1953–54 NCAA men's ice hockey season
Entering the season, in an effort to more accurately reflect the geographic location of the member school, the MCHL changed the conference name to 'Western Intercollegiate Hockey League'.


1953–54 NCAA men's ice hockey season, Regular season, Standings
When teams met each other four times, one point was awarded for a win, one-half point for a tie. Maximum of 24 points available.


1953–54 NCAA men's ice hockey season, Player stats, Scoring leaders
The following players led the league in points at the conclusion of the season.


1953–54 NCAA men's ice hockey season, Player stats, Scoring leaders
GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes


1953–54 NCAA men's ice hockey season, Player stats, Leading goaltenders
The following goaltenders led the league in goals against average at the end of the regular season while playing at least 33% of their team's total minutes.


1953–54 NCAA men's ice hockey season, Player stats, Leading goaltenders
GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime/shootout losses; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average


1953–54 NHL season
The 1953–54 NHL season was the 37th season of the National Hockey League. Six teams each played 70 games. The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Montreal Canadiens in the final to win the team's sixth championship.


1953–54 NHL season, League business
National Hockey League (NHL) team owners gave notice to terminate the professional-amateur agreement with the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA). The Canadian Press reported that the decision was to protect investments into amateur teams and to improve the financial return. The NHL proposed a new national junior ice hockey playoff format solely for teams sponsored by the NHL, instead of the existing Memorial Cup championship.


1953–54 NHL season, League business
CAHA president W. B. George predicted that the NHL would not last three years without the CAHA, and stated that it would end the current system which allowed a three-game tryout for an amateur with a professional team. In August 1953, the CAHA and NHL agreed in principle to a proposal that resumed east-west transfers of junior players, and increased the amount of profits to junior teams sponsored by the NHL. At the semi-annual meeting, the CAHA agreed to distribute playoffs funds proportional to the profit on a series-by-series basis, but rejected the request to resume transfers from west to east.


1953–54 NHL season, Regular season
The New York Rangers decided to drop Gump Worsley and went with Johnny Bower in goal this season. Bower did well, but not well enough to get the Rangers into the playoffs. However, the Rangers managed to come up with a fine rookie in Camille Henry who won the Calder Memorial Trophy.


1953–54 NHL season, Regular season
On December 9, the Montreal Canadiens played the Toronto Maple Leafs at Maple Leaf Gardens and the teams set a record of most penalties in a game. The trouble started when Montreal's Eddie Mazur got into a fight with Toronto's George Armstrong in the first period. Both received game misconduct penalties. Early in the second period, Bud MacPherson broke his stick on the ribs of Toronto's Ron Stewart. He chose not to retaliate until a more opportune time. It came at 18:12 of the third period when Stewart and MacPherson collided again.


1953–54 NHL season, Regular season
This time they pushed and shoved and the gloves came off and they began to pummel each other. Tom Johnson came to MacPherson's aid by putting a headlock on Stewart and Stewart threw a punch that landed on Johnson's jaw. Stewart pursued MacPherson again, now that he was in combat with Eric Nesterenko of Toronto and soon the benches emptied and everyone was fighting except Maurice Richard and Tim Horton who merely grabbed each other's sweaters. Referee Frank Udvari handed out 36 penalties, including 15 misconducts for a record 204 minutes in penalties. With almost 2 minutes left in the game, only 8 players from each team excluding the goaltenders Gerry McNeil and Harry Lumley, who did battle in the brawl, were permitted to finish the game. Almost forgotten was that Toronto won the game 3–0.


1953–54 NHL season, Regular season
There were persistent rumours that the Chicago Black Hawks would fold due to the poor performance of the team and fans staying away in droves. NHL president Clarence Campbell discussed the problems with Arthur M. Wirtz and it was announced that the rumours were without foundation.


1953–54 NHL season, Regular season
Campbell was busy this year imposing fines and suspensions. As a result of pushing referee Frank Udvari into the boards during a November 12 game, Bernie Geoffrion was fined $250. Later, in a December 20 game, he and Ron Murphy engaged in stick swinging which left Murphy with a broken jaw. Both players were suspended.


1953–54 NHL season, Regular season
There was trouble brewing for Maurice Richard when he ghosted an article in the Samedi Dimanche newspaper, calling NHL president Clarence Campbell a dictator and took exception to Campbell's suspension of Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion for the stick swinging incident. Richard was required to post a $1000 bond and refrain from any more articles.


1953–54 NHL season, Regular season
The Detroit Red Wings were first overall in the National Hockey League for the sixth straight season.


1953–54 NHL season, Playoffs
After losing four straight games to the Montreal Canadiens, Boston Bruins general manager Art Ross, their manager from the day the Bruins came into the NHL, announced his retirement. He had been grooming Lynn Patrick to succeed him and Patrick took over as general manager.


1953–54 NHL season, Awards
The James Norris Memorial Trophy made its debut this season and its first winner was Red Kelly of the Detroit Red Wings. The Norris Trophy goes to the top defenceman each year and was named in honour of James E. Norris, owner of the Detroit Red Wings franchise from 1932 until his death in 1952.


1953–54 NHL season, Player statistics, Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes


1953–54 NHL season, Player statistics, Leading goaltenders
Note: GP = Games played; Min – Minutes Played; GA = Goals Against; GAA = Goals Against Average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts


1953–54 NHL season, Debuts
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1953–54 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):


1953–54 NHL season, Last games
The following is a list of players of note who played their last game in the NHL in 1953–54 (listed with their last team):


1953–54 NK Dinamo Zagreb season
The 1953–54 season was Dinamo Zagreb's eighth season in the Yugoslav First League. They finished 1st in the league, winning their second league title, with one point ahead of runners-up Partizan.


1953–54 NK Dinamo Zagreb season, Players, Squad
Note: The following is the full list of players who appeared in league matches for Dinamo in the 1953–54 season. However, only players who started at least 10 league games are included in historic records as having been members of the championship-winning squad, according to NK Dinamo Zagreb's 1945–1985 official almanac. Those players are listed in bold.


1953–54 NK Dinamo Zagreb season, Players, Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


1953–54 NK Dinamo Zagreb season, Players, Statistics
The following table lists appearances and goals of all players who represented Dinamo in the 1953–54 season. Only league matches and goals are taken into account. Dionizije Dvornić and Vladimir Čonč are the only two players who appeared in all 26 league matches of the season.


1953–54 National Football League (Ireland)
The 1953–54 National Football League was the 23rd staging of the National Football League (NFL), an annual Gaelic football tournament for the Gaelic Athletic Association county teams of Ireland.


1953–54 National Football League (Ireland)
Carlow reached their only final to date, and opened well, leading Mayo by 0-2 to 0-1 after ten minutes. But then the 'flying doctor' Pádraig Carney, who came home from America for the game, levelled before Tommy Langan punched a goal from a Carney centre in the 26th minute. Mayo's second goal from M. Flanagan in the 10th minute of the second-half ended Carlow's dreams of National League glory, and gave Mayo their ninth NFL win.


1953–54 National Football League (Ireland), Format
Teams are placed into Divisions I, II, III and IV. The top team in each division reaches the semi-finals.


1953–54 National Football League (Ireland), Results, Division
Carlow won, ahead of Kerry, Cork, Wexford, Kildare, Waterford and Tipperary.


1953–54 National Football League (Ireland), Results, Division III
Mayo won, finishing ahead of Longford, Westmeath, Sligo, Leitrim, Meath and Cavan.


1953–54 National Hurling League
The 1953–54 National Hurling League was the 23rd season of the NHL, an annual hurling competition for the GAA county teams.


1953–54 Nationalliga A, Overview
It was contested by 14 teams, and FC La Chaux-de-Fonds won the championship.


1953–54 Nationalliga A season
The 1953–54 Nationalliga A season was the 16th season of the Nationalliga A, the top level of ice hockey in Switzerland. Eight teams participated in the league, and EHC Arosa won the championship.


1953–54 Netherlands Football League Championship
The Netherlands Football League Championship 1953–1954 was contested by 56 teams participating in four divisions. It would be the last season on an amateur basis. The national champion would be determined by a play-off featuring the winners of each division of the Netherlands. FC Eindhoven won this year's championship by beating DOS, PSV Eindhoven and DWS.


1953–54 New York Knicks season
The 1953–54 New York Knicks season was the eighth season for the team in the National Basketball Association (NBA). New York won its second straight regular season Eastern Division title with a 44–28 record, which placed them two games ahead of the Boston Celtics and Syracuse Nationals. The first round of the 1954 NBA Playoffs consisted of round-robin tournaments, where the top three teams in each division played each other in home and away matchups. The Knicks went 0–4 against the Celtics and Nationals, and did not qualify for the Eastern Division Finals.


1953–54 New York Knicks season, NBA Draft
Note: This is not an extensive list; it only covers the first and second rounds, and any other players picked by the franchise that played at least one game in the league.


1953–54 New York Rangers season
The 1953–54 New York Rangers season saw the Rangers finish in fifth place in the National Hockey League (NHL) with a record of 29 wins, 31 losses, and 10 ties for 68 points.


1953–54 New York Rangers season, Playoffs
The Rangers failed to qualify for the 1954 Stanley Cup playoffs.


1953–54 New York Rangers season, Player statistics
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Rangers. Stats reflect time with Rangers only. ‡Traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with Rangers only.


1953–54 New Zealand rugby union tour of Britain, Ireland, France and North America
The 1953–54 New Zealand rugby union tour of Britain, Ireland, France and North America was a rugby union tour undertaken by the New Zealand national team which toured Europe and North America. The team was captained by Bob Stuart.


1953–54 New Zealand rugby union tour of Britain, Ireland, France and North America
Between October 1953 and March 1954, the team played 36 games including four test matches, one each against Ireland, England, Wales, and France. They won all but four games, losing only to Cardiff, Wales, France and South West France.


1953–54 Newport County A.F.C. season
The 1953–54 season was Newport County's seventh consecutive season in the Third Division South since relegation from the Second Division at the end of the 1946–47 season. It was the club's 25th season in the third tier and 26th season overall in the Football League.


1953–54 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team
The 1953–54 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team represented the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The head coach was Frank McGuire. The team played its home games at Woollen Gymnasium in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, and was a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference.


1953–54 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team
1953–54Record:	11–10;	H:	7–3,	A:	4–3,	N:	1–4ACC	5–6,	5th	Place


1953–54 North Carolina Tar Heels men's basketball team, Schedule and results
January 16	Virginia	H	W	78–66January 19	NC State	H	L	77–84February 2	Washington and Lee	LY	W	69–60February 4	Duke (-/8)	A	L	47–63February 8	Virginia	A	L	69–83February 11	Wake Forest	H	L	62–76February 13	Clemson (-/14)	A	W	72–56February 16	Davidson	H	W	89–69February 20	Duke (-/14)	H	L	63–67February 24	NC State	A	L	48–57February 27	The Citadel	A	W	79–52ACC TournamentMarch 4	NC State (-/18)	RAL	L	51–52


1953–54 Northern Football League
The 1953–54 Northern Football League season was the 56th in the history of the Northern Football League, a football competition in Northern England.


