1989–90 Football League

The 1989–90 season was the 91st completed season of The Football League.

The Football League
Season1989–90
ChampionsLiverpool
RelegatedColchester United
New club in LeagueMaidstone United

Liverpool overhauled a greatly improved Aston Villa side to win their 18th league championship trophy and their fifth major trophy in as many seasons under Kenny Dalglish’s management. Gary Lineker’s arrival at Tottenham Hotspur saw the North Londoners occupy third place after a season of improvement.

In this season, London had eight entrants in the top-flight, the highest number of participants ever.

Luton Town stayed up on goal difference at the expense of Sheffield Wednesday, while Charlton’s four-year spell in the First Division came to an end at the beginning of May. Millwall were rooted to the bottom of the division despite briefly topping the league in September.

Leeds United finally returned to the top flight after an eight-year exile, as Howard Wilkinson’s side lifted the Second Division championship trophy thanks to a superior goal difference over runners-up Sheffield United, who won their second successive promotion under Dave Bassett.

Swindon Town won the Second Division playoff final but Sunderland were promoted instead after the Swindon board admitted a series of financial irregularities. Swindon were initially demoted to the Third Division and replaced by Tranmere, the division’s losing Play-Off finalists, but this decision was later reversed on appeal.

A.F.C. Bournemouth, Stoke City and Bradford City occupied the relegation places. Bournemouth did not return to second tier of English football until the 2014-15 season.

The city of Bristol was celebrating after Rovers were crowned champions and City finished runners-up in the Third Division to gain promotion. The third promotion spot was secured by playoff winners Notts County, who beat Leyland DAF Trophy (i.e. EFL Trophy) winners Tranmere Rovers at Wembley.

Walsall suffered a second successive relegation and would be joined in the Fourth Division the following season by Blackpool, Cardiff City and Northampton Town.

Exeter City were crowned Fourth Division champions and went up to the Third Division along with runners-up Grimsby Town, third-placed Southend United and playoff winners Cambridge United. Newly promoted Maidstone United almost ended their first league season with success, but their promotion hopes were ended by playoff failure.

Colchester United were relegated from the league and replaced by Football Conference champions Darlington, who regained their league status just one season after losing it.

Final league tables and results

The tables and results below are reproduced here in the exact form that they can be found at The Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation website,[1] with home and away statistics separated.

First Division
Main article: 1989–90 Football League First Division
Football League, First Division
Season1989–90
ChampionsLiverpool (18th English title)[2]
RelegatedCharlton Athletic
Millwall
Sheffield Wednesday
European CupNo qualifications [2]
European Cup Winners' CupManchester United
UEFA CupAston Villa
Matches played380
Goals scored987 (2.6 per match)
Top goalscorerGary Lineker (Tottenham Hotspur), 24 [3]
Biggest home winLiverpool – Crystal Palace 9–0 (12 Sep 1989)
Biggest away winCoventry City – Liverpool 1–6 (5 May 1990)
Highest scoringLiverpool – Crystal Palace 9–0 (12 Sep 1989)
Southampton – Luton Town 6–3 (25 Nov 1989)
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification or relegation
1 Liverpool (C) 38 23 10 5 78 37 +41 79 Excluded from the European Cup[2]
2 Aston Villa 38 21 7 10 57 38 +19 70 Qualification for the UEFA Cup
3 Tottenham Hotspur 38 19 6 13 59 47 +12 63
4 Arsenal 38 18 8 12 54 38 +16 62
5 Chelsea 38 16 12 10 58 50 +8 60
6 Everton 38 17 8 13 57 46 +11 59
7 Southampton 38 15 10 13 71 63 +8 55
8 Wimbledon 38 13 16 9 47 40 +7 55
9 Nottingham Forest 38 15 9 14 55 47 +8 54 Excluded from the UEFA Cup[4][5]
10 Norwich City 38 13 14 11 44 42 +2 53
11 Queens Park Rangers 38 13 11 14 45 44 +1 50
12 Coventry City 38 14 7 17 39 59 −20 49
13 Manchester United 38 13 9 16 46 47 −1 48 Qualification for the European Cup Winners' Cup first round[6]
14 Manchester City 38 12 12 14 43 52 −9 48
15 Crystal Palace 38 13 9 16 42 66 −24 48
16 Derby County 38 13 7 18 43 40 +3 46
17 Luton Town 38 10 13 15 43 57 −14 43
18 Sheffield Wednesday (R) 38 11 10 17 35 51 −16 43 Relegation to the Second Division
19 Charlton Athletic (R) 38 7 9 22 31 57 −26 30
20 Millwall (R) 38 5 11 22 39 65 −26 26
Source: World Football
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champion; (R) Relegated.

