# 1997–98 Football League First Division

The 1997–98 Football League First Division (referred to as the Nationwide First Division for sponsorship reasons) was the sixth season of the league under its current league division format.

## Changes from previous season
### Team changes
#### From First Division

Promoted to Premier League
* Barnsley
* Bolton Wanderers
* Crystal Palace
Relegated to Second Division
* Grimsby Town
* Oldham Athletic
* Southend United

### To First Division

Promoted from Second Division
* Bury
* Crewe Alexandra
* Stockport County
Relegated from Premier League
* Middlesbrough
* Nottingham Forest
* Sunderland

## Teams
### Stadium and locations

| Team | Location | Stadium | Capacity |
| Birmingham City | Birmingham | St Andrew's | 25,877 |
| Bradford City | Bradford | Valley Parade | 17,848 |
| Bury | Bury | Gigg Lane | 11,840 |
| Charlton Athletic | Charlton | The Valley | 15,815 |
| Crewe Alexandra | Crewe | Gresty Road | 10,153 |
| Huddersfield Town | Huddersfield | Alfred McAlpine Stadium | 24,500 |
| Ipswich Town | Ipswich | Portman Road | 30,311 |
| Manchester City | Manchester | Maine Road | 35,150 |
| Middlesbrough | Middlesbrough | Riverside Stadium | 30,000 |
| Norwich City | Norwich | Carrow Road | 24,663 |
| Nottingham Forest | West Bridgford | City Ground | 30,576 |
| Oxford United | Oxford | Manor Ground | 9,500 |
| Port Vale | Burslem | Vale Park | 19,052 |
| Portsmouth | Portsmouth | Fratton Park | 21,100 |
| Queens Park Rangers | White City | Loftus Road | 18,439 |
| Reading | Reading | Elm Park | 14,800 |
| Sheffield United | Sheffield | Bramall Lane | 29,034 |
| Stockport County | Stockport | Edgeley Park | 10,841 |
| Stoke City | Stoke-on-Trent | Britannia Stadium | 27,743 |
| Sunderland | Sunderland | Stadium of Light | 42,000 |
| Swindon Town | Swindon | County Ground | 15,728 |
| Tranmere Rovers | Birkenhead | Prenton Park | 16,567 |
| West Bromwich Albion | West Bromwich | The Hawthorns | 22,986 |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | Wolverhampton | Molineux Stadium | 28,525 |

### Personnel and kits

| Team | Manager | Captain | Kit manufacturer | Shirt sponsor |
| Birmingham City | Trevor Francis | Steve Bruce | Pony | Auto Windscreens |
| Bradford City | Paul Jewell | Wayne Jacobs | Beaver | JCT600 |
| Bury | Stan Ternent | Chris Lucketti | Super League | Birthdays |
| Charlton Athletic | Alan Curbishley | Mark Kinsella | Quaser | Viglen |
| Crewe Alexandra | Dario Gradi | Gareth Whalley | Adidas | Boldon James |
| Huddersfield Town | Peter Jackson | Barry Horne | Pony | Panasonic |
| Ipswich Town | George Burley | Jason Cundy | Punch | Greene King |
| Manchester City | Joe Royle | Kit Symons | Kappa | Brother |
| Middlesbrough | Bryan Robson | Nigel Pearson | Erreà | Cellnet |
| Norwich City | John Faulkner (caretaker) | Matt Jackson | Pony | Colman's |
| Nottingham Forest | Dave Bassett | Steve Chettle | Umbro | Pinnacle |
| Oxford United | Malcolm Shotton | Phil Gilchrist | Own Brand | Unipart |
| Port Vale | John Rudge | Allen Tankard | Mizuno | Tunstall Assurance |
| Portsmouth | Alan Ball | Adrian Whitbread | Admiral | KJC |
| Queens Park Rangers | Ray Harford | Steve Morrow | Le Coq Sportif | Ericsson |
| Reading | Tommy Burns | Phil Parkinson | Mizuno | Auto Trader |
| Sheffield United | Steve Thompson (caretaker) | David Holdsworth | Le Coq Sportif | Wards |
| Stockport County | Gary Megson | Mike Flynn | Adidas | Robinsons |
| Stoke City | Alan Durban (caretaker) | Lárus Sigurðsson | Asics | Britannia |
| Sunderland | Peter Reid | Kevin Ball | Asics | Lambtons |
| Swindon Town | Steve McMahon | Brian Borrows | Mizuno | Nationwide |
| Tranmere Rovers | John Aldridge | Liam O'Brien | Mizuno | Wirral |
| West Bromwich Albion | Denis Smith | Sean Flynn | Patrick | West Bromwich Building Society |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | Mark McGhee | Keith Curle | Puma | Goodyear |

