Norwich City Appearances

Norwich City first team appearances in all competitions, including those from the substitutes bench. Friendlies and trial matches not included. Players still at the club omitted.


E

Darren Eadie  204
Les Eyre  201
Marc Edworthy  76
Dickson Etuhu  70
Clint Easton  57
Robert Earnshaw  47
Efan Ekoku  45
Shaun Elliott  39
Sidney Earl  30
Ched Evans  28
Grahame Englefield  22
Doug Evans  19
Neil Emblen  15
Robert Eagle  12
Stephen Elliott  10
George Edwards  9
George Ephgrave  5
Horace Ellis  4
Rob Edwards  3
Don Edwards  2
Jim Edwards  2
Bob Edwards  1
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Born This Week

.   March 19th (Today)

Tony Collins ~  in 1926 in Kensington

.   March 20th

Patrick Boyle ~  in 1987 in Glasgow

Ian Murray ~  in 1981 in Edinburgh

Andy Roberts ~  in 1974 in Dartford

Nigel Worthington ~  in 1962 in Ballymena

Harry Dix ~  in 1892 in Southend

.   March 21st

Malcolm Allen ~  in 1967 in Deiniolen, Gwynedd

Ross Jack ~  in 1959 in Avoch, Scotland

.   March 23rd

Michael Spillane ~  in 1989 in St Helier, Jersey

Goran Maric ~  in 1984 in Novi Sad, Yugoslavia

Jon Otsemobor ~  in 1983 in Liverpool

Michael Nelson ~  in 1980 in Gateshead

Geoff Barnard ~  in 1946 in Southend

Norman Low ~  in 1914 in Aberdeen

Jack Roy ~  in 1914 in Southampton

Bill Smith ~  in 1906 in Kelvin, Glasgow

.   March 24th

Paul Haylock ~  in 1963 in Lowestoft

John Sainty ~  in 1946 in Poplar

.   March 25th

Adrian Leijer ~  in 1986 in Dubbo, Australia

Tony Woolmer ~  in 1946 in Swardeston

Ernest Reid ~  in 1914 in Merthyr Tydfil

Theo Pike ~  in 1907 in Sunderland



[This feature is produced weekly and posted on Sing Up The River End! every Monday] 

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Debutants 1928

Here is a list of all players who made their first team débuts for Norwich City Football Club in 1928 :

Bernard McLaverty    14 January 1928 v Newport County  (Division 3S)  (a) drew 2-2
Cecil Bradley    18 February 1928 v Brighton  (Division 3S)  (h) drew 0-0
Arthur Cropper    18 February 1928
Frank McKenna    25 August 1928 v Coventry City  (Division 3S)  (a) lost 3-0
John Philipson    25 August 1928
John Stephenson    25 August 1928
John Greenwell    27 August 1928 v Bournemouth  (Division 3S)  (h) won 5-1
Charlie Hooper    10 November 1928 v Plymouth Argyle  (Division 3S)  (h) lost 3-0
Fred Dent    25 December 1928 v Luton Town  (Division 3S)  (a) lost 2-1
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Ask Aitch ! - Silk Shirts In The Fifties

Hi Aitch,

Just discovered your excellent site at SUTRE! and was looking at past Norwich strips. When I was a lad living in Sussex I supported Brighton & Hove Albion and well remember keenly contested games with the Canaries at the Goldstone Ground in the old 3rd Division (S). It seems to me that in about 1954, Norwich wore a strip (maybe away) that looked like silk and may have been yellow with a lot of black trim. It always stuck in my mind as distinguishing Norwich as a team with some style (as opposed to the scruffy visiting Bristol teams). I wonder if you or your sources can throw any light on this ? It would have been in the Johnny Gavin/Tommy Johnston era.

Regards
Roy Headland (now living in Norwich and a supporter for 40 years)

First of all, thanks for getting in touch Roy, and for your kind words about Sing Up The River End! I am glad you enjoy it.

I must admit I always find the history of Norwich City shirt colours to be fascinating, as they changed from the blue and white of the Citizens to the green and yellow of the Canaries. But until I received your question, I am not sure how much thought I had ever given to the material they were made from.

The development of football shirts has not been as constant as you may expect, but there have been a few landmark periods when things changed, and significantly the fifties was one of them. After World War Two, clubs were generally impoverished and most made do with their pre war kits. There were also clothing restrictions still in place. However, by the time you have indicated, there was a little more money around. And it also corresponds with the manufacture of football shirts from artificial fabrics for the first time.

Obviously I have no first hand knowledge of the match in question, and I am unlikely to be able to dig up any information on it as far as kit is concerned. However, research has produced a few 'clues', which, when brought together, almost certainly confirms that your recollections of that visiting Norwich City team is correct.

Though I should quickly add that it is unlikely the shirts were actually silk. The material would have been rayon, an artificial fibre, which is noted for producing a bright sheen, and is in fact also called Artificial Silk (or Art Silk in the textile trade). As I said, football shirt development has had a few notable landmark periods, and in 1953, Bolton Wanderers played in rayon shirts in the FA Cup Final against Blackpool. It was of course a famous match, a seven goal thriller and often called the 'Matthews Final'. Therefore rayon was very popular around this time and all the rage, and being much more affordable than pure silk allowed football clubs to freshen up their image and look considerably more classy than they had done previously.

