1991–92 in English football

The 1991-92 season was the 112th season of competitive football in England.

Overview

= First Division =

The last-ever league championship before the creation of the Premier League was won by Leeds United who overhauled Manchester United thanks to the efforts of players like Gordon Strachan, Lee Chapman, David Batty and Gary McAllister. After runners-up United came newly promoted Sheffield Wednesday, who were quickly emerging as one of the most feared sides in England.

Defending champions Arsenal slipped to fourth place in the 1991-92 season and never made a serious threat to retain their title. The previous season's runners-up Liverpool slipped to sixth in their first full season under the management of Graeme Souness.

Newly promoted West Ham United were relegated in bottom place, with another newly promoted side - Notts County - following days later. The last day of the season saw Luton Town lose their top flight status after 10 seasons.

= Second Division =

John Lyall took Ipswich Town back to the First Division after a six-year absence for the Suffolk club. The Tractor Boys were followed up by runners-up Middlesbrough, but it was playoff winners Blackburn Rovers whose promotion made the biggest headlines. Bankrolled by millionaire chairman Jack Walker and managed by former Liverpool boss Kenny Dalglish, Rovers beat Leicester 1-0 in the playoff final to end a 26-year exile from the top flight.

The Second Division relegation places were occupied by Port Vale, Plymouth Argyle and Brighton & Hove Albion - the latter team had been playoff losing finalists just 12 months before going down, but their fortunes had been ruined by financial problems.

= Third Division =

New manager Phil Holder guided Brentford to a surprise Third Division championship success, while Terry Cooper's Birmingham occupied runners-up spot and the playoffs were won by Chris Turner's Peterborough United.

The Third Division drop zone was occupied by Shrewsbury Town, Bury, Torquay United and Darlington.

= Fourth Division =

Burnley won the Fourth Division title to join Wolverhampton Wanderers as champions of all four divisions of the Football League. Also going up were Rotherham United, Mansfield Town and play-off winners Blackpool.

On 25 March 1992, Aldershot were declared bankrupt and obliged to resign from the Football League - their record was expunged. There was no relegation from the Football League in 1991-92. Carlisle United finished bottom, and Conference champions Colchester United returned to the league after a two-year absence.

FA Cup

Liverpool's Graeme Souness compensated for a disappointing first season as manager in the league by steering the Reds to a 2-0 FA Cup victory over Second Division underdogs Sunderland.

= League Cup =

Manchester United missed out on the league title but achieved success in the League Cup with a 1-0 triumph against Nottingham Forest in the final.

League Tables

=First Division=

=Second Division=

P W D L F A W D L F A Pts 1. IPSWICH TOWN (P) 46 16 3 4 42 22 8 9 6 28 28 84 2. MIDDLESBROUGH (P) 46 15 6 2 37 13 8 5 10 21 28 80 3. Derby County 46 11 4 8 35 24 12 5 6 34 27 78 4. Leicester City 46 14 4 5 41 24 9 4 10 21 31 77 5. Cambridge United 46 10 9 4 34 19 9 8 6 31 28 74 6. BLACKBURN ROVERS (P) 46 14 5 4 41 21 7 6 10 29 32 74 7. Charlton Athletic 46 9 7 7 25 23 11 4 8 29 25 71 8. Swindon Town 46 15 3 5 38 22 3 12 8 31 33 69 9. Portsmouth 46 15 6 2 41 12 4 6 13 24 39 69 10. Watford 46 9 5 9 25 23 9 6 8 26 25 65 11. Wolverhampton Wanderers 46 11 6 6 36 24 7 4 12 25 29 64 12. Southend United 46 11 5 7 37 26 6 6 11 26 37 62 13. Bristol Rovers 46 11 9 3 43 29 5 5 13 17 34 62 14. Tranmere Rovers 46 9 9 5 37 32 5 10 8 19 24 61 15. Millwall 46 10 4 9 32 32 7 6 10 32 39 61 16. Barnsley 46 11 4 8 26 25 5 7 11 19 32 59 17. Bristol City 46 10 8 5 30 24 3 7 13 25 47 54 18. Sunderland 46 10 8 5 36 23 4 3 16 25 42 53 19. Grimsby Town 46 7 5 11 25 28 7 6 10 22 34 53 20. Newcastle United 46 9 8 6 38 30 4 5 14 28 54 52 21. Oxford United 46 10 6 7 39 30 3 5 15 27 43 50 22. PLYMOUTH ARGYLE (R) 46 11 5 7 26 26 2 4 17 16 38 48 23. BRIGHTON & H ALBION (R) 46 7 7 9 36 37 5 4 14 20 40 47 24. PORT VALE (R) 46 7 8 8 23 25 3 7 13 19 34 45

