1928: The legend of Channy and the six swans

We here at Fosse Posse love to bring you the latest news and opinions on our great football club, which we all love, Leicester City. But we also like to reminisce and look through blue tinted glasses at how our team have come through the last 133 years.

We’ll delve way back and highlight the likes of Arthur Chandler, Frankie Wortho and others, as well as Cup Finals, landmark achievements and moments that have just filled us with joy (and sometimes despair)!

Saturday 20th October 1928

Division 1

Leicester City 10 Portsmouth 0

We’re taking you back nearly 90 years to celebrate Leicester’s all-time goalscoring hero Arthur ‘Channy’ Chandler and his double hat-trick, supposedly inspired by 6 swans.

There wasn’t much separating Leicester and Portsmouth when the south coast side visited Filbert Street on this dull October afternoon, but hopes were high for the City fans after seeing a 6-2 win over Pompey only 6 months earlier.

City had also won their last 2 games coming into this one and their first 5 home games had produced 18 goals in the process.

The foxes attacked Pompey from the off and dominated the first half, scoring five goals and missing 4 clear cut chances as well as several other good opportunities.

It was one way traffic as Chandler racked up his hat-trick in 14 minutes as City put free flowing moves together to carve open the Portsmouth defense.

Ernie Hine and outside left Len Barry also scored before half-time with Portsmouth wilting under the pressure of the foxes attacks. Pompey’s keeper Danny McPhail had been busy and it could have been double figures by the break if it wasn’t for his saves.

There was little rest in the second half, as Chandler took advantage of some sloppy defending to bag a fourth. He then smashed in his fifth on 71 minutes, which, accordingly to folklore also saw 5 swans fly overhead at Filbert Street, matching his five fabulously taken goals for the afternoon.

The eighth Leicester goal came as Hine smashed home before another swan flew over the ground, some say urging Arthur to get his sixth goal of the game.

He duly obliged as he drilled home for a double hat-trick to match the club record held by John Duncan.

Hine completed his hat-trick and the scoring for the game, as Leicester recorded their highest ever victory while inflicting Portsmouth’s heaviest ever defeat.

This win started City’s climb up the table that season, ironically missing out on the top spot by one point, partly due to a 1-0 revenge at Fratton Park, to see us finish behind Sheffield Wednesday in second.