Association football match
Football match
The 1988 Football League Third Division play-off final was an association football match contested by Walsall and Bristol City over two legs on 25 and 28 May 1988, and then a replay on 30 May 1988, to determine which club would play the following season in the Second Division. Walsall had finished in third place in the Third Division while Bristol City finished fifth. They were joined in the play-offs by fourth-placed Notts County and Sheffield United, who had finished in 21st place in the division above. Walsall defeated Notts County in their semi-final while Bristol City beat Sheffield United in the other.
The first leg of the final took place on 25 May 1988 at Ashton Gate in Bristol and was refereed by Joe Worrall. Alan Walsh scored directly from a free kick for Bristol City before Walsall equalised in the 62nd minute through Trevor Christie. David Kelly put Walsall ahead with ten minutes to go and scored again just before the final whistle to end the match 3–1. The second leg took place three days later at Fellows Park in Walsall, refereed by George Tyson. Rob Newman gave Bristol City the lead in the 31st minute and Carl Shutt made it 2–0 midway through the second half. The match ended with the aggregate score at 3–3 so a penalty shootout was used to determine the venue for a replay: Walsall won 4–2 so the deciding match took place at Fellows Park on 30 May 1988. A hat-trick from Kelly along with a header from Phil Hawker secured a 4–0 victory for Walsall and promotion to the Second Division.
Walsall's manager Tommy Coakley was sacked in December 1988 after a losing streak of eleven games, culminating in a 5–1 Boxing Day defeat at home to Oxford United which sent Walsall to the bottom of the league. He was replaced the following January by John Barnwell, but Walsall ended their following season in last position in the Second Division and were relegated back to the Third Division. Bristol City's next season saw them finish in 11th position in the Third Division, five places and nine points outside the play-offs.