1953–54 Northern Football League, Clubs
The league featured 14 clubs which competed in the last season, no new clubs joined the league this season.


1953–54 Northern Rugby Football League season
The 1953–54 Rugby Football League season was the 59th season of rugby league football played in England. The championship, which involved thirty teams, started in August, 1953 and culminated in a finals play-off series in April, 1954 which resulted in a championship final between Warrington and Halifax. The season was also punctuated by the 1954 Rugby League World Cup, the first ever, and is also notable for its Challenge Cup final, which was drawn and had to be re-played, attracting a world record crowd for a rugby football match of either code.


1953–54 Northern Rugby Football League season, Season summary
The 1953–54 season saw Brian Bevan become the highest try scorer in rugby league history when he passed the 446 tries mark set by Alf Ellaby.


1953–54 Northern Rugby Football League season, Season summary
Warrington won the Lancashire League, and Halifax won the Yorkshire League. St. Helens beat Wigan 16–8 to win the Lancashire County Cup, and Bradford Northern beat Hull F.C. 7–2 to win the Yorkshire County Cup.


1953–54 Northern Rugby Football League season, Championship, Play-offs, Final
The Championship Final was played between Warrington and Halifax on 8 May (three days after the epic Challenge Cup re-play) at Maine Road before a crowd of 36,519. The match was televised by the BBC and it was a tremendous defensive effort that helped Warrington to a narrow 8–7 win, with Bath kicking 4 goals.


1953–54 Northern Rugby Football League season, Challenge Cup
The 1954 Challenge Cup was the 53rd staging of rugby league's oldest knockout competition, the Challenge Cup. It featured clubs from the 1953–54 Northern Rugby Football League season and is notable for its Final which had to be replayed before possibly the largest crowd in rugby league history.


1953–54 Norwegian 1. Divisjon season
The 1953–54 Norwegian 1. Divisjon season was the 15th season of ice hockey in Norway. Eight teams participated in the league, and Furuset IF won the championship.


1953–54 Norwegian Main League
The 1953–1954 Hovedserien was the 10th completed season of top division football in Norway.


1953–54 Norwegian Main League, Overview
It was contested by 16 teams, and Fredrikstad FK won the championship.


1953–54 OB I bajnoksag season
The 1953–54 OB I bajnokság season was the 17th season of the OB I bajnokság, the top level of ice hockey in Hungary. Seven teams participated in the league, and Postas Budapest won the championship.


1953–54 Oberliga
The 1953–54 Oberliga  was the ninth season of the Oberliga, the first tier of the football league system in West Germany and the Saar Protectorate. The league operated in five regional divisions, Berlin, North, South, Southwest and West. The five league champions and the runners-up from the south then entered the 1954 German football championship which was won by Hannover 96. It was Hannover's second national championship, having previously won it in 1938 in an epic final against FC Schalke 04 that saw two extra time games before Hannover won 4–3.


1953–54 Oberliga
Hannover 96 equaled the Oberliga start record set in 1952–53 by 1. FC Köln, winning its first eleven games, a mark later equaled by Hamburger SV in 1961–62 but never surpassed.


1953–54 Oberliga
A similar-named league, the DDR-Oberliga, existed in East Germany, set at the first tier of the East German football league system. The 1953–54 DDR-Oberliga was won by Turbine Erfurt.


1953–54 Oberliga, Oberliga Nord
The 1953–54 season saw two new clubs in the league, Eintracht Braunschweig and Victoria Hamburg, both promoted from the Amateurliga. The league's top scorer was Fritz Apel (Arminia Hannover) and Werner Heitkamp (FC St. Pauli) with 21 goals each. Hannover 96 became the only team other than Hamburger SV to win the Oberliga Nord as the latter won 15 of the possible 16 league championships from 1947 to 1963 but missed out in 1953–54.


1953–54 Oberliga, Oberliga Berlin
The 1953–54 season saw two new clubs in the league, Kickers 1900 Berlin and Hertha Zehlendorf, both promoted from the Amateurliga Berlin. The league's top scorer was Hermann Paul of Berliner SV 1892 with 19 goals.


1953–54 Oberliga, Oberliga West
The 1953–54 season saw two new clubs in the league, Rheydter SV and VfL Bochum, both promoted from the 2. Oberliga West. The league's top scorer was Hans Schäfer of 1. FC Köln with 26 goals.


1953–54 Oberliga, Oberliga Südwest
The 1953–54 season saw two new clubs in the league, ASV Landau and VfR Frankenthal, both promoted from the 2. Oberliga Südwest. The league's top scorer was Herbert Martin of 1. FC Saarbrücken with 35 goals, the highest total for any scorer in the five Oberligas in 1953–54.


1953–54 Oberliga, Oberliga Süd
The 1953–54 season saw two new clubs in the league, Jahn Regensburg and KSV Hessen Kassel, both promoted from the 2. Oberliga Süd. The league's top scorer was Helmut Preisendörfer (Kickers Offenbach) and Horst Schade (1. FC Nürnberg) with 22 goals each.


1953–54 Oberliga, German championship
The 1954 German football championship was contested by the six qualified Oberliga teams and won by Hannover 96, defeating 1. FC Kaiserslautern in the final. The six clubs played single round of matches at neutral grounds in two groups of three. The two group winners then advanced to the final.


1953–54 Oberliga (ice hockey) season
The 1953-54 Oberliga season was the sixth season of the Oberliga, the top level of ice hockey in Germany. Eight teams participated in the league, and EV Füssen won the championship.


1953–54 Panhellenic Championship
The 1953–54 Panhellenic Championship was the 18th season of the highest football league of Greece. There was an important innovation, as in its final phase, teams from the Greek region participated in a single group for the first time, bypassing the "Athens - Piraeus - Thessaloniki" triptych. The opportunity to claim the title of champion of a provincial team, was given for the first time in the period 1938-39, but where the championship was held in 2 groups. Olympiacos won their 10th championship being unbeaten for the 5th time in its history. The 6 clubs that participated in the final stage were as follows:


1953–54 Panhellenic Championship
The qualifying round matches took place from 10 October 1953 to 31 March 1954, while the final phase took place from 4 April to 21 July 1954. The point system was: Win: 3 points - Draw: 2 points - Loss: 1 point.


1953–54 Penn State Nittany Lions basketball team
The 1953–54 Penn State Nittany Lions basketball team represented Pennsylvania State University in intercollegiate basketball during the 1953–54 season. The team finished the season with an 18–6 record and made it to the 1950 NCAA Tournament's Final Four, their only Final Four appearance in school history. Penn State posted an upset of eighth-ranked Louisiana State University and ended Notre Dame's 18-game winning streak to advance to Kansas City where they eventually finished third after a loss to eventual champion La Salle.


1953–54 Philadelphia Warriors season
The 1953–54 NBA season was the Warriors' 8th season in the NBA.


1953–54 Polska Liga Hokejowa season
The 1953–54 Polska Liga Hokejowa season was the 19th season of the Polska Liga Hokejowa, the top level of ice hockey in Poland. 10 teams participated in the league, and Legia Warszawa won the championship.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season
The 1953–54 season was Port Vale's 42nd season of football in the English Football League, and their fifth season overall in the Third Division North. Freddie Steele's side were crowned Third Division North champions with 69 points out of a possible 92, eleven points ahead of their nearest rivals. They also reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, and would be denied an appearance in the final due to a controversial goal from a dubious penalty. These achievements were based upon a record-breaking 'Iron Curtain' defence, and a solid squad of nineteen players, most of whom had taken the club to second in the league the previous season.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season
Seven still-standing club records were set this season, including three Football League records. One Football League record was for the fewest Football League goals conceded in a 46 match season – 26, just over one every two games. Just five of these were conceded at home, another Football League record. This was based upon 30 clean sheets, again a Football League record. They also recorded a club record low of three league defeats, and a club record home clean sheet streak of eleven matches, lasting from 7 September 1953 to 13 February 1954. Another club record was a streak of six away draws, lasting from 20 March to 26 April. They were undefeated at home all season, continuing a 42 match unbeaten run started on 8 November 1952, that would last until 18 September 1954.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season
The key players that formed the first eleven of 1953–54 were: Ray King (goalkeeper); Reg Potts and Stan Turner (full-backs); Tommy Cheadle, Albert Leake, Roy Sproson (half-backs); Colin Askey, John Cunliffe, Ken Griffiths, Basil Hayward, and Albert Mullard (forwards); Derek Tomkinson (reserve forward). Their achievements came as a team, without any outstanding stars, which caused The Sentinel to remark that the whole team were stars.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Pre-season
The pre-season saw no new signings as the young, mostly local squad that had finished second in the 1952–53 campaign was enough for manager Freddie Steele. Steele signed a three-year contract following his success the previous season. He considered signing Stoke City goalkeeper Dennis Herod, and the two parties held talks before he was instead sold to Stockport County for £500. Alf Jones was given his first professional contract, whilst Selwyn Whalley (who was training to become teacher), Harry Oliver and John Poole (both engineering apprentices) all were given part-time professional contracts.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Pre-season
Don Bould and Ron Fitzgerald returned from national service to become full-time professionals. This gave the club a total of 21 full-time professionals, six part-time players and ten players aged 17–21 who could only play and train if they could find time off from their compulsory two-year national service. The strip was a traditional white shirt with black shorts, whilst the change kit of red and white stripes were donated by a friend of one of the club's directors, who was a Sunderland supporter.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Pre-season
There was only one public pre-season friendly on 13 August, which saw the club's first team take on the reserves; it ended with a surprise 4–2 victory for the reserves, Roland Lewis scoring a hat-trick. Pre -season training consisted primarily of assistant manager Ken Fish leading a marathon running session from Burslem to Hanley and back to Burslem following a stop at a pub for a half-pint of shandy. After returning to the ground Fish would organise a practise game.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Pre-season
The fitness work was actually crucial to the team's success, as Steele was ahead of his time in that he insisted that wide players should defend when the opposition were on the ball, in order to support the defence. Superstition was of great importance to Steele, who ensured that the team rigidly stuck their pre-match rituals such as the intricacies of kit layout and the order in which players entered the pitch.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
The season began with a 2–1 win over Mansfield Town at Field Mill on 19 August; Chris Marron put Mansfield ahead on 52 minutes, before Roy Sproson scored the equaliser on 69 minutes, Basil Hayward scored the winning goal three minutes later after being the first to react to the rebound that came when Colin Askey's shot hit the crossbar.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
The main surprise in the line-up of the opening day was that goalkeeper Ray Hancock had been dropped in favour of Ray King after King impressed in the pre-season friendly, the club's positive season meant that Hancock was unable to win back his place in the side. Vale were then held to two consecutive goalless draws but remained unbeaten in their first seven league games, conceding just two goals. This run included a 3–0 win over Darlington at Feethams, and a 4–0 win over Barrow in which Hayward scored a hat-trick. They had risen to the top of the table by the third game of the season and remained in first place until the end of the season. Of the Barrow first eleven that day three of the players were brothers: Jack, Alan and Bert Keen.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
Vale lost by a single goal at Redheugh Park against Gateshead on 12 September; Vale, playing in their change kit, were beaten by a 57th-minute goal from John Ingham. This brought to an end the club's then-record streak of 16 games unbeaten. Four days later Vale recorded a 2–1 win over Bradford Park Avenue at the Horsfall Stadium despite Reg Potts being injured with a swollen ankle early in the match.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
A 2–0 home win over Workington on 19 September began a sequence of five clean sheets, with Jim Elsby standing in for Potts as Steele changed the starting line-up for the first time in eight games – this brought Potts' run of 73 consecutive appearances to an end. The defensive fivesome of keeper Ray King, Tommy Cheadle, Reg Potts, Stan Turner and Roy Sproson began to be known as 'the Iron Curtain' or 'the Steele Curtain' (a play on the manager's name).


