Imps 3-1 West Ham, 1st May 1953

In 1953 we were back (again) in the Second Division, again as a consequence of winning the Third Division North. This time, the lack of investment that had dogged our previous spell in the division was corrected. The playing squad went full time, and Bill Anderson, the architect of the previous success, was given a five-year deal worth £1000 per year. Graver and Garvie were given pay rises, and the Imps settled into their new division, a standard of football that would be home for a decade.

The final day of the season came without incident. The Imps were safe long before the Hammers got off the train, and wins against Leicester City (3-2), Swansea Town (3-1), and eventual champions Sheffield United (3-2) had given hope we could compete long term. The Blades were crowned champions on the final day; West Ham were despatched with ease.

City had already secured a finish of 15th, above Everton, FA Cup semi-finalists of a year before. A win would take us to 39 points, level with the Hammers, and a win is what we got. City started it off as early as the first minute – Ernie Whittle nipped into space and fed Graver, who swept the ball home from close range. Whittle was the scorer of the second, a move started by Doug Wright and crafted by Roy Finch, allowing Whittle the easiest of finishes.

The Imps were threatening to run riot in front of the 14285 supporters in the ground. Brian Birch bagged his eighth goal from 11 outings on 24 minutes, a weak clearance falling at his feet. City eased up in the second half, and on 63 minutes, Jim Barrett’s header went in off the underside of the bar to make it 3-1. Still, the job was done, and the Imps went into holiday mode, with few chances after that. Graver came off with ten minutes to go, meaning we finished with ten men, but shipped no further goals.

Hours after the game, the club’s retained list was announced, with almost all of the squad signed on for another season.