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From a piece in The Guardian today:
"But “Huddersfield-Cardiff” tops them all, two words that elegantly chip “Michael” and “Thomas” into a cocked hat. Because as anyone between the ages of 105 and 115 will doubtless recall, in the 1923-24 season, the Terriers and the Bluebirds served up the greatest last-day drama of all.
Cardiff had joined the Football League only four years previously but their striker Len Davies was scoring for fun, and they already had one fourth-place finish to their name. This time round they topped the table for nearly the entire season, and with one game remaining led Huddersfield by a point. The Terriers had two games left but frittered their advantage away by losing at Aston Villa. At which point, according to their captain Sam Wadsworth, they “got to work with pencil and paper, working out goal averages. We gave ourselves headaches. We were unable to agree on the figures.”
Their manager Herbert Chapman intervened, explaining that if Cardiff won their last match at Birmingham, they’d be champions. But if they drew, Huddersfield could nick the title providing they beat a bang-average Nottingham Forest at home by three goals. Wadsworth pondered the situation, put down his pencil and cleared his throat: “We’re cutting it a bit fine.”
Town set about Forest in nervous fashion, this paper reporting that “they appeared to be throwing their chance away”. But then the Forest keeper Alf Bennett spilled George Brown’s shot and George Cook established a half-time lead. (Bennett, fans of nominative determinism will be delighted to know, was born in a Derbyshire village called Clowne.) Huddersfield were much improved in the second half, Cook making it 2-0 on 57 minutes. Only one more goal required!
But at that very moment, down in Birmingham, a goalbound Cardiff shot was handled on the line. Penalty! That man Davies stepped up to take the kick that would surely seal the title. Only problem was, despite being the club’s leading scorer, he’d never taken a penalty before in his life. He hit it too close to the Birmingham keeper Dan Tremelling. Ten minutes later, back up north, Ted Richardson went on an epic dribble and set up Brown for a third. When the whistle blew, Chapman ran to his office and waited for the phone to ring. And waited. The call came after an agonising few minutes. Cardiff could only draw 0-0! Huddersfield were champions after a day of heightened drama … by 0.024 of a goal. Oh Len! Huddersfield, Cardiff, two words, five syllables. It’s not even half a haiku. But what a story they tell."
What a difference to our history that pelanty kick made. Pins, passwords, lucky numbers, supporters clubs names etc, would 1927 have featured so heavily? Although the FA Cup was huge in those days a League Championship under our belt just may have taken precedence.
If it was worked out on goal difference like to todays leagues we would have been champions.
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