# 2011–12 Football League One

The 2011–12 Football League One (referred to as the Npower Football League One for sponsorship reasons) was the eighth season of the league under its current title and nineteenth season under its current league division format.

## Team changes
### From League One

Promoted to the Championship
* Brighton & Hove Albion
* Southampton
* Peterborough United
Relegated to League Two
* Dagenham & Redbridge
* Bristol Rovers
* Plymouth Argyle
* Swindon Town

### To League One

Relegated from the Championship
* Sheffield United
* Scunthorpe United
* Preston North End
Promoted from League Two
* Chesterfield
* Bury
* Wycombe Wanderers
* Stevenage

## Rules changes

* The Football League agreed to use the new UEFA financial regulations. Football League One clubs decided to introduce the Salary Cost Management Protocol (SCMP) from this season, teams will only be allowed to spend a fixed proportion of their total turnover on player wages.

## Team overview
### Stadia and locations

| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
| AFC Bournemouth | Bournemouth | Seward Stadium | 10,700 |
| Brentford | London | Griffin Park | 12,763 |
| Bury | Bury | Gigg Lane | 11,840 |
| Carlisle United | Carlisle | Brunton Park | 16,981 |
| Charlton Athletic | London | The Valley | 27,111 |
| Chesterfield | Chesterfield | B2net Stadium | 10,338 |
| Colchester United | Colchester | Colchester Community Stadium | 10,064 |
| Exeter City | Exeter | St James Park | 8,830 |
| Hartlepool United | Hartlepool | Victoria Park | 8,240 |
| Huddersfield Town | Huddersfield | Galpharm Stadium | 24,500 |
| Leyton Orient | London | Brisbane Road | 9,271 |
| Milton Keynes Dons | Milton Keynes | Stadium:mk | 22,000 |
| Notts County | Nottingham | Meadow Lane | 21,388 |
| Oldham Athletic | Oldham | Boundary Park | 10,638 |
| Preston North End | Preston | Deepdale | 23,408 |
| Rochdale | Rochdale | Spotland | 10,249 |
| Scunthorpe United | Scunthorpe | Glanford Park | 9,088 |
| Sheffield United | Sheffield | Bramall Lane | 32,702 |
| Sheffield Wednesday | Sheffield | Hillsborough | 39,812 |
| Stevenage | Stevenage | Broadhall Way | 6,722 |
| Tranmere Rovers | Birkenhead | Prenton Park | 16,789 |
| Walsall | Walsall | Bescot Stadium | 11,300 |
| Wycombe Wanderers | High Wycombe | Adams Park | 10,284 |
| Yeovil Town | Yeovil | Huish Park | 9,565 |

### Personnel and sponsoring

| Team | Manager | Team Captain | Chairman | Kit maker | Sponsor |
| AFC Bournemouth | Paul Groves (caretaker) Shaun Brooks (caretaker) | Darryl Flahavan | Eddie Mitchell Maxim Demin | Fila | Focal Point |
| Brentford | Uwe Rösler | Kevin O'Connor | Greg Dyke | Puma | Hertings Fixings (H) Bathwise (A) |
| Bury | Richard Barker | Steven Schumacher | Brian Fenton | Surridge | Bury Metropolitan Council |
| Carlisle United | Greg Abbott | Paul Thirlwell | Andrew Jenkins | Carbrini | Eddie Stobart Transport |
| Charlton Athletic | Chris Powell | Johnnie Jackson | Michael Slater | Macron | Krbs.com |
| Chesterfield | John Sheridan | Mark Allott | Barrie Hubbard | Respect | Vodka Kick |
| Colchester United | John Ward | Kemal Izzet | Robbie Cowling | Puma | ROL Cruise |
| Exeter City | Paul Tisdale | David Noble | Edward Chorlton | Carbrini | Flybe |
| Hartlepool United | Neale Cooper | Sam Collins | Ken Hodcroft | Nike | Dove Energy |
| Huddersfield Town | Simon Grayson | Peter Clarke | Dean Hoyle | Umbro | Kirklees College (H) RadianB (A) |
| Leyton Orient | Russell Slade | Matthew Spring | Barry Hearn | Puma | PartyCasino.com |
| Milton Keynes Dons | Karl Robinson | Dean Lewington | Pete Winkelman | ISC | Doubletree by Hilton |
| Notts County | Keith Curle | Neal Bishop | Ray Trew | Fila | Fraser Brown (H) Vision Express (A) |
| Oldham Athletic | Paul Dickov | Dean Furman | Simon Corney | Carbrini | Carbrini |
| Preston North End | Graham Westley | Paul Coutts | Peter Ridsdale | Puma | Tennent's Lager |
| Rochdale | John Coleman | Gary Jones | Chris Dunphy | Carbrini | The Co-operative Society |
| Scunthorpe United | Alan Knill | Cliff Byrne | J. Steven Wharton | Nike | Rainham Steel |
| Sheffield United | Danny Wilson | Chris Morgan | Kevin McCabe | Macron | Westfield Health (H) Gilder group Volkswagen (A) |
| Sheffield Wednesday | Dave Jones | Rob Jones | Milan Mandarić | Puma | Gilder group Volkswagen (H) Westfield Health (A) |
| Stevenage | Gary Smith | Mark Roberts | Phil Wallace | Puma | ServerChoice |
| Tranmere Rovers | Ronnie Moore | John Welsh | Peter Johnson | Carbrini | Wirral |
| Walsall | Dean Smith | Andy Butler | Jeff Bonser | Admiral | Surestop |
| Wycombe Wanderers | Gary Waddock | Gareth Ainsworth | Steve Hayes | Kappa | Dreams |
| Yeovil Town | Gary Johnson | Paul Huntington | John Fry | Vandanel | Jones's Building Contractors |

#### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
| Sheffield United | Micky Adams | Sacked | 10 May 2011 | Pre-season | Danny Wilson | 27 May 2011 |
| Brentford | Nicky Forster | End of contract | 19 May 2011 | Pre-season | Uwe Rösler | 10 June 2011 |
| Rochdale | Keith Hill | Signed by Barnsley | 1 June 2011 | Pre-season | Steve Eyre | 13 June 2011 |
| Hartlepool United | Mick Wadsworth | Sacked | 6 December 2011 | 13th | Neale Cooper | 28 December 2011 |
| Preston North End | Phil Brown | Sacked | 14 December 2011 | 10th | Graham Alexander David Unsworth | 14 December 2011 |
| Rochdale | Steve Eyre | Sacked | 19 December 2011 | 22nd | John Coleman | 24 January 2012 |
| Yeovil Town | Terry Skiverton | Demotion to Assistant Manager | 9 January 2012 | 21st | Gary Johnson | 9 January 2012 |
| Preston North End | Graham Alexander David Unsworth | End of tenure as caretakers | 13 January 2012 | 14th | Graham Westley | 13 January 2012 |
| Stevenage | Graham Westley | Signed by Preston North End | 13 January 2012 | 7th | Gary Smith | 25 January 2012 |
| Huddersfield Town | Lee Clark | Sacked | 15 February 2012 | 4th | Simon Grayson | 20 February 2012 |
| Notts County | Martin Allen | Sacked | 18 February 2012 | 11th | Keith Curle | 20 February 2012 |
| Sheffield Wednesday | Gary Megson | Sacked | 29 February 2012 | 3rd | Dave Jones | 1 March 2012 |
| Tranmere Rovers | Les Parry | Sacked | 4 March 2012 | 19th | Ronnie Moore | 4 March 2012 |
| AFC Bournemouth | Lee Bradbury | Sacked | 25 March 2012 | 13th | Paul Groves (caretaker) Shaun Brooks (caretaker) | 25 March 2012 |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Charlton Athletic (C, P) | 46 | 30 | 11 | 5 | 82 | 36 | +46 | 101 | Promotion to Football League Championship |
| 2 | Sheffield Wednesday (P) | 46 | 28 | 9 | 9 | 81 | 48 | +33 | 93 | Promotion to Football League Championship |
| 3 | Sheffield United | 46 | 27 | 9 | 10 | 92 | 51 | +41 | 90 | Qualification for League One play-offs |
| 4 | Huddersfield Town (O, P) | 46 | 21 | 18 | 7 | 79 | 47 | +32 | 81 | Qualification for League One play-offs |
| 5 | Milton Keynes Dons | 46 | 22 | 14 | 10 | 84 | 47 | +37 | 80 | Qualification for League One play-offs |
| 6 | Stevenage | 46 | 18 | 19 | 9 | 69 | 44 | +25 | 73 | Qualification for League One play-offs |
| 7 | Notts County | 46 | 21 | 10 | 15 | 75 | 63 | +12 | 73 | |
| 8 | Carlisle United | 46 | 18 | 15 | 13 | 65 | 66 | −1 | 69 | |
| 9 | Brentford | 46 | 18 | 13 | 15 | 63 | 52 | +11 | 67 | |
| 10 | Colchester United | 46 | 13 | 20 | 13 | 61 | 66 | −5 | 59 | |
| 11 | AFC Bournemouth | 46 | 15 | 13 | 18 | 48 | 52 | −4 | 58 | |
| 12 | Tranmere Rovers | 46 | 14 | 14 | 18 | 49 | 53 | −4 | 56 | |
| 13 | Hartlepool United | 46 | 14 | 14 | 18 | 50 | 55 | −5 | 56 | |
| 14 | Bury | 46 | 15 | 11 | 20 | 60 | 79 | −19 | 56 | |
| 15 | Preston North End | 46 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 54 | 68 | −14 | 54 | |
| 16 | Oldham Athletic | 46 | 14 | 12 | 20 | 50 | 66 | −16 | 54 | |
| 17 | Yeovil Town | 46 | 14 | 12 | 20 | 59 | 80 | −21 | 54 | |
| 18 | Scunthorpe United | 46 | 10 | 22 | 14 | 55 | 59 | −4 | 52 | |
| 19 | Walsall | 46 | 10 | 20 | 16 | 51 | 57 | −6 | 50 | |
| 20 | Leyton Orient | 46 | 13 | 11 | 22 | 48 | 75 | −27 | 50 | |
| 21 | Wycombe Wanderers (R) | 46 | 11 | 10 | 25 | 65 | 88 | −23 | 43 | Relegation to Football League Two |
| 22 | Chesterfield (R) | 46 | 10 | 12 | 24 | 56 | 81 | −25 | 42 | Relegation to Football League Two |
| 23 | Exeter City (R) | 46 | 10 | 12 | 24 | 46 | 75 | −29 | 42 | Relegation to Football League Two |
| 24 | Rochdale (R) | 46 | 8 | 14 | 24 | 47 | 81 | −34 | 38 | Relegation to Football League Two |
* ↑ Four teams play for one spot and promotion to Football League Championship.

