The 2001–02 season is often regarded as one of the most successful seasons of Ayr United's history. In this season they eliminated Stranraer, Kilmarnock, Inverness CT and Hibernian en route to the Scottish League Cup Final,[1] in which they were beaten by Rangers. In the Scottish Cup they beat Deveronvale, Dunfermline Athletic and Dundee United before losing out to Celtic in the semi-final.[2] While maintaining good cup runs the club sustained a respectable finish of Third Place in Division One.
| 2001–02 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Chairman |  Bill Barr | ||
| Manager | Gordon Dalziel | ||
| First Division | Third place | ||
| Scottish Cup | Semi-Final, lost to Celtic | ||
| League Cup | Runners-Up | ||
| Challenge Cup | Second round, lost to Stranraer | ||
|
| |||
Competitions
editWin Draw Loss
Pre season
edit| 16 July 2001 Friendly | Blyth Spartans  | 1–1 | Ayr United | Croft Park, Blyth |
| [[3](Report)] | Attendance: n/a |
| 18 July 2001 Friendly | Darlington | 0–0 | Ayr United | Croft Park, Blyth |
| Attendance: 182 |
| 21 July 2001 Friendly | Berwick Rangers | 0–0 | Ayr United | Shielfield Park, Berwick-upon-Tweed |
| Attendance: 212 |
| 23 July 2001 Friendly | Ayr United | 0–2 | Blackpool | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| Attendance: 1,381 |
| 25 July 2001 Friendly | Queens Park | 0–2 | Ayr United | Hampden Park, Glasgow |
| Attendance: 264 |
| 28 July 2001 Friendly | Ayr United | 4–0 | Wigan Athletic | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| Attendance: 1,300 |
| 31 July 2001 Friendly | Ayr United | 0–0 | Dumbarton | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| Attendance: n/a |
Scottish First Division
editMatches
edit| 4 August 2001 Match 1 | Falkirk | 1–2 | Ayr United | Brockville Park, Falkirk |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,828 |
| 11 August 2001 Match 2 | Ayr United | 2–0 | Ross County | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | [4] (Report) | Attendance: 2,457 |
| 18 August 2001 Match 3 | Airdrieonians | 2–1 | Ayr United | Excelsior Stadium, Airdrie |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,039 |
| 25 August 2001 Match 4 | Ayr United | 0–0 | Raith Rovers | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,410 |
| 8 September 2001 Match 5 | Partick Thistle | 1–2 | Ayr United | Firhill Stadium, Glasgow |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 3,820 |
| 15 September 2001 Match 6 | Ayr United | 4–2 | St Mirren | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | [5] | Attendance: 3,645 |
| 18 September 2001 Match 7 | Arbroath | 3–2 | Ayr United | Gayfield Park, Arbroath |
| Attendance: 438 |
| 23 September 2001 Match 8 | Ayr United | 2–1 | Clyde | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,278 |
| 29 September 2001 Match 9 | Inverness CT | 3–1 | Ayr United | Caledonian Stadium, Inverness |
| 15:00 | [6] | Attendance: 1,533 |
| 13 October 2001 Match 10 | Ayr United | 2–2 | Falkirk | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,439 |
| 20 October 2001 Match 11 | Ross County | 3–2 | Ayr United | Victoria Park, Dingwall |
| 15:00 | [7] | Attendance: 1,991 |
| 27 October 2001 Match 12 | Ayr United | 0–2 | Partick Thistle | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 3,447 |
| Match 13 | Raith Rovers | 1–1 | Ayr United | Stark's Park, Kirkcaldy |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 1,781 |
| 10 November 2001 Match 14 | Ayr United | 0–1 | Arbroath | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 1,977 |
| 17 November 2001 Match 15 | St Mirren | 0–1 | Ayr United | Love Street, Paisley |
| 15:00 | [8] | Attendance: 3,973 |
| 24 November 2001 Match 16 | Ayr United | 3–0 | Inverness CT | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 1,999 |
| 1 December 2001 Match 17 | Clyde | 2–2 | Ayr United | Broadwood Stadium, Cumbernauld |
| 15:00 | [9] | Attendance: 1,303 |
| 8 December 2001 Match 18 | Ayr United | 1–3 | Airdrieonians | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | [10] | Attendance: 2,656 |
| 15 December 2001 Match 19 | Falkirk | 0–2 | Ayr United | Brockville Park, Falkirk |
| 15:00 | [11] | Attendance: 2,418 |
| 26 December 2001 Match 20 | Partick Thistle | 2–1 | Ayr United | Firhill Stadium, Glasgow |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 4,611 |
| 29 December 2001 Match 21 | Ayr United | 3–1 | Raith Rovers | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,033 |
| 12 January 2002 Match 22 | Arbroath | 0–2 | Ayr United | Gayfield Park, Arbroath |
| 15:00 | [12] | Attendance: 700 |
| 19 January 2002 Match 23 | Ayr United | 0–1 | Clyde | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,151 |
| 2 February 2002 Match 24 | Inverness CT | 1–1 | Ayr United | Caledonian Stadium, Inverness |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 1,409 |
| 9 February 2002 Match 25 | Airdrieonians | 1–2 | Ayr United | Excelsior Stadium, Airdrie |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 1,771 |
| 16 February 2002 Match 26 | Ayr United | 0–0 | Ross County | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,186 |
| 26 February 2002 Match 27 | Ayr United | 4–1 | St Mirren | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 1,932 |
| 2 March 2002 Match 28 | Raith Rovers | 3–3 | Ayr United | Stark's Park, Kirkcaldy |
| 19:45 | Attendance: 2,010 |
| 9 March 2002 Match 29 | Ayr United | 1–1 | Partick Thistle | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 19:45 | Attendance: 3,624 |
| 26 March 2002 Match 30 | Ayr United | 0–0 | Arbroath | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 19:45 | Attendance: 2,249 |
| 30 March 2002 Match 31 | Clyde | 2–2 | Ayr United | Broadwood Stadium, Cumbernauld |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 1,023 |
| 2 April 2002 Match 32 | St Mirren | 1–1 | Ayr United | Love Street, Paisley |
