On this first day of February in 1975 the below mid table Sky Blues under (now CCFPA member) Gordon Milne visited Leeds United in a Division One game. Milne’s men were feeling a little sore after going out of the F.A. Cup four days earlier by three clear goals to Arsenal at Highbury in a Fourth Round Replay. The home team had been on a good run since the departure of Brian Clough having only lost twice in the last fifteen game under Jimmy Armfield. This included a 3-1 defeat of the Sky Blues at Highfield Road back in November.
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However, Leeds United were also facing an upcoming banana skin of aCupreplay in with then non-league Wimbledon so were also needing the encouragement of a win today. Gordon was starting to refashion his team. (Now CCFPA member) Mick McGuire had signed for Norwich City for a cut price £65k and more sales were to follow. Perhaps predictably, given both teams’ search for points, the game ended in a goal-less draw!
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Mick in the Sky Blue
The game was notable from a CCFC perspective in that it gave a debut to youngMick Ferguson, later to form a formidableSky Bluestriking partnership with (his now fellow CCFPA member) Ian Wallace.
Ian & Mick in action
Though he didn’t find the net in this game he did show what was to come with a brilliant debut and almost got his name on the scoresheet. City wore a red and blue away strip in front of the 33,901 fans at Elland Road. The 0-0 draw was the first of three sucessive Sky Blue stalemates. Added to the brace of 1-1 home draws with Queens Park Rangers and Tottenham Hotspur and the 3-1 defeat of Ipswich Town at Highfield Road at the end of the month this made an encouraging unbeaten February for the Sky Blues!
Sky Blue Manager Gordon
Milne’s men lined up as follows for this game (CCFPA members underlined):-
Neil Ramsbottom, Graham Oakey, Chris Cattlin, John Craven*, Larry Lloyd*, Alan Dugdale, Willie Carr, Brian Alderson*, Mick Ferguson, Alan Green and Tom Hutchison
Sadly both John and Brian have since passed away at a relatively early age, coincidentally, both in the USA. Larry has also passed away, all three without becoming CCFPA members.
Terry Yorath in the Sky Blue
Leeds United turned out with the following team:-
David Harvey, Paul Reaney, Frankie Gray, Billy Bremner, Gordon McQueen, Paul Madeley, Duncan McKenzie, Allan Clarke, Peter Lorimer, Terry Yorath and Eddie Gray
Referee:- T.Reynolds
Future Sky Blue skipper (and now CCFPA member) Terry Yorath was in the star studded United team that day!
Milne’s men finished the 1974-75 Division One season at fourteenth place. Leeds United ended up in ninth spot in Division One.
CCFC 1974-75
For the record it was Derby County‘s year for the title finishing a couple of points ahead of runners up Liverpool and Ipswich Town.
At the other end of the table the relegated trio were (in descending order) Luton Town, Chelsea and (bottom) Carlisle United.
Thanks to CCFPA’s ***Mike Young (& Dean Nelson)***for sourcing the images.
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