Matchday Memories: On This Day 1954 – CCFC’s Gordon & Don Down The Saints!
Jack Fairbrother
On this day (20th April) way back in 1954 Coventry City were playing their games in the old Division Three South and were managed from January by young former Preston North End and Newcastle United goalkeeper Jack Fairbrother who had eventually taken over from legendary manager Harry Storer following his resignation the previous November. The club had been relegated from the old Division Two at the end of the 1951-52 season and were taking time to adjust to the new lower division football.
These were turbulent times for the club with Board Room ructions aplenty and very patchy performances on the pitch. Today’s game, part of an eight game April, was an Easter return with Southampton. The Saints had beaten the Bantams 2-1 at the Dell the day before, where City’s goal came from a Roy Kirk penalty.
Gordon Nutt
Today CCFC got its revenge at Highfield Road exactly reversing the scores. The CCFC team was unchanged from that which took on the Saints on the south coast and the visitors made only two changes.
The Bantams’ goalgetters were Don Dorman after fourteen minutes with a header and, three minutes later, Gordon Nutt (who later emigrated to Australia and also became an Association member before his death). All the scoring came in the early part of the first half after which the game faded. The Saints goal came from Eric Day just after the half-hour. The game was watched by 9,640 patrons.
Don Dorman
Fairbrother’s team for this game lined up as follows:-
Peter Taylor, Eric Jones & Roy Kirk; Iain Jamieson, Martin McDonnell & Frank Austin; Gordon Nutt, Don Dorman, Eddy Brown, Peter Hill & Jimmy Hill
Peter Taylor later became part of the (in)famous managerial double act with Brian Clough at Derby County and Nottingham Forest. Iain Jamieson later became a Director and Chairman of Coventry City FC. Peter Hill was a long time club servant who came back as a CCFC coach (and later kitman) after he hung up his boots. Like Iain, Eddy and Gordon Peter also joined this Association before their respective passing. Namesake Jimmy was a junior winger and no relation whatsoever with our illustrious Sky Blue manager of the sixties!
George Roughton‘s Saints XI that day was:-
John Christie; Len Wilkins & Jack Gregory; Bryn Elliott, Pat Parker & Alex Simpson; John Flood, Len Gaynor, Eric Day, Roy Williams & JohnHoskins Referee:- P.Martin (Cobham)
CCFC had two more matches to play in the Division Three South season, both home games which they won (against Bristol City and Norwich City) to give them a fourtenth place finish. Jack Fairbrother‘s tenure in the Highfield Road hot seat only lasted until the November of the new 1954-55 season. Southampton had a pretty good season finishing sixth.
CCFC 1953-54
Ipswich Town were promoted as Division Three South Champions and Colchester United and bottom club Walsall were forced to seek re-election to the League (and were accepted back).
