2006–07 Stoke City F.C. season

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Stoke City
2006–07 season
ChairmanPeter Coates
ManagerTony Pulis
StadiumBritannia Stadium
Football League Championship8th (73 Points)
FA CupFourth Round
League CupFirst Round
Top goalscorerLeague: Ricardo Fuller (10)
All: Ricardo Fuller (11)
Highest home attendance23,017 vs Southend United (3 February 2007)
Lowest home attendance11,626 vs Plymouth Argyle (26 August 2006)
Average home league attendance15,749
Away colours

The 2006–07 season was Stoke City's 100th in the Football League, the 40th in the second tier and third in the Championship.

With the return of Peter Coates and Tony Pulis the objective was to now gain a long-awaited return to the top flight of English football. Pulis was not a popular choice of manager amongst Stoke supporters and that feeling failed to be improved after a poor start to the season. But Coates provided Pulis with funds to spend on Danny Higginbotham, Ricardo Fuller and several high-profile loan arrivals including Lee Hendrie, Liam Lawrence, Rory Delap, Salif Diao, Andy Griffin and Patrik Berger. Stoke marked a turn around in the direction of the club with a 4–0 win away at Leeds United.

From then on Stoke produced a number of impressive performances as the side began to climb up the table. Stoke went into the final month of the season looking to claim a play-off spot but despite beating the likes of Leicester City and West Bromwich Albion frustrating draws against Cardiff City and Hull City meant that Stoke needed to win their final match away at Queens Park Rangers to have a chance of finishing 6th. It was not to be as a 1–1 was the result and City missed out on the play-offs by two points but it was a very positive season for the club.[1]

Season review[]

League[]

With Peter Coates and Tony Pulis back at the Britannia Stadium the main objective was to challenge for a place in the Premier League. The first act Pulis was since returning as manager was to bring in French forward Vincent Péricard from the club he just left Plymouth Argyle.[2] Despite Pulis expecting big things from him, Péricard failed to impress and is considered one of the worst players to play for the club by supporters. A more successful signing was that of Southampton defender Danny Higginbotham for £225,000.[3] Stoke lost their first match of the season away at newly promoted Southend United but won their first home match 2–0 against a Derby County side tipped to be promoted.[4] But after a woefully boring draw at home to Plymouth, Pulis was booed by the Stoke supporters.[5] On transfer deadline Stoke completed the signing of Jamaican striker Ricardo Fuller for a fee of £500,000 and he would go on to have an eventful six-year career with the club.[6] Pulis again took stick from supporters after seeing their side throw away a two-goal lead at Barnsley.[7] However, despite the poor start to the season Coates remained in full support of Pulis.[8]

To address the problem Stoke signed Aston Villa winger Lee Hendrie, Liverpool midfielder Salif Diao and Sunderland midfielder Rory Delap whilst Andy Griffin extended his loan deal.[9][10] And in their first match away at crisis club Leeds United Stoke produced a fine display winning 4–0 which signalled a change in the direction of the club.[11] Stoke won their next match against top of the table Sunderland but suffered a blow as Rory Delap broke his leg in two places.[12] Stoke then beat Norwich City 5–0 and signed Sunderland winger Liam Lawrence.[13] This combined with a five match winning run pushed Stoke up the table and after a 1–0 win against Queens Park Rangers goalkeeper Steve Simonsen made history by keeping seven successive clean sheets.[14] But Stoke were brought back down to Earth with a bump, losing 3–0 away at Colchester United.[15]

In the January transfer window, Stoke signed Lee Martin, Dominic Matteo, Gabriel Zakuani and Jonathan Fortune whilst captain Michael Duberry left for Reading leaving Higginbotham to take over as club captain.[16] Stoke then went through a tough run of form winning just two from ten until the end of March before beating Leicester City to get their promotion push back on track. Stoke then beat West Bromwich Albion and Crystal Palace before frustrating draws against Cardiff City and Hull City prevented Stoke closing the gap on 6th place Southampton. Stoke won their penultimate match of the season 3–1 against Colchester United to set up a decisive encounter away at Queens Park Rangers. However Stoke produced a disappointing performance and could only draw 1–1 meaning that they missed out on a play-off place by two points.[17] Despite failing to reach the play-offs the feeling was greatly improved around the club for quite a while and there were high hopes Stoke could go one better in 2007–08 and finally gain promotion back to the top tier.[18]

