2022-23 EFL League One [3rd division] – Location-map, with 2021-22 attendance chart
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By Bill Turianski on the 9th of August 2022; twitter.com/billsportsmaps.
Links…
-2022-23 EFL League One (en.wikipedia.org).
-Table, fixtures, results, stats, attendances, etc…Summary – EFL League One [2022-23] (soccerway.com).
-League One 2022-23 preview: the contenders, hopefuls and strugglers (by Ben Fisher at theguardian.com/football).
Quick clicks to the 4 promoted teams illustrations…
-Forest Green Rovers – promoted in 2022.
-Exeter City- promoted in 2022.
-Bristol Rovers – promoted in 2022.
-Port Vale – promoted in 2022.
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2022-23 EFL League One [3rd division] – Location-map, with 2021-22 attendance.
The map here is a new template, one which I will have for the top 4 divisions in England this year. The map is a basic location-map, with inset maps of both Greater London and Greater Manchester. Also shown are small labels which point out the four promoted clubs (Forest Green Rovers, Exeter City, Bristol Rovers, Port Vale). And there is an attendance chart.
The attendance chart shows 5 things for each of the 24 current League One clubs…A) 2021-22 finish (with relegations and promotions noted). B) 2021-22 average attendance [from home league matches]. C) Stadium capacity [2021-22]. D) Percent-capacity [2021-22]. E) Last time club had higher attendance [than 2021-22]. I added that last column (last time club had higher attendance), because last season there were a lot of clubs in the lower Football League and in non-League football that saw notable attendance increases. You can see an example of how well lower League clubs were drawing last season by simply by glancing at the percent-capacity column in the attendance chart here: 21 of the 24 current 3rd tier clubs filled their stadium last season more than halfway. (Clubs in the third tier very often are drawing to only 40% of capacity, or lower.)
2 clubs saw all-time-best average attendances last season, both from Lancashire: Morecambe, and Accrington Stanley. Morecambe, a small club from the northern Lancashire coast, had been promoted to the 3rd tier in 2021, and then last season drew 4.4-K-per-game (an increase of 1.9-K-per-game) {Morecambe FC attendance history at european-football-statistics.co.uk}. Accrington Stanley are a small Lancashire club tightly wedged between two much-larger and titled clubs (Blackburn Rovers, and Burnley). Playing in their fourth-ever season in the 3rd tier last season, Accrington drew 2.9-K-per-game (an increase of around 60 per game).
And also last season, three other current League One sides saw their best attendance in three decades (or more): Peterborough United, and two clubs from the Oxbridge towns, Oxford United and Cambridge United. Last season Peterborough saw their best crowds in 58 years. The Posh drew 10.0-K-per-game despite being relegated from the 2nd tier (an increase of 2.7-K-per-game); it was Peterborough’s best attendance since 1963-64 {Peterborough United attendance history at european-football-statistics.co.uk}. Last season, Oxford United drew 8.4-K-per-game in their 6th-consecutive season in the 3rd tier (an increase of about 825 per game); it was the U’s best attendance since 1986-87, when they were a (short-lived) 1st-division side {Oxford United attendance history at european-football-statistics.co.uk}. And last season, Cambridge United drew 5.9-K-per-game in their first season back in the 3rd tier (an increase of around 1.6-K-per-game), which was Cambridge’s best attendance since 1991-92, when the club last played in the 2nd tier {Cambridge United attendance history at european-football-statistics.co.uk}.
Below are illustrations for the 4 clubs which won promotion to the 3rd tier last season (Forest Green Rovers, Exeter City, Bristol Rovers, Port Vale)…
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Forest Green Rovers – promoted to the 3rd division for the first time ever.
-Rob Edwards: Forest Green manager hails team unity after promotion (bbc.com/sport on 23 April 2022).
-Forest Green furious after Watford appoint Rob Edwards as manager (by Ben Fisher on 11 May 2022 at theguardian.com/football).
Photo and Image credits – Nailsworth coat of arms, from heraldry-wiki.com. ’21-22 FGR home jersey, photo from footballkitarchive.com. Nailsworth, Gloucestershire, photo from stroudnewsandjournal.co.uk. Aerial shot of the New Lawn by Forest Green Rovers FC via weforum.org. FGR’s old ground, the Lawn (1890-2006), photo by Matt Bigwood via stroudtimes.com/a-photographic-tour-of-gloucestershires-football-grounds. Segment of map of English clubs by Bill Turianski athttp://billsportsmaps.com/?p=52691 [2022 attendance map]. Blank map of England by Nilfanion at File:England relief location map.jpg. -Rob Edwards, photo by Rex Features via bbc.com/sport. -Ian Burchnall, photo by FGR at fgr.co.uk/news. -Matty Stevens, photo by Getty Images via gloucestershirelive.co.uk/sport. -Kane Wilson, photo by Rex Features via bbc.com/sport. -Ebrima Adams, photo unattributed at newschainonline.com/sport. -Nicky Cadden, photo by PA Images at alamy.com. -Jamille Matt, photo by Dan Mullan/Getty Images via theguardian.com/football.
