This January, Prostate Cancer UK is aiming to wake up the nation to a disease that kills 10,000 men every year by launching the Sledgehammer Fund. In recognition of this, and to celebrate the fact that Prostate Cancer UK is the Official Charity Partner of The Football League in 2012-13, we asked footballer-turned-journalist Adrian Clarke to pick nine of the greatest hammerings in the history of the league – a nod to the fact that one in nine men in the UK will be affected by prostate cancer.

To make a £5 donation to the Sledgehammer Fund, text CRACK to 70004*.

Read on for Adrian’s top Football League hammerings…

That's entertainment: Norwich fans were thrilled to see a goalfest. Photo courtesy of Action Images

 

Nottingham Forest 12-0 Leicester Fosse, 1909
Before kick off, this top-flight east Midlands clash was dubbed a relegation four-pointer (no three points for a win in those days) but Forest ran riot, with a trio of players scoring hat-tricks in the same match for the first time in football history. Rival clubs lodged a protest at Leicester’s seemingly inept display; it transpired that their players had embarked on a 24-hour bender after a former team-mate’s wedding, which finished in the early hours of match-day morning.

Tranmere Rovers 13-4 Oldham Athletic, 1935
Back in the days when teams would face each other twice in two days in a Christmas double-header, these two sides gifted their fans a sackful of goals. Having suffered a 4-1 tonking at the hands of Oldham on Christmas Day, a rejuvenated Tranmere side spanked their rivals the following day. Nine strikes from the brilliantly named Bunny Bell helped contribute to the Football League’s highest-ever aggregate score.

Gillingham 10-0 Chesterfield, 1987
What do you do when you’ve just beaten Southend 8-1 at home? Far from resting on their laurels, Gillingham’s class of 1987 followed up with a thumping 10-0 win at home to Chesterfield. That’s 18 goals in two home games, with the net bulging once every 10 minutes. The Gills couldn’t keep up such prolific form in Division Three, however – they failed to score in nine home matches and manager Keith Peacock was sacked at Christmas.

Barnet 1-9 Peterborough United, 1998
“I gave up celebrating after five because I was knackered,” chuckled Posh boss Barry Fry, who did a pretty bad impression of feeling sorry for his former club after his side’s ruthless mauling of the beleaguered Bees. Two red cards in the first hour didn’t aid the north Londoners’ cause, but there was little they could do to contain five-time goalscorer Giuliano Grazioli – a player they had tried to sign the week before.

Burnley 2-7 Sheffield Wednesday, 2003
This stunning away win led to a collective scratching of heads among Owls fans who were mourning the club’s relegation to the third tier of English football. Why it took confirmation that they were doomed to the drop for Chris Turner’s men to suddenly stop playing like a team of strangers remains a mystery, but at least they went out with a bang against mid-table Burnley.

Preston North End 6-0 Cardiff City, 2009
This April drubbing still gives former Cardiff manager Dave Jones nightmares. At first, it appeared to be nothing more than an unusually one-sided encounter between two Championship play-off rivals. A few weeks later, however, the teams ended the season on equal points and tied on a goal difference of +12. Only one of them could qualify for the play-offs, so what was the deciding factor? Preston had scored 66 goals to Cardiff’s 65. Ouch.

Norwich City 1-7 Colchester United, 2009
Carrow Road fans couldn’t believe what they were seeing on the opening day of the 2009-10 season, when Paul Lambert’s unheralded team tore Norwich apart in their first League One match in half a century. The Canaries’ board members were so impressed that they ditched manager Bryan Gunn and replaced him with Lambert 10 days later. It was a wise move; Norwich ended the season promoted as champions.

Millwall 1-6 Watford, 2010
Kenny Jackett’s Millwall had made the New Den a fortress during their promotion campaign in 2009-10, failing to lose in front of Lions fans in 10 glorious months. For the September visit of London rivals Watford, however, it all went massively pear-shaped and the unfancied Hornets stung the hosts with a thorough trouncing.

Dagenham & Redbridge 6-0 Morecambe, 2010
Imagine producing blood, sweat and tears for nine months in order to reach the League Two play-offs, only to blow your chance of a trip to Wembley within the space of 69 horrible minutes. Morecambe, stand up and take a bow. Yes, in 2010 the deadly Daggers cruised to an easy 6-0 first leg semi-final victory over the Shrimps – a play-off record – with the damage done in little over an hour.

Have we missed a high-scoring game that sticks in your memory? Let us know in the comments section below.

*You will receive a message confirming your donation. You will be charged £5 plus the standard network charge. 100% of your donation will go to Prostate Cancer UK. Please obtain bill payer's permission. Customer care 0844847980.