1992: Matt Dickins, £250,000 (£568,500)
Destination: Blackburn Rovers
Matt Dickins was the man who finally pushed City’s record sale beyond the figure established by Mick Harford when Blackburn Rovers paid £250,000 for him in March 1992. The goalkeeper had started his career with Sheffield United but moved to Sincil Bank without making a first-team appearance at Bramall Lane. He played only 27 league games for the Imps, but that was enough to convince Kenny Dalglish that he had the potential to operate at a much higher level. Blackburn, then building towards becoming one of the major forces in English football, paid a quarter of a million pounds to take him to Ewood Park.
Dickins found first-team opportunities difficult to come by at Blackburn, making just one league appearance as Bobby Mimms remained ahead of him, although he was part of the squad when Rovers won the Premier League title in 1994/95. His three years there also included loan spells with Blackpool, City, Grimsby Town and Rochdale before he joined Stockport County permanently in 1995.
He later moved into non-league football with Altrincham, Boston United and Sheffield. For City, the £250,000 deal represented another sizeable rise in the record, but unlike Harford’s mark, it would not remain untouched for another decade.
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