2002–03 Ipswich Town F.C. season

During the 2002–03 English football season, Ipswich Town competed in the First Division, following relegation from the FA Premier League the previous season. Despite being relegated, Ipswich Town had achieved UEFA Cup qualification for the second season running, this time via the UEFA Respect Fair Play ranking.

Ipswich Town

2002-03 season
Chairman	David Sheepshanks
Manager	George Burley (until 11 October 2002) Tony Mowbray (caretaker) (11–28 October 2002) Joe Royle (from 28 October 2002)
Stadium	Portman Road
First Division	7th
FA Cup	Fourth round
League Cup	Fourth round
UEFA Cup	Second round
Top goalscorer	League: Pablo Couñago (17) All: Pablo Couñago (21)
Highest home attendance	29,503 (vs Nottingham Forest, 5 Apr 2003, First Division)
Lowest home attendance	13,266 (vs Brighton & Hove Albion, 24 Sep 2002, League Cup)
Average home league attendance	25,498
Home colours Away colours
← 2001–02 2003–04 →

Season summary

The financial cost of relegation the previous season saw Ipswich enter administration on 10 February.^[1] The financial problems had caused the sale of both key players like Marcus Stewart and promising young players like Titus Bramble and Darren Ambrose, leading to poor results on the pitch that left Ipswich struggling near the relegation zone. A 3–0 defeat at fellow strugglers Grimsby Town proved to be the final straw and manager George Burley was sacked in October. First team coach and former Ipswich player Tony Mowbray took charge of the next four games, winning one, before being replaced by Joe Royle - a former player for Town's archrivals Norwich City. Royle turned Town's fortunes around considerably and they finished in 7th place, 4 points off the playoff places.

In the League Cup, Ipswich reached the fourth round before being knocked out by eventual winners Liverpool 5–4 on penalties, after Tommy Miller's strike in the fourteenth minute was cancelled out by El Hadji Diouf's 54th-minute penalty.

First-team squad

Squad at end of season^[2]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  ENG Andy Marshall 2 DF  NED Fabian Wilnis 4 DF  ENG John McGreal 6 DF  ENG Mark Venus 7 MF  NIR Jim Magilton 8 MF  IRL Matt Holland (captain) 9 FW  ESP Pablo Couñago 10 FW  ENG Alun Armstrong 12 DF  ENG Richard Naylor 14 MF  ENG Jermaine Wright

No. Pos. Nation Player 15 DF  ENG Chris Makin 16 FW  ENG Marcus Bent 17 FW  ENG Dean Bowditch 18 FW  ENG Darren Bent 19 MF  NGA Finidi George 21 MF  ENG Tommy Miller 23 DF  DEN Thomas Gaardsøe 26 GK  ENG James Pullen 30 MF  NED Martijn Reuser 32 DF  ENG Matt Richards

Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 3 MF  ENG Jamie Clapham (to Birmingham City) 5 DF  ISL Hermann Hreiðarsson (to Charlton Athletic) 11 FW  ENG Marcus Stewart (to Sunderland) 13 GK  IRL Keith Branagan (retired) 17 DF  ENG Wayne Brown (to Watford)

No. Pos. Nation Player 20 FW  ENG Richard Logan (to Boston United) 22 MF  ENG Darren Ambrose (to Newcastle United) 25 MF  FRA Ulrich Le Pen (on loan to Strasbourg) 29 DF  RSA Justin Miller (to Leyton Orient) 31 GK  ENG Paul Gerrard (on loan from Everton)

Reserve squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 20 DF  ENG Aidan Collins 24 MF  NED Nabil Abidallah 27 MF  ENG Matt Bloomfield 28 DF  ENG Lee Beevers

No. Pos. Nation Player 29 FW  ENG Antonio Murray 33 MF  ENG Ian Westlake 35 GK  WAL Lewis Price

Pre-season

Ipswich went on a pre-season tour of Denmark in July as part of the pre-season for the 2002–03 season.^[3]

Legend

Win

Draw

Loss

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
16 July 2002	AaB	A	0–1	Unknown
18 July 2002	Farum Boldklub	A	1–2	Unknown	Armstrong
24 July 2002	Bristol Rovers	A	2–1	Unknown	Ambrose, D Bent
27 July 2002	Bristol City	A	3–0	Unknown	D Bent, Miller (2) (pen)
29 July 2002	Barnet	A	2–1	Unknown	Couñago (2)
31 July 2002	Brentford	A	3–0	Unknown	George, Stewart (2)
3 August 2002	Celta Vigo	H	2–1	Unknown	Ambrose (2)

