1959 British Home Championship
Encyclopedia
The 1959 British Home Championship
was a football
tournament played between the British Home Nations
. It came the year after the notable failure of England
and Scotland
to impress at the 1958 FIFA World Cup
, for which all four nations qualified for the only time. Wales
and Ireland
were the only achievers, both reaching the quarter-finals after playoffs.
Many of these problems stemmed also from the deaths of a number of international players from some teams in the Munich Air Disaster
the year before. During the Home Championship, the Ireland team took the unusual step of flying to Madrid
for a friendly game against Spain
between the matches against England and Scotland. The trip was however not a success, the Irish losing 2–6 with goals from Billy Bingham
and Jimmy McIlroy
.
For the second successive year the tournament was tied between England and Ireland, as both managed a draw and a win against the other two teams in addition to the high-scoring mutual draw which began the competition. Scotland came second after comfortably beating Wales, drawing with the Irish but then narrowly losing to England in London which cost them a share of first place. Wales recovered from their defeat to the Scots to draw with England in the second match but lost heavily to the Irish in their final game and so finished last.
The points system worked as follows:
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British Home Championship
The British Home Championship was an annual football competition contested between the United Kingdom's four national teams, England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland from the 1883–84 season until the 1983–84...
was a football
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
tournament played between the British Home Nations
Home Nations
Home Nations is a collective term with one of two meanings depending on the context. Politically, it means the nations of the constituent countries of the United Kingdom...
. It came the year after the notable failure of England
England national football team
The England national football team represents England in association football and is controlled by the Football Association, the governing body for football in England. England is the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside Scotland, whom they played in the world's first...
and Scotland
Scotland national football team
The Scotland national football team represents Scotland in international football and is controlled by the Scottish Football Association. Scotland are the joint oldest national football team in the world, alongside England, whom they played in the world's first international football match in 1872...
to impress at the 1958 FIFA World Cup
1958 FIFA World Cup
The 1958 FIFA World Cup, the sixth staging of the World Cup, was hosted by Sweden from 8 June to 29 June. The tournament was won by Brazil, who beat Sweden 5–2 in the final for their first title. To date, this marks the only occasion that a World Cup staged in Europe was not won by a European...
, for which all four nations qualified for the only time. Wales
Wales national football team
The Wales national football team represents Wales in international football. It is controlled by the Football Association of Wales , the governing body for football in Wales, and the third oldest national football association in the world. The team have only qualified for a major international...
and Ireland
Northern Ireland national football team
The Northern Ireland national football team represents Northern Ireland in international association football. Before 1921 all of Ireland was represented by a single side, the Ireland national football team, organised by the Irish Football Association...
were the only achievers, both reaching the quarter-finals after playoffs.
Many of these problems stemmed also from the deaths of a number of international players from some teams in the Munich Air Disaster
Munich air disaster
The Munich air disaster occurred on 6 February 1958, when British European Airways Flight 609 crashed on its third attempt to take off from a slush-covered runway at Munich-Riem Airport in Munich, West Germany. On board the plane was the Manchester United football team, nicknamed the "Busby Babes",...
the year before. During the Home Championship, the Ireland team took the unusual step of flying to Madrid
Madrid
Madrid is the capital and largest city of Spain. The population of the city is roughly 3.3 million and the entire population of the Madrid metropolitan area is calculated to be 6.271 million. It is the third largest city in the European Union, after London and Berlin, and its metropolitan...
for a friendly game against Spain
Spain national football team
The Spain national football team represents Spain in international association football and is controlled by the Royal Spanish Football Federation, the governing body for football in Spain. The current head coach is Vicente del Bosque...
between the matches against England and Scotland. The trip was however not a success, the Irish losing 2–6 with goals from Billy Bingham
Billy Bingham
William Laurence "Billy" Bingham, MBE is a former international footballer and football manager. He is currently a scout for English Football League Championship side Burnley....
and Jimmy McIlroy
Jimmy McIlroy
James "Jimmy" McIlroy MBE is a former football player, regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of Burnley Football Club.-At Burnley:...
.
For the second successive year the tournament was tied between England and Ireland, as both managed a draw and a win against the other two teams in addition to the high-scoring mutual draw which began the competition. Scotland came second after comfortably beating Wales, drawing with the Irish but then narrowly losing to England in London which cost them a share of first place. Wales recovered from their defeat to the Scots to draw with England in the second match but lost heavily to the Irish in their final game and so finished last.
Table
| Team | Pts | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 6 | ||
| 4 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 5 | ||
| 3 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | ||
| 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 9 | −6 |
The points system worked as follows:
- 2 points for a win
- 1 point for a draw
Results
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