 70 1.157 48
8 Blackpool 42 18 11 13 66 49 1.347 47
9 Birmingham City 42 20 6 16 84 68 1.235 46
10 Blackburn Rovers 42 17 10 15 76 70 1.086 44
11 Newcastle United 42 17 7 18 80 80 1.000 41
12 Preston North End 42 17 7 18 70 77 0.909 41
13 Nottingham Forest 42 17 6 19 71 74 0.959 40
14 Chelsea 42 18 4 20 77 98 0.786 40
15 Leeds United 42 15 9 18 57 74 0.770 39
16 Everton 42 17 4 21 71 87 0.816 38
17 Luton Town 42 12 13 17 68 71 0.958 37
18 Tottenham Hotspur 42 13 10 19 85 95 0.895 36
19 Leicester City 42 11 10 21 67 98 0.684 32
20 Manchester City 42 11 9 22 64 95 0.674 31
21 Aston Villa 42 11 8 23 58 87 0.667 30 Relegated to the Second Division
22 Portsmouth 42 6 9 27 64 112 0.571 21
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.

Second Division

Sheffield Wednesday sealed an immediate return to the First Division as Second Division champions, being joined by runners-up Fulham.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Sheffield Wednesday 42 28 6 8 106 48 2.208 62 Promoted to the First Division
2 Fulham 42 27 6 9 96 61 1.574 60
3 Sheffield United 42 23 7 12 82 48 1.708 53
4 Liverpool 42 24 5 13 87 62 1.403 53
5 Stoke City 42 21 7 14 72 58 1.241 49
6 Bristol Rovers 42 18 12 12 80 64 1.250 48
7 Derby County 42 20 8 14 74 71 1.042 48
8 Charlton Athletic 42 18 7 17 92 90 1.022 43
9 Cardiff City 42 18 7 17 65 65 1.000 43
10 Bristol City 42 17 7 18 74 70 1.057 41
11 Swansea Town 42 16 9 17 79 81 0.975 41
12 Brighton & Hove Albion 42 15 11 16 74 90 0.822 41
13 Middlesbrough 42 15 10 17 87 71 1.225 40
14 Huddersfield Town 42 16 8 18 62 55 1.127 40
15 Sunderland 42 16 8 18 64 75 0.853 40
16 Ipswich Town 42 17 6 19 62 77 0.805 40
17 Leyton Orient 42 14 8 20 71 78 0.910 36
18 Scunthorpe United 42 12 9 21 55 84 0.655 33
19 Lincoln City 42 11 7 24 63 93 0.677 29
20 Rotherham United 42 10 9 23 42 82 0.512 29
21 Grimsby Town 42 9 10 23 62 90 0.689 28 Relegated to the Third Division
22 Barnsley 42 10 7 25 55 91 0.604 27
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.

Third Division

Plymouth Argyle won the first championship of the new national Third Division, with Hull City finishing one point behind them in second place. Norwich City made the headlines with their run to the semi-finals of the FA Cup, but the cup run distracted them from the league as fourth place in the final table was not enough for promotion.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Plymouth Argyle 46 23 16 7 89 59 1.508 62 Promoted to the Second Division
2 Hull City 46 26 9 11 90 55 1.636 61
3 Brentford 46 21 15 10 76 49 1.551 57
4 Norwich City 46 22 13 11 89 62 1.435 57
5 Colchester United 46 21 10 15 71 67 1.060 52
6 Reading 46 21 8 17 78 63 1.238 50
7 Tranmere Rovers 46 21 8 17 82 67 1.224 50
8 Southend United 46 21 8 17 85 80 1.063 50
9 Halifax Town 46 21 8 17 80 77 1.039 50
10 Bury 46 17 14 15 69 58 1.190 48
11 Bradford City 46 18 11 17 84 76 1.105 47
12 Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic 46 17 12 17 69 69 1.000 46
13 Queens Park Rangers 46 19 8 19 74 77 0.961 46
14 Southampton 46 17 11 18 88 80 1.100 45
15 Swindon Town 46 16 13 17 59 57 1.035 45
16 Chesterfield 46 17 10 19 67 64 1.047 44
17 Newport County 46 17 9 20 69 68 1.015 43
18 Wrexham 46 14 14 18 63 77 0.818 42
19 Accrington Stanley 46 15 12 19 71 87 0.816 42
20 Mansfield Town 46 14 13 19 73 98 0.745 41
21 Stockport County 46 13 10 23 65 78 0.833 36 Relegated to the Fourth Division
22 Doncaster Rovers 46 14 5 27 50 90 0.556 33
23 Notts County 46 8 13 25 55 96 0.573 29
24 Rochdale 46 8 12 26 37 79 0.468 28
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.

