The romance of Derby County’s 1970s glory years sent bids sky-rocketing when a shirt worn by Rams legend Alan Hinton went up for auction.
The number 11 shirt, worn by Hinton in the 1971-72 football season when Derby were crowned League Champions, sold for £2,600 at Derbyshire’s Hansons Auctioneers today (Feb 21) – more than double its original estimate of £800-£1,200.
Meanwhile a number 7 shirt worn by fellow Rams legend Kevin Hector in his last game for Derby County in May 1982, which had the same estimate, sold for £800.
Alistair Lofley, sports memorabilia expert at Hansons, said: “I think the romance of Derby’s glory years in the 1970s helped to push up bids for the Hinton shirt.
“Another reason it fetched such a high price is because it’s rare. It wasn’t used for many games. It’s grey with blue trim round the cuffs and collar but the club reverted back to a white shirt fairly quickly.”
The Hinton shirt had been languishing in a drawer for around 50 years. The player gave it to the seller at a Derby County game when he was a boy.
Mr Lofley said: “Hinton and Hector were huge fans favourites but the romance of the Brian Clough/Peter Taylor era when the Rams were the best team in the land was, perhaps, the trigger, for football collectors to battle particularly hard for the Hinton shirt.
“Both items were bought by private collectors who are Derby County fans so these important pieces of football memorabilia will be staying in the city.
“There was major interest in both shirts with several people coming to view them in advance of the auction.
“Alan Hinton tweeted about his shirt and said he’d proudly worn it to many victories.”
Hinton, 76, lives in America but keeps in touch with football fans in Derbyshire via his Twitter account. He was signed by Brian Clough for £30,000 in 1967 and stayed with the Rams until 1975. He also played for England. His nickname at Derby was Gladys, which stemmed from his preference for white football boots.
Kevin Hector, 74, was signed in 1966 by Tim Ward. He was a key player under the management of Brian Clough and later Dave Mackay, forming a formidable partnership with John O’Hare. He won two England caps.
The shirts were sold on February 21 at Hansons, Heage Lane, Etwall. Sporting memorabilia is invited for the next Football in Focus Auction on May 23. To arrange a free valuation, email [email protected] or call 07863 203377.