=Third Division=

P W D L F A W D L F A Pts 1. BRENTFORD (P) 46 17 2 4 55 29 8 5 10 26 26 82 2. BIRMINGHAM CITY (P) 46 15 6 2 42 22 8 6 9 27 30 81 3. Huddersfield Town 46 15 4 4 36 15 7 8 8 23 23 78 4. Stoke City 46 14 5 4 45 24 7 9 7 24 25 77 5. Stockport County 46 15 5 3 47 19 7 5 11 28 32 76 6. PETERBOROUGH UNITED (P) 46 13 7 3 38 20 7 7 9 27 38 74 7. West Bromwich Albion 46 12 6 5 45 25 7 8 8 19 24 71 8. Bournemouth 46 13 4 6 33 18 7 7 9 19 30 71 9. Fulham 46 11 7 5 29 16 8 6 9 28 37 70 10. Leyton Orient 46 12 7 4 36 18 6 4 13 26 34 65 11. Hartlepool United 46 12 5 6 30 21 6 6 11 27 36 65 12. Reading 46 9 8 6 33 27 7 5 11 26 35 61 13. Bolton Wanderers 46 10 9 4 26 19 4 8 11 31 37 59 14. Hull City 46 9 4 10 28 23 7 7 9 26 31 59 15. Wigan Athletic 46 11 6 6 33 21 4 8 11 25 43 59 16. Bradford City 46 8 10 5 36 30 5 9 9 26 31 58 17. Preston North End 46 12 7 4 42 32 3 5 15 19 40 57 18. Chester City 46 10 6 7 34 29 4 8 11 22 30 56 19. Swansea City 46 10 9 4 35 24 4 5 14 20 41 56 20. Exeter City 46 11 7 5 34 25 3 4 16 23 55 53 21. BURY (R) 46 8 7 8 31 31 5 5 13 24 43 51 22. SHREWSBURY TOWN (R) 46 7 7 9 30 31 5 4 14 23 37 47 23. TORQUAY UNITED (R) 46 13 3 7 29 19 0 5 18 13 49 47 24. DARLINGTON (R) 46 5 5 13 31 39 5 2 16 25 51 37

=Fourth Division=

P W D L F A W D L F A Pts 1. BURNLEY (P) 42 14 4 3 42 16 11 4 6 37 27 83 2. ROTHERHAM UNITED (P) 42 12 6 3 38 16 10 5 6 32 21 77 3. MANSFIELD TOWN (P) 42 13 4 4 43 26 10 4 7 32 27 77 4. BLACKPOOL (P) 42 17 3 1 48 13 5 7 9 23 32 76 5. Scunthorpe United 42 14 5 2 38 18 7 4 10 25 41 72 6. Crewe Alexandra 42 12 6 3 33 20 8 4 9 33 31 70 7. Barnet 42 16 1 4 48 23 5 5 11 33 38 69 8. Rochdale 42 12 6 3 34 22 6 7 8 23 31 67 9. Cardiff City 42 13 3 5 42 26 4 12 5 24 27 66 10. Lincoln City 42 9 5 7 21 24 8 6 7 29 20 62 11. Gillingham 42 12 5 4 41 19 3 7 11 22 34 57 12. Scarborough 42 12 5 4 39 28 3 7 11 25 40 57 13. Chesterfield 42 6 7 8 26 28 8 4 9 23 33 53 14. Wrexham 42 11 4 6 31 26 3 5 13 21 47 51 15. Walsall 42 5 10 6 28 26 7 3 11 20 32 49 16. Northampton 42 5 9 7 25 23 6 4 11 21 33 46 17. Hereford United 42 9 4 8 31 24 3 4 14 13 33 44 18. Maidstone United 42 6 9 6 24 22 2 9 10 21 34 42 19. York City 42 6 9 6 26 23 2 7 12 16 35 40 20. Halifax Town 42 7 5 9 23 35 3 3 15 11 40 38 21. Doncaster Rovers 42 6 2 13 21 35 3 6 12 19 30 35 22. Carlisle United 42 5 9 7 24 27 2 4 15 17 40 34

Events

Premier League gets go-ahead

1991-92 was the last season of the four-division Football League. For 1992-93, the First Division would become the breakaway FA Premier League, and the Football League would contain just three divisions. The new league was seen as the last chance to maintain interest in a sport which had been blighted in recent years by numerous incidents of hooliganism and images of decay at football grounds which had contributed to the Bradford Fire Disaster and the Hillsborough Disaster.

Leeds grab title

Leeds United won the last-ever league championship before the creation of the F.A Premier League, two years after returning to the top flight. Driving force in the title triumph was experienced midfielder Gordon Strachan, who helped Leeds overtake Strachan's former club Manchester United in the title race.

