The Old Five (1 Viewer)

Joy Division · Apr 16, 2015

I was reminiscing with my mum the other day about my Grandad who passed away in the late 90's, he used to go to city games regularly in the 50's, 60's and 70's but although never lost interest in the club he found he didn't enjoy going to games from the 80's onwards. One thing that always sticks out in my mind is that every other saturday after a home game we would pop round to his house for tea and he would always ask "how did the old five get on today?". He'd never refer to us as Coventry, Sky Blues or City etc just The Old Five. As a kid at the time I never really picked up on it, I just understood it that he was referring the the football club as one of the many strange things he used to say. But with that conversation with my mum she tells me that when he did go to the football in the 50's and 60's she remembers all his friends referring to us as the old five whenever they came round.

I've found a bit of info relating to this on the historical coventry forum but not a huge amount. Does anyone have anymore info on the background of this or does anyone still use this term? Apparently there used to be an Old Five chant?

chiefdave · Apr 16, 2015

I've always assumed it was a reference to scoring 5.

SkyBlue_Bear83 · Apr 16, 2015

Yea someone said it was because we scored 5 most weeks (or alot of the time) under Jimmy Hill when we were rising through the divisions under him.

rupert_bear · Apr 16, 2015

Back in the mid 1930's we had an excellent team run by manager Harry Storer and it is said but for World War 2 would have got into the then first division. We had free scoring forwards at the time and regularly put 5 passed apponents. My old man told me we had a superb team in those days, fucking prat that Hitler bloke !!

Bumberclart · Apr 16, 2015

Now known as the 'Naughty Nils'

Joy Division · Apr 16, 2015

Thanks for the replies so far, would be really interested to hear any more stories.

I just really like phase 'the old five', I think its so important to keep links to the past and would love to see this term return as a regular connection to the club

skybluesam66 · Apr 16, 2015

i seem to remember reading somewhere it was actually due to a forward line we had at some point - 5 forwards who used to terrorise defences - and became known as the old 5

on that basis, i wonder if the 6 forwards we had attacking for the equiliser on tuesday will ever be known as the old 6

bezzer · Apr 16, 2015

I was always lead to believe the 'Old 5' was a reference to City scoring 5 goals.

I remember in 77/78 when we beat Norwich 5-4. I was on the Kop with my Dad and all the old fellas were holding their hands up and chanting 'The old 5, the old 5' when Wallace (I think) got our 5th.

Citysince47 · Apr 16, 2015

The term "old 5" refers to the forward line of the 36 37 season who regularly scored 5. Clarrie Bourton was the centre forward. Got the best goalscoring record of (I think) 46 in that season alone. Pity we couldn't clone him or George Hudson

SkyBlueScottie · Apr 16, 2015

I often say we should go for the old 5. If we ever achieve, I have a bottle of Light Ale to celebrate.

hill83 · Apr 16, 2015

Found this.

http://forum.historiccoventry.co.uk/main/forum-posts.php?id=11093&show_cats=all

Monners · Apr 16, 2015

Have heard the chant "Wew want the old five!" on occassions back in the 80's and even the 90's. My dear departed father used to mention the old five on occassions, so it was pretty well known (until I started to watch us of course)

Joe King · Apr 16, 2015

I've been a City supporter since my first game 51 years ago and always remember being in the crowds and blokes around me shouting "Come on City! Give it the old five!" I always knew this refered to the fact we regularly scored 5 goals against the opposition. I also remember when I use to watch Cov rugby (in the days of David Duckham et al) at Coundon Rd (if city were away) and whenever there was scrum, the shouts of "Go on lads! Push 'em up the precinct!" Great days!

oldfiver · Apr 16, 2015

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/TIMET...love+of+football;+...+A+JOURNEY...-a098821887

"From my place on the bank came the memories that caused me to write about Highfield Road from the troopship. The memories have not diminished; I remember Clarrie Bourton who, in the 1931-2 season, scored 50 goals and in the following season scored 43. The 'old five' was not an academic cry."

