BIRMINGHAM BACK FROM THE ‘DEAD’ AS ARSENAL AGAIN TAKE TITLE
The 2005-06 National Division season was destined to end as expected, Arsenal completing a hat-trick of successive titles, but the big drama of the campaign came before it had even started.
Birmingham City, who had finished fourth in 2004-05, ran into huge money troubles during the close season and saw star players and manager Marcus Bignot depart.
The Blues men’s club, who were in the (then titled) Premiership, had earlier in the year – through the board of directors – given the women’s set-up a letter of intent to provide financial backing.
But in June the offer was withdrawn, with commercial director Perry Deakin telling the Guardian newspaper: “We cannot see this as a viable business opportunity.”
A women’s team sponsor had also withdrawn support and the then club chairman, Steve Shipway, recalled as he looked back on the most worrying time in the club’s history: “We spent more than we'd got in 2004-05, particularly on paying players.
“We’d got a sponsor who said they’d provide us with £15,000 a year, and that’s what we worked our budget on. We signed players like (England and ex-Arsenal stars) Rachel Yankey and Alex Scott on big money, but then the sponsor jumped ship in January and left us right in the lurch.
“At the end of that season our big players left, Marcus left and Birmingham City FC (men’s club) walked away from us after agreeing to back us. We were dead.
“Just before the start of the 2005-06 season I rang the Football Association to tell them we would have to resign from the (Women’s) Premier League, but a day later I got a call from a parent of one of our players to say he’d give us £10,000.
“That allowed us to start the season, and with (new manager) Micky Moore in charge of what was virtually a kids team, we did stuff like jumble sales and bucket collections to keep us going while we put together a sustainable business structure.”
As they began to successfully put together that business structure, Blues were allowed by the FA to make a late start to the 2005-06 season. And it was a very difficult start, new boss Moore’s team taking only one point from their first six matches.
But with England internationals Karen Carney and Laura Bassett – both local girls – having stayed with the club and providing solidity to the largely inexperienced team, they gradually improved and went on to end the season in a respectable seventh place.
In the meantime there was no holding Arsenal, who in this season not only completed a hat-trick of successive titles but also achieved the feat while going undefeated throughout the campaign – just as they had in 2004-05.
A shape of things to come had arrived 10 days before the League season kicked off, the Gunners trouncing Charlton Athletic 4-0 in the FA’s annual Community Shield match.
Undaunted, however, Charlton started the campaign well and gave themselves a boost when holding the champions to a 3-3 draw in their seventh outing.
And when the previous season’s runners-up Everton then drew 3-3 with Arsenal at the end of October, both the Toffees and the Addicks – who later in the campaign would beat the Gunners in the League Cup final – were well placed for a serious title challenge.
At the half-way stage of the campaign Charlton sat top of the table and Everton were lying second. But at that point Arsenal had two games in hand on both of their rivals – and without dropping a single point in their remaining 13 games, they retained their crown with aplomb.
While Arsenal had been breezing their way to another title, the season was proving extremely difficult for newcomers Chelsea and Sunderland, the London club having been promoted from the Southern Division and the Black Cats from the Northern.
Sunderland, like Manchester United and Cardiff City, had lost the support of their men’s club earlier in the year and finished the season second from bottom.
Chelsea finished rock bottom, their end of term position looking likely from an opening run of seven matches which brought just one point and the sacking of manager George Michaelas following a 2-1 home defeat by Doncaster Belles.
The Belles, after saving their top flight lives in their final match of 2004-05 but then having a close season influx of players, enjoyed a much happier campaign that saw them finish fourth.
With the top flight set to have an increase of clubs from 10 to 12 for 2006-07, Chelsea and Sunderland did not have to suffer relegation but would line up in the following campaign’s enlarged division with promoted Blackburn Rovers and Cardiff City.