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
A 21 September game against nearby unbeaten Crewe Alexandra was billed as a 'crunch clash' between first and second, and a Sproson goal on 87 minutes won the match for the Vale. For the return a week later a stadium record 17,883 packed into Gresty Road to witness a goalless draw at Crewe. The attendance figures were helped by the management team of the Crewe Works, who allowed their workforce to leave work an hour early in order to make it for the 5:10pm kick-off. The draw was achieved despite injuries to Albert Leake, Hayward and John Cunliffe, who were replaced by Derek Tomkinson, Roland Lewis and Mick Hulligan.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
On 3 October, Vale secured the biggest ever win at Vale Park when they beat York City 5–0. Seven days later Vale's clean sheet streak came to an end, though they still secured a 2–1 victory over Chesterfield at Saltergate; Cyril Hatton was the scorer for Chesterfield, though it proved not enough to save his team's unbeaten home record. Albert Mullard had a penalty kick saved towards the end of the game by goalkeeper Ron Powell, the only one of two penalties the club were awarded throughout the campaign. Vale then beat Tranmere Rovers 2–0 after their defence successfully contained the threat posed by the division's then-top scorer Cyril Done. The following week they won 1–0 at Halifax Town in a game where Ken Griffiths hit the woodwork three times.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
On 7 November, Vale conceded twice in one game for the first time in the season, as Peel Park saw their Accrington Stanley side achieve a 2–2 draw with the Vale. Vale lost a two-goal lead in the match, as Ian Brydon scored after the ball got stuck in the mud and then Les Cocker scored the equalising goal after Ray King failed to hold on to a shot. By this time Vale were building a significant point advantage over the rest of the league. On 28 November, Ken Griffiths scored a hat-trick as Vale 'tore apart' a poor Rochdale side 6–0, exceeding the record Vale Park win that had been set only two months earlier.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
Steele was investigated by a joint FA/Football League inquiry for his time as Mansfield Town manager in regard to suspected illegal payments – found guilty, he was given a £250 fine. The good run of results continued though, as they beat fifth-placed Barnsley 1–0 at Oakwell through a Hayward goal. On Christmas Day and Boxing Day Vale recorded two 1–0 wins over Chester, with Hayward again the only player to find the net. Captain Tommy Cheadle pulled a hamstring against Chester, and lost his place in the team as Steele moved the positions around to accommodate Derek Tomkinson in the team. Roland Lewis was made available on a free transfer in December, and moved to non-league side Witton Albion.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
The club were granted a licence to build a stand on the Railway Terrace at a cost of £25,000. Vale struggled in the league in early 1954, losing 2–1 to Hartlepools United in a fierce wind at Victoria Park. Cheadle was again absent through injury, as two goals from Tommy McGuigan ended Vale's record run of 21 games unbeaten. Title rivals Gateshead then left Vale Park with a point after a goalless draw, ending the club's record run of 12 consecutive home victories.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
A shock came on 6 February, when Bill Shankly's Workington earned a 2–0 win at Borough Park – the only time in the season Vale lost by more than one goal. Seven days later Scunthorpe & Lindsey United left Vale Park with a point as the home side came close to finding the net on numerous occasions without success despite one shot from Hayward partially injuring goalkeeper Norman Malan after he struck the ball hard into Malan's jaw. Following this short run of poor form they next recorded a win against York City, securing a 1–0 victory at Bootham Crescent.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
On 27 February, Chesterfield became the first away side to score at Vale Park since September, as they fought back from a two-goal deficit to win a point. Vale had previously conceded just one goal in 20 home games over an 11-month period, and had last conceded twice in a home league game on 30 August 1952.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
On 6 March, Tranmere Rovers striker Bill Bainbridge put his side ahead at Prenton Park, but the Vale equalised within two minutes and went on to win the game 3–1. They beat Halifax 2–0 the following week, with both goals coming in the last 14 minutes of the game.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
The trip to face Carlisle United at Brunton Park five days later saw six players sit out with injuries, leaving Hancock, Tomkinson, Len Barber, Elsby, Hulligan and Alan Bennett all to make rare appearances; Ken Fish also took charge of the team as Freddie Steele was watching FA Cup opponents West Bromwich Albion. The game finished goalless, with both Hancock and "Cumbrians" goalkeeper Jimmy McLaren receiving praise for several excellent saves. Vale ended the month with a 1–0 victory over Accrington Stanley despite Barber missing the second and last penalty the club would be awarded in the season.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
Despite playing twelve games in thirty days throughout April they remained unbeaten. On 10 April they thrashed Stockport County 7–0 in a ground record victory, with Hayward scoring a hat-trick – they were 6–0 up after 36 minutes but then proceeded to play at 'a pleasant trot'. The championship title was secured on 17 April at Spotland with a goalless draw with Rochdale. They conceded just two goals in their final seven league games.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
Vale finished top of the table with 69 points, eleven clear of second-placed Barnsley. Their 26 league goals conceded in a 46 games was a record. Just five of these were conceded at home, another Football League record. This was based upon 30 clean sheets, again a Football League record. Ray King kept 29 of these clean sheets, a record only equalled by Gillingham goalkeeper Jim Stannard in 1995–96. Vale's tally of just three league defeats was a club record.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Third Division North
They were undefeated at home all season, continuing a 42 match unbeaten run started on 8 November 1952, that would last until 18 September 1954. Their achievements was built on a settled squad of nineteen players, twelve of which played regularly. They were the first team to play 54 competitive games in a single season.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
In the FA Cup, a 3–1 win at Feethams took the Vale past league rivals Darlington in the First Round. Les Robson had put the "Quakers" ahead by half-time after Ray King miss-kicked a clearance, but the Vale controlled the game as soon as Albert Leake scored the equaliser.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
In the Second Round Vale drew another league rival in Southport, who battled to a 1–1 draw at Haig Avenue on 12 December, Harry Whitworth's header cancelling out Basil Hayward's opener. The Vale players later admitted they were fortunate to come away with a draw, especially seen as Colin Askey and Albert Leake spent much of the game limping. Two days later Vale recorded a 2–0 win in the replay in what was a tough game.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
In the Third Round, Queens Park Rangers of the Third Division South were beaten 1–0 at Loftus Road. The pitch was muddy and the weather was pouring rain in a game that was inevitably poor in quality, settled in the 50th minute by Albert Leake following a long ball played by John Cunliffe.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
The Fourth Round held First Division club Cardiff City in snowy conditions at Ninian Park. Vale won 2–0, and their victory was aided by the fact that Cardiff goalkeeper Ron Howells had to leave the pitch after 20 minutes after being knocked out following a collision with defender Derrick Sullivan, leaving his ten-man team to play 70 minutes with defender Alf Sherwood in goal. Vale attacked through the wings to get in numerous crosses to the box, from which Ken Griffiths and Albert Leake scored their goals.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
Centre-half Tommy Cheadle restricted centre-forward Trevor Ford to a quiet game, and at full-time the pair were full of bruises but still left the pitch with a handshake and a smile. Cardiff placed a £25,000 transfer bid for winger Colin Askey, and after their offer was rejected Cardiff stated they were prepared to pay more than £25,000, but Port Vale refused any negotiations. Other top clubs also made inquiries, but were all turned away.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
In the Fifth Round, the "Valiants" faced holders Blackpool, and 42,000 tickets were sold for the clash at Vale Park. The victors of the 'Matthews Final' brought Stanley Matthews and six other internationals to Vale Park, as well a travelling contingent of 10,500. Albert Leake scored two goals on the waterlogged pitch, as his team put 'a dazzling display in attack and defence' and their 'hard-fighting, quick-on-the-ball play smothered Blackpool's intricate approach work'.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
In the Sixth Round they faced Third Division South club Leyton Orient at Brisbane Road, as 8,000 Vale fans made up a 31,000 crowd. In the days leading up to the game thieves had stolen 1,200 matchday tickets and police were vigilant to catch out anyone who tried to enter the stadium with these stolen tickets.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
The only goal of the game came from Leake – who struck the ball into the net after controlling the ball from a Hayward knock-down from an Askey corner – put Vale into the semi-finals, with the team 'delightedly mobbed' by supporters after the finish. Ray King made a name for himself in the dying moments of the game after making a save from a George Poulton shot.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
The 25,000 tickets Vale were allotted for the semi-final clash with West Bromwich Albion at Villa Park sold out on the first day. In all 100 coaches and 14 excursion trains took the supporters to Birmingham for the match on 27 March, at which time high-scoring West Brom were top of the First Division – in all 68,221 spectators packed into the stadium. This meant the match secured the club a total of £20,086 in gate receipts.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
Ken Griffiths was unable to recover from a knee injury in time for the match and so was replaced by Derek Tomkinson, this was the first and only change to the first eleven throughout the cup run. In the match itself, Albion's 'constructive play' was halted by the Vale defence, and a Leake goal on 40 minutes saw Vale 1–0 up at half-time. The second half saw the "Throstles" switch to a long ball game, and on 62 minutes Cheadle was bustled off the ball and could only watch the equaliser cross the line.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
Eight minutes later captain Cheadle was judged to have fouled George Lee just inside the penalty box, though the Port Vale players maintained that the challenge took place well outside of the box, and that Lee also handled the ball. Former "Valiant" star Ronnie Allen converted the resulting penalty. Later in the match Leake had an equalising goal disallowed for offside, and Vale therefore failed to be the first third-tier club to reach an FA Cup Final.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
"West Brom were top of the First Division at the time, but we were playing out of our skins and we should have gone through. We were devastated after the game. I guess it was just fate, it wasn't meant to be – but that doesn't make it any easier to take. They score two dodgy goals and we should have been going to Wembley. Their first goal was a fluke of an own goal which came off the back of Tommy Cheadle's head.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
Poor Tommy was as deaf as a door post and I was shouting at him to leave it, but he didn't hear me and he slipped and put it in the net ... Also, the penalty was never a penalty; the foul was easily outside the box. Looking at the television replays of the incident, even in grainy black and white, you can see that is obvious. Ronnie Allen, who used to play for Vale, took the penalty.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, FA Cup
He used to practise them against me in those days, so I knew exactly where was going to hit it, and he knew that I knew. When he stepped up, though, he hammered it right into the corner. I got my fingertips to it, but it was hit too hard and flew into the net – and that was that, we were out."