League Cup[]

Stoke kept up their poor showing in the first round of the League Cup this time in a truly woeful defeat against League Two Darlington. Stoke, at home, took the lead through Vincent Péricard after half an hour before Darlington were reduced to ten men. With a man advantage against poor opposition the expectation was to see out a routine win but Darlington scored twice without replay leaving Stoke and manager Pulis embarrassed.[19]

FA Cup[]

Two late goals saw Stoke see off League One Millwall in the third round to set up an away match against Fulham but Stoke were easily beaten 3–0.[20]

Final league table[]

Pos Team
 Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Promotion, qualification or relegation
6 Southampton 46 21 12 13 77 53 +24 75 Qualification for Championship play-offs
7 Preston North End 46 22 8 16 64 53 +11 74
8 Stoke City 46 19 16 11 62 41 +21 73
9 Sheffield Wednesday 46 20 11 15 70 66 +4 71
10 Colchester United 46 20 9 17 70 56 +14 69
Source: RSSSF
Rules for classification: In the Football League goals scored (F) takes precedence over goal difference (GD).

Results[]

Stoke's score comes first

Legend[]

Win Draw Loss

Pre-Season Friendlies[]

Match Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers
1 9 July 2006 Newcastle Town A 2–0 Sidibé, Nathan Blake
2 12 July 2006 Chester City A 2–0 Sigurðsson, Kopteff
3 16 July 2006 FC Gratkorn A 1–2 Brammer
4 18 July 2006 Manisaspor A 1–1 Hoefkens (pen)
5 25 July 2006 PSV Eindhoven H 0–0 4,175
6 28 July 2006 Grimsby Town A 1–0 867 Russell 65'

Football League Championship[]