First Division results
Home \ Away ARS AST CHA CHE COV CRY DER EVE LIV LUT MCI MUN MIL NWC NOT QPR SHW SOU TOT WDN
Arsenal 0–1 1–0 0–1 2–0 4–1 1–1 1–0 1–1 3–2 4–0 1–0 2–0 4–3 3–0 3–0 5–0 2–1 1–0 0–0
Aston Villa 2–1 1–1 1–0 4–1 2–1 1–0 6–2 1–1 2–0 1–2 3–0 1–0 3–3 2–1 1–3 1–0 2–1 2–0 0–3
Charlton Athletic 0–0 0–2 3–0 1–1 1–2 0–0 0–1 0–4 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 0–1 1–1 1–0 1–2 2–4 1–3 1–2
Chelsea 0–0 0–3 3–1 1–0 3–0 1–1 2–1 2–5 1–0 1–1 1–0 4–0 0–0 2–2 1–1 4–0 2–2 1–2 2–5
Coventry City 0–1 2–0 1–2 3–2 1–0 1–0 2–0 1–6 1–0 2–1 1–4 3–1 1–0 0–2 1–1 1–4 1–0 0–0 2–1
Crystal Palace 1–1 1–0 2–0 2–2 0–1 1–1 2–1 0–2 1–1 2–2 1–1 4–3 1–0 1–0 0–3 1–1 3–1 2–3 2–0
Derby County 1–3 0–1 2–0 0–1 4–1 3–1 0–1 0–3 2–3 6–0 2–0 2–0 0–2 0–2 2–0 2–0 0–1 2–1 1–1
Everton 3–0 3–3 2–1 0–1 2–0 4–0 2–1 1–3 2–1 0–0 3–2 2–1 3–1 4–0 1–0 2–0 3–0 2–1 1–1
Liverpool 2–1 1–1 1–0 4–1 0–1 9–0 1–0 2–1 2–2 3–1 0–0 1–0 0–0 2–2 2–1 2–1 3–2 1–0 2–1
Luton Town 2–0 0–1 1–0 0–3 3–2 1–0 1–0 2–2 0–0 1–1 1–3 2–1 4–1 1–1 1–1 2–0 1–1 0–0 1–1
Manchester City 1–1 0–2 1–2 1–1 1–0 3–0 0–1 1–0 1–4 3–1 5–1 2–0 1–0 0–3 1–0 2–1 1–2 1–1 1–1
Manchester United 4–1 2–0 1–0 0–0 3–0 1–2 1–2 0–0 1–2 4–1 1–1 5–1 0–2 1–0 0–0 0–0 2–1 0–1 0–0
Millwall 1–2 2–0 2–2 1–3 4–1 1–2 1–1 1–2 1–2 1–1 1–1 1–2 0–1 1–0 1–2 2–0 2–2 0–1 0–0
Norwich City 2–2 2–0 0–0 2–0 0–0 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 2–0 0–1 2–0 1–1 1–1 0–0 2–1 4–4 2–2 0–1
Nottingham Forest 1–2 1–1 2–0 1–1 2–4 3–1 2–1 1–0 2–2 3–0 1–0 4–0 3–1 0–1 2–2 0–1 2–0 1–3 0–1
Queens Park Rangers 2–0 1–1 0–1 4–2 1–1 2–0 0–1 1–0 3–2 0–0 1–3 1–2 0–0 2–1 2–0 1–0 1–4 3–1 2–3
Sheffield Wednesday 1–0 1–0 3–0 1–1 0–0 2–2 1–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–2 0–3 2–0 0–1 2–4 0–1
Southampton 1–0 2–1 3–2 2–3 3–0 1–1 2–1 2–2 4–1 6–3 2–1 0–2 1–2 4–1 2–0 0–2 2–2 1–1 2–2
Tottenham Hotspur 2–1 0–2 3–0 1–4 3–2 0–1 1–2 2–1 1–0 2–1 1–1 2–1 3–1 4–0 2–3 3–2 3–0 2–1 0–1
Wimbledon 1–0 0–2 3–1 0–1 0–0 0–1 1–1 3–1 1–2 1–2 1–0 2–2 2–2 1–1 1–3 0–0 1–1 3–3 1–0
Source:
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

First Division maps
Locations of the Football League First Division 1989–1990 teams
Locations of the Football League First Division London teams 1989–1990

