League positions before and after Checkatrade Trophy final over the past 10 seasons
By Lewis Mason
Published 29th Mar 2019, 14:24 GMT
Updated 29th Mar 2019, 14:26 GMT
Pompey take on Sunderland for the right to be crowned 2019 Checkatrade Trophy champions.
The League One promotion rivals are set to do battle in front of more than 80,000 supporters at Wembley. And the final is almost certain to be the highest attended match in the competition’s history. Here we take a look at the finalists’ league positions before and after the Checkatrade Trophy showpiece in the past 10 years.
Portsmouth celebrate the Checkatrade Trophy semi-final win over Bury. Picture by Daniel Chesterton/phcimages.com/PinPep
Lincoln beat Shrewsbury 1-0 in Checkatrade Trophy final last year. The Imps sat sixth in League Two on the weekend of the final. Danny Cowley's men ended the season in seventh, securing a play-off spot.
Shrewsbury suffered a 1-0 final defeat to Lincoln last season. The Shrews sat third in League One on the weekend of the final, ending the campaign in the same position. But they failed to win the play-offs.
Coventry were 2-1 victors over Oxford in the final. Although they suffered relegation from League One that season, finishing 23rd. The Sky Blues were rock bottom as they prepared for the final.
Michael Appleton's Oxford suffered a final defeat at the hands of Coventry. The U's ended the season eighth in League One, missing out on the play-offs. They sat ninth going into the final.
Adam Hamill (pictured) netted in Barnsley's 3-2 final win over Oxford. They also achieved promotion via the play-offs in League One having finished sixth. The Tykes sat eighth ahead of the final.
Oxford would avenge their final defeat to Barnsley. They finished the season second in League Two, achieving promotion. The U's sat behind leaders Northampton as they headed to Wembley.
Steve Cotterill guided Bristol City to a 2-0 win over Walsall in 2015. They also won the League One title that season. The Robins were ten points clear at the summit when they met the Saddlers.
Dean Smith led Walsall to the 2015 final, where they lost to Briston City. The Saddlers ended the season 14th in League One. That was two places higher than they sat before they took on eventual double winners Robins.
Peterborough were 3-1 winners over Paul Cook's Chesterfield in the final. They ended the season sixth in League One, clinching a play-off place. That is the same position they occupied ahead of the final.