Dalglish makes comeback to deliver promised land to Blackburn

Blackburn Rovers, managed by former Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish, won promotion to the new F.A Premier League to end a 26-year exile from the top flight of English football. Their triumph was sealed with a 1-0 win over Leicester City in the playoff final, thanks to a penalty from Mike Newell - a former Leicester striker.

Aldershot go bust

Aldershot, who had been plagued with financial problems for two years, finally went out of business on 25th March. Their Fourth Division record was expunged and their place in the Football League was taken over by Colchester United for the 1992-93 season. A new Aldershot club was formed almost immediately, and joined the Third Division of the Isthmian League for the following season.

League Cup win at last for United

Manchester United won the League Cup for the first time in their history after Brian McClair scored the only goal of the game in a 1-0 win over Nottingham Forest at Wembley. It was some consolation for their failed title challenge.

ouness delivers Cup glory for Reds

Liverpool won the FA Cup for the fifth time in their first full season under the management of Graeme Souness, beating Second Division underdogs Sunderland 2-0 in the final at Wembley. Ian Rush set a new record for scoring in FA Cup Finals at Wembley with his 5th goal. But the cup triumph did not fully compensate for a disappointing league campaign in which Liverpool failed to mount a title challenge.

Burnley enter the history books

Burnley won the last ever Fourth Division championship to join Wolves as only the second English team to have been champions of all four divisions of the English league. It was Burnley's first successful season after a period of misery which had almost seen them relegated to the Conference in 1987.

The Owls make an impressive comeback

Newly promoted Sheffield Wednesday finished third in the league and qualified for the UEFA Cup, confounding suggestions that 37-year-old player-manager Trevor Francis was too inexperienced to keep the Owls in the top flight.

Euro final returns to Wembley

Wembley hosted the European Cup final for the first time in 24 years. Barcelona of Spain beat Sampdoria of Italy 1-0.

Keegan rescues Newcastle

Newcastle United sacked manager Ossie Ardiles, just 36 hours after being told by chairman John Hall that his job was safe. Hall appointed former striker Kevin Keegan as manager in hope of staving off relegation from the Second Division - and he succeeded.

Successful players

In his last season at Tottenham Hotspur before joining Nagoya Grampus Eight of Japan, Gary Lineker was voted FWA Footballer of the Year after scoring 28 goals in all competitions during the 1991-92 season.

The PFA Player of the Year award went to Manchester United's rock solid and ultra reliable central defender Gary Pallister.

The PFA voted Manchester United's exciting 18-year-old winger Ryan Giggs as Young Player of the Year. Giggs also picked up a League Cup winner's medal, but just missed out on the league title.

Veteran Scottish midfielder Gordon Strachan, now in his 35th year, had another brilliant season as he proved the driving force in Leeds United's championship glory.

Little known Danish goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel quickly established himself as one of the most feared shot-stoppers in Europe in his first season with Manchester United, helping them win the League Cup and come within a shout of championship glory.

Sheffield Wednesday striker David Hirst earned himself an England call-up after helping his side finish third in the league and earn their first European qualification since the 1960s.

Mike Newell made a stylish comeback from injury to score a winning penalty for Blackburn Rovers in the Second Division playoff final, pipping his old club Leicester to a place in the new Premier League.

Successful managers

Leeds United manager Howard Wilkinson brought the league championship trophy to Elland Road just two seasons after they gained promotion to the First Division.

Manchester United's Alex Ferguson added another trophy to the Old Trafford boardroom, this time the club's first-ever League Cup.

Graeme Souness marked his first full season as Liverpool manager with an FA Cup triumph.

Trevor Francis had a successful first season as player-manager of Sheffield Wednesday, who finished third in the league and qualified for the UEFA Cup to end a 28-year absence from European competitions.

John Lyall brought First Division football back to Ipswich Town for the first time since 1985-86.

Kenny Dalglish put together an impressive squad to win promotion to the new FA Premier League for fallen giant Blackburn Rovers.

Phil Holder had a successful first season in management by winning the Third Division title with Brentford.

Chris Turner guided Peterborough United to a second successive promotion as they won the Third Division playoffs to claim a place in the second tier of the English league for the first time in their history.

Jimmy Mullen won the last-ever Fourth Division title with Burnley, who joined Wolverhampton Wanderers in the distinction of having been champions of all four divisions of the English league.

Roy McDonough steered Colchester United to title success in the Conference to return the club to the Football League after a two-year exile.

European qualifiers

Leeds United were rewarded for their championship success with a place in the European Cup for the 1992-93 season.

Runners-up Manchester United and third-placed Sheffield Wednesday were England's entrants for the UEFA Cup.

England's place in the Cup Winners Cup went to Liverpool.

Biggest rise

Blackburn Rovers won promotion to the new Premier League to end their 26-year spell outside the top flight.

