The season was harsh for almost every team in the league – 18 clubs were more concerned with survival than easy life. At the end 8 points divided Blackburn Rovers, 5th, and the relegated Blackpool, 20th. Blackburn ended with negative – and worse than Blackpool's – goal-difference. In fact, Blackpool had better goal-difference than 13 clubs, 11 of which were better placed at the end. Of the bulk, only three teams finished with positive goal-difference – Sunderland, 6th, Stoke City, 7th, and Crystal Palace, 9th. Fulham, 10th, finished with neutral record – 49-49. Adding the clubs at the very top, only 8 clubs – 1/3 of the total – finished the season on the positive side. With most of the league fighting for survival, only four clubs were concerned with promotion – they were high above the rest: their was 12-point chasm between 4th and 5th at the end. The battle for promotion was fierce – 2 points divided 1st from 4th, and goal-difference decided who was to go up and who was to stay for another year down. Brighton & Hove Albion were the losers, although they had the second-best defensive record in the league. Scoring was not their forte, however, and they finished 4th. Lucky were Tottenham Hotspur – relegated the previous year, the Londoners stayed only a single season in Second Division.
Tottenham obviously were determined to return to their usual place among the best, but it was not easy – to the last moment promotion was not secured. The team lost only 6 matches – the least in the league – and scored the most goals – 83 – but their defense was leaky. They allowed 49 goals in their net – 10 more than the rest of the top clubs and the only top-4 team receiving more than a goal per match on average. The photo is not really the squad of the year, although normally is given as '1977-78 picture' – here is Pat Jennings, who left after the disastrous 1976-77 season and joined Arsenal. Tottenham was one more victim of the eternal problem of replacing great, but inevitably aging team – the transition was not smooth and the club suffered. Three players of the great early-70s squad still remained – Terry Naylor, Steve Perryman, and Ralph Coates – but the manager Keith Burkinshaw was still trying and hardly had even a small group of new players with strong potential. More or less, he had only Glenn Hoddle – 20-years old and at his third season in professional football. No wonder Tottenham barely qualified for promotion, but still they did.
At second place finished Southampton – with a point more than the Spurs, but also a point less than the champions. Southampton was relegated in 1973-74 and so far was unable to reach promotional finish. It was strange, for unlike other relegated clubs Southampton did not lose its stars – Mike Channon in particular, who was essential national team player. Nor they had declining team like Chelsea or Tottenham. Yet, Southampton seemed settled in Second Division – but this year they finally were on the move up. Successfully too.
The winners of the championship were a surprise – Bolton Wanderers.
Bolton missed promotion by a hair in 1975-76 and 1976-77 – both seasons they finished 4th, one point short of the coveted third promotional place. Obviously performing well and getting ambitious – third time lucky – but really the club was climbing up since 1972-73, when they won the Third Division and moved to Second. As for top flight, the last time Bolton played in First Division was 1963-64, when they finished second to last and were relegated. By now they were more or less forgotten and it was even a bit strange they were to play with the best.
