2004–05 Luton Town F.C. season

The 2004–05 season was the 119th season in the history of Luton Town Football Club, and club's 84th consecutive year in the Football League. Luton ended the season as champions of the rebranded League One competition, formerly known as the Second Division, with 98 points, achieving promotion to the Championship; the club's first elevation to that level since the 1981–82 season.

Luton Town
2004–05 season
ChairmanBill Tomlins
ManagerMike Newell
League OneFirst (promoted as champions)
FA CupThird round
Football League CupFirst round
Football League TrophySouthern Section First Round
Top goalscorerLeague: Steve Howard (18)
All: Steve Howard (22)
Highest home attendance9,500 vs Sheffield Wednesday (League One, 1 January 2005)
Lowest home attendance6,603 vs Stockport County (League One, 15 January 2005)
Average home league attendance7,896

The club spent very little money bringing in new players to win the title, instead relying on existing players, use of the loan system and the robust youth set-up. Much of the success was built on a strong defence, headed by youth graduate Curtis Davies, which let in the fewest goals of any team; the leadership of combative midfielder and captain Kevin Nicholls, who unlike in previous years remained uninjured for the whole season; and the team's ability to score late goals – of the 87 goals the team scored in the league, almost a fifth came in the last ten minutes of matches.

This article covers the period from 1 July 2004 to 30 June 2005.

Background edit

With Luton Town losing up to £500,000 per month and the very real threat of its history and heritage being destroyed by controversial owner John Gurney, supporters' trust Trust in Luton deliberately placed the club into administrative receivership in July 2003 after taking a controlling interest in the club's major creditor. Gurney was successfully forced out as a result, but administration meant that the club was unable to sign players without special dispensation from the authorities during the 2003–04 season and, therefore, a finish of tenth place in the league was viewed by many to be a success.[1]

On 12 May 2004, four days after the last game of the campaign, businessman Bill Tomlins completed his takeover of the club, securing its immediate future. Manager Mike Newell began the process of keeping key players, committing defenders Chris Coyne and Russell Perrett, midfielders Paul Hughes, Michael Leary and Steve Robinson, and youth players Curtis Davies, Rob Beckwith and Stephen O'Leary to two-year contracts, as well as rejecting an offer from Sheffield Wednesday for leading scorer Steve Howard.[2][3][4][5] Popular striker Adrian Forbes left the club and dropped down to the league below, signing for Swansea City on a free transfer in late June.[6]

Review edit

July edit

Experienced goalkeeper Marlon Beresford returned to Luton, where he had spent three months during the previous season, on a free transfer on 1 July from Barnsley.[7] The same day, midfielder Matthew Spring, who had started his career at Luton and made nearly 300 appearances for the team, joined Championship club Leeds United on a Bosman free transfer.[8] On 12 July 2003–04 Player of the Year Emmerson Boyce, another who had graduated through the youth system, turned down the offer of a new contract and joined Premier League club Crystal Palace on a free transfer.[9] The club signed Slovenian goalkeeper Dino Seremet on a two-year contract on 23 July from NK Maribor, the player arriving on a free transfer following a successful trial period.[10]

After five friendly victories against local sides, Luton were brought back to earth with a 4–0 home loss to Dutch champions and former European Cup winners Ajax on 23 July.[11] Striker Matthew Blinkhorn joined Luton on a three-month loan from Blackpool a week later.[12]

A 1–1 draw with Premier League club Charlton Athletic on 31 July rounded off pre-season, with the first league game of the campaign beginning a week later.[13]

August edit

A day before the first game with Oldham Athletic, Luton signed Portsmouth's 21-year-old striker Rowan Vine on a three-month loan, with a view to extending this for the whole season.[14] Vine started in the team that beat Oldham 2–1 on 7 August, with goals from Steve Howard and Paul Underwood resulting in a Luton victory in an otherwise even game. Narrow, albeit high-scoring, victories away to Swindon Town and Barnsley pushed Luton into second place in the table, and marked the first time since the 1981–82 season that the club had won their first three games of a campaign.

