1992–93 Middlesbrough F.C. season
# 1992–93 Middlesbrough F.C. season

During the 1992–93 English football season, Middlesbrough competed in the inaugural season of the Premier League. It was Middlesbrough's first season in the top flight since relegation in 1988; Middlesbrough regained promotion to England's top flight by finishing second in the old Second Division (renamed the First Division after the foundation of the Premier League).

## Season summary

Middlesbrough enjoyed a good start to the season, winning four of their first seven games – including a superb 4–1 home win over Yorkshire rivals and reigning champions Leeds United – a run that sent them sixth in the table. Unfortunately, they couldn't quite keep up the momentum but still, up to their thrilling 3–2 victory over Blackburn Rovers on 5 December 1992, they enjoyed stable mid-table form, winning six, drawing six and losing six of their first 18 games. Unfortunately, three consecutive draws followed and from then, starting from a 1–0 home defeat to strugglers Crystal Palace before the new year, the club struggled and went into freefall during the entire second half of the season, winning just three of their next 18 fixtures and picking up just ten points from a possible 54, a run that ultimately resulted in the club's relegation looking inevitable with three matches left.

However, a 3–0 win over Tottenham Hotspur gave them a very slim glimmer of hope for an unlikely survival; on the other hand, they would never look like pulling off the 'great escape' that relegation rivals Oldham Athletic would soon perfect. With just two matches left, they were already three points adrift of Sheffield United and five adrift of Crystal Palace, both having a game in hand. Despite a 3–2 win at Sheffield Wednesday, results went against them: Palace beating Ipswich Town 3–1, Sheffield United condemning Nottingham Forest to relegation by winning 2–0 at the City Ground and Oldham stunning title chasers Aston Villa 1–0 at Villa Park which also saw Manchester United clinching their first top-flight title for 26 years. With these results, Middlesbrough were left with a virtually impossible survival task, with only one game left and were three points adrift of Sheffield United who had two games left with a vastly superior goal difference of −3 against Boro's −21. They needed the Blades to lose both of their final games with a miracle 18-goal swing and to beat third-placed Norwich City in their final game for any chance of survival. Sadly, Boro's relegation was confirmed before a ball was kicked on their closing fixture as the Blades beat Everton 2–0 at Goodison Park. A 3–3 draw with Norwich City for Boro at least meant that they finished a difficult season on a high note in the final three games, going down fighting, and it gave them a glimpse of positivity in gaining promotion back to the Premier League at the first attempt for next season. They finished in 21st place, five points adrift of safety.

## Kit

Middlesbrough's kit was manufactured by Admiral. The shirt sponsor was Imperial Chemical Industries.

## Final league table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 18 | Southampton | 42 | 13 | 11 | 18 | 54 | 61 | −7 | 50 | |
| 19 | Oldham Athletic | 42 | 13 | 10 | 19 | 63 | 74 | −11 | 49 | |
| 20 | Crystal Palace (R) | 42 | 11 | 16 | 15 | 48 | 61 | −13 | 49 | Relegation to the Football League First Division |
| 21 | Middlesbrough (R) | 42 | 11 | 11 | 20 | 54 | 75 | −21 | 44 | Relegation to the Football League First Division |
| 22 | Nottingham Forest (R) | 42 | 10 | 10 | 22 | 41 | 62 | −21 | 40 | Relegation to the Football League First Division |

