1978–79 Football League

The Football League
Season1978–79
ChampionsLiverpool
New Club in LeagueWigan Athletic

The 1978–79 season was the 80th completed season of the Football League.

Bob Paisley won his third league title at Liverpool as his side fought off competition from Nottingham Forest and West Bromwich Albion. Albion were in their first season under the management of Ron Atkinson, and pulled off a famous 5–3 away win over Manchester United with a team that included Bryan Robson, Brendan Batson, Cyrille Regis and Laurie Cunningham.

The three relegation places went to Queens Park Rangers, Birmingham City and Chelsea. QPR had declined since the departure of Dave Sexton in 1977 and were relegated just three years after finishing runners-up in the league. Meanwhile, Chelsea's manager Danny Blanchflower paid for his team's shortcomings by losing his job.

Money dominated the headlines during the season: Trevor Francis became England's first million-pound footballer after joining Nottingham Forest from Birmingham City. Liverpool became one of the first English clubs to have a shirt sponsor when they agreed a sponsorship deal with Japanese hi-fi manufacturer Hitachi.

Crystal Palace won the Second Division title, followed by Brighton & Hove Albion, who were promoted to the top division for the first time, and third-placed Stoke City. Going down were Sheffield United, Millwall and Blackburn Rovers.

Shrewsbury Town were champions of the Third Division. The other two promotion spots were occupied by Watford and Swansea City. Peterborough United, Walsall, Tranmere Rovers and Lincoln City were relegated to the Fourth Division.

Reading, Grimsby Town, Wimbledon and Barnsley occupied the Fourth Division promotion places. The success came for Wimbledon in only their second season as a league club.

Final league tables and results

The tables and results below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation website[1] and in Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79,[2] with home and away statistics separated.

During the first five seasons of the league, that is, until the season 1893–94, re-election process concerned the clubs which finished in the bottom four of the league. From the 1894–95 season and until the 1920–21 season the re-election process was required of the clubs which finished in the bottom three of the league. From the 1922–23 season on it was required of the bottom two teams of both Third Division North and Third Division South. Since the Fourth Division was established in the 1958–59 season, the re-election process has concerned the bottom four clubs in that division.[2]

First Division

Football League First Division
Season1978–79
ChampionsLiverpool
11th English title
RelegatedQueens Park Rangers
Birmingham City
Chelsea
European CupLiverpool
Nottingham Forest (defending champions)
Cup Winners' CupArsenal
UEFA CupWest Bromwich Albion
Everton
Leeds United
Ipswich Town
Matches462
Goals1,217 (2.63 per match)
Top goalscorerFrank Worthington
(24 goals)[3]
Biggest home winLiverpool 7–0 Tottenham Hotspur
(2 September 1978)
Biggest away winTottenham Hotspur 0–5 Arsenal
(23 December 1978)
Highest scoringMiddlesbrough 7–2 Chelsea
(16 December 1978)

Bob Paisley guided Liverpool to their third league title in four seasons with the highest points total (68), best home record (40 points from 21 games) and highest goals scored to conceded ratio (85 scored, 16 conceded, ratio 5.3:1) ever attained in First Division history. Nottingham Forest built on their first league title triumph by winning the European Cup and retaining the League Cup under the management of Brian Clough, who in February signed striker Trevor Francis from Birmingham City in Britain's first million-pound transfer, although Forest finished eight points behind Liverpool in second place. West Bromwich Albion's first full season under Ron Atkinson brought an impressive third-place finish and a run to the quarter-finals of the UEFA Cup, as well as a famous 5-3 victory over Manchester United at Old Trafford just after Christmas.

Everton and Leeds United completed the top five. Seventh placed Arsenal compensated for a lack of a title challenge by beating Manchester United 3-2 in a memorable final of the FA Cup.

Chelsea, Birmingham City and QPR were relegated, while Derby County (champions just four years ago) only narrowly stayed up.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Liverpool (C) 42 30 8 4 85 16 +69 68 Qualification for the European Cup first round[a]
2 Nottingham Forest 42 21 18 3 61 26 +35 60
3 West Bromwich Albion 42 24 11 7 72 35 +37 59 Qualification for the UEFA Cup first round
4 Everton 42 17 17 8 52 40 +12 51
5 Leeds United 42 18 14 10 70 52 +18 50
6 Ipswich Town 42 20 9 13 63 49 +14 49
7 Arsenal 42 17 14 11 61 48 +13 48 Qualification for the European Cup Winners' Cup first round[b]
8 Aston Villa 42 15 16 11 59 49 +10 46
9 Manchester United 42 15 15 12 60 63 −3 45
10 Coventry City 42 14 16 12 58 68 −10 44
11 Tottenham Hotspur 42 13 15 14 48 61 −13 41
12 Middlesbrough 42 15 10 17 57 50 +7 40
13 Bristol City 42 15 10 17 47 51 −4 40
14 Southampton 42 12 16 14 47 53 −6 40
15 Manchester City 42 13 13 16 58 56 +2 39
16 Norwich City 42 7 23 12 51 57 −6 37
17 Bolton Wanderers 42 12 11 19 54 75 −21 35
18 Wolverhampton Wanderers 42 13 8 21 44 68 −24 34
19 Derby County 42 10 11 21 44 71 −27 31
20 Queens Park Rangers (R) 42 6 13 23 45 73 −28 25 Relegation to the Second Division
21 Birmingham City (R) 42 6 10 26 37 64 −27 22
22 Chelsea (R) 42 5 10 27 44 92 −48 20
Source: World Football
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (R) Relegated
Notes:
  1. ^ Nottingham Forest qualified for the European Cup first round as the 1978–79 European Cup winners.
  2. ^ Arsenal qualified for the European Cup Winners' Cup first round as the 1978–79 FA Cup winners.

