During each month throughout this season, we will be remembering the most important moments, matches and milestones from the history of Cardiff City Football Club, proudly celebrating our momentous 125th anniversary.
After a decade of decline in the 1930’s, the outbreak of the Second World War proved to be a blessing in disguise for the Bluebirds’ on-field fortunes. Cyril Spiers set about creating a popular team of local lads, who, when competitive action returned in 1946/47, stormed to promotion from the Division Three South to win a place in the second tier.
The Club made the most of this upturn in form, spending £9,000 to improve facilities within the Grandstand at Ninian Park. The good feeling continued into the start of the campaign, with Billy McCandless’ boys losing just two of their opening 13 Second Division fixtures. However, McCandless soon bravely swapped Cardiff City for Swansea Town, a move which saw ex-boss Spiers return to Ninian in December 1947 – he would remain for almost seven years.
For four seasons, City continued to knock on the door of Second Division promotion – finishing 5th, 4th and 3rd during that time. The Bluebirds had never been so popular; Club Secretary Trevor Morris and the man responsible for founding the Club, Bartley Wilson (who celebrated his 80th birthday in 1950), were working all hours to try and facilitate the demand for tickets.
1951/52 was finally the season of success for Spiers. The opening match set the tone for the campaign, a 4-0 home win over Leicester City. Despite suffering four defeats in the opening seven games, the Bluebirds went on to have a brilliant season, with large unbeaten runs in November, December and April propelling them towards the top of the table. A key combination was that of Wilf Grant, signed from Southampton in 1950, and Ken Chisholm, a new recruit from Coventry City. Grant, transformed from winger to centre forward, fired 26 league goals in total, whilst Chisholm added eight strikes in the final 11 matches of the season to give the Bluebirds a much-needed boost.
Spiers’ men needed to win their final three matches of the campaign, all on home turf, to get back into the top tier after a 23-year absence. Blackburn Rovers were the first visitors to Ninian, with Grant, Chisholm and Alf Sherwood on target in a 3-1 City win. Five days later, a brace from Doug Blair and another Grant strike put Bury to the sword 3-0, meaning that the Bluebirds faced an all-or-nothing showdown against Leeds United on the final day. In front of an official crowd of 45,925, with thousands more likely in attendance, Grant and Chisholm ran riot once again, the former scoring twice to earn another 3-1 victory and see the Bluebirds back in the First Division.
City held their own against the big boys in the top flight, finishing a respectable 12th in their first season back. Chisholm was top scorer with 13 league goals, and highlights of the campaign included a Manchester double – the Bluebirds beat City 6-0 at Ninian Park in February, before heading to Old Trafford in April and picking up a 4-1 win over United. That same month, Arsenal visited Ninian Park and drew a bumper crowd of 57,893 spectators, a Club record that still stands to this day. A 10th place finish followed in 1953/54, as Spiers’ side began to consolidate themselves in the First Division.
1954/55 was a tough year for the Club, despite Cardiff being proudly confirmed as the capital city of Wales. On the pitch, the Bluebirds narrowly avoided relegation back to the Second Division by just two points, with Spiers having departed for Crystal Palace in the early months of the campaign. Two off-field legends of the Club also sadly passed away in 1954. FA Cup winning trainer Fred Stewart, who had spent 22 years at the helm, died in February, and Bartley Wilson, the founder of our great Club, in November.
The great side of 1951/52 who had won promotion to the First Division was beginning to break up, and, having lost Spiers, Secretary Trevor Morris tried his hand at management but was unable to recreate the magic. Despite the arrival of the prolific Trevor Ford, under Morris’ guidance City recorded 20th, 17th and eventually 21st place finishes, seeing them relegated in 1956/57.
There were two main highlights of this period, despite a disappointing set of league campaigns. City enjoyed an extraordinary series of FA Cup matches, facing Leeds United in three consecutive seasons: all in the Third Round, all at Elland Road. Jack Charlton and future Bluebird, John Charles, were in the Leeds side, but City came away with 2-1 wins on all three occasions. Also, in 1956, the Bluebirds lifted the Welsh Cup for the first time in 26 years, defeating Swansea Town 3-2 in a pulsating Ninian Park final – Brian Walsh (2) and John McSeveney were on target for City.
Like McCandless before him, Morris soon headed west to join our Welsh rivals, and Bill Jones became the new boss in the capital. With an emphasis on attacking football, Jones led City to a ninth-place Second Division finish before an exciting season in 1959/60.
Liverpool were the opening day visitors to Ninian Park, a side which contained future Reds caretaker boss Ronnie Moran as captain. Despite a pair of own goals from Bluebird Danny Malloy, City were 3-2 winners thanks to strikes from Steve Mokone, Graham Moore and Johnny Watkins.
Like Wilf Grant in ‘51/52, Derek Tapscott was the talisman of ‘59/60. The Barry-born forward joined City from Arsenal in 1958, and formed a strong partnership with another former Gunner, Brian Walsh. The Bluebirds lost just three times in the first half of the campaign, and did the double over Liverpool with a riotous 4-0 Anfield victory in December 1958 – Bill Shankly’s first match in charge of the Reds.
A mini-wobble in March was put right by two key victories in April – Stoke City were beaten 1-0 at the Victoria Ground, setting up a mighty clash with table-topping Aston Villa in South Wales. The match, on Easter Sunday, 1960, had extra significance: the Bluebirds were celebrating their golden anniversary having become a professional club in April 1910, and Villa had of course been the first-ever visitors to Ninian Park later that year. Graham Moore was the hero for City, scoring after 12 minutes to secure promotion back to the First Division.
Tapscott continued to find the back of the net in the top flight, scoring 30 in all competitions during the 1960/61 season. Six of them came in one match – a 16-0 triumph over Knighton Town in the Fifth Round of the Welsh Cup. That result remains the Club’s biggest ever win, with Tapscott’s six strikes in a single match also a Club record.
Jones’ side recorded a 15th place finish in the First Division, with the highlight coming in March 1961. Bill Nicholson’s Tottenham Hotspur came to town, on their way to eventually winning the league and Cup ‘double’. In front of 45,463, the Bluebirds produced a fine performance to win 3-2, with goals from Derek Hogg, Walsh and Tapscott. However, it was to be City’s final win of the campaign, as they finished in disappointing fashion.
The poor end to 1960/61 sadly set the tone for the following season, which ended in relegation. Jones’ men managed to avoid the drop zone until the final weeks of the season, but a wretched run of five straight losses sealed their fate. Home wins over Birmingham City and West Ham United were not enough, and a final day draw at Villa Park sealed our fate, bringing an end to almost 15 years of excitement, which contained two promotions and seven seasons of top flight football. However, a new set of adventures was just around the corner, which would take the Bluebirds all over the continent.