1986–87 Middlesbrough F.C. season

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Middlesbrough
1986-87 season
Chairman
ManagerBruce Rioch
Football League Third Division2nd
FA Cup3rd round
League Cup2nd round
Top goalscorerLeague: Bernie Slaven (17)
All: Bernie Slaven (21)
Highest home attendance18,523 v Wigan Athletic
Away: 13,835 v AFC Bournemouth
Lowest home attendance3,690 v Port Vale[1]
Away: 2,788 v Newport County

During the 1986–87 season, Middlesbrough participated in the Football League Third Division following their relegation the . They were promoted back to the Second Division at the end of the season having finished second in the league.

Team kit and sponsors[]

During the 1986–87 season, Middlesbrough maintained the white band on their home kit from the previous two seasons and were sponsored by Dickens.[2]

Season review[]

Pre-season panic[]

Main article: Middlesbrough F.C. survival from liquidation

The financial problems that had been plaguing the club since the early 1980s almost led the club into extinction following their relegation the previous season.

After 's resignation near the end of the previous season, Boro had been operating without a chairman. On 21 May 1986, the worst fears of Middlesbrough fans were realised. Debts believed to be in the region of £2 million meant the club were forced to call in the provisional liquidator. Late in July, the Inland Revenue took the club to court, claiming that it was owed £115,156 in tax arrears and so the judge issued a winding up order. On the second of August, Bruce Rioch and twenty-nine other non-playing staff were sacked by the Official Receiver and the gates of Ayresome Park were padlocked. Some players chose to remain and train under Rioch and coach Colin Todd, while others chose to leave.

Steve Gibson approached the local council, ICI and Graham Fordy of Scottish & Newcastle for help. An advert was placed in The Times for help, and was one of those who replied. Gibson reached an agreement with former chairman Alf Duffield, who was owed £500,000, that he would wind up the company. Clubs in less serious situations had previously used liquidation to get out of problems, but when it came to Middlesbrough's turn, the Football League showed a lack of support.

The council was unable to meet its £200,000 share of the pot to help the club, meaning Gibson and Moszkowicz had to raise their inputs. Three days before the start of the season, the league introduced a ruling meaning the club had to have £350,000 in working capital and show it could pay all creditors 100 pence in the pound. The death of the club was then announced on Tyne Tees Television.

A meeting with the Football League took place on Friday 22 August. Notes were passed from room to room between the league's representatives and the consortium. agreed a deal with ICI for a bond, meaning that they would pick up a major part of any subsequent debt, and the consortium put in their £825,000. With ten minutes to spare before the registration deadline, the documents were signed by Graham Fordy, Reg Corbridge and Henry Moszkowicz. In recognition of Henderson's achievements in delivering the bond in a format acceptable to everyone, he was named chairman of Middlesbrough Football & Athletic Company (1986) Ltd., the new company formed by the purchase of , a dead company, off the shelf. Gibson, Fordy, Corbridge and Moszkowicz formed the board. The club had been saved and the deal was announced to the public at the town hall.

Football League Third Division[]

Results[]

  Win   Draw   Loss

Game Date Venue Opponent Result
F–A 		Attendance Boro Goalscorers
1 23 August 1986 H[1] Port Vale 2–2 3,690 Stephens (2)
2 30 August 1986 A Wigan 2–0 2,904 Turnbull, Mowbray
3 6 September 1986 H Bury 3–1 6,499 Stephens (2), Slaven
4 13 September 1986 A Gillingham 0–0 4,888
5 17 September 1986 A Bristol Rovers 2–1 3,768 Slaven (2)
6 20 September 1986 H Chesterfield 2–0 7,633 Mowbray, Laws
7 27 September 1986 A Fulham 2–2 3,852 Laws, Hamilton
8 30 September 1986 H Swindon 1–0 9,221 Laws
9 4 October 1986 A Rotherham 4–1 4,321 Stephens (2), Laws (2)
10 11 October 1986 H Blackpool 1–3 11,470 Stephens
11 18 October 1986 H Walsall 3–1 8,349 Stephens (2), Laws
12 21 October 1986 A Notts County 0–1 4,405
13 25 October 1986 A Bristol City 2–2 8,800 Slaven, Laws
14 1 November 1986 H AFC Bournemouth 4–0 10,702 Stephens, Slaven, Hamilton, Ripley
15 4 November 1986 H Bolton 0–0 10,092
16 8 November 1986 A Darlington 1–0 9,947 Stephens
17 22 November 1986 A Newport County 1–0 2,788 Mowbray
18 29 November 1986 H Chester City 1–2 9,376 Slaven
19 13 December 1986 H Doncaster 1–0 8,100 Mowbray
20 21 December 1986 A Brentford 1–0 5,504 Slaven
21 26 December 1986 H Carlisle 1–0 14,216 Gill
22 27 December 1986 A Mansfield 1–1 5,042
23 1 January 1987 A York 1–3 8,611 Mowbray
24 3 January 1987 H Newport County 2–0 9,595 Gill, Stephens
25 24 January 1987 A Bury 2–0 3,485 Slaven (2), Laws (pen)
26 7 February 1987 H Bristol Rovers 1–0 9,610 Ripley
27 14 February 1987 A Chesterfield 1–2 4,085 Slaven
28 17 February 1987 A Port Vale 0–0 3,263
29 21 February 1987 H Fulham 3–0 9,361 Slaven, Hamilton
30 28 February 1987 A Swindon 0–1 11,341
31 3 March 1987 A AFC Bournemouth 1–3 13,835 Slaven
32 7 March 1987 H Bristol City 1–0 10,220 Mowbray
33 14 March 1987 A Walsall 0–1 7,332
34 17 March 1987 H Notts County 2–0 9,845 Stephens, Slaven
35 21 March 1987 A Blackpool 1–0 7,132 Stephens
36 28 March 1987 H Rotherham 0–0 9,569
37 5 April 1987 H Darlington 1–1 11,969 Slaven
38 11 April 1987 A Bolton 1–0 5,858 Slaven
39 18 April 1987 H York 3–1 10,546 Ripley, Stephens, Turnbull
40 20 April 1987 A Carlisle 1–0 5,993 Pallister
41 25 April 1987 H Brentford 2–0 9,942 Slaven, Turnbull
42 28 April 1987 H Gillingham 3–0 11,937 Stephens, Slaven, Turnbull
43 2 May 1987 A Chester City 2–1 3,788 Mowbray, Hamilton
44 4 May 1987 H Mansfield 1–0 13,543 Hamilton (pen)
45 6 May 1987 H Wigan 0–0 18,523
46 9 May 1987 A Doncaster 2–0 3,556 Hamilton, Ripley

