Storm

The team that took the title from Spurs in 1962 was Alf Ramsey’s unheralded Ipswich Town. The East Anglia dub had risen from the Third Division (South) to English champions in just five years. Ramsey’s men won the Division Two and Division One tides in successive seasons, the fourth club to record that particular achievement. Ramsey the player had been schooled in Spurs’ great

“push and run’’ side of the previous decade, and it was outstanding team play radier than brilliant individuals that carried Ipswich to the title. It would put Ramsey’s name in die frame when the England job became vacant following the 1962 World Cup.

Exit Accrington Stanley

While Ipswich were riding high, one of the famous names in the Enghsh game was making a sad exit. Accrington Stanley, one of the League’s founder members, had mounting debts and was forced to resign from the Fourth Division. This was yet another sign of the polarisation between the haves and have-nots, a trend that was set to continue.

Right: Accrington Stanley skipper Bob Wilson reads the bill for a match that was never to take place, the club being forced to resign from the league because of financial difficulties. Ironically, Exeter too was suffering from crippling debts.

Below: Spectators and staff show their feelings, as Ramsey’s Ispwich are one goal away from winning the league title in 1962. Ramsey’s side, recently languishing in the Third Division and with its absence of star players, were unlikely champions, tipped by pundits for relegation rather than triumph. Opposite above: Bobby Charlton and his manager Matt Busby talk with a young fan.

Opposite below: Alan Mullery and captain Dave Mackay (right) hold the FA Cup after a 2-1 win over Chelsea in the 1967 Cup Final. Mackay and Greaves were the only representatives of the Tottenham side that won the Cup in 1962.