# 2007–08 Bristol City F.C. season

During the 2007–08 English football season, Bristol City F.C. competed in the Football League Championship, following promotion from League One the previous season.

## Season summary

In the summer between City's promotion and the start of the Championship season, Gary Johnson made a number of signings. However their pre-season form did not start well, losing 4–2 to Forest Green Rovers and 3–1 to Motherwell F.C. as the club trialed various players. However City got off to a good start going unbeaten for a number of matches and briefly topping the Championship after beating Coventry City 3–0. City then suffered a slight blip after losing 3–0 to Barnsley before beating several big teams, including Sheffield United (live on Sky Sports) and Southampton. In November, City's form dipped and they endured a run of 4 games without a win, including a 6–0 thrashing at the hands of Ipswich Town. In December, City's form picked up again and went unbeaten all the way to Boxing Day, when they lost to West Bromwich Albion 4–1.
After a stop-start run of form, including victories over Blackpool and Coventry City and losses to Queens Park Rangers and Crystal Palace, City went top of the Championship on 1 March, after a 2–1 home victory over Hull City. After some indifferent results, City went back to the top after a last-gasp winner from Steve Brooker, who was just returning from injury, in a 2–1 win over Norwich City. However a poor run ended City's chances of an automatic promotion place. On 4 May 2008, a 3–0 home win against Preston North End on the final day of the league season ensured a playoff place and a semi-final fixture against Crystal Palace. On 13 May 2008, a 4–2 aggregate win over Crystal Palace with goals from Lee Trundle and Michael McIndoe confirmed City's trip to Wembley, where they were beaten 1–0 by Hull City. At the end of the season, defender Bradley Orr and midfielder Marvin Elliott were both included in the PFA Team of the Year, while goalkeeper Adriano Basso was named the club's player of the season. Elliott was the club's young player of the season.

## Kit

Bristol City's kit was manufactured by German company Puma and sponsored by Bristol Trade Centre. The club's away kit was all black with white trimmings and rendered in the same template as the home kit; the third kit featured black shorts, white shirts and black and white socks.

## Final league table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
| 2 | Stoke City (P) | 46 | 21 | 16 | 9 | 69 | 55 | +14 | 79 | Promotion to the Premier League |
| 3 | Hull City (O, P) | 46 | 21 | 12 | 13 | 65 | 47 | +18 | 75 | Qualification for Championship play-offs |
| 4 | Bristol City | 46 | 20 | 14 | 12 | 54 | 53 | +1 | 74 | Qualification for Championship play-offs |
| 5 | Crystal Palace | 46 | 18 | 17 | 11 | 58 | 42 | +16 | 71 | Qualification for Championship play-offs |
| 6 | Watford | 46 | 18 | 16 | 12 | 62 | 56 | +6 | 70 | Qualification for Championship play-offs |

## Results

Bristol City's score comes first

### Legend

| Win | Draw | Loss |

### Football League Championship

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 11 August 2007 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 2–2 | 18,228 | Johnson, Murray |
| 18 August 2007 | Blackpool | A | 1–1 | 8,983 | Murray |
| 25 August 2007 | Scunthorpe United | H | 2–1 | 12,474 | Trundle |
| 1 September 2007 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 1–0 | 17,559 | B Wilson |
| 15 September 2007 | Coventry City | A | 3–0 | 21,538 | McIndoe, Konstantopoulos (own goal), Byfield |
| 18 September 2007 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 1–1 | 16,571 | Orr |
| 22 September 2007 | Burnley | H | 2–2 | 14,079 | Byfield (2) |
| 29 September 2007 | Preston North End | A | 0–0 | 12,098 | |
| 2 October 2007 | Barnsley | A | 0–3 | 9,679 | |
| 6 October 2007 | Sheffield United | H | 2–0 | 13,071 | Noble, McIndoe |
| 20 October 2007 | Norwich City | A | 3–1 | 24,125 | McIndoe, Murray, Trundle |
| 24 October 2007 | Southampton | H | 2–1 | 18,326 | Byfield, Sproule |
| 27 October 2007 | Stoke City | H | 1–0 | 15,012 | Elliott |
| 3 November 2007 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 1–1 | 26,094 | Fontaine |
| 6 November 2007 | Charlton Athletic | H | 0–1 | 15,420 | |
| 10 November 2007 | Ipswich Town | A | 0–6 | 22,020 | |
| 24 November 2007 | Leicester City | H | 0–2 | 15,040 | |
| 27 November 2007 | Hull City | A | 0–0 | 15,768 | |
| 1 December 2007 | Watford | A | 2–1 | 16,689 | Showunmi, Byfield |
| 4 December 2007 | Ipswich Town | H | 2–0 | 14,062 | Elliott, Orr (pen) |
| 8 December 2007 | Plymouth Argyle | A | 1–1 | 16,530 | Timár (own goal) |
| 15 December 2007 | Cardiff City | H | 1–0 | 15,753 | Elliott |
| 22 December 2007 | Barnsley | H | 3–2 | 16,588 | Showunmi (2), Byfield |
| 26 December 2007 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 1–4 | 27,314 | Byfield |
| 29 December 2007 | Burnley | A | 1–0 | 12,109 | Vaskó |
| 1 January 2008 | Coventry City | H | 2–1 | 15,899 | Byfield, Elliott |
| 12 January 2008 | Colchester United | H | 1–1 | 16,484 | Sproule |
| 19 January 2008 | Crystal Palace | A | 0–2 | 19,010 | |
| 26 January 2008 | Blackpool | H | 1–0 | 15,465 | Elliott |
| 2 February 2008 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 0–3 | 16,502 | |
| 9 February 2008 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 2–1 | 15,520 | Adebola, Orr |
| 12 February 2008 | Scunthorpe United | A | 1–0 | 5,423 | Orr |
| 18 February 2008 | Crystal Palace | H | 1–1 | 16,446 | McCombe |
| 23 February 2008 | Colchester United | A | 2–1 | 5,609 | Adebola, McIndoe |
| 1 March 2008 | Hull City | H | 2–1 | 15,859 | Adebola, McCombe |
| 4 March 2008 | Charlton Athletic | A | 1–1 | 24,075 | McCombe |
| 8 March 2008 | Leicester City | A | 0–0 | 22,616 | |
| 11 March 2008 | Watford | H | 0–0 | 19,026 | |
| 15 March 2008 | Plymouth Argyle | H | 1–2 | 19,011 | Trundle (pen) |
| 22 March 2008 | Cardiff City | A | 1–2 | 16,458 | Adebola |
| 29 March 2008 | Norwich City | H | 2–1 | 17,511 | Adebola, Brooker |
| 5 April 2008 | Southampton | A | 0–2 | 22,890 | |
| 12 April 2008 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | 0–0 | 19,332 | |
| 19 April 2008 | Stoke City | A | 1–2 | 24,475 | Adebola |
| 26 April 2008 | Sheffield United | A | 1–2 | 29,787 | McIndoe (pen) |
| 4 May 2008 | Preston North End | H | 3–0 | 19,169 | Trundle, McIndoe, Noble |

