1979–80 in English football

The 1979–80 season was the 100th season of competitive football in England.

Football in England
Season1979–80
Men's football
First DivisionLiverpool
Second DivisionLeicester City
Third DivisionGrimsby Town
Fourth DivisionHuddersfield Town
Alliance Premier LeagueAltrincham
FA CupWest Ham United
League CupWolverhampton Wanderers
Charity ShieldLiverpool
← 1978–79 1980–81 →

Diary of the season

11 August 1979: League champions Liverpool defeat FA Cup holders Arsenal 3–1 at Wembley Stadium to win the Charity Shield.

18 August 1979: Arsenal move straight to the top of the First Division table with a 4–0 away win against newly promoted Brighton & Hove Albion on the first day of the League season.[1] The first round of fixtures in the inaugural season of the Alliance Premier League, now the National League, takes place.[2]

31 August 1979: The first month of the season ends with Norwich City, who have never even finished in the top five of the First Division, leading the League alongside 1978 champions Nottingham Forest, after both teams win their first three matches. Middlesbrough are one point behind the leaders. At the bottom, Tottenham Hotspur and Brighton & Hove Albion have yet to gain a point.[1]

5 September 1979: Manchester City sign midfielder Steve Daley from Wolverhampton Wanderers for a national record fee of £1,437,500.[3] In the League Cup second round, braces for Ian Bowyer and John Robertson contribute to Nottingham Forest firing six past Blackburn Rovers.[4]

8 September 1979: The national transfer record fee is broken for the second time in four days when Wolverhampton Wanderers pay almost £1,500,000 for Aston Villa and Scotland striker Andy Gray.[5]

30 September 1979: September ends with newly promoted Crystal Palace, unbeaten after eight games, topping the First Division on goal difference from Manchester United and Nottingham Forest. After losing twice this month, Liverpool occupy ninth place. Derby County, champions in 1972 and 1975, are bottom of the table, joined in the relegation zone by Stoke City and Tottenham Hotspur.[1]

3 October 1979: Liverpool are knocked out of the European Cup 4–2 on aggregate by Dinamo Tbilisi.[6]

13 October 1979: Kazimierz Deyna scores the only goal as Manchester City beat Nottingham Forest, knocking the Midlands club into second place, behind Manchester United.[7] Crystal Palace's unbeaten start to the season ends with a 3–1 defeat to Everton at Goodison Park.

31 October 1979: Manchester United end October as First Division leaders, one point ahead of Nottingham Forest, with Liverpool, Norwich City, Crystal Palace, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Tottenham Hotspur a further two points adrift. Brighton & Hove Albion now occupy bottom place behind Derby County, while Bolton Wanderers have dropped into the relegation zone.[1]

24 November 1979: Joe Jordan's brace helps Manchester United put five past Norwich without reply, struggling Ipswich Town turn over Southampton while Derby are the victors in the East Midlands derby, beating Forest 4–1.[8]

30 November 1979: November ends with Manchester United still top of the First Division, one point ahead of Liverpool. Crystal Palace remain in contention, two points behind the leaders, and Middlesbrough have joined the chasing pack. Bolton Wanderers, Brighton & Hove Albion and Ipswich Town occupy the relegation zone.[1]

26 December 1979: The Steel City derby in the Third Division sees Sheffield Wednesday beat Sheffield United 4–0, attracting a crowd of nearly 50,000.[9]

31 December 1979: The decade ends with Liverpool narrowly ahead of Manchester United at the top of the First Division, having won the clash between the two on Boxing Day. Southampton and Arsenal lead the chasing group, but are eight points behind the leaders. Crystal Palace have fallen to ninth place. Bristol City have joined Derby County and Bolton Wanderers in the relegation zone.[1]

5 January 1980: Fourth Division Halifax Town cause the upset of the FA Cup third round by beating Manchester City 1–0.[10]

8 January 1980: Non-League Harlow Town beat Second Division promotion candidates Leicester City 1–0 in an FA Cup third round replay.[10]

31 January 1980: Liverpool hold a two-point lead over Manchester United at the end of January. Arsenal are third, five points behind the leaders having played two games more.[1]

29 February 1980: With the season approaching its final quarter, Manchester United have moved level on points at the top of the First Division with Liverpool, who have a game in hand. Unbeaten since the beginning of December, Ipswich Town have moved from third-bottom to third-top in less than three months, and are five points behind the leaders in third place. Arsenal and Southampton complete the top five. Bolton Wanderers remain bottom, with just one League win from their first 27 matches, and Derby County and Bristol City also remain in the relegation zone, with Everton occupying the last safe spot.[1]

