| 1986-87 In English Football |
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The 1986 - 87 First Division championship went to Everton in their final season under the management of Howard Kendall before his departure to Atletico Bilbao . His side overcame a spate of injuries to fight off competition from runners-up Liverpool and third-placed Tottenham . Fourth place in the league went to newly promoted Norwich City , whose manager Ken Brown built a strong squad on a limited budget to achieve a finish which would have been enough to qualify for UEFA Cup had it not been for the ongoing ban on English clubs in European competitions. Wimbledon , in the First Division for the first time and in only their tenth Football League season, had a great top flight debut by finishing sixth and had briefly topped the league in September. Going down were Aston Villa ( European Cup winners just five years earlier), Manchester City and Leicester City . In the first season of the relegation/promotion playoffs, Charlton Athletic beat Second Division Leeds United to retain their top flight status. Manchester United , whose blistering start to the previous seaosn had ended in failure, started the 1986-87 season badly and entered November second from bottom in the league. Manager Ron Atkinson paid for these failings with his job and in came the Aberdeen manager Alex Ferguson to replace him. Ferguson rejuvenated United and they climbed up the table to finish in a secure 11th place. SECOND DIVISION Just two clubs were promoted from the Second Division this season. Champions Derby County were promoted for a second successive season, while runners-up spot went to Portsmouth . The three playoff places were occupied by Oldham Athletic , Leeds United and Ipswich Town . Oldham and Ipswich blew their chances in the semi-finals, while Leeds were defeated by Charlton in the final to miss out on promotion - an FA Cup semi final defeat had ended their chances of success in the cup competitions. The relegation/promotion playoffs which operated between the Second and Third Divisions saw Sunderland go down to the Third Division for the first time in their history - at the expense of newly promoted Bournemouth , Middlesbrough and Swindon Town . THIRD DIVISION The three promotion places in this division were gained by three clubs who were among the least fancied promotion contenders at the start of the season. Champions Bournemouth were promoted to the Second Division for the first time in their history thanks to the efforts of hard working manager Harry Redknapp . Runners-up spot went to Bruce Rioch 's Middlesbrough , who had begun the season on the verge of extinction and had been forced to play their first home game of the season at Hartlepool 's ground because the official receiver had locked them out of Ayresome Park . The relegation/promotion playoffs between the Third and Fourth Divisions saw Bolton Wanderers go down to the bottom division for the first time. FOURTH DIVISION The stars of the Fourth Division during 1986-87 were Graham Carr 's runaway champions Northampton Town , with young midfielder Eddie McGoldrick being the key player in his side's season of success. Down at the bottom end of the division, an injury time winner for Torquay United kept them in the Football League after a police dog had bitten one of their players. The introduction of automatic relegation to the Conference saw Lincoln City lose their league status in favour of Conference champions Scarborough . 1986-87 saw many famous clubs reach their lowest ebb throughout the league. In the Fourth Division it was Burnley - league champions 27 years earlier - who plummeted to new depths. They finished third from bottom in the league and only a win on the last day of the season prevented them from going down to the Conference. FA CUP Coventry City and Tottenham Hotspur contested the 1987 FA Cup final. Coventry were in the final for the first time, whereas Tottenham had won all seven of their previous appearances. But a 3-2 scoreline surprised all the observers and saw Coventry lift their first-ever major trophy. But the ban on English clubs in Europe prevented them from qualifying for the Cup Winners' Cup . LEAGUE CUP George Graham 's return to Arsenal as manager was a success as he guided the North Londoners to glory in the League Cup after an eight-year trophy drought. STAR PLAYERS Tottenham striker Clive Allen , who scored 49 goals in all competitions, was voted Player of the Year by both the PFA and FWA - although his prolific goalscoring was not enough to win any trophies for Spurs who had been in the hunt for all three domestic prizes throughout the season. 20-year-old Arsenal defender Tony Adams was voted Young Player of the Year by the PFA for contributing to his side's good progress in the league as well as their League Cup triumph. SO MANY MANAGERS OF THE YEAR Howard Kendall was voted Manager of the Year for guiding Everton to their second league title in three seasons, but he faced stiff competitions from other managers who enjoyed success during the 1986-87 season. In the First Division, Ken Brown guided Norwich to a top-five finish just one year after winning promotion back to the top flight. Dave Bassett helped Wimbledon achieve a strong sixth-place finish in their first season as a top division club - and only their tenth in the Football League. George Graham ended Arsenal 's eight-year trophy drought by bringing them silverware in the shape of the League Cup . And Coventry's John Sillett brought his unfancied club their first-ever major trophy by guiding them to victory over favourites Tottenham in the FA Cup final. In the Second Division, Arthur Cox helped Derby County win the Second Division championship one year after they had won promotion from the Third Division. Portsmouth 's Alan Ball guided his side to runners-up spot and helped them win promotion after a long absence from the top flight. Joe Royle continued to take Oldham from strength to strength in the Second Division and they only just missed out on promotion. In the Third Division, Harry Redknapp guided Bournemouth to championship glory and brought them Second Division football for the first time. Bruce Rioch rescued Middlesbrough from financial oblivion to secure the second promotion place to the Second Division. Lou Macari secured Swindon's second successive promotion, this time as playoff winners in the Third Division. In the Fourth Division, Graham Carr built a strong Northampton side which ran away with the championship and gave hope for the future at a club who some years earlier had completed a quick slump from the First Division to the Fourth. Neil Warnock became the first manager to take a Conference side into the Football League after Scarborough won the Conference title and became the first club to gain automatic promotion to the league. WIMBLEDON START ON A HIGH Wimbledon finished sixth in the league at the end of their tenth season as Football League members. They had gone top of the league in early September. A SEASON OF FALLEN GIANTS Aston Villa were relegated to the Second Division, just five years after winning the European Cup and six years after being league champions. Sunderland , whose honours list included five league championships, were relegated to the Third Division for the first time in their history. Bolton Wanderers , who won the FA Cup four times between 1923 and 1958 , were relegated to the Fourth Division for the first time in their history. Burnley , who had been league champions 27 years earlier, narrowly escaped demotion from the Football League. SIGNIFICANT EVENTS
DEATHS
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