1974–75 Derby County F.C. season

The 1974–75 season was Derby County's 75th in the Football League and their 48th season in the top flight. They won their second league title in four years to qualify for the 1975–76 European Cup.

Derby County
1974–75 season
ChairmanSam Longson
ManagerDave Mackay
StadiumBaseball Ground
First DivisionWinners
(In 1975-76 European Cup)
FA CupFifth round
League CupThird round
UEFA CupThird round
Top goalscorerLeague:
Bruce Rioch (15)

All:
Kevin Hector (21)
Highest home attendance38,000 v Carlisle United
(26 April 1975)
Lowest home attendance17,716 v Servette FC
(18 September 1974)
Average home league attendance26,719

Season review

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Whereas Brian Clough built his 1971–72 Championship winning team on discipline and a solid defence, Dave Mackay's 1974–75 side relied on attacking power to overwhelm its opponents. Midfielder Bruce Rioch bagged 15 goals to finish as the club's top league scorer, and the front three of Kevin Hector, Francis Lee and Roger Davies all contributed 12 or more. In March, Davies scored all the goals in a 5–0 win over Luton Town, becoming the first Derby player to net five times in a match since Hughie Gallacher in 1934. The Rams also put five past Queens Park Rangers and Burnley to finish the season as the league's leading scorers, though such abandon often left the side defensively frail and there were several heavy defeats along the way.

The season started in worrying fashion, with just one win in the club's opening seven fixtures, and despite a brief rally of six wins in 10 between September and November, a 1–0 defeat at Luton just before Christmas 1974 left them in 10th place. However, a run of just three defeats in their last 20 games, which saw them take 30 points from a possible 40, helped Derby surge up the table. A 0–0 draw away to Leicester City on the penultimate Saturday, combined with Ipswich Town drawing at Manchester City a few days later, confirmed the Rams as champions for the second time in four years.

Although domestic cup progress was limited (reaching the third round of the League Cup and the fifth round of the FA Cup), Derby's UEFA Cup debut proved relatively fruitful. A 6–2 aggregate victory over Servette FC was followed by a 4–4 aggregate draw with Atlético Madrid in the second round, both ties finishing 2–2. As a result, Derby took part in the club's first ever penalty shootout and overcame their opponents, winning 7–6. However, that was to be as good as it got for the Rams as Velež Mostar were able to overturn a 3–1 first league deficit to win 5–4 on aggregate and reach the quarter-finals.

Peter Daniel won the club's Player of the Season award after stepping in for Roy McFarland, who suffered an Achilles tendon injury whilst on international duty and missed all but the last five matches. Ron Webster became only the fifth player to break 500 appearances for Derby during his appearance in the defeat at Luton, while Colin Boulton broke the club record for goalkeeping appearances during the campaign on his way to a total of 344 appearances for the club. Colin Todd received the PFA Players' Player of the Year award, the only Derby County player ever to do so.

Squad

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Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
GK   ENG Colin Boulton
GK   ENG Graham Moseley
DF   ENG Peter Daniel
DF   ENG Roy McFarland
DF   ENG David Nish
DF   WAL Rod Thomas
DF   ENG Colin Todd
DF   ENG Ron Webster
MF   SCO Archie Gemmill (Captain)
MF   ENG Alan Hinton
MF   SCO Jeff King
No. Pos. Nation Player
MF   ENG Henry Newton
MF   ENG Steve Powell
MF   SCO Bruce Rioch
FW   ENG Jeff Bourne
FW   SCO Eric Carruthers
FW   ENG Roger Davies
FW   EIR Chris Egan
FW   ENG Kevin Hector
FW   ENG Francis Lee
FW   ENG John Sims

Transfers

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In
Pos. Name from Type
FW Francis Lee Manchester City

Competitions

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Division One

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League table

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GAv Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Derby County (C) 42 21 11 10 67 49 1.367 53 Qualification for the European Cup first round
2 Liverpool 42 20 11 11 60 39 1.538 51 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
3 Ipswich Town 42 23 5 14 66 44 1.500 51
4 Everton 42 16 18 8 56 42 1.333 50
5 Stoke City 42 17 15 10 64 48 1.333 49
Source: World Football
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal average; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions

Results by round

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Round12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334353637383940414243
GroundAHHAAHAHHAAHAAHAHAHHAHAHAHAAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAH
ResultDDWDLDLWWDDWWLLWWLWPDLLWWWWLDWLWWLWWWWDWWDD
Position1315741211141078955777510678910109758978736765341111
Source: Competitive matches
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss;   = Leader, 1975–76 European Cup;   = Classified to 1975–76 UEFA Cup;   = Relegation to 1975–76 Division Two

