The Football League play-offs for the 1986–87 season were held in May 1987, with the two-legged finals taking place at the finalists home stadiums. The play-off semi-finals were also played over two legs and were contested by the teams who finished in 3rd, 4th and 5th place in the Football League Second Division and Football League Third Division and the 4th, 5th, 6th placed teams in the Football League Fourth Division table, along with a team from the league above. The winners of the semi-finals progressed through to the finals, with the winner of these matches either gaining promotion or avoiding relegation for the following season.
| Season | 1986–87 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Charlton Athletic (Second Division) Swindon Town (Third Division) Aldershot (Fourth Division) |
| Matches played | 20 |
| Goals scored | 45 (2.25 per match) |
| Biggest home win | Aldershot 2–0 Wolves (Fourth Division) |
| Biggest away win | Colchester 0–2 Wolves (Fourth Division) |
| Highest scoring | Sunderland 4–3 Gillingham (7 goals) |
| Highest attendance | 31,395 – Leeds v Charlton (Second Division final) |
| Lowest attendance | 4,164 – Aldershot v Bolton (Fourth Division semi-final) |
| Average attendance | 15,469 |
1988 → | |
Background edit
The Football League play-offs have been held every year since 1987. They take place for each division following the conclusion of the regular season and are contested by the four clubs finishing below the automatic promotion places. For the first three seasons the final was played over two legs but this was changed to a single match at Wembley Stadium from 1990. Additionally, for the 1986–87 and 1987–88 play-offs the semi-finals included a team from the next league who had finished above the relegation positions up, e.g. one team from the first tier and three teams from the second tier. The team from the higher division would be relegated if they failed to win the play-offs, with the play-off winner being promoted in their place.
Second Division edit
- First Division relegation places
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19 | Charlton Athletic | 42 | 11 | 11 | 20 | 45 | 55 | –10 | 44 |
| 20 | Leicester City | 42 | 11 | 9 | 22 | 54 | 76 | –22 | 42 |
| 21 | Manchester City | 42 | 8 | 15 | 19 | 36 | 57 | –21 | 39 |
| 22 | Aston Villa | 42 | 8 | 12 | 22 | 45 | 79 | –34 | 36 |
- Second Division play-off places
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Oldham Athletic | 42 | 22 | 9 | 11 | 65 | 44 | +21 | 75 |
| 4 | Leeds United | 42 | 19 | 11 | 12 | 58 | 44 | +14 | 68 |
| 5 | Ipswich Town | 42 | 17 | 13 | 12 | 59 | 43 | +16 | 64 |
Semi-finals edit
- First leg
- Second leg
| Charlton Athletic | 2–1 | Ipswich Town |
|---|---|---|
Melrose  18', 20' |
McCall 85' |
Charlton Athletic won 2–1 on aggregate.
| Oldham Athletic | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Leeds United |
|---|---|---|
| Williams 18' Cecere 89' |
Edwards 90' |
Oldham Athletic 2–2 Leeds United on aggregate. Leeds United won on away goals.
Final edit
- First leg
- Second leg
Leeds United 1–1 Charlton Athletic on aggregate.
- Replay
| Charlton Athletic | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | Leeds United |
|---|---|---|
| Shirtliff 113', 117' |
Sheridan 99' |
Third Division edit
- Second Division relegation places
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 | Sunderland | 42 | 12 | 12 | 18 | 49 | 59 | –10 | 48 |
| 21 | Grimsby Town | 42 | 10 | 14 | 18 | 39 | 59 | –20 | 44 |
| 22 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 42 | 9 | 12 | 21 | 37 | 54 | –17 | 39 |
- Third Division play-off places
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Swindon Town | 46 | 25 | 12 | 9 | 77 | 47 | +30 | 87 |
| 4 | Wigan Athletic | 46 | 25 | 10 | 11 | 83 | 60 | +23 | 85 |
| 5 | Gillingham | 46 | 23 | 9 | 14 | 65 | 48 | +17 | 78 |
Semi-finals edit
- First leg
| Gillingham | 3–2 | Sunderland |
|---|---|---|
| Cascarino 64' |
Proctor 29' (pen.) |
| Wigan Athletic | 2–3 | Swindon Town |
|---|---|---|
| Thompson 3' Lowe 15' |
Bamber Quinn Coyne |
- Second leg
| Sunderland | 4–3 (a.e.t.) | Gillingham |
|---|---|---|
| Gates 17' 21' Bennett 88'Bertschin 108' |
Pritchard 2' Cascarino 51', 92' |
Sunderland 6–6 Gillingham on aggregate. Gillingham won on away goals.
Swindon Town won 3–2 on aggregate.
Final edit
- First leg
| Gillingham | 1–0 | Swindon Town |
|---|---|---|
| Smith 81' |
- Second leg
| Swindon Town | 2–1 | Gillingham |
|---|---|---|
| Coyne 61' Henry 80' |
Elsey 15' |
Swindon Town 2–2 Gillingham on aggregate.
- Replay
| Gillingham | 0–2 | Swindon Town |
|---|---|---|
| White 2', 65' |
Fourth Division edit
- Third Division relegation places
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Bolton Wanderers | 46 | 10 | 15 | 21 | 46 | 58 | –12 | 45 |
| 22 | Carlisle United | 46 | 10 | 8 | 28 | 39 | 78 | –39 | 38 |
| 23 | Darlington | 46 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 45 | 77 | –32 | 37 |
| 24 | Newport County | 46 | 8 | 13 | 25 | 49 | 86 | –37 | 37 |
- Fourth Division play-off places
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 46 | 24 | 7 | 15 | 69 | 50 | +19 | 79 |
| 5 | Colchester United | 46 | 21 | 7 | 18 | 64 | 56 | +8 | 70 |
| 6 | Aldershot | 46 | 20 | 10 | 16 | 64 | 57 | +7 | 70 |
Semi-finals edit
- First leg
| Colchester United | 0–2 | Wolverhampton Wanderers |
|---|---|---|
| Kelly 28' Bull 32' |
| Aldershot | 1–0 | Bolton Wanderers |
|---|---|---|
| Johnson 87' |
- Second leg
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 0–0 | Colchester United |
|---|---|---|
Wolverhampton Wanderers won 2–0 on aggregate.
Aldershot won 3–2 on aggregate.
Final edit
- First leg
| Aldershot | 2–0 | Wolverhampton Wanderers |
|---|---|---|
| McDonald 4' Barnes 47' (pen.) |
- Second leg
Aldershot won 3–0 on aggregate.