It is hard to say when exactly Norwich appeared in rayon shirts. If you are in possession of the second edition Mike Davage's fine book Canary Citizens, you will see pictures of Johnny Gavin and Tommy Johnston in kits that are definitely 'shiny' ! My best guess is that these photographs date from about 1952-53. The official Norwich City handbook from that season also has player biographies accompanied by head and shoulder pictures. A number of the shirts look silky. Perhaps most telling is an advert in the front cover of that publication : "Norwich Fabrics" - manufactured in Norwich by Fras. Hinde & Sons Ltd, St. Mary's Silk Mills. Rayon is noted as one of the fabrics they produced, so I will stick my neck out and say that that was where the Canary shirts were actually made.

Getting back to the match in question Roy, I doubt if the shirts you witnessed were the away strip. Brighton have always of course played in blue and white, so no clash would have occurred on the day. Don't forget, Norwich played in black shorts throughout the fifties, and certainly in pictures I have seen, they gave the Canaries a rugged appearance, certainly much more so than the modern colours we have become used to. History records that the collars and cuffs were normally green and the socks would have been a variation of green and yellow. But I think it is natural that after all these years the black element has stuck in your mind. As well as the silky shirts of course !

Thanks for the question. I enjoyed researching an answer for you.




Do you have a question regarding Norwich City Football Club history or trivia ? Maybe a memory that you can't quite piece together due to missing information ? The solution of course may already be on Sing Up The River End! but if you want to contact me either by the comment facility or e mail (address at bottom of the blog) I will try to publish you an answer.

Many questions are likely to be beyond me. So, if I don't know the answer, I will put out a request to see if any other readers can help. It's amazing what people know and remember and it may just give you what you are looking for.

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Norwich City & Newcastle United - Players

The following players have all had connections with Norwich City and Newcastle United :

.   William Aitken (W)
.   Malcolm Allen (F)
.   Jackie Bell (M)  *
.   Craig Bellamy (F)
.   Albert Bennett (F)  *
.   William Bertram (F)  *
.   Tommy Booth (F)
.   Garry Brady (M)  *
.   Ollie Burton (M)  **
.   Viv Busby (F)
.   Mick Channon (F)
.   Bryan Conlon (F)
.   Carl Cort (F)
.   Tom Coulthard (D/M)  *
.   Bill Cummings (M)
.   Paul Dalglish (F)  *
.   Ian Davies (D)  **
.   Jack Doran (F)  *
.   Fraser Forster (GK)  *
.   Ruel Fox (W)  **
.   Sam Graham (F)  *
.   Bertie Hall (M)
.   Des Hamilton (M)  *
.   Billy Hampson (D)  **
.   Sandy Higgins (F)
.   Jimmy Hill (F)  *
.   Trevor Hockey (M)
.   Darren Huckerby (W/F)
.   William Hughes (F)
.   Reg Keating (F)
.   Peter McCoy (D)  *
.   Matt McNeil (M)
.   Gary Megson (M)
.   William Mellor (GK)  **
.   Arthur Metcalf (F)
.   Mick O'Brien (D)  ***
.   Scott Parker (M)
.   Matty Pattison (M)  *
.   Jack Peart  (F)
.   Bill Punton  (W)
.   Keith Robson (F)
.   Kevin Scott (F)
.   Antoine Sibierski (M)
.   Harry Ware (F)
.   Harry Woods (F)
.   James Young (F)


*  associated with Newcastle United immediately before Norwich City
**  associated with Newcastle United immediately after Norwich City
***  associated with Newcastle East End, the forerunners of Newcastle United


All players listed made at least one competitive appearance for Norwich City. Their associations with Newcastle United may have come through first team, reserve or youth football. Wartime guest appearances are not included, or trials in friendly matches.
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Norwich City & Newcastle United - Managers

The only man in history to manage both Norwich City and Newcastle United is Glenn Roeder. His tenure at St. James' Park ran from February 2006, when he was initially appointed caretaker after the dismissal of Graeme Souness, until May 2007. During this time, he built up a win ratio in excess of 45%, placing him amongst the most successful managers in Magpies history, and winning the Intertoto Cup. Five months after his departure from Newcastle he filled the vacancy at Carrow Road. During his playing career, Roeder had marshalled the Newcastle defence in over 200 games between 1983 and 1989, making more appearances for them than any of his other clubs.

Gary Megson and Bert Gosnell are two other City managers to play for Newcastle United. Megson spent part of the 1984-85 season with them after being sold by Nottingham Forest, making 24 league appearances in total. Gosnell, who managed the Canaries between 1921 and 1926, played for the Magpies in over 100 league games between 1904 and 1910. He twice represented them in FA Cup Finals, in 1905 and 1906, but finished on the losing side on both occasions.

