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1972–73 Football League
74th season of the Football League
74th season of the Football League
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| competition | The Football League |
| season | [1972–73](1972-73-in-english-football) |
| winners | Liverpool |
| continentalcup1 | New Club in League |
| continentalcup1 qualifiers | Hereford United |
| prevseason | [1971–72](1971-72-football-league) |
| nextseason | [1973–74](1973-74-football-league) |
The 1972–73 season was the 74th completed season of The Football League.
Liverpool's championship win meant they claimed their first trophy since 1966 in Bill Shankly's penultimate season as manager despite competition from Arsenal, Leeds United, Ipswich Town and Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Manchester United sacked manager Frank O'Farrell after 18 months in charge. He had been unable to mount a title challenge. Tommy Docherty, the 44-year-old Scottish national coach and former Aston Villa manager, was appointed as his successor. Bobby Charlton and Denis Law both played their last games for the club while George Best's appearances were becoming increasingly rare.
Burnley and Queens Park Rangers won promotion to the First Division. Huddersfield Town's decline continued as they slid into the Third Division, where they were joined by Brighton & Hove Albion.
Bolton Wanderers and Notts County occupied the two promotion places in the Third Division. Rotherham United, Brentford, Swansea City and Scunthorpe United were relegated to the Fourth Division.
Hereford United were promoted from the Fourth Division in their first season as a Football League club. They had been elected to the Football League a year earlier after winning the Southern League and achieving a shock win over Newcastle United in the FA Cup. They were joined in the promotion zone by champions Southport, Cambridge United and Aldershot. Newport County missed promotion only on goal average. There were no arrivals or departures in the league for 1973.
Final league tables and results
The tables below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation website and in Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79, with home and away statistics separated.
Beginning with the season 1894–95, clubs finishing level on points were separated according to goal average (goals scored divided by goals conceded), or more properly put, goal ratio. In case one or more teams had the same goal difference, this system favoured those teams who had scored fewer goals. The goal average system was eventually scrapped beginning with the 1976–77 season.
Since the Fourth Division was established in the 1958–59 season, the bottom four teams of that division have been required to apply for re-election.
First Division
8th title West Bromwich Albion Ipswich Town Wolverhampton Wanderers Tottenham Hotspur Stoke City (28 goals) (23 September 1972) Leeds United 5–0 Derby County (7 October 1972) Crystal Palace 5–0 Manchester United (16 October 1972) Derby County 5–0 Arsenal (25 November 1972) Leeds United 6–1 Arsenal (9 March 1973) (3 March 1973) (30 September 1972)
Results
Maps
Arsenal Chelsea Crystal Palace Tottenham West Ham
Arsenal Birmingham Chelsea Coventry Crystal Palace Derby County Everton Ipswich Town Leeds United Leicester City Liverpool Manchester City Manchester United Newcastle Norwich City Sheffield United Southampton Stoke Tottenham West Bromwich Albion West Ham Wolverhampton Wanderers
Second Division
Queens Park Rangers Brighton & Hove Albion Cardiff City Hull City (23 goals) (26 December 1972) Queens Park Rangers 5–0 Swindon Town (17 February 1973) Queens Park Rangers 5–0 Portsmouth (31 March 1973) (10 February 1973) (27 January 1973) Blackpool 6–2 Brighton & Hove Albion (19 April 1973)
