Season 1983–84 Champion Liverpool F.C. | Champions Liverpool | |
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Similar 1985–86 Football League, 1989–90 Football League, 1991–92 Football League, 1993–94 FA Premier League | ||
The 1983–1984 season was the 85th completed season of The Football League.
Contents
- Final league tables and results
- First Division
- First Division results
- Second Division
- Second Division results
- Third Division
- Fourth Division
- ElectionRe election to the Football League
- References
Liverpool had a successful first season under the management of Joe Fagan as they wrapped up their third successive league title and the 15th in their history. They overcame strong competition from Southampton, Nottingham Forest and Manchester United to lift the championship trophy. Liverpool had an extremely strong season, as they also won the European Cup and the League cup.
Southampton finished second in the league to record their highest-ever final position and achieve a UEFA Cup place, claiming six points from the last two games (both away) to climb up from fifth place.
The First Division relegation places were occupied by Birmingham City, Notts County and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
The £1 rescue deal of Chelsea by chairman Ken Bates paid off as they won the Second Division title and were promoted to the First Division along with Sheffield Wednesday and Newcastle United.
Cambridge United finished bottom of the Second Division and were relegated to the Third Division. They were joined by two clubs who had been enjoying better fortunes only a short time ago — Swansea City, who had finished sixth in the First Division just two years earlier, and Derby County, who had been league champions just nine years earlier. Derby's Peter Taylor retired as manager and his surprise successor was Arthur Cox, who had just taken Newcastle into the First Division.
Dave Bassett agreed to take charge of Crystal Palace at the end of the season, but changed his mind three days later — without signing the contract — and returned to Wimbledon. Palace installed former Manchester United winger Steve Coppell, 29, as their new manager.
Oxford United, Wimbledon and Sheffield United continued their rise through the league by gaining promotion to the Second Division.
Scunthorpe United, Southend United, Port Vale and Exeter City slipped out of the Third Division.
Narrowly avoiding the Third Division drop zone were Plymouth Argyle, who compensated for their league form by reaching the FA Cup semi finals for the first time in their history.
York City, Doncaster Rovers, Reading and Bristol City occupied the Fourth Division promotion places. York City became the first team in English league football to gain more than 100 points in a season, with 101. It was Bristol City's first successful season for a long time and a reversal of fortune after their recent fall from the First to Fourth Division in successive seasons.
The re-election system voted in favour of the bottom four clubs in the Fourth Division once again.
Final league tables and results
The tables and results below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation website, with home and away statistics separated.
During the first five seasons of the league, that is, until the season 1893–94, re-election process concerned the clubs which finished in the bottom four of the league. From the 1894–95 season and until the 1920–21 season the re-election process was required of the clubs which finished in the bottom three of the league. From the 1922–23 season on it was required of the bottom two teams of both Third Division North and Third Division South. Since the Fourth Division was established in the 1958–59 season, the re-election process has concerned the bottom four clubs in that division.
First Division
First Division results
Source:
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Second Division
Second Division results
Source:
1 ^ The home team is listed in the left-hand column.
Colours: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Third Division
Fourth Division
Election/Re-election to the Football League
As winners of the Alliance Premier League, Maidstone United F.C. (1897) won the right (for the 2nd time) to apply for election to the Football League to replace one of the four bottom sides in the 1983–84 Football League Fourth Division. The vote went as follows:
As a result of this, all four Football League teams were re-elected, and Maidstone United were again denied membership of the League.