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1997–98 Football League

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The 1997–98 Football League (known as the Nationwide Football League for sponsorship reasons) was the 99th completed season of The Football League.

The Football League
Season1997–98
ChampionsNottingham Forest
PromotedNottingham Forest
Middlesbrough
Charlton Athletic
RelegatedDoncaster Rovers
New Team in LeagueMacclesfield Town

Champions Nottingham Forest and runners-up Middlesbrough won promotion back to the Premiership at the first time of asking. Charlton Athletic won the play-offs to end an eight-year absence from the top flight.

Reading were relegated in bottom place. They were joined on the last day of the season by Manchester City and Stoke City. The blue half of Manchester endured relegation to the third tier of the English league for the first time in its history, despite beating also doomed Stoke 5–2 away on the last day of the season, but neither fans took lightly to relegation, as mass football violence outside outshone the match. Bury, Portsmouth and Port Vale all won their games to avoid the drop.

Graham Taylor's second spell as manager brought instant success as Watford won the Division Two championship. They were joined by runners-up Bristol City and playoff winners Grimsby Town.

Going down to Division Three were Brentford, Plymouth Argyle, Carlisle United and Southend United. Brentford had been losing playoff finalists just 12 months earlier, Plymouth had been promoted to Division Two just two seasons earlier, Carlisle were newly promoted and Southend had endured their second successive relegation.

Macclesfield Town finished runners-up in Division Three to gain their second successive promotion, a year after winning the Conference. They were joined by champions Notts County, who won the title by 17 points and became the first team since World War II to secure promotion in March, third-placed Lincoln City and playoff winners Colchester United.

Doncaster Rovers suffered an English league record of 34 defeats and won just four games to lose their league status. They were replaced by Conference champions Halifax Town, who regained their league status five years after losing it.

First Division

First Division
Season1997–98
ChampionsNottingham Forest
PromotedNottingham Forest
Middlesbrough
Charlton Athletic
RelegatedManchester City
Stoke City
Reading
Matches played552
Goals scored1,411 (2.56 per match)
Top goalscorerKevin Phillips
Pierre van Hooijdonk
(29 goals each)[1]

One season after being relegated from the Premier League, Nottingham Forest achieved an instant comeback as Division One champions, meaning that manager Dave Bassett had now taken charge of promotion-winning teams eight times in 18 seasons. They were joined on the final day of the season by Middlesbrough, who had only been relegated the previous season due to a points deduction. Charlton Athletic clinched the final promotion place in dramatic fashion, beating Sunderland on penalties after a thrilling match which ended 4-4 after extra time and restored the South London club to the top flight for the first time since 1990. Ipswich Town and Sheffield United were the beaten semi-finalists, while Birmingham City missed out on the playoffs on goals scored. Stockport County, in the league's second tier for the first time in decades, finished an impressive eighth. FA Cup semi-finalists Wolves finished ninth, missing out on the playoffs.

Reading's final season at Elm Park ended in relegation in bottom place, meaning that they would begin life at their impressive new Madejski Stadium as a Division Two rather than Division One side. A dramatic final day of the season saw Stoke City host Manchester City at their new Britannia Stadium, with both teams knowing that victory was their only chance of survival. In the end, the visitors triumphed 5-2 but both sides were relegated due to Portsmouth, Port Vale and QPR all winning and securing survival.

The season saw numerous managerial changes in Division One. Despite being on a run to the semi-finals of the FA Cup and being in the hunt for promotion to the Premier League, Nigel Spackman stood down in March after less than a year in charge of Sheffield United, with his assistant Steve Thompson taking charge for the crucial final weeks of the season. Steve Bruce, the Birmingham City captain, was then appointed player-manager at Bramall Lane. At the other end of the table, Terry Bullivant was sacked by Reading in March having only been appointed the previous summer, with the former Celtic manager Tommy Burns being appointed as his successor. Stoke City began the season with Chic Bates as manager, but a mid-season downturn in form saw his dismissal in January and the appointment of Chris Kamara, who won just one of his 14 games in charge and was dismissed with five games left to play and Stoke deep in the relegation battle. Alan Durban took charge for the final five games, but was unable to save the Potters from relegation. Manchester City sacked manager Frank Clark in February after just over a year in charge, and replaced him with the former Everton manager Joe Royle. QPR's dismal form saw manager Bruce Rioch replaced by West Bromwich Albion's Ray Harford in early December, with Harford's successor at The Hawthorns being Denis Smith, recruited from debt-ridden Oxford United. The new manager at the Manor Ground was Malcolm Shotton, who managed to guide the Thames Valley side to a secure mid table finish in spite of the club's rising debts, which resulted in construction of the club's new stadium being halted. Portsmouth sacked Terry Fenwick in February after three years in charge and replaced him with Alan Ball, the manager of their most recent promotion-winning side in 1987. Huddersfield Town's dismal start to the campaign saw Brian Horton sacked in September and replaced by Peter Jackson, who guided the Terriers to a secure mid table finish. Mike Walker, whose first spell in charge of Norwich City had seen a Premier League title challenge and a memorable UEFA Cup run, stood down at Carrow Road with several games still to play as Norwich headed for another disappointing mid table finish. After the season was over, the Carrow Road board of directors appointed Bruce Rioch as their sixth manager in as many years.

