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1999–2000 Stoke City F.C. season

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Stoke City
1999–2000 season
ChairmanKeith Humphries,
Gunnar Gíslason
ManagerGary Megson,
Gudjon Thordarson
StadiumBritannia Stadium
Football League Second Division6th (82 Points)
Play-offsSemi-final
FA CupFirst Round
League CupSecond Round
League TrophyWinner
Top goalscorerLeague: Peter Thorne
(24)
All: Peter Thorne
(30)
Highest home attendance15,354 vs Burnley
(29 January 2000)
Lowest home attendance7,054 vs Millwall
(22 August 1999)
Average home league attendance11,246

The 1999–2000 season was Stoke City's 93rd season in the Football League and sixth in the third tier.

For the third pre-season Stoke were looking for a new manager but the directors were finding it difficult with first choice Tony Pulis joining Bristol City openly admitting that he felt the board lacked ambition. Second choice was Gary Megson and he accepted the job offer as did John Rudge who became director of football. Stoke slowly built up some decent results but there were still tensions between fans and the board and so when news spread that an Icelandic business consortium wanted to take over it became a no-brainer. Unfortunately for Megson new chairman Gunnar Gíslason appointed his own man, former Iceland national manager Gudjon Thordarson. In came a number of Icelandic players and the side did well winning the Football League Trophy and reached the play-offs against Gillingham. After beating the "Gills" 3–2 in the first leg, two controversial refereeing decisions cost Stoke dearly and they lost the second leg 3–0.[1]

Season review

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League

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For the third consecutive summer, Stoke were hunting for a new manager, this time they had a clear favourite, Tony Pulis.[1] However Pulis decided to join Bristol City after openly admitting that he felt the board lacked ambition.[1] Second choice was Gary Megson, hard working and honest manager in the same mould as Pulis and he accepted Stoke's job offer.[1] He appointed Nigel Pearson as his assistant and surprisingly John Rudge was made director of football after spending a long time at Port Vale.[1] There was little expectation as the season began with some steady if unspectacular results and by the end of August Lárus Sigurðsson was sold to West Bromwich Albion for £350,000.[1] Peter Thorne was proving to be a top player in the Second Division he scored the first few of his 30 goals.[1] Stoke then went on a nine match unbeaten run and lifted themselves into the play-offs.[1] In October news spread that a group of Icelandic businessmen were interested in taking control of the club and by mid November Stoke fans had their wishes granted and Gunnar Gíslason completed the Icelandic takeover under the name of Stoke Holding.[1]

Gary Megson through no fault of his own was replaced by Gudjon Thordarson and in came a number of Icelandic players and the new era began well with Stoke beating Wycombe Wanderers 4–0 away.[2] There was now a much better feeling about the club with the injection of new money and players but this was knocked back greatly in early 2000.[1] On 23 February 2000 arguably one of the greatest footballers the world has ever seen Stanley Matthews died at the age of 85. Matthews was not just a club legend but also to Stoke-on-Trent as a whole.[1] He was remembered in a perfect way with Stoke beating Chesterfield 5–1 with Thorne scoring four goals.[3]

Stoke maintained their form from this match and went unbeaten until the final match of the season but despite a 1–0 defeat at Reading Stoke finished two points above Bristol Rovers and entered the play-offs.[1] Their opponents were Gillingham and in the first leg 22,124 saw Stoke make a great start going into a 2–0 lead thanks to Arnar Gunnlaugsson and Kyle Lightbourne Gillingham pulled one back but Thorne restored Stoke's two goal advantage. Andy Hessenthaler then scored in injury time meaning the second leg would be a very tough match.[1] In the second leg at Priestfield Stadium referee Rob Styles sent off both Graham Kavanagh and Clive Clarke for minor offences and Gillingham went on to win 3–0.[1]

FA Cup

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Another early exit for Stoke this season, defeated 2–0 away at Blackpool.[1]

League Cup

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After beating last seasons opponents Macclesfield Town Stoke lost 3–1 to Premier League Sheffield Wednesday.[1]

