2003 Football League First Division playoff final
Encyclopedia
The 2003 Football League First Division playoff final was a football match played at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium
on 26 May 2003, at the end of the 2002–03 season. The match determined the third and final team to gain promotion
from the First Division
to the Premier League, and was contested by Sheffield United
and Wolverhampton Wanderers
.
Wolves
won the match 3–0, with three first-half goals, taking them back to the top flight for the first time in 19 years.
Sheffield United finished the season in third place in the First Division, 12 points behind the runaway top two and . They had enjoyed a successful season, being positioned in the playoff zone almost throughout and reaching the semi finals of both the FA Cup and League Cup.
Wolves had had an inconsistent first half to the campaign after the disappointment of their late slump in form during the previous season which had lost them promotion to local rivals . A stronger run of form in the closing months however, earned them a second successive place in the play-offs with a fifth place finish, four points behind their opponents.
Both clubs had confirmed their play-off place with games to spare, before meeting in their penultimate league match - a 3–3 draw at Bramall Lane
. In their first meeting of the season Sheffield United had won 3–1 at Molineux
.
In the play-off semi-finals, Sheffield United drew at sixth-placed 1–1 in the first leg, before a thrilling 4–3 extra time victory at Bramall Lane took them to the final.
Wolves meanwhile faced , winning the first leg 2–1 after coming from behind and edging a narrow 1–0 success in the away leg to progress 3–1 on aggregate. This marked their first play-off semi final success at this level in four attempts.
headed in from close range at a corner. A three-goal lead was established moments before the half time interval when Kenny Miller
converted after a quick counter attack.
Sheffield United manager Neil Warnock
was sent to the stands at half time after arguing with referee Steve Bennett
. He saw his side offered a route back into the contest when they were awarded a penalty in the 48th minute after Wolves' defender Paul Butler
was adjudged to have handled. However, Michael Brown's spotkick was pushed away by goalkeeper Matt Murray
.
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WOLVERHAMPTON WANDERERS:
|
GK
13
Matt Murray
LB
3
Lee Naylor
CB
5
Joleon Lescott
CB
6
Paul Butler
RB
8
Denis Irwin
LM
11
Mark Kennedy
CM
10
Colin Cameron
CM
23
Paul Ince
(c)
RM
7
Shaun Newton
FW
16
Kenny Miller
FW
9
Nathan Blake
Substitutes:
GK
1
Michael Oakes
DF
24
Marc Edworthy
MF
4
Alex Rae
FW
12
Adam Proudlock
FW
29
Dean Sturridge
Manager:
Dave Jones
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium is the national stadium of Wales, located in the capital, Cardiff. It is the home of the Wales national rugby union team and also frequently stages games of the Wales national football team, but is also host to many other large scale events, such as the Super Special Stage...
on 26 May 2003, at the end of the 2002–03 season. The match determined the third and final team to gain promotion
Promotion and relegation
In many sports leagues around the world, promotion and relegation is a process that takes place at the end of each season. Through it, teams are transferred between divisions based on their performance that season...
from the First Division
Football League First Division
The First Division was a division of The Football League between 1888 and 2004 and the highest division in English football until the creation of the Premier League in 1992. The secondary tier in English football has since become known as the Championship....
to the Premier League, and was contested by Sheffield United
Sheffield United F.C.
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional English football club based in the city of Sheffield, South Yorkshire.They were the first sporting team to use the name 'United' and are nicknamed 'The Blades', thanks to Sheffield's worldwide reputation for steel production...
and Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
.
Wolves
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at...
won the match 3–0, with three first-half goals, taking them back to the top flight for the first time in 19 years.
Route to the final
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | F | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Portsmouth Portsmouth F.C. Portsmouth Football Club is an English football club based in the city of Portsmouth. The club is nicknamed Pompey. Portsmouth's home matches have been played at Fratton Park since the club's formation in 1898. The team currently play in the Football League Championship after being relegated from... |
46 | 29 | 11 | 6 | 97 | 45 | 98 |
| 2. | Leicester City Leicester City F.C. Leicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester... |
46 | 26 | 14 | 6 | 73 | 40 | 92 |
| 3. | Sheffield United Sheffield United F.C. Sheffield United Football Club is a professional English football club based in the city of Sheffield, South Yorkshire.They were the first sporting team to use the name 'United' and are nicknamed 'The Blades', thanks to Sheffield's worldwide reputation for steel production... |
46 | 23 | 11 | 12 | 72 | 52 | 80 |
| 4. | Reading Reading F.C. Reading Football Club is an English association football club based in the town of Reading, Berkshire who currently play in the Championship... |
46 | 25 | 4 | 17 | 61 | 46 | 79 |
| 5. | Wolverhampton Wanderers Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C. Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club is an English professional association football club that represents the city of Wolverhampton in the West Midlands region. They are members of the Premier League, the highest level of English football. The club was founded in 1877 and since 1889 has played at... |
46 | 20 | 16 | 10 | 81 | 44 | 76 |
| 6. | Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest F.C. Nottingham Forest Football Club is an English Association Football club based in West Bridgford, Nottingham, that plays in the Football League Championship... |
46 | 20 | 14 | 12 | 82 | 50 | 74 |
| Pos=Position P=Games played W=Wins D=Draws L=Losses F=Goals for A=Goals against Pts=Points |
||||||||
Sheffield United finished the season in third place in the First Division, 12 points behind the runaway top two and . They had enjoyed a successful season, being positioned in the playoff zone almost throughout and reaching the semi finals of both the FA Cup and League Cup.