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Finances
On the financial side, a new profit of £2,628 was recorded despite the only transfer activity being a £350 credit. Gate receipts had risen by more than £11,000 to £50,940 thanks to a then club record average attendance of 16,702. No first team players departed in the summer of 1954 due to the club's "no buy, no sell" policy. At the end of the season only four players were released: William Cook, F.Viggars, Alf Jones and Lovatt, whilst A.Wharton was made available on a free transfer. None of these five players would play a game in the Football League. In July 1954 the new stand at Vale Park was completed, providing cover for 4,500 seated and 12,000 standing spectators. The club charged £2.50 for season tickets to the 42,000 (1,010 seated) capacity stadium.


1953–54 Port Vale F.C. season, Finances
On 29 March 1954, the Vale team played an "All-Star XI" in order to raise money for former Port Vale playing staff who had given long service to the club. The All-Star team was as follows: Frank Swift, Bert Sproston, Andy Beattie, Bill Corkhill, Les McDowall, Joe Mercer, Sammy Crooks, Raich Carter, Freddie Steele, Tim Ward and Peter Doherty; the All-Stars won 2–1 with both goals coming from Steele, making the club's manager the first player to score two goals against the Vale in one match that season.


1953–54 Primeira Divisão, Overview
It was contested by 14 teams, and Sporting Clube de Portugal won the championship.


1953–54 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy
The 1953–54 season of the Quaid-i-Azam Trophy was the first edition of the tournament, and the inaugural first-class cricket competition played in Pakistan following its independence in 1947. One of the tournament's purposes was to help determine the Pakistan national side's squad for its tour of England in 1954.


1953–54 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy
The tournament was played as a knockout competition between seven teams representing both regions and government departments. Punjab received a bye through to the semi-finals to compensate for the odd number of teams. The final, played in Karachi, was contested between Punjab and Bahawalpur, with Bahawalpur winning by eight wickets. Two Bahawalpur players, Hanif Mohammad and Fazal Mahmood (both future Pakistan captains), led the competition in runs and wickets, respectively.


1953–54 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Teams
Five teams (Bahawalpur, Combined Services, Karachi, North-West Frontier Province, and Railways) made their first-class debuts in the tournament.


1953–54 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Statistics, Most runs
The top five runscorers are included in this table, listed by runs scored and then by batting average.


1953–54 Quaid-e-Azam Trophy, Statistics, Most wickets
The top five wicket-takers are listed in this table, listed by wickets taken and then by bowling average.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season
The 1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey team represented Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in intercollegiate college ice hockey during the 1953–54 NCAA men's ice hockey season. The head coach was Ned Harkness and the team co-captains were Frank Chiarelli and Jim Shildneck. The team won the 1954 NCAA Men's Ice Hockey Tournament. The team's leading scorer was Abbie Moore, who finished tied for second in the nation with 68 points.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
Coming off a Tri-State League championship and the program's first appearance in the NCAA tournament, Rensselaer was primed to build on the previous years' success with the top five scorers all returning for another season. Also from the previous campaign was starting netminder Bob Fox who was among the best goalies in the nation in 1953.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
The Bachelors opened their season with nine of their first ten games at home and used that to their advantage, sweeping the five games they played before the winter break. Their first big game came against Yale in New Haven where RPI would defeat a team that finished 4th in the east 4–2. After the break Rensselaer hosted their third Holiday Tournament and after winning games over Brown and Princeton they lost their first game of the season against St. Francis Xavier in the tournament championship. RPI won two more games, pushing their record to 9–1–0, before taking a week off in preparation for their weekend trip to Colorado.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
Playing at high altitude for the first time since the previous year's tournament Rensselaer came out flat against a decent Denver squad, dropping their first contest 3–8 and followed that up with an identical loss to Colorado College the next night. After a day off the Bachelors returned to Denver for a rematch with the Pioneers and though they lost once more the fared much better in the game, losing 2–3 as they seemed to finally find their skating legs.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
Three days later RPI was back in New York facing Hamilton on the road and despite the jet lag they trounced the Continentals 11–0. Two days later the Bachelors finally opened their conference schedule with a win at Clarkson but after another win at Middlebury they dropped a match at St. Lawrence 4–5.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
With RPI in danger of losing a chance at the NCAA tournament to the Saints they had no margin for error and swept the rest of their schedule until the rematch with the Larries on March 5. The game had been sold out for months and when the teams met they produced one of the most exciting games ever held at Houston Field House. Rensselaer skated away with the victory, earning them a tie with St. Lawrence as the co-champions of the Tri-State League.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
Despite the victory, however, the Saints had a better record, going 18–3–1 over the course of the season and were expected to be picked for the tournament but a selection of coaches and officials chose the Bachelors to head to the championship instead. Rensselaer's appearance was such a surprise that St. Lawrence had been included on the tournament programs and had their logo on the wooden pennant hanging outside the Broadmoor World Arena.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
The "RIP" Bachelors entered as the fourth seed and drew Michigan who, despite having a lesser record than Minnesota, was the three-time defending champion and was riding a 7-game tournament winning streak. Rensselaer would have to wait, however, as Boston College opened against the Golden Gophers and were mercilessly eviscerated by Minnesota, losing by the largest margin in tournament history (1–14). Rensselaer had been given no chance entering the tournament but after the first semifinal there was a feeling from the spectators that Michigan would produce an equally lopsided victory.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
With all of the insults, slights and dismissals levied at their team the Bachelors responded in the only way they could; the small but fast team outskated the heavily favored Wolverines and with Gordie Peterkin recording a hat-trick, including the game-winner, Rensselaer won what was then considered the biggest upset the tournament had ever seen. Not only was their 6–4 win the first tournament victory by an eastern team over a western team in three years but it was the first time Rensselaer had ever defeated a western school.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
While the defeated Wolverines took their frustrations out on their hotel rooms, the Bachelors had to prepare themselves for a showdown with the Golden Gophers the next night. The Bachelors opened the game with the first three goals of the contest, one from each of their top three scorers. While the crowd may have been stunned Minnesota was not and they came roaring back with four consecutive goals to take the lead in the third period.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
Just when it looked like Rensselaer's chance at the title had slipped away Frank Chiarelli set up Abbie Moore for his second goal of the game to tie the score with 3:50 left in regulation and sent the game into overtime, the first time the championship game would need an extra period. The tying goal seemed to buoy RPI who came out of the intermission flying and before two minutes had elapsed Peterkin had notched his second winning goal of the tournament.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
Rensselaer's win was so improbably that it apparently flummoxed the voters for the tournament awards. Four Bachelors made their way onto the First All-Tournament Team: Bob Fox, Jim Pope, Frank Chiarelli and Gordie Peterkin. However it was Abbie Moore who was named as the Most Outstanding Player, the only time in tournament history that the MOP was not on the top team.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
The Bachelors returned home to a hero's welcome and, though few continued to play once their time at Rensselaer was over, the thirteen men who had earned one of the most improbable championships in history would be remembered by the RPI faithful.


1953–54 RPI Bachelors men's ice hockey season, Season
Note: In the Spring of 1953 the Student Body voted that 'Bachelors' would be the new nickname of all athletic teams for RPI. The moniker would revert to Engineers in 1958.


1953–54 Rangers F.C. season
The 1953–54 season was the 74th season of competitive football by Rangers.


1953–54 Rangers F.C. season, Overview
Rangers played a total of 46 competitive matches during the 1953–54 season.


1953–54 Ranji Trophy
The 1953–54 Ranji Trophy was the 20th season of the Ranji Trophy. Bombay won the title defeating Holkar in the final.


1953–54 Ranji Trophy, Zonal Matches, South Zone
(T) - Advanced to next round by spin of coin.


1953–54 Real Madrid CF season
The 1953–54 season was Real Madrid Club de Fútbol's 51st season in existence and the club's 23rd consecutive season in the top flight of Spanish football.


1953–54 Real Madrid CF season, Summary
The club won its third league title over defending champion FC Barcelona after 21 years aimed by several arrivals such as Di Stefano from Millonarios Fútbol Club(included a transfer battle with CF Barcelona) and 20-yrs-old winger from Racing Santander Francisco Gento. On 1 August 1953 Spanish Federation banned the foreign players transfers to La Liga clubs and not lifting the measure until 1956 with the exception of oriundo players, meaning athletes who were born abroad but had Spanish ancestors as Alfredo Di Stéfano had. Also, newcomer striker Alfredo Di Stéfano got the Pichichi trophy of league topscorer with 27 goals. During June, the squad reached 1954 Copa del Generalísimo semi-finals being defeated by FC Barcelona.


1953–54 Real Madrid CF season, Squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.


1953–54 Rheinlandliga
The 1953–54 Rheinlandliga was the second season of the highest amateur class of the Rhineland Football Association under the name of 1. Amateurliga Rheinland. It was a predecessor of today's Rheinlandliga.


1953–54 Rheinlandliga
The 1. Amateurliga was below II. Division Southwest until 1963 and therefore the third-class in the hierarchy. In the seasons 1956–57 to 1962–63 the league was played in two divisions (East and West). The two division champions played to determine the Rhineland champion. With the introduction of the regional league Southwest as second highest class, starting in the 1963–64 season, the Amateur league Rheinland was again combined into one division.


1953–54 Rheinlandliga
Beginning in the 1974–75 season, the league played a role as a sub-team to the newly introduced 2. Bundesliga, where the Rhineland champion played in a relegation against the champion of the Verbandsliga Südwest and the Saarlandliga, for a position in the south divisions of the 2. Bundesliga. Starting from the 1978–79 season, the Oberliga Rheinland-Pfalz/Saar was introduced as the highest amateur class and this class was renamed to the "Verbandsliga Rheinland" and since then only fourth class.


