1996–97 Blackburn Rovers F.C. season
During the 1996–97 English football season, Blackburn Rovers F.C. competed in the FA Premier League (known as the FA Carling Premiership for sponsorship reasons).
| 1996–97 season | |
|---|---|
| Owner | Jack Walker |
| Chairman | Robert Coar |
| Manager | Ray Harford (until 25 October) Tony Parkes (from 25 October) |
| Stadium | Ewood Park |
| Premiership | 13th |
| FA Cup | Fourth round |
| League Cup | Third round |
| Top goalscorer | League: Sutton (11) All: Sutton (12) |
| Average home league attendance | 24,947 |
Season summary
An early exit from the League Cup at the hands of Division Two side Stockport County was the final straw for manager Ray Harford, who stepped down on 25 October with Rovers also bottom of the Premiership with no wins from their opening 11 games.[1] 18 months earlier, they had been league champions. Long-serving coach Tony Parkes was appointed caretaker, remaining in the post until the end of the season, when he handed over the reins to Roy Hodgson after Sampdoria's Sven-Göran Eriksson lied about accepting the manager's job and joined Lazio instead. Parkes steered Blackburn to safety as they finished 13th.
The world record £15 million sale of striker Alan Shearer to Newcastle United was seen as the biggest factor in Blackburn's lowest top flight finish since they returned to the elite in 1992. However, his strike-partner Chris Sutton helped keep the club alive after recovering from a drastic loss of form triggered by a spate of injuries the previous season. The acquisition of Swedish striker Martin Dahlin at the end of the season enhanced Blackburn's attack and gave fans hope for a higher finish next time round.
Final league table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11 | Leeds United | 38 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 28 | 38 | −10 | 46 |
| 12 | Derby County | 38 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 45 | 58 | −13 | 46 |
| 13 | Blackburn Rovers | 38 | 9 | 15 | 14 | 42 | 43 | −1 | 42 |
| 14 | West Ham United | 38 | 10 | 12 | 16 | 39 | 48 | −9 | 42 |
| 15 | Everton | 38 | 10 | 12 | 16 | 44 | 57 | −13 | 42 |
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
- Results summary
| Overall | Home | Away | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD |
| 38 | 9 | 15 | 14 | 42 | 43 | −1 | 42 | 8 | 4 | 7 | 28 | 23 | +5 | 1 | 11 | 7 | 14 | 20 | −6 |
Source: Statto
- Results by round
Results
Blackburn Rovers' score comes first[2]
Legend
| Win | Draw | Loss |
FA Premier League
| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 August 1996 | Tottenham Hotspur | H | 0-2 | 26,960 | |
| 21 August 1996 | Aston Villa | A | 0-1 | 32,457 | |
| 25 August 1996 | Manchester United | A | 2-2 | 54,178 | Warhurst, Bohinen |
| 4 September 1996 | Leeds United | H | 0-1 | 23,226 | |
| 9 September 1996 | Derby County | H | 1-2 | 19,214 | Sutton |
| 14 September 1996 | Newcastle United | A | 1-2 | 36,424 | Sutton |
| 21 September 1996 | Everton | H | 1-1 | 27,091 | Donis |
| 28 September 1996 | Coventry City | A | 0-0 | 17,032 | |
| 12 October 1996 | Arsenal | H | 0-2 | 24,303 | |
| 19 October 1996 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 1-1 | 22,191 | Bohinen |
| 26 October 1996 | West Ham United | A | 1-2 | 23,947 | Berg |
| 3 November 1996 | Liverpool | H | 3-0 | 29,598 | Sutton (2, 1 pen), Wilcox |
| 16 November 1996 | Chelsea | H | 1-1 | 27,229 | Gallacher |
| 25 November 1996 | Nottingham Forest | A | 2-2 | 17,525 | Gallacher, Wilcox |
| 30 November 1996 | Southampton | H | 2-1 | 23,018 | Sherwood, Sutton |
| 7 December 1996 | Leicester City | A | 1-1 | 19,306 | Sutton |
| 14 December 1996 | Wimbledon | A | 0-1 | 13,246 | |
| 26 December 1996 | Newcastle United | H | 1-0 | 30,398 | Gallacher |
| 28 December 1996 | Derby County | A | 0-0 | 17,847 | |
| 1 January 1997 | Everton | A | 2-0 | 30,427 | Sherwood, Sutton |
| 11 January 1997 | Coventry City | H | 4-0 | 24,055 | Sutton (2), Gallacher, Donis |
| 18 January 1997 | Sunderland | A | 0-0 | 20,850 | |
| 29 January 1997 | Tottenham Hotspur | A | 1-2 | 22,943 | Hendry |
| 1 February 1997 | West Ham United | H | 2-1 | 21,994 | Gallacher, Sutton |
| 22 February 1997 | Liverpool | A | 0-0 | 40,747 | |
| 1 March 1997 | Sunderland | H | 1-0 | 24,208 | Gallacher |
| 5 March 1997 | Chelsea | A | 1-1 | 25,784 | Pedersen |
| 11 March 1997 | Nottingham Forest | H | 1-1 | 20,485 | Gallacher |
| 15 March 1997 | Wimbledon | H | 3-1 | 23,333 | Gallacher (3) |
| 19 March 1997 | Middlesbrough | A | 1-2 | 29,891 | Sutton |
| 22 March 1997 | Aston Villa | H | 0-2 | 24,274 | |
| 7 April 1997 | Leeds United | A | 0-0 | 27,264 | |
| 12 April 1997 | Manchester United | H | 2-3 | 30,476 | McKinlay, Warhurst |
| 19 April 1997 | Arsenal | A | 1-1 | 38,086 | Flitcroft |
| 22 April 1997 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 4-1 | 20,845 | Berg, Sherwood, Le Saux, Flitcroft |
| 3 May 1997 | Southampton | A | 0-2 | 15,247 | |
| 8 May 1997 | Middlesbrough | H | 0-0 | 27,411 | |
| 11 May 1997 | Leicester City | H | 2-4 | 25,881 | Flitcroft, Fenton |
FA Cup
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| R3 | 4 January 1997 | Port Vale | H | 1-0 | 19,891 | Bohinen |
| R4 | 15 February 1997 | Coventry City | H | 1-2 | 21,123 | Sherwood |
Squad
- Squad at end of season[3]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Reserve squad
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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Transfers
In
- July 1996: George Donis - Panathinaikos, free
- February 1997: Per Pedersen - Odense, £2,500,000
Out
- Alan Shearer - Newcastle United, £15,000,000
References
- http://www.soccerbase.com/teams/team.sd?team_id=308&teamTabs=results
- "Blackburn Rovers 1996-1997 Home - statto.com". Archived from the original on 3 March 2012. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
- http://www.footballsquads.co.uk/eng/1996-1997/faprem/blackbrn.htm
- "Boom and bust the Blackburn way". BBC News. 13 May 1999.