League Trophy

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Stoke began their Football League Trophy campaign on a cold December night against Third Division Darlington at the Britannia Stadium. With the scores level after normal time Kyle Lightbourne scored a golden goal to send Stoke through.[1] Away wins over Oldham Athletic, Blackpool and Chesterfield saw Stoke in the area final against Rochdale.[1] A 3–1 win in the first leg was followed by a 1–0 win in the second earning a place in the final against Bristol City.[1] A crowd of 75,057 at Wembley saw Graham Kavanagh opened the scoring for Stoke before Paul Holland equalised for the Robins. Peter Thorne scored a close range winner for Stoke after 82 minutes earning Stoke their second Football League Trophy win.[1]

Final league table

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Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
4 Wigan Athletic 46 22 17 7 72 38 +34 83 Qualification for the Second Division play-offs
5 Millwall 46 23 13 10 76 50 +26 82
6 Stoke City 46 23 13 10 68 42 +26 82
7 Bristol Rovers 46 23 11 12 69 45 +24 80
8 Notts County 46 18 11 17 61 55 +6 65
Source: [4]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
See also: Football League One play-offs § 2000

Results

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Stoke's score comes first

Legend

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Win Draw Loss

Pre-Season Friendlies

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Match Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers
1 17 July 1999 Bolton Wanderers H 2–1 2,921 Crowe, Connor
2 21 July 1999 Newport County A 2–1 878 Oldfield (2)
3 24 July 1999 Hereford United A 0–0 634
3 25 July 1999 Newcastle Town A 4–1 1,966 Connor (2), MacKenzie, Crowe
4 28 July 1999 Newcastle United H 1–2 7,171 Jacobsen
5 31 July 1999 Chester City A 0–0 1,249

Football League Second Division

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Main article: 1999–2000 Football League
Match Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers
1 7 August 1999 Oxford United H 1–2 11,300 Kavanagh 59'
2 14 August 1999 Preston North End A 1–2 11,465 Thorne 8'
3 22 August 1999 Millwall H 3–1 7,054 Thorne 15', Connor 51', Kavanagh 84' (pen)
4 28 August 1999 Burnley A 0–1 11,328
5 30 August 1999 Gillingham H 1–1 8,369 Sigurðsson 87'
6 4 September 1999 Cambridge United A 3–1 4,007 Connor 19', Oldfield 81', Thorne 86'
7 11 September 1999 Chesterfield A 2–0 4,285 Lightbourne (2) 50', 90'
8 18 September 1999 Wigan Athletic H 1–1 11,195 Lightbourne 48'
9 25 September 1999 Wrexham A 3–2 5,924 Thorne 27', Lightbourne 50', Mohan 78'
10 2 October 1999 Scunthorpe United H 1–0 13,068 Connor 90'
11 9 October 1999 Reading H 2–1 9,621 Mohan 68', Jacobsen 89'
12 16 October 1999 Bournemouth A 1–1 5,990 Clarke 62'
13 19 October 1999 Cardiff City A 2–1 6,146 Thorne 23', O'Connor 58'
14 23 October 1999 Wrexham H 2–0 10,545 O'Connor 58', Kavanagh 58'
15 3 November 1999 Notts County H 0–1 11,619
16 6 November 1999 Bury A 0–0 4,280
17 14 November 1999 Bristol City H 1–1 10,775 Mohan 66'
18 23 November 1999 Wycombe Wanderers A 4–0 4,345 Kavanagh 44', Daníelsson 45', Thorne 62', Mohan 71'
19 27 November 1999 Colchester United H 1–1 14,183 Lightbourne 82'
20 4 December 1999 Oxford United A 1–1 5,700 Thorne 79'
21 18 December 1999 Bristol Rovers H 1–2 10,379 Keen 52'
22 26 December 1999 Blackpool A 2–1 5,274 Robinson 21', Kavanagh 57'
23 28 December 1999 Oldham Athletic H 0–0 13,709
24 3 January 2000 Brentford A 1–0 6,792 Thorne 60'
25 8 January 2000 Luton Town H 2–1 10,016 Connor 24', Lightbourne 87'
26 14 January 2000 Preston North End H 2–1 10,285 Kippe 3', O'Connor 87'
27 22 January 2000 Millwall A 0–1 11,548
28 29 January 2000 Burnley H 2–2 15,354 Thorne 68', Davis (o.g.) 71'
29 5 February 2000 Gillingham A 0–3 7,801
30 8 February 2000 Luton Town A 1–2 5,396 O'Connor 33'
31 12 February 2000 Cambridge United H 1–0 9,429 Connor 31'
32 19 February 2000 Colchester United A 0–1 4,364
33 26 February 2000 Wigan Athletic A 2–1 9,429 Kavanagh 28', O'Connor 77'
34 4 March 2000 Chesterfield H 5–1 11,968 Thorne (4) 8', 18', 41', 61', Jacobsen 90'
35 11 March 2000 Notts County A 0–0 9,677
36 18 March 2000 Wycombe Wanderers H 1–1 9,738 Gunnlaugsson 54' (pen)
37 25 March 2000 Blackpool H 3–0 10,002 Gunnarsson 62', Mohan 69', Guðjónsson 71'
38 28 March 2000 Bristol City A 2–2 8,103 Lightbourne 26', Kavanagh 39'
39 1 April 2000 Bristol Rovers A 3–3 9,312 Thorne (3) 10', 62', 79'
40 4 April 2000 Oldham Athletic A 1–0 4,474 Thorne 23'
41 8 April 2000 Brentford H 1–0 9,955 Thorne 8'
42 22 April 2000 Bournemouth H 1–0 15,022 Thorne 81'
43 24 April 2000 Scunthorpe United A 2–0 5,435 Thorne (2) 24', 39'
44 30 April 2000 Cardiff City H 2–1 14,192 Gunnlaugsson 3', O'Connor 69'
45 3 May 2000 Bury H 3–0 14,792 Thorne (3) 11', 55', 81'
46 6 May 2000 Reading A 0–1 13,146