Table

PosTeam
PldWDLGFGAGDPtsQualification or relegation
1Nottingham Forest (C, P)46281088242+4094Promotion to the Premier League
2Middlesbrough (P)46271097741+3691
3Sunderland46261288650+3690Qualification for the First Division play-offs
4Charlton Athletic (O, P)462610108049+3188
5Ipswich Town46231497743+3483
6Sheffield United461917106954+1574
7Birmingham City461917106035+2574
8Stockport County46198197169+265
9Wolverhampton Wanderers461811175753+465
10West Bromwich Albion461613175056−661
11Crewe Alexandra46185235865−759
12Oxford United461610206064−458
13Bradford City461415174659−1357
14Tranmere Rovers461414185457−356
15Norwich City461413195269−1755
16Huddersfield Town461411215072−2253
17Bury461119164258−1652
18Swindon Town461410224273−3152
19Port Vale461310235666−1049
20Portsmouth461310235163−1249
21Queens Park Rangers461019175163−1249
22Manchester City (R)461212225657−148Relegation to the Second Division
23Stoke City (R)461113224474−3046
24Reading (R)46119263978−3942
Source: Statto.com
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goals scored; 3) Goal difference
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated

Play-offs

Semifinals
1st leg – 10 May; 2nd leg – 13 May 1998		Final at Wembley
25 May 1998
        
3rdSunderland 123
6thSheffield United202
3rdSunderland4 (6)
4thCharlton Athletic (pen.)4 (7)
4thCharlton Athletic112
5thIpswich Town000

[2]

Results

Home \ AwayBIRBRABRYCHACREHUDIPSMCIMIDNWCNOTOXFPTVPORQPRREASHUSTPSTKSUNSWITRAWBAWOL
Birmingham City0–01–30–00–10–01–12–11–11–21–20–01–12–11–03–02–04–12–00–13–00–01–01–0
Bradford City0–01–01–01–01–12–12–12–22–10–30–02–11–31–14–11–12–10–00–41–10–10–02–0
Bury2–12–00–01–12–20–11–10–11–02–01–02–20–21–11–11–10–10–01–11–01–01–31–3
Charlton Athletic1–14–10–03–21–03–02–13–02–14–23–21–01–01–13–02–11–31–11–13–02–05–01–0
Crewe Alexandra0–25–01–20–32–50–01–01–11–01–42–10–13–12–31–02–10–12–00–32–02–12–30–2
Huddersfield Town0–11–22–00–32–02–21–30–11–30–25–10–41–11–11–00–01–03–12–30–03–01–01–0
Ipswich Town0–12–12–03–13–25–11–01–15–00–15–25–12–00–01–02–20–22–32–02–10–01–13–0
Manchester City0–11–00–12–21–00–11–22–01–22–30–22–32–22–20–00–04–10–10–16–01–11–00–1
Middlesbrough3–11–04–02–11–03–01–11–03–00–04–12–11–13–04–01–23–10–13–16–03–01–01–1
Norwich City3–32–32–20–40–25–02–10–01–31–02–11–02–00–00–02–11–10–02–15–00–21–10–2
Nottingham Forest1–02–23–05–23–13–02–11–34–02–31–32–11–04–01–03–02–11–00–33–02–21–03–0
Oxford United0–20–01–11–20–02–01–00–01–42–00–12–01–03–13–02–43–05–11–12–11–12–13–0
Port Vale0–10–01–10–12–34–11–32–10–12–20–13–02–12–00–00–02–10–03–10–10–11–20–2
Portsmouth1–11–11–10–22–33–00–10–30–01–10–12–13–13–10–21–11–02–01–40–11–02–33–2
Queens Park Rangers1–11–00–12–43–22–10–02–05–01–10–11–10–11–01–12–22–11–10–11–20–02–00–0
Reading2–00–31–12–03–30–20–43–00–10–13–32–10–30–11–20–11–02–04–00–11–32–10–0
Sheffield United0–02–13–04–11–01–10–11–11–02–21–01–02–12–12–24–05–13–22–02–12–12–41–0
Stockport County2–21–20–03–00–13–00–13–11–12–22–23–23–03–12–05–11–01–01–14–23–12–11–0
Stoke City0–72–13–21–20–21–21–12–51–22–01–10–02–12–12–11–22–22–11–21–20–30–03–0
Sunderland1–12–02–10–02–13–12–23–11–20–11–13–14–22–12–24–14–24–13–00–03–02–01–1
Swindon Town1–11–03–10–12–01–10–21–31–21–00–04–14–20–13–10–21–11–11–01–22–10–20–0
Tranmere Rovers0–33–10–02–20–31–01–10–00–22–00–00–21–22–22–16–03–33–03–10–23–00–02–1
West Bromwich Albion1–01–11–11–00–10–22–30–12–11–01–11–22–20–31–11–02–03–21–13–30–02–11–0
Wolverhampton Wanderers1–32–14–23–11–01–11–12–21–05–02–11–01–12–03–23–10–03–41–10–13–12–10–1
Source: [citation needed]
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Top scorers

RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Kevin Phillips Sunderland 29
= Pierre Van Hooijdonk Nottingham Forest 29
3 Kevin CampbellNottingham Forest23
= Clive MendoncaCharlton Athletic23
5 David JohnsonIpswich Town20
6 Brett AngellStockport County18
7 Paul FurlongBirmingham City15
= Marcus StewartHuddersfield Town15

Maps

class=notpageimage|
Locations of the Football League First Division London teams 1997–1998
class=notpageimage|
Locations of the Football League First Division 1997–1998 teams

Second Division

Having returned to the manager's seat at Watford following a disappointing 1996–97 season under Kenny Jackett, Graham Taylor guided Watford to the Division Two title to add to the three promotions he had won in his first spell at Vicarage Road between 1978 and 1982. John Ward, who had been dismissed by Bristol Rovers in 1996 after failing to deliver promotion, delivered the goods for their local rivals Bristol City, comfortably securing them promotion from Division Two as runners-up. The final promotion place was won by Grimsby Town, who in their first Wembley final victory defeated a Northampton Town side in hunt of a second successive promotion.

Grimsby had already defeated favourites Fulham in the semi-finals, meaning that Mohammed Al Fayed's revolution at Craven Cottage was on hold for a season. Since buying the club for £30million the previous summer, Al Fayed had appointed Kevin Keegan as director of football and Ray Wilkins as head coach, as well as providing transfer funds which meant that Fulham were able to compete with the leading Division One clubs and even some Premier League sides in the transfer market, the biggest fee being the £2.25million they paid Blackburn Rovers for defender Chris Coleman.

At the bottom end of the table, Alvin Martin endured a nightmare start to his managerial career as his Southend United side finished bottom of Division Two and suffered a second successive relegation. Carlisle United's dream of rising to the top of the English leagues under the ownership of Michael Knighton was becoming a nightmare as they suffered an instant relegation back to Division Three, despite the club's ambitious chairman taking charge of the first team for most of the season after axing Mervyn Day in the autumn. Plymouth Argyle were relegated to Division Three for the second time in four seasons. Brentford, beaten playoff finalists the previous season, went down on the final day of the season, with fallen giants Burnley being the lucky side who escaped relegation in the process. Surviving in Division Two was not enough to save the job of Burnley manager Chris Waddle, who was replaced soon afterwards by Bury manager Stan Ternent.

Football League, Second Division
Season1997–98
ChampionsWatford (2nd third tier title)
Direct promotionWatford,
Bristol City
Promoted through play-offsGrimsby Town
RelegatedBrentford,
Carlisle United,
Plymouth Argyle,
Southend United
Matches played552
Goals scored1,337 (2.42 per match)
Top goalscorerBarry Hayles (Bristol Rovers), 23 [1]

Table

PosTeamPldHWHDHLHGFHGAAWADALAGFAGAGDPtsPromotion or relegation
1Watford461373362211933119+2688Division Champions, promoted
2Bristol City46165241179592822+3085Promoted
3Grimsby Town46117530148872523+1872Promoted through play-offs
4Northampton Town461454331741271920+1571Participated in play-offs
5Bristol Rovers46132843337882731+670
6Fulham461274311483122929+1770
7Wrexham461010331238692428+470
8Gillingham461373301866112229+570
9Bournemouth461184281574122937+566
10Chesterfield4613733119310101525+265
11Wigan Athletic461256413156122335−262
12Blackpool461364352445142443−862
13Oldham Athletic461373432329121931+861
14Wycombe Wanderers4610103322048111933−260
15Preston North End461067292658102730059
16York City46977262151082637−659
17Luton Town4677935387882526−457
18Millwall46788232375112031−1155
19Walsall461085261644151736−954
20Burnley461094342334162142−1052
21Brentford469773329210111742−2150Relegated
22Plymouth Argyle461058363028131940−1549
23Carlisle United468510272843163045−1644
24Southend United46878293033171849−3243
Source: [2]
Rules for classification: In the Football League goals scored (GF) takes precedence over goal difference (GD).