My Dad was a "half timer" and eventually so was I

oldfiver · Apr 16, 2015

http://www.thefreelibrary.com/INCONSISTENCY+HAS+BECOME+PREDICTABLE.-a0322521252

One would have thought City's team of the early 1930s would have scored more away goals - between 1931 and 1936 Harry Storer's team scored 100 goals in four out of five seasons but Storer's team's strength was at home where they scored 70 or more goals in those four seasons.

The best away haul by the "Old Five" team was 34 in 1931-32 (Clarrie Bourton's golden season when he scored 49 league goals) when ironically they won only one away game all season.

mrtrench · Apr 16, 2015

We should reignite the tradition and call ourselves 'The Old Nil'.

Johhny Blue · Apr 16, 2015

skybluesam66 said:
i seem to remember reading somewhere it was actually due to a forward line we had at some point - 5 forwards who used to terrorise defences - and became known as the old 5

on that basis, i wonder if the 6 forwards we had attacking for the equiliser on tuesday will ever be known as the old 6

It makes for exciting finishes even if we lose a few. Way better than desperately hanging on to a 1-0 for the last 80 minutes

Gint11 · Apr 16, 2015

My old man talked to me about this all the time! Said we used to stick 5 past teams on a regular basis. Such decline since. Surely we can't be shit forever or can we........

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Gazolba · Apr 17, 2015

CCFC said:
Yea someone said it was because we scored 5 most weeks (or alot of the time) under Jimmy Hill when we were rising through the divisions under him.

It predates the Jimmy Hill era by decades. My father used to use that expression in the 1950's. I asked him about it once and he said in the old days, it was common for Coventry to score five goals in a game (I know we can only dream about that today). My father was still saying "Up the old 5" long after most people knew what he was talking about which is quite sad really.

phildownunder · Apr 17, 2015

Yes as others have pointed out this goes back to the exploits of the City team in the 1930s which regularly scored that many with Clarrie Bourton in particular, but also the likes of Jock Lauderdale and Billy Lake who were in the side at the time.

For anyone interested my source for this info was the book '100 greats Coventry City Football Club' by George Rowland.

skyblueexile · Apr 17, 2015

47 - I too watched city regularly in 50's your story is as old to me by my father

oh and we did score 5 a lor

Wheelfass · Apr 17, 2015

Yes it refers to the amount of times in the 30s that we scored 5 goals. I have it printed on many of the back of many of my City shirts. My Dad always used to shout "C'mon the old five" at least once at each game as a sort of tradition and I do the same now just to carry it on. It sometimes gets a giggle if we are losing with just a few minutes remaing.
During the 60s and on a free Saturday my Dad and his Brother took me and my cousin, a couple of very young lads at the time, to experience a first division game at Vile Park where Vile were playing Fulham. True to form my cousin and me sat in the stand and shouted C'mon the old five throughout the game.

johnniericoh · Apr 17, 2015

Joy Division said:
I was reminiscing with my mum the other day about my Grandad who passed away in the late 90's, he used to go to city games regularly in the 50's, 60's and 70's but although never lost interest in the club he found he didn't enjoy going to games from the 80's onwards. One thing that always sticks out in my mind is that every other saturday after a home game we would pop round to his house for tea and he would always ask "how did the old five get on today?". He'd never refer to us as Coventry, Sky Blues or City etc just The Old Five. As a kid at the time I never really picked up on it, I just understood it that he was referring the the football club as one of the many strange things he used to say. But with that conversation with my mum she tells me that when he did go to the football in the 50's and 60's she remembers all his friends referring to us as the old five whenever they came round.

I've found a bit of info relating to this on the historical coventry forum but not a huge amount. Does anyone have anymore info on the background of this or does anyone still use this term? Apparently there used to be an Old Five chant?