Competitions

Football League First Division

Main article: 2002–03 Football League First Division

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Promotion or relegation
5	Wolverhampton Wanderers (O, P)	46	20	16	10	81	44	+37	76	Qualification for First Division Playoffs
6	Nottingham Forest	46	20	14	12	82	50	+32	74
7	Ipswich Town	46	19	13	14	80	64	+16	70
8	Norwich City	46	19	12	15	60	49	+11	69
9	Millwall	46	19	9	18	59	69	−10	66

Updated to match(es) played on 11 May 2003. Source: Soccerway
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(O) Play-off winners; (P) Promoted

Legend

Win

Draw

Loss

Ipswich Town's score comes first^[4]

Matches

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
10 August 2002	Walsall	A	2–0	5,253	Ambrose, M Bent
18 August 2002	Leicester City	H	6–1	27,374	Holland (2), Ambrose, George, Couñago (2)
24 August 2002	Millwall	A	1–1	8,097	D Bent
26 August 2002	Bradford City	H	1–2	25,457	D Bent
1 September 2002	Preston North End	A	0–0	15,357
15 September 2002	Norwich City	H	1–1	29,112	Couñago
22 September 2002	Stoke City	A	1–2	14,587	Holland
28 September 2002	Derby County	H	0–1	24,439
6 October 2002	Wimbledon	A	1–0	3,238	Ambrose
8 October 2002	Grimsby Town	A	0–3	4,688
12 October 2002	Sheffield Wednesday	H	2–1	23,410	Couñago (2)
19 October 2002	Reading	A	1–3	19,524	Ambrose
22 October 2002	Burnley	H	2–2	22,736	McGreal, Ambrose
26 October 2002	Gillingham	H	0–1	24,176
3 November 2002	Crystal Palace	H	1–2	24,941	Ambrose
9 November 2002	Sheffield United	A	0–0	15,884
17 November 2002	Watford	A	2–0	16,184	Armstrong, Clapham
23 November 2002	Coventry City	H	2–1	23,633	D Bent, Couñago
30 November 2002	Nottingham Forest	A	1–2	24,898	Williams (o.g)
7 December 2002	Rotherham United	H	1–2	22,770	Wilnis
10 December 2002	Brighton & Hove Albion	A	1–1	6,377	Magilton
14 December 2002	Watford	H	4–2	22,985	Miller, Naylor, Couñago, Bent
21 December 2002	Portsmouth	A	1–1	19,130	Gaardsøe
26 December 2002	Leicester City	A	2–1	31,426	Gaardsøe, Ambrose
28 December 2002	Walsall	H	3–2	26,550	Couñago (2), Gaardsøe
1 January 2003	Millwall	H	4–1	26,040	Miller (2), Wright, M Bent
11 January 2003	Burnley	A	1–1	15,501	Couñago
18 January 2003	Preston North End	H	3–0	24,666	M Bent, D Bent (2)
1 February 2003	Bradford City	A	0–2	12,080
8 February 2003	Sheffield United	H	3–2	26,151	D Bent (2), Ambrose
19 February 2003	Wolverhampton Wanderers	H	2–4	27,700	M Bent, Holland
22 February 2003	Grimsby Town	H	2–2	24,118	D Bent
2 March 2003	Norwich City	A	2–0	21,243	Wilnis, D Bent
5 March 2003	Wolverhampton Wanderers	A	1–1	26,901	Naylor
8 March 2003	Stoke City	H	0–0	25,547
11 March 2003	Crystal Palace	A	1–1	15,990	M Bent
15 March 2003	Sheffield Wednesday	A	1–0	24,726	Holland
18 March 2003	Reading	H	3–1	24,108	Gaardsøe, Holland, Magilton
22 March 2003	Brighton & Hove Albion	H	2–2	26,078	M Bent, Reuser
29 March 2003	Gillingham	A	3–1	8,508	Couñago (2), M Bent
5 April 2003	Nottingham Forest	H	3–4	29,503	Miller (2) (pen), M Bent
12 April 2003	Coventry City	A	4–2	13,968	M Bent (2), Couñago (2)
18 April 2003	Portsmouth	H	3–0	29,396	Reuser, Miller, Couñago
21 April 2003	Rotherham United	A	1–2	7,519	Couñago
26 April 2003	Wimbledon	H	1–5	25,564	D Bent
4 May 2003	Derby County	A	4–1	28,785	Couñago, D Bent, Magilton, Holland