| 19:45 | Attendance: 3,002 |
| 6 April 2002 Match 33 | Ayr United | 1–0 | Inverness CT | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 1,818 |
| 13 April 2002 Match 34 | Ayr United | 0–0 | Falkirk | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,473 |
| 21 April 2002 Match 35 | Ross County | 1–1 | Ayr United | Victoria Park, Dingwall |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,822 |
| 27 April 2002 Match 36 | Ayr United | 1–0 | Airdrieonians | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| 15:00 | Attendance: 2,793 | |||
| Note: Match abandoned after twenty-one minutes due to crowd trouble. The result was later given as such. | ||||
Scottish Challenge Cup
edit| 7 August 2001 1st Round | St Mirren | 1–3 | Ayr United | Love Street, Paisley |
| 19:30 BST | Yardley  49' |
[13] | 15' Teale 49' Sheerin 72' Annand |
Attendance: 2,072 |
| 14 August 2001 2nd Round | Stranraer | 3–2 | Ayr United | Stair Park, Stranraer |
| 19:30 BST | Finlayson 36' Harty 57'Wright 58' |
[14] | 7' Bradford 82' McGinlay |
Attendance: 1,387 Referee: Robert Orr |
Source: ESPN Soccernet and Soccerbase
Scottish League Cup
edit| 25 September 2001 2nd Round | Ayr United | 4–0 | Stranraer | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| Attendance: 1,503 |
| 9 October 2001 3rd Round | Ayr United | 0–0 (5 – 4 p) | Kilmarnock | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| [15][16] | Attendance: 7,418 |
| 28 November 2001 Quarter–Final | Ayr United | 5–1 | Inverness CT | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| [17] | Attendance: 2,710 |
| 5 February 2002 Semi–Final | Hibernian | 0–1 AET | Ayr United | Hampden Park, Glasgow |
| Attendance: 11,779 |
| 17 March 2002 Final | Ayr United | 0–4 | Rangers | Hampden Park, Glasgow |
| Attendance: 50,076 |
Scottish Cup
edit| 5 January 2002 3rd Round | Deveronvale | 0–6 | Ayr United | Princess Royal Park, Banff |
| [18] | Attendance: 1,800 |
| 26 January 2002 4th round | Ayr United | 3–0 | Dunfermline Athletic | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| Attendance: 3,681 |
| 23 February 2002 Quarter–Final | Dundee United | 2–2 | Ayr United | Tannadice Park, Dundee |
| [1] | Attendance: 5,884 |
| 6 March 2002 Quarter–Final Replay | Ayr United | 2–0 | Dundee United | Somerset Park, Ayr |
| [2] | Attendance: 4,446 |
| 23 March 2002 Semi–Final | Celtic | 3–0 | Ayr United | Hampden Park, Glasgow |
| Attendance: 26,774 |
Final League Table
edit| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Partick Thistle (C, P) | 36 | 19 | 9 | 8 | 61 | 38 | +23 | 66 | Promotion to the Premier League |
| 2 | Airdrieonians (R) | 36 | 15 | 11 | 10 | 59 | 40 | +19 | 56 | Club folded after the season |
| 3 | Ayr United | 36 | 13 | 13 | 10 | 53 | 44 | +9 | 52 | |
| 4 | Ross County | 36 | 14 | 10 | 12 | 51 | 43 | +8 | 52 | |
| 5 | Clyde | 36 | 13 | 10 | 13 | 51 | 56 | −5 | 49 |
Source: "2001-2002 First Division - SPFL Archive". SPFL. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
Rules for classification: 1) points; 2) goal difference; 3) number of goals scored.
(C) Champions; (P) Promoted; (R) Relegated
References
edit- ^ "Hampden set for Ayr raid". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 13 March 2002. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Cup Heroes walking on Ayr". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 6 March 2002. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Ayr United 1-1 Blyth Spartans". HonestPage.co.uk. 16 July 2010. Archived from the original on 2 August 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Ayr United 2-0 Ross County". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 11 August 2001. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Ayr United 4-2 Saint Mirren". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 15 September 2001. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Inverness CT 3-1 Ayr United". HonestPage.co.uk. 29 September 2001. Archived from the original on 6 September 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Ross County 3-2 Ayr United". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 20 October 2001. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "St Mirren 0-1 Ayr United". HonestPage.co.uk. 17 November 2001. Archived from the original on 3 August 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Clyde 2-2 Ayr United". HonestPage.co.uk. 1 December 2001. Archived from the original on 1 August 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Ayr United 1-3 Airdrieonians". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 8 December 2001. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Falkirk 0-2 Ayr United". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 15 August 2001. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Arbroath 0-2 Ayr United". HonestPage.co.uk. 12 January 2002. Archived from the original on 2 August 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Saint Mirren 1-3 Ayr United". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 7 August 2001. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Stranraer 3-2 Ayr United". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 14 August 2001. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Ayr United 0-0 Kilmarnock (5-4 pens)". HonestPage.co.uk. 9 October 2001. Archived from the original on 2 August 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Ayr United 0-0 Kilmarnock". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 9 October 2001. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Ayr United 5-1 Inverness CT". BBC.co.uk/SPORT. 28 November 2001. Retrieved 28 December 2010.
- ^ "Deveronvale 0-6 Ayr United". HonestPage.co.uk. 5 January 2002. Archived from the original on 7 September 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2010.