1993 Football League First Division play-off final
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Date | 31 May 1993 | ||||||
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Venue | Wembley Stadium, London | ||||||
Referee | David Elleray (Harrow) | ||||||
Attendance | 73,802 | ||||||
Weather | Sunny | ||||||
The 1993 Football League First Division play-off Final was an
Swindon took a 3–0 lead as they scored three goals in eleven minutes either side of half time.
Four days after the match, Hoddle was confirmed as player-manager at
Route to the final
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Newcastle United | 46 | 29 | 9 | 8 | 92 | 38 | +54 | 96 |
2 | West Ham United | 46 | 26 | 10 | 10 | 81 | 41 | +40 | 88 |
3 | Portsmouth | 46 | 26 | 10 | 10 | 80 | 46 | +34 | 88 |
4 | Tranmere Rovers | 46 | 23 | 10 | 13 | 72 | 56 | +16 | 79 |
5 | Swindon Town | 46 | 21 | 13 | 12 | 74 | 59 | +15 | 76 |
6 | Leicester City | 46 | 22 | 10 | 14 | 71 | 64 | +7 | 76 |
Swindon Town faced Tranmere Rovers in their play-off semi-final and the first leg was played at the
Leicester City's play-off semi-final opponents were Portsmouth and the first leg took place on 16 May 1993. The match was hosted at Nottingham Forest's home stadium, the City Ground, as Leicester's Filbert Street was undergoing redevelopment. The game, described by Paul Weaver in The Guardian as "dreadful", was "partially redeemed by a stunning goal" from Julian Joachim, a second-half substitute for Leicester.[4] It was the only goal of the game which ended 1–0.[4] The second leg was played at Fratton Park three days later and was goalless at half time. Six minutes into the second half, Portsmouth took the lead when Alan McLoughlin scored from a George Lawrence header. Within two minutes Leicester had equalised when Ian Ormondroyd found the target following a deflected shot from David Oldfield. Steve Thompson then put Leicester ahead in the 69th minute with a shot from the edge of the penalty area beating the Portsmouth goalkeeper Alan Knight. Three minutes later, Bjørn Kristensen levelled the score once more with an 18-yard (16 m) curling shot into the far corner of the Leicester goal. The game ended 2–2, and ensured Leicester a 3–2 aggregate victory.[5]
Match
Background
This was Leicester's second appearance in the First Division play-off final: they had lost 1–0 to Blackburn Rovers in the previous season's final.[6] They had played in the second tier of English football since they were relegated from the First Division in the 1986–87 season.[7][8] Swindon had beaten Gillingham 2–0 in a replay after the 1987 Football League Third Division play-off final, which was played over two legs, had ended 2–2 on aggregate. Swindon had played in the second tier since that promotion.[9][10] They had also won a play-off final at Wembley Stadium when they beat Sunderland 1–0 in the 1990 Football League Second Division play-off final.[6] However, the club's promotion was overturned by the Football League as a result of financial irregularities. As a result, Swindon were relegated to the Third Division, but that decision was later overturned on appeal.[10][11] As such, Swindon were aiming to be promoted to the top flight of English football for the first time in the 73-year League history of the club.[12]
Leicester's top scorer during the regular season was Steve Walsh with fifteen goals in all competitions, followed by Joachim and David Lowe on twelve.[13] Maskell had scored the most goals for Swindon with twenty-one in all competitions, while Mitchell had scored fifteen.[14] In the matches played between both sides during the regular season, Leicester had won their home game 4–2 in December 1992, while the return fixture at the County Ground the following April ended in a 1–1 draw.[15]
The referee for the match was
Summary
The match
Two minutes after the break, Maskell doubled Swindon's lead. After a one-two with Moncur, he struck the ball into the goal inside the far post. In the 53rd minute, Shaun Taylor made it 3–0 with a header after Poole was hesitant to claim the ball. Walsh struck over the bar before, four minutes later, Joachim scored his fourteenth goal of the season after converting a rebound off the post of the Swindon goal.[18] In the 68th minute, a cross beyond the far post was passed back across the box, over Digby, and was headed in by Walsh to make it 3–2.[24] Author Dick Mattick suggested that at this point in the game, "panic set in" for Swindon and Leicester started "cutting swathes through the [Swindon] Town defence".[25] Thompson completed Leicester's comeback a minute later after scoring with a low shot.[25] Swindon's Ling then saw his strike saved by Poole, before Taylor's header was cleared off the line by Leicester. Mitchell's shot was then smothered before the referee awarded Swindon a penalty in the 84th minute: Hoddle played a 50-yard (46 m) pass to substitute Steve White who fell in the Leicester penalty area after contact with both Poole and Colin Hill. Elleray adjudged it to have been a foul, and Bodin stepped up to take the spot kick. Despite a "nonchalant" run-up, his carefully taken strike beat Poole to his left. No further goals were scored, the match ended 4–3 and Swindon were promoted to the Premiership.[12]
