Football tournament season
1987–88 Associate Members Cup Sherpa Van Trophy Country England Wales
The 1987–88 Associate Members' Cup , known as the 1987–88 Sherpa Van Trophy for sponsorship reasons, was the seventh staging of a secondary football league tournament, and the fifth staging of the Associate Members' Cup , a knockout competition for English football clubs in the Third and Fourth Divisions (now known as League One and Two ).
The winners were Wolverhampton Wanderers , who defeated Burnley 2–0 in the final. This marked the first time two previous English champions have met in the final of this competition, and made Wolves the first former champions to have won the trophy, Portsmouth the only other having won the EFL trophy in 2019.
The competition began on 13 October 1987 and ended with the final on 29 May 1988.
The tournament begins with clubs divided into a Northern and a Southern section, and teams entering a preliminary group stage. Each section then gradually eliminates the qualifying teams in knock-out fashion until each has a winning finalist. At this point, the two winning finalists faced each other in the combined final for the honour of the trophy.
Preliminary round
Northern Section
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Rochdale
0–0
Tranmere Rovers
Oct 27
Tranmere Rovers
1–2
Burnley
Nov 24
Burnley
3–2
Rochdale
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Carlisle United
2–1
Chester City
Oct 28
Chester City
2–1
Blackpool
Nov 24
Blackpool
0–1
Carlisle United
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Bolton Wanderers
0–0
Preston NE
Oct 27
Preston NE
5–2
Stockport County
Nov 24
Stockport County
1–3
Bolton Wanderers
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Wigan Athletic
2–2
Crewe Alexandra
Nov 24
Bury
5–2
Wigan Athletic
Dec 04
Crewe Alexandra
0–0
Bury
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
York City
3–4
Darlington
Nov 24
Chesterfield
2–0
York City
Dec 05
Darlington
2–1
Chesterfield
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Rotherham United
1–0
Scarborough
Oct 28
Scarborough
0–3
Sunderland
Nov 24
Sunderland
7–1
Rotherham United
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Scunthorpe United
2–0
Grimsby Town
Oct 27
Grimsby Town
2–1
Halifax Town
Nov 24
Halifax Town
3–0
Scunthorpe United
Play-off to determine second place:
Dec 15
Grimsby Town
1–2
Scunthorpe United
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Doncaster Rovers
0–1
Mansfield Town
Oct 27
Mansfield Town
3–2
Hartlepool United
Nov 24
Hartlepool United
1–0
Doncaster Rovers
Southern Section
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Notts County
1–0
Northampton Town
Oct 28
Northampton Town
1–0
Brentford
Nov 24
Brentford
3–2
Notts County
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Cardiff City
3–2
Wrexham
Oct 27
Wrexham
2–2
Walsall
Nov 24
Walsall
3–1
Cardiff City
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Aldershot
3–1
Gillingham
Oct 27
Gillingham
2–2
Leyton Orient
Nov 24
Leyton Orient
2–2
Aldershot
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Colchester United
3–2
Peterborough United
Nov 24
Cambridge United
0–0
Colchester United
Dec 01
Peterborough United
3–0
Cambridge United
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Torquay United
2–0
Bristol Rovers
Oct 28
Bristol Rovers
0–2
Hereford United
Nov 25
Hereford United
0–2
Torquay United
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Newport County
2–0
Port Vale
Oct 26
Port Vale
2–0
Exeter City
Nov 24
Exeter City
0–1
Newport County
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 13
Southend United
1–0
Fulham
Oct 27
Fulham
1–6
Brighton
Nov 25
Brighton
3–2
Southend United
Date
Team 1
Score
Team 2
Oct 27
Swansea City
1–1
Wolves
Nov 10
Bristol City
2–0
Swansea City
Nov 24
Wolves
3–1
Bristol City
First round
Northern Section
Southern Section
Quarter-finals
Northern Section
Southern Section
Area semi-finals
Northern Section
Southern Section
Area finals
Northern Area final
Burnley won 3–1 on aggregate.
Southern Area final
Wolverhampton Wanderers won 4–1 on aggregate.
Final
External links
Associate Members' Cup (1983–1992)
Seasons Finals
EFL Trophy (2016–present)
Seasons Finals
National teams
League competitions
Levels 1–4 Level 5 Levels 6–7 Levels 8–9
Isthmian League (Two North , Two South )
Combined Counties League (level 8 only )
Eastern Counties League (level 8 only )
Essex Senior League (level 8 only )
Hellenic League (Premier , One )
Kent League (level 8 only )
Midland Football Combination (level 8 only )
North West Counties League (One , Two )
Northern Counties East League (Premier , One )
Northern League (One , Two )
South Midlands League (Premier , One )
Spartan League (Premier , One )
Sussex County League (One , Two )
United Counties League (Premier , One )
Wessex League (level 8 only )
West Midlands (Regional) League (level 8 only )
Western League (Premier , One )
Cup competitions
FA cups Football League cups