2012–13 Football League Championship

Changes from last season

Team changes

To Championship

Promoted from League One

• Charlton Athletic
• Sheffield Wednesday
• Huddersfield Town

Relegated from Premier League

• Wolverhampton Wanderers
• Blackburn Rovers
• Bolton Wanderers

From Championship

Promoted to Premier League

• Reading
• Southampton
• West Ham United

Relegated to League One

• Doncaster Rovers
• Coventry City
• Portsmouth

Rules changes

On 25 April 2012, it was announced that financial fair play rules would be introduced for teams within The Championship. This means that clubs have agreed to new rules on sustainable financing which includes:

• Acceptable losses of £4 million in the 2011–12 and 2012–13 seasons, reducing to £2 million in 2015–16 season
• Acceptable amounts of shareholder investment of £8 million in the 2011–12 season, £6 million in the 2012–13 season, reducing to £3 million in 2015–16 season
• New rules on providing accounts
• New penalties for teams that fail to abide by the rules

Also the 2011–12 season saw Football League clubs vote for five substitutes instead of seven. However, on 1 June 2012, Football League clubs re-voted with the outcome of seven substitutes instead of five, ahead of the 2012–13 Football League season.

Team overview

Stadia and locations

Personnel and sponsoring

Managerial changes

• 23 Managerial changes ~ 12 sacked + 5 changed club + 3 resigned + 2 mutual consent + 1 contract finished

League table

A total of 24 teams contest the division: 18 sides remaining in the division from last season, three relegated from the Premier League, and three promoted from the League One.

Play-offs

| RD1-seed1=3 | RD1-team1=Watford | RD1-score1-1=0 | RD1-score1-2=3 | RD1-score1-agg=3 | RD1-seed2=6 | RD1-team2=Leicester City | RD1-score2-1=1 | RD1-score2-2=1 | RD1-score2-agg=2 | RD1-seed3=4 | RD1-team3=Brighton & Hove Albion | RD1-score3-1=0 | RD1-score3-2=0 | RD1-score3-agg=0 | RD1-seed4=5 | RD1-team4=Crystal Palace | RD1-score4-1=0 | RD1-score4-2=2 | RD1-score4-agg=2 | RD2-seed1=3 | RD2-team1=Watford | RD2-score1=0 | RD2-seed2=5 | RD2-team2=Crystal Palace (a.e.t.) | RD2-score2=1

Results

|match_BAR_B&HA=2–1

|match_BIR_B&HA=2–2

|match_BLB_B&HA=1–1

|match_BLP_B&HA=1–1

|match_BOL_B&HA=1–0

|name_B&HA=Brighton & Hove Albion |match_B&HA_BAR=5–1 |match_B&HA_BIR=0–1 |match_B&HA_BLB=1–1 |match_B&HA_BLP=6–1 |match_B&HA_BOL=1–1 |match_B&HA_BRI=2–0 |match_B&HA_BUR=1–0 |match_B&HA_CAR=0–0 |match_B&HA_CHA=0–0 |match_B&HA_CRY=3–0 |match_B&HA_DER=2–1 |match_B&HA_HUD=4–1 |match_B&HA_HUL=1–0 |match_B&HA_IPS=1–1 |match_B&HA_LEE=2–2 |match_B&HA_LEI=1–1 |match_B&HA_MID=0–1 |match_B&HA_MIL=2–2 |match_B&HA_NOT=0–0 |match_B&HA_PET=1–0 |match_B&HA_SHW=3–0 |match_B&HA_WAT=1–3 |match_B&HA_WOL=2–0

|match_BRI_B&HA=0–0

|match_BUR_B&HA=1–3

|match_CAR_B&HA=0–2

|match_CHA_B&HA=2–2

|match_CRY_B&HA=3–0

|match_DER_B&HA=0–0

|match_HUD_B&HA=1–2

|match_HUL_B&HA=1–0

|match_IPS_B&HA=0–3

|match_LEE_B&HA=1–2

|match_LEI_B&HA=1–0

|match_MID_B&HA=0–2

|match_MIL_B&HA=1–2

|match_NOT_B&HA=2–2

|match_PET_B&HA=0–0

|match_SHW_B&HA=3–1

|match_WAT_B&HA=0–1

|match_WOL_B&HA=3–3

Season statistics

Top scorers

1. – includes two goals for Huddersfield Town
2. – includes eleven goals for Millwall
3. – includes two goals in the play-offs
4. – includes one goal in the play-offs