Second Division
Football League, Second Division
Season1989–90
ChampionsLeeds United (3rd title)
PromotedSheffield United,
Sunderland
RelegatedBournemouth,
Bradford City,
Stoke City
Matches played552
Goals scored1,526 (2.76 per match)
Top goalscorerMicky Quinn (Newcastle United), 32 [3]
Pos Team Pld HW HD HL HGF HGA AW AD AL AGF AGA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Leeds United 46 16 6 1 46 18 8 7 8 33 34 +27 85 Division Champions, promoted
2 Sheffield United 46 14 5 4 43 27 10 8 5 35 31 +20 85 Promoted
3 Newcastle United 46 17 4 2 51 26 5 10 8 29 29 +25 80 Participated in play-offs
4 Swindon Town 46 12 6 5 49 29 8 8 7 30 30 +20 74
5 Blackburn Rovers 46 10 9 4 43 30 9 8 6 31 29 +15 74
6 Sunderland 46 10 8 5 41 32 10 6 7 29 32 +6 74 Promoted through play-offs[lower-alpha 1]
7 West Ham United 46 14 5 4 50 22 6 7 10 30 35 +23 72
8 Oldham Athletic 46 15 7 1 50 23 4 7 12 20 34 +13 71
9 Ipswich Town 46 13 7 3 38 22 6 5 12 29 44 +1 69
10 Wolverhampton Wanderers 46 12 5 6 37 20 6 8 9 30 40 +7 67
11 Port Vale 46 11 9 3 37 20 4 7 12 25 37 +5 61
12 Portsmouth 46 9 8 6 40 34 6 8 9 22 31 −3 61
13 Leicester City 46 10 8 5 34 29 5 6 12 33 50 −12 59
14 Hull City 46 7 8 8 27 31 7 8 8 31 34 −7 58
15 Watford 46 11 6 6 41 28 3 9 11 17 32 −2 57
16 Plymouth Argyle 46 9 8 6 30 23 5 5 13 28 40 −5 55
17 Oxford United 46 8 7 8 35 31 7 2 14 22 35 −9 54
18 Brighton & Hove Albion 46 10 6 7 28 27 5 3 15 28 45 −16 54
19 Barnsley 46 7 9 7 22 23 6 6 11 27 48 −22 54
20 West Bromwich Albion 46 6 8 9 35 37 6 7 10 32 34 −4 51
21 Middlesbrough 46 10 3 10 33 29 3 8 12 19 34 −11 50
22 Bournemouth 46 8 6 9 30 31 4 6 13 27 45 −19 48 Relegated
23 Bradford City 46 9 6 8 26 24 0 8 15 18 44 −24 41
24 Stoke City 46 4 11 8 20 24 2 8 13 15 39 −28 37
Source: statto.com[7]
Notes:
  1. Sunderland were eventually promoted after prosecutions against Swindon Town.