FA Cup

Main article: 2002–03 FA Cup

Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R3	4 January 2003	Morecambe	H	4–0	18,529	Clapham, D Bent (2), Ambrose
R4	25 January 2003	Sheffield United	A	3–4	12,757	Gaardsøe, Miller (pen), Bent

League Cup

Main article: 2002–03 Football League Cup

Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R3	24 September 2002	Brighton & Hove Albion	H	3–1	13,266	D Bent, Couñago, Ambrose
R4	6 November 2002	Middlesbrough	H	3–1	14,417	Gaardsøe, Clapham, D Bent
R5	4 December 2002	Liverpool	A	1–1 (lost 4–5 on pens)	26,305	Miller

UEFA Cup

Main article: 2002–03 UEFA Cup

Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
QR First Leg	15 August 2002	Avenir Beggen	A	1–1	12,000	Stewart
QR Second Leg	29 August 2002	Avenir Beggen	H	8–1 (won 9–2 on agg)	17,462	Miller (2), Couñago (3), Brown, McGreal, Ambrose
R1 First Leg	19 September 2002	Smederevo	H	1–1	16,933	Alun Armstrong
R1 Second Leg	3 October 2002	Smederevo	A	1–0 (won 2–1 on agg)	16,500	M Bent (pen)
R2 First Leg	31 October 2002	Slovan Liberec	H	1–0	16,138	D Bent
R2 Second Leg	14 November 2002	Slovan Liberec	A	0–1 (1–1 on agg, lost 2–4 on pens)	6,509

Transfers

Loans in

Date from	Pos	Name	From	Date until	Ref
15 November 2002	GK	Paul Gerrard	Everton	13 December 2002	[5]

Transfers out

Date	Pos	Name	To	Fee	Ref
1 July 2002	DF	Will Snowdon	Livingston	Free transfer	[6]
1 July 2002	MF	Ashley Nicholls	Darlington	Free transfer	[6]
12 July 2002	DF	Titus Bramble	Newcastle United	£5,000,000	[7]
30 August 2002	FW	Marcus Stewart	Sunderland	£3,250,000	[8]
30 October 2002	GK	Keith Branagan	Retired		[9]
18 December 2002	DF	Wayne Brown	Watford	Free transfer	[10]
10 January 2003	DF	Jamie Clapham	Birmingham City	£1,300,000	[11]
20 January 2003	FW	Richard Logan	Boston United	Free transfer	[12]
31 January 2003	DF	Justin Miller	Leyton Orient	Free transfer	[13]
11 March 2003	FW	Steve Burton	Doncaster Rovers	Free transfer	[14]
24 March 2003	MF	Darren Ambrose	Newcastle United	Undisclosed	[15]
27 March 2003	DF	Hermann Hreiðarsson	Charlton Athletic	£900,000	[16]

Loans out

Date from	Pos	Name	From	Date until	Ref
18 July 2002	GK	Matteo Sereni	Brescia Calcio	30 June 2003	[17]
6 August 2002	FW	Steve Burton	Boston united	6 October 2002	[18]
29 August 2002	MF	Ulrich Le Pen	Strasbourg	1 June 2003	[19]
13 September 2002	DF	Justin Miller	Leyton Orient	17 December 2002	[20][21]
16 September 2002	DF	Erdem Artun	Doncaster Rovers	16 October 2002	[22]
29 November 2002	FW	Richard Logan	Boston United	19 January 2003	[23]
26 March 2003	DF	Lee Beevers	Boston United	4 May 2003	[24]
26 March 2003	MF	Robert Dickinson	Boston United	4 May 2003	[24]