The "old five" embraced a golden era of pure goal gluttony covering primarily 1930/1931 - 1935/1936 seasons thus:

30/31: 1 old 5 plus (2x6, 1x7)
31/32: 4 old 5, plus (2x6, 1x8)
32/33: 3 old 5, plus (2x6, 1x7)
33/34: 5 old 5, plus (2x7, 1x9)
34/35: 3 old 5, plus (2x6)
35/36: 2 old 5, plus (2x6, 1x7, 1x8)

The prime reason for this goalfest was almost entirely due to the electric form of Clarrie Bourton who scored 171 league goals in 228 games over this period.

Therefore the Old 5 does have factual roots and will be forever revered never to be equalled methinks.

singers_pore · Apr 17, 2015

I remember being in the West End in the 1980s, on the rare occasions we scored 3 or 4 goals, there would always be some shouts from the older fans for The Old Five.

oldfiver · Apr 17, 2015

Therefore the Old 5 does have factual roots and will be forever revered never to be equalled methinks.[/QUOTE]

<<<<< Well that's good news

Gint11 · Jul 9, 2016

My old man regularly talks about 'the old 5' and he is referring to when City used to put 5 past teams all the time

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Terry_dactyl · Aug 19, 2025

Gint11 said:
My old man talked to me about this all the time! Said we used to stick 5 past teams on a regular basis. Such decline since. Surely we can't be shit forever or can we........

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Love this!

Mcbean · Aug 19, 2025

Needs a song which would be our own

Martw · Aug 19, 2025

Joy Division said:
Thanks for the replies so far, would be really interested to hear any more stories.

I just really like phase 'the old five', I think its so important to keep links to the past and would love to see this term return as a regular connection to the club

My old man who is 88 and lives in Spain always told me that it was because we used to score 5 a tonne of times in the 60s maybe it was something that carried on from earlier though but I was always led to believe it was down to scoring 5 regularly. My dad was over recently and made the Hull game and although not a great match he loved the day out and watching the city again in the flesh

torchomatic · Aug 19, 2025

I remember "we want the Old Five!" being sung at HR in the 70s and 80s by the older blokes around me. Always presumed it was because we scored 5 goals of more on a regular basis. How times have changed!

Joe King · Aug 19, 2025

Yes, I can confirm this "old five" relates to city scoring 5 goals on a fairly regular basis.

Bigal007 · Aug 19, 2025

Joy Division said:
I was reminiscing with my mum the other day about my Grandad who passed away in the late 90's, he used to go to city games regularly in the 50's, 60's and 70's but although never lost interest in the club he found he didn't enjoy going to games from the 80's onwards. One thing that always sticks out in my mind is that every other saturday after a home game we would pop round to his house for tea and he would always ask "how did the old five get on today?". He'd never refer to us as Coventry, Sky Blues or City etc just The Old Five. As a kid at the time I never really picked up on it, I just understood it that he was referring the the football club as one of the many strange things he used to say. But with that conversation with my mum she tells me that when he did go to the football in the 50's and 60's she remembers all his friends referring to us as the old five whenever they came round.

I've found a bit of info relating to this on the historical coventry forum but not a huge amount. Does anyone have anymore info on the background of this or does anyone still use this term? Apparently there used to be an Old Five chant?

It is a reference to scoring 5 goals which they used to do quite regular when your grandad started going.

Hobo · Aug 19, 2025

SkyBlue_Bear83 said:
Yea someone said it was because we scored 5 most weeks (or alot of the time) under Jimmy Hill when we were rising through the divisions under him.

No it refers to our record top scorer Clarrie Bourton in the 1930's. Although it was regularly sung in the Hill era to encourage the team. Even into the mid 1970's.

Cov kid 55 · Aug 19, 2025

Yes, it was well prior to the Hill era, but when i started going up in the early 60’s you would still hear (usually from older supporters ‘come on the old five!’

Johhny Blue · Aug 19, 2025

Joy Division said:
Thanks for the replies so far, would be really interested to hear any more stories.

I just really like phase 'the old five', I think its so important to keep links to the past and would love to see this term return as a regular connection to the club

Maybe last week was the dawn of
“The new 5”?

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