Matches

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17 August 1974 1 Everton 0–0 Derby County Walton
13 Stadium: Goodison Park
Attendance: 42,193
21 August 1974 2 Derby County 1–1 Coventry City Derby
Lee   68' 15   21' Mortimer Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 25,717
24 August 1974 3 Derby County 2–0 Sheffield United Derby
Hector   4'
Davies   76'
7 Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 23,088
27 August 1974 4 Coventry City 1–1 Derby County Coventry
Carr  77' 4   20' Davies Stadium: Highfield Road
Attendance: 18,586
31 August 1974 5 Tottenham Hotspur 2–0 Derby County Tottenham
Ritchie   46',   59' 12 Stadium: White Hart Lane
Attendance: 20,770
7 September 1974 6 Derby County 2–2 Newcastle United Derby
Davies   42'
Lee   51'
11   29' Macdonald
  61' Burns
Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 21,197
14 September 1974 7 Birmingham City 3–2 Derby County Birmingham
15:00 Hatton   28'
Francis   64' (pen.)
  79' (pen.)
14   84' Rioch
  87' Davies
Stadium: St. Andrews
Attendance: 27,345
21 September 1974 8 Derby County 3–2 Burnley Derby
Hector   46'
Rioch   55 ' (pen.)
Lee   65'
10   19' (o.g.) Todd
  89' (o.g.) Daniel
Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 21,377
25 September 1974 9 Derby County 4–1 Chelsea Derby
19:30 BST Rioch  10'
Webster   24'
Daniel   35'
Hector   86'
7   14' Hutchinson Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 22,036
Referee: Ken H Burns
28 September 1974 10 Stoke City 1–1 Derby County Stoke-on-Trent
Hurst   87' 8   75' Lee Stadium: Victoria Ground
Attendance: 23,589
5 October 1974 11 West Ham United 2–2 Derby County Upton Park
Robson   8'
Bonds   59'
9   29' Lee
  80' Hector
Stadium: Boleyn Ground
Attendance: 32,900
12 October 1974 12 Derby County 1–0 Leicester City Derby
Rioch   39' 5 Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 24,753
15 October 1974 13 Sheffield United 1–2 Derby County Sheffield
  5 Lee  ,   Stadium: Bramall Lane
Attendance: 21,882
19 October 1974 14 Carlisle United 3–0 Derby County Carlisle
Train  42'
Martin   65'
Clarke   69'
7 Stadium: Brunton Park
Attendance: 13,353
26 October 1974 15 Derby County 2–3 Middlesbrough Derby
Lee   36'
Hinton   69'
7   10' Hickton
  35' Foggon
  46' Mills
Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 24,036
2 November 1974 16 Leeds United 1–0 Derby County Leeds
7   78' Lee Stadium: Elland Road
Attendance: 33,551
9 November 1974 17 Derby County 5–2 Queens Park Rangers Derby
Hector   31'
Rioch   34'
Hector   54'
Hector   66' Lee   72'
5   44' Leach
  88' Bowles
Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 23,339
16 November 1974 18 Arsenal 3–1 Derby County London
Ball   52'
Kidd   72'
Ball   79' (pen.)
10   75' (pen.) Rioch Stadium: Highbury
Attendance: 32,286
23 November 1974 19 Derby County 2–0 Ipswich Town Derby
Hector  
Rioch  
6 Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 24,341
30 November 1974 20 Derby County suspd. Wolverhampton Wanderers Derby
Stadium: Baseball Ground
Note: Suspended because of a waterlogged pitch.
7 December 1974 21 Liverpool 2–2 Derby County Liverpool
Kennedy   18'
Heighway   22'
8   13' Bourne
  63' Davies
Stadium: Anfield Road
Attendance: 41,058
14 December 1974 22 Derby County 0–1 Everton Derby
9   66' Latchford Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 24,991
21 December 1974 23 Luton Town 0–1 Derby County Luton
J Ryan   61' (pen.) 10 Stadium: Kenilworth Road
Attendance: 12,862
26 December 1974 24 Derby County 2–1 Birmingham City Derby
Bourne   38'
Rioch   65'
10   87' Hatton Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 26,121
28 December 1974 25 Manchester City 2–1 Derby County Moss Side
Bell   64' 9   21' Newton
  65' Lee
Stadium: Maine Road
Attendance: 40,188
11 January 1975 26 Derby County 2–0 Liverpool Derby
Newton   39'
Lee   80'
7 Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 33,463
18 January 1975 27 Wolverhampton Wanderers 0–1 Derby County Wolverhampton
15:00 5   32' Newton Stadium: Molineux
Attendance: 24,515
1 February 1975 28 Queens Park Rangers 4–1 Derby County Shepherd's Bush
Givens   10'
Givens   80'
Thomas   87'
Givens   89'
8   3' Rioch Stadium: Loftus Road
Attendance: 20,686
8 February 1975 29 Derby County 0–0 Leeds United Derby
9 Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 33,641
22 February 1975 30 Derby County 2–1 Arsenal Derby
Powell   2'
Powell   28'
7   23' Radford Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 24,002
25 February 1975 31 Ipswich Town 3–0 Derby County Ipswich
 
 
 