Squad statistics

All statistics updated as of end of season

Appearances and goals

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	Total		First Division		FA Cup		League Cup		UEFA Cup
				Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Goalkeepers
1	GK	ENG	Andy Marshall	50	0	40	0	2	0	2	0	6	0
26	GK	ENG	James Pullen	2	0	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0
Defenders
2	DF	NED	Fabian Wilnis	43	2	33+2	2	2	0	2	0	4	0
4	DF	ENG	John McGreal	22	2	16	1	0	0	1	0	5	1
6	DF	ENG	Mark Venus	12	0	8	0	0	0	2	0	2	0
12	DF	ENG	Richard Naylor	19	2	11+6	2	1	0	0+1	0	0	0
15	DF	ENG	Chris Makin	38	0	33	0	1	0	1	0	3	0
20	DF	ENG	Aidan Collins	1	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
23	DF	DEN	Thomas Gaardsøe	42	7	37	4	1	1	2	1	2	1
32	DF	ENG	Matt Richards	17	0	10+3	0	1	0	0+1	0	1+1	0
Midfielders
7	MF	NIR	Jim Magilton	47	3	39+1	3	1	0	1+1	0	3+1	0
8	MF	IRL	Matt Holland	54	7	45	7	2	0	1	0	4+2	0
14	MF	ENG	Jermaine Wright	47	1	25+14	1	2	0	3	0	3	0
19	MF	NGA	Finidi George	17	1	3+7	1	0	0	1+1	0	1+4	0
21	MF	ENG	Tommy Miller	37	10	24+6	6	1	1	2	1	3+1	2
24	MF	NED	Nabil Abidallah	1	0	0	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0
30	MF	NED	Martijn Reuser	18	2	6+10	2	0+1	0	0	0	1	0
33	MF	ENG	Ian Westlake	5	0	0+4	0	0	0	0+1	0	0	0
Forwards
9	FW	ESP	Pablo Couñago	48	21	28+11	17	2	0	2	1	5	3
10	FW	ENG	Alun Armstrong	24	2	9+10	1	0	0	0+1	0	4	1
16	FW	ENG	Marcus Bent	38	12	25+7	11	2	0	0+1	0	2+1	1
17	FW	ENG	Dean Bowditch	5	0	0+5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
18	FW	ENG	Darren Bent	44	18	24+11	12	0+2	3	3	2	1+3	1
29	FW	ENG	Antonio Murray	1	0	0+1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Players transferred out during the season
3	DF	ENG	Jamie Clapham	36	3	26	1	1	1	3	1	6	0
5	DF	ISL	Hermann Hreiðarsson	36	0	28	0	2	0	3	0	3	0
11	FW	ENG	Marcus Stewart	4	1	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	1
17	DF	ENG	Wayne Brown	11	1	7	0	0	0	1	0	3	1
20	FW	ENG	Richard Logan	1	0	0	0	0	0	0+1	0	0	0
22	MF	ENG	Darren Ambrose	37	11	20+9	8	1+1	1	2	1	3+1	1
25	MF	FRA	Ulrich Le Pen	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0+1	0
31	GK	ENG	Paul Gerrard	5	0	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Last updated: end of season
Source: Competitions

Goalscorers

No.	Pos	Nat	Player	First Division	FA Cup	League Cup	UEFA Cup	Total
9	FW		Pablo Couñago	17	0	1	3	21
18	FW		Darren Bent	12	3	2	1	18
16	FW		Marcus Bent	11	0	0	1	12
22	MF		Darren Ambrose	8	1	1	1	11
21	MF		Tommy Miller	6	1	1	2	10
8	MF		Matt Holland	7	0	0	0	7
23	DF		Thomas Gaardsøe	4	1	1	1	7
3	DF		Jamie Clapham	1	1	1	0	3
7	MF		Jim Magilton	3	0	0	0	3
17	DF		Wayne Brown	0	0	1	0
0	DF		Fabian Wilnis	2	0	0	0	2
4	DF		John McGreal	1	0	0	1	2
10	FW		Alun Armstrong	1	0	0	1	2
12	DF		Richard Naylor	2	0	0	0	2
30	MF		Martijn Reuser	2	0	0	0	2
11	FW		Marcus Stewart	0	0	0	1	1
14	MF		Jermaine Wright	1	0	0	0	1
19	MF		Finidi George	1	0	0	0	1
Own goal				1	0	0	0	1
Total				82	7	7	13	109

Clean sheets

No.	Nat	Player	First Division	FA Cup	League Cup	UEFA Cup	Total
1		Andy Marshall	9	1	0	2	12
31		Paul Gerrard	1	0	0	0	1
Total			10	1	0	2	13

