# 1972–73 Birmingham City F.C. season

The 1972–73 Football League season was Birmingham City Football Club's 70th in the Football League and their 39th in the First Division, to which they were promoted as Second Division runners-up in 1971–72. After spending much of the season in the lower reaches of the table, eight wins and a draw from the last ten matches brought them up to tenth position in the 22-team division. They entered the 1972–73 FA Cup in the third round proper and lost in that round to Swindon Town, and entered the League Cup in the second round, eliminated in the fourth by Blackpool.
Twenty-seven players made at least one appearance in nationally organised first-team competitions, and there were fourteen different goalscorers. Centre-forward Bob Latchford played in all but one of the 48 first-team matches over the season, and finished as the leading goalscorer with 20 goals, of which 19 came in league competition. The home attendance in First Division matches never fell below 30,000.

## Football League First Division

| Date | League position | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| 12 August 1972 | 15th | Sheffield United | H | L | 1–2 | R. Latchford | 37,390 |
| 15 August 1972 | 9th | Newcastle United | H | W | 3–2 | McFaul og, Hope, R. Latchford | 35,831 |
| 19 August 1972 | 13th | Ipswich Town | A | L | 0–2 | | 17,775 |
| 23 August 1972 | 19th | Tottenham Hotspur | A | L | 0–2 | | 30,798 |
| 26 August 1972 | 18th | Crystal Palace | H | D | 1–1 | Francis | 31,066 |
| 30 August 1972 | 16th | West Bromwich Albion | A | D | 2–2 | Hatton, R. Latchford | 37,108 |
| 2 September 1972 | 19th | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | L | 2–3 | Hope, Burns | 32,539 |
| 9 September 1972 | 15th | Manchester City | H | W | 4–1 | R. Latchford 3, Campbell | 32,983 |
| 16 September 1972 | 18th | Derby County | A | L | 0–1 | | 33,753 |
| 23 September 1972 | 15th | Everton | H | W | 2–1 | R. Latchford, Francis | 37,133 |
| 26 September 1972 | 15th | Arsenal | A | L | 0–2 | | 30,003 |
| 30 September 1972 | 16th | West Ham United | A | L | 0–2 | | 26,482 |
| 7 October 1972 | 17th | Chelsea | H | D | 2–2 | Hope, R. Latchford | 38,756 |
| 14 October 1972 | 19th | Manchester United | A | L | 0–1 | | 52,104 |
| 21 October 1972 | 18th | Southampton | H | D | 1–1 | Roberts | 30,757 |
| 28 October 1972 | 19th | Coventry City | A | D | 0–0 | | 35,304 |
| 4 November 1972 | 19th | Tottenham Hotspur | H | D | 0–0 | | 38,504 |
| 11 November 1972 | 21st | Newcastle United | A | L | 0–3 | | 26,042 |
| 18 November 1972 | 17th | Stoke City | A | W | 2–1 | R. Latchford 2 | 23,040 |
| 25 November 1972 | 16th | Norwich City | H | W | 4–1 | Pendrey, Hope, Want, Hatton | 32,890 |
| 2 December 1972 | 16th | Liverpool | A | L | 3–4 | Taylor, Hope, R. Latchford | 45,407 |
| 9 December 1972 | 16th | Leicester City | H | D | 1–1 | Calderwood | 32,481 |
| 16 December 1972 | 17th | Leeds United | A | L | 0–4 | | 25,275 |
| 23 December 1972 | 19th | Arsenal | H | D | 1–1 | Bowker | 32,721 |
| 26 December 1972 | 18th | Everton | A | D | 1–1 | R. Latchford | 39,363 |
| 30 December 1972 | 19th | Ipswich Town | H | L | 1–2 | Hatton | 32,705 |
| 27 January 1973 | 21st | Manchester City | A | L | 0–1 | | 31,877 |
| 10 February 1973 | 20th | Derby County | H | W | 2–0 | R. Latchford, Francis | 38,096 |
| 17 February 1973 | 18th | Sheffield United | A | W | 1–0 | Francis | 22,220 |
| 27 February 1973 | 19th | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | L | 0–1 | | 43,759 |
| 3 March 1973 | 18th | Chelsea | A | D | 0–0 | | 26,259 |
| 6 March 1973 | 16th | Crystal Palace | A | D | 0–0 | | 26,014 |
| 10 March 1973 | 15th | Manchester United | H | W | 3–1 | R. Latchford, Hatton, Campbell pen | 51,278 |
| 17 March 1973 | 17th | Southampton | A | L | 0–2 | | 14,612 |
| 24 March 1973 | 17th | Coventry City | H | W | 3–0 | Hatton, R. Latchford, Taylor | 34,775 |
| 31 March 1973 | 15th | Norwich City | A | W | 2–1 | R. Latchford 2 | 23,899 |
| 7 April 1973 | 16th | Liverpool | H | W | 2–1 | R. Latchford, Hatton | 48,114 |
| 14 April 1973 | 12th | Leicester City | A | W | 1–0 | Campbell | 27,652 |
| 21 April 1973 | 11th | Stoke City | H | W | 3–1 | Page, Francis, Hatton | 32,513 |
| 23 April 1973 | 11th | West Ham United | H | D | 0–0 | | 36,942 |
| 28 April 1973 | 11th | West Bromwich Albion | H | W | 3–2 | R. Latchford, Hynd, Burns | 36,784 |
| 30 April 1973 | 10th | Leeds United | H | W | 2–1 | Francis, Burns | 34,449 |