Fourth Division

Port Vale were champions of the new Fourth Division, and were joined in promotion by Coventry City, York City and Shrewsbury Town.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Port Vale 46 26 12 8 110 58 1.897 64 Promoted to the Third Division
2 Coventry City 46 24 12 10 84 47 1.787 60
3 York City 46 21 18 7 73 52 1.404 60
4 Shrewsbury Town 46 24 10 12 101 63 1.603 58
5 Exeter City 46 23 11 12 87 61 1.426 57
6 Walsall 46 21 10 15 95 64 1.484 52
7 Crystal Palace 46 20 12 14 90 71 1.268 52
8 Northampton Town 46 21 9 16 85 78 1.090 51
9 Millwall 46 20 10 16 76 69 1.101 50
10 Carlisle United 46 19 12 15 62 65 0.954 50
11 Gillingham 46 20 9 17 82 77 1.065 49
12 Torquay United 46 16 12 18 78 77 1.013 44
13 Chester 46 16 12 18 72 84 0.857 44
14 Bradford Park Avenue 46 18 7 21 75 77 0.974 43
15 Watford 46 16 10 20 81 79 1.025 42
16 Darlington 46 13 16 17 66 68 0.971 42
17 Workington 46 12 17 17 63 78 0.808 41
18 Crewe Alexandra 46 15 10 21 70 82 0.854 40
19 Hartlepools United 46 15 10 21 74 88 0.841 40
20 Gateshead 46 16 8 22 56 85 0.659 40
21 Oldham Athletic 46 16 4 26 59 84 0.702 36 Re-elected
22 Aldershot 46 14 7 25 63 97 0.649 35
23 Barrow 46 9 10 27 51 104 0.490 28
24 Southport 46 7 12 27 41 86 0.477 26
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.

Top goalscorers

First Division

Second Division

Third Division

Fourth Division

National team

Although the England national football team eventually shared victory in the 1959 British Home Championship with Northern Ireland, it was a tough year without so many of the squad's key players lost in the Munich air disaster the year before. The season concluded with a disastrous tour of the Americas, in which the team lost three successive games before restoring some pride in the final match against the USA. The final game against the USA was also the last match for veteran defender and captain Billy Wright after a then record 105 caps. The match was played in front of just 13,000 fans on a gravel pitch in Los Angeles.

Tour of the Americas
Brazil 2–0 England
Henrique, Julinho  
Peru 4–1 England
Juan Seminario 3, Juan Joya Jimmy Greaves
Mexico 2–1 England
Raul Cardenas, Salvador Reyes Derek Kevan
United States 1–8 England
Ed Murphy Bobby Charlton 3 (1P), Ron Flowers 2,
Warren Bradley, Derek Kevan, Johnny Haynes
Wrigley Field, Los Angeles

References
  1. "United Forbidden To Represent UK". The Gazette. Montreal. Reuters. 1 September 1958. p. 10. Retrieved 8 January 2015.
  2. "Stars turn out for Albert's big day". Stockport Express. M.E.N. Media. 2 August 2002.
  3. Statistics. "A timeline for Liverpool Football Club". LFChistory.net. Retrieved 7 August 2011.
  4. Burnton, Simon (9 December 2016). "The forgotten story of … Jeff Hall, the footballer whose death turned tide against polio". theguardian.com. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 15 July 2017.
  5. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 14 August 2013. Retrieved 16 January 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 13 May 2008. Retrieved 16 January 2013.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. "Jackie Blanchflower". Soccer Ireland. Retrieved 5 July 2020.
  8. "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  9. "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
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