Details
Leicester City | 3–4 | Swindon Town |
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Joachim 57' Walsh 68' Thompson 69' |
[16][23] | Hoddle 42' Maskell 47' Taylor 53' Bodin 84' (pen.) |
Leicester City
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Swindon Town
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Post-match
Trevor Haylett, writing in The Independent, described the match as an "absolute cracker" and that the late penalty was "the last act of a heart-stopping drama".[16] Little was stoic about the late penalty award: "I was surprised it was given ... But I'm not going to change the decision, am I?"[12] Referencing Leicester's defeat in the 1992 play-off final as a result of a penalty, he added: "It's almost the same speech as last year".[12] The match was deemed "a minor English classic climaxing the domestic season" by Russell Thomas of The Guardian.[12] He went on to suggest that Swindon's 73-year journey to the top flight of English football was "completed with a flourish worthy of one of the country's most pleasing teams".[12] Clive Baskerville wrote in the Reading Evening Post that the spectators were "entertained by a standard of football rarely seen [that] season".[26] He also suggested that Hoddle should be considered as the next England national football team manager.[26] The Evening Herald in Dublin reported that it was an "extraordinary play-off final".[27] In 2009, Eurosport listed it as the 94th best association football match of all-time.[28]
Hoddle noted that it was his proudest moment in football, stating: "To take a club up that has never been in the top flight and in these circumstances is a great feeling".[16] He pointed out: "We have sold something like £2 million worth of players in two years and this year we have spent just £100,000 in a swap deal for Craig Maskell".[25] After the game, Hoddle refused to be drawn on his future with Swindon, saying "I want people tomorrow to read about Swindon's promotion, not Glenn Hoddle ... I'm under contract to Swindon, so there's no question to answer".[12] Referring to Swindon's cancelled promotion in 1990, he reflected: "We've wiped the slate clean after three years".[12] Hoddle's assistant John Gorman noted: "It's fantastic, unbelievable. I won promotion at Carlisle but there's no comparison".[29]
On the evening of 2 June, a bus-top parade through the town was held during which thousands of fans held aloft banners "in a final plea to the management duo" to remain with the club.
In their
References
- ^ a b "League Division 1 end of season table for 1992–93 season". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Archived from the original on 3 September 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ a b Thomas, Russell (17 May 1993). "King's men hit by salvo". The Guardian. p. 15. Archived from the original on 13 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Bierley, Stephen (20 May 1993). "Robins hold off Rovers". The Guardian. p. 20. Archived from the original on 13 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b Weaver, Paul (17 May 1993). "Joachim shines late in the gloom". The Guardian. p. 15. Archived from the original on 3 September 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Thomas, Russell (20 May 1993). "Thompson boost for Little men". The Guardian. p. 20. Archived from the original on 13 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b "Play-Off Final History & Stats". Sporting Life. 25 May 2015. Archived from the original on 9 October 2016. Retrieved 3 May 2020.
- ^ "The Managers: David Pleat, 1987–1991". Leicester City F.C. 19 November 2018. Archived from the original on 11 May 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ "The Managers: Brian Little, 1991–1994". Leicester City F.C. 16 January 2019. Archived from the original on 13 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ Foster 2015, pp. 55–56
- ^ a b "Club History". Swindon Town F.C. 1 April 2017. Archived from the original on 25 May 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ "Bitter pair in quest for top". The Guardian. 31 May 1993. p. 14. Archived from the original on 13 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Thomas, Russell (1 June 1993). "Hoddle provides finishing touch". The Guardian. p. 14. Archived from the original on 3 September 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ISBN 978-0-7472-7895-5.