Wolves had had an inconsistent first half to the campaign after the disappointment of their late slump in form during the previous season which had lost them promotion to local rivals . A stronger run of form in the closing months however, earned them a second successive place in the play-offs with a fifth place finish, four points behind their opponents.
Both clubs had confirmed their play-off place with games to spare, before meeting in their penultimate league match - a 3–3 draw at Bramall Lane
Bramall Lane
-Cricket at the Lane:Bramall Lane opened as a cricket ground in 1855, having been leased by Michael Ellison from the Duke of Norfolk at an annual rent of £70. The site was then away from the town's industrial area, and relatively free from smoke. It was built to host the matches of local cricket...
. In their first meeting of the season Sheffield United had won 3–1 at Molineux
Molineux stadium
Molineux Stadium is a Premier League football stadium situated in Whitmore Reans, Wolverhampton, England. It has been the home ground of Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club since 1889, and has a long and illustrious history as the first 'new build' stadium in Football League history, one of the...
.
In the play-off semi-finals, Sheffield United drew at sixth-placed 1–1 in the first leg, before a thrilling 4–3 extra time victory at Bramall Lane took them to the final.
Wolves meanwhile faced , winning the first leg 2–1 after coming from behind and edging a narrow 1–0 success in the away leg to progress 3–1 on aggregate. This marked their first play-off semi final success at this level in four attempts.
Match summary
Mark Kennedy opened the scoring in the 6th minute with a low drive into the corner of the net from 20 yards. Their lead was doubled 16 minutes later when Nathan BlakeNathan Blake
Nathan Alexander Blake is a Welsh former professional footballer, who played in the Premier League for several clubs and also represented his country at international level...
headed in from close range at a corner. A three-goal lead was established moments before the half time interval when Kenny Miller
Kenny Miller
Kenneth "Kenny" Miller is a Scottish footballer who plays as a striker for Cardiff City and the Scotland national football team...
converted after a quick counter attack.
Sheffield United manager Neil Warnock
Neil Warnock
Neil Warnock is an English former footballer who is currently manager of English Premier League club Queens Park Rangers....
was sent to the stands at half time after arguing with referee Steve Bennett
Steve Bennett (referee)
Stephen Graham Bennett is a former English football referee who operated in the Premier League, and previously for FIFA as an assistant referee and then referee.-Career:...
. He saw his side offered a route back into the contest when they were awarded a penalty in the 48th minute after Wolves' defender Paul Butler
Paul Butler (footballer)
Paul John Butler He is a former footballer where he played as a centre-back. Despite being born in Manchester he played for Republic of Ireland. He is currently chief scout at Oldham Athletic...
was adjudged to have handled. However, Michael Brown's spotkick was pushed away by goalkeeper Matt Murray
Matt Murray
Matthew William "Matt" Murray is an English former football goalkeeper who spent his entire career at Wolverhampton Wanderers. His career was plagued by injuries which eventually forced him to retire aged 29.-Career:...
.
