Rock Bottom

1960s

The Swinging Sixties had barely begun when City were relegated to Division Four in 1961. It was to be a decade of hope and despair. Three times promotion was missed by the narrowest of margins; twice the ignominy of applying for re-election was forced on the Paraders as they finished at the very bottom of the English game.

A team photo taken in 1960, showing the shortlived pin-striped strip

A breath of fresh air swept into Valley Parade when Stafford Heginbotham became chairman in 1965. A roof over the Bradford End, the purchase of second hand floodlights from West Ham and new club offices, were concrete proof of Stafford's ambition for the club. Perhaps his finest hour came when he rallied supporters at a packed public meeting at St George's Hall in 1967 when the club faced the real threat of closure.

An aerial shot of Valley Parade and surrounding area, taken in 1966

The following year a new stand on the Midland Road side signalled an upturn in the club's fortunes. The clutches of the bottom division were escaped with promotion to Division Three in 1969.

Ultimately, the sixties are remembered as a decade of sadness. City's young manager Grenville Hair collapsed and died during a training session in 1968. The decade also saw the last . City's promotion left Avenue floundering in Division Four. The following season Avenue were ejected from the League and the rivalry that had begun in the 1880s when Manningham and Bradford first locked horns was dead. Even the great goalscoring hero of the decade, 'Bronco' Layne, had his reputation tarnished when he was banned for life after a match rigging scandal, following his transfer to Sheffield Wednesday.

Top, Home, Early Days: 1880-1910, The Glory Fades: 1920s-1940s, Rock Bottom: 1950s-1970s, Triumph and Tragedy: 1980s-1990s, Premiership and Beyond: 1998-2003, The Great War, Glorious 1911, 11th May 1985, Valley Parade, Contact Us