Results

Home \ Away ARS AST BIR BOL BRI CHE COV DER EVE IPS LEE LIV MCI MUN MID NWC NOT QPR SOU TOT WBA WOL
Arsenal 1–1 3–1 1–0 2–0 5–2 1–1 2–0 2–2 4–1 2–2 1–0 1–1 1–1 0–0 1–1 2–1 5–1 1–0 1–0 1–2 0–1
Aston Villa 5–1 1–0 3–0 2–0 2–1 1–1 3–3 1–1 2–2 2–2 3–1 1–1 2–2 0–2 1–1 1–2 3–1 1–1 2–3 0–1 1–0
Birmingham City 0–0 0–1 3–0 1–1 1–1 0–0 1–1 1–3 1–1 0–1 0–3 1–2 5–1 1–3 1–0 0–2 3–1 2–2 1–0 1–1 1–1
Bolton Wanderers 4–2 0–0 2–2 1–2 2–1 0–0 2–1 3–1 2–3 3–1 1–4 2–2 3–0 0–0 3–2 0–1 2–1 2–0 1–3 0–1 3–1
Bristol City 1–3 1–0 2–1 4–1 3–1 5–0 1–0 2–2 3–1 0–0 1–0 1–1 1–2 1–1 1–1 1–3 2–0 3–1 0–0 1–0 0–1
Chelsea 1–1 0–1 2–1 4–3 0–0 1–3 1–1 0–1 2–3 0–3 0–0 1–4 0–1 2–1 3–3 1–3 1–3 1–2 1–3 1–3 1–2
Coventry City 1–1 1–1 2–1 2–2 3–2 3–2 4–2 3–2 2–2 0–0 0–0 0–3 4–3 2–1 4–1 0–0 1–0 4–0 1–3 1–3 3–0
Derby County 2–0 0–0 2–1 3–0 0–1 1–0 0–2 0–0 0–1 0–1 0–2 1–1 1–3 0–3 1–1 1–2 2–1 2–1 2–2 3–2 4–1
Everton 1–0 1–1 1–0 1–0 4–1 3–2 3–3 2–1 0–1 1–1 1–0 1–0 3–0 2–0 2–2 1–1 2–1 0–0 1–1 0–2 2–0
Ipswich Town 2–0 0–2 3–0 3–0 0–1 5–1 1–1 2–1 0–1 2–3 0–3 2–1 3–0 2–1 1–1 1–1 2–1 0–0 2–1 0–1 3–1
Leeds United 0–1 1–0 3–0 5–1 1–1 2–1 1–0 4–0 1–0 1–1 0–3 1–1 2–3 3–1 2–2 1–2 4–3 4–0 1–2 1–3 3–0
Liverpool 3–0 3–0 1–0 3–0 1–0 2–0 1–0 5–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–0 2–0 2–0 6–0 2–0 2–1 2–0 7–0 2–1 2–0
Manchester City 1–1 2–3 3–1 2–1 2–0 2–3 2–0 1–2 0–0 1–2 3–0 1–4 0–3 1–0 2–2 0–0 3–1 1–2 2–0 2–2 3–1
Manchester United 0–2 1–1 1–0 1–2 1–3 1–1 0–0 0–0 1–1 2–0 4–1 0–3 1–0 3–2 1–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 2–0 3–5 3–2
Middlesbrough 2–3 2–0 2–1 1–1 0–0 7–2 1–2 3–1 1–2 0–0 1–0 0–1 2–0 2–2 2–0 1–3 0–2 2–0 1–0 1–1 2–0
Norwich City 0–0 1–2 4–0 0–0 3–0 2–0 1–0 3–0 0–1 0–1 2–2 1–4 1–1 2–2 1–0 1–1 1–1 3–1 2–2 1–1 0–0
Nottingham Forest 2–1 4–0 1–0 1–1 2–0 6–0 3–0 1–1 0–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 3–1 1–1 2–2 2–1 0–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 3–1
Queens Park Rangers 1–2 1–0 1–3 1–3 1–0 0–0 5–1 2–2 1–1 0–4 1–4 1–3 2–1 1–1 1–1 0–0 0–0 0–1 2–2 0–1 3–3
Southampton 2–0 2–0 1–0 2–2 2–0 0–0 4–0 1–2 3–0 1–2 2–2 1–1 1–0 1–1 2–1 2–2 0–0 1–1 3–3 1–1 3–2
Tottenham Hotspur 0–5 1–4 1–0 2–0 1–0 2–2 1–1 2–0 1–1 1–0 1–2 0–0 0–3 1–1 1–2 0–0 1–3 1–1 0–0 1–0 1–0
West Bromwich Albion 1–1 1–1 1–0 4–0 3–1 1–0 7–1 2–1 1–0 2–1 1–2 1–1 4–0 1–0 2–0 2–2 0–1 2–1 1–0 0–1 1–1
Wolverhampton Wanderers 1–0 0–4 2–1 1–1 2–0 0–1 1–1 4–0 1–0 1–3 1–1 0–1 1–1 2–4 1–3 1–0 1–0 1–0 2–0 3–2 0–3
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: Ian Laschke: Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79. Macdonald and Jane’s, London & Sydney, 1980.
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Managerial changes