Results
|match_AST_B&HA=1–1
|match_BLP_B&HA=6–2
|name_B&HA=Brighton & Hove Albion |match_B&HA_AST=1–3 |match_B&HA_BLP=1–2 |match_B&HA_BRI=1–1 |match_B&HA_BUR=0–1 |match_B&HA_CAR=2–2 |match_B&HA_CRL=1–0 |match_B&HA_FUL=2–1 |match_B&HA_HUD=2–1 |match_B&HA_HUL=1–1 |match_B&HA_LUT=2–0 |match_B&HA_MID=0–2 |match_B&HA_MIL=1–3 |match_B&HA_NOT=2–2 |match_B&HA_ORI=2–1 |match_B&HA_OXF=2–2 |match_B&HA_POR=1–1 |match_B&HA_PNE=2–0 |match_B&HA_QPR=1–2 |match_B&HA_SHW=3–3 |match_B&HA_SUN=2–2 |match_B&HA_SWI=3–1
|match_BRI_B&HA=3–1
|match_BUR_B&HA=3–0
|match_CAR_B&HA=1–1
|match_CRL_B&HA=5–1
|match_FUL_B&HA=5–1
|match_HUD_B&HA=0–2
|match_HUL_B&HA=2–0
|match_LUT_B&HA=2–1
|match_MID_B&HA=1–1
|match_MIL_B&HA=3–0
|match_NOT_B&HA=1–0
|match_ORI_B&HA=1–0
|match_OXF_B&HA=3–0
|match_POR_B&HA=2–0
|match_PNE_B&HA=4–0
|match_QPR_B&HA=2–0
|match_SHW_B&HA=1–1
|match_SUN_B&HA=4–0
|match_SWI_B&HA=2–2
Maps
Fulham Orient Millwall Queens Park Rangers
Aston Villa Blackpool Brighton & Hove Bristol City Burnley Carlisle United Cardiff City Fulham Hull Huddersfield Orient Luton Town Middlesbrough Millwall Nottingham Forest Oxford Portsmouth Preston North End QPR Sheffield Wednesday Sunderland Swindon
Third Division
Third Division Rotherham United, Scunthorpe United, Swansea City
Results
Maps
Brentford Charlton Athletic Watford
Blackburn Rovers Bolton Bournemouth Brentford Bristol Rovers Charlton Chesterfield Grimsby Town Halifax Town Notts County Oldham Plymouth Argyle Port Vale Rochdale Rotherham Scunthorpe & Lindsey Shrewsbury Southend Swansea City Tranmere Walsall Watford Wrexham York City
Fourth Division
Fourth Division Cambridge United, Hereford United
Results
Maps
Aldershot Barnsley Bradford City Bury Cambridge U. Chester Colchester Crewe Alexandra Darlington Doncaster Exeter City Gillingham Hartlepool Hereford United Lincoln City Mansfield Town Newport County Northampton Town Peterborough Reading Stockport Southport Torquay Workington
Attendances
Source:
Division One
| No. | Club | Average | Highest | Lowest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester United | 48,623 | 61,676 | 36,073 |
| 2 | Liverpool FC | 48,127 | 56,202 | 41,550 |
| 3 | Arsenal FC | 40,246 | 56,194 | 27,199 |
| 4 | Birmingham City FC | 36,663 | 51,278 | 30,757 |
| 5 | Leeds United FC | 35,831 | 46,468 | 25,088 |
| 6 | Everton FC | 34,471 | 54,856 | 21,806 |
| 7 | Manchester City FC | 32,351 | 52,086 | 23,973 |
| 8 | Tottenham Hotspur FC | 32,318 | 51,291 | 16,942 |
| 9 | West Ham United FC | 30,174 | 38,804 | 23,269 |
| 10 | Crystal Palace FC | 30,167 | 44,536 | 17,858 |
| 11 | Derby County FC | 29,766 | 38,462 | 20,374 |
| 12 | Chelsea FC | 29,722 | 51,102 | 18,279 |
| 13 | Norwich City FC | 28,420 | 36,688 | 19,320 |
| 14 | Newcastle United FC | 27,939 | 38,964 | 18,103 |
| 15 | Coventry City FC | 24,623 | 42,911 | 16,391 |
| 16 | Wolverhampton Wanderers FC | 24,418 | 34,049 | 14,888 |
| 17 | Stoke City FC | 23,800 | 36,063 | 17,770 |
| 18 | Sheffield United FC | 23,509 | 40,035 | 16,231 |
| 19 | Leicester City FC | 22,706 | 35,876 | 15,307 |
| 20 | Ipswich Town FC | 22,241 | 34,636 | 16,948 |
| 21 | West Bromwich Albion FC | 21,427 | 39,209 | 12,147 |
| 22 | Southampton FC | 18,118 | 24,164 | 12,125 |
Division Two
| No. | Club | Average | Highest | Lowest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aston Villa FC | 27,693 | 38,637 | 15,902 |
| 2 | Sunderland AFC | 22,603 | 43,265 | 11,141 |
| 3 | Sheffield Wednesday FC | 17,076 | 30,394 | 8,455 |
| 4 | Queens Park Rangers FC | 14,715 | 22,518 | 9,790 |
| 5 | Brighton & Hove Albion FC | 14,167 | 18,699 | 9,709 |
| 6 | Burnley FC | 14,083 | 22,852 | 9,834 |
| 7 | Bristol City FC | 12,892 | 20,490 | 10,588 |
| 8 | Cardiff City FC | 11,456 | 21,982 | 6,235 |
