Noel welcomed by JH & Highfield Rd crowd
On this day (30th March) in 1968 the Sky Blues were fighting hard towards the end of a tough first season ever in the top flight.
Gaffer Noel Cantwell, who had taken over from ‘Mr Sky Blue’ Jimmy Hill early in the season, took on Midland rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers at Highfield Road.
They had had lost 2-0 at Molineux the previous November so were looking for revenge. They got it through a Neil Martin penalty only eight minutes from time in front of 36,242 fans to make it two wins and no defeats in their last three league games. City thereby leapfrogged Wolves by grabbing both vital points in what, in all truth, was a dire relegation battle.
Image ImageMartin coolly slotted home after the Wolves defender Bobby Thomson handled a goal bound effort from Neil’s now fellow CCFPA member Mick Coop.
Neil Martin in Sky Blue action
Frank Wignall was now with Wolves and the City fans gave him a torrid time given the incident earlier in the season when their iconic captain George Curtis (another CCFPA member until his all too recent passing) had his leg broken in the fourth minute after a Frank Wignall tackle in only the club’s second game in the top flight against Nottingham Forest. The Sky Blues current central defensive supremo Maurice Setters certainly took no prisoners!
Cantwell’s CCFC lined up as follows:-
Bill Glazier, Dietmar Bruck, Chris Cattlin, Brian Lewis*, Maurice Setters*, Dave Clements, Ernie Hannigan* (sub. Mick Coop), Ernie Hunt*, Neil Martin, John Tudor* and Willie Carr
We are pleased to say all bar Brian later went on to join this Association. Sadly five of this team (*) have since passed away.
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Bill McGarry‘s Wolves team lined up as follows:-
Phil Parkes, Derek Parkin, Bobby Thomson, Frank Munro, David Woodfield, John Holsgrove, Michael Kenning, Peter Knowles, Frank Wignall, Mike Bailey and Dave Wagstaffe Referee:- A.Dimond
Though both sides had been flirting with trouble during the season both survived. Wolverhampton Wanderers ended up seventeenth in Division One. The Sky Blues couldn’t get a win in their last five games or a goal in their last three matches, but in a nail-biting finish did enough to finish a point and a place (twentieth) clear of relegated Sheffield United in 21st position and Fulham in bottom place.
CCFC 1967-68 at the start of the season with the D2 Championship trophy
The City of Manchester was certainly top of the tree in Division One with just two points separating Champions (Manchester City) from runners up (Manchester United).
Thanks to CCFPA’s Mike Young (& Dean Nelson) for sourcing the images.
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