1953–54 Rheinlandliga, Results
Rhineland champion was VfL Trier. In the relegation rounds to 2nd Division Southwest, Trier took third place and had to remain in the amateur league. Runner up, FC Urbar, took part in the German Football Amateur Championship in 1954 as a Rhineland representative, but failed again in the group stage. SSV Heimbach-Weis, TuS Konz, SpVgg Zewenr and VfL Brohl had to move down into the 2. amateur league after this season. For the following season, 1954–55, Eintracht Höhr, SC Sinzig, Sportfreunde Daaden and  SV Trier-West moved up from the 2. Amateur League.


1953–54 Rochdale A.F.C. season
The 1953–54 season saw Rochdale compete for their 26th season in the Football League Third Division North.


1953–54 Rochester Royals season
The 1953–54 NBA season was the Royals sixth season in the NBA.


1953–54 Rugby Union County Championship
The 1953–54 Rugby Union County Championship was the 54th edition of England's premier rugby union club competition at the time.


1953–54 Rugby Union County Championship
Middlesex won the competition for the third time after defeating Lancashire in the final. Higgins was carried off on a stretcher early in the game which contributed to the heavy loss suffered by Lancashire.


1953–54 SK Rapid Wien season
The 1953–54 SK Rapid Wien season was the 56th season in club history.


1953–54 SM-sarja season
The 1953–54 SM-sarja season was the 23rd season of the SM-sarja, the top level of ice hockey in Finland. 10 teams participated in the league, and TBK Tampere won the championship.


1953–54 Santosh Trophy
The 1953–54 Santosh Trophy was the 13th edition of the Santosh Trophy, the main State competition for football in India. It was held West Bengal who won their 7th title defeating Mysore 3–1 in the final.


1953–54 Santosh Trophy
Bengal won their quarter final against Bihar, semifinal against Bombay and the final against Mysore in replays.


1953–54 Scottish Cup
The 1953–54 Scottish Cup was the 69th staging of Scotland's most prestigious football knockout competition. The Cup was won by Celtic who defeated Aberdeen in the final.


1953–54 Scottish Division A
The 1953–54 Scottish Division A was won by Celtic, who finished five points ahead of the second placed club Heart of Midlothian. Celtic won their 20th league title with a match still to play, when they defeated Hibernian 3–0 at Easter Road on 17 April 1954. It was the club's first league championship win in 16 years. Airdrieonians and Hamilton Academical finished 15th and 16th respectively and were relegated to the 1954–55 Scottish Division B.


1953–54 Scottish Division B
The 1953–54 Scottish Division B was won by Motherwell who, along with second placed Kilmarnock, were promoted to First Division A. Dumbarton finished bottom and were relegated to Division C.


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship
The 1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship was a  rugby union competition for Scotland's district teams.


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship
This season saw the first formal Scottish Inter-District Championship. The district sides selected were Glasgow District, Edinburgh District, North and South.


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship
The Midlands district was not represented. Instead their players were selected in the formation of the North side.


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship
This was the only season that North played in the Scottish Inter-District Championship. Midlands complained to the Scottish Rugby Union that despite having several players selected in the North of Scotland side they had no recognition for this. The SRU agreed and in subsequent seasons the combined team was known as North and Midlands in the Inter-District tournament.


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship
The case for rugby substitutes was raised after the Glasgow - Edinburgh inter-city match when Glasgow's star player Angus Cameron left the field injured. Not only did this hamper Glasgow by playing with a man short, but their players complained that their selection chances to the national team were impaired by then being forced to play unfamiliar positions to cover the loss.


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship
Edinburgh District won the inaugural competition with a maximum three wins.


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship, Results, Round 1
Edinburgh District: D. H. Crighton (Watsonians), D. M. Scott (Watsonians), R. G. Baird (Watsonians), Tommy McClung (Edinburgh Academicals),Grant Weatherstone (Stewart's College FP), Jim Davidson (Edinburgh University), A. D. Thomson (Heriots F.P),R. D. S. Munro (Leith Academicals), Norman Mair (Edinburgh University), F. McLachlan (Edinburgh Wanderers),R. A. Cadzow (Edinburgh Wanderers), H. L. McKill (Watsonians), W. S. Glen (Edinburgh Wanderers), S. T. H. Wright (Stewart's College F.P),Douglas Elliot (Edinburgh Academicals)South: A. D. Little (Selkirk), S. S. Cowan (Selkirk), J. Cowan (Selkirk), R. G. Charters (Hawick), J. Hume (Kelso),J. M. Maxwell (Langholm), J. Wright (Hawick), L. Hastie (Kelso), Jock King (Selkirk), Jimmie Johnston (Melrose),J. J. Hegarty (Hawick),  A. Robson (Hawick), J. Grant (Hawick). G. K. Smith (Kelso)


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship, Results, Round 2
South: R. Chisholm (Melrose), W. R. Scott (Hawick), S. S. Cowan (Selkirk), Les Allan (Melrose), R. W. Notman (Jedforest), J. M. Maxwell (Langholm), J. Wright (Hawick), Bob Wilson (Gala) (captain), J. Telford (Langholm), Jim Inglis (Selkirk), J. J. Hegarty (Hawick),Jimmie Johnston (Melrose), A. Robson (Hawick), D. M. Brown (Melrose), G. K. Smith (Kelso)Glasgow District: D. McIntyre (Glasgow HSFP), R. D. Unkles (Glasgow HSFP), Allan Cameron (Hillhead High School F.P.) (captain), Donald Cameron (Glasgow HSFP), G. N. McKenzie (Greenock Wanderers), I. Cameron (Jordanhill School F.P. ), A.A.W. Waddell (Glasgow Academicals), R. A. Brechin (Glasgow Academicals), J. Cassells (Greenock Wanderers), J. C. Dawson (Glasgow Academicals), Hamish Kemp (Glasgow HSFP), A. Gilchrist (West of Scotland), J. D. Rollo (Glasgow HSFP), Percy Friebe (Glasgow HSFP), J. L. Blackwood (Glasgow Academicals)


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship, Results, Round 3
North: W. Thomson (St. Andrews University), E. H. Cruickshank (Aberdeen GSFP), P. G. Younie (Aberdeen Wanderers), A. R. Pate (Highland),D. J. McPherson (Gordonians), J. M. Anderson (St. Andrews University), W. D. Allerdice (Aberdeen GSFP) (captain), A. A. Tullett (Gordonians),A. S. Hay (Perthshire Academicals), F. H. More (Perthshire Academicals), C. D. Mowat (Aberdeen GSFP), J. R. Andrew (Harris F.P.),J. Greenwood (Dunfermline), K. J. Donaldson (Perthshire Academicals), J. K. Mearns (Panmure)Edinburgh District: D. H. Crighton (Royal HSFP), I. W. Nicoll (Royal HSFP), L. B. Mackenzie (Royal HSFP), G. T. Ross (Watsonians), Grant Weatherstone (Stewart's College FP), Jim Davidson (Edinburgh University), G. S. Morgan (Melville F. P.), T. A. Herdman (Melville F. P.),Norman Mair (Edinburgh University), F. McLachlan (Edinburgh Wanderers), R. A. Cadzow (Edinburgh Wanderers), H. L. McKill (Watsonians),W. S. Glen (Edinburgh Wanderers), S. T. H. Wright (Stewart's F. P.), Douglas Elliot (Edinburgh Academicals) (captain)


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship, Results, Round 4
Glasgow District: Angus Cameron (Glasgow HSFP), A. M. Smith (Glasgow University), Allan Cameron (Hillhead HSFP),A. S. Headrick (Glasgow Academicals), A. G. Campbell (Kelvinside Academicals), Donald Cameron (Glasgow HSFP),A. A. W. Waddell (Glasgow Academicals), F. I. Hogarth (West of Scotland), J. Cassells (Greenock Wanderers),J.C. Dewar (Glasgow Academicals), Hamish Kemp (Glasgow HSFP), I. A. A. McGregor (Hillhead HSFP), J. D. Rollo (Glasgow HSFP),M. Chisholm (Glasgow HSFP), R. C. Taylor (Kelvinside Academicals) (captain)North: W. Thomson (St. Andrews University), K. M. Cruickshank (Aberdeen GSFP), P. J. Younie (Aberdeen Wanderers),J. H. Meldrum (Kirkcaldy), D. J. McPherson (Gordonians), A. R. Pate (Highland), W. D. Allardice (Aberdeen GSFP), (captain), A. A. Tullet (Gordonians), C. W. Bravin (Dunfermline), F. H. Moore (Perthshire Academicals),C. D. Mowat (Aberdeen GSFP),  D. N. Georgeson (Aberdeen GSFP), J. Greenwood (Dunfermline), K. J. Donaldson (Perthshire Academicals),A. I. Cheyne (Aberdeen University)


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship, Results, Round 5
North: W. Thomson (St. Andrews University) (captain), E. H. Cruickshank (Aberdeen GSFP), P. J. Younie (Aberdeen Wanderers),A. M. Nicoll (Harris Academy F. P), D. J. McPherson (Gordonians), F. J. Whitehurst (St. Andrews University), W. D. Allardice (Aberdeen GSFP),A. A. Tullett (Gordonians), C. W. Bravin (Dunfermline), F. H. Moore (Perthshire Academicals), C. D. Mowat (Aberdeen GSFP),D. N. Georgeson (Aberdeen GSFP), J. Greenwood (Dunfermline), Ernie Michie (Aberdeen University), J. K. Mearns (Panmure)South: J. R. McCredie (Hawick), R. B. Notman (Jedforest), R. G. Charters (Hawick), Les Allan (Melrose) (captain), S. S. Cowan (Selkirk), J. M. Maxwell (Langholm), A. F. Dorward (Gala), H. McLeod (Hawick), Jock King (Selkirk), Jim Inglis (Selkirk), J. J. Hegarty (Hawick), T. Elliot (Gala), A. Robson (Hawick), D. M. Brown (Melrose), G. K. Smith (Kelso)


1953–54 Scottish Inter-District Championship, Results, Round 6
Glasgow District: Angus Cameron (Glasgow HSFP), A. G. Campbell (Kelvinside Academicals), Donald Cameron (Glasgow HSFP),Allan Cameron (Hillhead HSFP), T. E. S. Ferguson (Hillhead HSFP), J. A. Ferguson (Hillhead HSFP) (captain),A. A. W. Waddell (Glasgow Academicals), J. D. Rollo (Glasgow HSFP), J. Cassells (Greenock Wanderers), J. C. Dawson (Glasgow Academicals), Hamish Kemp (Glasgow HSFP), W. F. Morton (West of Scotland), Percy Friebe (Glasgow HSFP), J. L. Blackwood (Glasgow Academicals)Edinburgh District: D. H. Crighton (Watsonians), Grant Weatherstone (Stewart's College FP), K. R. McDonald (Stewart's College FP),Jim Davidson (Edinburgh University), Donald Scott (Watsonians), G. T. Ross (Watsonians), J. R. Glen (Edinburgh Wanderers),T. P. L. McGlashan (Royal High School F.P), Norman Mair (Edinburgh University), F. McLachlan (Edinburgh Wanderers),H. L. McKill (Watsonians), R. A. Cadzow (Edinburgh Wanderers), J. S. Ure (Edinburgh Wanderers), S. T. H. Wright (Stewart's College FP),Douglas Elliot (Edinburgh Academicals) (captain)


1953–54 Scottish League Cup
The 1953–54 Scottish League Cup was the eighth season of Scotland's second football knockout competition. The competition was won by East Fife, who defeated Partick Thistle in the Final.