Match details
| style="font-size: 90%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"> | SHEFFIELD UNITED: | |||
| GK | 23 | Paddy Kenny Paddy Kenny Patrick Joseph "Paddy" Kenny is a footballer who currently plays as a goalkeeper for Queens Park Rangers in the Barclays Premier League.-Early career:... |
||
| LB | 2 | Robert Kozluk Robert Kozluk Robert Kozluk is an English footballer who plays for League Two side Port Vale. Predominantly a right-back, he can also operate on the left or at the centre of defence when needed.... |
||
| CB | 6 | Robert Page Robert Page (footballer) Robert Page is a Welsh former international football defender, who is now a youth team coach at Port Vale. In an eighteen year career in the Premier League and the Football League he made 475 league appearances for six different clubs... (c) |
||
| CB | 17 | Phil Jagielka Phil Jagielka Philip Nikodem "Phil" Jagielka is an English international footballer who plays for Everton in the Premier League. He played regularly in central midfield for his previous club Sheffield United, but generally plays in central defence for Everton... |
||
| RB | 36 | John Curtis |
||
| LM | 18 | Michael Tonge Michael Tonge Michael William Eric Tonge is an English footballer who plays for Stoke City.Born in Manchester and raised in Astley, Tonge began his football career at Manchester United but moved to Sheffield United at the age of 16 after being released by the Premier League club. Tonge attended Bedford High... |
||
| CM | 7 | Michael Brown |
||
| CM | 26 | Mark Rankine Mark Rankine Simon Mark Rankine is an English former footballer, who played over 700 games in English football in a 19-year career.-Career:... |
||
| RM | 16 |  Peter NdlovuPeter Ndlovu Peter Ndlovu is a Zimbabwean footballer, who plays as a striker.-Coventry City:Ndlovu was originally spotted by John Sillett, prior to his official signing from Highlanders by Terry Butcher in July 1991... |
||
| FW | 9 | Carl Asaba Carl Asaba Carl Edward Asaba is a former English professional football player who played as a striker.-Career:Asaba first came to prominence at Brentford, debuting in 1994 after joining the club from Dulwich Hamlet. His goalscoring soon attracted attention and Reading signed him for a club record £800,000... |
||
| FW | 34 | Steve Kabba Steve Kabba Sorfitu Tejan "Steve" Kabba is an English professional footballer. He is of Sierra Leonean origin. He plays as a striker for Football League Two side Barnet... |
||
| Substitutes: | ||||
| GK | 24 | Gary Kelly Gary Kelly (footballer born 1966) Gareth "Gary" Kelly is an Irish former professional football goalkeeper. He is the son of former Irish international goalkeeper Alan Kelly, Sr.... |
||
| MF | 8 | Stuart McCall Stuart McCall Andrew Stuart Murray McCall , usually known as Stuart McCall, is a former footballer who played in central midfield. He played a total of 763 league games during his career, the 13th highest of all British footballers... |
||
| MF | 12 | Nick Montgomery Nick Montgomery Nicholas Anthony Montgomery is an English-born Scottish footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Football League One club Sheffield United.-Sheffield United:... |
||
| FW | 10 |  Paul PeschisolidoPaul Peschisolido Paolo Pasquale Peschisolido , commonly known as Paul Peschisolido, is a Canadian association football manager and former player... |
||
| FW | 14 | Wayne Allison Wayne Allison Wayne Anthony Allison is an English former footballer and coach. In a career spanning over 20 years; he has previously played for eight clubs and scored more than 200 goals. He is a centre forward and is nicknamed the "Chief"... |
||
| Manager: | ||||
| Neil Warnock Neil Warnock Neil Warnock is an English former footballer who is currently manager of English Premier League club Queens Park Rangers.... |
||||
Matt MurrayMatt Murray
Matthew William "Matt" Murray is an English former football goalkeeper who spent his entire career at Wolverhampton Wanderers. His career was plagued by injuries which eventually forced him to retire aged 29.-Career:...
Lee Naylor Joleon LescottJoleon Lescott
Joleon Patrick Lescott is an English footballer who currently plays for Manchester City. He plays as a centre-back, though he has played in various other positions across the defensive line, in particular left-back....
Paul Butler Denis IrwinDenis Irwin
Denis Joseph Irwin is a former Irish football player who is best known for his long and successful stint at Manchester United, where he established himself as one of the most important players in the United team that won a host of domestic and European trophies in his time there between 1990 and...
Mark Kennedy Colin Cameron Paul IncePaul Ince
Paul Emerson Carlyle Ince is an English football manager and a former professional player. He has managed Blackburn Rovers, Milton Keynes Dons and Macclesfield Town...
(c)
Shaun NewtonShaun Newton
Shaun O'Neill Newton is an English footballer whose favoured position is that of attacking right-sided midfielder...
Kenny MillerKenny Miller
Kenneth "Kenny" Miller is a Scottish footballer who plays as a striker for Cardiff City and the Scotland national football team...
Nathan BlakeNathan Blake
Nathan Alexander Blake is a Welsh former professional footballer, who played in the Premier League for several clubs and also represented his country at international level...
Michael OakesMichael Oakes
Michael Christian Oakes is an English former professional football goalkeeper who is currently working with Wrexham as a goalkeeping coach and Assistant Manager Under Andy Morrell. He is the son of former Manchester City footballer Alan Oakes.- Aston Villa :Oakes began his career in Aston Villa's...
Marc EdworthyMarc Edworthy
Marc Edworthy is a former English professional footballer. He started out playing as a right winger before being moved to right back...
Alex Rae Adam ProudlockAdam Proudlock
Adam David Proudlock is an English footballer who plays for AFC Telford United as a striker. He notably played as a professional for Wolverhampton Wanderers and Sheffield Wednesday, having also featured for Clyde, Nottingham Forest, Tranmere Rovers, Ipswich Town, Stockport County, Darlington and...
Dean SturridgeDean Sturridge
Dean Constantine Sturridge is an English former footballer who played as a striker.-Derby County:Sturridge began his career as a trainee at Derby County, and worked his way through the ranks to make his first team debut on 11 January 1992 in a 1-0 defeat at Southend United.He gained more first...
Dave JonesMATCH OFFICIALS
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MATCH RULES
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