## Play-offs

| Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Semifinals | Final | Final | Final |
| 3 | Sheffield United | 0 | 1 | 1 | | | |
| 6 | Stevenage | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | |
| 6 | Stevenage | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | Sheffield United | 0 (7) |
| | | | | | 4 | Huddersfield Town (p) | 0 (8) |
| 4 | Huddersfield Town | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | Huddersfield Town (p) | 0 (8) |
| 5 | Milton Keynes Dons | 0 | 2 | 2 | | | |

## Results

The fixtures for the League One were released on 17 June 2011. The season kick-off was announced for 6 August 2011, and concluded on 5 May 2012.
| Home \ Away | BOU | BRE | BRY | CRL | CHA | CHF | COL | EXE | HAR | HUD | LEY | MKD | NTC | OLD | PNE | ROC | SCU | SHU | SHW | STE | TRA | WAL | WYC | YEO |
| AFC Bournemouth | | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 0–0 |
| Brentford | 1–1 | | 3–0 | 4–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–4 | 5–0 | 3–3 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–3 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 5–2 | 2–0 |
| Bury | 1–0 | 1–1 | | 0–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 3–3 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–4 | 0–0 | 0–3 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 1–4 | 3–2 |
| Carlisle United | 2–1 | 2–2 | 4–1 | | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 1–3 | 0–3 | 3–3 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 3–2 | 3–2 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 3–2 |
| Charlton Athletic | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 4–0 | | 3–1 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 5–2 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 3–0 |
| Chesterfield | 1–0 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 0–4 | | 0–1 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 1–4 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 4–0 | 2–2 |
| Colchester United | 1–1 | 2–1 | 4–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–2 | | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–5 | 4–2 | 4–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–6 | 4–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 |
| Exeter City | 0–2 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | | 0–0 | 0–4 | 3–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 4–2 | 1–3 | 1–1 |
| Hartlepool United | 0–0 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 4–0 | 0–4 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–0 | | 0–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 0–1 |
| Huddersfield Town | 0–1 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 1–0 | | 2–2 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 |
| Leyton Orient | 1–3 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 1–3 | | 0–3 | 0–3 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–3 | 2–2 |
| Milton Keynes Dons | 2–2 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 6–2 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 4–1 | | 3–0 | 5–0 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 4–3 | 0–1 |
| Notts County | 3–1 | 1–1 | 2–4 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 | | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 2–5 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 |
| Oldham Athletic | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 5–2 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 3–2 | | 1–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 1–2 |
| Preston North End | 1–3 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 2–4 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 3–3 | | 0–1 | 0–0 | 2–4 | 0–2 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 3–2 | 4–3 |
| Rochdale | 1–0 | 1–2 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 2–3 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 3–2 | 1–3 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 3–2 | 1–1 | | 1–0 | 2–5 | 0–0 | 1–5 | 0–2 | 3–3 | 2–1 | 0–0 |