- ISBN 978-0-7472-7895-5.
- ^ "Swindon Town football club: record v Leicester City". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Archived from the original on 13 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ a b c d Haylett, Trevor (1 June 1993). "Football / Play Off: Swindon lifted by Hoddle's husbandry: An unsettling sense of deja vu as Wembley proves an unhappy hunting ground for Leicester". The Independent. Archived from the original on 28 June 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ Bateman, Cynthia (29 May 1993). "Six managers of style". The Guardian. p. 23. Archived from the original on 3 September 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d Mattick 2004, p. 109
- ^ a b "Joachim aims to make Premier dream reality". Staffordshire Sentinel. 29 May 1993. p. 60. Retrieved 14 July 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ Foster 2015, p. 112
- ^ "Swindon bite!". Staffordshire Sentinel. 28 May 1993. p. 75. Retrieved 6 September 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ Banks, Tony (31 May 1993). "Swindon tipped to make it at last". Newcastle Journal. p. 38. Retrieved 6 September 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ a b "Swindon Town v Leicester City, 31 May 1993". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Archived from the original on 14 July 2020. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ Mattick 2004, pp. 109–110
- ^ a b c Mattick 2004, p. 110
- ^ a b Baskerville, Clive (1 June 1993). "That's football at its best". Reading Evening Post. p. 26. Retrieved 13 July 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Glenn guides Swindon up but could move on to Chelsea". The Evening Herald. Dublin. 1 June 1993. p. 69. Retrieved 13 July 2020 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ "Top 100: the complete list". Eurosport. Archived from the original on 1 December 2009. Retrieved 15 July 2020.
- ^ "Enjoying the moment ... and keeping mum". Evening Advertiser. 3 June 1993. p. 6.
- ^ a b Duffell, Phil (3 June 1993). "48 hours to keep Hoddle". Evening Advertiser. p. 1.
- ^ "Goal hero Bodin will miss the big night". Evening Advertiser. 2 June 1993.
- ^ "A celebration tinged with uncertainty". Evening Advertiser. 3 June 1993. p. 15.
- ^ Duffell, Phil (4 June 1993). "Glenn goes – Hoddle signs as Chelsea manager – John stays – Gorman takes over at the Town". Evening Advertiser. p. 1.
- ^ "No apology says Hoddle". Evening Advertiser. 4 June 1993. p. 1.
- ^ "Chelsea". fchd.info. Archived from the original on 8 June 2008. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
- ^ "FA Cup Finals, 1872 – today". The Football Association. Archived from the original on 13 June 2017. Retrieved 9 July 2020.
- ^ "Premier League table at close of 1993–94 season". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Archived from the original on 14 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ Tomas, Jason (24 April 1994). "Wednesday's high leaves Ipswich low". The Observer. p. 65. Archived from the original on 3 September 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ "Premier League Records: Own Goals, Red Cards, Fewest Goals Scored, Most Defeats & More". Sports Illustrated. 23 August 2019. Archived from the original on 14 September 2019. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ "Stats Centre – Premier League Records". Premier League. Archived from the original on 1 July 2020. Retrieved 2 August 2020.
- ^ "League Division 1 table at close of 1993–94 season". 11v11.com. AFS Enterprises. Archived from the original on 13 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ "Wembley Way". The Observer. 29 May 1994. p. 50. Archived from the original on 3 September 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- ^ Lacey, David (31 May 1994). "Third time lucky for Leicester". The Guardian. p. 16. Archived from the original on 13 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
- Foster, Richard (2015). The Agony & The Ecstasy. Ockley Books. ISBN 978-1-910906-00-2.
- Mattick, Dick (2004). Swindon Town Football Club – Fifty of the Finest Matches. Tempus Publishing Limited. ISBN 978-0-7524-2866-6.