Second Division play-offs

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Main article: 2000 Football League play-offs
Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers
Semi-final 1st Leg 13 May 2000 Gillingham H 3–2 22,124 Gunnlaugsson 1', Lightbourne 8', Thorne 67'
Semi-final 2nd Leg 17 May 2000 Gillingham A 0–3 (aet) 10,386

FA Cup

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Main article: 1999–2000 FA Cup
Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers
R1 30 October 1999 Blackpool A 0–2 4,721

League Cup

[edit]
Main article: 1999–2000 Football League Cup
Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers
R1 1st Leg 10 August 1999 Macclesfield Town A 1–1 2,551 Keen 8'
R1 2nd Leg 25 August 1999 Macclesfield Town H 3–0 5,003 Connor 59', Thorne 69', O'Connor 75'
R2 1st Leg 14 September 1999 Sheffield Wednesday H 0–0 9,313
R2 2nd Leg 22 September 1999 Sheffield Wednesday A 1–3 10,993 Kavanagh 74'

League Trophy

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Main articles: 1999–2000 Football League Trophy and 2000 Football League Trophy Final
Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers
R1 8 December 1999 Darlington H 3–2 (aet) 3,341 Lightbourne (2) 25', 93', Reed 40' (o.g.)
R2 18 January 2000 Oldham Athletic A 1–0 (aet) 4,682 O'Connor 116'
Quarter final 25 January 2000 Blackpool A 2–1 4,943 Gunnarsson 19', Kavanagh 79'
Semi final 15 February 2000 Chesterfield A 1–0 3,825 O'Connor 82'
Area final 1st Leg 14 March 2000 Rochdale A 3–1 4,241 Hansson 4', Thorne (2) 21', 27'
Area final 2nd Leg 22 March 2000 Rochdale H 1–0 16,876 Thorne 86'
Final 16 April 2000 Bristol City N 2–1 75,057 Kavanagh 32', Thorne 82'