Disciplinary record

No.	Pos.	Name	First Division		FA Cup		League Cup		UEFA Cup		Total
1	GK	Andy Marshall	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	2	0
2	DF	Fabian Wilnis	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
3	DF	Jamie Clapham	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2	0
4	DF	John McGreal	3	0	0	0	0	0	2	0	5	0
5	DF	Hermann Hreiðarsson	5	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	1
6	DF	Mark Venus	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
7	MF	Jim Magilton	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
8	MF	Matt Holland	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
9	FW	Pablo Couñago	5	2	0	0	0	0	1	0	6	2
14	MF	Jermaine Wright	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
15	DF	Chris Makin	8	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	8	1
16	FW	Marcus Bent	2	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
18	FW	Darren Ambrose	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
19	MF	Finidi George	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
21	MF	Tommy Miller	3	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
22	MF	Darren Ambrose	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
23	DF	Thomas Gaardsøe	5	0	1	0	0	0	2	0	8	0
30	MF	Martijn Reuser	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Total			50	4	3	0	1	0	7	0	61	4

Starting 11

Considering starts in all competitions^[25]

No. Pos. Nat. Name MS Notes 1 GK Andy Marshall 50 2 RWB Fabian Wilnis 41 15 CB Chris Makin 38 23 CB Thomas Gaardsøe 42 5 CB Hermann Hreiðarsson 36 3 LWB Jamie Clapham 36 Darren Ambrose has 26 starts 8 CM Matt Holland 52 14 CM Jermaine Wright 33 Tommy Miller has 30 starts 7 CM Jim Magilton 44 18 CF Marcus Bent 29 Darren Bent has 28 starts 9 CF Pablo Couñago 37

3–5–2 Formation Marshall Wilnis Makin Gaardsøe Hreiðarsson Clapham Holland(C) Wright Magilton Couñago Bent

Awards

Player awards

Award	Player	Ref
Player of the Year	Matt Holland	[26]
Players' Player of the Year	Pablo Couñago	[27]
Young Player of the Year	Darren Bent	[28]

References

1. "Ipswich file for administration". 10 February 2003.
2. "All Ipswich Town players: 2003".
3. "Town Off to Denmark". TWTD. 15 July 2002. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
4. "Ipswich Town 2001-2002 Results - statto.com". Archived from the original on 27 June 2013. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
5. "Royle reunion for Gerrard". BBC Sport. 16 November 2002. Retrieved 26 June 2013.
6. "Two Players Released". TWTD. 5 April 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
7. "Football | Teams | Newcastle United | Bramble bids for starring role". BBC Sport. 4 July 2002. Retrieved 21 March 2009.
8. "Stewart Signs at Mackems". TWTD. 30 August 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
9. "Branagan Retires". TWTD. 31 October 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
10. "Brown Signs for Watford". TWTD. 18 December 2002. Retrieved 4 January 2016.
11. "Clapham Move Complete". TWTD. 10 January 2003. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
12. "Logan Signs at Boston". TWTD. 20 January 2003. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
13. "Miller Joins Orient". TWTD. 31 January 2003. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
14. "Burton Signs for Donny". TWTD. 11 March 2003. Retrieved 24 April 2020.
15. "Ambrose Deal Complete". TWTD. 24 March 2003. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
16. "Hermann Deal Complete". TWTD. 27 March 2003. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
17. "Accident may delay Sereni debut". UEFA.com. 29 July 2002. Retrieved 22 August 2009.
18. "Burton Loan Confirmed". TWTD. 6 August 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
19. "Le Pen Loan Confirmed". TWTD. 27 August 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
20. "Miller Off On Loan". TWTD. 13 September 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
21. "Miller Loan Extended". TWTD. 7 November 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
22. "Artun Off on Loan". TWTD. 16 September 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
23. "Logan Off to Boston". TWTD. 29 November 2002. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
24. "Two join Boston on loan". Ipswich Town F.C. Official Website. 26 March 2003. Archived from the original on 21 July 2010. Retrieved 21 April 2010.
25. "All Ipswich Town players: 2004".
26. "Matt Supporters' Winner". TWTD. 24 April 2003. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
27. "Pablo Players' Favourite". TWTD. 25 April 2003. Retrieved 25 March 2020.
28. "I Want to Stay - Pablo". TWTD. 28 April 2003. Retrieved 26 June 2020.