The team kept their first clean sheet with a 1–0 win over Torquay United on 21 August that pushed them into first place. A week later, Luton won 3–1 away to Blackpool in a game they dominated, scoring three goals in the second half to win their third away game – the same number of away wins achieved in the entirety of the previous season. Howard scored again to make it five goals in five League One games and, including the previous season, ten goals in ten consecutive games. A 1–0 home win against AFC Bournemouth two days later, captain Kevin Nicholls scoring the winning goal late on with a 25-yard curling shot, gave Luton a six-point lead at the top of the table.

These six wins in a row saw Mike Newell presented with the Manager of the Month award, and Steve Howard awarded the Player of the Month trophy for his five goals.[15][16]

September edit

Youth player Keith Keane, who had played a number of games in August in place of the injured Kevin Foley, was rewarded for his performances with a two-year professional contract on 3 September.[17] Soon after, on-loan striker Rowan Vine extended his loan until the end of the season following a strong start.[18]

Luton's 100% record came to an end on 4 September when they drew 0–0 at Sheffield Wednesday. Three days later, the club was knocked out of the League Cup after a 4–3 extra time loss to League Two club Boston United.

Luton clearly did not dwell on either of these setbacks, winning their next three league games to extend the gap to second-placed Tranmere Rovers to nine points. In this period, the club signed striker Gary McSheffrey on a one-month loan, a player who had proved a success in a three-month loan spell the previous season.[19] First-choice goalkeeper Marlon Beresford was injured in a 2–1 home win against Peterborough United, meaning back-up Dino Seremet made his debut as a substitute. Seremet's first start did not go so well, as Luton were knocked out of the Football League Trophy, again by lower league opposition, in a 2–0 loss to Swansea City on 28 September. Youth players Calvin Andrew and Leon Barnett both signed three-year professional contracts the same day.[20]

A Luton player won the League One Player of the Month award for the second month in a row, Rowan Vine picking up the award after scoring three goals in four league games.[21]

October edit

A 1–1 draw away to closest rivals Tranmere Rovers on 2 October was described as "the toughest test for [the team] yet" by Mike Newell.[22] Following a 3–0 win against Hartlepool United six days later, the club had gone over a quarter of the league season unbeaten.

This record quickly evaporated with three defeats in a row, to Huddersfield Town, Walsall, and a heavy 3–0 loss against Hull City, who had now overtaken Tranmere as Luton's nearest rivals. Newell refused to be flustered despite dropping nine points, stating that "there isn't a lot wrong" and that bad luck had played a part in the defeats.[23]

The injury to Marlon Beresford and poor goalkeeping performances from Dino Seremet led Luton to sign Simon Royce on a one-month loan from Charlton Athletic on 29 October.[24] A 4–0 home win against Bradford City came one day later, with Ahmet Brković opening the scoring with a "sensational" bicycle kick.[25]

November edit

Director of Football Mick Harford left the club on 5 November to take up the post of assistant manager at Nottingham Forest.[26]

The club remained unbeaten throughout November, winning convincingly against Wrexham and Milton Keynes Dons, drawing against Doncaster Rovers, and claiming an FA Cup first round victory over Southend United.

Luton rejected a bid for Steve Howard during November from Championship club Nottingham Forest, managed by former Luton boss Joe Kinnear.[27] Leon Barnett, who had graduated through the youth team, signed for non-League Aylesbury United on loan for a month on 19 November.[28]

Central defender Curtis Davies became the third Luton player in four months to win the League One Player of the Month award for his performances in November.[29]

December edit

Luton secured a place in the FA Cup third round following a 3–0 win away to Wycombe Wanderers on 4 December.

