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[Blog] The Best Years Of Our Lives
Written by CherryHintonBlue on Friday, 31st Dec 2010 10:30

At the time of year when we look back on the previous 365 days, Chris Rand examines calendar years in the history of Ipswich Town, and finds a new low in 2010.

While writing up a review of the year for my own blog, I tried to compile the Ipswich section of my "memorable footballing moments" of 2010, and it was a struggle to find much to consider. Pablo's astonishing 97th minute goal in the very first home match of the year, the fun in the snow in the very last and I guess the result (if not the match) against West Brom in the Carling Cup. Between those highlights, ten months of plenty to discuss, but nothing much to savour.

But it did get me wondering how this calendar year stacked up against others in the club's history. If last season (2009/10) was disappointing, surely the 2009 calendar year might have been even worse? After all, it combined the last half-season of Jim Magilton's management with the first half-season of Roy Keane's, when it looked like Town might never win again.

Indeed, 2009 was a terrible year, and it shouldn't have been hard for 2010 to improve on that performance. But it turns out that only the win against Leicester in the snow actually pushed 2010 narrowly ahead of the year before. You can see the Ipswich Town League Performance By Calendar Year (All Time) here.

In terms of points per match, the greatest year of league matches in the club's history was 1998, under George Burley, with a total of 101 points at 2.10 points/match, all in the 'second division'. Amazingly, that year was not a championship-winning one at all; it included the end of a season where the club would finish fifth in the table, and the start of a season in which it would ultimately finish third. The club won an astonishing 63% of its matches though, finishing with a calendar year record of P48 W30 D11 L7.

Just behind, but more impressive because it was in the First Division, comes 1980, when Ipswich averaged 2.07 points per match under Bobby Robson. Anyone looking back on the year gone by in December 1980 would have reflected on a record which read P42 W24 D15 L3. That's right: just three defeats in an entire calendar year, all away (at Manchester City, Brighton and Spurs). Town finished third in 1979/80, and would finish second in 1980/81.

This year, Roy Keane's side has managed 59 points at 1.31 points/match, which - as mentioned previously - is only just ahead of 2009's 55 at 1.28 points/match. In terms of overall club history that's lower-mid-table performance. Those who are really gloomy about things at the moment might like to hark back to 1994 under John Lyall. In that year - spent entirely in the top flight, it's true - Town would narrowly avoid relegation in May, and then find themselves bottom of the table (and this time on their way to relegation) by new year. 1994's record reads P42 W5 D11 L26, with an average of just 0.62 points/match. That's less than half the points/match of the past two years.

However, it's worth emphasising that 1994 was spent entirely in the top division. If we just focus on the calendar years when Town have found themselves in the second tier for the entire 12 months, the last two years look very unimpressive. The club has spent an entire calendar year in this division 23 times, in five spells: 1958-1960, 1965-67, 1987-91, 1996-99 and 2003-10, the current one being the longest by far.

Of those 23 calendar years, 2009 saw the lowest ever win percentage (28%), and 2010 has seen the the fourth lowest (36%). 2010 has also seen the fourth highest defeat percentage (40%).

Worst of all, 2010 has set a record for the lowest average number of goals scored per match (1.09) in a year spent entirely in this division, beating the previous record (1.23, itself set last year), by a large margin. With just 49 goals scored, it's also the first time the club has failed to score 50 goals in a calendar year spent in the 'second division'.

Again, there is some consolation that Town supporters have seen fewer goals in the past; but only in years spent in the top division. Rewind back to 1994 again, and the club scored just 35 goals at 0.83/match, considerably fewer than even this year. Five other years have seen fewer goals scored per match than 2010, although all were also at the highest level.

For the other extreme, we have to go back to 1961 under Alf Ramsey for the highest number of goals scored per match, when Town scored 96 goals at an average of 2.29/match, and 1956, when the club scored even more, 99, albeit from more matches.

Are calendar years just a statistical oddity? Probably. But there's a possibility that the next decade might be the last which sees football seasons centred around the northern hemisphere winter and spread over two calendar years. There are already murmurings that the 2022 World Cup, absurdly awarded to Qatar, may be moved to January. Rather than have it in the middle of domestic seasons, as with the African Cup of Nations, the possibility of shifting domestic leagues around the world to March-November will then surely rear its head. Then every season will be a calendar year.




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gt_ added 16:46 - Dec 31
It doesn’t seem that long ago we were “trying to bounce back to the premiership”, we now seem to be the perennial championship team, the sort we played during the odd stints outside the top flight.

Interesting stat: Which teams have spent the longest (currently) consecutive seasons in the championship? I think it’s Preston, Coventry and then Ipswich?
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Vexorg added 06:24 - Jan 1
Good job calendar years don't matter then
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