The Play-Offs (Part Two): 1987-1992
The play-offs were re-introduced to the Football League almost a century after the ‘test matches’ of the 1890s. The measure was agreed at a League meeting in December 1985 as part of a package of compromise measures to prevent a ‘Super League’ breakaway of the First Division clubs. Initially the play-offs were proposed to run…
‘Test Matches’: The First Football League Play-Offs
With the rapid evolution and expansion of the Football League from its twelve founder members in 1888, came the question of promotion and relegation. ‘Test matches’ were the League’s solution, introduced in April 1893. The clubs which had formed the rival Football Alliance were absorbed into the League at the start of the 1892-93 season,…
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