EFL High Water Mark of Pre-1987 Non League Clubs
Okay, another analysis. I have looked at all clubs who were non-league before promotion started (so this does not count anyone who was a league club like Colchester or Oxford who went down to the Conference and came back), and charted the high water mark since promotion began at the end of 1986-87. The total number of clubs is on the right of the main column, and it has grown all the way to 13 of the 92 (though we may lose a couple this season if Forest Green and Sutton go down).
Stevenage are nailed on for the high water mark this season, but the all-time champions? Wycombe, of course. We are also the only club with two dominant eras, unless you count Yeovil's run being punctured by Stevenage.
It is notable that since the end of 1992-93, there has only been one season where the high watermark was in the 4th tier (2004-05), so these clubs have done well to maintain at least one qualifier in League One or above for almost all of the past 30 seasons.
That being said, we may never see the likes of the 2022-23 season again, when 7 of these clubs were in League One, with only 6 in League Two.
Comments
You're really burning through the off-season material @Shev, I worry for the future of our forum.
This is good stuff. Three of those 'winning' clubs have gone bust and re-formed haven't they?
Edit: Added in top ten best ever finishes, with Burton having overall bragging rights with top ever finish and only team to ever stay up in the Championship, while Wycombe and Yeovil have also spent a season in tier 2 and have 3 of the top ten also.
I have said this before, but if you add in the FA Cup and League Cup semis, Wycombe is the gold standard for this type of club, just ahead of Burton (who have a League Cup semi too).
Almost two weeks between games is giving me the pre-offseason jitters!
Good spot!
I think Scarborough are also one of the few teams Wycombe have a 100% Football League record against.
Ah, no, they're in the 'played only twice' category.
Remember seeing us lose at Scarborough in 1994.
Yep. David Titterton had such a poor game he was dropped until the playoffs
Funny the things you remember
I think in the home game against them we were 4 nil up by half time
That might have been Keith Scott's last game before he secured a move to premier league Swindon Town actually
Brilliant stuff. Love the colouring - had to remind myself of Rushden's kit.
All I remember is they were sponsored by Dr Martens at the same time West Ham were
‘I have said this before, but if you add in the FA Cup and League Cup semis, Wycombe is the gold standard for this type of club, just ahead of Burton (who have a League Cup semi too).’
Brilliant research Shev! I would love to show this to the Derby fan who wrote on FB this week that Wycombe is a ‘vile, meaningless little club which should be back in non league where they belong.’
Interesting stuff.
Looking at the National League, Chesterfield's (who wouldn't count) promotion looks like being confirmed this weekend but the play off places are currently filled by Barnet (?) Bromley, Solihull, Aldershot (?) Halifax (?) and good old rivals Altrincham with Gateshead one below so every chance of a newbie next season. I still find myself cheering on the "proper" nonleaguers over the ex league clubs and still find myself surprised to see Barrow on your list even though they left the league almost 50 years ago!! God I am old. Not sure whether any of the (?) marked clubs would qualify or whether they changed leagues under the old system.
Few I suspect would be sorry on this board if Forest Green or Sutton overhauled the current third bottom club in Lg2.
If this is what he has for us in March imagine what he’s storing up for the summer!
They were owned by the Dr Martens owner.
Ah yes, of course!
Just waiting for the Ivor Beeks autoresponder to correct this to Rushden and Dynamoes.
Cheers @glasshalffull. Opposing fans exhibit textbook lack of self awareness (to me) when they call us a small club, or non-leaguers, or anything based upon relative size. I don't find any of that something to be ashamed of, and it's even funnier when they are in our own division (like Sunderland were or Derby are now) or even below us (like Reading).
As I said to a Reading fan, how would it look to them if they were back in the PL and six places above one of the "big six" only for fans of that club to mock Reading as having a smaller stadium and being a tinpot club?
Dolphins jumping through flaming hoops. Cannons shooting cyber confetti. And fireworks....lots of fireworks.
At least if you wait for dusk it'll be darkness here!
Gateshead are also a reformed (twice I think) ex league club. And Barrow originally lost their league place 52 years ago to be pedantic.
People like the Derby moron haven't a clue' Wycombe along with Burton (and before they lost their league place) Yeovil are one of the few post 1987 new league clubs that dont feel like a tinpot non league club (I agree that most of the others do unfortunately). And if Wycombe had been elected to the league pre 1987 no-one would see them as anything but an established league club.
Incidentally Wycombe have now been a league club as long as Oxford had when we got promoted. And Oxford of all clubs should never have been chanting "non league non league" as to most "real" old established league clubs (ie those in the league since before the war) they've still got a distinct whiff of the non league about them even today. Maybe where the over-compensating by Oxford comes from knowing that to Swindon Reading, Watford, Northampton they're still tinpot newcomers.
Not a good season for this category of club, with Fleetwood (and probably Cheltenham) down, and Sutton and FGR going out of the league. Suddenly last season's 7 in L1 has shrunk to just 3. 22/23 may remain the golden season.
I wonder if increased investment in clubs like Stockport, Wrexham and such will lead to the Morecambes, Accringtons and Fleetwoods of the world dropping back into non-league?
Either way, it again underlines how well we have done to stay in the league for 30 years, with more seasons out of L2 than in it!
Fleetwood could well find themselves in trouble next season I think.