FINAL TABLE
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | GD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arsenal | 18 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 82 | 20 | 50 | +62 |
| 2 | Everton | 18 | 14 | 2 | 2 | 46 | 20 | 44 | +26 |
| 3 | Charlton Athletic | 18 | 12 | 3 | 3 | 41 | 13 | 39 | +28 |
| 4 | Doncaster Rovers Belles | 18 | 7 | 2 | 9 | 32 | 34 | 23 | -2 |
| 5 | Bristol Academy | 18 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 19 | 29 | 20 | -10 |
| 6 | Birmingham City | 18 | 6 | 2 | 10 | 24 | 40 | 20 | -16 |
| 7 | Leeds United | 18 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 27 | 36 | 18 | -9 |
| 8 | Fulham | 18 | 4 | 2 | 12 | 24 | 45 | 14 | -21 |
| 9 | Sunderland AFC | 18 | 3 | 4 | 11 | 22 | 57 | 13 | -35 |
| 10 | Chelsea | 18 | 3 | 3 | 12 | 22 | 46 | 12 | -24 |
FA WOMEN’S PREMIER LEAGUE NATIONAL DIVISION RESULTS 2005-06
14/08/2005
Bristol Academy 0-0 Everton
Chelsea 0-2 Arsenal
Doncaster Rovers Belles 1-3 Sunderland
Leeds United 2-1 Fulham
21/08/2005
Arsenal 4-3 Leeds United
Charlton Athletic 1-0 Doncaster Rovers Belles
Sunderland 1-1 Chelsea
Fulham 1-1 Bristol Academy
28/08/2005
Bristol Academy 1-5 Arsenal
Chelsea 1-2 Charlton Athletic
Doncaster Rovers Belles 1-0 Fulham
Leeds 2-4 Everton
04/09/2005
Charlton Athletic 2-0 Leeds United
Doncaster Rovers Belles 4-1 Birmingham City
Everton 5-0 Chelsea
Sunderland 3-1 Bristol Academy
Fulham 1-6 Arsenal
07/09/2005
Bristol Academy 1-1 Birmingham City
Chelsea 0-2 Fulham
Doncaster Rovers Belles 0-3 Everton
Leeds United 1-1 Sunderland
18/09/2005
Charlton Athletic 2-1 Fulham
Chelsea 1-2 Doncaster Rovers Belles
Leeds 2-2 Bristol Academy
Sunderland 0-3 Everton
25/09/2005
Birmingham City 2-4 Chelsea
02/10/2005
Birmingham City 0-2 Doncaster Rovers Belles
Bristol Academy 1-1 Sunderland
Leeds United 1-1 Charlton Athletic
05/10/2005
Everton 3-1 Doncaster Rovers Belles
Sunderland 2-2 Leeds United
Fulham 2-2 Chelsea
06/10/2005
Birmingham City 0-3 Bristol Academy
16/10/2005
Bristol Academy 1-6 Doncaster Rovers Belles
Charlton Athletic 1-0 Everton
Fulham 3-1 Birmingham City
20/10/2005
Charlton Athletic 3-3 Arsenal
23/10/2005
Birmingham City 3-3 Leeds United
Chelsea 0-0 Bristol Academy
Everton 5-2 Fulham
30/10/2005
Sunderland 1-2 Fulham
Charlton Athletic 2-1 Bristol Academy
Chelsea 1-4 Birmingham City
Everton 3-3 Arsenal
Leeds United 3-1 Doncaster Rovers Belles
06/11/2005
Leeds United 1-2 Chelsea
13/11/2005
Birmingham City 0-7 Arsenal
Bristol Academy 3-1 Leeds United
Doncaster Rovers Belles 3-2 Chelsea
Fulham 0-6 Charlton Athletic
20/11/2005
Chelsea 2-3 Leeds United
27/11/2005
Arsenal 4-0 Doncaster Rovers Belles
Bristol Academy 2-0 Chelsea
Charlton Athletic 8-0 Sunderland
Fulham 2-3 Everton
04/12/2005
Arsenal 6-0 Chelsea
Charlton Athletic 1-0 Birmingham City
Fulham 0-1 Leeds United
11/12/2005
Bristol Academy 1-0 Fulham
Leeds United 0-2 Birmingham City
18/12/2005
Arsenal 5-1 Bristol Academy
Fulham 2-5 Doncaster Rovers Belles
22/01/2006
Everton 2-0 Bristol Academy
Leeds United 1-4 Arsenal
05/02/2006
Chelsea 1-2 Everton
Sunderland 1-6 Arsenal
26/02/2006
Arsenal 5-1 Fulham
Bristol Academy 0-0 Charlton Athletic
Everton 3-1 Birmingham City
05/03/2006
Doncaster Rovers Belles 0-0 Bristol Academy
12/03/2006
Doncaster Rovers Belles 1-2 Charlton Athletic
19/03/2006
Fulham 4-2 Sunderland
26/03/2006
Chelsea 4-3 Sunderland
30/03/2006
Arsenal 4-2 Birmingham City
Doncaster Rovers Belles 0-0 Leeds United
02/04/2006
Arsenal 7-0 Sunderland
Birmingham City 1-3 Everton
Charlton Athletic 4-1 Chelsea
05/04/2006
Sunderland 3-2 Doncaster Rovers Belles
09/04/2006
Arsenal 5-0 Everton
Birmingham City 2-0 Sunderland
13/04/2006
Arsenal 2-0 Charlton Athletic
16/04/2006
Birmingham City 1-0 Charlton Athletic
Doncaster Rovers Belles 3-5 Arsenal
Everton 4-0 Sunderland