Team Outgoing manager Manner of departure Date of vacancy Position in table Incoming manager Date of appointment
Leeds United England Jimmy Armfield Sacked 30 June 1978 Pre-season Scotland Jock Stein 21 August 1978
Queens Park Rangers England Frank Sibley Mutual consent 11 July 1978 England Steve Burtenshaw 10 August 1978
Leeds United Scotland Jock Stein Signed by Scotland 4 October 1978 11th England Jimmy Adamson 25 October 1978
Wolverhampton Wanderers England Sammy Chung Sacked 8 November 1978 21st England John Barnwell 20 November 1978
Chelsea England Ken Shellito 13 December 1978 22nd Northern Ireland Danny Blanchflower 14 December 1978

Maps

Locations of the Football League First Division London teams 1978–1979
Locations of the Football League First Division 1978–1979 teams

Second Division

Second Division
Season1978–79
ChampionsCrystal Palace
PromotedCrystal Palace
Brighton & Hove Albion
Stoke City
RelegatedSheffield United
Millwall
Blackburn Rovers
Cup Winners' CupWrexham
Matches462
Goals1,174 (2.54 per match)
Top goalscorerPop Robson
(24 goals)[3]
Biggest home winLuton Town 7–1 Cardiff City
(16 September 1978)
Luton Town 6–0 Notts County
(21 October 1978)
Biggest away winMillwall 1–4 Brighton & Hove Albion
(2 September 1978)
Cardiff City 1–4 Charlton Athletic
(4 November 1978)
Newcastle United 1–4 Sunderland
(24 February 1979)
Luton Town 1–4 West Ham United
(26 February 1979)
Blackburn Rovers 1–4 Cardiff City
(28 February 1979)
Charlton Athletic 1–4 Stoke City
(14 April 1979)
0–3: 9 matches
Highest scoringBristol Rovers 5–5 Charlton Athletic
(18 November 1978)

Crystal Palace continued to excel under the management of Terry Venables as their exciting young team finished top of a hotly contested Second Division promotion race, a point ahead of Brighton (in the First Division for the first time) and Stoke City. Sunderland missed out on promotion by a single point.

Newcastle United and Leicester City surprisingly failed to feature in the Second Division promotion race.

Blackburn Rovers, Millwall and Sheffield United went down to the Third Division.

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Crystal Palace (C, P) 42 19 19 4 51 24 +27 57 Promotion to the First Division
2 Brighton & Hove Albion (P) 42 23 10 9 72 39 +33 56
3 Stoke City (P) 42 20 16 6 58 31 +27 56
4 Sunderland 42 22 11 9 70 44 +26 55
5 West Ham United 42 18 14 10 70 39 +31 50
6 Notts County 42 14 16 12 48 60 −12 44
7 Preston North End 42 12 18 12 59 57 +2 42
8 Newcastle United 42 17 8 17 51 55 −4 42
9 Cardiff City 42 16 10 16 56 70 −14 42
10 Fulham 42 13 15 14 50 47 +3 41
11 Orient 42 15 10 17 51 51 0 40
12 Cambridge United 42 12 16 14 44 52 −8 40
13 Burnley 42 14 12 16 51 62 −11 40
14 Oldham Athletic 42 13 13 16 52 61 −9 39
15 Wrexham 42 12 14 16 45 42 +3 38 Qualification for the Cup Winners' Cup first round
16 Bristol Rovers 42 14 10 18 48 60 −12 38
17 Leicester City 42 10 17 15 43 52 −9 37
18 Luton Town 42 13 10 19 60 57 +3 36
19 Charlton Athletic 42 11 13 18 60 69 −9 35
20 Sheffield United (R) 42 11 12 19 52 69 −17 34 Relegation to the Third Division
21 Millwall (R) 42 11 10 21 42 61 −19 32
22 Blackburn Rovers (R) 42 10 10 22 41 72 −31 30
Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated

