Louis Spence's Premier League Preview || A Matter Of Life And Death

A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH 15-10-07
Louis Spence

Middlesbrough were founder members of the Premiership in season 1992-1993. Although they were relegated at the end of that season and again in 1997 following the points deduction debacle they have maintained top status ever since. For a club of its geographical location and crowd potential this is actually a highly laudable achievement.

Let us all be in no doubt that if Steve Gibson's hand had not been at the helm we would have suffered the same fate as those highlighted below. That is why, plus the inevitable monetary rewards that top status endows, it is vital for clubs to stay afloat in the Premiership.

To understand more fully the scope of this one has only to examine the league table at the end of the first Premiership season and see where other founder members now languish.

FIRST PREMIERSHIP TABLE 1992-93

1. Manchester United
2. Aston Villa
3. NORWICH
4. Blackburn
5. QPR
6. Liverpool
7. SHEFFIELD WED
8. Tottenham Hotspur
9. Manchester City
10. Arsenal
11. Chelsea
12. WIMBLEDON
13. Everton
14. SHEFFIELD UNITED
15. COVENTRY
16. IPSWICH
17. LEEDS UTD
18. SOUTHAMPTON
19. OLDHAM
20. CRYSTAL PALACE
21. Boro
22. NOTTINGHAM FOREST

* The Premiership was reduced at end of 1994-95 season with four clubs relegated (Palace, Norwich, Leicester and Ipswich) and two promoted (Boro and Bolton) making it a twenty team league.

As you can see there are over half of the original members now playing at lower levels and one, disgracefully in my opinion, has ceased to exist at all. Funnily enough, though not for their supporters, the three highest placed of these absentees are now occupying the relegation places in the Championship with Norwich 22nd, Sheffield Wednesday 23rd and QPR at rock bottom.

Any betting man would take at least one of the three to drop yet another division come the season's end.

Of the other hopefuls in the second tier we find Coventry the highest placed at 8th then Ipswich (10th) Southampton (14th) Palace (19th) and Sheffield United at a worrying 20th.

In the laughably named League One, Forest are best placed at 5th, the shockingly sledgehammered Leeds at 12th and Oldham at a none too edifying 18th.

It became almost de rigueur to despise Wimbledon for their tactics and dubious personnel but their fans never deserved to lose their team altogether in a carve up that saw Milton Keynes achieve football league status out of nowhere - made worse by the fact that Wimbledon had fought through the whole of the league pyramid to achieve top billing.

It is hard to see any of these originals returning this season and so another windfall disparity is incurred. Another year of frustration for fans of clubs with greater pulling power and higher pedigree than those now lording it at the highest echelon. Albeit shakily in some cases.

It has taken Derby five years to get back and that all looks as though, through the inevitable missing out of top flight funding, it has been in vain. It's not out of the question that either of the other promoted clubs, Sunderland or Birmingham could join them.

As the great Bill Shankly once said; 'Some people think football is a matter of life or death. I assure them it is much more serious than that'.

Never a truer word.

There have been funerals where I have remained dry-eyed but when the Boro have been relegated...

Louis Spence

Louis will be appearing on 'Dirty Rotten Cheater' with host Brian Conley on Tuesday 16th October on BBC 1 at 2.35.

RETURN TO LOUIS SPENCE INDEX PAGE HERE