Second Division results
Home \ Away BAR BLB BOU BRA B&HA HUL IPS LEE LEI MID NEW OLD OXF PLY PTV POR SHU STK SUN SWI WAT WBA WHU WOL
Barnsley 0–0 0–1 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–1 1–0 2–2 1–1 1–1 1–0 1–0 1–1 0–3 0–1 1–2 3–2 1–0 0–1 0–1 2–2 1–1 2–2
Blackburn Rovers 5–0 1–1 2–2 1–1 0–0 2–2 1–2 2–4 2–4 2–0 1–0 2–2 2–0 1–0 2–0 0–0 3–0 1–1 2–1 2–2 2–1 5–4 2–3
Bournemouth 2–1 2–4 1–0 0–2 5–4 3–1 0–1 2–3 2–2 2–1 2–0 0–1 2–2 1–0 0–1 0–1 2–1 0–1 1–2 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–1
Bradford City 0–0 0–1 1–0 2–0 2–3 1–0 0–1 2–0 0–1 3–2 1–1 1–2 0–1 2–2 1–1 1–4 1–0 0–1 1–1 2–1 2–0 2–1 1–1
Brighton & Hove Albion 1–1 1–2 2–1 2–1 2–0 1–0 2–2 1–0 1–0 0–3 1–1 0–1 2–1 2–0 0–0 2–2 1–4 1–2 1–2 1–0 0–3 3–0 1–1
Hull City 1–2 2–0 1–4 2–1 0–2 4–3 0–1 1–1 0–0 1–3 0–0 1–0 3–3 2–1 1–2 0–0 0–0 3–2 2–3 0–0 0–2 1–1 2–0
Ipswich Town 3–1 3–1 1–1 1–0 2–1 0–1 2–2 2–2 3–0 2–1 1–1 1–0 3–0 3–2 0–1 1–1 2–2 1–1 1–0 1–0 3–1 1–0 1–3
Leeds United 1–2 1–1 3–0 1–1 3–0 4–3 1–1 2–1 2–1 1–0 1–1 2–1 2–1 0–0 2–0 4–0 2–0 2–0 4–0 2–1 2–2 3–2 1–0
Leicester City 2–2 0–1 2–1 1–1 1–0 2–1 0–1 4–3 2–1 2–2 3–0 0–0 1–1 2–0 1–1 2–5 2–1 2–3 2–1 1–1 1–3 1–0 0–0
Middlesbrough 0–1 0–3 2–1 2–0 2–2 1–0 1–2 0–2 4–1 4–1 1–0 1–0 0–2 2–3 2–0 3–3 0–1 3–0 0–2 1–2 0–0 0–1 4–2
Newcastle United 4–1 2–1 3–0 1–0 2–0 2–0 2–1 5–2 5–4 2–2 2–1 2–3 3–1 2–2 1–0 2–0 3–0 1–1 0–0 2–1 2–1 2–1 1–4
Oldham Athletic 2–0 2–0 4–0 2–2 1–1 3–2 4–1 3–1 1–0 2–0 1–1 4–1 3–2 2–1 3–3 0–2 2–0 2–1 2–2 1–1 2–1 3–0 1–1
Oxford United 2–3 1–1 1–2 2–1 0–1 0–0 2–2 2–4 4–2 3–1 2–1 0–1 3–2 0–0 2–1 3–0 3–0 0–1 2–2 1–1 0–1 0–2 2–2
Plymouth Argyle 2–1 2–2 1–0 1–1 2–1 1–2 1–0 1–1 3–1 1–2 1–1 2–0 2–0 1–2 0–2 0–0 3–0 3–0 0–3 0–0 2–2 1–1 0–1
Port Vale 2–1 0–0 1–1 3–2 2–1 1–1 5–0 0–0 2–1 1–1 1–2 2–0 1–2 3–0 1–1 1–1 0–0 1–2 2–0 1–0 2–1 2–2 3–1
Portsmouth 2–1 1–1 2–1 3–0 3–0 2–2 2–3 3–3 2–3 3–1 1–1 2–1 2–1 0–3 2–0 3–2 0–0 3–3 1–1 1–2 1–1 0–1 1–3
Sheffield United 1–2 1–2 4–2 1–1 5–4 0–0 2–0 2–2 1–1 1–0 1–1 2–1 2–1 1–0 2–1 2–1 2–1 1–3 2–0 4–1 3–1 0–2 3–0
Stoke City 0–1 0–1 0–0 1–1 3–2 1–1 0–0 1–1 0–1 0–0 2–1 1–2 1–2 0–0 1–1 1–2 0–1 0–2 1–1 2–2 2–1 1–1 2–0
Sunderland 4–2 0–1 3–2 1–0 2–1 0–1 2–4 0–1 2–2 2–1 0–0 2–3 1–0 3–1 2–2 2–2 1–1 2–1 2–2 4–0 1–1 4–3 1–1
Swindon Town 0–0 4–3 2–3 3–1 1–2 1–3 3–0 3–2 1–1 1–1 1–1 3–2 3–0 3–0 3–0 2–2 0–2 6–0 0–2 2–0 2–1 2–2 3–1
Watford 2–2 3–1 2–2 7–2 4–2 3–1 3–3 1–0 3–1 1–0 0–0 3–0 0–1 1–2 1–0 1–0 1–3 1–1 1–1 0–2 0–2 0–1 3–1
West Bromwich Albion 7–0 2–2 2–2 2–0 3–0 1–1 1–3 2–1 0–1 0–0 1–5 2–2 3–2 0–3 2–3 0–0 0–3 1–1 1–1 1–2 2–0 1–3 1–2
West Ham United 4–2 1–1 4–1 2–0 3–1 1–2 2–0 0–1 3–1 2–0 0–0 0–2 3–2 3–2 2–2 2–1 5–0 0–0 5–0 1–1 1–0 2–3 4–0
Wolverhampton Wanderers 1–1 1–2 3–1 1–1 2–4 1–2 2–1 1–0 5–0 2–0 0–1 1–1 2–0 1–0 2–0 5–0 1–2 0–0 0–1 2–1 1–1 2–1 1–0
Source:
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Second Division play-offs
Main article: Football League Championship play-offs § 1990

The semifinals were decided over two legs. The final consisted of only a single match.
The full results can be found at: Football League Division Two play-offs 1990.

  Semifinals
1st leg – 13 May; 2nd leg – 16 May 1990		 Final at Wembley
28 May 1990
                     
3rd Newcastle United 0 0 0  
6th Sunderland 0 2 2  
    6th Sunderland [notes2 1] 0
  4th Swindon Town 1
4th Swindon Town 2 2 4
5th Blackburn Rovers 1 1 2  
  1. Following successful prosecutions against Swindon Town and the club chairman, Brian Hillier, after they admitted 36 breaches of League rules —
    35 of which are related to illegal payments, Swindon remained in the Second Division and Sunderland took their promotion place (see History of Swindon Town F.C.).

Second Division maps
Locations of the Football League Second Division 1989–1990 teams
Locations of the Football League Second Division London teams 1989–1990

