1946–47 in English football

The 1946–47 season was the 67th season of competitive football in England.

Football in England
Season1946–47
Men's football
First DivisionLiverpool
Second DivisionManchester City
FA CupCharlton Athletic
England

Overview

The 1946–47 season was the first to feature a full football programme since the 1938–39 campaign. Eighty-eight teams competed over four divisions.[1] Liverpool went top of the First Division with a 2–1 away win over Wolverhampton Wanderers on 31 May 1947. Wolves could have clinched their first league title with a victory in that match, but instead the title was won by Liverpool for the fifth time. Due to a bitter winter that postponed many fixtures Liverpool had to wait until the match between Stoke City and Sheffield United on 14 June. A win for Stoke would see them take the title on goal average; however, Sheffield United prevailed 2–1 to give Liverpool its fifth league championship.[2]

Events

The season commenced on 31 August 1946. The largest crowd of the day was 61,000 at Stamford Bridge where Chelsea beat Bolton Wanderers 4–3. Aggregate attendance was 950,000 for the 43 matches – the match between Newport County and Southampton was postponed due to floods.[3]

In September, Scottish International Inside-forward, Tommy Walker, joined Chelsea from Hearts for £6,000 (2010: £194,000).[1] By 14 September most teams had averaged five games with only Manchester United and Doncaster Rovers maintaining a 100% record.[4] By 23 September, only Barnsley, Manchester City, Rotherham United and Queens Park Rangers remained unbeaten.[5]

On 5 October Newcastle United created a Second Division record, scoring 13 against Newport County. New signing Len Shackleton scored five.[6]

In 1946 Sparta Prague toured Great Britain opening with a 2–2 draw against Arsenal on 2 October[7] before losing 3–1 to Birmingham City.[8]

Honours
CompetitionWinnersRunners-up
First DivisionLiverpool (5)Manchester United
Second DivisionManchester CityBurnley
Third Division NorthDoncaster RoversRotherham United
Third Division SouthCardiff CityQueens Park Rangers
FA CupCharlton Athletic (1)Burnley
Home Championship England Ireland

Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour. * indicates new record for competition

Football League
Main article: 1946–47 Football League

First Division

The first post-war season saw Liverpool win out in one of the most dramatic finishes to any title race; needing to beat Wolverhampton Wanderers in order to wrestle the title away from them, they walked away with a 2–1 win, and their first league title since 1923. However, the surprise package of the season were Manchester United, as Matt Busby's appointment as manager had an immediate impact and brought them a second-place finish, their highest since their last title win in 1911, with the intervening decades generally only having seen mid-table finishes combined with occasional spells in Division Two; it would prove to be just the start of two decades of immense success under the new manager's leadership. Wolves finished third, having led the table for much of the season, before being undone by a late loss of form. Despite finishing fourth, Stoke City had the opportunity to snatch the title away from Liverpool, due to their final game of the season being delayed by almost two weeks; a loss to Sheffield United ended their hopes, however.

At the bottom, Leeds United were relegated in bottom place, ultimately being cost dear by abysmal away form that saw them earn just one point away from Elland Road, and returning to the Second Division after 15 years. Brentford went down after five seasons in Division One; they would ultimately not return to the top-flight until 2021.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Liverpool 42 25 7 10 84 52 1.615 57
2 Manchester United 42 22 12 8 95 54 1.759 56
3 Wolverhampton Wanderers 42 25 6 11 98 56 1.750 56
4 Stoke City 42 24 7 11 90 53 1.698 55
5 Blackpool 42 22 6 14 71 70 1.014 50
6 Sheffield United 42 21 7 14 89 75 1.187 49
7 Preston North End 42 18 11 13 76 74 1.027 47
8 Aston Villa 42 18 9 15 67 53 1.264 45
9 Sunderland 42 18 8 16 65 66 0.985 44
10 Everton 42 17 9 16 62 67 0.925 43
11 Middlesbrough 42 17 8 17 73 68 1.074 42
12 Portsmouth 42 16 9 17 66 60 1.100 41
13 Arsenal 42 16 9 17 72 70 1.029 41
14 Derby County 42 18 5 19 73 79 0.924 41
15 Chelsea 42 16 7 19 69 84 0.821 39
16 Grimsby Town 42 13 12 17 61 82 0.744 38
17 Blackburn Rovers 42 14 8 20 45 53 0.849 36
18 Bolton Wanderers 42 13 8 21 57 69 0.826 34
19 Charlton Athletic 42 11 12 19 57 71 0.803 34
20 Huddersfield Town 42 13 7 22 53 79 0.671 33
21 Brentford 42 9 7 26 45 88 0.511 25 Relegated to the Second Division
22 Leeds United 42 6 6 30 45 90 0.500 18
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal average; 3) number of goals scored.

Second Division

Manchester City won promotion back to the top-flight at the second attempt, closely followed by Burnley, who returned to Division One for the first time since 1930.