1 March 1980: Everton lose 2–1 at home to Liverpool in the First Division Merseyside derby, and during the game their legendary former striker Dixie Dean dies from a heart attack in the stands, aged 72.[11] Manchester United's title hopes are dashed by a 6–0 thrashing at Ipswich Town.[1]

8 March 1980: Second Division West Ham United beat Aston Villa 1–0 in the FA Cup sixth round. They are joined in the last four by Liverpool, Everton and holders Arsenal.[10]

15 March 1980: Wolverhampton Wanderers beat Nottingham Forest, who have won the trophy in the last two seasons, 1–0 in the League Cup final thanks to a second-half goal from Andy Gray.[12]

22 March 1980: United win the Manchester derby: Mickey Thomas scores the only goal of the game. Elsewhere in the top-flight, Derby and Bristol City share six, Liverpool beat Brighton and Nottingham Forest win at home to UEFA Cup hopefuls Southampton. The day's high scorers in the Football League are Third Division club Colchester United, who smash six past Brentford.[13]

31 March 1980: Liverpool now have a four-point lead over Manchester United at the top of the First Division. Ipswich Town and Arsenal are the nearest challengers to the top two, and Southampton complete the top five. At the bottom of the table, Bolton Wanderers managed three League wins in March, but are still in bottom place, eight points adrift of safety. Derby County and Bristol City remain with them in the drop zone.[1]

12 April 1980: Both FA Cup semi-finals - Arsenal versus Liverpool and Everton versus West Ham United - end in draws.[10] Bolton Wanderers are relegated from the First Division.[1]

16 April 1980: West Ham United beat Everton 2–1 at Elland Road to reach the FA Cup final. In the other semi-final replay, Arsenal and Liverpool draw again, 1–1.[10]

23 April 1980: Nottingham Forest lose the second leg of their European Cup 1–0 to Ajax, but reach the final for the second year in succession with a 2–1 aggregate victory.[6]

26 April 1980: Derby County, twice champions in the 1970s, are relegated from the First Division with one match remaining. Liverpool's goalless draw at Crystal Palace puts them on the verge of retaining the title.[1]

28 April 1980: Arsenal and Liverpool require another replay after drawing 1–1 again in their FA Cup semi-final second replay at Villa Park.[10]

29 April 1980: Bristol City lose 5–2 at Southampton to take the final First Division relegation spot.[1]

30 April 1980: Liverpool are level on points with Manchester United at the end of April, with a superior goal difference and with two matches remaining to the Red Devils' one. Ipswich Town are third, five points behind.[1]

1 May 1980: Arsenal finally reach the FA Cup final after beating Liverpool 1-0 in the FA Cup semi-final third replay at Highfield Road.[10] Liverpool agree a fee of £300,000 for Chester striker Ian Rush, 18.[14]

3 May 1980: Liverpool clinch the league title in their penultimate league game of the season by beating Aston Villa 4–1 at Anfield.[15] The result is rendered academic by Manchester United's 2–0 defeat to Leeds United. Ipswich Town lose the unbeaten League run that they have maintained for over five months against Manchester City, but remain third.[1] In the Third Division, Kevin Drinkell fires three of Grimsby Town's four without reply at home to Sheffield United; a result that sees the Mariners crowned third-tier champions.[16]

10 May 1980: Trevor Brooking scores the winning goal as Second Division West Ham United triumph 1–0 over holders Arsenal in the FA Cup final.

14 May 1980: Arsenal lose 5–4 in a penalty shoot-out to Valencia after a 0–0 draw in the European Cup Winners' Cup Final.[17]

19 May 1980: More than two weeks after the planned final day of the season, the First Division fixtures are completed when Arsenal lose 5–0 to Middlesbrough. The result leaves Ipswich Town one point ahead of the Gunners in third place.[1]

28 May 1980: Nottingham Forest retain the European Cup by beating Hamburg 1–0 in the final in Madrid. John Robertson scores the only goal in the first half.[6]

13 June 1980: Clive Allen, 19, becomes the most expensive teenager in Europe when he joins Arsenal from Queens Park Rangers in a £1,250,000 deal.

