Football League test matches

Football tournament

Football League test matchesOrganising body| The Football League

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Founded| 1893
Abolished| 1898
Region| England
Number of teams| 6 (1893–95)
4 (1896–98)

Football League test matches were a series of post-season football play-off matches organised by the Football League, to determine the membership of each division, between the worst finishers of the First Division and the best of the Second Division. They were first contested at the end of the 1892–93 season, following the inaugural season of the Second Division, and were replaced with automatic promotion and relegation from 1898–99.

Unlike the modern-day English Football League play-offs, which is only contested between the four teams below the automatic promotion places in each division, test matches involved the bottom teams of the First Division and the top teams of the Second Division going head-to-head. This meant that the Second Division champions were not guaranteed top-flight football, as was the case with Small Heath in 1893. On no occasion has all of the Second Division and First Division sides been either respectively promoted and relegated or remained in the same division in any season through this system.

From 1893 to 1895, six teams competed for three places in the top division. Each team played one match against the corresponding team from the other division (Second Division champions versus the bottom First Division side, and so on) at a neutral venue, usually close to the designated home team. The winners of each game were considered for election for First Division membership for the following season, whilst the losers were invited to the Second Division.

From 1896 until 1898, the series was revamped with into a mini league format, with four teams competing for two First Division places. The Second Division sides played both First Division teams on a home-and-away basis. When the proceedings have concluded, the top two finishers were elected into the First Division and the bottom two were invited to the Second Division for the following season. As the 1898–99 First Division was expanded to include two more teams, the 1898 test match series was ultimately a dead rubber as all four competing teams were elected into the top tier.

## List of test matches

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### 1893

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22 April 1893

Small Heath D2 1st| 1–1| D1 16th Newton Heath

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Victoria Ground

Attendance: 4,000

27 April 1893 (replay)

Newton Heath D1 16th| 5–2| D2 1st Small Heath

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Olive Grove

Attendance: 6,000

Newton Heath remain in the First Division, Small Heath remain in the Second Division.

22 April 1893

Darwen D2 3rd| 3–2| D1 14th Notts County

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Hyde Road

Attendance: 5,000

Darwen elected to the First Division, Notts County invited to the Second Division.

22 April 1893

Sheffield United D2 2nd| 1–0| D1 15th Accrington

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Castle Ground

Attendance: 6,000

Sheffield United elected to the First Division, Accrington invited to the Second Division.[Note 1]

### 1894

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28 April 1894

Liverpool D2 1st| 2–0| D1 16th Newton Heath

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Ewood Park

Attendance: 5,000

Liverpool elected to the First Division, Newton Heath invited to the Second Division.

28 April 1894

Small Heath D2 2nd| 3–1| D1 15th Darwen

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Victoria Ground

Attendance: 3,000

Small Heath elected to the First Division, Darwen invited to the Second Division.

28 April 1894

Preston North End D1 14th| 4–0| D2 3rd Notts County

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Olive Grove

Attendance: 8,000

Preston North End remain in the First Division, Notts County remain in the Second Division.

### 1895

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27 April 1895

Bury D2 1st| 1–0| D1 16th Liverpool

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Ewood Park

Attendance: 5,000

Bury elected to the First Division, Liverpool invited to the Second Division.

27 April 1895

Derby County D1 15th| 2–1| D2 2nd Notts County

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Filbert Street

Attendance: 8,000

Derby County remain in the First Division, Notts County remain in the Second Division.

27 April 1895

Stoke D1 14th| 3–0| D2 3rd Newton Heath

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Athletic Ground

Attendance: 10,000

Stoke remain in the First Division, Newton Heath remain in the Second Division.

### 1896

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18 April 1896

Liverpool D2 1st| 4–0| D1 15th Small Heath

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18 April 1896

Manchester City D2 2nd| 1–1| D1 16th West Bromwich Albion

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20 April 1896

Small Heath D1 15th| 0–0| D2 1st Liverpool

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20 April 1896

West Bromwich Albion D1 16th| 6–1| D2 2nd Manchester City

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25 April 1896

Liverpool D2 1st| 2–0| D1 16th West Bromwich Albion

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25 April 1896

Manchester City D2 2nd| 3–0| D1 15th Small Heath

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27 April 1896

West Bromwich Albion D1 16th| 2–0| D2 1st Liverpool

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27 April 1896

Small Heath D1 15th| 8–0| D2 2nd Manchester City

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#### Table

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Pos. | Team  | Pld. | W | D | L | F | A | Pts.

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1 | Liverpool | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 5
2 | West Bromwich Albion | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 4 | 5
3 | Small Heath | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 7 | 3
4 | Manchester City | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 15 | 3
Key | Note

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Bold | Second Division champions
Italic | Second Division team
| Elected to play in the First Division
| Invited to play in the Second Division

### 1897

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17 April 1897

Notts County D2 1st| 1–0| D1 15th Sunderland

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19 April 1897

Burnley D1 16th| 2–0| D2 2nd Newton Heath

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19 April 1897

Sunderland D1 15th| 0–0| D2 1st Notts County

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21 April 1897

Newton Heath D2 2nd| 2–0| D1 16th Burnley

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24 April 1897

Burnley D1 16th| 0–1| D2 1st Notts County

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24 April 1897

Newton Heath D2 2nd| 1–1| D1 15th Sunderland

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26 April 1897

Notts County D2 1st| 1–1| D1 16th Burnley

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26 April 1897

Sunderland D1 15th| 2–0| D2 2nd Newton Heath

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#### Table

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Pos. | Team  | Pld. | W | D | L | F | A | Pts.

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1 | Notts County | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 6
2 | Sunderland | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4
3 | Burnley | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 3
4 | Newton Heath | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 3
Key | Note

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Bold | Second Division champions
Italic | Second Division team
| Elected to play in the First Division
| Invited to play in the Second Division

### 1898

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20 April 1898

Newcastle United D2 2nd| 2–1| D1 16th Stoke

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21 April 1898

Blackburn Rovers D1 15th| 1–3| D2 1st Burnley

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23 April 1898

Stoke D1 16th| 1–0| D2 2nd Newcastle United

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23 April 1898

Burnley D2 1st| 2–0| D1 15th Blackburn Rovers

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26 April 1898

Burnley D2 1st| 0–2| D1 16th Stoke

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28 April 1898

Blackburn Rovers D1 15th| 4–3| D2 2nd Newcastle United

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30 April 1898

Stoke D1 16th| 0–0| D2 1st Burnley

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30 April 1898

Newcastle United D2 2nd| 4–0| D1 15th Blackburn Rovers

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#### Table

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Pos. | Team  | Pld. | W | D | L | F | A | Pts.

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1 | Stoke | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 5
2 | Burnley | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 3 | 5
3 | Newcastle United | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 6 | 4
4 | Blackburn Rovers | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 12 | 2
Key | Note

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Bold | Second Division champions
Italic | Second Division team
| Elected to play in the First Division

All teams were elected to the 1898–99 Football League First Division as the league was expanded by two teams.

## See also

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* English Football League play-offs

## Notes

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1. ^

Accrington subsequently resigned from the Football League

## Further reading

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* Soar, Phil & Tyler, Martin: Encyclopedia of British Football, Willow Books, London. Fourth, updated and revised edition, 1984
* A. H. Fabian & Green, Geoffrey: Association Football, Volume Two. The Caxton Publishing Company Ltd., London, 1960