Midfield maestro Colin Suggett, a hugely popular player for Norwich in the seventies, had a five game spell as caretaker manager at St. James' Park towards the end of 1988, after the departure of Willie McFaul. Two games were drawn and three lost, before Jim Smith was appointed to the job permanently.
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Norwich City History Against...... Newcastle United

All Competitions
Norwich City 15 wins   Newcastle 20 wins   13 draws
Norwich goals 58   Newcastle goals 75

Football League
Norwich City 14 wins   Newcastle 19 wins   13 draws
Norwich goals 52   Newcastle goals 73

All league games at Norwich
Norwich City 10 wins   Newcastle 6 wins   7 draws
Norwich goals 32   Newcastle goals 28

All league games at Newcastle
Norwich City 4 wins   Newcastle 13 wins   6 draws
Norwich goals 20   Newcastle goals 45

Cup Football
Norwich City 1 win   Newcastle 1 win   0 draws
Norwich goals 6   Newcastle goals 2


Norwich City first came into contact with Newcastle United in 1910. Although separated by some distance in divisional status (City were Southern League, Newcastle Division One of the Football League), the two clubs met in the Norfolk & Norwich Hospital Cup on the 19th of September. This annual charity match had increasingly attracted better opposition, but the visit of Newcastle United was especially good. The previous season they had won the FA Cup and kindly brought it with them to the Nest. Over thirteen thousand people attended the match, hopeful no doubt that they may get sight of the trophy, and Norwich did themselves proud on the field, holding their illustrious rivals to a 1-1 draw. Because the result was not conclusive, the match was replayed in the November and this time Newcastle won 3-0. They visited again in 1912 in the same event, and that match finished goalless.

The Canaries of course, did not join the Football League until the 1920-21 season, and it was some time after that before they reached the same playing level as Newcastle. In 1933-34, as Norwich were winning Division Three South, Newcastle were finishing one from bottom in the First Division. And so, in 1934-35, the clubs played their first competitive match against one another. City visited St James' Park on the 29th of September 1934 but went down to two second half goals. But in the return fixture at the Nest in February 1935, the result was completely reversed - goals after the break from Ken Burditt and Jack Vinall gave the Canaries a 2-0 victory. Norwich won their home match the following season too - a Frank Manders effort proving to be the only goal of the game - though this time the clash took place at City's new ground, Carrow Road. And on Christmas Day 1936, Norwich won in the north east for the first time, thanks to a goal from winger Joseph Clare, and repeated the feat in 1938 with Harry Proctor scoring.

This run of games continued until the Second World War when Norwich were relegated back to the third tier. In between the mentioned wins, City also suffered two heavy defeats, 5-1 at home in 1936 (just three days after that victory at St James' Park) and 4-0 away in 1938.

A long gap followed before the clubs next shared divisional status. Again it was in Division Two, and came about in the 1961-62 season. Both games ended in 0-0 draws. This short run of contests lasted only until 1965 when Newcastle finished as champions and returned to the top flight, and Norwich gained just one league win in this period, 3-1 at home in 1963 with a brace from Tommy Bryceland and another from Terry Allcock. The clubs also met in the FA Cup in 1963 for the first and only time in history. And the Magpies were bashed 5-0 at Carrow Road in the 4th Round tie - the great Allcock netting four times and Joe Mullett getting the other.

The first top flight clash took place in the 1972-73 campaign when Norwich reached Division One. In fact, the next ten contests were all at this level, but Norwich managed just two wins. Newcastle though, were relegated at the end of the 1977-78 season and had to endure six seasons in Division Two. Their return to the top flight in 1984-85 saw a resumption in league matches with City and this time results were much more even. The Canaries won on two consecutive trips to Newcastle in the 1987-88 and 1988-89 seasons - a 3-1 win on the first occasion (Robert Fleck 2, and Kevin Drinkell) followed by a 2-0 victory (Fleck again and Dale Gordon). But by the early nineties the Magpies were once again back down in Division Two.

Unlike Norwich, Newcastle were not founder members of the Premier League, but were promoted to it after finishing as Division One champions in 1992-93. Four clashes between the clubs took place before Norwich lost their Premier League position - Newcastle won three of them (including two 3-0 wins at St James' Park) and the solitary City win was on the 31st of December 1994 (2-1 at home with Neil Adams and Ashley Ward getting the Canary goals).

Newcastle have been a Premier League club ever since, apart from one single season in the second level in 2009-10. The only league clashes between the Canaries and the Magpies in the first ten years of this century took place when Norwich had a single Premier League season in 2004-05. After a 2-2 draw away, City won 2-1 at Carrow Road in a game that had a grandstand finish. They had taken the lead in the second half through a magnificent Youssef Safri rocket shot. Newcastle scored in the ninetieth minute and looked to have earned a point, before Dean Ashton rose high to score with a superb header deep in stoppage time.

The series resumed in the 2011-12 season when City won another enthralling Premier League match at Carrow Road - goals from Wes Hoolahan, Steve Morison and Grant Holt (2) giving them a 4-2 victory. Newcastle gained revenge in the return fixture however, winning with a single first half strike.

The only other cup clash between the clubs came in the 3rd Round of the League Cup in 2004, which the Toon won 2-1.

Newcastle United were formed in 1892 with the merging of local clubs Newcastle East End FC and Newcastle West End FC. They initially failed to gain entry into the First Division of the Football League (and turned down the offer of a place in the Second Division, opting to play in the Northern League instead). But in 1893-94 they decided to join the second tier of English football. Much of their silverware came in the early part of their history. Newcastle United have been league champions four times (most recently in 1927) and won the FA Cup six times (the last occasion being in 1955). In 1969 they lifted the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup.


.  For a list of players associated with both clubs, click here
 http://canaryseventyninety.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/norwich-city-newcastle-united-players.html

.   For information on managerial associations, click here
 http://canaryseventyninety.blogspot.co.uk/2012/03/norwich-city-newcastle-united-managers.html



Did You Know ?