National teams

12 September 1979: England move closer to the 1980 European Championship Finals with a 1–0 win at home to Denmark.[18]

17 October 1979: England virtually guarantee their place in the summer's European Championship Finals by beating Northern Ireland 5–1 at Windsor Park.[18]

22 November 1979: Glenn Hoddle scores on his debut for England in a 2–0 over Bulgaria in a European Championship qualifier.[18]

13 May 1980: England beat world champions Argentina 3–1 in a friendly at Wembley with two goals from David Johnson and one from Kevin Keegan.[18]

17 May 1980: England's run of six consecutive wins ends abruptly in a 4–1 defeat to Wales in the Home Championship.[18]

24 May 1980: England beat Scotland 2–0 at Hampden Park but finish runners-up to Northern Ireland in the Home Championship.[18]

12 June 1980: England's first match at the European Championship Finals for twelve years ends in a 1–1 draw against Belgium. The game is marred by hooliganism in the stands that is only calmed by the use of tear gas by the Italian police.[18]

15 June 1980: England are eliminated from the European Championships after they lose 1–0 to hosts Italy through a late goal from Marco Tardelli.[18]

18 June 1980: England win their final group match at the European Championships 2–1 against Spain, but finish in third place in the group.[18]

UEFA competitions

Brian Clough's Nottingham Forest made up for disappointment in the League by retaining the European Cup and becoming the first team to have won more European Cups than league championships. Arsenal faced Valencia of Spain in the European Cup Winners' Cup final, days after their FA Cup final loss. It finished goalless after extra time, and Arsenal lost the penalty shoot-out after misses from Liam Brady and Graham Rix.

FA Cup
Main article: 1979–80 FA Cup

Second Division West Ham United, managed by John Lyall, won the FA Cup, beating Arsenal 1–0 with a Trevor Brooking goal. They are the last team to win the FA Cup from outside the top division.

League Cup
Main article: 1979–80 Football League Cup

Wolverhampton Wanderers overcame the challenge of European champions Nottingham Forest to lift their second League Cup. The match finished 1–0 with a goal by Andy Gray following a mix-up between goalkeeper Peter Shilton and defender David Needham.

Football League
Main article: 1979–80 Football League

First Division

Bob Paisley's Liverpool retained their league championship trophy after fighting off a determined challenge by Dave Sexton's Manchester United. Nottingham Forest failed to make a serious title challenge but compensated for this by retaining the European Cup.

Bristol City and Bolton Wanderers were relegated after brief and uneventful spells in the First Division, but Derby County's relegation came just five years after they had been league champions.

Kevin Keegan, the current European Footballer of the Year, ended his three-year spell with Hamburg in Germany and returned to England in a shock £400,000 move to Southampton.

Much of the attention in the early part of the season focused on Manchester City where Malcolm Allison had dismantled the side selling international talents such as Asa Hartford and Peter Barnes and replacing them with unknowns and the uncapped Steve Daley for £1.5 million. City had a mediocre season including an FA Cup defeat by Fourth Division Halifax Town.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Liverpool 42 25 10 7 81 30 +51 60 League Champions, qualified for European Cup 1980–81 First round
2 Manchester United 42 24 10 8 65 35 +30 58 UEFA Cup 1980–81 First round
3 Ipswich Town 42 22 9 11 68 39 +29 53
4 Arsenal 42 18 16 8 52 36 +16 52
5 Nottingham Forest 42 20 8 14 63 43 +20 48 European Cup 1980–81 First round[lower-alpha 1]
6 Wolverhampton Wanderers 42 19 9 14 58 47 +11 47 League Cup winners, qualified for UEFA Cup 1980–81 First round[lower-alpha 2]
7 Aston Villa 42 16 14 12 51 50 +1 46
8 Southampton 42 18 9 15 65 53 +12 45
9 Middlesbrough 42 16 12 14 50 44 +6 44
10 West Bromwich Albion 42 11 19 12 54 50 +4 41
11 Leeds United 42 13 14 15 46 50 −4 40
12 Norwich City 42 13 14 15 58 66 −8 40
13 Crystal Palace 42 12 16 14 41 50 −9 40
14 Tottenham Hotspur 42 15 10 17 52 62 −10 40
15 Coventry City 42 16 7 19 56 66 −10 39
16 Brighton & Hove Albion 42 11 15 16 47 57 −10 37
17 Manchester City 42 12 13 17 43 66 −23 37
18 Stoke City 42 13 10 19 44 58 −14 36
19 Everton 42 9 17 16 43 51 −8 35
20 Bristol City 42 9 13 20 37 66 −29 31 Relegated
21 Derby County 42 11 8 23 47 67 −20 30
22 Bolton Wanderers 42 5 15 22 38 73 −35 25
Source:
Notes:
  1. Nottingham Forest won the European Cup for the second year running, and thus qualified for the following season's competition as defending champions.
  2. Wolverhampton Wanderers were this season's League Cup winners.

