Ups and downs in the Football League

OUTSIDE the Premiership, the fate of the region's teams was sealed over the weekend – with some ups and downs.

QPR won the Championship despite losing to Leeds and avoiding a possible points deduction by the FA, meaning they got to keep all of their 88 points. Norwich claimed second with Swansea, Cardiff, Reading and Nottingham Forest all finishing in play-off positions, meaning Burnley missed out by seven points.

At the other end of the table, Preston went down with Scunthorpe and Sheffield United, despite signing off with a 3-1 home win over Watford. The victory did stop them finishing bottom of the Championship however.

Gus Poyet’s Brighton were crowned League 1 champions, three points ahead of Southampton, but it was heartbreak for Rochdale, who finished three points outside the play-offs. Another local team, Oldham, had a season to forget, finishing 17^th and ending with a home defeat to MK Dons. One positive from Oldham's season was a good performance from club top scorer Chris Taylor, who bagged 11 goals.

Bury managed to get themselves out of League 2, finishing as runners up to Chesterfield team. Bury’s 3-3 draw with Stevenage saw off any other contenders for second spot and secured their place in League 1 next year. 

Crewe had a fairly indifferent season, but their man Donaldson finished as top scorer in the division with an impressive 28 goals.

At the other end, however, it was bad times for Stockport, who finished in the basement and were consigned to non-league football next season. Their 41 points weren’t enough to keep their place in the league, and neither was their 1-1 draw with Cheltenham.

Interestingly, Stockport have invited applications for a new manager via their website. I might send my CV in. Even though I haven’t finished school yet.