In the 1933-34 season, Newcastle United beat Everton 7-3 and Liverpool 9-2 in a two week period but were still relegated from Division One at the end of the campaign.



To see what part Newcastle United have played in the history of Norwich City Football Club, just pop their name into the search facility in the side bar.

Most recent games
18 Mar 2011   (Premier League)  Newcastle United 1 Norwich City 0
10 Dec 2011   (Premier League)  Norwich City 4 Newcastle United 2
20 Apr 2005   (Premier League)  Norwich City 2 Newcastle United 1
27 Oct 2004   (League Cup)  Newcastle United 2 Norwich City 1
25 Aug 2004   (Premier League)  Newcastle United 2 Norwich City 2
8 Apr 1995   (Premier League)  Newcastle United 3 Norwich City 0
31 Dec 1994   (Premier League)  Norwich City 2 Newcastle United 1

pictured :  Carl Cort, a £7 million purchase for Newcastle United in 2000 and later a Norwich City player in 2008-09

Canary Fact File

I know some people will visit this blog looking for facts,figures and trivia and won't want to read long passages of narrative. On a regular basis I will post fact files. To view all other similar posts just click on the label at the bottom. If more detailed information surrounding a fact exists elsewhere on Sing Up The River End!, this can be found using the search facility in the side bar.

The record home crowd for Norwich City is 43,984 v Leicester City in 1963 in a FA Cup match

Ted MacDougall of Norwich City was the leading top flight goalscorer in English football in 1975-1976 with 23 goals

Before The Canaries, the club nickname was The Citizens

The highest number of league clean sheets by a City goalkeeper in a single season is 19 - set by Kevin Keelan in 1974-1975

Until 1907, Norwich City played in blue and white halved shirts.

The Barclay is named after a former club vice-president, Captain Evelyn Barclay, the man who funded the building of the stand

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Final League Placings 1937-1938

Football League 1937-1938
Division Two






Aston Villa  57
Manchester United  53
Sheffield United  53
Coventry City  52
Tottenham Hotspur  44
Burnley  44
Bradford Park Avenue  43
Fulham  43
West Ham  42
Bury  41
Chesterfield  41
Luton Town  40
Plymouth Argyle  40
Norwich City  39
Southampton  39
Blackburn Rovers  38
Sheffield Wednesday  38
Swansea Town  38
Newcastle United  36
Nottingham Forest  36
Barnsley  36
Stockport County  31


Full City Record :  P42 W14 D11 L17 F56 A75  PTS 39  Manager :  Bob Young


Arsenal were English champions
Preston North End won the FA Cup



In This Year :  First issue of The Dandy comic is published

Footballing legend Bobby Charlton is born

The University Boat Race is televised for the first time




Final league placings will be posted on a regular basis until every table is listed - click on the label below for years posted so far.
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The Gaffer-Go-Round - Thirty Months That Shook Norwich City Football Club 1993-1996

.    4th December 1993  
Howard Kendall resigns as manager of Everton

.    remainder of December 1993
Norwich City manager Mike Walker, fresh from leading the Canaries in an enterprising and impressive UEFA Cup campaign, emerges as a leading contender for the Goodison Park vacancy, as rumours emerge that he is unhappy with his remuneration package at Carrow Road

.    early January 1994
Everton ask for permission to talk to Walker, but this is refused by City chairman Robert Chase

.    6th January 1994
A disappointed Walker takes matters into his own hands, walks out on Norwich and straight into the hot seat at Everton. Whilst all this is happening, the Canaries are healthily placed in the Premier League, in 7th position.

.    7th January 1994
Walker's assistant John Deehan, a former goalscoring legend for City, is put in temporary charge and oversees a 2-0 FA Cup win at Wycombe Wanderers the following day

.    12th January 1994
Deehan is officially made manager. Norwich drop in the table but still achieve a creditable 12th place at the end of the campaign. In the summer of '94, midfielder Gary Megson retires from playing and becomes Deehan's assistant.

.    31st December 1994
City are in a nice 7th place in the Premier League following a 2-1 home win against Newcastle United. But mistrust is building as to how ambitious Robert Chase is towards the future of Norwich City. Stars from the European adventure have already gone - the Canaries look for all the world to be a selling club.

.    9th April 1995
John Deehan resigns after a run of just one win in fifteen league matches in 1995 - a performance that sees them drop to 14th in the table. No purchases have been authorised by Chase to aid a flagging squad. Gary Megson is installed as caretaker manager and has five matches to save the club from relegation. He fails, as City lose four and draw one. Nine seasons of consecutive top flight football at Carrow Road comes to a close.

.    13th June 1995
With mounting criticism heading in the direction of Chase, Megson is relieved of his duties. In a surprising move, former Canary player Martin O'Neill, who had very quickly built up a good reputation as a manager with Wycombe Wanderers, is brought in to replace him. In a piece of business that few had seen coming, optimism of a rapid return to the Premier League, is instantly restored.

.    26 November 1995
A bright start to the season is continued with a 2-0 win at Watford which moves City up to second in the Division One table. However things are clearly not right between O'Neill and Chase. Their ambitions are not compatible, as witnessed by the chairman dragging his feet over the transfer of Dean Windass from Hull City. He eventually goes to Aberdeen instead of Carrow Road.