Third Division
Football League, Third Division
Season1989–90
ChampionsBristol Rovers (1st title)
PromotedBristol City,
Notts County
RelegatedBlackpool,
Cardiff City,
Northampton,
Walsall
Matches played552
Goals scored1,414 (2.56 per match)
Top goalscorerBob Taylor (Bristol City), 27 [3]
Pos Team Pld HW HD HL HGF HGA AW AD AL AGF AGA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Bristol Rovers 46 15 8 0 43 14 11 7 5 28 21 +36 93 Division Champions, promoted
2 Bristol City 46 15 5 3 40 16 12 5 6 36 24 +36 91 Promoted
3 Notts County 46 17 4 2 40 18 8 8 7 33 35 +20 87 Promoted through play-offs[lower-alpha 1]
4 Tranmere Rovers 46 15 5 3 54 22 8 6 9 32 27 +37 80 Participated in play-offs
5 Bury 46 11 7 5 35 19 10 4 9 35 30 +21 74
6 Bolton Wanderers 46 12 7 4 32 19 6 8 9 27 29 +11 69
7 Birmingham City 46 10 7 6 33 19 8 5 10 27 40 +1 66
8 Huddersfield Town 46 11 5 7 30 23 6 9 8 31 39 −1 65
9 Rotherham United 46 12 6 5 48 28 5 7 11 23 34 +9 64
10 Reading 46 10 9 4 33 21 5 10 8 24 32 +4 64
11 Shrewsbury Town 46 10 9 4 38 24 6 6 11 21 30 +5 63
12 Crewe Alexandra 46 10 8 5 32 24 5 9 9 24 29 +3 62
13 Brentford 46 11 4 8 41 31 7 3 13 25 35 0 61
14 Leyton Orient 46 9 6 8 28 24 7 4 12 24 32 −4 58
15 Mansfield Town 46 13 2 8 34 25 3 5 15 16 40 −15 55
16 Chester City 46 11 7 5 30 23 2 8 13 13 32 −12 54
17 Swansea City 46 10 6 7 25 27 4 6 13 20 36 −18 54
18 Wigan Athletic 46 10 6 7 29 22 3 8 12 19 42 −16 53
19 Preston North End 46 10 7 6 42 30 4 3 16 23 49 −14 52
20 Fulham 46 8 8 7 33 27 4 7 12 22 39 −11 51
21 Cardiff City 46 6 9 8 30 35 6 5 12 21 35 −19 50 Relegated
22 Northampton Town 46 7 7 9 27 31 4 7 12 24 37 −17 47
23 Blackpool 46 8 6 9 29 33 2 10 11 20 40 −24 46
24 Walsall 46 6 8 9 23 30 3 6 14 17 42 −32 41
Source:
Notes:
  1. Notts County were promoted through the play-offs.

