 Despite a club record 9 – 1 defeat to Colchester United on 30 December 1961 , City came fifth in 1961 – 62 , thanks to David Layne 's 34 league goals — his total remains a club record for a season — but missed out on promotion by just one point . Layne left for Sheffield Wednesday and City finished 23rd the following season , forcing them to apply for re @-@ election . In 1966 , the club directors moved the pitch 2 @.@ 74 metres ( 3 @.@ 00 yd ) closer to the main stand , creating enough space for them to add a new safe standing area on the Midland Road side of the ground and open all four stands for the first time since 1960 . <unk> continued to drop and a new record low of 1 @,@ 353 was set on 12 May 1966 against <unk> . It prompted chairman Stafford Heginbotham to hold a crisis meeting in the city 's St George 's Hall to raise new funds and safeguard the future of the club . The club 's indifferent form on the field continued , with another re @-@ election and two narrow promotion failures , before promotion was gained in 1968 – 69 . Only the previous season , City had had three managers , when Grenville Hair , who had replaced Willie Watson , died just two months into his reign , after he collapsed at the end of a training session . 