.    6 December 1995
Mark McGhee leaves Leicester City to take over the managers job at Wolverhampton Wanderers. Mike Walker, who endured a torrid time on Merseyside with Everton, is available, and eventually emerges as hot favourite for the position at Filbert Street.

.    17 December 1995
Norwich visit Filbert Street to take on managerless Leicester City in a live television game. Tension is high in the days leading up to the game, with fans knowing that O'Neill is getting more and more disillusioned. The big news as the broadcast begins is that the Irishman has resigned as manager of Norwich City Football Club. The match is lost, 3-2.

.    21 December 1995
O'Neill gets the job at Leicester City, leaving Walker disappointed. Norwich meantime go back to Megson, stealing him from Bradford City where he had been working as assistant to Chris Kamara, in what their chairman considered an illegal approach.

.    early 1996
Battles in the boardroom. Mass protests by fans. Chase, who had steered Norwich City through many of their most glorious days in history, now finds himself under fire from all directions. More good players are sold, leaving Megson in a hopeless position to keep the Canaries in with a shout of promotion.

.    2nd May 1996
Geoffrey Watling, the man who had saved the club from financial ruin many years early, announces that he has struck a deal to buy Robert Chase's shareholding. New board members are brought in. Chase goes.

.    21st June 1996
The gaffer-go-round does a full circle. The new regime appoint their own man. Megson is sacked. The messiah returns. It's Mike Walker.

Lost Opponents : Cambridge United

In distance to Norwich, Cambridge United are the second closest club to ever play in the Football League. However, clashes have been very rare - just three in history in competitive matches, all during a fifteen month period. The U's were founded in 1912 but it took them 58 years to achieve Football League status. Shortly after, Norwich secured a top level place for the first time, meaning a large gap existed between the two clubs.

The first competitive game took place on the 3rd of January 1981 at Carrow Road in the 3rd Round of the FA Cup. The Canaries were fancied to progress, but made hard work of it on the day, winning 1-0 with a goal from Greg Downs. By this time Cambridge United had made it up to the second level, and the following season, with City having been relegated from Division One in 1980-81, league status was shared for the only time in history. The teams met for the second time in November 1981, again at Carrow Road, with Norwich winning 2-1 with Steve Walford and Mick McGuire netting. And in the return fixture at the Abbey Stadium in April 1982, the same scoreline prevailed, with Peter Mendham and John Deehan scoring. At the end of the season Norwich were promoted straight back to the First Division, and the clubs would not cross paths in the league ever again. It left Norwich City with a 100% record over their East Anglian rivals, and John Deehan as the only Canary striker in history to score against them in a senior match.

The original name for Cambridge United was Abbey United, something that did not change until 1951, two years after they turned professional. For many years they appeared in local amateur leagues, before joining the Eastern Counties League, and then the Southern League in 1958-59. It was after two successive years as champions of the latter competition that they joined the Football League, elected in at the expense of Bradford Park Avenue in 1970. After just three seasons they were promoted to Division Three, but suffered immediate relegation. Between 1977 and 1978 however, they won back to back promotions after finishing as champions of Division Four and runners up in Division Three.

Those meetings with the Canaries came during the most sustained period of success for United during which they spent six years in total in the second tier. Also during this period, a few pre season friendlies took place in a mini league competition between East Anglian clubs known as the Willhire Cup. In 1978 Norwich won 3-1 away. The following year Cambridge United triumphed 2-0, and in 1980 City were victorious 4-0. None of these games count towards club or player records however.

United suffered back to back relegations in 1984 and 1985 and were therefore down in the basement of English football again. But they bounced up once more with successive promotions in the early nineties, in a team inspired by Dion Dublin, who had been released by Norwich City without having played a first team game. The U's highest ever Football League finish came in the 1991-92 campaign. Fifth place put them into the play-offs, but after drawing at home to Leicester City, they lost the second leg 5-0. Had they been successful over the three play-off matches, Cambridge United would have been founder members of the Premier League.

Such are the narrow margins of history - they were relegated at the end of the next campaign, and the dozen or so years that followed saw a return to the lower end of English football. Financial problems impacted on events on the field and in 2005 they lost their Football League status after finishing last, Barnet taking their place. Their final game was against Notts County on the 7th of May, and their goalkeeper that day was John Ruddy. Cambridge United went into administration soon after, and former Canary defender Rob Newman was appointed manager. Boardroom wrangles followed, and the prospect of a merger with rivals Cambridge City, though in the end fan power stopped this from happening. Before the 2006-07 season, ex Norwich striker Lee Power took over as chairman. But Newman was sacked, and Power resigned after 18 months.

Cambridge United continue to play in the Conference, and hope that one day they will return to the Football League. Twice they have finished in second position, in 2008 and 2009.


pictured : Cambridge United playing colours during the period they first met Norwich City in the FA Cup and Football League, though a change strip would have been needed at Carrow Road (copyright Historical Football Kits - not to be reproduced without permission of the owners).
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First & Last - Les Owens

First game : 18th March 1950 v Leyton Orient home Division Three South 4-0 win

Last game :  5th May 1951 v Crystal Palace home Division Three South 3-1 win




Signed from :  Hartlepools United
Next club :  Reading
Played professionally :  until 1953
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Norwich City Goalscorers

Norwich City first team goalscorers in all competitions. Friendlies and trials not included. Players still at the club omitted.