Third Division results
Home \ Away BIR BLP BOL BRE BRI BRR BRY CAR CHR CRE FUL HUD LEY MAN NOR NTC PNE REA ROT SHR SWA TRA WAL WIG
Birmingham City 3–1 1–0 0–1 0–4 2–2 0–0 1–1 0–0 3–0 1–1 0–1 0–0 4–1 4–0 1–2 3–1 0–1 4–1 0–1 2–0 2–1 2–0 0–0
Blackpool 3–2 2–1 4–0 1–3 0–3 0–1 1–0 1–3 1–3 0–1 2–2 1–0 3–1 1–0 0–0 2–2 0–0 1–2 0–1 2–2 0–3 4–3 0–0
Bolton Wanderers 3–1 2–0 0–1 1–0 1–0 3–1 3–1 1–0 0–0 0–0 2–2 2–1 1–1 0–3 3–0 2–1 3–0 0–2 0–1 0–0 1–1 1–1 3–2
Brentford 0–1 5–0 1–2 0–2 2–1 0–1 0–1 1–1 0–2 2–0 2–1 4–3 2–1 3–2 0–1 2–2 1–1 4–2 1–1 2–1 2–4 4–0 3–1
Bristol City 1–0 2–0 1–1 2–0 0–0 1–0 1–0 1–0 4–1 5–1 1–1 2–1 1–1 3–1 2–0 2–1 0–1 0–0 2–1 1–3 1–3 4–0 3–0
Bristol Rovers 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–0 3–0 2–1 2–1 2–1 1–1 2–0 2–2 0–0 1–1 4–2 3–2 3–0 0–0 2–0 1–0 2–0 2–0 2–0 6–1
Bury 0–0 2–0 2–0 0–2 1–1 0–0 2–0 1–0 0–3 0–0 6–0 2–0 3–0 1–0 3–2 1–2 4–0 1–1 0–0 3–2 1–2 0–2 2–2
Cardiff City 0–1 2–2 0–2 2–2 0–3 1–1 3–1 1–1 0–0 3–3 1–5 1–1 1–0 2–3 1–3 3–0 3–2 2–0 0–1 0–2 0–0 3–1 1–1
Chester 4–0 2–0 2–0 1–1 0–3 0–0 1–4 1–0 2–1 0–2 2–1 1–0 0–2 0–1 3–3 3–1 1–1 2–0 1–0 1–0 2–2 1–1 0–0
Crewe Alexandra 0–2 2–0 2–2 2–3 0–1 1–0 2–1 1–1 0–0 2–3 3–0 0–1 2–1 2–1 1–0 1–0 1–1 0–0 1–1 1–1 2–2 3–1 3–2
Fulham 1–2 0–0 2–2 1–0 0–1 1–2 2–2 2–5 1–0 1–1 0–0 1–2 1–0 1–1 5–2 3–1 1–2 1–1 2–1 2–0 1–2 0–0 4–0
Huddersfield Town 1–2 2–2 1–1 1–0 2–1 1–1 2–1 2–3 4–1 0–1 0–1 2–0 1–0 2–2 1–2 0–2 0–1 2–1 1–1 1–0 1–0 1–0 2–0
Leyton Orient 1–2 2–0 0–0 0–1 1–1 0–1 2–3 3–1 0–3 2–1 1–1 1–0 3–1 1–1 0–1 3–1 4–1 1–1 1–0 0–2 0–1 1–1 1–0
Mansfield Town 5–2 0–3 0–1 2–3 1–0 0–1 1–0 1–0 1–0 2–1 3–0 1–2 1–0 1–2 1–3 2–2 1–1 3–1 2–1 4–0 1–0 0–2 1–0
Northampton Town 2–2 4–2 0–2 0–2 2–0 1–2 0–1 1–1 1–0 3–1 2–2 1–0 0–1 1–2 0–0 1–2 2–1 1–2 2–1 1–1 0–4 1–1 1–1
Notts County 3–2 0–1 2–1 3–1 0–0 3–1 0–4 2–1 0–0 2–0 2–0 1–0 1–0 4–2 3–2 2–1 0–0 2–0 4–0 2–1 1–0 2–0 1–1
Preston North End 2–2 2–1 1–4 4–2 2–2 0–1 2–3 4–0 5–0 0–0 1–0 3–3 0–3 4–0 0–0 2–4 1–0 0–1 2–1 2–0 2–2 2–0 1–1
Reading 0–2 1–1 2–0 1–0 1–1 0–1 1–0 0–1 1–1 1–1 3–2 0–0 1–1 1–0 3–2 1–1 6–0 3–2 3–3 1–1 1–0 0–1 2–0
Rotherham United 5–1 1–1 1–0 2–1 1–2 3–2 1–3 4–0 5–0 1–3 2–1 0–0 5–2 0–0 2–0 1–2 3–1 1–1 4–2 3–2 0–0 2–2 1–2
Shrewsbury Town 2–0 1–1 3–3 1–0 0–1 2–3 3–1 0–0 2–0 0–0 2–0 3–3 4–2 0–1 2–0 2–2 2–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 3–1 2–0 1–3
Swansea City 1–1 0–0 0–0 2–1 0–5 0–0 0–1 0–1 2–1 3–2 4–2 1–3 0–1 1–0 1–1 0–0 2–1 1–6 1–0 0–1 1–0 2–0 3–0
Tranmere Rovers 5–1 4–2 1–3 2–2 6–0 1–2 2–4 3–0 0–0 1–1 2–1 4–0 3–0 1–1 0–0 2–0 2–1 3–1 2–1 3–1 3–0 2–1 2–0
Walsall 0–1 1–1 2–1 2–1 0–2 1–2 2–2 0–2 1–1 1–1 0–0 2–3 1–3 1–0 1–0 2–2 1–0 1–1 1–1 0–2 0–1 2–1 1–2
Wigan Athletic 1–0 1–1 2–0 2–1 2–3 1–2 0–0 1–1 1–0 1–0 2–1 1–2 0–2 4–0 0–0 1–1 0–1 3–1 0–3 0–0 2–0 1–3 3–0
Source:
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Third Division play-offs
Main article: Football League One play-offs § 1990

The semifinals were decided over two legs. The final consisted of only a single match.
The full results can be found at: Football League Division Three play-offs 1990.

  Semifinals
1st leg – 13 May; 2nd leg – 16 May 1990		 Final at Wembley
27 May 1990
                     
3rd Notts County 1 2 3  
6th Bolton Wanderers 1 0 1  
    3rd Notts County 2
  4th Tranmere Rovers 0
4th Tranmere Rovers 0 2 2
5th Bury 0 0 0  

Third Division maps
Locations of the Football League Third Division teams 1989–1990
Locations of the Football League Third Division London teams 1989–1990

