1954–55 Chelsea F.C. season

Chelsea
1954–55 season
Chairman Joe Mears
Manager Ted Drake
First Division 1st
FA Cup Fifth round
Top goalscorer League:
Roy Bentley (21)
All:
Roy Bentley (21)
Highest home attendance 75,043 vs Wolverhampton Wanderers (9 April 1955)
Lowest home attendance 30,239 vs Burnley (23 August 1954)

The 1954–55 season was Chelsea Football Club's 50th of competitive football, their Golden Jubilee and their 20th consecutive year in the English top flight. It was also the club's most successful year up to that point, as they won the Football League Championship for the first time.

The success was unexpected; Chelsea had never won a major trophy before and their league positions since the Second World War had ranged from 8th to 20th. Four consecutive defeats in October had left the club in 12th place this time.

But the team lost just three more meaningful league games that season and beat principal rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers twice to secure the Championship with a game to spare. Club captain Roy Bentley finished as top scorer, with 21 goals, and the club attracted an average home gate of 48,307, the highest in the division.

Results

First Division

DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
21 August 1954Leicester CityA1–138,941Bentley
23 August 1954BurnleyH1–030,239Parsons
28 August 1954Bolton WanderersH3–252,756Bentley, Lewis, Ball (o.g.)
31 August 1954BurnleyA1–152,756Bentley
4 September 1954Cardiff CityH1–142,688Lewis
6 September 1954Preston North EndH0–136,947
11 September 1954Manchester CityA1–136,230Bentley
15 September 1954Preston North EndA2–127,549Parsons, McNichol
18 September 1954EvertonH0–259,199
20 November 1954Sheffield UnitedA2–114,137Stubbs, Lewis
25 September 1954Newcastle UnitedA3–145,659McNichol, Bentley (2)
2 October 1954West Bromwich AlbionH3–367,440Parsons, Bentley, Lewis
9 October 1954Huddersfield TownA0–129,556
16 October 1954Manchester UnitedH5–655,966Armstrong, O'Connell (3), Lewis
23 October 1954BlackpoolA0–119,694
30 October 1954Charlton AthleticH1–254,113Parsons
6 November 1954SunderlandA3–342,416McNichol (2), Stubbs
13 November 1954Tottenham HotspurH2–152,961Bentley, Lewis
20 November 1954Sheffield WednesdayA1–125,913McNichol
27 November 1954PortsmouthH4–140,358McNichol, Stubbs, Bentley, Blunstone
4 December 1954Wolverhampton WanderersA4–332,095McNichol, Bentley (2), Stubbs
11 December 1954Aston VillaH4–036,162Parsons, McNichol (2), Bentley
18 December 1954Leicester CityH3–133,215Parsons, McNichol, Froggatt/Milburn (o.g.)
25 December 1954ArsenalA0–147,178
27 December 1954ArsenalH1–165,922O'Connell
1 January 1955Bolton WanderersA5–230,988Sillett, O'Connell, Bentley (2), Higgins (o.g.)
22 January 1955Manchester CityH0–234,160
5 February 1955EvertonA1–150,658Bentley
12 February 1955Newcastle UnitedH4–350,667McNichol, Bentley (3)
26 February 1955Huddersfield TownH4–135,786Parsons, Bentley, Stubbs, Blunstone
5 March 1955Aston VillaA2–324,822Parsons, McNichol
9 March 1955West Bromwich AlbionA4–27,764Sillett (2), Saunders, Bentley
12 March 1955BlackpoolH0–055,227
19 March 1955Charlton AthleticA2–041,415O'Connell, Blunstone
23 March 1955Cardiff CityA1–016,649O'Connell
29 March 1955SunderlandH2–133,203Willemse, McDonald (o.g.)
2 April 1955Tottenham HotspurA4–253,159Sillett (pen.), Wicks, McNichol (2)
8 April 1955Sheffield UnitedH1–150,978Parsons
9 April 1955Wolverhampton WanderersH1–075,043Sillett (pen.)
16 April 1955PortsmouthA0–040,230
23 April 1955Sheffield WednesdayH3–051,421Sillett (pen.), Parsons (2)
30 April 1955Manchester UnitedA1–234,933Bentley
Pos Club Pld W D L F A GA Pts
1 Chelsea 42 20 12 10 81 57 1.421 52
2 Wolverhampton Wanderers 42 19 10 13 89 70 1.2714 48
3 Portsmouth 42 18 12 12 74 62 1.1935 48

Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points

FA Cup

DateRoundOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
8 January 1955R3WalsallStamford Bridge2–040,020O'Connell, Stubbs
29 January 1955R4Bristol RoversEastville Stadium3–135,952Parsons, McNichol, Blunstone
19 February 1955R5Notts CountyMeadow Lane0–141,930

Players Used

[1]

Player Position League Goals Cup Goals Games Goals
Scotland Charlie Thomson Goalkeeper 16 0
Scotland Bill Robertson Goalkeeper 26 0
England Ken Armstrong Right-half 39 1
England Stan Wicks Centre-half 21 1
England Alan Dicks Centre-half 1 0
England Ron Greenwood Centre-half 21 0
Scotland John Harris Centre-half/right-back 31 0
England Derek Saunders Left-half 42 1
England Peter Sillett Right-back 21 6
England Stan Willemse Left-back 36 1
England Eric Parsons Right-wing 42 11
England Frank Blunstone Left-wing 23 3
England Jim Lewis Left-wing 17 6
Scotland John McNichol Inside-Forward 40 14
England Roy Bentley (c) Centre forward 41 21
England Les Stubbs Inside-left 27 5
England Robert Edwards Outside-left 1 0
England Peter Brabrook Forward 3 0
England Bobby Smith Centre Forward 4 0
England Seamus O'Connell Inside-Forward 10 7

References

General
  • Soccerbase
  • Hockings, Ron. 100 Years of the Blues: A Statistical History of Chelsea Football Club. (2007)
Specific
  1. ↑ "Champions of a different era". BBC Sport. 30 April 2005. Retrieved 5 June 2013.
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