Second Division

Leicester City, Sunderland and Birmingham City ended their relatively short spells in the Second Division and occupied the division's three promotion places. Going down were Fulham, Burnley and Charlton Athletic.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Leicester City 42 21 13 8 58 38 +20 55 Division Champions, promoted
2 Sunderland 42 21 12 9 69 42 +27 54 Promoted
3 Birmingham City 42 21 11 10 58 38 +20 53
4 Chelsea 42 23 7 12 66 52 +14 53
5 Queens Park Rangers 42 18 13 11 75 53 +22 49
6 Luton Town 42 16 17 9 66 45 +21 49
7 West Ham United 42 20 7 15 54 43 +11 47 FA Cup winners, qualified for UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1980–81 First round
8 Cambridge United 42 14 16 12 61 53 +8 44
9 Newcastle United 42 15 14 13 53 49 +4 44
10 Preston North End 42 12 19 11 56 52 +4 43
11 Oldham Athletic 42 16 11 15 49 53 −4 43
12 Swansea City 42 17 9 16 48 53 −5 43
13 Shrewsbury Town 42 18 5 19 60 53 +7 41
14 Orient 42 12 17 13 48 54 −6 41
15 Cardiff City 42 16 8 18 41 48 −7 40
16 Wrexham 42 16 6 20 40 49 −9 38
17 Notts County 42 11 15 16 51 52 −1 37
18 Watford 42 12 13 17 39 46 −7 37
19 Bristol Rovers 42 11 13 18 50 64 −14 35
20 Fulham 42 11 7 24 42 74 −32 29 Relegated
21 Burnley 42 6 15 21 39 73 −34 27
22 Charlton Athletic 42 6 10 26 39 78 −39 22
Source:

Third Division

Grimsby Town, Blackburn Rovers and Sheffield Wednesday all achieved some long-awaited success by gaining promotion from the Third Division. Bury, Southend United, Mansfield Town and Wimbledon occupied the Third Division's relegation places.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Grimsby Town 46 26 10 10 73 42 +31 62 Division Champions, promoted
2 Blackburn Rovers 46 25 9 12 58 36 +22 59 Promoted
3 Sheffield Wednesday 46 21 16 9 81 47 +34 58
4 Chesterfield 46 23 11 12 71 46 +25 57
5 Colchester United 46 20 12 14 64 56 +8 52
6 Carlisle United 46 18 12 16 66 56 +10 48
7 Reading 46 16 16 14 66 65 +1 48
8 Exeter City 46 19 10 17 60 68 −8 48
9 Chester 46 17 13 16 49 57 −8 47
10 Swindon Town 46 19 8 19 71 63 +8 46
11 Barnsley 46 16 14 16 53 56 −3 46
12 Sheffield United 46 18 10 18 60 66 −6 46
13 Rotherham United 46 18 10 18 58 66 −8 46
14 Millwall 46 16 13 17 65 59 +6 45
15 Plymouth Argyle 46 16 12 18 59 55 +4 44
16 Gillingham 46 14 14 18 49 51 −2 42
17 Oxford United 46 14 13 19 57 62 −5 41
18 Blackpool 46 15 11 20 62 74 −12 41
19 Brentford 46 15 11 20 59 73 −14 41
20 Hull City 46 12 16 18 51 69 −18 40
21 Bury 46 16 7 23 45 59 −14 39 Relegated
22 Southend United 46 14 10 22 47 58 −11 38
23 Mansfield Town 46 10 16 20 47 58 −11 36
24 Wimbledon 46 10 14 22 52 81 −29 34
Source: rsssf.com