Results

Home \ Away BLB B&HA BRR BUR CAM CAR CHA CRY FUL LEI LUT MIL NEW NTC OLD ORI PNE SHU STK SUN WHU WRE
Blackburn Rovers 1–1 0–2 1–2 1–0 1–4 1–2 1–1 2–1 1–1 0–0 1–1 1–3 3–4 0–2 3–0 0–1 2–0 2–2 1–1 1–0 1–1
Brighton & Hove Albion 2–1 3–0 2–1 0–2 5–0 2–0 0–0 3–0 3–1 3–1 3–0 2–0 0–0 1–0 2–0 5–1 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–2 2–1
Bristol Rovers 4–1 1–2 2–0 2–0 4–2 5–5 0–1 3–1 1–1 2–0 0–3 2–0 2–2 0–0 2–1 0–1 2–1 0–0 0–0 0–1 2–1
Burnley 2–1 3–0 2–0 1–1 0–0 2–1 2–1 5–3 2–2 2–1 0–1 1–0 2–1 1–0 0–1 1–1 1–1 0–3 1–2 3–2 0–0
Cambridge United 0–1 0–0 1–1 2–2 5–0 1–1 0–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 2–1 0–0 0–1 3–3 3–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 0–2 0–0 1–0
Cardiff City 2–0 3–1 2–0 1–1 1–0 1–4 2–2 2–0 1–0 2–1 2–1 2–1 2–3 1–3 1–0 2–2 4–0 1–3 1–1 0–0 1–0
Charlton Athletic 2–0 0–3 3–0 1–1 2–3 1–1 1–1 0–0 1–0 1–2 2–4 4–1 1–1 2–0 0–2 1–1 3–1 1–4 1–2 0–0 1–1
Crystal Palace 3–0 3–1 0–1 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–0 0–1 3–1 3–1 0–0 1–0 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 3–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 1–0
Fulham 1–2 0–1 3–0 0–0 5–1 2–2 3–1 0–0 3–0 1–0 1–0 1–3 1–1 1–0 2–2 5–3 2–0 2–0 2–2 0–0 0–1
Leicester City 1–1 4–1 0–0 2–1 1–1 1–2 0–3 1–1 1–0 3–0 0–0 2–1 0–1 2–0 5–3 1–1 0–1 1–1 1–2 1–2 1–1
Luton Town 2–1 1–1 3–2 4–1 1–1 7–1 3–0 0–1 2–0 0–1 2–2 2–0 6–0 6–1 2–1 1–2 1–1 0–0 0–3 1–4 2–1
Millwall 1–1 1–4 0–3 0–2 2–0 2–0 0–2 0–3 0–0 2–0 0–2 2–1 0–1 2–3 2–0 0–2 1–1 3–0 0–1 2–1 2–2
Newcastle United 3–1 1–3 3–0 3–1 1–0 3–0 5–3 1–0 0–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 1–2 1–1 0–0 4–3 1–3 2–0 1–4 0–3 2–0
Notts County 2–1 1–0 2–1 1–1 1–1 1–0 1–1 0–0 1–1 0–1 3–1 1–1 1–2 0–0 1–0 0–0 4–1 0–1 1–1 1–0 1–1
Oldham Athletic 5–0 1–3 3–1 2–0 4–1 2–1 0–3 0–0 0–2 2–1 2–0 4–1 1–3 3–3 0–0 2–0 1–1 1–1 0–0 2–2 1–0
Orient 2–0 3–3 1–1 2–1 3–0 2–2 2–1 0–1 1–0 0–1 3–2 2–1 2–0 3–0 0–0 2–0 1–1 0–1 3–0 0–2 0–1
Preston North End 4–1 1–0 1–1 2–2 0–2 2–1 6–1 2–3 2–2 4–0 2–2 0–0 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 2–2 0–1 3–1 0–0 2–1
Sheffield United 0–1 0–1 1–0 4–0 3–3 2–1 2–1 0–2 1–1 2–2 1–1 0–2 1–0 5–1 4–2 1–2 0–1 0–0 3–2 3–0 1–1
Stoke City 1–2 2–2 2–0 3–1 1–3 2–0 2–2 1–1 2–0 0–0 0–0 2–0 0–0 2–0 4–0 3–1 1–1 2–1 0–1 2–0 3–0
Sunderland 0–1 2–1 5–0 3–1 0–2 1–2 1–0 1–2 1–1 1–1 1–0 3–2 1–1 3–0 3–0 1–0 3–1 6–2 0–1 2–1 1–0
West Ham United 4–0 0–0 2–0 3–1 5–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 0–1 1–1 1–0 3–0 5–0 5–2 3–0 0–2 3–1 2–0 1–1 3–3 1–1
Wrexham 2–1 0–0 0–1 0–1 2–0 1–2 1–1 0–0 1–1 0–0 2–0 3–0 0–0 3–1 2–0 3–1 2–1 4–0 0–1 1–2 4–3
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: Ian Laschke: Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79. Macdonald and Jane’s, London & Sydney, 1980.
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Maps

Locations of the Football League Second Division London teams 1978–1979
Locations of the Football League Second Division 1978–1979 teams

Third Division

Football League
Third Division
Season1978–79
ChampionsShrewsbury Town (1st title)
PromotedSwansea City,
Watford
RelegatedLincoln City,
Peterborough United,
Tranmere Rovers,
Walsall
Matches552
Goals1,388 (2.51 per match)
Top goalscorerRoss Jenkins (Watford), 29 [3]

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Shrewsbury Town (C, P) 46 21 19 6 61 41 +20 61 Promotion to the Second Division
2 Watford (P) 46 24 12 10 83 52 +31 60
3 Swansea City (P) 46 24 12 10 83 61 +22 60
4 Gillingham 46 21 17 8 65 42 +23 59
5 Swindon Town 46 25 7 14 74 52 +22 57
6 Carlisle United 46 15 22 9 53 42 +11 52
7 Colchester United 46 17 17 12 60 55 +5 51
8 Hull City 46 19 11 16 66 61 +5 49
9 Exeter City 46 17 15 14 61 56 +5 49
10 Brentford 46 19 9 18 53 49 +4 47
11 Oxford United 46 14 18 14 44 50 −6 46
12 Blackpool 46 18 9 19 61 59 +2 45
13 Southend United 46 15 15 16 51 49 +2 45
14 Sheffield Wednesday 46 13 19 14 53 53 0 45
15 Plymouth Argyle 46 15 14 17 67 68 −1 44
16 Chester 46 14 16 16 57 61 −4 44
17 Rotherham United 46 17 10 19 49 55 −6 44
18 Mansfield Town 46 12 19 15 51 52 −1 43
19 Bury 46 11 20 15 59 65 −6 42
20 Chesterfield 46 13 14 19 51 65 −14 40
21 Peterborough United (R) 46 11 14 21 44 63 −19 36 Relegation to the Fourth Division
22 Walsall (R) 46 10 12 24 56 71 −15 32
23 Tranmere Rovers (R) 46 6 16 24 45 78 −33 28
24 Lincoln City (R) 46 7 11 28 41 88 −47 25
Source: rsssf.com
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated

Results

Home \ Away BLP BRE BRY CRL CHE CHF COL EXE GIL HUL LIN MAN OXF PET PLY ROT SHW SHR STD SWA SWI TRA WAL WAT
Blackpool 0–1 1–2 3–1 3–0 0–0 2–1 1–1 2–0 3–1 2–0 2–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 1–2 0–1 5–0 1–2 1–3 5–2 2–0 2–1 1–1
Brentford 3–2 0–1 0–0 6–0 0–3 1–0 0–0 0–2 1–0 2–1 1–0 3–0 0–0 2–1 1–0 2–1 2–3 3–0 1–0 1–2 2–0 1–0 3–3
Bury 1–3 2–3 2–2 1–1 3–1 2–2 4–2 2–2 1–1 2–2 0–0 1–1 1–0 1–2 3–2 0–0 3–0 3–3 0–1 0–1 1–0 1–1 1–2
Carlisle United 1–1 1–0 1–2 1–1 1–1 4–0 1–1 1–0 2–2 2–0 1–0 0–1 4–1 1–1 1–1 0–0 1–1 0–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 1–0 1–0
Chester 4–2 3–1 1–1 1–2 3–0 2–2 3–0 1–1 2–1 5–1 1–1 4–1 1–1 0–0 0–1 2–2 0–0 0–1 2–0 2–0 1–1 2–1 2–1
Chesterfield 1–3 0–0 2–1 2–3 3–1 2–1 0–1 0–2 1–2 1–3 1–0 1–1 3–1 1–3 1–0 3–3 2–1 3–2 2–1 1–1 5–2 0–0 0–2
Colchester United 3–1 1–1 0–0 2–1 2–1 0–0 2–2 2–2 2–1 2–0 1–0 1–1 4–2 2–1 0–0 1–0 1–0 1–1 2–2 3–2 1–0 2–0 0–1
Exeter City 3–0 2–2 2–1 3–2 0–1 3–1 2–1 0–0 3–1 3–2 0–0 2–0 1–0 1–0 2–0 2–2 0–1 0–0 2–1 1–2 3–0 3–1 0–0
Gillingham 2–0 0–0 3–3 0–0 1–0 2–1 3–0 2–0 2–0 4–2 0–0 2–1 1–0 2–0 0–0 0–0 2–0 1–0 2–0 2–2 3–2 3–1 2–3
Hull City 0–0 1–0 4–1 1–1 3–0 1–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 0–0 3–0 0–1 1–1 2–1 1–0 1–1 1–1 2–0 2–2 1–1 2–1 4–1 4–0
Lincoln City 1–2 1–0 1–4 1–1 0–0 0–1 0–0 0–1 2–4 4–2 0–1 2–2 0–1 3–3 3–0 1–2 1–2 1–1 2–1 0–3 2–1 1–1 0–5
Mansfield Town 1–1 2–1 3–0 1–0 2–0 2–1 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–2 2–0 1–1 1–1 5–0 0–1 1–1 2–2 1–1 2–2 0–1 0–0 1–3 0–3
Oxford United 1–0 0–1 0–0 5–1 0–0 1–1 2–0 3–2 1–1 1–0 2–1 3–2 0–2 3–2 1–0 1–1 0–1 0–0 0–2 0–1 0–0 2–1 1–1
Peterborough United 1–2 3–1 2–2 0–0 2–1 0–0 1–2 1–1 1–1 3–0 0–1 1–2 1–1 2–1 1–1 2–0 0–2 0–1 2–0 2–1 1–0 0–3 0–1
Plymouth Argyle 0–0 2–1 3–0 2–0 2–2 1–1 1–1 4–2 2–1 3–4 2–1 1–4 0–1 3–2 2–0 2–0 1–1 1–1 2–2 2–0 2–2 1–0 1–1
Rotherham United 2–1 1–0 2–1 1–3 0–1 1–0 1–0 2–1 1–1 0–2 2–0 2–0 0–0 1–1 1–0 0–1 1–2 2–1 0–1 1–3 3–2 4–1 2–1
Sheffield Wednesday 2–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 0–0 4–0 0–0 2–1 2–1 2–3 0–0 1–2 1–1 3–0 2–3 2–1 0–0 3–2 0–0 2–1 1–2 0–2 2–3
Shrewsbury Town 2–0 1–0 1–0 0–0 1–0 1–1 2–0 4–1 1–1 1–0 2–0 2–2 0–0 2–0 2–0 3–1 2–2 2–0 3–0 0–0 2–1 1–1 1–1
Southend United 4–0 1–1 0–0 1–1 0–1 2–0 1–1 0–1 0–1 3–0 2–0 1–1 2–0 0–0 2–1 2–1 2–1 0–1 0–2 5–3 0–1 1–0 1–0
Swansea City 1–0 2–1 2–0 0–0 2–2 2–1 4–1 1–0 3–1 5–3 3–0 3–2 1–1 4–1 2–1 4–4 4–2 1–1 3–2 1–2 4–3 2–2 3–2
Swindon Town 0–1 2–0 2–1 0–0 2–0 1–0 1–2 1–1 3–1 2–0 6–0 1–0 2–0 3–1 1–3 1–0 3–0 2–1 1–0 0–1 4–1 4–1 2–0
Tranmere Rovers 0–2 0–1 0–0 1–1 6–2 1–1 1–5 2–2 1–1 1–3 0–0 1–2 1–0 1–0 2–1 1–1 1–1 2–2 1–2 1–2 1–1 0–0 1–1
Walsall 2–1 2–3 0–1 1–2 2–1 0–1 2–2 2–2 0–1 1–2 4–1 1–1 0–1 4–1 2–1 0–1 0–2 1–1 1–1 1–1 4–1 2–0 2–4
Watford 5–1 2–0 3–3 2–1 1–0 2–0 0–3 1–0 1–0 4–0 2–0 1–1 4–2 1–2 2–2 2–2 1–0 2–2 2–0 0–2 2–0 4–0 3–1
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: Ian Laschke: Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79. Macdonald and Jane’s, London & Sydney, 1980.
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Maps