8 Stadium: Portman Road
Attendance: 23,078
1 March 1975 32 Derby County 3–1 Tottenham Hotspur Derby
Rioch   30'
Daniel   37'
Davies   67'
7   11' Jones Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 23,000
8 March 1975 33 Chelsea 1–2 Derby County Fulham
15:00 Greenwich Mean Time Hollins   62' 3   58' Daniel
  61' Hinton
Stadium: Stamford Bridge
Attendance: 22,644
Referee: Donald Biddle
15 March 1975 34 Derby County 1–2 Stoke City Derby
  49'Hector 6   75' Greenhoff
  89' Greenhoff
Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 29,985
22 March 1975 35 Newcastle United 0–2 Derby County Newcastle Upon Tyne
7   16' Nish
  87' Rioch
Stadium: St. James' Park
Attendance: 31,010
29 March 1975 36 Derby County 5–0 Luton Town Derby
Davies   7'
Davies   11'
Davies   32'
Davies   78'
Davies   86'
6 Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 24,619
31 March 1975 37 Burnley 2–5 Derby County Burnley
Hankin   18'
James   66' (pen.)
5   1' Rioch
  20' Nish
  29' Davies
  78',   89' Hector
Stadium: Turf Moor
Attendance: 24,276
1 April 1975 38 Derby County 2–1 Manchester City Derby
Rioch  
Rioch  
3   Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 32,966
5 April 1975 39 Middlesbrough 1–1 Derby County Middlesbrough
Mills   34' 4   90' Hector Stadium: Riverside
Attendance: 30,066
9 April 1975 20 Derby County 1–0 Wolverhampton Wanderers Derby
Lee   68' 1 Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 30,109
Referee: J Benet
Note: Originally scheduled for 30th November but was postponed because of a waterlogged pitch.
12 April 1975 40 Derby County 1–0 West Ham United Derby
Rioch   66' 1 Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 31,336
19 April 1975 41 Leicester City 0–0 Derby County Leicester
15:00 Greenwich Mean Time 1 Stadium: Filbert Street
Attendance: 38,943
26 April 1975 42 Derby County 0–0 Carlisle United Derby
1 Stadium: Baseball Ground
Attendance: 38,000

League Cup

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Date Round Opponents H / A Result
F – A
Scorers Attendance
11 September 1974 Second round Portsmouth A 5–1 Hector 2, Lee, Rioch, Roberts (og) 13,582
8 October 1974 Third round Southampton A 0–5 14,911

FA Cup

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Date Round Opponents H / A Result
F – A
Scorers Attendance
4 January 1975 Third round Orient A 2–2 Todd 2 12,490
8 January 1975 Third round replay Orient H 2–1 Lee, Rioch 26,501
27 January 1975 Fourth round Bristol Rovers H 2–0 Hector, Rioch (pen) 27,980
18 February 1975 Fifth round Leeds United H 0–1 35,298

UEFA Cup

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Date Round Opponents H / A Result
F – A
Scorers Attendance
18 September 1974 First round 1st Leg   Servette FC H 4–1 Hector 2, Daniel, Lee 17,716
2 October 1974 First round 2nd Leg   Servette FC A 2–1 Lee, Hector 9,600
Derby County win 6–2 on aggregate
23 October 1974 Second round 1st Leg   Atlético Madrid H 2–2 Nish, Rioch (pen) 29,347
6 November 1974 Second round 2nd Leg   Atlético Madrid A 2–2 (aet) Rioch, Hector 35,000
4–4 on aggregate, Derby County win 7–6 on penalties
27 November 1974 Third round 1st Leg   Velež Mostar H 3–1 Bourne 2, Hinton 26,131
11 December 1974 Third round 2nd Leg   Velež Mostar A 1–4 Hector 15,000
Velež Mostar win 5–4 on aggregate

Statistics

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Players statistics

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Substitute appearances indicated in brackets
No. Pos Nat Player Total Football League
Division One
Football League
Cup
UEFA
Cup
FA
Cup
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
GK   ENG Colin Boulton 54 0 42 0 2 0 6 0 4 0
DF   ENG Ron Webster 34 1 24 1 2 0 6 0 2 0
DF   ENG Peter Daniel 49 4 37 3 2 0 6 1 4 0
DF   ENG Colin Todd 50 2 39 0 2 0 5 0 4 2
DF   ENG David Nish 49 3 38 2 2 0 5 1 4 0
MF   SCO Bruce Rioch 54 20 42 15 2 1 6 2 4 2
MF   SCO Archie Gemmill 52 0 41 0 2 0 6 0 3 0
MF   ENG Henry Newton 48 3 35+1 3 1+1 0 6 0 4 0
FW   ENG Roger Davies 49 12 39+1 12 2 0 2+1 0 3+1 0
FW   ENG Kevin Hector 48 21 38 13 2 2 6 5 2 1
FW   ENG Francis Lee 46 16 34 12 2 1 6 2 4 1
GK   ENG Graham Moseley 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
DF   WAL Rod Thomas 25 0 22 0 0 0 1 0 2 0
MF   ENG Steve Powell 18 2 12+3 2 1 0 1 0 1 0
MF   ENG Alan Hinton 19 3 8+5 2 0 0 0+4 1 0+2 0
FW   ENG Jeff Bourne 27 4 7+10 2 0+1 0 4+1 2 3+1 0
DF   ENG Roy McFarland 4 0 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
MF   SCO Jeff King 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
FW   SCO Eric Carruthers 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
FW   EIR Chris Egan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
FW   ENG John Sims 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

References

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