1997–98 Stockport County F.C. season
| 1997–98 season | |
|---|---|
| Manager |
 |
| Stadium | Edgeley Park |
| First Division | 8th |
| FA Cup | Fourth round |
| League Cup | Second round |
During the 1997–98 English football season, Stockport County F.C. competed in the First Division.
Season summary
Stockport's return to the second flight after an absence of 60 years appeared to be in danger of being written off as a failure before a ball had been kicked, as manager Dave Jones, who had led County to promotion and the League Cup semi-final the previous season, left to join Southampton,[1] taking his assistant John Sainty, goalkeeper Paul Jones and defender Lee Todd with him to The Dell. Gary Megson was recruited from Blackpool as his replacement. Three points from the opening seven games left Stockport facing relegation, but four straight wins after that lifted Stockport up to eighth,[2] signalling the end of their relegation fears for the season. These fears were replaced with hopes of finally reaching the top flight, but ultimately County's poor away form saw them finish in eighth, nine points off the play-offs. Of course, this was still as success, for this was Stockport's highest-ever placing in England's footballing ladder while at the same time this season was Manchester City's worst season in their history.
Final league table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | W | D | L | F | A | F | A | GD | Pts | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nottingham Forest | 46 | 18 | 2 | 3 | 52 | 20 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 30 | 22 | 82 | 42 | +40 | 94 | ||||
| 2 | Middlesbrough | 46 | 17 | 4 | 2 | 51 | 12 | 10 | 6 | 7 | 26 | 29 | 77 | 41 | +36 | 91 | ||||
| 3 | Sunderland | 46 | 14 | 7 | 2 | 49 | 22 | 12 | 5 | 6 | 37 | 28 | 86 | 50 | +36 | 90 | ||||
| 4 | Charlton Athletic | 46 | 17 | 5 | 1 | 48 | 17 | 9 | 5 | 9 | 32 | 32 | 80 | 49 | +31 | 88 | ||||
| 5 | Ipswich Town | 46 | 14 | 5 | 4 | 47 | 20 | 9 | 9 | 5 | 30 | 23 | 77 | 43 | +34 | 83 | ||||
| 6 | Sheffield United | 46 | 16 | 5 | 2 | 44 | 20 | 3 | 12 | 8 | 25 | 34 | 69 | 54 | +15 | 74 | ||||
| 7 | Birmingham City | 46 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 27 | 15 | 9 | 9 | 5 | 33 | 20 | 60 | 35 | +25 | 74 | ||||
| 8 | Stockport County | 46 | 14 | 6 | 3 | 46 | 21 | 5 | 2 | 16 | 25 | 48 | 71 | 69 | +2 | 65 | ||||
| 9 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 46 | 13 | 6 | 4 | 42 | 25 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 15 | 28 | 57 | 53 | +4 | 65 | ||||
| 10 | West Bromwich Albion | 46 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 27 | 26 | 7 | 5 | 11 | 23 | 30 | 50 | 56 | –6 | 61 | ||||
| 11 | Crewe Alexandra | 46 | 10 | 2 | 11 | 30 | 34 | 8 | 3 | 12 | 28 | 31 | 58 | 65 | –7 | 59 | ||||
| 12 | Oxford United | 46 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 36 | 20 | 4 | 4 | 15 | 24 | 44 | 60 | 64 | –4 | 58 | ||||
| 13 | Bradford City | 46 | 10 | 9 | 4 | 26 | 23 | 4 | 6 | 13 | 20 | 36 | 46 | 59 | –13 | 57 | ||||
| 14 | Tranmere Rovers | 46 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 34 | 26 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 20 | 31 | 54 | 57 | –3 | 56 | ||||
| 15 | Norwich City | 46 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 32 | 27 | 5 | 5 | 13 | 20 | 42 | 52 | 69 | –17 | 55 | ||||
| 16 | Huddersfield Town | 46 | 9 | 5 | 9 | 28 | 28 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 22 | 44 | 50 | 72 | –22 | 53 | ||||
| 17 | Bury | 46 | 7 | 10 | 6 | 22 | 22 | 4 | 9 | 10 | 20 | 36 | 42 | 58 | –16 | 52 | ||||
| 18 | Swindon Town | 46 | 9 | 6 | 8 | 28 | 25 | 5 | 4 | 14 | 14 | 48 | 42 | 73 | –31 | 52 | ||||
| 19 | Port Vale | 46 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 25 | 24 | 6 | 4 | 13 | 31 | 42 | 56 | 66 | –10 | 49 | ||||
| 20 | Portsmouth | 46 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 28 | 30 | 5 | 4 | 14 | 23 | 33 | 51 | 63 | –12 | 49 | ||||
| 21 | Queens Park Rangers | 46 | 8 | 9 | 6 | 28 | 21 | 2 | 10 | 11 | 23 | 42 | 51 | 63 | –12 | 49 | ||||
| 22 | Manchester City | 46 | 6 | 6 | 11 | 28 | 26 | 6 | 6 | 11 | 28 | 31 | 56 | 57 | –1 | 48 | ||||
| 23 | Stoke City | 46 | 8 | 5 | 10 | 30 | 40 | 3 | 8 | 12 | 14 | 34 | 44 | 74 | –30 | 46 | ||||
| 24 | Reading | 46 | 8 | 4 | 11 | 27 | 31 | 3 | 5 | 15 | 12 | 47 | 39 | 78 | –39 | 42 |
- Pld = Matches ; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points
- NB: In the Football League goals scored (F) takes precedence over goal difference (GD).
| Key | |
|---|---|
| Football League Champions, promoted to FA Premier League | |
| Promoted to FA Premier League | |
| Participated in play-offs | |
| Promoted to Premier League through play-offs | |
| Relegated |
Results
Stockport County's scores comes first
Legend
| Win | Draw | Loss |
First Division
- Stockport County 3-1 Manchester City (Cook, Angell, Armstrong)
- Manchester City 4-1 Stockport County
FA Cup
League Cup
Squad
- Squad at end of season[3]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Left club during season
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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