Locations of the Football League Third Division London teams 1978–1979
Locations of the Football League Third Division teams 1978–1979

Fourth Division

Football League
Fourth Division
Season1978–79
ChampionsReading (1st title)
PromotedBarnsley,
Grimsby Town,
Wimbledon
Failed re-electionNone
New club in the leagueWigan Athletic
Matches552
Goals1,409 (2.55 per match)
Top goalscorerJohn Dungworth (Aldershot), 26 [3]

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion
1 Reading (C, P) 46 26 13 7 76 35 +41 65 Promotion to the Third Division
2 Grimsby Town (P) 46 26 9 11 82 49 +33 61
3 Wimbledon (P) 46 25 11 10 78 46 +32 61
4 Barnsley (P) 46 24 13 9 73 42 +31 61
5 Aldershot 46 20 17 9 63 47 +16 57
6 Wigan Athletic 46 21 13 12 63 48 +15 55
7 Portsmouth 46 20 12 14 62 48 +14 52
8 Newport County 46 21 10 15 66 55 +11 52
9 Huddersfield Town 46 18 11 17 57 53 +4 47
10 York City 46 18 11 17 51 55 −4 47
11 Torquay United 46 19 8 19 58 65 −7 46
12 Scunthorpe United 46 17 11 18 54 60 −6 45
13 Hartlepool United 46 13 18 15 57 66 −9 44
14 Hereford United 46 15 13 18 53 53 0 43
15 Bradford City 46 17 9 20 62 68 −6 43
16 Port Vale 46 14 14 18 57 70 −13 42
17 Stockport County 46 14 12 20 58 60 −2 40
18 Bournemouth 46 14 11 21 47 48 −1 39
19 Northampton Town 46 15 9 22 64 76 −12 39
20 Rochdale 46 15 9 22 47 64 −17 39
21 Darlington 46 11 15 20 49 66 −17 37 Re-elected
22 Doncaster Rovers 46 13 11 22 50 73 −23 37
23 Halifax Town 46 9 8 29 39 72 −33 26
24 Crewe Alexandra 46 6 14 26 43 90 −47 26
Source: [citation needed]
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted

Results

Home \ Away BOU ALD BAR BRA CRE DAR DON GRI HAL HAR HER HUD NPC NOR POR PTV REA ROC SCU STP TOR WIG WDN YOR
AFC Bournemouth 0–1 0–2 1–0 0–1 2–2 7–1 0–0 1–0 0–1 1–1 2–0 3–1 0–0 3–1 3–1 0–0 3–1 0–0 3–1 1–0 2–1 1–2 1–2
Aldershot 1–0 1–0 6–0 3–0 1–1 2–1 2–0 1–0 1–1 2–0 1–0 2–3 2–0 0–2 1–1 2–2 1–0 2–0 3–2 1–0 1–0 1–1 1–0
Barnsley 1–0 2–0 0–1 3–1 1–1 3–0 2–1 4–2 1–0 2–1 1–0 1–0 1–1 1–1 6–2 3–1 0–3 4–1 4–4 1–2 0–0 3–1 3–0
Bradford City 2–1 0–2 1–2 6–0 0–0 1–0 1–3 3–0 1–2 2–1 1–1 1–3 3–0 2–0 2–3 2–3 1–0 1–1 1–1 3–1 1–1 1–0 2–1
Crewe Alexandra 1–0 1–1 0–2 1–2 1–1 2–4 0–3 1–0 0–1 0–0 3–3 0–1 2–4 0–0 1–5 0–2 1–2 0–2 2–2 6–2 1–1 1–2 0–1
Darlington 0–0 2–1 0–0 1–1 1–1 3–2 0–1 2–1 0–1 2–1 1–0 1–0 0–0 2–0 4–0 1–2 0–2 2–2 0–1 1–2 1–1 1–1 0–1
Doncaster Rovers 1–1 1–1 2–2 2–0 2–0 2–3 0–1 1–1 0–0 1–0 0–2 0–0 2–0 2–3 1–3 2–2 1–0 0–0 2–0 1–0 0–1 1–0 1–2
Grimsby Town 1–0 0–0 2–0 5–1 2–2 7–2 3–4 2–1 0–1 1–1 2–1 1–0 4–3 1–0 1–0 1–2 4–0 1–1 2–1 3–0 3–1 2–2 3–0
Halifax Town 0–2 1–1 0–2 2–0 0–0 0–2 0–0 1–2 2–4 1–0 2–3 1–2 2–2 2–0 0–3 0–0 2–1 2–3 2–1 1–0 1–2 2–1 0–1
Hartlepool United 0–0 2–2 1–1 2–2 2–2 0–2 3–4 1–0 3–1 2–1 2–0 0–0 2–0 1–1 1–2 0–0 5–1 1–1 1–3 3–2 1–1 1–1 1–1
Hereford United 0–0 1–1 1–1 3–1 6–1 1–0 2–0 0–1 2–2 1–0 3–0 0–3 4–3 0–1 1–0 0–0 2–2 3–1 1–0 3–1 0–0 0–0 1–0
Huddersfield Town 2–1 0–0 1–0 0–0 0–0 2–2 2–1 2–0 2–0 2–0 2–3 0–1 1–0 2–0 3–2 1–1 1–0 3–2 0–0 1–1 1–1 3–0 1–0
Newport County 2–0 1–2 1–1 2–4 1–2 2–1 3–0 1–1 2–0 3–2 4–1 2–1 2–1 1–2 1–0 3–2 0–0 2–0 1–2 1–1 2–1 1–3 1–1
Northampton Town 4–2 2–3 0–1 1–0 3–1 4–1 3–0 1–2 2–1 1–1 2–1 2–3 3–1 0–2 1–0 2–2 1–0 1–0 2–2 1–2 2–4 1–1 1–0
Portsmouth 1–1 1–1 0–1 0–1 3–0 3–0 4–0 1–3 3–1 3–0 1–0 1–0 2–1 1–0 2–0 4–0 1–1 0–0 1–1 1–0 1–0 0–0 1–1
Port Vale 1–2 1–1 3–2 2–1 2–2 2–1 1–3 1–1 0–1 2–0 1–1 1–0 1–1 2–2 0–0 0–3 1–1 2–2 2–1 1–2 2–1 1–0 0–0
Reading 1–0 4–0 1–0 3–0 3–0 1–0 3–0 4–0 1–0 3–1 3–0 1–1 2–1 5–1 2–0 0–0 2–0 0–1 3–3 1–0 2–0 1–0 3–0
Rochdale 2–1 1–1 0–3 1–0 2–1 2–1 2–0 2–5 1–1 1–1 0–2 0–2 1–0 4–1 0–2 0–1 1–0 1–0 2–0 1–0 0–2 0–0 1–2
Scunthorpe United 1–0 2–0 0–1 3–2 0–1 1–0 0–0 2–1 1–0 3–1 4–2 3–1 2–3 0–3 2–2 2–0 0–3 0–4 1–0 2–2 0–1 2–0 2–3
Stockport County 1–0 2–2 0–0 1–0 4–3 3–0 0–1 2–1 1–2 4–0 0–2 3–1 1–1 2–1 4–2 0–0 0–0 3–0 0–2 0–1 0–1 0–1 2–0
Torquay United 0–1 2–1 3–2 1–2 3–0 1–0 2–1 3–1 2–0 4–1 1–0 2–1 2–0 0–1 2–1 2–2 1–1 1–1 0–1 1–0 1–1 1–6 3–0
Wigan Athletic 1–0 3–2 1–1 1–3 1–0 2–2 1–0 0–3 1–0 2–2 0–0 2–1 2–3 2–0 2–0 5–3 3–0 3–0 1–0 2–0 3–1 1–2 1–1
Wimbledon 4–0 3–1 1–1 2–1 1–1 2–0 3–2 0–1 2–1 3–1 2–0 2–1 0–0 4–1 2–4 1–0 1–0 3–2 3–1 2–0 5–0 2–1 2–1
York City 2–1 1–1 0–1 2–2 1–0 5–2 1–1 0–0 2–0 1–1 1–0 1–3 1–2 1–0 5–3 4–0 0–1 2–1 1–0 1–0 0–0 0–1 1–4
Updated to match(es) played on unknown. Source: Ian Laschke: Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79. Macdonald and Jane’s, London & Sydney, 1980.
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Maps

Locations of the Football League Fourth Division teams 1978–1979
Locations of the Football League Fourth Division London teams 1978–1979

Attendances

Source:[4]

Division One

No. Club Average Highest Lowest
1 Manchester United 46,430 56,139 33,678
2 Liverpool FC 46,407 52,352 33,754
3 Arsenal FC 36,371 53,896 24,288
4 Manchester City FC 36,203 46,710 27,366
5 Everton FC 35,456 53,141 23,048
6 Tottenham Hotspur FC 34,902 50,541 21,560
7 Aston Villa FC 32,838 44,029 21,884
8 Nottingham Forest FC 29,587 41,898 20,388
9 Leeds United FC 27,633 41,324 20,121
10 West Bromwich Albion FC 26,517 35,166 17,499
11 Chelsea FC 24,782 42,328 12,479
12 Bolton Wanderers FC 23,200 35,200 17,394
13 Coventry City FC 22,638 28,585 15,083
14 Bristol City FC 22,306 30,191 13,559
15 Ipswich Town FC 21,673 28,179 16,070
16 Derby County FC 21,555 30,156 15,227
17 Southampton FC 21,330 24,252 18,957
18 Wolverhampton Wanderers FC 20,796 30,857 14,250
19 Birmingham City FC 20,164 36,145 12,168
20 Middlesbrough FC 18,459 32,214 12,822
21 Norwich City FC 17,874 27,031 12,401
22 Queens Park Rangers FC 16,287 26,626 9,600