Newport County's first season in the second tier (not counting the abandoned 1939–40 season) ended in immediate relegation, with the club shipping a staggering 133 goals; it would ultimately prove this incarnation of the club's only season at this level before its dissolution in 1989. Fellow Welsh club Swansea Town were also relegated.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Manchester City 42 26 10 6 78 35 2.229 62 Promoted to the First Division
2 Burnley 42 22 14 6 65 29 2.241 58
3 Birmingham City 42 25 5 12 74 33 2.242 55
4 Chesterfield 42 18 14 10 58 44 1.318 50
5 Newcastle United 42 19 10 13 95 62 1.532 48
6 Tottenham Hotspur 42 17 14 11 65 53 1.226 48
7 West Bromwich Albion 42 20 8 14 88 75 1.173 48
8 Coventry City 42 16 13 13 66 59 1.119 45
9 Leicester City 42 18 7 17 69 64 1.078 43
10 Barnsley 42 17 8 17 84 86 0.977 42
11 Nottingham Forest 42 15 10 17 69 74 0.932 40
12 West Ham United 42 16 8 18 70 76 0.921 40
13 Luton Town 42 16 7 19 71 73 0.973 39
14 Southampton 42 15 9 18 69 76 0.908 39
15 Fulham 42 15 9 18 63 74 0.851 39
16 Bradford Park Avenue 42 14 11 17 65 77 0.844 39
17 Bury 42 12 12 18 80 78 1.026 36
18 Millwall 42 14 8 20 56 79 0.709 36
19 Plymouth Argyle 42 14 5 23 79 96 0.823 33
20 Sheffield Wednesday 42 12 8 22 67 88 0.761 32
21 Swansea Town 42 11 7 24 55 83 0.663 29 Relegated to the Third Division South
22 Newport County 42 10 3 29 61 133 0.459 23
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal average; 3) number of goals scored.

Third Division North

Doncaster Rovers were promoted to the Second Division, beating out South Yorkshire rivals Rotherham United, whose own record would have been enough for promotion in most years.

Southport and Halifax Town were both re-elected to the Football League.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Doncaster Rovers 42 33 6 3 123 40 3.075 72 Promoted to the Second Division
2 Rotherham United 42 29 6 7 114 53 2.151 64
3 Chester 42 25 6 11 95 51 1.863 56
4 Stockport County 42 24 2 16 78 53 1.472 50
5 Bradford City 42 20 10 12 62 47 1.319 50
6 Rochdale 42 19 10 13 80 64 1.250 48
7 Wrexham 42 17 12 13 65 51 1.275 46
8 Crewe Alexandra 42 17 9 16 70 74 0.946 43
9 Barrow 42 17 7 18 54 62 0.871 41
10 Tranmere Rovers 42 17 7 18 66 77 0.857 41
11 Hull City 42 16 8 18 49 53 0.925 40
12 Lincoln City 42 17 5 20 86 87 0.989 39
13 Hartlepools United 42 15 9 18 64 73 0.877 39
14 Gateshead 42 16 6 20 62 72 0.861 38
15 York City 42 14 9 19 67 81 0.827 37
16 Carlisle United 42 14 9 19 70 93 0.753 37
17 Darlington 42 15 6 21 68 80 0.850 36
18 New Brighton 42 14 8 20 57 77 0.740 36
19 Oldham Athletic 42 12 8 22 55 80 0.688 32
20 Accrington Stanley 42 14 4 24 56 92 0.609 32
21 Southport 42 7 11 24 53 85 0.624 25 Re-elected
22 Halifax Town 42 8 6 28 43 92 0.467 22
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal average; 3) number of goals scored.

Third Division South

Cardiff City won the division, meaning that they passed two of their Welsh rivals, Swansea and Newport, on their way up to the Second Division.

Norwich City and Mansfield Town were both re-elected, though Mansfield were transferred to the Third Division North for the following season.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GR Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Cardiff City 42 30 6 6 93 30 3.100 66 Promoted to the Second Division
2 Queens Park Rangers 42 23 11 8 74 40 1.850 57
3 Bristol City 42 20 11 11 94 56 1.679 51
4 Swindon Town 42 19 11 12 84 73 1.151 49
5 Walsall 42 17 12 13 74 59 1.254 46
6 Ipswich Town 42 16 14 12 61 53 1.151 46
7 Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic 42 18 8 16 72 54 1.333 44
8 Southend United 42 17 10 15 71 60 1.183 44
9 Reading 42 16 11 15 83 74 1.122 43
10 Port Vale 42 17 9 16 68 63 1.079 43
11 Torquay United 42 15 12 15 52 61 0.852 42
12 Notts County 42 15 10 17 63 63 1.000 40
13 Northampton Town 42 15 10 17 72 75 0.960 40
14 Bristol Rovers 42 16 8 18 59 69 0.855 40
15 Exeter City 42 15 9 18 60 69 0.870 39
16 Watford 42 17 5 20 61 76 0.803 39
17 Brighton & Hove Albion 42 13 12 17 54 72 0.750 38
18 Crystal Palace 42 13 11 18 49 62 0.790 37
19 Leyton Orient 42 12 8 22 54 75 0.720 32
20 Aldershot 42 10 12 20 48 78 0.615 32
21 Norwich City 42 10 8 24 64 100 0.640 28 Re-elected
22 Mansfield Town 42 9 10 23 48 96 0.500 28 Re-elected and transferred to the Third Division North
Source: rsssf.com
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal average; 3) number of goals scored.

Top goalscorers

First Division

Second Division

Third Division North

Third Division South

References
  1. The Times, 9 September 1946; Association Football Only Five Clubs
  2. "The Definitive History of Leeds United – Season 1946/47 Plumbing the depths".
  3. The Times, 2 September 1946, Association Football Big Crowds at Opening Matches
  4. The Times, 16 September 1946; Association Football More Surprising Results
  5. The Times, 23 September 1946; Association Football Four Unbeaten Clubs
  6. The Times, 7 October 1946, Association Football Newcastle's 13 Goals
  7. The Times, 3 October 1946; Association Football Sparta Draw With Arsenal
  8. The Times, 8 October 1946, Association Football Birmingham Beat Sparta
  9. "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
  10. "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
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