D

John Deehan   70
Ron Davies   66
Kevin Drinkell   57
Robert Dennison   39
Cyril Dunning   27
Allenby Driver   19
Jack Doran   18
Dion Dublin   16
Louie Donowa   15
Gary Doherty   14
Len Dutton   14
Fred Dent   12
Greg Downs   8
Tom Docherty   7
Malcolm Darling   5
Jack Duffus   4
John Duthie   4
John Devine   3
Paul Dalglish   2
Ian Davies   2
George Dobson   1
Fernando Dervald   1
Calum Davenport   1
Len Dolding   1
Reginald Desborough   1
Ritchie De Laet   1
Alex Divine   1
Harry Dix   1

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Born This Week

.    March 12th (Today)

George Waites ~  in 1938 in Stepney

Arthur Bacon ~  in 1895 in Bulwell, Notts

.   March 14th

Clive Baker ~  in 1959 in North Walsham

Bobby Brennan ~  in 1925 in Belfast

Harry Woods ~  in 1894 in St Helens

.   March 15th

Bernard McLaverty ~  in 1898 in Chester le Street

.   March 17th

Fraser Forster ~  in 1988 in Hexham

Russell Laskey ~  in 1937 in Norwich

.   March 18th

John Milburn ~  in 1908 in Ashington



[This feature is produced weekly and posted on Sing Up The River End! every Monday]
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Lily The Pink

In the links section in the sidebar, you will see reference to a web site called Sound Bites. It is a collection of meaningful music pulled together by a Norwich City fan I know simply as @wunjot from Twitter. She weaves a lovely tapestry of her life using songs that have meant something to her along the way.

This is my attempt to do likewise with a totally ridiculous musical offering, which, however dire it may be, always reminds me of my very earliest days at Carrow Road.

I was just over ten years old, and went in those days to watch Norwich with a similar aged pal. No sitting in seats with a parent in the late sixties for us. In fact, once you went in through the turnstile, you were at liberty to access three quarters of the ground - only the Main Stand was out of bounds. We used to arrive so early (sometimes three hours too early) that we needed to find ways of amusement before the mass of supporters arrived.

I remember one Saturday, me and this pal had taken to sing Lily The Pink, which had been a number one hit for The Scaffold a year or so earlier. Though perhaps one of the best novelty records of all time, it was to many, largely infuriating. Our first rendition was on the bus into the city. In fact we managed to sing it half a dozen times on the bus. We were hopelessly ignored. I doubt whether it was appreciated by any of our fellow passengers, but nobody said anything.

And so down Prince of Wales Road, and along Riverside Road............."we'll drink a drink a drink, to Lily the Pink, the pink the pink............". We just sang and sang and sang. I remember too wearing our green and yellow scarves on our heads - you could turn one end inside itself, sufficiently far enough to make it into a hat. Of course you were left with three of four feet of scarf trailing down your back. We looked imbecilic I am certain. But we didn't care. We were Barclay Boys. Well, ten year old Barclay Boys, anyway.

The incident that sticks in the memory most came on the steps at the back of the Barclay end of the ground. We were sitting about ten steps up. And we were still singing this song, non stop. From one end to the other, stumbling only with the word 'efficacious' which we bluffed our way through. To begin with, nobody took any notice, but slowly we wore them down. Supporters making their way onto the terraces trundled by, a few looking at us, a few drawing us looks. Even an occasional smile of appreciation. But eventually, when our performances had easily reached double figures, a head appeared from one of the turnstile kiosks. "Oi, shut the **** up, you two. You're getting on my bleedin' chimes"!

We took no notice, and rattled through another chorus. Only the sight of a police constable walking in our direction at a brisk pace brought things to an end. We legged it up the steps and into the crowded stand. It was twenty to three, and time to get down to the serious business of watching the Canaries.

 


My thanks to YouTube and MsSoundsfamiliar who posted the clip
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Debutants 1927

Here is a list of all players who made their first team débuts for Norwich City Football Club in 1927 :

Bill Cousins    5 February 1927 v Exeter City  (Division 3S)  (a) lost 1-0
Alf Moule    27 August 1927 v Crystal Palace  (Division 3S)  (h) won 4-1
Arthur Pemberton    27 August 1927
Ernest Porter    27 August 1927
Les Robinson    27 August 1927
Jacky Slicer    27 August 1927
Percy Varco    27 August 1927
Joseph Lamb    29 August 1927 v Luton Town  (Division 3S)  (a) won 3-1
Harold Crockford    17 September 1927 v Walsall  (Division 3S)  (a) drew 1-1
George Rowe    22 October 1927 v Bristol Rovers  (Division 3S)  (h) won 4-2
Arthur Mason    3 December 1927 v Swindon Town  (Division 3S)  (h) lost 3-1
Fred Ferrari    17 December 1927 v Coventry City  (Division 3S)  (h) lost 2-0
Joe Hetherington    17 December 1927
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Norwich City & Wigan Athletic - Players

The following players have all had connections with Norwich City and Wigan Athletic :

.   Wayne Biggins (F)
.   Mark Bowen (D)
.   Carl Bradshaw (D)  **
.   Ged Brannan (M)
.   Drewe Broughton (F)
.   Paul Cook (M)  *
.   Paul Dalglish (F)
.   Neil Davids (D)
.   David Fairclough (F)
.   Damien Francis (M)  **
.   Matt Jackson (D)  **
.   Jason Jarrett (M)  *
.   Rob Newman (D)
.   Antoine Sibierski (M)  *
.   Peter Thorne (F)
.   James Wallbanks (M)
.   Steve Walsh (D)
.   David Wright (D/M)  *



