George & Sills celebrate the Wembley Cup win
Thanks for good friend of CCFPA, Steve Phelps, for reminding us in his helpful book*, that as well as 1986-87 being the wonderful year for the Sky Blues when they won the F.A.Cup Final at Wembley against Tottenham Hotspur (and finished tenth in Division One) something else significant happened in the world of English football.
We are used to it now over thirty nine years later but the memories of Sky Blues fans may be excused for possibly overlooking the fact that 1986-87 also saw the introduction of the play-off system in British football! After the Wembley defeat to Luton Town in the 2023 Championship Play-off Finals we will perhaps have better cause to remember!
The aim for this new approach was to give more clubs a stake in end of season games because more clubs remained eligible for promotion closer to the end of the season and also at risk the other end of each table. This was also aimed to allow the reduction (over two years) of the number of clubs in the First Division from 22 to twenty. For the first try-out in 1986-87 automatic promotion and relegation was also introduced between the bottom tier (Fourth Division) and non league football (then named the Football Conference). This replaced the annual application for re-election to the Football League hitherto obliged from the bottom four clubs and also was designed to link the FL to the developing non league pyramid of clubs nationwide.
An interesting article in the Guardian Online on the new system can be found here.
The system was a bit different to that with which we are used today. Phelps reminds us that that year the bottom three Division One clubs, in declining order Leicester City, Manchester City and (bottom) Aston Villa, were automatically relegated to Division Two to be replaced automatically by just two clubs, Division Two Champions (Derby County) and runners up (Portsmouth).
The fourth from bottom top tier club Charlton Athletic was then obliged to playoff with clubs finishing third-fifth in Division Two (Oldham Athletic-3rd, Leeds United -4th and Ipswich Town -5th). The winner of the playoffs would take the remaining spot in the top tier. The play-off semi finals were two legged affairs with the Division One team at risk Charlton Athletic taking on the Tractor Boys. The Addicks won the second leg 2-1 after a goalless draw in the first leg. In the other semi Leeds United prevailed against the ‘Latics each side winning one leg and the Elland Road outfit going through on away goals. The Play Off Final was also over two legs at each club’s home ground (not at Wembley as currently). Charlton Athletic required three games to get past Leeds United and retain their top tier spot! On the 23rd May the Addicks beat Leeds 1-0 at their then ‘home’ Selhurst Park and two days later the scores were reversed at Elland Road!
The third, deciding game was played at Birmingham City‘s St Andrews ground in front of a crowd of 15,841 on this day Friday 29th May 1987. After full-time, the score remained 0–0. Extra-time was played with John Sheridan scoring first for the Yorkshire club in the 99th minute. Peter Shirtliff then scored twice in the 113th and 117th minutes to give the Addicks a 2–1 victory after a strenuous trio of games between the two sides over six days in May.
Bobby in the Sky Blue
Micky in the Sky Blue
Jim in the Sky Blue 1982
Of note is that three CCFPA members played in this historic first ever Play-Off Final. Former Sky Blue defenders Bobby McDonald (180 games and fifteen goals between 1976-81) and Micky Adams (106 games – ten goals 1983-87) were in Billy Bremner‘s defeated Leeds United side.
In addition former Sky Blue forward Jim Melrose (29 games – ten goals 1982-83) was in the victorious Addicks’ side of Lennie Lawrence (and had scored their semi final first leg goal)! Micky, of course, also went on to manage the Sky Blues 2005-07.
*Steve Phelps- ‘Coventry City on This Day’ Pitch Publishing 2010
Thanks to CCFPA’s Mike Young for sourcing the images.
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