Mick Mills

by Csaba Abrahall

After his local team, Portsmouth, had been forced to disband their youth team as an economic measure, Mick Mills joined Ipswich Town in the summer of 1965, a move that was to prove hugely beneficial to both club and player. He made his debut, aged 17, at the end of the next season in a 5-2 win against Wolves and began the 1966/67 campaign in the first team. However, although he made a number of appearances in an Ipswich side that was pushing for, and eventually achieved, promotion, he did not fully establish himself in the team until Ipswich returned to the First Division in 1968/69. Breaking into the side for the match against Liverpool in September, he kept his place for the remainder of the season and scored his first goal in a 2-0 home win against Burnley in January 1969. Better known as a hard-tackling full-back, Mills was also effective in midfield, and in 1969/70 his more advanced role brought him four goals as he became a fixture in the team. Ever present in the following campaign, Mills took over the captaincy in January 1971 after previous skipper Billy Baxter fell out with manager Bobby Robson. This was a role Mills was to keep for more than ten years. Ipswich enjoyed their most successful season since promotion under Mills' leadership in 1971/72, finishing 13th, before truly flourishing the following year. Once more playing in every game, Mills led the side to fourth place and European qualification. At the end of the campaign, he lifted his first trophy after Ipswich overcame local rivals Norwich City to claim the Anglo-Scottish Texaco Cup. It was also during this season that Mills made his England debut, in a 1-1 draw with Yugoslavia at Wembley.
Mick Mills captained Ipswich Town throughout the mid 1970s, a very successful period for the club. He rarely missed a game and was ever present in four consecutive league campaigns up to 1975/76. Consistently among the leading teams in the First Division, Ipswich also began to make their mark on Europe. In 1973/74, a deflected shot from Mills defeated Real Madrid in the UEFA Cup. Ipswich, though, were beaten in the quarter-finals by Lokomotiv Leipzig, Mills having been dismissed for an uncharacteristic loss of temper after being pushed in the face. The following season, the club finished third in the league and enjoyed a thrilling run in the FA Cup. Mick scored a dramatic late winner in the 4th Round against Liverpool, but Ipswich lost controversially to West Ham United in a semi-final replay. His dismissal in Leipzig meant Mills missed Ipswich's first round UEFA Cup defeat. Ever present again in 1975/76, Mills demonstrated his versatility by moving from full-back into midfield, allowing youngsters like Kevin Beattie to make their mark at the back. His impressive form earned him an England recall three years after his first cap. An injury ruled him out of his first league match for almost five years against Sunderland in November 1976, and he also missed the start of the 1977/78 campaign, before returning to enjoy a tremendous season. Ipswich's league form was poor - they finished in 18th place - but a successful FA Cup campaign began at Cardiff, when Mills set a new appearance record, playing his 494th game for the club. Having scored the crucial second goal in a 3-1 semi-final victory against West Bromwich Albion, Mills led Ipswich out at Wembley for their first FA Cup Final and collected the trophy after the comfortable 1-0 win over Arsenal.

Having captained Ipswich Town to FA Cup victory in 1978, Mick Mills led them out at Wembley again at the start of the 1978-79 season, but Nottingham Forest secured the Charity Shield with an emphatic 5-0 win. However, the league campaign that followed saw Ipswich finish in a much-improved sixth position, good enough to qualify for the UEFA Cup. Mills was ever-present and chalked up a club record 429th league appearance at home to Liverpool in August 1978. He missed just a handful of games the following season, when a remarkable run of 23 unbeaten league matches and a final position of third signalled that Mills was overseeing the emergence of an extremely talented Ipswich team. This team went close to fulfilling its potential in 1980-81 but was pipped to the league championship by Aston Villa. Considerable consolation came in the form of a magnificent UEFA Cup triumph. A mid-season injury had ruled Mills out of two European matches, but he was in Amsterdam to collect the trophy after the defeat of AZ 67 Alkmaar in the final. In 1981-82, Mills played in every match as the team once again challenged strongly, but unsuccessfully, for the title. The honest and inspirational Mills then received the ultimate accolade, captaining England throughout the World Cup finals in Spain, in which they remained unbeaten. Bobby Robson had been keen to sell him to Sunderland towards the end of the 81-82 campaign, and it was clear that no new contract would be forthcoming as Ipswich were beset by financial problems. Mills began 1982-83 as captain but soon bowed to the inevitable and reluctantly moved on. His transfer to Southampton in November 1982 for £40, 000 brought to an end an Ipswich career spanning 17 years and 741 appearances, a record unlikely to be beaten in a hurry.

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