The Boxing Day fixtures have always been a favourite time of football calendar for English fans, with a full glut of games squeezed into the tightest of holiday schedules to entertain supporters over the Christmas period.
One reason why Boxing Day matches has become enshrined in English football culture was the extraordinary events of 1963, when the entertaining festive fixtures served up a remarkable 66 goals, a feat that is still commemorated to this day.
Not only did the 10 top-flight games in that season not produce a single goal-less draw, but only two sides in the entire division failed to score – Everton and Bolton Wanderers. Six players bagged hat-tricks, too, and four men were sent off.
But what were the scores on that incredible day? GOAL takes a dive into the 10 fixtures that provided the most bonkers day of highlights in the history of Christmas fixtures – and what happened next.
Despite predictions from forecasters warning the nation to brace for the worst, the anticipated big freeze never arrived during Christmas 1963. What did arrive were the presents, crackers and turkey with all the trimmings as players and supporters found themselves treated to a footballing spectacle, as some of the most extraordinary matches in the history of English top-flight football unfolded.
The biggest score was Fulham’s preposterous 10-1 win over Ipswich Town at Craven Cottage thanks to Graham Leggat scoring a hat-trick within three minutes, which was the quickest ever three-goal haul in the top flight until Sadio Mane broke it in 2015 with a hat-trick in 2 minutes and 56 seconds for Southampton against Aston Villa.
This tie remains both Fulham’s record league win and Ipswich’s heaviest defeat. The Tractor Boys had won the title 18 months previously, and they were slapped by a Fulham side, who had scored just 25 goals in 23 prior games.
Meanwhile, across London at Upton Park, league leaders Blackburn Rovers smashed a star-studded West Ham side 8-2. The Rovers ultimately capitulated, and finished seventh that season, while the Hammers’ won the FA Cup that year with a squad containing World Cup-winning captain Bobby Moore, as well as other 1966 heroes Geoff Hurst and Martin Peters.
Making the opposite journey from London to the North West, Chelsea also enjoyed their Boxing Day outing, with striker Barry Bridges netting a hat-trick, while Peter Houseman and future England boss Terry Venables also got on the scoresheet to put the relegation-threatened Blackpool to the sword.
That season Liverpool lifted the First Division, and they were set on their way with a 6-1 thrashing against Stoke City. Manchester United came runners up behind their fierce rivals and were stunned 6-1 on their Boxing Day travels against the mighty Burnley as they rued the absence of a 17-year-old George Best and Denis Law, who both netted 30 times over the course of that season.
Nobody likes to be in the relegation zone at Christmas. Bolton were among the unfortunate ones, six points adrift of safety heading into Boxing Day, but Sheffield Wednesday were not in any mood to offer them sympathy, thrashing the Wanderers 3-0 at Hillsborough Stadium.
Even the day’s three stalemates were high-scoring contests. Top of the table at Christmas, Tottenham Hotspur were held in an eight-goal thriller at the Hawthorns. Jimmy Greaves’ brace appeared to be enough to secure a fourth straight league victory for the Lilywhites, but West Brom rallied from a two-goal deficit with late goals from Micky Fudge and Don Howe to salvage a point.
Nottingham Forest and Sheffield United battled it out to a 3-3 draw as did Wolves and Aston Villa at Molineux. The lowest-scoring game of the day came at Filbert Street where Leicester City beat defending champions Everton 2-0.
As if the results on Boxing Day weren’t bizarre enough, it all felt like the scriptwriters had concocted a dreamlike revenge sequel when the teams met again two days later in a rematch of those games. Fulham lost their rematch to Ipswich, while West Ham took their revenge by beating Blackburn away at Ewood Park and Manchester United hammered Burnley 5-1 at Old Trafford.