### League table (part)

Final First Division table (part) :
| Pos | Club | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | GA | Pts |
| 8th | Tottenham Hotspur | 42 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 58 | 48 | 1.21 | 45 |
| 9th | Newcastle United | 42 | 16 | 13 | 13 | 60 | 51 | 1.18 | 45 |
| 10th | Birmingham City | 42 | 15 | 12 | 15 | 53 | 54 | 0.98 | 42 |
| 11th | Manchester City | 42 | 15 | 11 | 16 | 57 | 60 | 0.95 | 41 |
| 12th | Chelsea | 42 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 49 | 51 | 0.96 | 40 |
| Key | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points | Pos = League position; Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points |

## FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| Third round | 13 January 1973 | Swindon Town | A | L | 0–2 | | 17,373 |

## League Cup

| Round | Date | Opponents | Venue | Result | Score F–A | Scorers | Attendance |
| Second round | 5 September 1972 | Luton Town | H | D | 1–1 | R. Latchford | 20,962 |
| Second round replay | 13 September 1972 | Luton Town | A | D | 1–1 | Campbell | 13,806 |
| Second round 2nd replay | 19 September 1972 | Luton Town | County Ground, Northampton | W | 1–0 | Francis | 11,451 |
| Third round | 3 October 1972 | Coventry City | H | W | 2–1 | Francis, Barry og | 27,803 |
| Fourth round | 31 October 1972 | Blackpool | A | L | 0–2 | | 13,332 |

## Appearances and goals

    Numbers in parentheses denote appearances made as a substitute.
    Key to positions: GK – Goalkeeper; DF – Defender; MF – Midfielder; FW – Forward
Players' appearances and goals by competition :
| Pos. | Nat. | Name | League | League | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Total | Total |
| Pos. | Nat. | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| GK | ENG | Paul Cooper | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| GK | ENG | Mike Kelly | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 |
| GK | ENG | Dave Latchford | 32 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 37 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Keith Bowker | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| DF | IRL | Tommy Carroll | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 14 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Stan Harland | 18 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 22 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Dave Howitt | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| DF | SCO | Roger Hynd | 40 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 45 | 1 |
| DF | ENG | Ray Martin | 23 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Garry Pendrey | 39 (1) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 45 (1) | 1 |
| DF | WAL | John Roberts | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 1 |
| DF | ENG | Dave Robinson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| DF | ENG | Tony Want | 20 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 1 |
| DF | ENG | Alan Whitehead | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| MF | SCO | Kenny Burns | 9 (5) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 (2) | 0 | 12 (7) | 3 |
| MF | SCO | Jimmy Calderwood | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 |
| MF | SCO | Alan Campbell | 29 (3) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 33 (3) | 4 |
| MF | SCO | Paul Hendrie | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 |
| MF | SCO | Bobby Hope | 24 (1) | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 29 (1) | 5 |
| MF | WAL | Malcolm Page | 26 (1) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 30 (1) | 1 |
| MF | ENG | George Smith | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| MF | ENG | Gordon Taylor | 34 (2) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 (1) | 0 | 37 (3) | 2 |
| FW | ENG | Trevor Francis | 31 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 37 | 8 |
| FW | ENG | Bob Hatton | 31 (1) | 7 | 0 (1) | 0 | 3 | 0 | 34 (2) | 7 |
| FW | ENG | Bob Latchford | 42 | 19 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 47 | 20 |
| FW | ENG | Steve Phillips | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| FW | ENG | Phil Summerill | 1 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 (1) | 0 |