1953–54 Scottish National League season
The 1953–54 Scottish National League season was the 16th and final season of the Scottish National League, the top level of ice hockey in Scotland. Seven teams participated in the league, and the Paisley Pirates won the championship.


1953–54 Scottish National League season
The league merged with the English National League to form the British National League for the 1954–55 season.


1953–54 Segunda División
The 1953–54 Segunda División season was the 23rd since its establishment and was played between 12 September 1953 and 25 April 1954.


1953–54 Segunda División, Overview before the season
32 teams joined the league, including two relegated from the 1952–53 La Liga and 8 promoted from the 1952–53 Tercera División.


1953–54 Serie A (ice hockey) season
The 1953–54 Serie A season was the 21st season of the Serie A, the top level of ice hockey in Italy. Eight teams participated in the league, and HC Milan Inter won the championship.


1953–54 Serie B
The Serie B 1953–54 was the twenty-second tournament of this competition played in Italy since its creation.


1953–54 Serie B, Teams
Pavia and Alessandria had been promoted from Serie C, while Como and Pro Patria had been relegated from Serie A.


1953–54 Serie C
The 1953–54 Serie C was the sixteenth edition of Serie C, the third highest league in the Italian football league system.


1953–54 Sheffield Shield season
The 1953–54 Sheffield Shield season was the 52nd season of the Sheffield Shield, the domestic first-class cricket competition of Australia. The season was played between the 13 November 1953 to 2 March 1954 and was contested by five teams. After sixteen matches was played, New South Wales won their 26th title after finishing first by two points over Victoria. Colin McDonald from Victoria scored the most runs for the season with 733 runs while fellow Victorian player, Ian Johnson took the most wickets with 37.


1953–54 Southern Football League
The 1953–54 Southern Football League season was the 51st in the history of the league, an English football competition.


1953–54 Southern Football League
No new clubs had joined the league for this season so the league consisted of 22 clubs from previous season. Merthyr Tydfil were champions, winning their fifth Southern League title. Four Southern League clubs applied to join the Football League at the end of the season, but none were successful.


1953–54 Southern Football League, Football League elections
Four Southern League clubs applied for election to the Football League. However, none were successful as all four League clubs were re-elected.


1953–54 Soviet Cup (ice hockey)
The 1953–54 Soviet Cup was the fourth edition of the Soviet cup ice hockey tournament. 24 teams participated in the tournament, which was won by CDSA Moscow.


1953–54 Soviet League season
The 1953–54 Soviet Championship League season was the eighth season of the Soviet Championship League, the top level of ice hockey in the Soviet Union. Nine teams participated in the league, and Dynamo Moscow won the championship.


1953–54 Spartan League
The 1953–54 Spartan League season was the 36th in the history of Spartan League. The league consisted of 16 clubs.


1953–54 Spartan League, League table
The division featured 16 clubs, 14 from last season and 2 new clubs:


1953–54 St. Francis Terriers men's basketball team
The 1953–1954 St. Francis Terriers men's basketball team represented St. Francis College during the 1953–54 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The team was coached by Daniel Lynch, who was in his sixth year at the helm of the St. Francis Terriers. The team was a member of the Metropolitan New York Conference and played their home games at the Bulter Street Gymnasium in their Cobble Hill, Brooklyn campus and at the II Corps Artillery Armory in Park Slope, Brooklyn.


1953–54 St. Francis Terriers men's basketball team
During the 1953–54 season the Terriers won their first regular season conference championship and participated in their first National Invitational Tournament reaching the Quarterfinals. Their participation in the NIT was more impressive considering they had the smallest student body of all schools ever selected and were the only school participating from the NYC area that year. The Terries first round victory over 20th ranked Louisville was considered a notable upset. The 1953–54 season also stands as the Terriers best record of all-time.


1953–54 St. Francis Terriers men's basketball team, NBA Draft
At the end of the season Henry Daubenschmidt was drafted by the Boston Celtics with the 23rd overall pick.


1953–54 Stoke City F.C. season
The 1953–54 season was Stoke City's 47th season in the Football League and the 14th in the Second Division.


1953–54 Stoke City F.C. season
During the summer of 1953 Taylor began moving on a number of former favourites as he began at stamp his mark on the club; however, with not much money to spend the squad had a decidedly mid-table look. And so it turned out to be as Stoke were very average and with seventeen draws they finished in eleventh position as Taylor struggled to find his most successful team.


1953–54 Stoke City F.C. season, Season review, League
With Stoke now in the Second Division manager Frank Taylor decided to clear out some of the long serving players. Dennis Herod and Leslie Johnston both joined Shrewsbury Town and Jock Kirton left for Bradford City. Taylor and a relatively new board, saw no quick way back into the First Division and there would be no panic buying. Taylor insisted that he would buy if necessary but would be looking to bring players through the youth and reserve ranks at the club.


1953–54 Stoke City F.C. season, Season review, League
There was then, a distinct mid-table look about the Stoke City squad as the 1953–54 season got underway and Taylor like so many other managers heard of the impressive young duo at nearby Crewe Alexandra that of Johnny King and Frank Blunstone. In September he made his move for the pair and signed King for £8,000 but could not afford Blunstone who went on to Chelsea. He also signed Scottish pair Bobby Cairns and Joe Hutton to boost his midfield.


1953–54 Stoke City F.C. season, Season review, League
However, it was very dull season for the supporters as there was seventeen draws during the season with 1–1 being the most popular scoreline. The season's average attendance fell to 18,000, 10,000 down on the previous season. Stoke did however manage to record their highest league away win beating Bury 6–0 on 13 March 1954 at Gigg Lane. However, there was great sadness at the end of the season as in May 1954 former long serving defender and manager Bob McGrory died at the age of 62 just two years after he ended his 31-year association with the club.


1953–54 Stoke City F.C. season, Season review, FA Cup
After soundly beating Hartlepool United 6–2 in the third round with Frank Bowyer scoring four Stoke lost to Leicester City after a replay.


1953–54 Sussex County Football League
The 1953–54 Sussex County Football League season was the 29th in the history of the competition.


1953–54 Sussex County Football League
Division 1 featured now increased to fifteen teams with Wigmore Athletic being promoted from Division 2. Division 2 featured eleven teams from which the winners would be promoted into Division 1.


1953–54 Sussex County Football League, Division One
The division featured 15 clubs, 14 which competed in the last season, along with one new club, promoted from last season's Division Two:


1953–54 Sussex County Football League, Division Two
The division featured 11 clubs which competed in the last season, no new clubs joined the league this season. Three Bridges added United to the club name.


1953–54 Swedish Division I season
The 1953–54 Swedish Division I season was the tenth season of Swedish Division I. Djurgardens IF defeated Gavle GIK in the league final 1 game to none, 1 tie.


1953–54 Swedish football Division 2
This is the current revision of this page, as edited by Frietjes (talk | contribs) at 18:03, 16 February 2020 (expand templates per Fb team TfD outcome and Fb competition TfD outcome and Fb cl TfD outcome and Fb rbr TfD outcome). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this version.


1953–54 Swedish football Division 2
Statistics of Swedish football Division 2 for the 1953–54 season.


1953–54 Swedish football Division 3
Statistics of Swedish football Division 3 for the 1953–54 season.


1953–54 Syracuse Nationals season
The 1953–54 Syracuse Nationals season was the 5th season for the franchise in the National Basketball Association (NBA). In the Eastern Division Finals, the Nationals swept the Boston Celtics 2-0 to make it to the NBA Finals. The Nationals would go on to lose the Finals in 7 games to the Minneapolis Lakers.


1953–54 Tercera División
The 1953–54 Tercera División season was the 18th since its establishment.


1953–54 Texas Tech Red Raiders basketball team
The 1953–54 Texas Tech Red Raiders men's basketball team represented Texas Tech University in the Border Intercollegiate Athletic Association during the 1953–54 NCAA men's basketball season. The head coach was Polk Robison, his 7th year with the team.


1953–54 Toronto Maple Leafs season
The 1953–54 Toronto Maple Leafs season was Toronto's 37th season in the National Hockey League (NHL).


1953–54 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team
The 1953–54 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team represented the University of California, Los Angeles during the 1953–54 NCAA men's basketball season and were members of the Pacific Coast Conference. The Bruins were led by sixth year head coach John Wooden. They finished the regular season with a record of 18–7 and finished 2nd in the PCC Southern Division with a record of 7–5.


1953–54 UCLA Bruins men's basketball team, Previous season
The Bruins finished the regular season with a record of 16–8 and were 3rd in the PCC Southern Division with a record of 8–4.


1953–54 USC Trojans men's basketball team
The 1953–54 USC Trojans men's basketball team represented the University of Southern California during the 1953–54 NCAA college basketball season. Members of the Pacific Coast Conference, the Trojans were led by fourth-year head coach Forrest Twogood and played their home games off campus at Pan-Pacific Auditorium in Los Angeles, California.


1953–54 USC Trojans men's basketball team
The Trojans were 15–11 overall in the regular season and 8–4 in conference play. They won the Southern Division for the first time since 1940 and met Northern Division champion Oregon State in the best-of-three PCC playoff series at Long Beach City College. USC won the first and third games and advanced to the 24-team NCAA Tournament.


1953–54 USC Trojans men's basketball team
At the West Regional at Gill Coliseum in Corvallis, Oregon, the Trojans defeated Idaho State and Santa Clara (in double overtime). At the Final Four in Kansas City, Missouri, the Trojans dropped both games, to Bradley in the semifinals and Penn State in the consolation game.


