Tottenham Hotspur and Stoke City's long spells in the First Division came to an end with relegation. Stoke sacked their manager Tony Waddington. On the last day of the season, with three teams hoping to avoid the last relegation place, Coventry City and Bristol City played out a controversial 2–2 draw. The kick-off had been delayed for fifteen minutes by Coventry chairman Jimmy Hill due to "crowd congestion". With ten minutes still to play, and the sides level, play virtually stopped when it was announced over the tannoy that Sunderland had lost to Everton. Both clubs survived while Sunderland was relegated.