A club beginning with the letter ‘L’ sits atop of the table, after years of underachieving.

This team plays attacking football that has seen them ranked one of the most inform sides in European football.

Most of you will assume the team of topic is Liverpool, but you will be incorrect. The team aforementioned is Luton Town and they are on course to return to the Championship after 12 years in exile.

In 2018, Luton accumulated 88 points in 46 games in League One and Two to be ranked the fifth best-performed club in English Football by Experimental 3-6-1.

Under managers Nathan Jones and Mick Harford, the Hatters have experienced a dramatic rise through the football league ranks to sit top of League One in their first season back in the division.

Luton is one of many reasons why League One is the most intriguing league in the English Football pyramid this season.

Last year Wigan, Blackburn and Rotherham were promoted to the Championship after being relegated from the league the year prior.

The squad depth and finances of the three sides allowed them to dominate the league and again this season it was expected Sunderland and Barnsley would have had the finances to secure promotion.

While Barnsley have moved into the automatic promotion positions in recent weeks, Sunderland have struggled for consistency and sit six points away from second place.

The lack of clear dominance has infiltrated from the top to the bottom of the league where every position is still up for grabs.

Peterborough were one of the pacesetters at the top of the table at the start of the season along with Portsmouth, but poor form saw their manager Steve Evans sacked with the Posh sitting in seventh position.

Portsmouth’s revival this season has added a breath of fresh life into a side that has slid down the football pyramid over the last decade due to financial troubles.

Charlton’s off-field dilemmas have been put to the side while the team strives for a playoff spot.

Under the Lee Boyer, the Addicks are fifth on the table and look set to cement their place in the top six come the end of the season.

Doncaster and Blackpool are other sides in the hunt for a top six finish, but it is the other end of the table where things get interesting.

The League One relegation battle is always intriguing because four teams are relegated, which means no team in the bottom half is safe from the drop until the end of the season.

This season’s relegation battle has become even more intriguing as only 10 points separate 11th placed Wycombe and 21st Oxford United.

The only side that is almost certain for the drop is AFC Wimbledon who are six points away from safety.

Bradford City are one of the biggest clubs in League One, but ownership issues and poor results on-field see’s them sit 23rd on the table.

Only weeks ago did it appear that Bradford would avoid the drop, but one win in their last six games has seen them slip back into the relegation scrap heat.

Bradford will take confidence out of Scunthorpe who appeared on course for League Two, until they won six of their last eight games to move to 13th on the table.

The Iron should avoid relegation but are still in the hunt as they are seven points away from fourth bottom.

Added to the evenness of the competition has been the increase in goals and attendances in the league. The average goals per game this season are 2.63, which is up from 2.54 last season, while the publicity of Sunderland’s participation in the boosting home attendances by 108 per cent from last season. The Black Cats average 31,615 per home game, which would make them the 11th most attended team in the Premier League.

Sunderland broke a League One attendance record when 46,039 fans attended their game against Bradford City on Boxing Day, which eclipsed the previous record of 38,256 set by Leeds United in 2008.

The attendance is outstanding but so too has been the entertainment in the league.

With every spot still up for grabs this season, no side can afford a slip up, which is why League One is the must-watch league in 2018/19.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Christopher Chrysostomou
mrcc1@optusnet.com.au