1953–54 United States network television schedule
The following is the 1953–54 network television schedule for the four major English language commercial broadcast networks in the United States. The schedule covers primetime hours from September 1953 through March 1954. The schedule is followed by a list per network of returning series, new series, and series cancelled after the 1952–53 season.


1953–54 United States network television schedule
Despite hit filmed programs such as I Love Lucy, both William S. Paley of CBS and David Sarnoff of NBC were said to be determined to keep most programming on their networks live. Filmed programs were said to be inferior to the spontaneous nature of live television. Thus, NBC and CBS continued to schedule many live programs, including two new 1953 fall NBC series The Dave Garroway Show and Bonino.


1953–54 United States network television schedule
According to Brooks and Marsh (2007), Garroway's show "was faced with overwhelming competition from Mama and Ozzie & Harriet, which were running opposite on CBS and ABC, and it only lasted a single season". Bonino did not even last the full season. CBS had more luck with new live programs Person to Person and My Favorite Husband (which would later make the switch to film).


1953–54 United States network television schedule
ABC, perennially in third or fourth place among the four U.S. television networks, had been on the verge of bankruptcy, but the February 1953 merger of United Paramount Theaters with ABC had given ABC a $30 million cash infusion. ABC revamped its schedule for Fall 1953 with big-budget programs. New ABC programs included Make Room for Daddy, and an ABC version of NBC's popular Kraft Television Theatre; the strategy was designed to "take on CBS and NBC with a strong schedule".


1953–54 United States network television schedule
In contrast to ABC's revamped schedule, DuMont's Fall 1953 prime time schedule looked weak, with programs that were "doomed from the start by third-rate scripts and cheap production." The 1953–54 season would be the last year DuMont was able to schedule nearly 20 hours of programming in prime time. By the 1954–55 season, DuMont would be forced to cut back its schedule, while the other three networks continued to expand.


1953–54 United States network television schedule
During the 1953 season, both DuMont and ABC "made sporadic efforts to compete for the daytime audience, but faced so many problems just filling prime time that they found it much more efficient to focus primarily on weekend sports". DuMont paid $1.3 million in 1953 for the rights to broadcast National Football League games in prime time; starting December 12, DuMont also broadcast a series of NBA basketball games, the first time pro basketball was seen regularly on network TV. Both DuMont and ABC "were especially aggressive in pursuit of sports broadcasts because they were desperately in need of special attractions to bring in viewers".


1953–54 United States network television schedule
Each of the 30 highest-rated shows is listed with its rank and rating as determined by Nielsen Media Research.


1953–54 United States network television schedule, By network, NBC
Note: The * indicates that the program was introduced in midseason.


1953–54 United States network television schedule (daytime)
The 1953–54 daytime network television schedule for the three major English-language commercial broadcast networks in the United States covers the weekday daytime hours from September 1953 to August 1954.


1953–54 United States network television schedule (daytime)
Talk shows are highlighted in  yellow, local programming is white, reruns of prime-time programming are orange, game shows are pink, soap operas are chartreuse, news programs are gold and all others are light blue. New series are highlighted in bold.


1953–54 United States network television schedule (daytime), Winter 1953/1954
10:00 The Jack Paar Show 11:00 I'll Buy That (F)


1953–54 WHL season
The 1953–54 WHL season was the second season of the Western Hockey League. The Calgary Stampeders were the President's Cup champions as they beat the Vancouver Canucks four games to two in the final series.


1953–54 WHL season, Playoffs
The Calgary Stampeders win the President's Cup 4 games to 2.


1953–54 WIHL season
The 1953–54 Western International Hockey League season was the 8th season in the league's history.


1953–54 WIHL season, History
During an end of season meeting, it was moved that all playoff games be best-of-five sets, for it was felt that a seven-game series, which stretches into eight, not only drains the pocketbooks of the fans, but drains the stamina of the players. The question of playing an equal number of games in the WIHL also came up for discussion, with the general feeling being that if Spokane's Flyers can play for the Allan Cup, then they should receive no extra favours.


1953–54 WIHL season, Playoffs, Semi finals
Nelson Maple Leafs beat Trail Smoke Eaters 3 wins to 1.


1953–54 WIHL season, Playoffs, Final
Nelson Maple Leafs beat Kimberley Dynamiters 3 wins to 1.


1953–54 WIHL season, Playoffs, Final
Nelson Maple Leafs advanced to the 1953-54 British Columbia Senior Playoffs.


1953–54 Washington Huskies men's basketball team
The 1953–54 Washington Huskies men's basketball team represented the University of Washington for the 1953–54 NCAA college basketball season. Led by fourth-year head coach Tippy Dye, the Huskies were members of the Pacific Coast Conference and played their home games on campus at Hec Edmundson Pavilion in Seattle, Washington.


1953–54 Washington Huskies men's basketball team
The Huskies were 8–18 overall in the regular season and 7–9 in conference play, fourth place in the Northern division. They swept the last two games of the season over rival Washington State.


1953–54 Washington State Cougars men's basketball team
The 1953–54 Washington State Cougars men's basketball team represented Washington State College for the 1953–54 college basketball season. Led by 26th-year head coach Jack Friel, the Cougars were members of the Pacific Coast Conference and played their home games on campus at Bohler Gymnasium in Pullman, Washington.


1953–54 Washington State Cougars men's basketball team
The Cougars were 10–17 overall in the regular season and 4–12 in conference play, last in the Northern division. They were swept in the last two games of the season by rival Washington.


1953–54 Welsh Cup
The 1953–54 FAW Welsh Cup is the 67th season of the annual knockout tournament for competitive football teams in Wales.


1953–54 Welsh Cup, Fifth round
Eight winners from the Fourth round and ten new clubs. Ebbw Vale & Cwn get a bye.


1953–54 Welsh Cup, Sixth round
Three winners from the Fifth round plus Ebbw Vale & Cwn. Six clubs get a bye to the Seventh round.


1953–54 Welsh Cup, Seventh round
Two winners from the Sixth round, plus six clubs who get a bye in the previous round.


1953–54 Welsh Cup, Semifinal
Flint Town United and Cardiff City played at Wrexham, Chester and Newport County played at Cardiff, replay at Wrexham.


1953–54 Western Football League
This is the current revision of this page, as edited by Frietjes (talk | contribs) at 20:40, 11 February 2020 (expand templates per Fb team TfD outcome and Fb competition TfD outcome and Fb cl TfD outcome and Fb rbr TfD outcome). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this version.


1953–54 Western Football League
The 1953–54 season was the 52nd in the history of the Western Football League.


1953–54 Western Football League
The champions for the first time in their history were Weymouth Reserves, and the winners of Division Two were Bristol Rovers Colts.


1953–54 Western Football League, Final tables, Division One
Division One was increased from seventeen members to eighteen after two clubs were promoted to replace Paulton Rovers who were relegated to Division Two.


1953–54 Western Football League, Final tables, Division Two
Division Two remained at eighteen clubs after Ilfracombe Town and Poole Town were promoted to Division One. Two new clubs joined:


1953–54 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball team
The 1953–54 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers men's basketball team represented Western Kentucky State College during the 1953-54 NCAA University Division Basketball season. The Hilltoppers were led by future Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame coach Edgar Diddle and consensus All-American, Tom Marshall. The Hilltoppers won the Ohio Valley Conference championship, and were invited to the 1954 National Invitation Tournament, where they were seeded as the number 2 team and advanced to the semifinals. During this period, the NIT was considered on par with the NCAA Tournament.


1953–54 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers basketball team
This was one of the finest teams in Western Kentucky history, they led the NCAA in wins and Marshall averaged more than 25 points and nearly 15 rebounds per game, setting school records for scoring and rebounding. Art Spoelstra, Jack Turner and Lynn Cole joined Marshall on the All-Conference and OVC Tournament teams.


1953–54 William & Mary Indians men's basketball team
The 1953–54 William & Mary Indians men's basketball team represented the College of William & Mary in intercollegiate basketball during the 1953–54 NCAA men's basketball season. Under the second year of head coach Boydson Baird, the team finished the season 9–14, 6–5 in the Southern Conference. This was the 49th season of the collegiate basketball program at William & Mary, whose nickname is now the Tribe. William & Mary played its home games at Blow Gymnasium.


1953–54 William & Mary Indians men's basketball team
The Indians finished in 5th place in the conference and qualified for the 1954 Southern Conference Men's Basketball Tournament, held at the WVU Field House in Morgantown, West Virginia. However, the Indians fell to West Virginia in the quarterfinals.


1953–54 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team
The 1953–1954 Wisconsin Badgers men's basketball team represented University of Wisconsin–Madison. The head coach was Harold E. Foster, coaching his twentieth season with the Badgers. The team played their home games at the UW Fieldhouse in Madison, Wisconsin and was a member of the Big Ten Conference.


1953–54 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season
The 1953–54 season was the 55th season of competitive league football in the history of English football club Wolverhampton Wanderers. They played in the First Division, then the highest level of English football.


1953–54 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season
The season was a major success as the team won the League championship for the first time in their history, pipping local rivals West Bromwich Albion. Winning the title was a breakthrough for the club after three times previously finishing runners-up.


1953–54 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season, Season review
After an opening day mauling away at Burnley, the team found its feet and enjoyed a run of five successive wins to reach second place. The table was led by their Black Country rivals West Bromwich Albion. Both teams kept up a relentless pace before Christmas, with Wolves producing a run that brought 31 points out of a possible 36, including defeating West Brom 1–0. At the halfway mark only Burnley and newly promoted Huddersfield Town were managing to keep pace with the top two.


1953–54 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season, Season review
Defeat in their Christmas fixture against Aston Villa lost Wolves the top spot they had gained for the first time a week earlier. The start of 1954 brought an instant exit from the FA Cup at the hands of fellow Midlanders Birmingham City, but also saw them return to the top of the table. A run of three defeats in four though – including the end of their 11-game unbeaten away record (a club record) – allowed West Brom to regain top spot.


1953–54 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season, Season review
While March saw Wolves suffer further defeats, their main rival's form proved even worse. A second Black Country derby victory for Wolves against them in early April brought them level on points at the summit, second only on goal average with only five games remaining. Wolves then claimed top spot for the first time since early January the following week after thrashing Charlton 5–0.


1953–54 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season, Season review
The Easter period proved the pivotal twist in the title race. A 4–0 thumping of Huddersfield gave Wolves' goal average a further boost, while West Brom were held to a draw by Aston Villa. As was then traditional, the fixtures were reversed the following day, with decisive results. Although both title chasers lost, West Brom's 1–6 hammering at Villa Park left their goal average far short of Wolves' with just a single game to play.


1953–54 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season, Season review
Only a huge loss for Wolves coupled with a big win for Albion could alter the outcome of the championship on the final day. In the event, neither happened, Albion went down to defeat at Portsmouth, while Wolves' 2–0 victory over Tottenham confirmed their first ever league championship.