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Exeter City – promoted back to the 3rd division after 11 years…
-Tue 26 Apr 2022 League Two – Exeter City 2-1 Barrow (by Brent Pilnick at bbc.com/sport).
-How Exeter City’s fan-owned model secured League Two promotion (by Brent Pilnick on 27 April 2022 at bbc.com/sport).
Photo and Image credits – ’21-22 Exeter City jersey, photo from shop.exetercityfc.com. Exeter coat of arms, from heraldry-wiki.com. Exeter on the River Exe, photo by Gavin Hellier at westend61.de. Aerial shot of St James Park (Exeter) from exetercityfc.co.uk/news. Drone-shot of St James Pak (Exeter) by Excel Aerials at youtube.com. -Matt Jay, photo from exetercityfc.co.uk/news. -Timothée Dieng, photo by shutterstock.com. -Jevani Brown, photo from devonlive.com/sport. -Captain Matt Jay after scoring the goal that got Exeter City promoted to the 3rd division, photo by Rex Features via bbc.com/sport. -Exeter City fans’ pitch invasion, screenshot from video uploaded by Exeter City Football Club at youtube.com.
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Bristol Rovers – promoted back to the 3rd division after 1 year…
-Sat 07 May 2022 / League Two, Bristol Rovers 7-0 Scunthorpe United (bbc.com/sport).
-Bristol Rovers hit magnificent seven against Scunthorpe to clinch promotion (by Ben Fisher at theguardian.com/football on Sat 7 May 2022).
Photo and Image credits above – 1982-88 Bristol Rovers crest from historicalkits.co.uk/Bristol_Rovers. 2021-22 Bristol Rovers home jersey, photo from subsidesports.com. -File:Bristol UK relief location map.jpg (by Nilfanion using Ordnance Survey Open Data at commons.wikipedia.org). -Memorial Stadium, photo unattributed at memorialgroundbristol.wordpress.com. -Eastville Stadium photo unattributed at bristolroversmemorabilia.weebly.com/[Eastville Stadium]. -Twerton Park (Bath), photo unattributed at twobluequarters.co.uk/grounds. -Joey Barton, photo by PA via dailymail.co.uk/sport. -Antony Evans scoring 6th goal of promotion-winning 7-0 victory over Scunthorpe (final day of season), photo unattributed at mirror.co.uk/sport. -Aaron Collins scoring 6th goal of promotion-winning 7-0 victory over Scunthorpe (final day of season), photo unattributed at bristolworld.com/sport. -Elliot Anderson scoring 7th goal of promotion-winning 7-0 victory over Scunthorpe (final day of season), photo by shutterstock.com. -2021-22 League Two final table, screenshot of image from soccerway.com/national/england/league-two/20212022. -Rovers boss Joey Barton asking fans to exit the pitch, photo unattributed at portsmouth.co.uk/sport. -Aerial view of Rovers fans’ pitch invasion, photo unattributed at twitter.com/[@Official_BRFC].
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Port Vale – promoted back to the 3rd division after 5 years…
-Port Vale: A club revitalised by maximising the finer details (by Nancy Frostick at theathletic.com on 10 April 2022).
-Sat 28 May 2022 / League Two Play-off Final, Mansfield Town 0-3 Port Vale (by Andrew Aloia at bbc.com/football).
Photo and Image credits above – Coat of Arms of Burslem, from thepotteries.org/arms/burslem. PVFC 2021-22 home jersey, from footballshirtculture.com. Conical bottle kilns at Furlong Lane, Middleport, Burslem – photo by Chris Oldham [2007] at thepotteries.org. Aerial shot of Vale Park, from alamay.com. -Darrell Clarke, photo by Tim Goode/PA Images via Getty Images via theathletic.com. -1st goal (Kian Harratt) and 3rd goal (Mal Benning) at Wembley, screenshots from video uploaded by Be In Sports Australia at youtube.com. -2nd goal at Wembley (James Wilson), photo by Getty Images via stokesentinel.co.uk/live. -As Port Vale fans cheer, teammates congratulate Mal Benning after scoring the goal that put Vale up 3-0, photo by John Walton/PA via theguardian.com/football/live.
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Thanks to all at the following links…
-Blank map of English Metropolitan and Non-Metropolitan Counties, by Nilfanion, at File:English metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties 2010.svg (commons.wikimedia.org).
-Metropolitan and non-metropolitan counties of England (en.wikipedia.org).
-Blank relief map of Greater London, by Nilfanion (using UK Ordnance Survey data), at File:Greater London UK relief location map.jpg (en.wikipedia.org).
-PFA League Two Team of the Year [2021].
-Historical attendance figures, european-football-statistics.co.uk.
-2021-22 attendance figures from worldfootball.net.
-Seasons in Football League by Club: Club League Divisional History Summary 1888-89 to 2020-21 (myfootballfacts.com);
fchd.info (Football Club History Database);
England – First Level All-Time Tables 1888/89-2018/19 (rsssf.com).
-Player-positions: transfermarkt.us.
-Distances: mapdevelopers.com/distance_from_to.php (mapdevelopers.com).
-2022 PFA League Two team of the year (thepfa.com).