| Scunthorpe United | 1–1 | 0–0 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 2–2 | 2–3 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | | 1–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 0–1 | 4–1 | 2–1 |
| Sheffield United | 2–1 | 2–0 | 4–0 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 4–1 | 3–0 | 4–4 | 3–1 | 0–3 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | | 2–2 | 2–2 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 3–0 | 4–0 |
| Sheffield Wednesday | 3–0 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 4–4 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 1–0 | | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 |
| Stevenage | 2–2 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 4–2 | 0–2 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 5–1 | | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 |
| Tranmere Rovers | 0–0 | 2–2 | 2–0 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–0 | | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 |
| Walsall | 2–2 | 0–1 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–2 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | | 2–0 | 1–1 |
| Wycombe Wanderers | 0–1 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 3–2 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 5–0 | 0–6 | 4–2 | 1–1 | 3–4 | 2–2 | 3–4 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | | 2–3 |
| Yeovil Town | 1–3 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 0–3 | 2–3 | 3–2 | 3–2 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 2–3 | 0–6 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | |

## Statistics
### Scoring

* First goal of the season: Anthony Wordsworth for Colchester United against Preston North End (6 August 2011)
* Highest scoring game: 8 goals – Milton Keynes Dons 6–2 Chesterfield (20 August 2011), Sheffield Wednesday 4–4 Huddersfield Town (17 December 2011)Sheffield United 4–4 Exeter City (29 October 2011)
* Most goals scored in a game by one team: 6 goals – Milton Keynes Dons 6–2 Chesterfield (20 August 2011), Colchester United 1–6 Stevenage (26 December 2011), Wycombe Wanderers 0–6 Huddersfield Town (6 January 2012, Yeovil Town 0–6 Stevenage (14 April 2012))
* Widest winning margin: 6 goals – Wycombe Wanderers 0–6 Huddersfield Town (6 January 2012, Yeovil Town 0–6 Stevenage (14 April 2012))
* Most goals scored by a player in a game: 5 goals Jordan Rhodes - Wycombe Wanderers 0–6 Huddersfield Town (6 January 2012)
* Fewest games failed to score in:
* Most games failed to score in:

## Awards
### Monthly awards

| Month | Manager of the Month | Manager of the Month | Player of the Month | Player of the Month | Notes |
| Month | Manager | Club | Player | Club | Notes |
| August | Karl Robinson | Milton Keynes Dons | Ryan Lowe | Sheffield Wednesday | |
| September | Martin Allen | Notts County | Neil Mellor | Preston North End | |
| October | Lee Clark | Huddersfield Town | Jordan Rhodes | Huddersfield Town | |
| November | Chris Powell | Charlton Athletic | Michael Morrison | Charlton Athletic | |
| December | Danny Wilson | Sheffield United | Jordan Rhodes | Huddersfield Town | |
| January | Chris Powell | Charlton Athletic | Johnnie Jackson | Charlton Athletic | |
| February | Chris Powell | Charlton Athletic | Dean Bowditch | Milton Keynes Dons | |
| March | Dave Jones | Sheffield Wednesday | Ched Evans | Sheffield United | |
| April | Dave Jones | Sheffield Wednesday | Miguel Llera | Sheffield Wednesday | |

### Other awards

| Month | Award | Player | Club |
| August | Young Player of the Month | Harry Maguire | Sheffield United |
| September | Young Player of the Month | Gary Madine | Sheffield Wednesday |
| February | Young Player of the Month | Kieron Freeman | Notts County |
| April | Young Player of the Month | Luke Freeman | Stevenage |