1953–54 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season, Results, Football League First Division
A total of 22 teams competed in the First Division in the 1953–54 season. Each team would play every other team twice, once at their stadium, and once at the opposition's. Two points were awarded to teams for each win, one point per draw, and none for defeats.


1953–54 Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. season, Results, FA Cup
As a First Division team, Wolves entered the competition at the third round stage. The draw for this round was made on 14 December 1953.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup
The 1953–54 Yorkshire Cup was the forty-sixth occasion on which the  Yorkshire Cup competition had been held.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup
Bradford Northern won the trophy by beating Hull F.C. by the score of 7-2


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup
The match was played at Headingley, Leeds, now in West Yorkshire. The attendance was 22,147 and receipts were £3,833


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Background
This season no junior/amateur clubs were invited to take part, there were no new additions and no club "dropped out", and so the  number of entrants remained at the same as last season's total number of sixteen.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Background
This in turn resulted in no byes in the first round.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Background
The  competition again followed the  original formula of a knock-out tournament, with the  exception of the  first round which was still played on a two-legged home and away basis.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Competition and results, Round 1 - First leg
All first round ties are played on a two-legged home and away basis


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Competition and results, Round 1 - Second leg
All first round ties are played on a two-legged home and away basis


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Competition and results, Round 2 - Quarterfinals
All second round ties are played on a knock-out basis


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Competition and results, Final, Teams and scorers
Scoring - Try = three (3) points - Goal = two (2) points - Drop goal = two (2) points


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Competition and results, The road to success
All the ties in the  first round were played on a two leg (home and away) basis.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Competition and results, The road to success
For the  first round ties, the first club named in each of the ties played the first leg at home.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Competition and results, The road to success
For the  first round ties, the scores shown are the aggregate score over the two legs.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Notes and comments
1 * The first Yorkshire Cup match played by Doncaster at their new Bentley Road Stadium - soon to be renamed "Tatters field" (ot Tattersfield) after the former chairman Len Tattersfield.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Notes and comments
2 * Match abandoned after 32 minutes due to fog.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Notes and comments
3 * Headingley, Leeds, is the home ground of Leeds RLFC with a capacity of 21,000. The record attendance was  40,175 for a league match between Leeds and Bradford Northern on 21 May 1947.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Notes and comments, General information for those unfamiliar
The Rugby League Yorkshire Cup competition was a knock-out competition between (mainly professional) rugby league clubs from  the  county of Yorkshire. The actual area was at times increased to encompass other teams from  outside the  county such as Newcastle, Mansfield, Coventry, and even London (in the form of Acton & Willesden.


1953–54 Yorkshire Cup, Notes and comments, General information for those unfamiliar
The Rugby League season always (until the onset of "Summer Rugby" in 1996) ran from around August-time through to around May-time and this competition always took place early in the season, in the Autumn, with the final taking place in (or just before) December (The only exception to this was when disruption of the fixture list was caused during, and immediately after, the two World Wars)


1953–54 Yugoslav First League
The First Federal League of Yugoslavia's 1953/1954 season was the highest level football competition held in communist Yugoslavia between 1953 and 1954. The league was won by Croatian side NK Dinamo Zagreb.


1953–54 Yugoslav First League, Teams
Due to the league's expansion from 12 to 14 teams two clubs were relegated and four teams were promoted at the end of the previous season.


1953–54 Yugoslav Ice Hockey League season
The 1953–54 Yugoslav Ice Hockey League season was the 12th season of the Yugoslav Ice Hockey League, the top level of ice hockey in Yugoslavia. Six teams participated in the league, and Partizan have won the championship.


1953–54 in Belgian football
The 1953–54 season was the 51st season of competitive football in Belgium. RSC Anderlechtois won their 5th Division I title. The Belgium national football team qualified for the 1954 FIFA World Cup and was drawn unseeded in Group 4 with the unseeded organizing country Switzerland against which they did not play, and seeded teams England and Italy. The Belgian Cup resumed in 1953-54 with Standard Liège winning in the final against RC Mechelen KM.


1953–54 in Belgian football, Overview
Belgium finished first of Group 2 in the 1954 FIFA World Cup qualification with 7 points, ahead of Sweden (3 points) and Finland (2 points). They thus qualified for the final tournament in Switzerland as one of the 11 European countries. The final tournament consisted of a first round with 4 groups of 4 teams. Belgium was drawn in Group 4. In each group, the 2 seeded teams would play one game against each unseeded team. In case both teams are level after 90 minutes, extra time would be played.


1953–54 in Belgian football, Overview
In Group 4, England and Italy were the 2 seeded teams and Switzerland and Belgium were unseeded. Belgium and Switzerland thus played 2 games, against England and Italy. Belgium drawn against England after extra time (4-4) and lost to Italy, while Switzerland lost to England (2-0) and beat Italy (2-1). A play-off game was then played between Switzerland and Italy (2 points each) to determine the 2nd qualifying spot for the quarter-finals. Switzerland beat Italy 4-1. Belgium finished last of Group 4 with 1 point.


1953–54 in Belgian football, Overview
At the end of the season, R Daring Club de Bruxelles and K Lyra were relegated to Division II and were replaced in Division I by Division II winner K Waterschei SV Thor and runner-up RRC de Bruxelles. The bottom 2 clubs in Division II (RUS Tournaisienne and K Tubantia FC) were relegated to Division III, while both Division III winners (KFC Izegem and SRU Verviers) qualified for Division II. The bottom 2 clubs of each Division III league were relegated to the Promotion: Rupel SK, K Olse Merksem SC, K Winterslag FC and R Herve FC. to be replaced by RRFC Montegnée, RFC Bressoux, RAA Louviéroise and KSV Waregem from Promotion.


1953–54 in Belgian football, Final league tables, Premier Division
Top scorer: Hippolyte Van Den Bosch (RSC Anderlechtois) with 29 goals.


1953–54 in English football
The 1953–54 season was the 74th season of competitive football in England.


1953–54 in English football, Overview
To celebrate the 90th anniversary of the Football Association, on 21 October 1953, England played a Rest of the World side picked by a FIFA Select Committee. After being 3-1 down following goals by László Kubala and Giampiero Boniperti, Alf Ramsey scored a last minute penalty to draw the game 4-4. On 25 November 1953, the Marvellous Magyars Hungary national football team, led by prolific forward Ferenc Puskás, shocked football by defeating England 6–3 at Wembley Stadium. On 25 May 1954, England lost to Hungary again, in Budapest, suffering their heaviest defeat, 7-1.


1953–54 in English football, Overview
On the domestic scene, Wolverhampton Wanderers, managed by former player Stan Cullis, won the league title for the first time, while their local rivals West Bromwich Albion lifted the FA Cup for the fourth time. Albion had also finished second in the league behind Wolves, while defending champions Arsenal slipped to 12th this season. Liverpool, the first postwar champions of the English league, were relegated to the Second Division in bottom place. Everton were promoted to the First Division after three seasons in the Second Division and have not been relegated since.


1953–54 in English football, Overview
Twenty-one years after winning the Third Division South, Brentford are relegated to the Third Division South for the first time and do not return to the second tier until 1992. In addition to the success of Midlands teams in the top division, Port Vale won Third Division North by 11 points, going unbeaten at home and conceding a record low of 21 goals. They also became the first Third Division side since the war to reach the semi-final of the FA Cup, losing to West Bromwich Albion.


1953–54 in English football, Overview
Sam Bartram of Charlton Athletic set a League record on 6 March 1954 becoming the first player with 500 League appearances.


1953–54 in English football, Honours
Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour. * indicates new record for competition


1953–54 in English football, FA Cup
West Bromwich Albion defeated Preston North End 3–2 in the 1954 FA Cup Final to lift the FA Cup for the fourth time.


1953–54 in German football
The 1953–54 season was the 44th season of competitive football in Germany.


1953–54 in German football, League season, Oberliga Nord
The 1953–54 season saw two new clubs in the league, Eintracht Braunschweig and Victoria Hamburg, both promoted from the Amateurliga.


1953–54 in German football, League season, Oberliga Berlin
The 1953–54 season saw two new clubs in the league, Kickers 1900 Berlin and Hertha Zehlendorf, both promoted from the Amateurliga Berlin.


1953–54 in German football, League season, Oberliga West
The 1953–54 season saw two new clubs in the league, Rheydter SV and VfL Bochum, both promoted from the 2. Oberliga West.


1953–54 in German football, League season, Oberliga Südwest
The 1953–54 season saw two new clubs in the league, ASV Landau and VfR Frankenthal, both promoted from the 2. Oberliga Südwest.


1953–54 in German football, League season, Oberliga Süd
The 1953–54 season saw two new clubs in the league, Jahn Regensburg and KSV Hessen Kassel, both promoted from the 2. Oberliga Süd.


1953–54 in German football, League season, German championship
The 1954 German football championship was contested by the six qualified Oberliga teams and won by Hannover 96, defeating 1. FC Kaiserslautern in the final. The six clubs played single round of matches at neutral grounds in two groups of three. The two group winners then advanced to the final.


1953–54 in German football, DFB–Pokal
The 1953–54 DFB-Pokal consisted eight teams competing in three rounds of a knockout tournament. VfB Stuttgart became champions by defeating 1. FC Köln 1–0 in the final.


1953–54 in Israeli football
The 1953–54 season was the 6th season of competitive football in Israel and the 28th season under the Israeli Football Association, established in 1928, during the British Mandate.


1953–54 in Israeli football, IFA competitions, 1953–54 Israel State Cup
The competition took place between 21 March 1953 and 3 July 1954. Maccabi Tel Aviv beaten Maccabi Netanya 4–0 in the final.


1953–54 in Israeli football, National Teams, National team, 1953 Maccabiah Games
The national team represented Israel in the 1953 Maccabiah Games, competing against other 6 teams of Jewish footballers. Israel won all its matches, scoring 27 goals and conceding just one goal, and won the gold medal.


1953–54 in Scottish football
The 1953–54 season was the 81st season of competitive football in Scotland and the 57th season of the Scottish Football League.


1953–54 in Scottish football, Scotland national team
Scotland qualified for their first ever World Cup in 1954 which was held in Switzerland.


1953–54 in Swedish football
The 1953–54 season in Swedish football, starting August 1953 and ending July 1954:


1954
1954 (MCMLIV) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1954th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations, the 954th  year of the 2nd millennium, the 54th  year of the 20th century, and the  5th   year of the 1950s decade.


1954 10 Hours of Messina
The 3rd 10 Hours of Messina was a sports car race, held on 25 July 1954 in the street circuit of Messina, Italy.