*  associated with Wigan Athletic immediately before Norwich City
**  associated with Wigan Athletic immediately after Norwich City


All players listed made at least one competitive appearance for Norwich City. Their associations with Wigan Athletic may have come through first team, reserve or youth football. Wartime guest appearances are not included, or trials in friendly matches.
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Norwich City & Wigan Athletic - Managers

Of the eight managerial appointments made by Wigan Athletic before present boss Roberto Martinez, five of them had Norwich City connections. Admittedly Steve Bruce had two spells in the hot seat, briefly in 2001 and then again in 2007 to 2009. But before that, Bruce Rioch had a go in 2000-2001 after he left Carrow Road, and he had succeeded the late John Benson who was first appointed in 1999. This run of connections dates back to 1995-1996, when John Deehan led the club to the Third Division title. If we care to look even further into the past, Bryan Hamilton also had two tenures at the Lancashire club, firstly in 1985-86, and then a more prolonged spell between 1989 and 1993.

Northern Irish international defender Billy Cook was briefly the Wigan Athletic manager in 1956 and a couple of years later joined the coaching staff at Carrow Road. Ian McNeill had two spells in charge at Springfield Park in the late sixties and then again in the late seventies, and did some scouting at Norwich City in the nineties.

The only other connection I could find between Norwich City and Wigan Athletic managers is Sam Barkas, who took up the reigns for a short time in 1957, and whose brother Edward 'Ned' Barkas played just one single game for the Canaries back in 1920.
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Norwich City History Against......Wigan Athletic

All Competitions

Norwich City 3 wins   Wigan Athletic 1 win  3 draws

Norwich goals 9   Wigan goals 6

Football League

Norwich City 1 win   Wigan Athletic 0 wins   3 draws

Norwich goals 5   Wigan goals 3

All league games at Norwich

Norwich City 1 win   Wigan Athletic 0 wins  1 draw

Norwich goals 3   Wigan goals 1

All league games at Wigan

Norwich City 0 wins   Wigan Athletic 0 wins   2 draws

Norwich goals 2   Wigan goals 2

Cup Football

Norwich City 2 wins   Wigan Athletic 1 win   0 draws

Norwich goals 4   Wigan goals 3

Wigan Athletic are relative newcomers to the Football League scene, hence the small number of clashes between them and Norwich City in history. In fact only four league matches have ever taken place, together with three cup ties.

The first ever meeting between the two clubs took place on the 31st of January 1987 in the 4th Round of the FA Cup. Wigan, then a Division Three side pulled off a shock 1-0 win at Springfield Park over the top flight Canaries in front of just over 8,000 people. The Latics went on to reach the 6th Round that season before going out to Leeds United.

It was the 1998-99 League Cup competition that saw the next contests. By then the divisional gap between Norwich and Wigan had closed slightly with City in the second tier and Athletic, though still in the third, being good enough to secure a play-off place at the end of the season, losing 2-1 on aggregate to Manchester City in the semi-finals. The Canaries won both of these League Cup matches, 1-0 at Carrow Road courtesy of an own goal, and then 3-2 in Lancashire where Iwan Roberts scored a brace and Craig Bellamy the other.

The only season of shared Football League status before 2011-12 came in 2003-04 in the last ever Division One competition. Norwich won the title of course, but Wigan were also a good side that year, finishing seventh, just one place and two points off a play-off spot. In City's first ever appearance at the DW Stadium (then known as the JJB Stadium), the game finished in a 1-1 draw - Iwan Roberts cancelling out a Wigan first half lead on 63 minutes after Darren Huckerby had beaten four men down the left flank. The return fixture the following April saw Norwich win 2-0 with both goals coming after the break. Matt Svensson netted with a dipping side footed shot from 25 yards, before Darren Huckerby found the corner of the net after a trademark speedy run.

Norwich's promotion to the Premier League meant no games the following year, but as City were suffering relegation in 2004-05, Wigan were going in the other direction, finishing second in the new Championship competition behind Sunderland. They have been a top flight club ever since. On the 13th of August 2011 the sides met in the Premier League at the DW Stadium, the game finishing in a 1-1 draw with Wes Hoolahan scoring for City. The same player found the net again in the return fixture, but Wigan equalised in the second half to once again share the points.

Formed in 1932, Wigan Athletic were the fifth club in the area to try to establish themselves as a  footballing force. A year earlier, Wigan Borough, a club Norwich City never met, had lost their Football League status after going bust. Athletic bought their Springfield Road ground and joined the Cheshire County League. After World War Two they switched to the Lancashire Combination and nearly gained entry to the Football League in 1953-54, losing out though to Scunthorpe United. In 1961 they moved back to the Cheshire County League, and were regular applicants for election to the Football League. In 1968 they joined the Northern Premier, winning it in 1970-71.

Admission to the Football League was eventually secured in 1978 after 34 unsuccessful attempts (in 1972 they even tried to join the Scottish Division Two, such were their frustrations), when they replaced Southport. It took the Latics only four seasons to emerge from Division Four, and they then spent 11 years in the third tier. They returned to the fourth tier for four more seasons but then began their climb through the levels from the second half of the nineties onwards. Their highest finish in the Premier League is tenth in 2005-06.