Assists

1. – includes one assist in the play-offs

Penalties

1. – includes one penalty for Huddersfield Town

Hat-tricks

Main article: List of Football League Championship hat-tricks

• 4 Player scored 4 goals

Scoring

• First goal of the season: Mark Hudson for Cardiff City against Huddersfield Town (17 August 2012)
• Fastest goal of the season: 30 seconds, Glenn Murray for Crystal Palace against Sheffield Wednesday (1 September 2012)
• Latest goal of the season: 98 minutes and 23 seconds, Troy Deeney for Watford against Leeds United (10 November 2012)
• Largest winning margin: 6 goals
  • Blackpool 6–0 Ipswich Town (25 August 2012)
  • Leicester City 6–0 Ipswich Town (17 November 2012)
  • Barnsley 0–6 Charlton Athletic (13 April 2013)
• Highest scoring game: 9 goals
  • Charlton Athletic 5–4 Cardiff City (6 November 2012)
  • Peterborough United 5–4 Bolton Wanderers (22 December 2012)
• Most goals scored in a match by a single team: 6 goals
  • Blackpool 6–0 Ipswich Town (25 August 2012)
  • Leeds United 1–6 Watford (10 November 2012)
  • Leicester City 6–0 Ipswich Town (17 November 2012)
  • Leicester City 6–1 Huddersfield Town (1 January 2013)
  • Nottingham Forest 6–1 Huddersfield Town (19 February 2013)
  • Barnsley 0–6 Charlton Athletic (13 April 2013)
  • Brighton & Hove Albion 6–1 Blackpool (20 April 2013)
• Most goals scored in a match by a losing team: 4 goals
  • Charlton Athletic 5–4 Cardiff City (6 November 2012)
  • Peterborough United 5–4 Bolton Wanderers (22 December 2012)

Clean sheets

• Most clean sheets: 18
  • Cardiff City
• Fewest clean sheets: 5
  • Bristol City

Discipline

• Most yellow cards (club): 93
  • Sheffield Wednesday
• Most yellow cards (player): 13
  • Shane Lowry (Millwall)
• Most red cards (club): 5
  • Nottingham Forest
  • Watford
  • Wolverhampton Wanderers
• Most red cards (player): 2
  • Adlène Guedioura (Nottingham Forest)
  • Nikola Žigić (Birmingham City)

Monthly awards

Final day of the season

The final day of the season fell on 4 May 2013. Watford and Hull City were both fighting for 2nd place and automatic promotion to the 2013–14 Premier League. Crystal Palace, Leicester City, Bolton Wanderers and Nottingham Forest were all fighting for 5th and 6th place, and for a play-off spot. However, on the final day, it was mathematically possible for any 2 of 7 teams to get relegated alongside already relegated Bristol City. These teams were Wolverhampton Wanderers, Peterborough United, Huddersfield Town, Blackburn Rovers, Millwall, Barnsley and Sheffield Wednesday.

Late drama occupied all three battles, with the headlines inevitably going to Hull, who won promotion to the Premier League after a 2–2 draw with newly crowned champions Cardiff City and Watford being beaten 2–1 by Leeds United. Hull were 2–1 up and in the 91st minute when they were awarded a penalty which could have sealed their 2nd place spot. Hull missed their penalty and in the 93rd minute, Cardiff were awarded a penalty, which was converted by Nicky Maynard, bringing the score to 2–2. After a serious injury delayed the match, the Watford game was fifteen minutes behind the other games, so with the score at 1–1, Watford knew that a win would secure their promotion to the Premier League. In the 89th minute Leeds scored to make it 2–1. The scores stayed that way and promotion for Hull was assured.

In the play-off battle between Leicester City, Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest and Bolton, there was a late goal for Leicester (vs Nottingham Forest) that secured a 3–2 victory, meaning that the 2–2 draw between Bolton Wanderers and Blackpool left them in 6th place. As the other results turned out, Crystal Palace would have remained in 5th place with a loss, but also scored late on to beat Peterborough 3–2. This left Bolton in 7th place, missing out on play-offs via goal difference.

The relegation battle ended in disappointment for Wolves and Peterborough. The late goal for Crystal Palace against Peterborough meant that a 1–1 draw was enough for Blackburn, a 2–0 win for Sheffield Wednesday over Middlesbrough was enough to secure their safety, a 1–0 defeat for Millwall against Derby County was enough for them and a 2–2 draw between Huddersfield and Barnsley was enough for both teams. Wolves lost 2–0 to Brighton, having started the day in the most difficult situation of the threatened teams.

Attendances

Source:

References

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