The Story of a Premiership Season

April 2000

West Ham have the affrontary to score first at Old Trafford but the leaders make them pay with a ‘goal blitz’ that is the highest of the Premiership season and Paul Scholes becomes the fourth different United player to score a hat-trick this campaign and his team extends its advantage over second-placed Leeds, who lose at home to Chelsea. Emile Heskey nets his first goal as Liverpool extend their unbeaten run to 10 with victory over Coventry.

Bradford lose for the fifth game in a row, to Newcastle and top the basement trio. Watford remain 19th after they lose their 14th away game, to Everton, despite scoring twice, Alan Smart nets for the third consecutive game.

Derby stay just above the drop zone with victory over Leicester, who lose Stan Collymore with a broken leg.

Sheffield Wednesday are rooted between Bradford and Watford after they lose to Aston Villa. But things get worse for The Bantams as they go down to Southampton, for whom Matt Le Tissier scores a penalty, his 48th for the club, from 49 attempts, and his 100th Premiership goal.

Manchester United increase their lead at the top to 11 points with victory at Middlesbrough.
The Premiership is to introduce rugby’s ten-yard advancement rule for dissent, next season.
The lowest Premiership attendance, 8,248, is recorded at Selhurst Park where Wimbledon lose to Sheffield Wednesday, but The Owls are still deep in relegation trouble.

Spurs crash to a fifth defeat in six games, to Aston Villa, prompting their fans to protest after the game. Manchester United rest a number of players but are still to strong for Sunderland and victory means a 14 point lead and gives them at least one hand on the championship trophy.
Things are looking bleak for Bradford as a sixth defeat in a row drops them a place to 19th. Sheffield Wednesday move up to 18th after a shock win over Chelsea and Watford remain bottom after losing at Southampton.

Leeds are crushed at Arsenal, a fourth straight defeat, and the teams swap places with The Gunners moving up a place to third. Liverpool rack up their fifth consecutive victory, at Wimbledon, and go third with a brace from Emile Heskey.

Derby sign Georgi Kinkladze from Ajax for £3 million but Manchester United shatter the British transfer record in agreeing to pay PSV Eindhoven £18.5 million for striker Ruud Van Nistelrooy.
The Merseyside derby ends scoreless but no such drought at Valley Parade where Derby draw with struggling Bradford, for whom Dean Windass scores the club’s first Premiership hat-trick, in a result that helps neither team and The Rams are still perilously close to the drop zone.
Manchester United celebrate a sixth Premier League title in eight seasons by winning at Southampton to present Sir Alex Ferguson with his 15th trophy in 10 years at Old Trafford.

Arsenal’s fifth consecutive win keeps them third and Watford bottom while Leeds stay fourth with a draw at Newcastle, who fight back from 2–0 down with an Alan Shearer brace that takes his tally to 21.

Bradford move up a place to 18th following John Dreyer’s winning goal at Sunderland but Derby finally ensure safety with a win over Southampton.

A blow for the new Premiership champions as Ruud Van Nistelrooy fails a medical on a knee injury he suffered in February and puts a huge question mark over his record move to Manchester United who then call off the deal, saying they want to see the striker in action before the deal goes ahead.

The situation then gets worse for Van Nistelrooy, who collapses in agony during a PSV training session, and he is rushed to hospital where he undergoes an operation to repair a ruptured anterior ligament, which will not only put him out for a year but also jeopardise his career.
A Mark Overmars goal beats Everton, extends The Gunners’ winning sequence to six and takes the team second while Liverpool drop to third after losing at Chelsea, who stay fifth.

Leeds, with a first win in five games, stay fourth but virtually condemn Sheffield Wednesday to relegation. Bradford revive survival hopes with a convincing victory over Wimbledon that takes The Bantams out of the relegation zone for the first time since the end of December.

SIDEBAR
Matt Le Tissier only missed one penalty in his career, the successful goalkeeper was Nottingham Forest’s Mark Crossley.