Final League Table
Teams in a silver box denotes a player
representing England in 1890-91 |
|
Team |
P |
Home |
Away |
₧
|
|
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
W |
D |
L |
F |
A |
|
Everton |
22 |
9 |
0 |
2 |
39 |
12 |
5 |
1 |
5 |
24 |
17 |
29 |
|
Preston North End |
22 |
7 |
3 |
1 |
30 |
5 |
5 |
0 |
6 |
14 |
18 |
27 |
|
Notts
County |
22 |
9 |
1 |
1 |
33 |
11 |
2 |
3 |
6 |
19 |
24 |
26 |
|
Wolverhampton Wanderers |
22 |
8 |
1 |
2 |
23 |
8 |
4 |
1 |
6 |
16 |
42 |
26 |
|
Bolton Wanderers |
22 |
9 |
0 |
2 |
36 |
14 |
3 |
1 |
7 |
11 |
20 |
25 |
|
Blackburn Rovers |
22 |
7 |
1 |
3 |
29 |
19 |
4 |
1 |
6 |
23 |
24 |
24 |
|
Sunderland |
22 |
7
|
2
|
2
|
31
|
13
|
3
|
3
|
5
|
20
|
18
|
23
|
|
deducted two points fielding an unregistered player |
|
Burnley |
22 |
7 |
1 |
3 |
33 |
24 |
2 |
2 |
7 |
19 |
39 |
21 |
|
Aston Villa |
22 |
5 |
4 |
2 |
29 |
18 |
2 |
0 |
9 |
16 |
40 |
18 |
|
Accrington |
22 |
5 |
1 |
5 |
19 |
19 |
1 |
3 |
7 |
9 |
31 |
16 |
|
Derby County |
22 |
6 |
1 |
4 |
38 |
28 |
1 |
0 |
10 |
9 |
53 |
15 |
|
West Bromwich Albion |
22 |
3 |
1 |
7 |
17 |
26 |
2 |
1 |
8 |
17 |
31 |
12 |
|
Everton won their
first five games:
West Brom (a) 4-1, Wolves (h) 5-0, Bolton (a) 5-0, Accrington (a) 2-1, Derby
(h) 7-0, before drawing 2-2 at Aston Villa on 11 October 1890.
|
|
How The League Was Won 1890-91 Season |
|
Timeline |
19
consecutive Saturdays from 6 September 1890 to 10 January 1891, plus Boxing Day (Friday, 26 December 1890)
Rearranged games were played on Mondays,
plus one on a Thursday and two on New Year's Day. In
January, February and March 1891, remaining games were also played
on
Saturdays (plus two on a Tuesday and one on a Thursday in February,
and two on a Monday and one on a Wednesday in March). The FA Cup took
precedence on Saturdays from the first round on 17 January 1891 to the final on 21 March 1891 (a
week earlier than the previous season, possibly to avoid Easter). Rounds were played each fortnight with
replays on the Saturday in-between, and a second replay on a
Wednesday, with a spare third week before the final. A semi-final
replay was played on a Wednesday, due to the internationals taking
place on the preceding Saturday. The last league game was
played on Easter Saturday, 28 March 1891
(Bolton 2-0 Blackburn).
|
Monday, 9
March 1891 |
Aston Villa 0 Preston North End 1
Wellington Road, Handsworth
(5,000)
McKennie
|
Preston reduced Everton's lead to two points, with one
game remaining for each. Blackburn's defeat at West Brom put
them out of contention. Preston had a slightly inferior goal
average (2.2 to Everton's 2.3), and they needed Everton to lose
and concede more than one goal if they achieved a single-goal
victory in their game. Everton had played their penultimate
league match more than two months earlier in losing at home to
Preston, who had been thirteen points behind them, but with six
games in hand. |
|
Saturday, 14 March 1891 |
Burnley 3 Everton 2
Turf Moor,
Burnley
(10,000)
Haresnape, Bowes, Stewart ~
Geary (2) |
Both games were played in
appalling conditions, with snow, sleet and driving rain. Everton
were leading with five minutes left and the two late goals left
them vulnerable to losing the title by a slim margin if Preston
had managed to win. It was not until their train arrived back in
Liverpool that they were greeted with the news that they had
hoped for.
Everton won the League Championship by two points from the
defending champions, Preston. |
Sunderland
3 Preston North End 0
Newcastle
Road, Sunderland
(6,000)
Scott,
Campbell (2) |
|
|
The Elite League 1890-91 Season
(games between the top four) |
Preston's achievement in being the best in the top-four clashes for
three years in succession has never been equalled in the history of
the English leagues, despite the hat-tricks of titles won by
Huddersfield Town, Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester United (twice).
Notts County replaced Blackburn Rovers in the only change to the
previous season's top four.
Games played between the top two:-
|
Saturday, 22 November 1890 |
Preston North End 2
Everton 0
Deepdale, Preston
(12,000)
Gallacher, G.Drummond |
|
Saturday, 10 January 1891 |
Everton 0
Preston North End 1
Anfield,
Liverpool
(16,000)
McKennie |
Though Everton won the league and Preston were the best in
the top-four clashes, neither of them were the best when it came to
local derbies in their native Lancashire.
|
|
The Continuous League
1888-91
(first three seasons) |
|
Preston maintained their twenty-point lead, but this was the last
of the 22-game seasons, so comparisons with future years have little
relevance. |
|
Champions:
Everton |
|
Manager: Dick
Molyneux |
|
|
Blackburn's Jack Southworth
was top scorer, with 26.
|
|
England and the Football
League 1890-91 Season |
|
England's impact on the Football League |
Of the 22 playing positions used
during the active 1890-91 season, Football League players provided
thirteen of them, and of the ten goals scored, Le ague players scored
six of them.
Six of the twelve Football League clubs were
represented.
Two Football League games had a direct impact on
two of England's games, both on 7 March.
As a result,
England took Blackburn's Jack Southworth, and West Brom were without Billy Bassett,
Jem Bayliss and Charlie Perry. |
|
