West Bromwich 5-3 Luton Town: Defeat sends Hatters down to League One

It took Luton Town, a significant force in the top flight of English football in the 1980s and 90s before a prolonged period of decline, 10 years to climb back from the National League to the Premier League.

There were unforgettable scenes after Rob Edwards’ side beat Coventry City on penalties at Wembley in the 2023 play-off final.

But the great adventure lasted only one season and now they are facing life back in League One following back-to-back relegations.

Last summer, Edwards expressed the hope that he had a squad capable of challenging at the top end of the table, but a series of injuries, especially in defence, and a dismal away record undermined his ambition.

He was sacked in January after a run of four successive defeats, leading to the instalment of Bloomfield, plucked from a third-tier promotion challenge with Wycombe Wanderers, as his replacement.

A 1-1 draw at Sheffield Wednesday finally ended a run of 11 away defeats in a row but it took time for Bloomfield to steady the ship, failing to win any of his first eight games in charge despite the addition of new faces, some like Thelo Aasgaard and Millennic Alli from his old League One ‘stamping ground’.

Victory over Portsmouth on 1 March finally got things moving in the right direction and back-to-back-to-back wins over Derby County, Bristol City and Coventry finally lifted them out of the bottom three with one game to go.

They came up short on the final day, but with plans approved for a brand new 25,000 seater stadium, which may be ready to stage matches in 2028, the Hatters will rely on Bloomfield’s League One knowhow to reverse their fortunes and start them moving in an upwards direction once again next season.