### Managerial changes

| Team | Outgoing manager | Manner of departure | Date of vacancy | Position in table | Incoming manager | Date of appointment |
| Huddersfield Town | Brian Horton | Sacked | 6 October 1997 | 24th | Peter Jackson | 7 October 1997 |
| Queens Park Rangers | Stewart Houston | Sacked | 10 November 1997 | 13th | Ray Harford | 5 December 1997 |
| West Bromwich Albion | Ray Harford | Resigned | 4 December 1997 | 4th | Denis Smith | 24 December 1997 |
| Oxford United | Denis Smith | Signed by West Bromwich Albion | 24 December 1997 | 16th | Malcolm Shotton | 24 January 1998 |
| Bradford City | Chris Kamara | Sacked | 6 January 1998 | 11th | Paul Jewell | 6 January 1998 |
| Portsmouth | Terry Fenwick | Sacked | 14 January 1998 | 24th | Alan Ball | 26 January 1998 |
| Stoke City | Chic Bates | Mutual consent | 22 January 1998 | 20th | Chris Kamara | 22 January 1998 |
| Manchester City | Frank Clark | Sacked | 17 February 1998 | 22nd | Joe Royle | 18 February 1998 |
| Sheffield United | Nigel Spackman | Resigned | 2 March 1998 | 5th | Steve Bruce | 2 July 1998 |
| Reading | Terry Bullivant | Resigned | 18 March 1998 | 23rd | Tommy Burns | 25 March 1998 |
| Stoke City | Chris Kamara | Mutual consent | 8 April 1998 | 24th | Brian Little | 13 May 1998 |
| Norwich City | Mike Walker | Resigned | 30 April 1998 | 16th | Bruce Rioch | 12 June 1998 |

## League table

| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 1 | Nottingham Forest (C, P) | 46 | 28 | 10 | 8 | 82 | 42 | +40 | 94 | Promotion to the Premier League |
| 2 | Middlesbrough (P) | 46 | 27 | 10 | 9 | 77 | 41 | +36 | 91 | Promotion to the Premier League |
| 3 | Sunderland | 46 | 26 | 12 | 8 | 86 | 50 | +36 | 90 | Qualification for the First Division play-offs |
| 4 | Charlton Athletic (O, P) | 46 | 26 | 10 | 10 | 80 | 49 | +31 | 88 | Qualification for the First Division play-offs |
| 5 | Ipswich Town | 46 | 23 | 14 | 9 | 77 | 43 | +34 | 83 | Qualification for the First Division play-offs |
| 6 | Sheffield United | 46 | 19 | 17 | 10 | 69 | 54 | +15 | 74 | Qualification for the First Division play-offs |
| 7 | Birmingham City | 46 | 19 | 17 | 10 | 60 | 35 | +25 | 74 | |
| 8 | Stockport County | 46 | 19 | 8 | 19 | 71 | 69 | +2 | 65 | |
| 9 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 46 | 18 | 11 | 17 | 57 | 53 | +4 | 65 | |
| 10 | West Bromwich Albion | 46 | 16 | 13 | 17 | 50 | 56 | −6 | 61 | |
| 11 | Crewe Alexandra | 46 | 18 | 5 | 23 | 58 | 65 | −7 | 59 | |
| 12 | Oxford United | 46 | 16 | 10 | 20 | 60 | 64 | −4 | 58 | |
| 13 | Bradford City | 46 | 14 | 15 | 17 | 46 | 59 | −13 | 57 | |
| 14 | Tranmere Rovers | 46 | 14 | 14 | 18 | 54 | 57 | −3 | 56 | |
| 15 | Norwich City | 46 | 14 | 13 | 19 | 52 | 69 | −17 | 55 | |
| 16 | Huddersfield Town | 46 | 14 | 11 | 21 | 50 | 72 | −22 | 53 | |
| 17 | Bury | 46 | 11 | 19 | 16 | 42 | 58 | −16 | 52 | |
| 18 | Swindon Town | 46 | 14 | 10 | 22 | 42 | 73 | −31 | 52 | |
| 19 | Port Vale | 46 | 13 | 10 | 23 | 56 | 66 | −10 | 49 | |
| 20 | Portsmouth | 46 | 13 | 10 | 23 | 51 | 63 | −12 | 49 | |
| 21 | Queens Park Rangers | 46 | 10 | 19 | 17 | 51 | 63 | −12 | 49 | |
| 22 | Manchester City (R) | 46 | 12 | 12 | 22 | 56 | 57 | −1 | 48 | Relegation to the Second Division |
| 23 | Stoke City (R) | 46 | 11 | 13 | 22 | 44 | 74 | −30 | 46 | Relegation to the Second Division |
| 24 | Reading (R) | 46 | 11 | 9 | 26 | 39 | 78 | −39 | 42 | Relegation to the Second Division |