Fourth Division
Football League, Fourth Division
Season1989–90
ChampionsExeter City (1st title)
PromotedCambridge United,
Grimsby Town,
Southend United
Relegated to ConferenceColchester United
New club in the leagueMaidstone United
Matches played552
Goals scored1,426 (2.58 per match)
Top goalscorerBrett Angell (Stockport County), 23 [3]
Pos Team Pld HW HD HL HGF HGA AW AD AL AGF AGA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Exeter City 46 20 3 0 50 14 8 2 13 33 34 +35 89 Division Champions, promoted
2 Grimsby Town 46 14 4 5 41 20 8 9 6 29 27 +23 79 Promoted
3 Southend United 46 15 3 5 35 14 7 6 10 26 34 +13 75
4 Stockport County 46 13 6 4 45 27 8 5 10 23 35 +6 74 Participated in play-offs
5 Maidstone United[lower-alpha 1] 46 14 4 5 49 21 8 3 12 28 40 +16 73
6 Cambridge United 46 14 3 6 45 30 7 7 9 31 36 +10 73 Promoted through play-offs[lower-alpha 2]
7 Chesterfield 46 12 9 2 41 19 7 5 11 22 31 +13 71 Participated in play-offs
8 Carlisle United 46 15 4 4 38 20 6 4 13 23 40 +1 71
9 Peterborough United 46 10 8 5 35 23 7 9 7 24 23 +13 68
10 Lincoln City 46 11 6 6 30 27 7 8 8 18 21 0 68
11 Scunthorpe United 46 9 9 5 42 25 8 6 9 27 29 +15 66
12 Rochdale 46 11 4 8 28 23 9 2 12 24 32 −3 66
13 York City 46 10 5 8 29 24 6 11 6 26 29 +2 64
14 Gillingham 46 9 8 6 28 21 8 3 12 18 27 −2 62
15 Torquay United 46 12 2 9 33 29 3 10 10 20 37 −13 57
16 Burnley 46 6 10 7 19 18 8 4 11 26 37 −10 56
17 Hereford United 46 7 4 12 31 32 8 6 9 25 30 −6 55
18 Scarborough 46 10 5 8 35 28 5 5 13 25 45 −13 55
19 Hartlepool United 46 12 4 7 45 33 3 6 14 21 55 −22 55
20 Doncaster Rovers 46 7 7 9 29 29 7 2 14 24 31 −7 51
21 Wrexham 46 8 8 7 28 28 5 4 14 23 39 −16 51 Welsh Cup runners-up, qualified for UEFA Cup Winners' Cup 1990–91 First round[lower-alpha 3]
22 Aldershot 46 8 7 8 28 26 4 7 12 21 43 −20 50
23 Halifax Town 46 5 9 9 31 29 7 4 12 26 36 −8 49
24 Colchester United 46 9 3 11 26 25 2 7 14 22 50 −27 43 Relegated to Conference
Source:
Notes:
  1. New club in the league
  2. Cambridge United were promoted through play-offs.
  3. Wrexham were runners-up in the Welsh Cup final, and since winners Hereford United are an English club, Wrexham were awarded the right to participate in the Cup Winners' Cup.