Steve Howard was sent off early in Luton's game at Brentford on 7 December, with the club losing 2–0 in their fourth league defeat of the season and reducing their lead at the top of the table to just one point. However, wins against Port Vale, Bristol City, and Chesterfield allowed Luton to pull out a lead once again. The performances of squad players such as Russell Perrett and Enoch Showunmi, filling in for injuries and suspensions, were cited by Mike Newell as key to these three victories.[30]

On 16 December, defenders David Bayliss and Ian Hillier both joined League Two club Chester City on one-month loans.[31]

2004 ended in a 2–2 home draw with Colchester United, Rowan Vine scoring twice.

January edit

Two draws in the league saw Luton usurped as league leaders by Hull City, marking the first time during the season that they had been in a place other than top since 28 August. Luton were then knocked out of the FA Cup with a 2–0 home defeat to Brentford on 8 January.

The loans of David Bayliss and Ian Hillier at Chester City were both extended for a further month on 14 January.[32]

The club returned to the top of the table with their first win in four games, beating bottom-of-the-table Stockport County 3–0 on 15 January. Further draws with Colchester United and Tranmere Rovers still left Luton as leaders, as Hull began to drop points.

February edit

Left-back Sol Davis signed a one-year contract extension on 3 February.[33]

On 5 February, Luton drew for the third time in a row, this time with Huddersfield Town, conceding in the fourth minute of added time. A draw for Hull left them one point behind Luton in the table, with the next match taking place between the two sides at Kenilworth Road one week later. A close match was eventually won by Luton, Ahmet Brković scoring in the last minute of the game to pull out a four-point lead.

Three further wins in quick succession over Hartlepool United, Bradford City and Walsall saw this four-point gap increase to nine, and even a loss to Port Vale in late February, described by Newell as their "worst performance of the season", that ended a 14-game unbeaten league run kept Luton comfortably in first place.[34]

March edit

Luton put the defeat to Port Vale behind them with a 5–0 thrashing of Bristol City and then a 3–1 win over Swindon Town.

Influential midfielders Kevin Nicholls and Ahmet Brković both signed one-year contract extensions on 3 March.[35] On 10 March, manager Mike Newell signed a two-year contract extension alongside his assistant manager Brian Stein.[36] Young goalkeeper Dean Brill signed a one-year contract extension on 14 March.[37] Two days later, Wycombe Wanderers rejected a £100,000 bid from Luton for their top scorer Nathan Tyson.[38]

The club drew 2–2 with Oldham Athletic on 19 March, with a last-minute Steve Howard goal earning a point that saw Hull City close the gap to the top.

Northern Ireland international striker Warren Feeney signed for Luton on 24 March for a £150,000 fee from Stockport County, where he had scored 17 goals.[39] A 3–1 defeat the next day to Barnsley, coupled with a draw for Hull, meant Luton conceded top place in the table again, though both clubs were still safely above the play-off places. A 4–1 win over Torquay United on 28 March, along with Hull losing, lifted Luton back into first.

April edit

Luton went the entirety of April without losing or drawing, with consecutive victories against Blackpool, Bournemouth, Milton Keynes Dons, Wrexham and Brentford securing promotion to the Championship and first place in the table; the club's first promotion to the second tier of English football since the 1981–82 season.

Chris Coyne was awarded the Player of the Month trophy for April, making him the fourth Luton player in nine months to win the accolade, while Mike Newell won the Manager of the Month award for the second time during the season.[40]

May and June edit

Luton ended the season with an incident-packed 3–3 draw with Doncaster Rovers on 7 May.

