Villa win through to the League Cup final with a goal 3 minutes from time from Gerry Hitchens. Sadly that would be the goalscoring superstar's last act in a Villa shirt as the club prematurely sold him in the close season. The final itself was slated to take place before the start of the 1961-62 campaign subject to FA approval, if that was not forthcoming the two legged tie would be played in September before the first round of the 1961-62 League Cup. A bizarre mess.

Joe Mercer's Villa's play their thirteenth game in thirty nine days to beat fourth placed Burnley in the Semi Final replay at Old Trafford for the inaugural League Cup. Such is the fixture congestion caused by the addition of, and success in, a new cup on the calendar that Villa have already played fifty seven games this season and are forced to postpone to the two legged final against second division Rotherham until the following season. 

Despite an often fabulous return to the top flight for Joe Mercer’s men a tragedy - in the footballing sense - struck as the peerless Gerry Hitchens made his final appearance for Villa aged just 26, before his record breaking move to Inter Milan in the close season for £60,000. Hitchens should never have needed to leave but sadly Villa cashed in and a rare talent was lost to the club and a legend in the mould of a Pongo Waring or Billy Walker left the Villa Park stage.