## Results

### Premier League

| Date | Opponents | Home/ Away | Result F – A | Scorers |
| - | - | - | - | - |
| 15 August 1992 | Coventry City | A | 1 – 2 | Wilkinson |
| 19 August 1992 | Manchester City | H | 2 – 0 | Slaven (2) |
| 22 August 1992 | Leeds | H | 4 – 1 | Wilkinson (2), Wright, Hendrie |
| 29 August 1992 | Southampton | A | 1 – 2 | Wilkinson |
| 1 September 1992 | Ipswich | H | 2 – 2 | Kernaghan, Wilkinson |
| 5 September 1992 | Sheffield United | H | 2 – 0 | Falconer, Wright |
| 12 September 1992 | Manchester City | A | 1 – 0 | Own Goal |
| 19 September 1992 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 3 – 3 | Kernaghan, Wright, Falconer |
| 26 September 1992 | Aston Villa | H | 2 – 3 | Slaven, Own Goal |
| 3 October 1992 | Manchester United | H | 1 – 1 | Slaven |
| 17 October 1992 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 2 – 2 | Mustoe, Wilkinson |
| 21 October 1992 | Nottingham Forest | A | 0 – 1 | |
| 24 October 1992 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 1 – 1 | Wilkinson |
| 31 October 1992 | Norwich City | A | 1 – 1 | Wilkinson |
| 7 November 1992 | Liverpool | A | 1 – 4 | Phillips |
| 21 November 1992 | Wimbledon | H | 2 – 0 | Hendrie, Morris |
| 28 November 1992 | Oldham Athletic | A | 1 – 4 | Falconer |
| 5 December 1992 | Blackburn Rovers | H | 3 – 2 | Hendrie (3) |
| 11 December 1992 | Chelsea | H | 0 – 0 | |
| 19 December 1992 | Arsenal | A | 1 – 1 | Own Goal |
| 26 December 1992 | Everton | A | 2 – 2 | Hignett (2) |
| 28 December 1992 | Crystal Palace | H | 0 – 1 | |
| 9 January 1993 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 0 – 1 | |
| 17 January 1993 | Aston Villa | A | 1 – 5 | Hignett |
| 26 January 1993 | Southampton | H | 2 – 1 | Mohan, Wilkinson |
| 30 January 1993 | Leeds United | A | 0 – 3 | |
| 6 February 1993 | Coventry City | H | 0 – 2 | |
| 9 February 1993 | Sheffield United | A | 0 – 2 | |
| 20 February 1993 | Nottingham Forest | H | 1 – 2 | Phillips |
| 27 February 1993 | Manchester United | A | 0 – 3 | |
| 2 March 1993 | Ipswich Town | A | 1 – 0 | Wilkinson |
| 9 March 1993 | Wimbledon | A | 0 – 2 | |
| 13 March 1993 | Liverpool | H | 1 – 2 | Own Goal |
| 20 March 1993 | Blackburn Rovers | A | 1 – 1 | Hendrie |
| 22 March 1993 | Oldham Athletic | H | 2 – 3 | Mohan, Hignett |
| 3 April 1993 | Chelsea | A | 0 – 4 | |
| 6 April 1993 | Arsenal | H | 1 – 0 | Hendrie |
| 10 April 1993 | Everton | H | 1 – 2 | Wilkinson |
| 12 April 1993 | Crystal Palace | A | 1 – 4 | Wilkinson |
| 20 April 1993 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 3 – 0 | Wright (2), Wilkinson |
| 1 May 1993 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 3 – 2 | Falconer, Pollock, Hendrie |
| 8 May 1993 | Norwich City | H | 3 – 3 | Falconer, Wilkinson, Hendrie |

### FA Cup

| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F – A | Scorers |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 13 January 1993 | Round 3 | Chelsea | H | 2 – 1 | Wright, Falconer |
| 23 January 1993 | Round 4 | Nottingham Forest | A | 1 – 1 | Falconer |
| 3 February 1992 | Round 4 replay | Nottingham Forest | H | 0 – 3 | |

### Coca Cola Cup

| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F – A | Scorers |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 23 September 1992 | Round 2 First leg | Newcastle United | A | 0 – 0 | |
| 7 October 1992 | Round 2 Second leg | Newcastle United | H | 1 – 3 | Wilkinson |

## First-team squad

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 | ENG | Andy Collett |
| — | GK | ENG | Brian Horne (on loan from Millwall) |
| — | GK | ENG | Ian Ironside |
| — | GK | ENG | Stephen Pears |
| — | GK | ENG | Ben Roberts |
| — | DF | ENG | Michael Barron |
| — | DF | IRL | Curtis Fleming |
| — | DF | ENG | Phil Gilchrist |
| — | DF | ENG | Jon Gittens |
| — | DF | ENG | Chris Kamara (on loan from Luton Town) |
| — | DF | ENG | Alan Kernaghan (captain) |
| — | DF | ENG | Richard Liburd |
| — | DF | ENG | Nicky Mohan |
| — | DF | IRL | Chris Morris |
| — | DF | ENG | Gary Parkinson |
| — | DF | ENG | Jimmy Phillips |
| — | DF | ENG | Andy Todd |
| — | DF | SCO | Derek Whyte |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | MF | IRL | Graham Kavanagh |
| — | MF | IRL | Alan Moore |
| — | MF | ENG | Robbie Mustoe |
| — | MF | ENG | Michael Oliver |
| — | MF | ENG | Andy Peake |
| — | MF | ENG | Jamie Pollock |
| — | MF | ENG | Mark Proctor |
| — | MF | ENG | Phil Stamp |
| — | MF | ENG | Tommy Wright |
| — | FW | SCO | Willie Falconer |
| — | FW | SCO | John Hendrie |
| — | FW | ENG | Craig Hignett |
| — | FW | ENG | Neil Illman |
| — | FW | LCA | Dwight Marshall (on loan from Plymouth Argyle) |
| — | FW | IRL | Bernie Slaven |
| — | FW | ENG | Paul Wilkinson |