The club had six players named in the League One Team of the Year – goalkeeper Marlon Beresford; centre-backs Curtis Davies and Chris Coyne; midfielders Kevin Nicholls and Ahmet Brković; and top scorer Steve Howard.[41] Curtis Davies was also named as the overall League One Player of the Year, a notable achievement considering this was the 20-year-old's first full season.[42]

On 17 May, it was announced that Wrexham's Trinidadian international winger Carlos Edwards would join Luton on a free transfer on 1 July 2005, signing a three-year contract.[43] Lee Mansell, who had played only three times during the season, joined Oxford United on a free transfer on 7 June.[44] Steve Howard, who had been the subject of bids from Sheffield Wednesday, Nottingham Forest and Burnley throughout the season, committed himself to Luton on 16 June by signing a new two-year contract. Midfielder Peter Holmes also agreed a one-year extension to his contract.[45] On 30 June, defender David Bayliss left Luton to join Wrexham.[46]

Match results edit

Luton Town results given first.

Legend edit

Win Draw Loss

Friendlies edit

Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers Notes
14 July 2004 St Albans City Away 6–0 Unknown Brković (2), Pitt (2), Meechan, McMahon [47]
14 July 2004 Aylesbury United Away 3–0 Unknown Mansell, Howard, Sinclair [47]
17 July 2004 Rugby United Away 3–1 Unknown Jephcott, Brković, Meechan [48]
17 July 2004 Dunstable Town Away 4–1 Unknown Howard (2), Mansell, Pitt [48]
20 July 2004 Hitchin Town Away 4–1 Unknown Howard, Hillier, Showunmi, Bayliss [49]
24 July 2004 Ajax Home 0–4 7,543 [11]
28 July 2004 Falkirk Away 1–2 2,492 Showunmi [50]
31 July 2004 Charlton Athletic Home 1–1 2,711 O'Leary [13]

League One edit

All results, goals, attendances etc. taken from Soccerbase[51] and verified with official Luton Town match reports.[52]
Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers Notes
7 August 2004 Oldham Athletic Home 2–1 6,634 Howard, Underwood
11 August 2004 Swindon Town Away 3–2 6,286 Nicholls (pen), own goal, Howard
14 August 2004 Barnsley Away 4–3 10,057 Howard, Vine, Brković, Robinson
21 August 2004 Torquay United Home 1–0 6,664 Howard
28 August 2004 Blackpool Away 3–1 5,793 Howard, Brković (2)
30 August 2004 AFC Bournemouth Home 1–0 7,404 Nicholls
4 September 2004 Sheffield Wednesday Away 0–0 20,806
11 September 2004 Chesterfield Home 1–0 7,532 Vine
18 September 2004 Stockport County Away 3–1 5,128 Robinson, Vine, Brković
25 September 2004 Peterborough United Home 2–1 7,694 Vine, Underwood
2 October 2004 Tranmere Rovers Away 1–1 10,884 Coyne
8 October 2004 Hartlepool United Home 3–0 7,865 Howard, Brković, McSheffrey
16 October 2004 Huddersfield Town Home 1–2 8,192 Underwood
19 October 2004 Walsall Away 0–2 5,963
23 October 2004 Hull City Away 0–3 18,575
30 October 2004 Bradford City Home 4–0 7,975 Brković (2), Howard, Underwood
6 November 2004 Wrexham Home 5–1 7,144 Robinson, Davis, O'Leary, Howard, Brković
20 November 2004 Milton Keynes Dons Away 4–1 7,620 Vine, Howard (3)
27 November 2004 Doncaster Rovers Home 1–1 8,142 Nicholls
7 December 2004 Brentford Away 0–2 6,393
11 December 2004 Port Vale Home 1–0 6,974 Brković
18 December 2004 Bristol City Away 2–1 13,414 Coyne, Showunmi
26 December 2004 Chesterfield Away 1–0 7,158 Showunmi
28 December 2004 Colchester United Home 2–2 8,806 Vine (2)
1 January 2005 Sheffield Wednesday Home 1–1 9,500 Howard
3 January 2005 Peterborough United Away 2–2 7,662 Nicholls, Howard
15 January 2005 Stockport County Home 3–0 6,603 Coyne, Howard, Nicholls (pen)
22 January 2005 Colchester United Away 0–0 4,309
29 January 2005 Tranmere Rovers Home 1–1 8,594 Nicholls (pen)
5 February 2005 Huddersfield Town Away 1–1 12,611 Brković
12 February 2005 Hull City Home 1–0 9,500 Brković
15 February 2005 Hartlepool United Away 3–2 5,542 Coyne, Showunmi, Foley
19 February 2005 Bradford City Away 1–0 8,702 Vine
22 February 2005 Walsall Home 1–0 7,236 Nicholls (pen)
26 February 2005 Port Vale Away 1–3 5,353 Foley
5 March 2005 Bristol City Home 5–0 8,330 Brković (2), Nicholls (pen), Davis, Holmes
12 March 2005 Swindon Town Home 3–1 8,173 Nicholls (pen), Brković, Holmes
19 March 2005 Oldham Athletic Away 2–2 5,809 Underwood, Howard
25 March 2005 Barnsley Home 1–3 7,548 Showunmi
28 March 2005 Torquay United Away 4–1 4,264 Nicholls, Holmes, Howard, Vine
2 April 2005 Blackpool Home 1–0 7,816 Howard
9 April 2005 AFC Bournemouth Away 1–0 9,058 Showunmi
16 April 2005 Milton Keynes Dons Home 1–0 9,000 own goal
23 April 2005 Wrexham Away 2–1 6,614 Davies, Coyne
30 April 2005 Brentford Home 4–2 9,313 Brković, Nicholls (pen), Showunmi, Robinson
7 May 2005 Doncaster Rovers Away 3–3 8,928 Perrett, Howard, Nicholls