Squad statistics

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No. Pos. Name League FA Cup League Cup League Trophy Play-offs Total Discipline
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
1 GK England Gavin Ward 46 0 1 0 4 0 7 0 2 0 60 0 1 0
2 DF England Jason Kavanagh 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
2 MF Iceland Brynjar Gunnarsson 21(1) 1 0 0 0 0 6 1 2 0 29(1) 2 3 0
3 MF England Bryan Small 5(3) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 6(3) 0 0 0
4 DF England Phil Robinson 14(8) 1 1 0 2 0 1(1) 0 0 0 18(9) 1 0 0
5 DF England Nicky Mohan 40 5 0 0 3 0 6 0 2 0 51 5 9 1
6 DF Iceland Lárus Sigurðsson 5 1 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 7 1 3 0
6 DF Iceland Sigursteinn Gíslason 4(4) 0 0 0 0 0 2(2) 0 0 0 6(6) 0 0 0
7 DF England Chris Short 14 0 1 0 2(1) 0 0 0 0 0 17(1) 0 3 0
8 MF Republic of Ireland Graham Kavanagh 44(1) 7 1 0 4 1 7 2 2 0 58(1) 10 9 1
9 FW England Peter Thorne 41(4) 24 1 0 3 1 4(1) 4 1 1 50(5) 30 3 0
10 FW England Dean Crowe 0(6) 0 0 0 0(2) 0 1 0 0 0 1(8) 0 0 0
11 MF Australia David Oldfield 7(12) 1 0 0 2(1) 0 0(1) 0 0 0 9(14) 1 0 0
12 FW Bermuda Kyle Lightbourne 35(5) 7 1 0 3 0 4(2) 2 2 1 45(7) 10 7 1
14 GK England Carl Muggleton 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
15 MF England Neil MacKenzie 0(2) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0(2) 0 0 0
15 DF Sweden Mikael Hansson 24(3) 0 0 0 0 0 7 1 2 0 33(3) 1 1 0
16 FW England Paul Connor 15(11) 5 0(1) 0 2(2) 1 2(1) 0 1(1) 0 20(16) 6 3 0
17 MF Republic of Ireland James O'Connor 42 5 1 0 3 1 7 2 2 0 55 8 14 0
18 DF England Ben Petty 7(6) 0 0 0 1 0 2(3) 0 0 0 10(9) 0 1 0
19 DF England Lee Collins 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
20 FW England Steven Taaffe 2 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 0
21 MF England Robert Heath 0(3) 0 0(1) 0 0(1) 0 0 0 0 0 0(5) 0 0 0
22 DF Republic of Ireland Clive Clarke 39(3) 1 1 0 3(1) 0 6 0 2 0 51(4) 1 7 1
23 DF England Ashley Wooliscroft 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
24 DF England Matthew Bullock 4(3) 0 0(1) 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4(4) 0 0 0
25 MF Iceland Bjarni Guðjónsson 7(1) 1 0 0 0 0 1(2) 0 1(1) 0 9(4) 1 2 0
26 MF England Jamie Cartwright 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
27 GK England Stuart Fraser 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
28 DF England Jamie Godbold 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
29 DF England Richard Burgess 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
30 MF England Kevin Keen 20(3) 1 1 0 3(1) 1 0 0 0 0 24(4) 2 3 0
31 FW Scotland Chris Iwelumo 0(3) 0 0 0 0 0 0(1) 0 0 0 0(4) 0 0 0
32 DF Norway Anders Jacobsen 29(4) 2 1 0 3 0 5 0 1(1) 0 39(5) 2 5 1
33 MF Iceland Einar Daníelsson 3(5) 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 4(5) 1 0 0
34 MF England Richard Dryden 11(2) 0 0 0 0 0 0(1) 0 1 0 12(3) 0 0 0
34 DF Norway Frode Kippe 15 1 0 0 0 0 5 0 0 0 20 1 1 0
35 DF England Sam Aiston 2(4) 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3(4) 0 0 0
36 FW Iceland Arnar Gunnlaugsson 10(3) 2 0 0 0 0 3 0 2 1 15(3) 3 3 0
37 GK England Calvin Dixon 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
38 DF England Steve Melton 0(5) 0 0 0 0 0 0(1) 0 0(1) 0 0(7) 0 0 0
– – Own goals – 1 – 0 – 0 – 1 – 0 – 2 – –

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Lowe, Simon (2000). Stoke City The Modern Era - A Complete Record. Desert Island Books. ISBN 1-874287-39-2.
  2. ^ "It's just like watching Iceland! Stoke City fans celebrate new era at Wycombe on this day in 1999". Stoke Sentinel. Archived from the original on 24 November 2016. Retrieved 23 November 2016.
  3. ^ "The day Peter Thorne scored FOUR (and shouldn't have even been in the team)". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  4. ^ "England 1999–00". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 1 February 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2010.
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