Play-offs

Semifinals
1st leg – 9/10 May; 2nd leg – 13 May 1998		Final at Wembley Stadium
24 May 1998
        
3rdGrimsby Town 112
6thFulham101
3rdGrimsby Town 1
4thNorthampton0
4thNorthampton 134
5thBristol Rovers303

[2]

Top scorers

RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Barry Hayles Bristol Rovers 23
2 Carlo CorazzinPlymouth Argyle17
= Kevin DonovanGrimsby Town17
= Mark StallardWycombe Wanderers17
= Ian StevensCarlisle United17
6 Andy CookeBurnley16
= David LoweWigan Athletic16
8 Peter BeadleBristol Rovers15
= Paul MoodyFulham15
10 Lee AshcroftPreston North End14
= Jeroen BoereSouthend United14

Maps

class=notpageimage|
Locations of the Football League Second Division London teams 1997–1998
class=notpageimage|
Locations of the Football League Second Division 1997–1998 teams

Results

Home \ AwayBLPBOUBREBRCBRRBURCRLCHFFULGILGRILUTMILNOROLDPLYPNESTDWALWATWIGWREWYCYOR
Blackpool1–01–22–21–02–12–12–12–12–12–21–03–01–12–20–02–13–01–01–10–21–22–41–0
Bournemouth2–00–01–01–12–13–22–02–14–00–11–10–03–00–03–30–22–11–00–11–00–10–00–0
Brentford3–13–21–42–32–10–10–00–22–03–12–22–10–02–13–10–01–13–01–20–21–11–11–2
Bristol City2–01–12–22–03–11–01–00–20–24–13–04–10–01–02–12–11–02–11–13–01–13–12–1
Bristol Rovers0–35–32–11–21–03–13–12–31–20–42–12–10–23–11–12–22–02–01–25–01–03–11–2
Burnley1–22–21–11–00–03–10–02–10–02–11–11–22–10–02–11–01–02–12–00–21–22–27–2
Carlisle United1–10–11–20–33–12–10–22–02–10–10–11–00–23–12–20–25–01–10–21–02–20–01–2
Chesterfield1–11–10–01–00–01–02–10–21–11–00–03–12–12–12–13–21–03–10–12–33–11–01–1
Fulham1–00–11–01–01–01–05–01–13–00–20–01–21–13–12–02–12–01–11–22–01–00–01–1
Gillingham1–12–13–12–01–12–01–01–02–00–22–11–31–02–12–10–01–22–12–20–01–11–00–0
Grimsby Town1–12–13–12–01–12–01–01–02–00–22–11–31–02–12–10–01–22–12–20–01–11–00–0
Luton Town3–01–22–00–02–42–33–23–01–42–22–20–22–21–13–01–31–00–10–41–12–40–03–0
Millwall2–11–23–00–21–11–01–11–11–11–00–10–20–02–11–10–13–10–11–11–10–11–02–3
Northampton Town2–00–24–02–11–10–12–10–01–02–12–11–02–00–02–12–23–13–20–11–00–12–01–1
Oldham Athletic0–12–11–11–24–43–33–12–01–03–12–02–11–12–22–01–02–00–02–23–13–00–13–1
Plymouth Argyle3–13–00–02–01–22–32–11–11–40–12–20–23–01–30–22–02–32–10–13–22–04–20–0
Preston North End3–30–12–12–11–22–30–30–03–11–32–01–02–11–01–10–11–00–02–01–10–11–13–2
Southend United2–15–33–10–21–11–01–10–21–00–00–11–20–00–01–13–03–20–10–31–01–31–24–4
Walsall2–12–10–00–00–10–03–13–21–11–00–02–32–00–20–00–11–13–10–01–03–00–12–0
Watford4–12–13–11–13–21–02–12–12–00–00–21–10–11–12–11–13–11–11–22–11–02–11–1
Wigan Athletic3–01–04–00–33–05–10–22–12–11–40–21–10–01–11–01–11–41–32–03–23–25–21–1
Wrexham3–42–12–22–11–00–02–20–00–30–00–02–11–01–03–11–10–03–12–11–12–22–01–2
Wycombe Wanderers2–11–10–01–21–02–11–41–12–01–01–12–20–00–02–15–10–04–14–20–01–20–01–0
York City1–10–13–10–10–13–14–30–10–12–10–01–22–20–00–01–01–01–11–01–12–21–02–0
Updated to match(es) played on 16 September 2021. Source: [1]
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Third Division