FA Cup edit

Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers Notes
First round 12 November 2004 Southend United Away 3–0 6,683 Howard (2), Brković
Second round 4 December 2004 Wycombe Wanderers Away 3–0 4,767 Howard (2), Nicholls
Third round 8 January 2005 Brentford Home 0–2 6,861

Football League Cup edit

Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers Notes
First round 7 September 2004 Boston United Away 3–4 (aet) 2,631 own goal, Nicholls (pen), Showunmi

Football League Trophy edit

Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers Notes
First round 28 September 2004 Swansea City Away 0–2 3,559

League table edit

Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Luton Town (C, P) 46 29 11 6 87 48 +39 98 Promotion to 2005–06 Football League Championship
2 Hull City (P) 46 26 8 12 80 53 +27 86
3 Tranmere Rovers 46 22 13 11 73 55 +18 79 Qualification for League One play-offs
4 Brentford 46 22 9 15 57 60 −3 75
5 Sheffield Wednesday (P) 46 19 15 12 77 59 +18 72
Updated to match(es) played on May 2005. Source: [citation needed]
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted

Player statistics edit

Last match played on 7 May 2005. Players with a zero in every column appeared either as unused substitutes or were assigned squad numbers.[53]
No. Pos. Name League FA Cup League Cup FL Trophy Total Discipline
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals    
1 GK   Marlon Beresford 38 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 41 0 0 0
2 DF   Kevin Foley 38 (1) 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 40 (1) 2 2 0
3 DF   Alan Neilson 6 (3) 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 7 (3) 0 1 0
5 DF   Russell Perrett 9 (3) 1 0 0 0 0 0 (1) 0 9 (4) 1 2 1
6 DF/MF   Paul Underwood 37 5 3 0 1 0 0 0 41 5 5 0
7 MF   Paul Hughes 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 0
8 MF   Kevin Nicholls 44 12 2 1 1 1 0 0 47 14 7 1
9 FW   Rowan Vine 43 (2) 9 3 0 1 0 0 0 47 (2) 9 5 0
10 FW   Gary McSheffrey 1 (4) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 (4) 1 0 0
11 MF   Steve Robinson 28 (3) 4 2 0 1 0 0 0 31 (3) 4 7 0
12 DF   Chris Coyne 39 (1) 5 3 0 1 0 0 0 43 5 5 1
14 MF   Michael Leary 1 (7) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 (7) 0 1 0
15 MF   Stephen O'Leary 12 (5) 1 2 0 0 0 1 0 15 (5) 0 3 0
16 FW   Enoch Showunmi 7 (28) 6 0 (3) 0 0 (1) 1 1 0 8 (32) 7 0 0
17 MF   Lee Mansell 0 (1) 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 2 (1) 0 0 0
18 MF   Ahmet Brković 39 (3) 15 3 1 1 0 0 0 43 (3) 16 8 0
19 FW   Steve Howard 40 18 3 4 1 0 0 0 44 22 13 1
20 DF   Curtis Davies 44 1 3 0 1 0 0 0 48 1 7 0
21 MF   Keith Keane 11 (6) 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 13 (6) 0 5 1
