The
Legend of "Dixie"The
Legend of "Dixie"
Being
a Sligo Rovers supporter is not always a bundle of laughs. Sure we have had
some great days when League Championships and cups havee been won. We have also
had more than our fair share of misery. But what can't be taken away from the
club is almost three quarters of a century of history and tradition. It's a
history littered with many events, happy and sad. As we approach the end of
January it is apropriate that we remember one of the most enduring pieces of
that history. No other Irish club can boast that the greatest goalscorer seen
in British football over the last century donned their colours. Yet in January
of 1939 that's exactly what happened when Dixie Dean pulled on the bit o' red.
Though his stay at the club was brief, it was eventful and ensured that the
name of Sligo Rovers would be forever linked with the history of one of he worlds
greatest ever footballers.
Dixie Dean was born in Birkenhead on January 22nd 1907. After leaving school
he joined the Wirral railway as an apprentice fitter where he was spotted playing
for the works team by a scout from Tranmere Rovers. He turned professional for
Tranmere Rovers at the age of 16. The following season he scored 27 league goals
in 29 games for a team which finished second from bottom of the Third Division
North. Most first Division clubs showed an interest in this young goal machine
but his heart had always been set on playing for Everton. He joined his beloved
Everton before the start of the 1925/26 season for a fee of £3,000. He had scored
100 league goals before he was 21 years old and scored 200 goals in his first
198 league games for Everton. He spent 13 years at Everton scoring 349 goals
in 399 league matches. His career in English football finished with a short
spell at Notts. County. His career goal-scoring record in England shows a total
of 473 goals in 502 games (including a record 37 hat-tricks) in all competitions
plus internationals and representative games. He averaged more than a goal a
game for England scoring 18 goals in 16 appearances. This was all the more remarkable
considering he was told that he would never play football again after fracturing
his jaw and skull in a motorcycle accident in 1926.
His greatest
goalscoring feat came in the 1927/28 season when he scored 60 goals in 39 league
matches which remains a record to this day. This record was indeed achieved
with incredible drama. During the previous season the existing record had been
set by George Camsell of Middlesbrough who scored 59 league goals in the Second
Division. With three games remaining of the 1927/28 season Dean’s total was
50 and the record seemed unattainable. Seven goals in the next two games left
him requiring a hat-trick against Arsenal in the final game of the season. Everton
had already secured the championship by the time these teams met however over
60,000 people turned up to see if the great man could break the record. Although
Arsenal had the audacity to take the lead Dixie had equalled the record by half
time with a trademark header from a corner and a penalty. Arsenal equalised
again to make the score 2-2. With eight minutes left Everton Were awarded a
Corner which was taken by Scottish International Alec Troup. Dean soared above
everyone in the penalty area to score his 60th goal of the season to claim the
record outright. 22 Cup goals gave him a total of 82 goals in this season which
will surely never be equalled.
He joined Sligo
Rovers in January 1939 in time to help the club with their FAI Cup campaign.
The local folklore tells of crowds flocking to the station to witness the arrival
of this goalscoring phenomenon. He played 7 league games for the club scoring
ten goals including 5 in a 7-1 win over Waterford which remains a club record
for the most goals scored in a single game. He also played four Cup matches
scoring once. His goal came in the final against Shelbourne which ended in a
1-1 draw, Shelbourne taking the replay 0-1. Tragedy struck when Dixie’s runners
up medal was stolen from his hotel room after the game. On a return trip to
Ireland to watch Rovers in the 1978 cup final a package was delivered to his
hotel room with the medal inside. Even thieves admire genius.
Matt Busby said of Dixie that ‘he could out jump, out time and out head any
defender’. Indeed 50% of his goals came from headers a remarkable feat for a
man 5ft 10in in height. Dixie Dean collapsed and died while watching Everton
lose 1-2 to Liverpool at Goodison Park in 1980. At his funeral there were many
tributes paid to this footballing legend but the final word was left to Bill
Shankley when he said ‘Today there are no reds and blues, no black and white,
no Protestants and Catholics - just mourning for a great footballer’.
I have never seen Dixie Dean play but I have a vivid picture of him in my head
from listening to my father. Rising above everyone in the penalty area to head
the rain sodden medicine ball into the back of the net. For a small footballing
outpost in the north west of Ireland to claim a small part of the history of
such a football legend is a remarkable achievement. It is impossible to imagine
a modern day equivalent for such a story.