League table[]

Main article: 1986–87 Football League § Third Division
Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion or relegation
1 Bournemouth 46 29 10 7 76 40 +36 97 Division Champions, promoted
2 Middlesbrough 46 28 10 8 67 30 +37 94 Promoted
3 Swindon Town 46 25 12 9 77 47 +30 87 Promoted through play-offs[a]
4 Wigan Athletic 46 25 10 11 83 60 +23 85 Participated in play-offs
5 Gillingham 46 23 9 14 65 48 +17 78
Source: [3]
Notes:
  1. ^ Swindon Town were winners of the play-offs and were thus promoted.

Cup Reviews[]

League Cup[]

  Win   Draw   Loss

Round Date Venue Opponent Result
F–A 		Attendance Boro Goalscorers
1R 1st Leg A Hartlepool 1–1 2,356 Slaven
1R 2nd Leg H Hartlepool 2–0 (3–1 agg) 7,735 Ripley, Hamilton
2R 1st Leg H Birmingham 2–2 9,412 Stephens, Ripley
2R 2nd Leg A Birmingham 2–3 (4–5 agg) 4,987 Laws (2) (1 pen)

FA Cup[]

Round Date Venue Opponent Result
F–A 		Attendance Boro Goalscorers
1R 15 November 1986 H Blackpool 3–0 11,205 Bernie Slaven (3)
2R 7 December 1986 A Notts County 1–0 7,415 Hamilton
3 10 January 1987 H Preston 0–1 15,458

Squad[]

Senior squad[]

The following are all the players who were involved the Middlesbrough F.C. first team at some point during the 1986-87 season.[4] Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
— GK England ENG Stephen Pears
— GK England ENG Kevin Carr
— GK England ENG
— DF England ENG Colin Cooper
— DF Scotland SCO Ronnie Coyle (loan)
— DF Ireland EIR Alan Kernaghan
— DF England ENG Gary Pallister
— MF England ENG Gary Gill
— MF Scotland SCO Gary Hamilton
— MF England ENG Paul Kerr
— FW England ENG Peter Duffield
— FW England ENG David Hodgson (loan)
No. Pos. Nation Player
— DF England ENG Brian Laws
— DF England ENG Tony Mowbray
— DF England ENG Gary Parkinson
— FW England ENG
— MF England ENG Stuart Ripley
— MF England ENG Gary Rowell
— FW Ireland EIR Bernie Slaven
— MF England ENG Steve Spriggs (loan)
— FW England ENG Archie Stephens
— FW England ENG Lee Turnbull

Coaching staff[]

Transfers[]

Players Out
Mitch Cook to Scarborough free
Gary Rowell to Brighton and Hove Albion free
David Currie to Darlington free
Peter Beagrie to Sheffield United £37,500 (tribunal)
Tony McAndrew to Darlington free
David Mills to Darlington free
Don O'Riordan to Grimsby Town free
Tony Hall released
Irving Nattrass retired
Players In
Paul Proudlock from South Bank £2,000
Paul Kerr from Aston Villa £35,000
Ronnie Coyle from Celtic loan
David Hodgson from Norwich City loan
Steve Spriggs from Cambridge United loan
Kevin Carr from Newcastle non contract

References and notes[]

  1. ^ a b Game was played at Victoria Park, Hartlepool due to Ayresome Park's gates being locked.
  2. ^ "Middlesbrough". historicalkits.co.uk. Archived from the original on 1 October 2007. Retrieved 21 September 2007.
  3. ^ "League Division Three end of season table for 1986–87 season". 11v11. AFS Enterprises. Archived from the original on 30 March 2021. Retrieved 27 March 2021.
  4. ^ [1]
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