ON THIS DAY: Hatters secure promotion to Division Three and Division Two

The date April 20 has been a good one for the Hatters when it comes to sealing promotions during their 135-year history.

Of the 12 times that Luton have gone up since the end of World War II, two of them have happened on this very date.

Rewind 50 years and although a 0-0 draw with Mansfield Town might not have been a scoreline to jump out Town fans from the record books, it meant the Hatters had earned promotion from Division Three thanks to the stalemate at Field Mill.

It was a fairly rare scoreline for the Hatters that term, with just four games finishing goalless as Luton, with Malcom Macdonald in red-hot form, scoring 25 in 46 league games, were only kept out in eight of their matches.

Under the management of Alec Stock,Town started the season superbly, Macdonald in his first full campaign flourishing in front of goal, scoring five in his opening eight outings after ending what he termed a 'nightmare' stint at Fulham in the summer.He had Matt Tees alongside him, who bagged 11 from 30, while John Collins also reached double figures, with the other mainstays of the team being Graham French, Jack Bannister, Keith Allen, Alex Davie, John Ryan and Alan Slough, all with over 35 games under their belts.

That saw the Hatters finish on 60 points, second to Orient and four clear of Bristol Rovers in third to move up to Division Two, where they finished in a more than creditable sixth the following season.

Meanwhile, two years earlier, on the same date, April 20, a 1-0 win for Luton at Halifax Town was enough for Town to move into Division Three after getting out of Division Four.

Bruce Rioch was the goalscoring hero that day, finding the net for the single strike that saw the Hatters leave with all the points, and make sure they couldn't be caught.

Although the title was to follow four days later at home to Crewe, Town completed a terrific season, putting together some serious runs.

An early eight match winning sequence between October and November, with Luton plundering goals galore, putting five past Exeter and Doncaster, plus four into the Workington and Swansea Town nets served purpose of their intent.

They then went on a 19 match unbeaten run from January 20 to April 24, winning 12 times to put promotion beyond doubt, as although that ended on winning the title, it mattered little, Luton finishing five clear of Barnsley.

Rioch's 24 goals saw him as the star of the season, with Keith Allen (14), Ian Buxton (13) and Ray Whittaker (10) in double figures as well.

It's not just promotion that April 20 can be remembered for either, Town recording a 7-1 thrashing of Reading in Division Three South back in 1912, Herbert Moody scoring a hat-trick, while David Moss and Ricky Hill both netted in a 2-0 Division Two win at Chelsea in 1981.