During the 2002–03 English football season, Sheffield United competed in the Football League First Division.
| 2002–03 season | |
|---|---|
| Chairman | Derek Dooley |
| Manager | Neil Warnock |
| Stadium | Bramall Lane |
| First Division | 3rd (qualified for play-offs) |
| Play-offs | Runners-up |
| FA Cup | Semi-finals |
| League Cup | Semi-finals |
| Top goalscorer | League: Brown (16) All: Brown (22)[1] |
| Average home league attendance | 18,113 |
Season summary edit
The season turned out to be one of the most successful in Sheffield United's history. United reached the semi-finals of both the FA and League Cups before being eliminated by Arsenal and Liverpool respectively; both sides went on to win the respective cups. United also managed to qualify for the play-offs for promotion to the Premiership. United reached the play-off final after beating Nottingham Forest over two legs in the semi-final, but were beaten by Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Final league table edit
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Portsmouth (C, P) | 46 | 29 | 11 | 6 | 97 | 45 | +52 | 98 | Promotion to 2003–04 FA Premier League |
| 2 | Leicester City (P) | 46 | 26 | 14 | 6 | 73 | 40 | +33 | 92 | |
| 3 | Sheffield United | 46 | 23 | 11 | 12 | 72 | 52 | +20 | 80 | Qualification for First Division Playoffs |
| 4 | Reading | 46 | 25 | 4 | 17 | 61 | 46 | +15 | 79 | |
| 5 | Wolverhampton Wanderers (O, P) | 46 | 20 | 16 | 10 | 81 | 44 | +37 | 76 |
Updated to match(es) played on 11 May 2003. Source: Soccerway
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (P) Promoted
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (O) Play-off winners; (P) Promoted
Results edit
First Division edit
| 10 August 2002 1 | Coventry City | 2–1 | Sheffield United | Highfield Road |
| 15:00 | Bothroyd  16' McSheffrey 40' |
Asaba 13' |
Attendance: 18,839 |
| 13 August 2002 2 | Sheffield United | 1–1 | Portsmouth | Bramall Lane |
| 19:45 | Ndlovu 12' |
Burton 25' |
Attendance: 16,093 |
| 17 August 2002 3 | Sheffield United | 1–1 | Walsall | Bramall Lane |
| 15:00 | McGovern 40' |
Corica 23' |
Attendance: 14,011 |
| 27 August 2002 5 | Sheffield United | 3–1 | Millwall | Bramall Lane |
| 19:45 | Asaba 77' Tonge 82' Ndlovu 90' |
Ifill 89' |
Attendance: 13,024 |
| 1 September 2002 6 | Sheffield Wednesday | 2–0 | Sheffield United | Hillsborough |
| 12:00 | Owusu 73' Kuqi 82' |
Attendance: 27,075 |
| 7 September 2002 7 | Norwich City | 2–3 | Sheffield United | Carrow Road |
| 15:00 | McVeigh 85' Mackay 90' |
Brown 1' Tonge 6' Asaba 31' |
Attendance: 20,074 |
| 14 September 2002 8 | Sheffield United | 1–0 | Rotherham United | Bramall Lane |
| 15:00 | Ndlovu 74' |
Attendance: 19,948 |
| 17 September 2002 9 | Sheffield United | 2–1 | Grimsby Town | Bramall Lane |
| 19:45 | Allison 82' Tonge 89' |
Robinson 8' |
Attendance: 14,208 |
| 21 September 2002 10 | Gillingham | 1–1 | Sheffield United | Priestfield Stadium |
| 15:00 | Shaw 16' |
Allison 60' |
Attendance: 7,497 |
First Division play-offs edit
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SF 1st leg | 10 May 2003 | Nottingham Forest | A | 1–1 | 29,064 | Brown (pen) |
| SF 2nd leg | 15 May 2003 | Nottingham Forest | H | 4–3 (won 5–4 on agg) | 30,212 | Brown, Kabba, Peschisolido, Walker (own goal) |
| F | 26 May 2003 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | N | 0–3 | 69,473 |
FA Cup edit
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R3 | 4 January 2003 | Cheltenham Town | H | 4–0 | 9,166 | Murphy, McGovern, Kabba (2) |
| R4 | 25 January 2003 | Ipswich Town | H | 4–3 | 12,757 | Brown (2), Jagielka, Peschisolido |
| R5 | 15 February 2003 | Walsall | H | 2–0 | 17,510 | Mooney, Ndlovu |
| QF | 9 March 2003 | Leeds United | H | 1–0 | 24,633 | Kabba |
| SF | 13 April 2003 | Arsenal | N | 0–1 | 59,170 |
League Cup edit
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R1 | 10 September 2002 | York City | H | 1–0 | 4,675 | McGovern |
| R2 | 1 October 2002 | Wycombe Wanderers | H | 4–1 | 4,389 | Boulding, Brown (2), Montgomery |
| R3 | 6 November 2002 | Leeds United | H | 2–1 | 26,663 | Jagielka, Ndlovu |
| R4 | 3 December 2002 | Sunderland | H | 2–0 | 27,068 | Murphy, Allison |
| R5 | 17 December 2002 | Crystal Palace | H | 3–1 | 22,211 | Asaba, Peschisolido (2) |
| SF 1st leg | 8 January 2003 | Liverpool | H | 2–1 | 30,095 | Tonge (2) |
| SF 2nd leg | 21 January 2003 | Liverpool | A | 0–2 (lost 2–3 on agg) | 43,837 |
Players edit
First-team squad edit
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Left club during season edit
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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References edit
- ^ "All Sheffield United players: 2003". www.11v11.com.
Notes edit
- ^ McCall was born in Leeds, England, but also qualified to represent Scotland internationally through his parents and represented them at U-21 level before making his international debut for Scotland in March 1990.
- ^ Montgomery was born in Leeds, England, but also qualified to represent Scotland internationally and represented them at U-21 level.
- ^ Kenny was born in Halifax, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally through his parents and would make his international debut for the Republic of Ireland in June 2004.
- ^ Kelly was born in Preston, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally through his father and represented them at U-19, U-21, U-23, and B level.