Huddersfield Town's 1959–60 campaign was Town's best season following their relegation from Division 1 4 years earlier. The main points of the season were the resignation of Bill Shankly, who would then lead Liverpool to greatness in his years in charge. Their FA Cup win over West Ham United in the third round replay at Upton Park, which would inadvertently lead to the departure of Denis Law to Manchester City for a record-breaking fee of £55,000.
Squad at the start of the season
Review Bill Shankly made good progress with Town at the start of the season, leading them to 5 wins in their first 7 league games. A dreadful run of only 1 win in 10 games saw Town slide down the table and then on 1 December, Shankly resigned to take charge of league rivals Liverpool. Shankly's last match in charge of Town was against the Anfield outfit. Ex-Town player Eddie Boot took charge of Town for the rest of the season. He led Town on a charge up the table mainly consisting of alternating wins and losses. However, Town's form led them to a finish of 6th place, their best finish since relegation 4 years earlier.
Another highlight of the season was the win over West Ham United in the FA Cup third round replay at Upton Park with a score of 5 goals to 1. This win showcased the talents of Denis Law, who within 2 months broke the transfer record for a British player after transferring to Manchester City for £55,000.
Squad at the end of the season
Results Division Two DateOpponentsHome/AwayResultF – AScorersAttendancePosition22 August 1959Ipswich TownA4–1Ledger, Low, Hawksworth (2)14,4411st26 August 1959Brighton & Hove AlbionH2–0McHale, Dinsdale15,2212nd29 August 1959Scunthorpe UnitedH2–0Massie (2)14,3701st2 September 1959Brighton & Hove AlbionA2–3Dinsdale, Wilson22,5883rd5 September 1959Leyton OrientH1–1Dinsdale15,1923rd9 September 1959Swansea TownH4–3Massie, Ledger (2), Sinclair12,3693rd12 September 1959Lincoln CityA2–0Massie (2)10,4062nd17 September 1959Swansea TownA1–3Sinclair15,2505th19 September 1959Aston VillaH0–122,5226th26 September 1959SunderlandA0–031,6557th3 October 1959PortsmouthH6–3Connor (2), Massie (2), McHale, Taylor15,4524th10 October 1959Rotherham UnitedA1–1Law17,0294th17 October 1959Cardiff CityH0–118,3676th24 October 1959Hull CityA1–1Howard15,8645th31 October 1959Sheffield UnitedH0–118,4668th7 November 1959MiddlesbroughA0–123,07711th14 November 1959Derby CountyH2–2France, Coddington (pen)9,33610th21 November 1959Plymouth ArgyleA3–1McHale (2), Law18,2506th28 November 1959LiverpoolH1–0Massie16,1855th5 December 1959Charlton AthleticA1–1Law12,3335th12 December 1959Bristol CityH6–1Dinsdale, Law, Massie (2), Taylor, Coddington (pen)10,7055th19 December 1959Ipswich TownH3–1Hawksworth, Massie, Coddington (pen)10,6484th26 December 1959Stoke CityA1–1McHale20,1835th28 December 1959Stoke CityH2–3Massie (2)25,7285th2 January 1960Scunthorpe UnitedA2–0McHale, Massie12,2285th16 January 1960Leyton OrientA1–2Connor11,6525th23 January 1960Lincoln CityH3–0McHale, Massie, Gibson14,9955th6 February 1960Aston VillaA0–444,8795th13 February 1960SunderlandH1–1Law9,6486th20 February 1960PortsmouthA2–0Law, Coddington (pen)14,0625th27 February 1960Rotherham UnitedH1–1Coddington (pen), Law19,5605th5 March 1960Cardiff CityA1–2Balderstone32,7337th12 March 1960Hull CityH1–0Massie12,1673rd19 March 1960LiverpoolA2–2McHale, Balderstone30,0096th26 March 1960MiddlesbroughH2–0McHale, Massie13,8873rd2 April 1960Derby CountyA2–3Massie, McHale13,2977th9 April 1960Plymouth ArgyleH2–0McHale, Balderstone10,6604th15 April 1960Bristol RoversA0–216,0694th16 April 1960Bristol CityA3–2McHale, Etheridge (og), Massie17,4834th18 April 1960Bristol RoversH0–113,8204th23 April 1960Charlton AthleticH4–0Balderstone, Massie, Connor (2)10,9325th30 April 1960Sheffield UnitedA0–216,3936th
FA Cup DateRoundOpponentsHome/AwayResultF – AScorersAttendance9 January 1960Round 3West Ham UnitedH1–1Law30,52613 January 1960Round 3 ReplayWest Ham UnitedA5–1Massie (2), McGarry, Connor (2)22,60530 January 1960Round 4Luton TownH0–128,220
Appearances and goals NameNationalityPositionLeagueFA CupTotalAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsDenis AtkinsDF100010Chris BalderstoneMF840084Terry CaldwellDF400040John CoddingtonDF41530445Jack ConnorDF23522257Peter DinsdaleDF16410174Harry FearnleyGK300030Tony FranceFW410041Brian GibsonDF36130391Derek HawksworthMF22330253Stan HowardMF910091Denis LawMF24731278Bob LedgerMF24210252Gordon LowDF19100191Les MassieFW4020324322Bill McGarryDF35031381Kevin McHaleMF3214203414Michael O'GradyMF100010Bob ParkerDF200020Willie SinclairFW730073Ken TaylorDF31230342Ray WilsonDF41130441Ray WoodGK39030420
References