III Division. Five teams at the bottom, bellow the level of the league, and four teams in a race for three promotional spots. Chester was the absolute outsider – 24th with 32 points. Bristol City was a place above with 46 points. Swindon Town lost a three-team battle for survival – 22nd with 52 points. Wimbledon and Walsall were tied with 53 points, but Wimbledon finished at the unlucky 21st place on worse goal-difference.
Above relegation zone the bulk of the league spread comfortably, one or two points difference determining positions.
Preston North End – 14th with 61 points: goal-difference placed them above Bristol Rovers, but bellow Portsmouth.
Chesterfield – a bit of a mystery now. They had wonderful previous season, when they came close to promotion, but finished 5th. The text of the picture confuses the seasons… in 1980-81 neither Fulham, nor Carlisle United played any part in the promotional race, both teams weak and laying low. In 1981-82 both teams were favourites, indeed, but Chesterfield was down – unless they played strong in the fall and gradually faded away: 11th with 64 points.
Brentford – 8th with 68 points. Nothing special, but if Chesterfield is compared to them why Chesterfield was a news? Brentford was not and they still finished higher.
Oxford United was in the news: they were at the brink of bankruptcy and disappearing for good. Then the controversial publisher Robert Maxwell stepped in and saved the club – out of gratitude, he was made chairman of the governing board of the club. Ian Greeves was appointed manager and the team improved at once – and the saga got its next chapter. Woolverhampton Wanderers noticed the manager’s work and snatched him. Maxwell bitterly protested, accusing the Wolves of breaking the gentleman’s agreement forbidding poaching of managers, Greeves of going back on his promise and letting down Maxwell personally – he said he would not have made the cash injection if he knew Greeves was going to leave. For his part, Greeves claimed he had no contract with Oxford, neither written, nor verbal. But the team, quite surprisingly, continued to play well after Greeves left – and finished 5th with 71 points. They played no part in the promotional race, but finished at the top of the bulk of the league – well done indeed. Oh, the cash injection saving Oxford from extinction? 120 000 pounds. Small change today… a week salary of a single player today. An average player, not a big star.
Hard race at the top between four teams. Lincoln City, the least famous of the quartet, lost – they were 4th with 77 points. Had the best defense in the league, though.
Fulham bested Lincoln City by a point and took 3rd place, thus, going up to II Division. It was a testimony to the good work of young manager – less then 2 years earlier Malcolm Macdonald was still one of the top English scorers. Cash crisis, plaguing English football, was taken philosophically by Macdonald – he was happy to reach promotion, not worried about not finishing 1st.
Carlisle United ended 2nd with 80 points. Like Fulham, they had better days in the past and were eager to climb back at least to the second level.
They were bested by Burnley, which also finished with 80 points, but had better goal-difference. Just a bit better – 66-49 Burnley to 65-50 Carlisle. The difference between champions and vice-champions and Burnley had been happy, naturally, but there was little grief in the Carlisle camp – promotion was most important and Burnley, Carlisle United, and Fulham got it.