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2010/11 was undeniably one of the most entertaining League Two seasons in recent memory. Not only were there dramatic contests at both ends of the table right down to the final day, but the average number of goals per game was at its highest since 1993/94. Furthermore, the league was so open that with three rounds of fixtures remaining there were no sides whose participation in the division next season was guaranteed.

Starting at the top, Chesterfield were deserving champions: their promotion looked to be a formality throughout the season and they were the only side not to lose consecutive games. Their success owed much to the impressive new B2net Stadium, which from the outset became a fortress in which they scored freely. John Sheridan assembled a squad with a formidable blend of technique and experience, with strikers Craig Davies and Jack Lester sharing 40 league goals between them up front while at the other end a resilient defence saw only eight matches end in defeat.

Crewe Alexandra personified the season’s thrilling unpredictability with their gung-ho attacking approach generating some memorable scorelines, 8-1, 7-0, 5-5 and 2-6 being the most outrageous. Spearheaded by the division’s joint-top scorer, Clayton Donaldson, the Railwaymen banged in goals for fun at home, although their dire away record scuppered any chances of a promotion challenge. One team with no such Achilles’ heel were eventual runners-up Bury, who almost snatched the title during a frantic run-in. Their formidable front line, including the division’s PFA Player of the Season Ryan Lowe, were even more lethal away from Gigg Lane where they netted an average of over two goals per game. Losing manager Alan Knill to Scunthorpe served only to toughen their resolve, with his replacement Richie Barker enjoying a 100% record from his first six matches in charge.

Alongside the Shakers, two other clubs battled intensely for the remaining automatic promotion slots, with third place ultimately settled in controversial fashion. Wycombe Wanderers and Shrewsbury Town were virtually inseparable; both played attractive, attacking football, with the former’s inspirational and evergreen captain Gareth Ainsworth in particular bringing genuine class to the division. Ultimately it was the Chairboys who secured an instant return to League One thanks to a bizarre ‘ghost goal’ being awarded when the two sides met at the Greenhous Meadow in March. With Shrewsbury leading, Ainsworth was adjudged to have equalised despite replays clearly showing that his shot hadn’t crossed the line. Wycombe held on to secure a valuable point which allowed them to edge past the unfortunate Shrews.

The two newly-promoted sides, Oxford United and Stevenage, provided further evidence of the closing quality gap between League Two and the Blue Square Bet Premier, with the former finishing in a respectable mid-table position and the latter achieving a second successive promotion via the playoffs, with a memorable FA Cup elimination of Newcastle United to savour along the way. While Boro’s ruthlessly direct approach proved as near-universally unpopular as their manager Graham Westley, their defensive record was formidable - they were the only side to concede less than a goal per game - and few sides could match their levels of fitness and organisation. Another side continuing a journey between divisions, albeit in the other, infinitely more depressing direction were poor Stockport County. Still reeling from the effects of financial meltdown, their ramshackle squad offered little resistance and managed just nine wins while shipping an eye-watering 96 goals to finish bottom of the Football League.

For all the action at the top, it was in the lower reaches of the table that the story of the season was forged as Barnet pulled off one of the truly great relegation escapes. Bees fans were justifiably losing hope when Martin Allen returned to Underhill: they were languishing in the relegation zone and seven of their remaining eight games were against top half opposition. Allen injected an instant sense of belief into his charges, taking seven points from a possible nine before abruptly leaving for Notts County, but he’d given them the kick-start they needed and the Bees went into the final weekend of the season having whittled Lincoln’s 12-point advantage down to just two.

The last round of fixtures saw Port Vale visit Underhill while Lincoln hosted Aldershot. At the half time interval both matches remained tensely poised at 0-0, but Izale McLeod’s penalty shortly into the second half gave Barnet a deserved lead. As the clock ran down, news filtered in that Lincoln were trailing 3-0, with the Bees clinging on through an agonising six minutes of injury time to secure survival.

Lincoln City‘s own campaign was bookended by miserable runs of form, beginning with Chris Sutton’s barren tenure and ending with a truly horrible streak under his replacement, Steve Tilson, who had initially sparked a mid-season renaissance that saw the Imps pull away from the drop zone. The initial two thirds of this experience were shared with Hereford United, who likewise reaped an instant dividend from switching bosses after a poor start. While the two sides climbed away from the relegation trap door in unison, the Bulls alone managed to keep their distance under former physio Jamie Pitman, despite the additional handicap of a three-point deduction for fielding an ineligible player in February. The Imps’ eventual downward slide was in its own macabre way as impressive as Barnet’s ascent: they took just two points from their final 11 matches, scoring a measly five goals in the process.