Biggest fall

Brighton & Hove Albion were relegated to the league's third tier (Division Two next season) just one year after narrowly missing out on promotion to the top flight and eight years after being FA Cup finalists.

Diary of the season

30 August 1991 - Former Tottenham Hotspur full-back Cyril Knowles dies of cancer aged 47. Three months ago he retired as manager of Hartlepool United shortly after taking them to promotion to the Third Division.

23 September 1991 - Arsenal pay a club record 2.5million for Crystal Palace striker Ian Wright.

1 October 1991 - Crystal Palace play a club record 1.5million for Sunderland's 23-year-old striker Marco Gabbiadini.

12 October 1991 - Eight months after his controversial resignation from Liverpool, Kenny Dalglish returns to management with Blackburn Rovers in the Second Division. The 40-year-old Scotsman accepted an offer from chairman Jack Walker, who sees Dalglish as the man to bring top flight football back to one of the country's most historic sides. Dalglish has a dream start to his Blackburn career as his new team crush struggling Plymouth Argyle 5-2.

9 November 1991 - Cambridge United, in the Second Division after two successive promotions, start to look capable of achieving a unique third promotion in a row after going top of the Second Division.

26 December 1991 - Blackburn Rovers displace Cambridge United at the top of the Second Division.

1 January 1992 - Southend United, in the Second Division for the first time in their history, go top of the division for a few hours before Blackburn Rovers regain top spot.

4 January 1992 - Arsenal, defending league champions, lose 2-1 at Wrexham, who finished bottom of the Fourth Division last season, in the FA Cup first round.

6 January 1992 - Terry Butcher, at 33 still the youngest manager in the First Division, is sacked by Coventry City and replaced by his 56-year-old assistant Don Howe.

5 February 1992 - Swansea City winger Alan Davies, 30, is found dead in his car near his home in South Wales. Davies played for Manchester United in the 1983 FA Cup final, and later played for Newcastle United and Bradford City.

6 February 1992 - Newcastle United, second from bottom in the Second Division sack manager Ossie Ardiles after 11 months in charge and replace him with former striker Kevin Keegan.

20 February 1992 - The Football Association confirms that the top 19 clubs in the First Division and the three newly promoted Second Division clubs will break away from the Football League and form a new FA Premier League of 22 clubs for next season.

25 March 1992 - Fourth Division side Aldershot, who have struggled to stay afloat for the last two years, are declared bankrupt and forced to resign from the Football League.

26 April 1992 - Leeds United are confirmed as league champions for the first time in 18 years, and just 2 years after winning promotion, thanks to Manchester United's 2-0 defeat at Liverpool.

1 May 1992 - Dave Stringer resigns as manager of Norwich City. Stringer, 48, had been in charge at Carrow Road for five seasons and had taken the club to the FA Cup semi finals twice as well as a club-best finish of fourth place in 1989. Youth team coach Mike Walker is announced as Stringer's successor.

5 May 1992 - It is announced that England will host the 1996 UEFA European Football Championships.

9 May 1992 - Liverpool lift the FA Cup for the fifth time in their history thanks to a 2-0 win over Sunderland at Wembley.

25 May 1992 - Blackburn Rovers return to the top flight of English football after a 26-year exile after beating Leicester City in the Second Division playoff final. The only goal of the game was a penalty by striker Mike Newell, ironically a former Leicester player.

Deaths

*Cliff Bastin, 79, played centre-forward during Arsenal's hugely successful pre Second World War side and set a goalscoring record for the club which would be unbroken for some 60 years. Had played for Exeter City early in his career and a new stand at the club's St James's Park ground was named after him.
*Alan Davies, 30, who played on the left wing for Manchester United in their 1983 FA Cup triumph, was found dead in his car in South Wales. He had committed suicide. At the time of his death, Davies was employed by Swansea City and his other clubs had included Newcastle United and Bradford City.
*Joe Hulme, 87, was a right-winger for Arsenal in Herbert Chapman's great interwar team. After the war, he was the manager of Tottenham Hotspur for four years.
*Jack Kelsey, 63, kept goal for Arsenal and Wales during the postwar years and played until his career was ended by a back injury suffered against Brazil in 1962.
*Cyril Knowles, 47, who played at left back for Tottenham and England during the late 1960s and early 1970s, died of brain cancer. Achieved Fourth Division promotion success with Darlington in 1985 and Hartlepool United in 1991.
*Mick Leach, 45, played more than 300 games for Queens Park Rangers between 1965 and 1979. He helped them achieve their highest-ever league finish when they finished runners-up in the league title race at the end of the 1975-76 season, and continued at the club for the next three seasons before finishing his career with Cambridge United.
*Tom Wilson, 62, scored for Nottingham Forest in their second FA Cup victory - when they beat Luton Town in the 1959 final at Wembley.