FULHAM GLORY YEARS END WITH TREBLE BUT LOSS OF PRO STATUS

It was seen as a foregone conclusion by most Women’s Premier League watchers that Fulham, in their first season as a National Division club, would not only take the title but that they would do so as part of a League, FA Cup and League Cup treble. And the Cottagers duly obliged.

Having beaten their arch rivals Arsenal in March’s League Cup final – though they had to do so on penalties – Europe’s only full-time professional team more or less confirmed themselves as League champions when they beat the same opponents 4-1 in mid-April. 

Just for good measure, however, they then won their last three league games to finish eight points ahead of runners-up Doncaster Belles. And the treble was to be completed with a comfortable 3-0 victory over Charlton Athletic in May’s FA Cup final.   

But the treble triumph was also the swansong for Fulham as a high achieving team, their status as full-time professionals having been ended by club chairman Al Fayed in a decision that led to an exodus of star players and manager Gaute Haugenes at the end of the campaign.

Al Fayed had invested several million pounds into the team after the Football Association had announced in February 2000 that a professional women’s league would be in operation by the start of the 2003-04 season. But that was not now going to happen and, though the team continued for a while on a semi-professional basis, they were never again to win a major trophy. 

There were memories galore from two glorious seasons though, both of them ending with unbeaten records as well as a glut of titles. Haugenes, appointed manager ahead of the 2001-02 season, told ‘She Kicks’ magazine: “My mission, from when I started, was pretty clear: that when the FA (said they would) start a pro league three years later, we should be the best team in England. 

“So that was the target, what we had to work towards. Personally, I think that we were among the best teams in the world at the time. We were happy with achieving our goal but of course, at the same time, we were extremely disappointed that the [professional] league didn't come. 

“It was a tough decision to leave, but we were at a point where all of the players were losing their pro contracts and I didn't have a good feeling by sitting around and receiving a good salary and the players only getting pennies. That was not my thing. We had been climbing and climbing the whole time, up to the top, and then started taking steps back – it was time to stop then.”

As Fulham were set to enter a new era so were the National League’s bottom two and thus relegated clubs, Southampton Saints and wooden spoonists Brighton & Hove Albion.

Saints, after five years in the top flight, not only fell into the Southern Division but four seasons later dropped out of the Premier League altogether and were not re-instated until promotion to the League’s South West Division One in 2014.

Brighton had spent just two campaigns in the National Division and were to remain in the Southern Division until promotion to the FA Women’s Super League 2 in 2015.

FINAL TABLE

*Fulham were deducted one point for using an ineligible player (23/10/2002)  

FA WOMEN’S PREMIER LEAGUE NATIONAL DIVISION RESULTS 2002-03

18/8/2002
Charlton Athletic 6-1 Brighton & Hove Albion  
Doncaster Belles 0-4 Fulham  
Everton 0-1 Leeds United 

25/8/2002
Doncaster Belles 1-0 Brighton & Hove Albion  
Fulham 3-0 Everton   
Leeds United 2-2 Charlton Athletic

1/9/2002
Arsenal 6-0 Tranmere Rovers 
Birmingham City 1-1 Leeds United  
Brighton & Hove Albion 0-6 Fulham  
Charlton Athletic 4-0 Southampton Saints  
Everton 1-4 Doncaster Belles 

8/9/2002 
Doncaster Belles 2-1 Charlton Athletic   
Leeds United 3-6 Arsenal 
Southampton Saints 0-0 Birmingham City 
Tranmere Rovers 0-6 Fulham    

11/9/2002
Arsenal 5-0 Birmingham City    

15/9/2002
Southampton Saints 2-1 Everton 
Tranmere Rovers 2-0 Birmingham City  

22/9/2002
Birmingham City 0-0 Everton 
Tranmere Rovers 2-1 Brighton & Hove Albion  

24/9/2002
Fulham 3-3 Charlton Athletic   

25/9/2002
Tranmere Rovers 2-1 Everton 
Leeds United 2-3 Doncaster Belles
Southampton Saints 1-3 Brighton & Hove Albion  

