The 1901–02 season was Newton Heath's 10th season in the Football League and their 8th in the Second Division. They finished 15th place in the league, avoiding relegation by only five points. In the FA Cup, the Heathens were knocked out by Lincoln City, losing 2–1 in the Intermediate Round.
| 1901–02 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| President | William Healey | ||
| Secretary | James West | ||
| Second Division | 15th place | ||
| FA Cup | Intermediate Round | ||
| Top goalscorer | League: Stephen Preston (11) All: Stephen Preston (11) | ||
| Highest home attendance | 13,000 vs West Bromwich Albion (9 November 1901) | ||
| Lowest home attendance | 500 vs Burton United (21 April 1902) | ||
| Average home league attendance | 4,389 | ||
|
| |||
The club also entered teams in the Lancashire and Manchester Senior Cups in 1901–02. They only managed to reach the second round of the Lancashire Cup, before losing 5–0 to Southport Central, but the real success came in the Manchester Cup, in which they beat Bolton Wanderers after a replay in the semi-final, before beating Manchester City 2–1 in the final.
The season marked also the final season for the club under its original name Newton Heath. The club had been struggling financially during the season, and were taken to court by their president, William Healey, over a sum of £242 17s 10d owed to him by the club in January 1902. Unable to pay, as they were £2,600 in debt, the club was declared bankrupt. Two months later, club captain Harry Stafford managed to enlist the help of Manchester brewer John Henry Davies, who, in conjunction with three other local businessmen, invested a total of £2,000 in the club. Davies was installed as club president and the club was renamed "Manchester United".
Second Division
edit| Date | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A |
Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 September 1901 | Gainsborough Trinity | H | 3–0 | Preston (2), Lappin | 10,000 |
| 14 September 1901 | Middlesbrough | A | 0–5 | 12,000 | |
| 21 September 1901 | Bristol City | H | 1–0 | Griffiths | 6,000 |
| 28 September 1901 | Blackpool | A | 4–2 | Preston (2), Schofield, own goal | 4,000 |
| 5 October 1901 | Stockport County | H | 3–3 | Schofield, Smith, Preston | 5,000 |
| 12 October 1901 | Burton United | A | 0–0 | 3,000 | |
| 19 October 1901 | Glossop | A | 0–0 | 5,000 | |
| 26 October 1901 | Doncaster Rovers | H | 6–0 | Coupar (2), Schofield, Griffiths, Preston, own goal | 7,000 |
| 9 November 1901 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 1–2 | Fisher | 13,000 |
| 16 November 1901 | Woolwich Arsenal | A | 0–2 | 3,000 | |
| 23 November 1901 | Barnsley | H | 1–0 | Griffiths | 4,000 |
| 30 November 1901 | Leicester Fosse | A | 2–3 | Cartwright (2) | 4,000 |
| 7 December 1901 | Preston North End | A | 1–5 | Preston | 3,000 |
| 21 December 1901 | Burslem Port Vale | H | 1–0 | Richards | 3,000 |
| 26 December 1901 | Lincoln City | A | 0–2 | 4,000 | |
| 1 January 1902 | Preston North End | H | 0–2 | 10,000 | |
| 4 January 1902 | Gainsborough Trinity | A | 1–1 | Lappin | 2,000 |
| 18 January 1902 | Bristol City | A | 0–4 | 6,000 | |
| 25 January 1902 | Blackpool | H | 0–1 | 3,000 | |
| 1 February 1902 | Stockport County | A | 0–1 | 3,000 | |
| 11 February 1902 | Burnley | H | 2–0 | Lappin, Preston | 1,000 |
| 15 February 1902 | Glossop | H | 1–0 | Erentz | 4,000 |
| 22 February 1902 | Doncaster Rovers | A | 0–4 | 3,000 | |
| 1 March 1902 | Lincoln City | H | 0–0 | 6,000 | |
| 8 March 1902 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 0–4 | 8,000 | |
| 15 March 1902 | Woolwich Arsenal | H | 0–1 | 3,000 | |
| 17 March 1902 | Chesterfield | A | 0–3 | 2,000 | |
| 22 March 1902 | Barnsley | A | 2–3 | Cartwright, Higson | 2,500 |
| 28 March 1902 | Burnley | A | 0–1 | 3,000 | |
| 29 March 1902 | Leicester Fosse | H | 2–0 | Griffiths, Hayes | 2,000 |
| 7 April 1902 | Middlesbrough | H | 1–2 | Erentz (pen.) | 2,000 |
| 19 April 1902 | Burslem Port Vale | A | 1–1 | Coupar | 2,000 |
| 21 April 1902 | Burton United | H | 3–1 | Cartwright, Griffiths, Preston | 500 |
| 23 April 1902 | Chesterfield | H | 2–0 | Coupar, Preston | 2,000 |
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Bromwich Albion (C, P) | 34 | 25 | 5 | 4 | 82 | 29 | 2.828 | 55 | Promotion to the First Division |
| 2 | Middlesbrough (P) | 34 | 23 | 5 | 6 | 90 | 24 | 3.750 | 51 | |
| 3 | Preston North End | 34 | 18 | 6 | 10 | 71 | 32 | 2.219 | 42 | |
| 4 | Woolwich Arsenal | 34 | 18 | 6 | 10 | 50 | 26 | 1.923 | 42 | |
| 5 | Lincoln City | 34 | 14 | 13 | 7 | 45 | 35 | 1.286 | 41 | |
| 6 | Bristol City | 34 | 17 | 6 | 11 | 52 | 35 | 1.486 | 40 | |
| 7 | Doncaster Rovers | 34 | 13 | 8 | 13 | 49 | 58 | 0.845 | 34 | |
| 8 | Glossop | 34 | 10 | 12 | 12 | 36 | 40 | 0.900 | 32 | |
| 9 | Burnley | 34 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 41 | 45 | 0.911 | 30 | |
| 10 | Burton United | 34 | 11 | 8 | 15 | 46 | 54 | 0.852 | 30 | |
| 11 | Barnsley | 34 | 12 | 6 | 16 | 51 | 63 | 0.810 | 30 | |
| 12 | Burslem Port Vale | 34 | 10 | 9 | 15 | 43 | 59 | 0.729 | 29 | |
| 13 | Blackpool | 34 | 11 | 7 | 16 | 40 | 56 | 0.714 | 29 | |
| 14 | Leicester Fosse | 34 | 12 | 5 | 17 | 38 | 56 | 0.679 | 29 | |
| 15 | Newton Heath | 34 | 11 | 6 | 17 | 38 | 53 | 0.717 | 28 | |
| 16 | Chesterfield Town | 34 | 11 | 6 | 17 | 47 | 68 | 0.691 | 28 | Re-elected |
| 17 | Stockport County | 34 | 8 | 7 | 19 | 36 | 72 | 0.500 | 23 | |
| 18 | Gainsborough Trinity | 34 | 4 | 11 | 19 | 30 | 80 | 0.375 | 19 |
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal average; 3) Goals scored
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted
FA Cup
edit| Date | Round | Opponents | H / A | Result F–A |
Scorers | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 December 1901 | Intermediate Round | Lincoln City | H | 1–2 | Fisher | 4,000 |