### Championship play-offs

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| SF 1st Leg | 10 May 2008 | Crystal Palace | A | 2–1 | 22,869 | Carey, Noble |
| SF 2nd Leg | 13 May 2008 | Crystal Palace | H | 2–1 (a.e.t.) | 18,842 | Trundle, McIndoe |
| F | 24 May 2008 | Hull City | N | 0–1 | 86,703 | |

### FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R3 | 5 January 2008 | Middlesbrough | H | 1–2 | 15,895 | Fontaine |

### League Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 | 14 August 2007 | Brentford | A | 3–0 | 2,213 | Elliott, Jevons (2) |
| R2 | 29 August 2007 | Manchester City | H | 1–2 | 14,541 | Orr |

## Squad statistics

    Source:
    Numbers in parentheses denote appearances as substitute.
    Players with squad numbers struck through and marked † left the club during the playing season.
    Players with names in italics and marked * were on loan from another club for the whole of their season with Bristol City.
    Players listed with no appearances have been in the matchday squad but only as unused substitutes.
    Key to positions: GK – Goalkeeper; DF – Defender; MF – Midfielder; FW – Forward
| No. | Pos. | Nat. | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | | |
| No. | Pos. | Nat. | Name | League | League | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Play-offs | Play-offs | Total | Total | Discipline | Discipline |
| 1 | GK | BRA | Adriano Basso | 44 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 48 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 2 | MF | ENG | Bradley Orr | 42 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 (1) | 1 | 3 | 0 | 47 (1) | 5 | 5 | 2 |
| 3 | DF | SCO | Jamie McAllister | 40 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 46 (1) | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| 4 | DF | ENG | Liam Fontaine | 32 (6) | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 (2) | 0 | 36 (8) | 2 | 7 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | ENG | Jamie McCombe | 25 (9) | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 27 (9) | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | SCO | Louis Carey | 33 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 37 | 1 | 5 | 0 |
| 7 | MF | SCO | Scott Murray | 4 (10) | 3 | 0 (1) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 (11) | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| 8 | MF | ENG | David Noble | 10 (16) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 14 (16) | 3 | 3 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | ENG | Steve Brooker | 1 (3) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (3) | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 † | FW | ENG | Phil Jevons | 0 (2) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (1) | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 (3) | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | MF | AUS | Nick Carle | 14 (3) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 17 (3) | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 11 | MF | SCO | Michael McIndoe | 45 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 49 | 7 | 3 | 0 |
| 14 | MF | ENG | Cole Skuse | 5 (20) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 (21) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 15 | FW | NGA | Enoch Showunmi | 10 (7) | 3 | 0 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 (8) | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| 16 | DF | IRL | Richard Keogh | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | ENG | Alex Russell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | DF | ENG | Brian Wilson | 16 (2) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 (2) | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 19 | DF | HUN | Tamás Vaskó * | 8 (11) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 (11) | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| 20 | MF | ENG | Kevin Betsy | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 (1) | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 22 | GK | ENG | Chris Weale | 2 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | FW | ENG | Lee Trundle | 21 (14) | 5 | 0 (1) | 0 | 1 (1) | 0 | 3 | 1 | 25 (16) | 6 | 2 | 0 |
| 24 | DF | WAL | Christian Ribeiro | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 25 | MF | ENG | Marvin Elliott | 44 (1) | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 50 (1) | 6 | 3 | 0 |
| 29 | MF | NIR | Ivan Sproule | 31 (9) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 (2) | 0 | 32 (12) | 2 | 6 | 0 |
| 32 | GK | IRL | Stephen Henderson | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | MF | ENG | Lee Johnson | 39 (1) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 (3) | 0 | 41 (4) | 1 | 4 | 0 |
| 34 | FW | JAM | Darren Byfield | 17 (16) | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 (1) | 0 | 18 (17) | 8 | 5 | 0 |
| 35 | FW | NGA | Dele Adebola | 16 (1) | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 19 (1) | 6 | 2 | 0 |
Players not included in matchday squads :
| No. | Pos. | Nat. | Name |
| 12 | MF | ENG | Jennison Myrie-Williams |
| 21 | MF | ENG | Frankie Artus |
| 26 | DF | WAL | James Wilson |
| 27 | DF | ENG | Jordan Walker |
| 39 | DF | ENG | Christopher Venn |
| 30 | MF | ENG | Tristan Plummer |
| 34 † | DF | WAL | David Partridge |