| 9 | Blackpool FC | 10,782 | 25,277 | 5,303 |
| 10 | Luton Town FC | 10,643 | 15,799 | 6,177 |
| 11 | Middlesbrough FC | 10,418 | 24,145 | 6,816 |
| 12 | Swindon Town FC | 10,267 | 15,552 | 7,245 |
| 13 | Fulham FC | 10,267 | 20,895 | 6,262 |
| 14 | Millwall FC | 10,265 | 16,136 | 7,811 |
| 15 | Preston North End FC | 10,199 | 21,550 | 5,759 |
| 16 | Nottingham Forest FC | 9,995 | 18,082 | 6,414 |
| 17 | Portsmouth FC | 9,477 | 16,419 | 4,688 |
| 18 | Hull City AFC | 9,233 | 13,580 | 5,278 |
| 19 | Oxford United FC | 9,197 | 13,647 | 4,954 |
| 20 | Huddersfield Town AFC | 8,175 | 13,689 | 3,871 |
| 21 | Carlisle United FC | 7,606 | 17,840 | 5,517 |
| 22 | Leyton Orient FC | 6,449 | 10,629 | 3,887 |
Division Three
| No. | Club | Average | Highest | Lowest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bolton Wanderers FC | 13,928 | 33,309 | 5,788 |
| 2 | AFC Bournemouth | 12,268 | 18,374 | 8,579 |
| 3 | Grimsby Town FC | 10,849 | 16,807 | 7,395 |
| 4 | Notts County FC | 10,701 | 23,613 | 6,118 |
| 5 | Blackburn Rovers FC | 9,214 | 16,346 | 5,710 |
| 6 | Plymouth Argyle FC | 9,057 | 20,104 | 4,768 |
| 7 | Bristol Rovers FC | 8,884 | 18,567 | 5,750 |
| 8 | Brentford FC | 8,742 | 11,803 | 6,067 |
| 9 | Oldham Athletic FC | 8,256 | 19,745 | 4,516 |
| 10 | Southend United FC | 7,329 | 11,233 | 4,347 |
| 11 | Watford FC | 6,749 | 9,241 | 4,578 |
| 12 | Chesterfield FC | 5,723 | 8,755 | 3,508 |
| 13 | Charlton Athletic FC | 5,658 | 7,375 | 3,015 |
| 14 | Tranmere Rovers | 5,615 | 14,356 | 2,830 |
| 15 | Port Vale FC | 5,429 | 14,168 | 3,468 |
| 16 | Walsall FC | 4,803 | 8,159 | 3,402 |
| 17 | Rotherham United FC | 4,733 | 7,045 | 2,907 |
| 18 | Wrexham AFC | 4,546 | 6,586 | 2,611 |
| 19 | York City FC | 3,793 | 9,894 | 2,307 |
| 20 | Scunthorpe United FC | 3,736 | 10,768 | 1,687 |
| 21 | Rochdale AFC | 3,186 | 7,168 | 1,588 |
| 22 | Swansea City AFC | 3,104 | 5,390 | 1,607 |
| 23 | Shrewsbury Town FC | 3,004 | 6,574 | 1,763 |
| 24 | Halifax Town AFC | 2,741 | 4,838 | 970 |
Division Four
| No. | Club | Average | Highest | Lowest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hereford United FC | 8,917 | 14,849 | 6,566 |
| 2 | Reading FC | 5,321 | 10,325 | 3,721 |
| 3 | Mansfield Town FC | 5,010 | 7,312 | 3,451 |
| 4 | Exeter City FC | 4,956 | 11,296 | 3,137 |
| 5 | Newport County AFC | 4,817 | 8,776 | 2,847 |
| 6 | Peterborough United FC | 4,761 | 7,577 | 2,345 |
| 7 | Lincoln City FC | 4,547 | 6,657 | 2,429 |
| 8 | Aldershot Town FC | 4,442 | 10,800 | 2,761 |
| 9 | Cambridge United FC | 4,227 | 11,542 | 2,627 |
| 10 | Stockport County FC | 3,728 | 5,905 | 2,204 |
| 11 | Hartlepool United FC | 3,691 | 7,193 | 1,887 |
| 12 | Southport FC | 3,580 | 6,525 | 1,966 |
| 13 | Bradford City AFC | 3,498 | 5,566 | 1,628 |
| 14 | Torquay United FC | 3,300 | 8,164 | 1,825 |
| 15 | Colchester United FC | 3,232 | 6,093 | 2,437 |
| 16 | Gillingham FC | 3,186 | 6,115 | 1,575 |
| 17 | Bury FC | 2,971 | 4,319 | 2,039 |
| 18 | Chester City FC | 2,963 | 4,781 | 1,390 |
| 19 | Barnsley FC | 2,862 | 5,900 | 1,638 |
| 20 | Northampton Town FC | 2,835 | 5,008 | 1,180 |
| 21 | Doncaster Rovers FC | 2,259 | 3,540 | 1,488 |
| 22 | Crewe Alexandra FC | 2,059 | 3,820 | 1,164 |
| 23 | Darlington FC | 1,697 | 3,724 | 1,088 |
| 24 | Workington AFC | 1,442 | 2,065 | 918 |
References
- Ian Laschke: Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79. Macdonald and Jane’s, London & Sydney, 1980.
References
- "England 1972–73". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation.
- Ian Laschke: ''Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79''. Macdonald and Jane’s, London & Sydney, 1980.
- "English League Leading Goalscorers".
- https://www.european-football-statistics.co.uk/attn/archive/eng/aveeng1973.htm
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