Fourth Division

Huddersfield Town and Portsmouth finally achieved some success by gaining promotion from the Fourth Division. Newport County achieved their first promotion since 1939 and Walsall were also promoted. Rochdale finished bottom but survived re-election by one vote ahead of Altrincham.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion
1 Huddersfield Town 46 27 12 7 101 48 +53 66 Division Champions, promoted
2 Walsall 46 23 18 5 75 47 +28 64 Promoted
3 Newport County 46 27 7 12 83 50 +33 61 Welsh Cup winners, qualified for UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1980–81 First round
4 Portsmouth 46 24 12 10 91 49 +42 60 Promoted
5 Bradford City 46 24 12 10 77 50 +27 60
6 Wigan Athletic 46 21 13 12 76 61 +15 55
7 Lincoln City 46 18 17 11 64 42 +22 53
8 Peterborough United 46 21 10 15 58 47 +11 52
9 Torquay United 46 15 17 14 70 69 +1 47
10 Aldershot 46 16 13 17 62 53 +9 45
11 Bournemouth 46 13 18 15 52 51 +1 44
12 Doncaster Rovers 46 15 14 17 62 63 −1 44
13 Northampton Town 46 16 12 18 51 66 −15 44
14 Scunthorpe United 46 14 15 17 58 75 −17 43
15 Tranmere Rovers 46 14 13 19 50 56 −6 41
16 Stockport County 46 14 12 20 48 72 −24 40
17 York City 46 14 11 21 65 82 −17 39
18 Halifax Town 46 13 13 20 46 72 −26 39
19 Hartlepool United 46 14 10 22 59 64 −5 38
20 Port Vale 46 12 12 22 56 70 −14 36
21 Hereford United 46 11 14 21 38 52 −14 36 Re-elected
22 Darlington 46 9 17 20 50 74 −24 35
23 Crewe Alexandra 46 11 13 22 35 68 −33 35
24 Rochdale 46 7 13 26 33 79 −46 27
Source:

Top goalscorers

First Division

Second Division

Third Division

Fourth Division

Non-league football

The divisional champions of the major non-League competitions were:

CompetitionWinners
Alliance Premier League Altrincham
Isthmian League Enfield
Northern Premier League Mossley
Southern League Midland Division – Bridgend Town
Southern Division – Dorchester Town
FA Trophy Dagenham
FA Vase Stamford

Awards

Liverpool's Terry McDermott was voted PFA Players' Player of the Year and FWA Footballer of the Year. PFA Young Player of the Year was Tottenham Hotspur's midfielder Glenn Hoddle.

Star managers

Famous debutants

18 August 1979: Tommy Caton, 16-year-old defender, makes his debut for First Division side Manchester City on the opening day of the season in a goalless home draw with newly promoted Crystal Palace, just weeks after leaving school. Football photographic encyclopedia, footballer, world cup, champions league, football championship, olympic games & hero images by sporting-heroes.net

7 April 1980: Paul Davis, 18-year-old midfielder, makes his First Division debut for Arsenal in a 2–1 win over local rivals Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane. Football photographic encyclopedia, footballer, world cup, champions league, football championship, olympic games & hero images by sporting-heroes.net

Deaths

References
  1. Smailes, Gordon (2000). The Breedon Book of Football Records. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 144. ISBN 1859832148.
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 22 January 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. mario.loulie. "Microsoft Word – Com Books – ManCity Edition coverage List _6_.doc" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 6 May 2009. Retrieved 27 April 2009.
  4. "Classic matches: Forest v Blackburn". nottinghamforest.co.uk. Nottingham Forest F.C. 13 April 2017. Retrieved 21 April 2017.
  5. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 6 November 2012. Retrieved 25 April 2011.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  6. "Season 1979 | UEFA Champions League". UEFA.com. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  7. "Notts Forest drops from Division I lead". The Gazette. Montreal. Reuters. 15 October 1979. p. 55. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
  8. "On this day in history ~ Division One, 1979". wsc.co.uk. When Saturday Comes. 24 November 2014. Archived from the original on 26 September 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
  9. "36 years ago today: Sheffield Wednesday 4 Sheffield United 0 - 'The Boxing Day Massacre'". Retrieved 4 January 2020 – via www.sheffieldtelegraph.co.uk.
  10. Smailes, Gordon (2000). The Breedon Book of Football Records. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 234. ISBN 1859832148.
  11. ago, Daniel KiddIn Everton News9 years (2 February 2011). "Dixie Dean Statue Moved". Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  12. Smailes, Gordon (2000). The Breedon Book of Football Records. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 258. ISBN 1859832148.
  13. "Liverpool holds on to big lead". The Age. Melbourne. 24 March 1980. p. 28. Retrieved 14 May 2016.
  14. "A timeline for Liverpool Football Club - LFChistory - Stats galore for Liverpool FC!". www.lfchistory.net. Retrieved 4 January 2020.
  15. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 22 November 2013. Retrieved 14 August 2011.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  16. Plenderleith, Ian (3 May 2015). "Get with the programme ~ Grimsby v Sheffield Utd, Division Three, 1980". wsc.co.uk. When Saturday Comes. Archived from the original on 5 May 2015. Retrieved 4 May 2015.
  17. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 30 June 2012. Retrieved 6 September 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  18. Payne, Mike (1993). England: The Complete Post-War Record'. Derby: Breedon Books. ISBN 1873626398.
  19. Smailes, Gordon (2000). The Breedon Book of Football Records. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 138. ISBN 1859832148.
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