## Play-offs

| Semi-finals First leg – 10 May; Second leg – 13 May 1998 | Semi-finals First leg – 10 May; Second leg – 13 May 1998 | Semi-finals First leg – 10 May; Second leg – 13 May 1998 | Semi-finals First leg – 10 May; Second leg – 13 May 1998 | Semi-finals First leg – 10 May; Second leg – 13 May 1998 | Final at Wembley 25 May 1998 | Final at Wembley 25 May 1998 | Final at Wembley 25 May 1998 |
| 3rd | Sunderland | 1 | 2 | 3 | | | |
| 6th | Sheffield United | 2 | 0 | 2 | | | |
| 6th | Sheffield United | 2 | 0 | 2 | 3rd | Sunderland | 4 (6) |
| | | | | | 4th | Charlton Athletic (pen.) | 4 (7) |
| 4th | Charlton Athletic | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4th | Charlton Athletic (pen.) | 4 (7) |
| 5th | Ipswich Town | 0 | 0 | 0 | | | |

## Results

| Home \ Away | BIR | BRA | BRY | CHA | CRE | HUD | IPS | MCI | MID | NWC | NOT | OXF | PTV | POR | QPR | REA | SHU | STP | STK | SUN | SWI | TRA | WBA | WOL |
| Birmingham City | | 0–0 | 1–3 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 4–1 | 2–0 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| Bradford City | 0–0 | | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 4–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 0–4 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 |
| Bury | 2–1 | 2–0 | | 0–0 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–3 | 1–3 |
| Charlton Athletic | 1–1 | 4–1 | 0–0 | | 3–2 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 4–2 | 3–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 5–0 | 1–0 |
| Crewe Alexandra | 0–2 | 5–0 | 1–2 | 0–3 | | 2–5 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–4 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 2–3 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 0–3 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–3 | 0–2 |
| Huddersfield Town | 0–1 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 0–3 | 2–0 | | 2–2 | 1–3 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 0–2 | 5–1 | 0–4 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2–3 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–0 |
| Ipswich Town | 0–1 | 2–1 | 2–0 | 3–1 | 3–2 | 5–1 | | 1–0 | 1–1 | 5–0 | 0–1 | 5–2 | 5–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 3–0 |
| Manchester City | 0–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 1–2 | | 2–0 | 1–2 | 2–3 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 6–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 |
| Middlesbrough | 3–1 | 1–0 | 4–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 1–1 | 1–0 | | 3–0 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 3–0 | 4–0 | 1–2 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 6–0 | 3–0 | 1–0 | 1–1 |
| Norwich City | 3–3 | 2–3 | 2–2 | 0–4 | 0–2 | 5–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 1–3 | | 1–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 5–0 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 0–2 |
| Nottingham Forest | 1–0 | 2–2 | 3–0 | 5–2 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–3 | 4–0 | 2–3 | | 1–3 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 4–0 | 1–0 | 3–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 0–3 | 3–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 3–0 |
| Oxford United | 0–2 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 1–4 | 2–0 | 0–1 | | 2–0 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 3–0 | 2–4 | 3–0 | 5–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 2–1 | 3–0 |
| Port Vale | 0–1 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–3 | 4–1 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 0–1 | 2–2 | 0–1 | 3–0 | | 2–1 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–2 |
| Portsmouth | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 3–1 | | 3–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 1–4 | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–3 | 3–2 |
| Queens Park Rangers | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 2–4 | 3–2 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 5–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–0 | | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 2–0 | 0–0 |
| Reading | 2–0 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 3–3 | 0–2 | 0–4 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 0–1 | 3–3 | 2–1 | 0–3 | 0–1 | 1–2 | | 0–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 4–0 | 0–1 | 1–3 | 2–1 | 0–0 |
| Sheffield United | 0–0 | 2–1 | 3–0 | 4–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 4–0 | | 5–1 | 3–2 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–4 | 1–0 |
| Stockport County | 2–2 | 1–2 | 0–0 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 3–0 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 2–2 | 3–2 | 3–0 | 3–1 | 2–0 | 5–1 | 1–0 | | 1–0 | 1–1 | 4–2 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 |
| Stoke City | 0–7 | 2–1 | 3–2 | 1–2 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 1–1 | 2–5 | 1–2 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2–1 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 2–1 | | 1–2 | 1–2 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 3–0 |
| Sunderland | 1–1 | 2–0 | 2–1 | 0–0 | 2–1 | 3–1 | 2–2 | 3–1 | 1–2 | 0–1 | 1–1 | 3–1 | 4–2 | 2–1 | 2–2 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 4–1 | 3–0 | | 0–0 | 3–0 | 2–0 | 1–1 |
| Swindon Town | 1–1 | 1–0 | 3–1 | 0–1 | 2–0 | 1–1 | 0–2 | 1–3 | 1–2 | 1–0 | 0–0 | 4–1 | 4–2 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 0–2 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 1–2 | | 2–1 | 0–2 | 0–0 |
| Tranmere Rovers | 0–3 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 2–2 | 0–3 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 2–0 | 0–0 | 0–2 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 2–1 | 6–0 | 3–3 | 3–0 | 3–1 | 0–2 | 3–0 | | 0–0 | 2–1 |
| West Bromwich Albion | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 0–1 | 0–2 | 2–3 | 0–1 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–2 | 2–2 | 0–3 | 1–1 | 1–0 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 1–1 | 3–3 | 0–0 | 2–1 | | 1–0 |
| Wolverhampton Wanderers | 1–3 | 2–1 | 4–2 | 3–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 1–1 | 2–2 | 1–0 | 5–0 | 2–1 | 1–0 | 1–1 | 2–0 | 3–2 | 3–1 | 0–0 | 3–4 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 3–1 | 2–1 | 0–1 | |