Main article: 2006–07 Football League Championship
Match Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers Report
1 5 August 2006 Southend United A 0–1 8,971 Report
2 8 August 2006 Derby County H 2–0 20,013 Péricard 18', Russell 58' Report
3 12 August 2006 Birmingham City H 0–0 12,347 Report
4 19 August 2006 Luton Town A 2–2 7,727 Sweeney 10', Chadwick 70' Report
5 26 August 2006 Plymouth Argyle H 1–1 11,626 Sidibé 39' Report
6 9 September 2006 Barnsley A 2–2 10,464 Hill 3', Chadwick 23' Report
7 12 September 2006 Sheffield Wednesday A 1–1 19,966 Paterson 34' Report
8 16 September 2006 Burnley H 0–1 12,247 Report
9 23 September 2006 Wolverhampton Wanderers A 0–2 19,489 Report
10 30 September 2006 Preston North End H 1–1 14,342 Fuller 41' Report
11 14 October 2006 Leeds United A 4–0 18,173 Hendrie 7', Griffin 58', Higginbotham 62', Fuller 88' Report
12 17 October 2006 Sunderland H 2–1 14,482 Hendrie 50', Péricard 54' Report
13 21 October 2006 Southampton A 0–1 20,531 Report
14 28 October 2006 Norwich City H 5–0 13,444 Hendrie 22', Fuller 38', Higginbotham 74' (pen), Chadwick 79', Russell 90+2' Report
15 31 October 2006 Leicester City A 1–2 21,107 Fuller 42' Report
16 6 November 2006 Coventry City H 1–0 19,055 Griffin 60' Report
17 11 November 2006 Crystal Palace A 1–0 18,868 Russell 38' Report
18 18 November 2006 Hull City A 2–0 16,940 Higginbotham 2', Russell 80' Report
19 25 November 2006 West Bromwich Albion H 1–0 18,282 Higginbotham 40' (pen) Report
20 28 November 2006 Cardiff City H 3–0 15,309 Fuller 60', Lawrence 63', Sidibé 65' Report
21 2 December 2006 Coventry City A 0–0 19,073 Report
22 9 December 2006 Queens Park Rangers H 1–0 16,487 Higginbotham 17' (pen) Report
23 16 December 2006 Colchester United A 0–3 5,345 Report
24 23 December 2006 Ipswich Town A 1–0 20,369 Lawrence 71' Report
25 26 December 2006 Sheffield Wednesday H 1–2 23,003 Sidibé 60' Report
26 30 December 2006 Leeds United H 3–1 18,128 Sidibé 12', Ehiogu 54' (o.g.), Fuller 77' Report
27 13 January 2007 Wolverhampton Wanderers H 1–1 15,882 Hill 85' Report
28 20 January 2007 Preston North End A 2–3 15,151 Lawrence 2', Sidibé 7' Report
29 23 January 2007 Burnley A 1–0 12,109 Sidibé 24' Report
30 30 January 2007 Ipswich Town H 0–0 11,182 Report
31 3 February 2007 Southend United H 1–1 23,017 Fuller 31' Report
32 11 February 2007 Birmingham City A 0–1 15,854 Report
33 17 February 2007 Luton Town H 0–0 12,375 Report
34 21 February 2007 Derby County A 2–0 24,897 Higginbotham 15' (pen), Matteo 26' Report
35 26 February 2007 Barnsley H 0–1 13,114 Report
36 3 March 2007 Plymouth Argyle A 1–1 12,539 Russell 55' Report
37 10 March 2007 Southampton H 2–1 13,404 Fortune 34', Martin 72' Report
38 13 March 2007 Sunderland A 2–2 31,358 Russell 22', Hoefkens 45+3' Report
39 24 March 2007 Norwich City A 0–1 24,293 Report
40 31 March 2007 Leicester City H 4–2 13,303 Parkin 18', Fuller 29' (pen), Sidibé 79', Lawrence 90+3' Report
41 7 April 2007 West Bromwich Albion A 3–1 20,386 Fuller 14', Greening 21' (o.g.), Parkin 22' Report
42 9 April 2007 Crystal Palace H 2–1 13,616 Parkin 20', Fuller 27' Report
43 14 April 2007 Cardiff City A 1–1 11,664 Hoefkens 30' Report
44 21 April 2007 Hull City H 1–1 17,109 Lawrence 45+4' Report
45 28 April 2007 Colchester United H 3–1 20,108 Russell 53', Sidibé 57', Higginbotham 62' Report
46 6 May 2007 Queens Park Rangers A 1–1 16,741 Sidibé 84' Report

FA Cup[]

Main article: 2006–07 FA Cup
Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers Report
R3 5 January 2007 Millwall H 2–0 8,024 Elliott 84' (o.g.), Fuller 87' Report
R4 27 January 2007 Fulham A 0–3 11,059 Report

League Cup[]

Main article: 2006–07 Football League Cup
Round Date Opponent Venue Result Attendance Scorers Report
R1 22 August 2006 Darlington H 1–2 3,573 Péricard 29' Report

Squad statistics[]

