.jpg) | |||||||
| Event | 1999–2000 Football League Trophy | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
| Date | 16 April 2000 | ||||||
| Venue | Wembley,London | ||||||
| Referee | K.M.Lynch (Kirk Hammerton) | ||||||
| Attendance | 75,057 | ||||||
←1999 2001 → | |||||||
The2000 Football League Trophy Final (known as theAuto Windscreens Shield for sponsorship reasons) was the 17th final of the domestic football cup competition for teams from theSecond andThird Division of theFootball League. The match was played atWembley on 16 April 2000, and was the last Football League Trophy final to be played there before the stadium closed for redevelopment. The match was contested byBristol City andStoke City. The match was won by Stoke City, withGraham Kavanagh andPeter Thorne scoring in the 2–1 victory.[1][2]
The1999–2000 season saw bothBristol City andStoke City involved in the race for promotion to the First Division. Stoke had been in the top six for most of the campaign whilst Bristol battled with city rivalsBristol Rovers to gain a play-off spot. The two sides had played each other twice before the final.[2] Firstly on 14 November 1999 at Stoke'sBritannia Stadium the score ending 1–1 with goals fromNicky Mohan andBrian Tinnion. The second match atAshton Gate also ended in a draw this time 2–2 with goals fromKyle Lightbourne,Graham Kavanagh and a brace fromTony Thorpe.[2]
Both sides had a fairly easy route to the final, Bristol City were handed a first round bye whilst Stoke over cameDarlington 3–2 thanks to a Kyle Lightbourne golden goal. Bristol City beatCheltenham Town 3–1 in the second round and Stoke overcameOldham Athletic again via a golden goal.[2] In the quarters Bristol City eased pastBournemouth on penalties as Stoke beatBlackpool 2–1. The semi-finals saw Bristol City cruise pastReading 4–0 whilst Stoke needed a late goal fromJames O'Connor to progress. In the area finals Bristol City beatExeter City 5–1 over two legs and Stoke won equality as easily beatingRochdale 4–1.[2]
Bristol City[edit]First round:Bye Second round: Bristol City 3–1Cheltenham Town Quarter final: Bristol City 1–1 (4–1 pens)Bournemouth Semi final: Bristol City 4–0Reading Southern area final 1st leg: Bristol City 4–0Exeter City Southern area final 2nd leg:Exeter City 1–1 Bristol City | Stoke City[edit]First round: Stoke City 3–2Darlington Second round:Oldham Athletic 0–1 Stoke City Quarter final:Blackpool 1–2 Stoke City Semi final:Chesterfield 0–1 Stoke City Northern area final 1st leg:Rochdale 1–3 Stoke City Northern area final 2nd leg: Stoke City 1–0Rochdale |
Over 75,000 fans packed intoWembley to see Bristol City take on Stoke City in theFootball League Trophy final for which Stoke fans dedicated toStanley Matthews who had died in February 2000.[2] Stoke made the bright start of the two sides enjoying a decent amount of possession and took the lead throughGraham Kavanagh after 32 minutes after his shot beat the Robins 'keeperBilly Mercer at his near post. Leading 1–0 Stoke dropped deeper in the second half as they looked to cancel out the threat from the dangerousScott Murray andTony Thorpe. It looked to be working but with 15 minutes leftPaul Holland headed in a corner to make the scores 1–1.[2] However it was Stoke who had the final say, a counterattack by Stoke was halted whenBjarni Guðjónsson was fouled byLouis Carey to conceded a free-kick. Whilst Bristol complied about the awarding of the free-kick, Guðjónsson played a quick pass to Kavanagh who crossed in toPeter Thorne to earn Stoke their third win at Wembley.[2]
| Bristol City | 1–2 | Stoke City |
|---|---|---|
Holland 74' | Kavanagh 32' Thorne 82' |
     Bristol City |    Stoke City |
|
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
MATCH RULES
|
