# 1960–61 Arsenal F.C. season

During the 1960–61 English football season, Arsenal F.C. competed in the Football League First Division.

## Season summary

In the 1960–61 season, the Gunners had a satisfying season where they ended up in 7th place heading into 1961, but a poor run of just four wins in their final 17 games saw Swindin's side end the campaign in a disappointing 11th place and to make things worse for Arsenal supporters, they had to witness their fierce North London rivals Tottenham win the league and cup double.

## Final league table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts |
| 9 | Blackburn Rovers | 42 | 15 | 13 | 14 | 77 | 76 | 1.013 | 43 |
| 10 | West Bromwich Albion | 42 | 18 | 5 | 19 | 67 | 71 | 0.944 | 41 |
| 11 | Arsenal | 42 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 77 | 85 | 0.906 | 41 |
| 12 | Chelsea | 42 | 15 | 7 | 20 | 98 | 100 | 0.980 | 37 |
| 13 | Manchester City | 42 | 13 | 11 | 18 | 79 | 90 | 0.878 | 37 |

## Results

Arsenal's score comes first

### Legend

| Win | Draw | Loss |

### Football League First Division

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 20 August 1960 | Burnley | A | 2–3 | 23,653 | Bloomfield, Herd |
| 23 August 1960 | Preston North End | H | 1–0 | 31,612 | Everitt |
| 27 August 1960 | Nottingham Forest | H | 3–0 | 28,878 | Henderson, Skirton (2) |
| 30 August 1960 | Preston North End | A | 0–2 | 20,105 | |
| 3 September 1960 | Manchester City | A | 0–0 | 36,656 | |
| 6 September 1960 | Birmingham City | H | 2–0 | 20,285 | Herd, Kane |
| 10 September 1960 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 2–3 | 59,868 | Herd, Ward |
| 14 September 1960 | Birmingham City | A | 0–2 | 22,904 | |
| 17 September 1960 | Newcastle United | H | 5–0 | 34,885 | Clapton, Herd (3), Strong |
| 24 September 1960 | Cardiff City | A | 0–1 | 35,000 | |
| 1 October 1960 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 1–0 | 27,176 | Herd |
| 8 October 1960 | Leicester City | A | 1–2 | 22,501 | Henderson |
| 15 October 1960 | Aston Villa | H | 2–1 | 34,048 | Herd, Strong |
| 22 October 1960 | Blackburn Rovers | A | 4–2 | 21,500 | Charles, Herd, Strong (2) |
| 29 October 1960 | Manchester United | H | 2–1 | 45,715 | Barnwell, Herd |
| 5 November 1960 | West Ham United | A | 0–6 | 29,275 | |
| 12 November 1960 | Chelsea | H | 1–4 | 38,666 | Charles |
| 19 November 1960 | Blackpool | A | 1–1 | 15,417 | Herd |
| 26 November 1960 | Everton | H | 3–2 | 36,709 | Herd (3) |
| 3 December 1960 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 3–5 | 25,658 | Barnwell, Herd (2) |
| 10 December 1960 | Bolton Wanderers | H | 5–1 | 30,818 | Barnwell, Eastham (2), Strong (2) |
| 17 December 1960 | Burnley | H | 2–5 | 37,209 | Herd, Strong |
| 23 December 1960 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 1–1 | 29,311 | Neill |
| 26 December 1960 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 1–1 | 43,555 | Eastham |
| 31 December 1960 | Nottingham Forest | A | 5–3 | 30,735 | Eastham, Henderson, Herd (3) |
| 14 January 1961 | Manchester City | H | 5–4 | 36,440 | Clapton, Henderson, Herd (3) |
| 21 January 1961 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 2–4 | 65,251 | Haverty, Henderson |
| 4 February 1961 | Newcastle United | A | 3–3 | 34,394 | Eastham, Strong (2) |
| 11 February 1961 | Cardiff City | H | 2–3 | 33,754 | Herd (2) |
| 18 February 1961 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 3–2 | 21,500 | Haverty (2), Skirton |
| 25 February 1961 | Leicester City | H | 1–3 | 31,721 | Henderson |
| 4 March 1961 | Aston Villa | A | 2–2 | 35,000 | Barnwell, Haverty |
| 11 March 1961 | Blackburn Rovers | H | 0–0 | 34,250 | |
| 18 March 1961 | Manchester United | A | 1–1 | 29,732 | Charles |
| 25 March 1961 | West Ham United | H | 0–0 | 27,505 | |
| 31 March 1961 | Fulham | A | 2–2 | 35,476 | Herd (2) |
| 1 April 1961 | Bolton Wanderers | A | 1–1 | 18,618 | Henderson |
| 3 April 1961 | Fulham | H | 4–2 | 20,142 | Barnwell (2), Henderson (2) |
| 8 April 1961 | Blackpool | H | 1–0 | 36,301 | Herd |
| 15 April 1961 | Chelsea | A | 1–3 | 38,223 | Strong |
| 22 April 1961 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | 1–5 | 34,429 | Henderson |
| 29 April 1961 | Everton | A | 1–4 | 39,810 | Herd |

### FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R3 | 7 January 1961 | Sunderland | A | 1–2 | 58,575 | Herd |

## Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| - | GK | WAL | Jack Kelsey |
| - | DF | ENG | Len Wills |
| - | DF | SCO | John Snedden |
| - | DF | NIR | Billy McCullough |
| - | MF | ENG | John Barnwell |
| - | MF | SCO | Tommy Docherty |
| - | FW | SCO | David Herd |
| - | FW | SCO | Jackie Henderson |
| - | FW | ENG | Vic Groves |
| - | GK | NIR | Jack McClelland |
| - | FW | WAL | Mel Charles |
| - | FW | ENG | George Eastham |
| - | FW | ENG | Geoff Strong |
| - | MF | ENG | Danny Clapton |
| - | MF | ENG | Alan Skirton |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| - | DF | NIR | Terry Neill |
| - | DF | ENG | Dave Bacuzzi |
| - | FW | ENG | Jimmy Bloomfield |
| - | MF | IRL | Joe Haverty |
| - | MF | ENG | Gerry Ward |
| - | DF | NIR | Eddie Magill |
| - | DF | ENG | Mike Everitt |
| - | FW | SCO | Peter Kane |
| - | DF | ENG | Allan Young |
| - | MF | IRL | Frank O'Neill |
| - | GK | ENG | Jim Standen |
| - | FW | ENG | Dennis Clapton |
| - | MF | WAL | Arfon Griffiths |
| - | MF | ENG | John Petts |