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By Brian Sears
20 September 2010
The three teams promoted to the Premier League this season – Newcastle, Blackpool and West Bromwich Albion – have made the most successful start to a top-flight season of any group of newcomers, collectively, since the League’s first season in 1992-93, analysis by sportingintelligence shows. (See table below).
That trio have made identical point-scoring starts, each amassing seven points from their opening five games after two wins, a draw and two defeats apiece. Their results have been good enough to see them sitting respectively in sixth, ninth and 10th places in the table today.
And their collective points tally of 21 is the best haul of points by the promoted clubs combined since the first Premier League season, 18 years ago. Back then, Blackburn (with 11 points), Ipswich (7) and Middlesbrough (5) had a total of 25 points from the first five rounds of matches. No other group of promoted clubs until this season has amassed more than 20 points at the same stage.
The highest total by a single promoted club after five games was the 13 gained by Nottingham Forest in 1994, while at the other end of the spectrum, Sunderland were pointless after five games five years ago having just come up.
The highest finish for any promoted club so far is third place, by Newcastle in 1993-94, having managed five points from their first five games, and Forest the next season.
This is West Brom’s fourth campaign in the Premier League and they have made their best start. At this point after five games they have six points in 2002, three in 2004, and four in 2008.
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*1995 only two clubs promoted
