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It was quite a dramatic last day in the Premiership, but as the title had been decided a week before, most of the drama was happening at the foot of the table.

Watford were relegated some time ago, and Charlton joined them during the week when they lost to Tottenham; Alan Pardew was unable to keep them up after taking over from Alan Curbishley mid-season. It was therefore a straight contest to avoid being the third relegated club between Wigan Athletic, Sheffield United and … West Ham, coached by the very same Alan Curbishley.

West Ham had won six of their last eight games, but their final one was against Champions Manchester United, and although United put some of their stars on the subs' bench (with the FA Cup Final against Chelsea on the horizon), it was always going to be difficult to get a result at the ‘Theatre of Dreams’ … especially as United received the Premiership trophy before the game and must have wanted to reward their fans with a decent display. But the improbable happened, and Carlos Tevez gave the Hammers the goal that lifted them out of the drop zone. In the end, then, it was seven wins out of the last nine games … and West Ham got the double over United.

As fate would have it, the other two clubs fighting for their survival had to play each other: Sheffield United, in their first season back in the top flight, and Wigan. The latter came out 2-1 winners, helped by an inexplicable handball in the area by Sheffield United’s Phil Jagielka. David Unsworth scored from the spot against the club he was playing for at the beginning of the season.

The result meant that Sheffield United were relegated (the two teams finished on the same points, but the Blades’ goal difference was inferior to the Latics' … by one goal!). That may not, however, be the end of the story. Sheffield United may take legal action to seek reinstatement after West Ham were recently found guilty of transfer irregularities (involving Carlos Tevez and Javier Mascherano) but only received a fine (£5.5 million, roughly €8 million), while in other divisions, clubs have had points deducted for similar infractions. “We have played to the rules of the Football League, whereas another club has not,” said the Blades Chairman Kevin McCabe. He said that his club stands to lose an estimated £50 million (€73 million) because of the relegation, meaning that West Ham will no doubt gain at least that much from their survival … which makes the £5.5 million fine seem a rather insignificant amount.

Elsewhere, Tottenham, Everton and Bolton qualified for the UEFA Cup. Reading, in their first ever season in the Premiership, missed out on Europe by a single point after drawing 3-3 in a thriller at Blackburn, but their 8th place was the highest they’ve ever finished – an historic effort. The Royals’ coach Steve Coppell is a local hero and will be taking the club into new adventures next season, but some of his counterparts at other clubs were less fortunate: Glenn Roeder left Newcastle, Paul Jewell resigned at Wigan, and Stuart Pearce was sacked at Manchester City.

(The BC Blog Premiership Mini-Awards):

Most Attractive Football: Manchester United.
Dullest Football: Chelsea
Biggest Surprise: Reading
Biggest Under-Achievers: Newcastle United (again)
Most Exciting Player: Dimitar Berbatov (Tottenham)
Dirtiest Player: Ben Thatcher (Manchester City)
Most Astute Coach: Steve Coppell (Reading)
Most Stylish Coach: José Mourinho (Chelsea)

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