6/10/2002
Brighton & Hove Albion 0-4 Leeds United  
Tranmere Rovers 1-1 Southampton Saints
Fulham 2-1 Doncaster Belles 
Arsenal 3-2 Everton    

13/10/2002
Brighton & Hove Albion 1-2 Southampton Saints 
Everton 3-1 Tranmere Rovers  

20/10/2002
Arsenal 4-1 Brighton & Hove Albion  
Fulham 3-1 Birmingham City   
Tranmere Rovers 0-2 Charlton Athletic  
Leeds United 1-3 Everton   
Southampton Saints 0-1 Doncaster Belles  

23/10/2002
Birmingham City 1-0 Arsenal   
Charlton Athletic 1-1 Fulham    

3/11/2002
Birmingham City 2-3 Tranmere Rovers 
Charlton Athletic 2-3 Leeds United  
Brighton & Hove Albion 0-3 Doncaster Belles  

7/11/2002
Arsenal 1-2 Fulham  

10/11/2002
Doncaster Belles 3-0 Everton  

17/11/2002 
Birmingham City 1-0 Southampton Saints
Brighton & Hove Albion 2-3 Everton  

1/12/2002
Everton 0-2 Charlton Athletic 

8/12/2002
Tranmere Rovers 2-1 Leeds United 
Fulham 5-0 Southampton Saints  
Arsenal 3-1 Doncaster Belles    
Everton 1-5 Birmingham City 
Brighton & Hove Albion 1-5 Charlton Athletic 

26/1/2003
Doncaster Belles 2-2 Tranmere Rovers    

2/2/2003
Birmingham City 1-2 Fulham    

9/2/2003
Leeds United 4-3 Tranmere Rovers 
Everton 2-1 Brighton & Hove Albion 

16/2/2003
Everton 0-1 Arsenal    

23/2/2003 
Brighton & Hove Albion 1-3 Tranmere Rovers 
Leeds United 3-4 Birmingham City 

2/3/2003
Arsenal 1-0 Southampton Saints 
Charlton Athletic 2-0 Tranmere Rovers 
Doncaster Belles 1-0 Birmingham City    
Leeds United 0-3 Fulham  

9/3/2003
Birmingham City 0-2 Doncaster Belles 
Fulham 5-1 Tranmere Rovers 
Southampton Saints 0-2 Leeds United 
Charlton Athletic 5-0 Everton    

16/3/2003
Tranmere Rovers 1-3 Doncaster Belles    
Everton 1-0 Southampton Saints   

23/3/2003
Birmingham City 4-2 Brighton & Hove Albion 
Leeds United 1-1 Southampton Saints    

30/3/2003
Brighton & Hove Albion 0-3 Birmingham City    
Doncaster Belles 3-1 Leeds United  
Southampton Saints 0-0 Charlton Athletic  

6/4/2003
Birmingham City 1-3 Charlton Athletic    
Fulham 6-1 Brighton & Hove Albion 
Southampton Saints 1-1 Tranmere Rovers 

12/4/2003
Arsenal 4-1 Leeds United 

13/4/2003
Doncaster Belles 1-0 Southampton Saints 

15/4/2003
Fulham 4-1 Arsenal 

20/4/2003 
Charlton Athletic 1-2 Doncaster Belles 
Fulham 3-1 Leeds United 
Tranmere Rovers 1-7 Arsenal 

23/4/2003
Brighton & Hove Albion 1-5 Arsenal

24/4/2003
Everton 0-2 Fulham   

27/4/2003
Charlton Athletic 3-2 Birmingham City    
Leeds United 2-2 Brighton & Hove Albion 
Southampton Saints 1-3 Fulham   

30//4/2003
Southampton Saints 1-3 Arsenal 

4/5/2003
Doncaster Belles 1-1 Arsenal    

8/5/2003 
Arsenal 1-2 Charlton Athletic    

11/5/2003
Charlton Athletic 0-1 Arsenal