1993–94 Oldham Athletic A.F.C. season

During the 1993–94 English football season, Oldham Athletic competed in the FA Premier League.

Oldham Athletic
1993–94 season
ChairmanIan Stott
ManagerJoe Royle
StadiumBoundary Park
Premier League21st (relegated)
FA CupSemi–finals
Coca–Cola CupFourth round
Top goalscorerLeague:
Graeme Sharp (9)
All:
Graeme Sharp (11)
Highest home attendance16,708 vs. Manchester United
Lowest home attendance6,433 vs. Swansea City (League Cup)
Average home league attendance12,563

Season summary

Oldham Athletic's luck finally ran out on the final day of the season as their failure to beat Norwich City condemned them to relegation after three years in the top flight. A year earlier, they had won their final three games of the season to stay up on goal difference and, this time round, they had looked more than capable of beating the drop without needing any last-gasp "Houdini" survival acts. They even looked on course for their first-ever FA Cup final as they entered the final minute of the semi-final beating Manchester United 1–0.

But Mark Hughes then equalised for United and forced a replay, in which a visibly downbeat Latics were crushed 4–1 at Maine Road. The team seemed to lose its fighting spirit in the final weeks of the season, and the results of other relegation-threatened teams would have sent them down even if they had managed to beat Norwich on that final day.

Yet there was no pressure for manager Joe Royle, the longest-serving manager in any division, to be removed from his position. The board kept faith in him and he kept faith in his players, with Mike Milligan (to Norwich) being the only significant departure of the close season.

The season had started dismally with a 3–0 home defeat to Ipswich Town, who would only narrowly avoid relegation at the end of the season after a decent start was followed by a slump. The next game saw Oldham win 1–0 at newly promoted Swindon Town, but then came a 10-match winless run which included five draws. The winless run ended on 30 October when a Darren Beckford goal gave them a 1–0 win at Chelsea. Three successive defeats followed before Oldham recorded their third league win of the campaign, a 2–1 home win over high flying Norwich City. There were a number of decent results after the turn of 1994, including two successive 2–1 home wins followed by a point at home to Leeds United. On 2 April, a 4–1 home win over Queen's Park Rangers suggested that the Latics were more than capable of survival. And they also had an FA Cup semi-final clash with Manchester United at Wembley to look forward to. First they had to meet United in the league at Old Trafford, and gave them a serious run for their money as the table-leading hosts managed a narrow 3–2 win. However, then came the semi-final, which went to a replay which the Latics lost, leaving them with Premier League survival to focus on. Three successive defeats did them no favours (a poor 2-1 home loss to West Ham United, a narrow 3-2 defeat at in-form Newcastle United - including two Oldham equalisers - and a 3-0 defeat at Wimbledon), and draws against the two Sheffield teams and a defeat at home to Tottenham Hotspur left them needing to beat Norwich City at Carrow Road on the final day of the season to stand any chance of survival. A 1–1 draw was not enough, and Oldham's three-year stay in the top flight was over.[1]

Final league table
Main article: 1993–94 FA Premier League
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
18 Southampton 42 12 7 23 49 66 −17 43
19 Ipswich Town 42 9 16 17 35 58 −23 43
20 Sheffield United (R) 42 8 18 16 42 60 −18 42 Relegation to the Football League First Division
21 Oldham Athletic (R) 42 9 13 20 42 68 −26 40
22 Swindon Town (R) 42 5 15 22 47 100 −53 30
Source: Premier League
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(R) Relegated.

Results

Oldham Athletic's score comes first[2]