.  For a list of players associated with both clubs, click here
http://canaryseventyninety.blogspot.com/2012/03/norwich-city-wigan-athletic-players.html 
.   For information on managerial associations, click here
http://canaryseventyninety.blogspot.com/2011/12/norwich-city-wigan-athletic-managers.html 


Did You Know ?

Wigan Athletic's record attendance was actually set at their old ground Springfield Park - 27,526 watched the FA Cup match against Hereford United in 1953.

To see what part Wigan Athletic have played in the history of Norwich City Football Club, just pop their name into the search facility in the sidebar. 

Most recent games
12 Mar 2012   (Premier League)  Norwich City 1 Wigan Athletic 1
13 Aug 2011  (Premier League)  Wigan Athletic 1 Norwich City 1 

9 Apr 2004   (Division One)  Norwich City 2 Wigan Athletic 0

4 Oct 2003   (Division One)  Wigan Athletic 1 Norwich City 1

22 Sep 1998   (League Cup)  Wigan Athletic 2 Norwich City 3

16 Sep 1998   (League Cup)  Norwich City 1 Wigan Athletic 0

31 January 1987   (FA Cup)  Wigan Athletic 1 Norwich City 0 

pictured : Antoine Sibierski, who played 16 games for Norwich City in 2008-09 whilst on loan from Wigan Athletic 

The Big Freeze - 1963

In the early weeks of 1963, Britain was gripped by just about the coldest weather on record. Snow had started falling in Southern England over the Christmas break and by the first few days of the New Year, temperatures had dropped to minus 16 degrees centigrade in many places. Norwich City had a home draw in the FA Cup to look forward to - against First Division Blackpool. But Norfolk was so cold the fixture was postponed eleven times and was not played until the 4th of March ! So desperate were the City officials to get the game on that they hired a flamethrower in an attempt to melt the ice on the Carrow Road pitch. It was all to no avail. The air temperatures were too low and the playing surface simply re-froze.

For the record, when the match was eventually played it ended in a 1-1 draw, with Tommy Bryceland getting the equaliser in the second half for the Canaries. Just three days later, with the entire fixture list of English football almost two months behind, the replay had to take place. Norwich upset the odds - beating the team one division higher than them 3-1, with goals from Jimmy Hill, and wingers Bill Punton and Gerry Mannion.

Just ten days later City had progressed from the 3rd Round to the 6th Round ! In an unprecedented series of events they beat Newcastle United 5-0 on the 13th of March in the 4th Round and Manchester City 2-1 away on the 16th in the 5th Round. The backlog of Football League matches for Norwich meant they were still playing Division Two games in the third week of May. But they were at least thankful that they had managed to get matches against Middlesbrough (29th of December), Bury (away on the 19th of January) and Rotherham (23rd of February) completed, which was better than some clubs fared. Have a thought for the poor old Bolton Wanderers supporters - their team played only one match between the 8th of December 1962 and the 9th of March 1963 !
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Peter Osgood - Left Back At Everton !

In my earlier post regarding mis-information on the internet (Myths, Misconceptions And Downright Lies), I mentioned a story I had found regarding Peter Osgood. It came about when researching the article on Ossie for the Short And Sweet series.

Given that he only played in three games for Norwich City during his brief loan spell from Southampton, I had to dig deep for material, and found myself on the Peter Osgood tribute site. There was a great little snippet there regarding an incident with John Bond.

However, I couldn't use it because based on the information I had regarding the matches Osgood was involved in for us, the facts just didn't stack up. Since then however, I have re-visited the story, and I am now satisfied it is in all likelihood true.

I will explain my suspicions in a second, but first the story itself, which is best told by extracting it from the tribute site in question, where Peter talks about his life in football :


                                                                    NORWICH CITY

"Just a very brief loan spell – a month - but I enjoyed every minute of it under the manager John Bond who was really a very good coach. Mind you , after we played up at Everton and my loan period was over, John asked me to go back to Saints and ask for another loan. I refused and he got on the team bus and drove back to Norwich with me left standing outside Goodison Park. I couldn’t believe it ! "



I can just imagine John Bond doing that.

The reason I could not quite believe the story when I first saw it was that Osgood's last City match was at Villa Park, not at Everton. Far be it for me to question the memory of the late great man............but there was quite a disparity there. So I put it down as a myth, a good little story even if not true. But with a little more effort I discovered that the week after the Aston Villa game, we did not play. And it was that weekend that saw Osgood's loan period expire. A little more research brought the news that bad weather on the weekend of the 4th of December 1976 led to the wholesale postponement of football matches in England, including our game............at Everton.

With that, the story fell into place. Not only was it true, but Ossie probably got wet and freezing cold into the bargain! I can see John Bond now, relaxed on the coach journey home, dragging on his cigar and thinking 'that'll teach the bugger' !!




. The quotation is taken from the official Peter Osgood site. More information on the Chelsea and Southampton legend can be found at http://www.peterosgood.co.uk/index.html

. The Short & Sweet article on Peter Osgood can be found by clicking here http://canaryseventyninety.blogspot.com/2010/05/short-and-sweet-peter-osgood.html   

[This item has been updated, having first appeared on Sing Up The River End! on the 17th of June 2010]
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