While Port Vale‘s own fall from grace had less disastrous consequences, it was perhaps equally embarrassing. Vale were the early pace-setters and spent most of the first half of the season looking like promotion certainties. However, the wheels came off with embarrassing swiftness at the end of 2010, with a disappointing run against the backdrop of multiple managerial changes, boardroom power struggles and an argument on the team bus escalating to the extent that then-boss Jim Gannon and his assistant Geoff Horsfield felt it necessary to disembark at separate motorway service stations. While the team managed a win that day, the damage had been done: the unpopular Gannon was soon dispensed with and caretaker Mark Grew was unable to salvage their promotion campaign.

Rotherham United experienced a similar season of two halves, starting promisingly as Adam Le Fondre’s goals propelled them into promotion contention. However, when the supply dried up in December, the Millers faltered and slipped into mid-table mediocrity. After a humiliating 5-0 capitulation at Chesterfield in March, manager Ronnie Moore’s forthright assessment of his players was: “If I had a gun, I’d shoot them”. He left the club by mutual consent shortly afterwards.

Returning to more upbeat fare, in such an open division there are inevitably overachievers. One side who punched above their weight were Torquay United, whose commitment to attacking, passing football was rewarded with a playoff place that represented a significant advance on the previous season’s 17th placed finish. A young side with a sprinkling of more experienced heads, the Gulls are one of many smaller teams who will struggle to resist bids for their brighter talents in the close season. Arguably more remarkable were the exploits of fellow playoff contenders Accrington Stanley, who finished even higher despite subsisting on one the smallest crowds in the league. Stanley’s success was largely predicated on their outstanding home record, which many ascribed to the dire condition of the Crown Ground pitch. Remarkably for a team finishing fifth, they only won three away matches all season.

It seemed that for every unexpected success there was a corresponding underachievement, the most high profile being that of Bradford City. Despite boasting attendances befitting League One and starting the campaign with a former England manager at the helm (it may only have been one game but it still counts), the Bantams were a model of frustrating inconsistency even after parting with the hapless and unpopular Peter Taylor. Morecambe fans also had cause for disappointment: they’d reached the playoffs the year before but despite registering more shots than any other team in the division, stuttered to a frustrating 20th-placed finish which led to manager Sammy McIlroy’s departure after five years with the club.

The weather weighed in to provide further chaos, with Burton Albion being the most unfortunate victims of a spate of cancellations due to December’s awful conditions which saw almost no football played for a fortnight. The Brewers faced the unenviable task of playing two matches per week for most of the second half of the season, at one point finding themselves in the relegation zone by virtue of having played an astonishing eight games less than fellow occupants Stockport.

Despite racking up the season’s best unbeaten run (16 games), Gillingham narrowly missed out on the playoffs and a chance to bounce straight back into to League One, ultimately hindered by a slow start and a poor scoring record at Priestfield. Southend United likewise will have to reconcile themselves to at least two seasons in this division. Despite keeping the ball better than any other side, the Shrimpers never got beyond the periphery of the promotion race.

The dubious honour of the season’s longest winless run went to underachieving Northampton Town, whose campaign was heading for a nervous conclusion until their 18-match duck was finally broken with victories in their final two games. Cheltenham were another side to endure a forgettable year - statistically they spent less time in possession than any other team, but despite an insipid second half of the season they still managed to place five positions higher than last term.

Luckless Macclesfield Town found themselves enduring genuine tragedy for the second season running, rocked in January by the sudden death of midfielder Richard Butcher less than a year after having lost manager Keith Alexander. While their form understandably dipped in the following months, a spirited run of results meant that they were never in serious danger of relegation. Finishing just above them, comfortably in mid-table with zero goal difference and with their matches containing fewer shots on goal than those of any other team, it was an unremarkable season for Aldershot, who will be disappointed not to have built on last year’s playoff finish.

Looking ahead, next season promises a wealth of fresh excitement, with the headline surely being the much-heralded return to the Football League of fan ownership flag-bearers AFC Wimbledon, now only a single division below their usurpers MK Dons. Promoted with them were the almost universally-maligned Crawley Town, who spent heavily in their pursuit of glory and have wasted no time in pursuing a fresh batch of talent as they chase a second successive elevation. There’ll also be a strong south-western flavour to next season’s competition with three Westcountry sides relegated from League One to join Torquay and Cheltenham. In a nutshell, there’s every reason to expect yet another absorbing and electrifying season - roll on August!

This is a guest post from Ben Mayhew, aka Greenwich Gull.

Tags: Season Reviews