Legend
Win Draw Loss

FA Premier League
DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
14 August 1993Ipswich TownH0–312,182
18 August 1993Swindon TownA1–011,970Bernard
21 August 1993Blackburn RoversA0–113,731
24 August 1993Coventry CityH3–310,817Ritchie (pen), Bernard, Olney
28 August 1993WimbledonH1–110,633Bernard
30 August 1993Leeds UnitedA0–128,717
11 September 1993EvertonH0–113,666
18 September 1993Tottenham HotspurA0–524,614
25 September 1993Aston VillaH1–112,836Halle
4 October 1993Manchester CityA1–121,401Sharp
16 October 1993LiverpoolA1–232,661Beckford
23 October 1993ArsenalH0–012,105
30 October 1993ChelseaA1–015,372Beckford
8 November 1993Newcastle UnitedH1–313,821Jobson
20 November 1993West Ham UnitedA0–217,251
24 November 1993Sheffield WednesdayA0–318,509
27 November 1993Norwich CityH2–110,198Sharp, Makin
4 December 1993Ipswich TownA0–012,004
7 December 1993Swindon TownH2–110,771Holden, Halle
11 December 1993Blackburn RoversH1–213,887Holden
18 December 1993Coventry CityA1–111,800Bernard
27 December 1993Queens Park RangersA0–213,218
29 December 1993Manchester UnitedH2–516,708Sharp, Holden
1 January 1994Sheffield UnitedA1–217,066Jobson
15 January 1994LiverpoolH0–314,573
22 January 1994ArsenalA1–126,524Sharp
5 February 1994SouthamptonH2–19,982McCarthy, Bernard
12 February 1994ChelseaH2–112,022Jobson, Sharp
28 February 1994Leeds UnitedH1–111,136Beckford
5 March 1994EvertonA1–218,837Sharp
19 March 1994Aston VillaA2–121,214Beckford, Holden
26 March 1994Manchester CityH0–016,464
30 March 1994SouthamptonA3–114,101Benali (own goal), Sharp, Holden
2 April 1994Queens Park RangersH4–110,440Jobson, McCarthy, Beckford, A McCarthy (own goal)
4 April 1994Manchester UnitedA2–344,686McCarthy, Sharp
16 April 1994West Ham UnitedH1–211,669Holden (pen)
23 April 1994Newcastle UnitedA2–332,216Jobson, Sharp
26 April 1994WimbledonA0–36,766
30 April 1994Sheffield WednesdayH0–012,967
3 May 1994Sheffield UnitedH1–114,779Beckford
5 May 1994Tottenham HotspurH0–214,283
7 May 1994Norwich CityA1–120,394McCarthy

FA Cup
Main article: 1993–94 FA Cup
RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceGoalscorers
R38 January 1994Derby CountyH2–112,810Beckford, Holden
R429 January 1994Stoke CityH0–014,465
R4R9 February 1994Stoke CityA1–019,871Beckford
R519 February 1994BarnsleyH1–015,685Ritchie
QF12 March 1994Bolton WanderersA1–020,321Beckford
SF9 April 1994Manchester UnitedN[3]1–1 (a.e.t.)56,399Pointon
SFR13 April 1994Manchester UnitedN[4]1–432,311Pointon

League Cup
Main article: 1993–94 Football League Cup
RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceGoalscorers
R2 1st leg21 September 1993Swansea CityA1–25,056Sharp
R2 2nd leg6 October 1993Swansea CityH2–0 (won 3–2 on agg)6,433Bernard, Halle
R326 October 1993Coventry CityH2–010,071Beckford, Sharp
R430 November 1993Tranmere RoversA0–39,477

First-team squad
Squad at end of season[5]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK  ENG Paul Gerrard
2 DF  ENG Craig Fleming
3 DF  ENG Neil Pointon
4 MF  ENG Nick Henry
5 DF  ENG Richard Jobson
6 DF  ENG Steve Redmond
7 DF  NOR Gunnar Halle
8 MF  ENG Andy Ritchie
9 FW  ENG Ian Olney
10 MF  IRL Mike Milligan[notes 1] (captain)
11 MF  SCO Paul Bernard
13 GK  ENG Jon Hallworth
14 FW  SCO Graeme Sharp
15 DF  ENG Andy Barlow
No. Pos. Nation Player
16 DF  NOR Tore Pedersen
17 FW  ENG Darren Beckford
18 DF  ENG Neil McDonald
19 FW  ENG Roger Palmer
20 MF  ENG Mark Brennan
21 FW  WAL Sean McCarthy
22 DF  ENG Chris Makin
23 DF  ENG Richard Graham
24 GK  ENG Andy Woods
25 MF  ENG Rick Holden
27 MF  ENG David Beresford
28 FW  ENG John Eyre
29 MF  ENG Stephen Price

Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
12 MF  ENG Neil Adams (to Norwich City)
21 FW  ENG Neil Tolson (to Bradford City)
No. Pos. Nation Player
26 GK  ENG Lance Key (on loan from Sheffield Wednesday)
30 GK  ENG Gary Walsh (on loan from Manchester United)

Notes
  1. Milligan was born in Manchester, England, but also qualified to represent the Republic of Ireland internationally and represented them at U-21, U-23, and B level before making his international debut for Republic of Ireland in 1992.
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References
  1. "Norwich 1-1 Oldham". Oldham Athletic Football Club Official Website. 7 May 1994. Retrieved 18 June 2012.
  2. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 17 May 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 25 June 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  4. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 25 June 2012. Retrieved 18 June 2012.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  5. http://www.footballsquads.co.uk/eng/1993-1994/faprem/oldham.htm
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