Ted Drake

Did You Know?

• Drake made his debut for Hampshire in 1931 and shared a vital stand of 86 with Phil Mead against Glamorgan, scoring 45.
• He made his England debut against Italy in the 'Battle of Highbury' on 14 November 1934, scoring the third goal in a 3–2 win.
• Drake won the 1935 British Home Championship title with England.

Club career

Born in Southampton, Drake began playing at Winchester City while working as a gas-meter reader. He nearly joined Spurs as a schoolboy but missed the trial match due to injury. In June 1931, George Kay persuaded him to join Southampton, then in Division Two. Drake made his debut on 14 November 1931 at Swansea Town, turned professional that November, and became first-choice centre-forward by the end of the 1931–32 season.

The following season he made 33 league appearances and scored 20 goals. Arsenal's Herbert Chapman tried to persuade Drake to move to north London, but he initially rejected the chance and stayed at The Dell. He began the 1933–34 season with a hat-trick against Bradford City and scored at least one goal in the next four games, amassing eight goals in the opening five matches. By early March he led Division Two in scoring with 22 goals.

Arsenal, now under George Allison, renewed their interest, and Drake eventually joined the Gunners in March 1934 for £6,500 after Southampton were forced to sell to balance their books. He scored on his league debut against Wolves on 24 March 1934 in a 3–2 win. Though he joined too late for a 1933–34 league medal, he won the title in 1934–35, scoring 42 goals in 41 league games, including three hat-tricks and four four-goal hauls. With two more goals in the FA Cup and Charity Shield, he scored 44 that season, breaking Jack Lambert's club record.

On 14 December 1935, he scored seven goals against Aston Villa at Villa Park, a club and top-flight record that still stands; he claimed an eighth shot crossed the line, but the referee disagreed. He won the FA Cup in 1935–36, scoring the only goal in the final, and another league title in 1937–38.

Managerial career

After his playing days ended, Drake took over at Hendon in 1946 and then Reading the following year. He guided Reading to second place in Division Three South in 1948–49 and again in 1951–52, but only the league winners moved up. In June 1952, he became manager of First Division Chelsea. Drake wasted no time shaking things up.

He scrapped the old Chelsea pensioner badge and the Pensioners nickname, bringing in the Lion Rampant Regardant crest and the Blues nickname. He also introduced scouting reports and a demanding training focus on ballwork, which was unusual for English football then. Instead of chasing unreliable stars, he mined the lower leagues and amateur sides for dependable players like John McNichol, Frank Blunstone, Derek Saunders, Jim Lewis, and Peter Sillett.

By the 1954–55 season, just three years in, he had delivered Chelsea’s first league title, making him the first man to win the championship as both a player and a manager. He never got close to that peak again. The title-winning squad was slowly dismantled, replaced by homegrown talents such as Jimmy Greaves, Peter Brabrook, and Bobby Tambling. Results turned patchy, and a humbling FA Cup defeat to Fourth Division Crewe Alexandra hurt his standing.

He was sacked during the 1961–62 season. Later, he became reserve team manager and assistant to Vic Buckingham at Fulham, then followed Buckingham to Barcelona as his assistant until June 1970. He eventually returned to Fulham as chief scout, director, and life president.