22 DF   David Bayliss 0 0 0 (1) 0 0 0 1 0 1 (1) 0 0 0
23 DF   Ian Hillier 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
24 DF   Sol Davis 45 2 3 0 1 0 0 0 49 2 9 0
25 GK   Dino Seremet 6 (1) 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 8 (1) 0 1 0
26 FW   Matthew Blinkhorn 0 (2) 0 0 0 0 (1) 0 0 0 0 (3) 0 0 0
26 FW   Warren Feeney 1 (5) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 (5) 0 0 0
27 MF   Peter Holmes 13 (6) 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 14 (6) 3 2 0
28 GK   Simon Royce 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0
29 FW   Calvin Andrew 2 (6) 0 0 (2) 0 0 0 1 0 3 (8) 0 0 0
33 GK   Dean Brill 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
45 DF   Leon Barnett 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 0 1
47 GK   Rob Beckwith 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0

Managerial statistics edit

Only competitive games from the 2004–05 season are included.
Name Nat. From To Record Honours
PLD W D L GF GA W%
Mike Newell   23 June 2003 15 March 2007 51 31 11 9 102 56 60.8

Awards edit

Awarded on 2 May 2005.
Award Name No. Pos. Notes
Supporters' Player of the Season   Kevin Nicholls 8 MF [54]
Players' Player of the Season   Sol Davis 24 DF [54]
Website Player of the Season   Kevin Nicholls 8 MF [54]
Young Player of the Season   Curtis Davies 20 DF [54]
Young Members' Player of the Season   Ahmet Brković 18 MF [54]
Special Achievement Award   Marlon Beresford 1 GK [54]
Goal of the Season   Ahmet Brković 18 MF [54][A]

Transfers edit

In edit

Date Player From Fee Notes
1 July 2004   Marlon Beresford Barnsley Free [7]
23 July 2004   Dino Seremet NK Maribor Free [10]
24 March 2005   Warren Feeney Stockport County £150,000 [39]

Out edit

Date Player To Fee Notes
1 July 2004   Matthew Spring Leeds United Free [8]
12 July 2004   Emmerson Boyce Crystal Palace Free [9]
16 June 2005   Lee Mansell Oxford United Free [44]
30 June 2005   David Bayliss Wrexham Free [46]

Loans in edit

Date Player From End date Notes
30 July 2004   Matthew Blinkhorn Blackpool 30 October 2004 [12]
6 August 2004   Rowan Vine Portsmouth 10 May 2005 [14]
17 September 2004   Gary McSheffrey Coventry City 17 October 2004 [19]
29 October 2004   Simon Royce Charlton Athletic 29 November 2004 [24]

Loans out edit

Date Player To End date Notes
19 November 2004   Leon Barnett Aylesbury United 19 December 2004 [28]
16 December 2004   David Bayliss Chester City 16 February 2005 [31]
16 December 2004   Ian Hillier Chester City 16 February 2005 [31]

See also edit

Footnotes edit

A. ^ The goal of the season was awarded to Ahmet Brković for his bicycle kick against Bradford City on 30 October 2004.

References edit

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