Fourth Division results
Home \ Away ALD BUR CAM CRL CHF COL DON EXE GIL GRI HAL HAR HER LIN MDS PET ROC SCA SCU STD STP TOR WRE YOR
Aldershot 1–1 0–2 1–0 0–0 4–0 1–1 0–1 1–0 0–0 2–0 6–1 0–2 0–1 0–2 0–1 1–1 1–1 4–2 0–5 2–1 1–2 1–0 2–2
Burnley 0–0 1–3 2–1 0–0 0–0 0–1 1–0 1–2 1–1 1–0 0–0 3–1 0–0 1–1 1–2 0–1 3–0 0–1 0–0 0–0 1–0 2–3 1–1
Cambridge United 2–2 0–1 1–2 0–1 4–0 1–0 3–2 2–1 2–0 1–0 2–1 0–1 2–1 2–0 3–2 0–3 5–2 5–3 2–1 0–2 5–2 1–1 2–2
Carlisle United 1–3 1–1 3–1 4–3 1–0 1–0 1–0 3–0 1–1 1–1 1–0 2–1 1–2 3–2 0–0 0–1 3–1 0–1 3–0 3–1 2–0 1–0 2–1
Chesterfield 2–0 0–1 1–1 3–0 1–1 0–1 2–1 2–0 2–0 4–3 3–1 2–1 0–0 3–1 1–1 2–1 2–2 1–1 1–1 1–1 5–1 3–0 0–0
Colchester United 1–0 1–2 1–2 4–0 1–0 2–0 0–1 2–0 1–0 2–2 3–1 1–1 0–1 4–1 0–1 1–2 0–0 1–0 0–2 0–1 0–3 1–3 0–2
Doncaster Rovers 0–1 2–3 2–1 1–1 1–0 2–0 2–1 0–0 0–0 3–4 2–2 0–1 0–1 1–1 0–3 4–0 1–1 1–2 0–1 2–1 2–1 2–2 1–2
Exeter City 2–0 2–1 3–2 0–0 2–1 2–1 1–0 3–1 2–1 2–0 3–1 2–0 3–0 2–0 2–0 5–0 3–2 1–0 2–1 1–1 3–0 1–1 3–1
Gillingham 0–0 0–0 1–0 2–1 3–0 3–3 3–1 1–1 1–2 3–1 0–0 0–1 1–1 1–2 0–0 1–0 2–0 0–3 5–0 0–3 0–2 1–0 0–0
Grimsby Town 2–1 4–2 0–0 1–0 0–1 4–1 2–1 1–0 2–0 1–1 0–0 0–2 1–0 2–3 1–2 1–2 3–0 2–1 2–0 4–2 0–0 5–1 3–0
Halifax Town 4–2 0–0 0–0 1–1 1–1 1–1 0–2 1–2 0–1 2–2 4–0 1–1 0–1 1–2 2–2 1–0 1–2 0–1 1–2 1–2 3–1 4–2 2–2
Hartlepool United 2–0 3–0 1–2 1–0 3–1 0–2 0–6 0–3 1–2 4–2 2–0 1–2 1–1 4–2 2–2 2–1 4–1 3–2 1–1 5–0 1–1 3–0 1–2
Hereford United 4–1 0–1 0–2 2–2 3–2 2–0 0–1 2–1 1–2 0–1 0–1 4–1 2–2 3–0 1–2 1–3 3–1 1–2 0–3 1–2 0–0 0–0 1–2
Lincoln City 0–1 1–0 4–3 1–3 1–1 2–1 2–1 1–5 1–3 1–1 2–1 4–1 1–0 1–2 1–0 1–2 0–0 1–0 2–0 0–0 2–2 1–0 0–0
Maidstone United 5–1 1–2 2–2 5–2 0–1 4–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 2–2 1–2 4–2 2–0 2–0 1–1 2–0 4–1 1–1 3–0 0–1 5–1 2–0 1–0
Peterborough United 1–1 4–1 1–2 3–0 1–1 1–0 2–1 4–3 1–1 1–1 3–0 0–2 1–1 1–0 1–0 0–1 1–2 1–1 1–2 2–0 1–1 3–1 1–1
Rochdale 2–0 2–1 2–0 1–2 1–0 2–2 1–3 1–0 1–0 0–1 0–2 0–0 5–2 1–0 3–2 1–2 1–0 3–0 0–1 1–1 0–0 0–3 0–1
Scarborough 1–0 4–2 1–1 2–1 2–3 2–2 1–2 1–2 0–1 3–1 2–3 4–1 0–1 2–0 0–1 2–1 2–1 0–0 1–1 2–0 0–0 2–1 1–3
Scunthorpe United 3–2 3–0 1–1 2–3 0–1 4–0 4–1 5–4 0–0 2–2 1–1 0–1 3–3 1–1 1–0 0–0 0–1 0–1 1–1 5–0 2–0 3–1 1–1
Southend United 5–0 3–2 0–0 2–0 0–2 0–2 2–0 1–2 2–0 0–2 2–0 3–0 2–0 2–0 0–1 0–0 3–2 1–0 0–0 2–0 1–0 2–1 2–0
Stockport County 1–1 3–1 3–1 3–1 3–1 1–1 3–1 2–1 1–0 2–4 0–1 6–0 2–1 1–1 1–2 0–0 2–1 3–2 4–2 1–0 1–1 0–2 2–2
Torquay United 1–2 0–1 3–0 1–2 1–0 4–1 2–0 0–2 0–2 0–3 1–0 4–3 1–1 0–3 2–1 2–1 1–0 3–2 0–3 3–0 3–0 0–1 1–1
Wrexham 2–2 1–0 2–3 1–0 0–2 3–2 0–0 1–1 2–1 0–1 2–1 1–2 0–0 0–2 4–2 2–1 1–1 0–2 0–0 3–3 0–1 1–1 2–0
York City 2–2 1–3 4–2 0–1 4–0 3–1 2–1 3–0 1–0 0–1 0–2 1–1 1–2 0–0 0–0 1–0 1–0 1–2 0–1 2–1 0–3 1–1 1–0
Source:
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.

Fourth Division play-offs
Main article: Football League Two play-offs § 1990

The semifinals were decided over two legs. The final consisted of only a single match.
The full results can be found at: Football League Division Four play-offs 1990.

  Semifinals
1st leg –13 May; 2nd leg –16 May 1990		 Final at Wembley
26 May 1990
                     
4th Stockport County 0 0 0  
7th Chesterfield 4 2 6  
    7th Chesterfield 0
  6th Cambridge United 1
5th Maidstone United (1897) 1 0 1
6th Cambridge United 1 2 3  

Fourth Division maps
Locations of the Football League Fourth Division teams 1989–1990

See also

References
  1. "England 1989–90". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 26 January 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2010.
  2. Liverpool were banned by UEFA from its competitions from the season 1985–86 on for 10 years, because of the Heysel Disaster in 1985, involving Liverpool fans. The ban was eventually lifted for the 1991–92 season.
  3. "English League Leading Goalscorers". RSSSF. Retrieved 31 October 2010.
  4. Because of the 1985 UEFA ban, no English clubs played European matches between the 1985/86 and 1989/90 season, and England was therefore ranked as 25th for the 1990/91-season in Europe which gave England only 1 spot in UEFA Cup.
  5. Nottingham Forest would have qualified for the UEFA Cup as the 1989–90 Football League Cup winners.
  6. Manchester United qualfied for the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup as the 1989–90 FA Cup winners.
  7. "English Division Two (old) 1989-1990 : Table". Statto Organisation Limited. Archived from the original on 30 September 2013. Retrieved 5 August 2013.
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