## Season statistics
### Top scorers

| Rank | Player | Club | Goals |
| 1 | Kevin Phillips | Sunderland | 29 |
| 1 | Pierre van Hooijdonk | Nottingham Forest | 29 |
| 3 | Kevin Campbell | Nottingham Forest | 23 |
| 3 | Clive Mendonca | Charlton Athletic | 23 |
| 5 | David Johnson | Ipswich Town | 20 |
| 6 | Brett Angell | Stockport County | 18 |
| 7 | Paul Furlong | Birmingham City | 15 |
| 7 | Marcus Stewart | Huddersfield Town | 15 |

### Hat-tricks

| Player | For | Against | Result | Date |
| Pierre van Hooijdonk | Nottingham Forest | Queens Park Rangers | 4–0 | 30 August 1997 |
| Pierre van Hooijdonk | Nottingham Forest | Charlton Athletic | 5–2 | 22 November 1997 |
| Kevin Campbell | Nottingham Forest | Crewe Alexandra | 4–1 | 7 March 1998 |
| Clive Mendonca | Charlton Athletic | Norwich City | 4–0 | 17 September 1997 |
| Jan Åge Fjørtoft | Sheffield United | Stockport County | 5–1 | 21 October 1997 |
| Paul Furlong | Birmingham City | Stoke City | 7–0 | 10 January 1998 |
| Paul Furlong | Birmingham City | Stockport County | 4–1 | 27 January 1998 |
| Dougie Freedman | Wolverhampton Wanderers | Norwich City | 5–0 | 10 January 1998 |
| Alex Mathie | Ipswich Town | Norwich City | 5–0 | 21 February 1998 |
| David Johnson | Ipswich Town | Oxford United | 5–2 | 24 February 1998 |
| Niall Quinn | Sunderland | Stockport County | 4–1 | 7 March 1998 |
| Marco Branca | Middlesbrough | Bury | 4–0 | 11 April 1998 |
| Colin Little | Crewe Alexandra | Bradford City | 5–0 | 25 April 1998 |