In his first full season as Notts County manager, Sam Allardyce took Notts County to the Division Three title with 99 points and made them the first Football League team to win promotion before the end of March, giving the Meadow Lane supporters some much needed cause for celebration after the previous six seasons had brought three relegations and a playoff defeat. Macclesfield Town finished runners-up to seal promotion in their first season as a Football League side, and were joined in the automatic promotion places by a Lincoln City side who reached the third tier for the first time in more than a decade. Colchester United clinched the final promotion place, beating Torquay United 1–0 in the Wembley promotion decider with a David Gregory goal.

Doncaster Rovers were relegated from the Football League after a catastrophic season which saw them win just four league games and suffer a league record of 34 defeats. The club's future was then secured when chairman Ken Richardson, who stood accused of trying to set fire to the club's dilapidated Belle Vue stadium as part of an alleged insurance scam, stood down and was succeeded by new owner John Ryan, who set about rebuilding the club on and off the field and ensuring a swift return to the Football League. Brighton finished 23rd for the second successive season, but were never in any real danger of relegation this time due to Doncaster's dismal form throughout the season. Hull City endured one of the worst seasons in their history, finishing third from bottom and with team-strengthening prospects for new player-manager Mark Hateley being restricted by rising debts. It was a similarly low ebb for Cardiff City, whose 21st-place finish was the second worst of their history, while Swansea City's 20th-place finish was their lowest since 1975.

Doncaster's place in the Football League was taken by Conference champions Halifax Town, who regained the league status which they had lost five years earlier.

Football League, Third Division
Season1997–98
ChampionsNotts County (2nd fourth tier title)
Direct promotionNotts County,
Lincoln City,
Macclesfield Town
Promoted through play-offsColchester United
Relegated to ConferenceDoncaster Rovers
New team in LeagueMacclesfield Town
Matches played552
Goals scored1,431 (2.59 per match)
Top goalscorerGary Jones (Notts County), 28 [1]

Table

PosTeamPldHWHDHLHGFHGAAWADALAGFAGAGDPtsPromotion or relegation
1Notts County461472412015534123+3999Division Champions, promoted
2Macclesfield Town[a]461940401149102333+1982Promoted
3Lincoln City46117532249862827+975
4Colchester United461454412476103136+1274Promoted through play-offs
5Torquay United46144539227792937+974Participated in play-offs
6Scarborough46146344235992335+972
7Barnet46108535229592629+1070
8Scunthorpe United461175302485102628+469
9Rotherham United461094413061072631+667
10Peterborough United461364371657112635+1267
11Leyton Orient461454402057112227+1566[b]
12Mansfield Town461193422658102229+965
13Shrewsbury Town461238352841092634−161
14Chester City461274341553152646−161
15Exeter City461085392557112938+560
16Cambridge United4611843927310102430+660
17Hartlepool United46101214022211102131+859
18Rochdale461535431524171340+158
19Darlington461364432816161344−1654
20Swansea City46887241653152546−1350
21Cardiff City465135272241092130−450
22Hull City461067363212202051−2741
23Brighton & Hove Albion4631010213437131732−2835
24Doncaster Rovers463317144815171665−8320Relegated to Conference
Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: In the Football League goals scored (GF) takes precedence over goal difference (GD).
Notes:

Play-offs

Semifinals
1st leg – 10 May; 2nd leg – 13 May 1998		Final at Wembley Stadium
22 May 1998
        
4thColchester United 033
7thBarnet112
4thColchester United 1
5thTorquay United0
5thTorquay United 347
6thScarborough112

[2]

Top scorers

RankPlayerClubGoals
1 Gary Jones Notts County 28
2 Steve WhitehallMansfield Town24
3 Darran RowbothamExeter City21
4 Jimmy QuinnPeterborough United20
5 Carl GriffithsLeyton Orient18

Maps

class=notpageimage|
Locations of the Football League Third Division London teams 1997–1998
class=notpageimage|
Locations of the Football League Third Division teams 1997–1998

See also

References

The tables below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation website,[2] with home and away statistics separated. Play-off results are from the same website.

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