Division Two

No. Club Average Highest Lowest
1 West Ham United FC 25,778 35,802 21,269
2 Sunderland AFC 25,454 36,526 16,829
3 Crystal Palace FC 23,294 51,482 15,183
4 Brighton & Hove Albion FC 22,145 33,028 16,216
5 Newcastle United FC 20,494 34,733 7,134
6 Stoke City FC 19,125 24,912 15,176
7 Sheffield United FC 16,339 23,118 11,913
8 Leicester City FC 14,187 20,740 10,363
9 Preston North End FC 12,117 17,829 8,906
10 Wrexham AFC 11,519 20,111 6,136
11 Burnley FC 10,748 23,133 5,837
12 Fulham FC 10,135 26,556 6,067
13 Charlton Athletic FC 9,563 22,816 5,480
14 Notts County FC 9,281 21,571 4,374
15 Cardiff City FC 9,246 14,851 5,542
16 Luton Town FC 8,792 14,205 6,002
17 Blackburn Rovers FC 8,640 17,790 4,684
18 Bristol Rovers FC 7,593 12,418 5,410
19 Leyton Orient FC 7,323 19,945 4,340
20 Oldham Athletic FC 7,045 11,284 4,637
21 Millwall FC 7,002 11,968 2,830
22 Cambridge United FC 6,849 11,406 4,663

Division Three

No. Club Average Highest Lowest
1 Watford FC 14,434 26,347 10,568
2 Swansea City AFC 13,746 22,838 8,086
3 Sheffield Wednesday FC 10,860 13,930 7,444
4 Swindon Town FC 7,975 17,216 4,558
5 Plymouth Argyle FC 7,526 13,406 4,686
6 Brentford FC 7,455 13,873 5,140
7 Gillingham FC 7,143 14,902 4,157
8 Southend United FC 6,610 13,703 3,255
9 Shrewsbury Town FC 6,099 14,441 2,346
10 Blackpool FC 5,647 9,403 3,136
11 Hull City AFC 5,238 10,336 3,418
12 Carlisle United FC 5,204 8,479 3,806
13 Mansfield Town FC 5,151 11,365 3,671
14 Chesterfield FC 4,884 13,322 2,802
15 Oxford United FC 4,647 10,649 3,164
16 Peterborough United FC 4,640 8,048 1,875
17 Rotherham United FC 4,466 13,746 1,996
18 Exeter City FC 4,408 8,022 3,195
19 Chester City FC 4,052 8,855 1,956
20 Walsall FC 4,047 6,423 2,573
21 Bury FC 3,782 5,852 2,298
22 Colchester United FC 3,419 6,317 2,311
23 Lincoln City FC 3,168 7,007 1,571
24 Tranmere Rovers 2,179 5,587 984

Division Four

No. Club Average Highest Lowest
1 Barnsley FC 11,048 21,261 5,828
2 Portsmouth FC 10,123 13,958 5,863
3 Reading FC 7,616 15,302 4,481
4 Wigan Athletic FC 6,701 9,427 4,459
5 Grimsby Town FC 6,528 16,138 3,903
6 Aldershot Town FC 4,163 8,967 2,560
7 Stockport County FC 4,146 9,054 2,190
8 Bradford City AFC 3,924 8,341 1,950
9 AFC Bournemouth 3,759 10,058 2,285
10 Newport County AFC 3,731 6,930 2,235
11 Wimbledon FC 3,712 8,084 2,374
12 Huddersfield Town AFC 3,649 9,382 1,680
13 Hereford United FC 3,369 5,674 2,351
14 Port Vale FC 3,287 5,226 2,160
15 Doncaster Rovers FC 3,000 9,380 1,539
16 Hartlepool United FC 2,997 5,956 1,769
17 York City FC 2,936 6,900 1,970
18 Northampton Town FC 2,895 4,694 1,572
19 Scunthorpe United FC 2,721 8,165 1,339
20 Torquay United FC 2,669 4,964 1,585
21 Crewe Alexandra FC 1,995 4,604 1,121
22 Halifax Town AFC 1,821 5,654 980
23 Darlington FC 1,807 3,513 1,086
24 Rochdale AFC 1,767 3,627 976

See also

References

  1. ^ "England 1978–79". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 27 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-02-24.
  2. ^ a b Ian Laschke: Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79. Macdonald and Jane’s, London & Sydney, 1980.
  3. ^ a b c d "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 2010-10-31.
  4. ^ https://www.european-football-statistics.co.uk/attn/archive/eng/aveeng1979.htm
  • Ian Laschke: Rothmans Book of Football League Records 1888–89 to 1978–79. Macdonald and Jane’s, London & Sydney, 1980.
allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1978%E2%80%9379_Football_League_Third_Division