The Football League play-offs for the 2002–03 season were held in May 2003, with the finals taking place at Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. The play-off semi-finals will be played over two legs and will be contested by the teams who finish in 3rd, 4th, 5th and 6th place in the Football League First Division and Football League Second Division and the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th placed teams in the Football League Third Division table. The winners of the semi-finals will go through to the finals, with the winner of the matches gaining promotion for the following season.
| Season | 2002–03 |
|---|---|
| Champions | Wolverhampton Wanderers (First Division) Cardiff City (Second Division) Bournemouth (Third Division) |
| Matches played | 15 |
| Goals scored | 41 (2.73 per match) |
| Biggest home win | Lincoln 5–3 Scunthorpe (Third Division) |
| Biggest away win | Reading 0–1 Wolves (First Division) Scunthorpe 0–1 Lincoln (Third Division) |
| Highest scoring | Lincoln 5–3 Scunthorpe (8 goals) |
| Highest attendance | 69,473 – Sheffield United v Wolves (First Division final) |
| Lowest attendance | 5,782 – Bury v Bournemouth (Third Division semi-final) |
| Average attendance | 24,964 |
← 2002 2004 → | |
Background
editThe Football League play-offs have been held every year since 1987. They take place for each division following the conclusion of the regular season and are contested by the four clubs finishing below the automatic promotion places.
In the First Division, Sheffield United, who are aiming to return to the top flight for the first time since 1994, finished 12 points behind second placed Leicester City, who in turn finished 6 points behind champions Portsmouth, who returned to the top flight for the first time since 1988. Reading who are aiming for a place in the top flight for the first time in their history, finished in fourth place in the table. Wolverhampton Wanderers, who are aiming to return to the top flight after nearly 20 years outside the top flight, finished in fifth place. Nottingham Forest finished 2 points behind Wolverhampton Wanderers and were looking for a place back in the Premiership for the first time since 1999.
First Division
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Sheffield United | 46 | 23 | 11 | 12 | 72 | 52 | 20 | 80 |
| 4 | Reading | 46 | 25 | 4 | 17 | 61 | 46 | 15 | 79 |
| 5 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 46 | 20 | 16 | 10 | 81 | 44 | 37 | 76 |
| 6 | Nottingham Forest | 46 | 20 | 14 | 12 | 82 | 50 | 32 | 74 |
Semi-finals
edit- First leg
| Nottingham Forest | 1–1 | Sheffield United |
|---|---|---|
Johnson  55' |
Report | Brown 58' (pen.) |
- Second leg
Wolverhampton Wanderers won 3–1 on aggregate.
| Sheffield United | 4–3 (a.e.t.) | Nottingham Forest |
|---|---|---|
| Brown 60' Kabba 68'Peschisolido 112'Walker 117' (o.g.) |
Report | Johnson 30' Reid 58'Page 119' (o.g.) |
Sheffield United won 5–4 on aggregate.
Final
edit| Sheffield United | 0–3 | Wolverhampton Wanderers |
|---|---|---|
| Report | Kennedy 6' Blake 22'Miller 45' |
Second Division
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Bristol City | 46 | 24 | 11 | 11 | 79 | 48 | 31 | 83 |
| 4 | Queens Park Rangers | 46 | 24 | 11 | 11 | 69 | 45 | 24 | 83 |
| 5 | Oldham Athletic | 46 | 22 | 16 | 8 | 68 | 38 | 30 | 82 |
| 6 | Cardiff City | 46 | 23 | 12 | 11 | 68 | 43 | 25 | 81 |
Semi-finals
edit- First leg
| Cardiff City | 1–0 | Bristol City |
|---|---|---|
| Thorne 74' |
Report |
| Oldham Athletic | 1–1 | Queens Park Rangers |
|---|---|---|
| Eyres 28' |
Report | Langley 47' |
- Second leg
Cardiff City won 1–0 on aggregate.
Queens Park Rangers won 2–1 on aggregate.
Final
edit| Cardiff City | 1–0 (a.e.t.) | Queens Park Rangers |
|---|---|---|
| Campbell 114' |
Report |
Third Division
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Bournemouth | 46 | 20 | 14 | 12 | 60 | 48 | 12 | 74 |
| 5 | Scunthorpe United | 46 | 19 | 15 | 12 | 68 | 49 | 19 | 72 |
| 6 | Lincoln City | 46 | 18 | 16 | 12 | 46 | 37 | 9 | 70 |
| 7 | Bury | 46 | 18 | 16 | 12 | 57 | 56 | 1 | 70 |
Semi-finals
edit- First leg
| Lincoln City | 5–3 | Scunthorpe United |
|---|---|---|
| Weaver 15' Mayo 18'Smith 55'Yeo 82', 90' |
Report | Calvo García 26', 69' Stanton 70' |
- Second leg
Bournemouth won 3–1 on aggregate.
Lincoln City won 6–3 on aggregate.
Final
edit| Bournemouth | 5–2 | Lincoln City |
|---|---|---|
| S. Fletcher 29' C. Fletcher 45', 77'Purches 56'O'Connor 60' |
Report | Futcher 35' Bailey 75' |