Derby County Memories

The end of the current season saw League football bid farewell to one of its most iconic stadiums when Everton, who had called it home since 1892, played their final match there before moving across the city to the Hill Dickinson Stadium. It’s a stadium Derby have visited many times down the years (69 times, I make it), most of which were in the First Division or the FA Cup but there was one solitary Second Division fixture in there…

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After a 0-0 draw against VfL Bochum in Germany, manager Dave Mackay and assistant Des Anderson took their Derby County side to Spain to compete in the Costa del Sol tournament as part of their preparations for the 1974/75 campaign. The trip was no holiday for the players though as Malaga’s intense summer heat made conditions particularly testing, with daytime temperatures soaring into the high 90s Fahrenheit. Even with late evening kick-offs, the air remained hot and humid. The tournament…

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When we read about yet another manager or top player criticising the number of fixtures scheduled, one of the most common ripostes is that players and managers “have it easy compared to how football used to be”. This is undoubtedly the case, however even a cursory skim through the pages of Football Monthly of the 1950s and 1960s shows there were many concerns from managers, players and media about just that, especially over the Christmas and Easter periods. The Easter…

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Although not a matchday programme, this piece of memorabilia commemorates a significant moment in the history of Derby County. To mark the club’s golden jubilee, a celebratory supper was held on Monday 1 October 1934 at the Drill Hall in Derby, located on the corner of Becket Street and Newland Street. The venue stood until its demolition in 1970; today, the site is occupied by Forester House. The following day, the Derby Evening Telegraph published a report of the event…

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Season 1974/75 will always, of course, be remembered for Derby’s second League title in four seasons but what of their FA Cup campaign? The Third Round draw (which was now being shown live on Match of The Day following the conclusion of the Second Round ties) sent the Rams down to East London and a potentially tricky tie at Orient, who were lying 16th in the Second Division. Derby ended 1974 in ninth place, having seen out the year with…

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Without a win in four matches, Derby County travelled to Elland Road on Saturday 1 December 1934 to face Leeds United. All eyes were on Hughie Gallacher, the prolific Scottish forward recently signed from Chelsea for £2,750 by Rams manager George Jobey. Gallacher, brought in to replace the injured Jack Bowers, was set to make his fourth consecutive appearance in black and white. The cover of the official matchday programme is dominated by an advertisement for Thorne’s Creamy Milk Chocolate…

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Having finished runners-up to title winners Sunderland the previous season, Derby had entered the new season as one of half a dozen clubs expected to challenge for honours and had started off in great form, having won three of their opening four games and scoring 13 goals in doing so. That included a four-goal haul for Jack Bowers in a 5-4 Baseball Ground success against Manchester United where the Rams had fought back from two goals down. On September 14th,…

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After 11 games of the 1938/1939 season, George Jobey’s Derby County side were flying high in Division One, sitting second with 16 points. They were level on points with leaders Everton, though the Toffees had a game in hand. On Saturday 22 October, the Rams hosted Manchester United at the Baseball Ground. United had endured a tough start to the season, winning just twice and languishing in 16th place on 8 points. The match marked the debut of Derby’s new…

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The 1930s had begun with an air of optimism around the club with George Jobey’s team lying in third place in the table, five points behind leaders Sheffield Wednesday, and on a run of 7 wins from their last 10 games. Adding to all the optimism, the Rams had coasted into the fourth round of the FA Cup with a comfortable 5-1 home win over Second Division opponent Bristol City. The draw for the fourth round handed Derby another home…

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In late October of the 1945/1946 season, Ted Magner’s Derby County team made the journey to Somerton Park in South Wales to face Newport County in the Football League South. Just a week earlier, the Rams had comfortably triumphed 4-1 at the Baseball Ground, with Duncan (two), Doherty, and Powell all on the scoresheet. The Derby Evening Telegraph’s match report was headlined, “Newport Was a ‘Piece of Cake’ for the Rams,” penned by journalist Mark Eaton. He continued the culinary…

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