Czechoslovakia. Ranked 12th. Nothing exciting on both ends of the table – one favourite, two outsiders. Perhaps the only significant event was in the Second Division and that was a negative one.
Second Division – CNFL, the Czech group. Two teams fought for promotion. As it happened, no Czech team was among the relegated from the top division, so only one team was relegated from this league. At the end nobody was relegated, because for the first and only time in the history of Czechoslovak football a club was expelled from the championship. TJ Vagonka (Ceska Lipa) was the ‘hero’ , most likely caught in corruption scheme. The season finished with 15 instead of 16 teams. Possibly involved with Vagonka’s scheme, TJ Sklo Union (Teplice) had 6 points deducted and ended 14th. Nothing significant for the most of the league.
TJ Ostroj (Opava) finished 7th with 29 points. A typical sample of fairly equal teams.
Two former First Division members fought for the first place an promotion. Once again TJ Zbrojovka (Brno) lost the battle and remained in Second Division.
TJ Skoda (Plzen) won the championship with 45 points – 3 points ahead of Zbrojovka. 19 wins, 7 ties, 2 losses, 40-15 goal-difference. A strong season and happy return to top flight.
SNFL – the Slovak group of Second Division. No contest at the top – one favourite. No much of a fight at the bottom either – more or less, 3 clear outsiders, which were all relegated because both relegated from the top league teams were Slovak.
CH Bratislava – that is abbreviated Cervena Hvezda (Red Star) – was the weakest: last with 17 points and relegated.
Lokomotiva (Kosice) was the other hopeless outsider – 10 years earlier this was not only First Division team, but a strong team playing in the European tournaments. Now: 15th with 18 points and relegated to Third Division.
TJ ZTS Martin was 14th with 22 points. Weak, but under normal circumstances would have been safe. Now they were relegated.
Banik (Prievidza) – 13th with 25 points.
Chemlon (Humenne) – 12th with 26 points.
Tesla (Stropkov) – 11th with 28 points.
ZTS Kosice – 10th with 28 points. Dark days for football in Kosice – in the past both city clubs played successfully in the First Division and had trouble to keep themselves in the Second – at least ZTS was not going deeper down like Lokomotiva.
SH Senica – 9th with 29 points.
ZZO Cadca – 8th with 31 points.
Slavoj Pol’nohospodar (Trevisov) – or Pol’nohospodar Slavoj, but usually called just Slavoj or sometimes Trebisov – 7th with 31 points.
Slovan Agro (Levice) – 6th with 32 points.
MSK Hurbanovo – or Agro (Hurbanovo) – 5th with 35 points.
Zemplin Vihorlat (Michalovce) – 4th with 35 points.
Spoje (Bratislava) – or rather Spoje (Bratislava-Podunajske Biskupice). 3rd with 36 points.
ZVL Povazska Bystrica – 2nd with 40 points. Not a threat to the leaders, but worth noting – this was a rising team, which eventually went higher.
Slovan CHZJD (Bratislava) – this is a name usually found at the top and they were unchallenged champions… of Second Division. Well known and respected Slovan, the only Czechoslovak club winning European trophy. Unfortunately, they had rough time recently and to their shame were relegated to Second Division. Coming back quickly, though. 19 wins, 7 ties, 4 losses, 51-18, 45 points – 5 points ahead of the nearest pursuer. Was it a real recovery and going back to their usual leading position in Czechoslovak football? Did not look like it by the make of the squad, but only future can tell for certain.
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