No. Pos. Name League FA Cup League Cup Total Discipline
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Yellow card.svg Red card.svg
1 GK England Steve Simonsen 46 0 2 0 1 0 49 0 3 0
2 DF Belgium Carl Hoefkens 42(3) 2 2 0 0 0 44(3) 2 3 0
3 DF England Marlon Broomes 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
4 MF England John Eustace 7(8) 0 1 0 0(1) 0 8(9) 0 1 0
5 DF England Michael Duberry 29 0 2 0 1 0 32 0 7 0
5 DF England Jonathan Fortune 14 1 0 0 0 0 14 1 2 0
6 DF England Clint Hill 15(3) 2 1 0 1 0 17(3) 1 5 1
7 FW Guinea Sambégou Bangoura 1(3) 0 0 0 0 0 1(3) 0 1 0
8 MF England Dave Brammer 11(11) 0 0(1) 0 0 0 11(12) 0 4 0
8 MF England Jon Parkin 5(1) 3 0 0 0 0 5(1) 3 1 0
9 FW Mali Mamady Sidibé 42(1) 9 2 0 1 0 45(1) 9 2 0
10 FW Iceland Hannes Sigurðsson 0(2) 0 0 0 0(1) 0 0(3) 0 0 0
10 FW Jamaica Ricardo Fuller 25(5) 10 1(1) 1 0 0 26(6) 11 9 2
11 MF Scotland Kevin Harper 0(3) 0 0 0 0(1) 0 0(4) 0 0 0
12 MF Scotland Peter Sweeney 10(3) 1 1 0 1 0 12(3) 1 0 0
14 DF England Danny Higginbotham 44 7 2 0 0 0 46 7 3 0
15 FW France Vincent Péricard 17(12) 2 1 0 1 1 19(12) 3 1 0
16 MF England Lee Hendrie 26(2) 3 0 0 0 0 26(2) 3 7 0
17 MF England Darel Russell 40(3) 7 2 0 1 0 43(3) 7 7 0
18 MF Senegal Salif Diao 27 0 1(1) 0 0 0 28(1) 0 10 0
19 MF England Luke Chadwick 13(2) 3 0 0 0 0 13(2) 3 1 0
19 DF Scotland Dominic Matteo 9 1 1 0 0 0 10 1 1 0
20 DF England Andy Griffin 32(1) 2 1 0 0 0 33(1) 2 10 1
21 MF England Lee Martin 4(9) 1 1 0 0 0 5(9) 1 2 0
22 DF England Lewis Buxton 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
23 MF Republic of Ireland Liam Lawrence 27 5 1 0 0 0 28 5 3 0
24 MF Republic of Ireland Rory Delap 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0
25 GK England Russell Hoult 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
26 MF Wales Anthony Pulis 0(1) 0 0 0 1 0 1(1) 0 0 0
27 MF Czech Republic Patrik Berger 1(6) 0 0 0 0 0 1(6) 0 0 0
27 DF Democratic Republic of the Congo Gabriel Zakuani 9 0 0 0 0 0 9 0 1 0
28 DF England Andy Wilkinson 2(2) 0 0(1) 0 0 0 2(3) 0 1 0
29 MF Northern Ireland Jeff Whitley 0(3) 0 0 0 1 0 1(3) 0 1 0
30 FW Northern Ireland Martin Paterson 0(9) 1 0 0 0(1) 0 0(10) 1 0 0
31 DF England Carl Dickinson 5(8) 0 0 0 1 0 6(8) 0 1 0
32 MF Hungary Ádám Vass 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
33 GK Republic of Ireland Robert Duggan 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
34 FW Republic of Ireland Adam Rooney 0(10) 0 0(2) 0 0 0 0(12) 0 0 0
35 MF Northern Ireland Robert Garrett 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
36 MF Northern Ireland Matthew Hazley 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
37 FW England Keith Thomas 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
– – Own goals – 2 – 1 – 0 – 3 – –

References[]

  1. ^ "Stoke City season review 2006-07 So near yet so far for improving Potters". The Sentinel. 18 May 2007.
  2. ^ "Striker Pericard signs for Stoke". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  3. ^ "Stoke joy at Higginbotham signing". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  4. ^ "Pulis jubilant over Stoke victory". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  5. ^ "Pulis ignores reaction from crowd". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  6. ^ "Stoke capture Southampton striker". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  7. ^ "Pulis angered by fans' reaction". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  8. ^ "Coates confirms support for Pulis". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  9. ^ "Stoke complete Hendrie loan deal". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  10. ^ "Diao completes Stoke loan switch". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  11. ^ "Pulis delighted by away victory". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  12. ^ "Pulis rocked by Delap leg break". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  13. ^ "Sunderland's Lawrence joins Stoke". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  14. ^ "Pulis praise for record breakers". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  15. ^ "Duberry shocked by heavy defeat". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  16. ^ "Higginbotham is new Stoke skipper". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  17. ^ "QPR 1-1 Stoke". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  18. ^ "Pulis pledges to strengthen squad". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
  19. ^ "Pulis sorry for Darlington defeat". BBC Sport. Retrieved 13 September 2012.
  20. ^ "Pulis blames mistakes for defeat". BBC Sport. Retrieved 14 September 2012.
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