1988–89 Luton Town F.C. season
# 1988–89 Luton Town F.C. season

During the 1988–89 English football season, Luton Town F.C. competed in the Football League First Division, in which they finished 16th to secure an eighth successive season at this level. They were holders of the League Cup for this season and maintained their defence of the trophy to the final, where they were beaten by Nottingham Forest.

Despite being League Cup holders, Luton did not compete in the UEFA Cup this season due to the continuation of the ban on English clubs in European competitions arising from the Heysel disaster of 1985.

## Season summary

Luton were unable to build on their top-ten finishes of the two previous seasons and finished the season in 16th, just two points clear of relegation. Luton did manage to reach the League Cup final for the second season running, but were unable to defend the cup as they were beaten 3–1 by Nottingham Forest. Survival was achieved on the final day of the season with a 1–0 home win over Norwich City; this was the first of three successive seasons where Luton would secure First Division on the final day of the season before finally being relegated in 1992.

## 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 | Alec Chamberlain |
| — | GK | ENG | Les Sealey |
| — | DF | ENG | Tim Breacker |
| — | DF | ENG | John Dreyer |
| — | DF | ENG | Steve Foster |
| — | DF | ENG | Steve Williams |
| — | DF | ENG | Richard Harvey |
| — | DF | ENG | Marvin Johnson |
| — | DF | ENG | Rob Johnson |
| — | DF | ENG | Julian James |
| — | DF | SCO | Dave Beaumont |
| — | MF | ENG | Gary Cobb |
| — | MF | ENG | Ricky Hill |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| — | MF | ENG | Darron McDonough |
| — | MF | ENG | David Oldfield |
| — | MF | ENG | David Preece |
| — | MF | NIR | Kingsley Black |
| — | MF | NIR | Danny Wilson |
| — | MF | IRL | Ashley Grimes |
| — | FW | ENG | Iain Dowie |
| — | FW | ENG | Mick Harford |
| — | FW | ENG | Sean Farrell |
| — | FW | NIR | Paul Gray |
| — | FW | RSA | Roy Wegerle |

## League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 14 | Charlton Athletic | 38 | 10 | 12 | 16 | 44 | 58 | −14 | 42 | |
| 15 | Sheffield Wednesday | 38 | 10 | 12 | 16 | 34 | 51 | −17 | 42 | |
| 16 | Luton Town | 38 | 10 | 11 | 17 | 42 | 52 | −10 | 41 | |
| 17 | Aston Villa | 38 | 9 | 13 | 16 | 45 | 56 | −11 | 40 | |
| 18 | Middlesbrough (R) | 38 | 9 | 12 | 17 | 44 | 61 | −17 | 39 | Relegation to the Second Division |

## Results

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Competition | Res | Score |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 27 Aug 88 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 1D | L | 0–1 |
| 3 Sep 88 | Wimbledon | H | 1D | D | 2–2 |
| 10 Sep 88 | Southampton | A | 1D | L | 1–2 |
| 17 Sep 88 | Manchester United | H | 1D | L | 0–2 |
| 24 Sep 88 | Everton | A | 1D | W | 2–0 |
| 27 Sep 88 | Burnley | H | LC2 1st | D | 1–1 |
| 1 Oct 88 | Nottingham Forest | A | 1D | D | 0–0 |
| 8 Oct 88 | Liverpool | H | 1D | W | 1–0 |
| 11 Oct 88 | Burnley | A | LC2 2nd | W | 1–0 |
| 22 Oct 88 | Middlesbrough | A | 1D | L | 2–1 |
| 25 Oct 88 | Arsenal | H | 1D | D | 1–1 |
| 29 Oct 88 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 1D | D | 0–0 |
| 2 Nov 88 | Leeds United | A | LC3 | W | 2–0 |
| 5 Nov 88 | Millwall | A | 1D | L | 1–3 |
| 12 Nov 88 | Coventry City | A | 1D | L | 0–1 |
| 19 Nov 88 | West Ham United | H | 1D | W | 4–1 |
| 26 Nov 88 | Norwich City | A | 1D | D | 2–2 |
| 3 Dec 88 | Newcastle United | H | 1D | D | 0–0 |
| 10 Dec 88 | Derby County | A | 1D | W | 1–0 |
| 17 Dec 88 | Aston Villa | H | 1D | D | 1–1 |
| 26 Dec 88 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 1D | D | 0–0 |
| 31 Dec 88 | Wimbledon | A | 1D | L | 0–4 |
| 2 Jan 89 | Southampton | H | 1D | W | 6–1 |
| 7 Jan 89 | Millwall | A | FAC3 | L | 2–3 |
| 10 Jan 89 | Crystal Palace | A | FMC3 | L | 1–4 |
| 14 Jan 89 | Charlton Athletic | A | 1D | L | 0–3 |
| 18 Jan 89 | Southampton | H | LC4 | D | 1–1 |
| 21 Jan 89 | Everton | H | 1D | W | 1–0 |
| 25 Jan 89 | Southampton | A | LC4 Replay | W | 2–1 |
| 4 Feb 89 | Nottingham Forest | H | 1D | L | 2–3 |
| 12 Feb 89 | West Ham United | A | LCSF 1st | W | 3–0 |
| 18 Feb 89 | Middlesbrough | H | 1D | W | 1–0 |
| 25 Feb 89 | Arsenal | A | 1D | L | 0–2 |
| 1 Mar 89 | West Ham United | H | LCSF 2nd | W | 2–0 |
| 11 Mar 89 | Millwall | H | 1D | L | 1–2 |
| 14 Mar 89 | Liverpool | A | 1D | L | 0–5 |
| 18 Mar 89 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 1D | L | 0–1 |
| 21 Mar 89 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 1D | D | 1–1 |
| 25 Mar 89 | Manchester United | A | 1D | L | 0–2 |
| 28 Mar 89 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 1D | L | 1–3 |
| 1 Apr 89 | Aston Villa | A | 1D | L | 1–2 |
| 9 Apr 89 | Nottingham Forest | N | LCF | L | 1–3 |
| 15 Apr 89 | Coventry City | H | 1D | D | 2–2 |
| 22 Apr 89 | Newcastle United | A | 1D | D | 0–0 |
| 29 Apr 89 | Derby County | H | 1D | W | 3–0 |
| 2 May 89 | Charlton Athletic | H | 1D | W | 5–2 |
| 6 May 89 | West Ham United | A | 1D | L | 0–1 |
| 13 May 89 | Norwich City | H | 1D | W | 1–0 |

Key: 1D = First Division FAC = FA Cup LC = League Cup FMC = Full Members Cup

