Manager Gordon Milne led his Sky Blues to Molineux on this day in 1977 (October 29, to play Wolverhampton Wanderers in Division One).
Popular former Sky Blue and Association member Willie Carr was on the Wolves side.
Mick Ferguson, the centre forward for CCFC and current member of the CCFPA, scored his first of three hat-tricks of the season in the second half, lasting seventeen minutes, to steal the points from the Wolves lair.
All of this occurred after the home team’s opening goal came from future Sky Blue (and current CCFPA member) Kenny Hibbitt after just three minutes.
The 23,796 spectators at Molineux must have thought the Wolves would easily win. But Mick had other plans!
“Fergie” silenced the home crowd with goals in the 58th, 68th, and 75th minutes. The overwhelming second half performance by the Sky Blues left Wolves’ “gaffer,” Sammy Chung, thoroughly impressed. Mike Smith, the manager of the Welsh national team, was observing from the stands and called Fergie’s treble “the most exciting performance I’ve seen this season.”
“Fergie For England” chants broke out among the Sky Blue supporters.
Mick and inside man (and fellow CCFPA member) Ian Wallace had formed something of a “deadly duo,” scoring nineteen goals between them in just thirteen games, and together they would eventually score forty of the 82 Sky Blue league and cup goals that season!
Jim Blyth, Ian Wallace, Mick Ferguson, Barry Powell, Tommy Hutchison, Donato Nardiello, Bobby McDonald, Terry Yorath, John Beck, Mick Coop, and Ian Wallace
We are happy to report that, with the exception of John Beck, we were able to register every player from this winning Sky Blues squad as well as its manager with the Former Players Association!
Among the Wolves XI were:
Paul Bradshaw, Willie Carr, John Richards, Norman Bell, Alan Sunderland, Colin Brazier, John McAlle, Geoff Palmer, Derek Parkin, Marin Patching, and Kenny Hibbitt (sub. John Farley) Appellate: D. Richardson
Wolves had to give up “the double” to the Sky Blues, who thrashed them 4-0 at Highfield Road at the end of March 1978, so they must have detested seeing their West Midlands rivals this season. While Fergy was sidelined due to injury for this match, Ian Wallace, his accomplice, young Gary Thompson, Mick’s deputy and the game’s MVP, Tommy Hutchison, all received braces.
The season was successful for Milne’s team, as they finished in a very respectable seventh place in Division One, whereas Wolverhampton Wanderers struggled in fifteenth place. Nottingham Forest won the Division One championship this year, easily defeating runners-up Liverpool by seven points. Three teams—Leicester City, the bottom team, West Ham, and Newcastle United—found themselves heading out of Division Two through the trap door!
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