Football League Third Division 1986/87
| Pos | Club | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | Notes |
| 1st | AFC Bournemouth | 46 | 29 | 10 | 7 | 76 | 40 | +36 | 97 | ▲Champions |
| 2nd | Middlesbrough | 46 | 28 | 10 | 8 | 67 | 30 | +37 | 94 | ▲Runners Up |
| 3rd | Swindon Town | 46 | 25 | 12 | 9 | 77 | 47 | +30 | 87 | ♦▲PO Winners |
| 4th | Wigan Athletic | 46 | 25 | 10 | 11 | 83 | 60 | +23 | 85 | ♦Playoffs |
| 5th | Gillingham | 46 | 23 | 9 | 14 | 65 | 48 | +17 | 78 | ♦Playoffs |
| 6th | Bristol City | 46 | 21 | 14 | 11 | 63 | 36 | +27 | 77 | - |
| 7th | Notts County | 46 | 21 | 13 | 12 | 77 | 56 | +21 | 76 | - |
| 8th | Walsall | 46 | 22 | 9 | 15 | 80 | 67 | +13 | 75 | - |
| 9th | Blackpool | 46 | 16 | 16 | 14 | 74 | 59 | +15 | 64 | - |
| 10th | Mansfield Town | 46 | 15 | 16 | 15 | 52 | 55 | -3 | 61 | - |
| 11th | Brentford | 46 | 15 | 15 | 16 | 64 | 66 | -2 | 60 | - |
| 12th | Port Vale | 46 | 15 | 12 | 19 | 76 | 70 | +6 | 57 | - |
| 13th | Doncaster Rovers | 46 | 14 | 15 | 17 | 56 | 62 | -6 | 57 | - |
| 14th | Rotherham United | 46 | 15 | 12 | 19 | 48 | 57 | -9 | 57 | - |
| 15th | Chester City | 46 | 13 | 17 | 16 | 61 | 59 | +2 | 56 | - |
| 16th | Bury | 46 | 14 | 13 | 19 | 54 | 60 | -6 | 55 | - |
| 17th | Chesterfield | 46 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 56 | 69 | -13 | 54 | - |
| 18th | Fulham | 46 | 12 | 17 | 17 | 59 | 77 | -18 | 53 | - |
| 19th | Bristol Rovers | 46 | 13 | 12 | 21 | 49 | 75 | -26 | 51 | - |
| 20th | York City | 46 | 12 | 13 | 21 | 55 | 79 | -24 | 49 | - |
| 21st | Bolton Wanderers | 46 | 10 | 15 | 21 | 46 | 58 | -12 | 45 | ♦▼Relegated |
| 22nd | Carlisle United | 46 | 10 | 8 | 28 | 39 | 78 | -39 | 38 | ▼Relegated |
| 23rd | Darlington | 46 | 7 | 16 | 23 | 45 | 77 | -32 | 37 | ▼Relegated |
| 24th | Newport County | 46 | 8 | 13 | 25 | 49 | 86 | -37 | 37 | ▼Relegated |
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Football League Second/Third Division - The Playoffs |
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Semi Finals 1st Leg |
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| Date | Home | Score | Away |
| Thu May 14 | Gillingham | 3-2 | Sunderland |
| Thu May 14 | Wigan Athletic | 2-3 | Swindon Town |
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Semi Finals 2nd Leg |
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| Sun May 17 | Sunderland | 4-3 | Gillingham |
| Gillingham Won on the Away Goals Rule after Drawing 6-6 on aggregate | |||
| Sun May 17 | Swindon Town | 0-0 | Wigan Athletic |
| Swindon Town Won 3-2 on aggregate | |||
| Final 1st Leg | |||
| Fri May 22 | Gillingham | 1-0 | Swindon Town |
| Final 2nd Leg | |||
| Mon May 25 | Swindon Town | 2-1 | Gillingham |
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Aggregate Score: Swindon Town 2-2 Gillingham |
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| Final Replay | |||
| Fri May 29 | Swindon Town | 2-0 | Gillingham |
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End of Season Notes |
| ▼Grimsby Town were Relegated from the Second Division |
| ▼Brighton & Hove Albion Relegated from the Second Division |
| ▲Bournemouth were Promoted to the Second Division |
| ▲Middlesbrough were Promoted to the Second Division |
| ♦ Sunderland (Second Division) Qualified for Playoffs |
| ♦ Swindon Town Qualified for Playoffs |
| ♦ Wigan Athletic Qualified for Playoffs |
| ♦ Gillingham Qualified for Playoffs |
| ▼Sunderland were Relegated from the Second Division after the conclusion of the Second Division/Third Division Playoffs |
| ▲Swindon Town were Promoted to the Second Division via the Playoffs |
| ▼Bolton Wanderers were Relegated to the Fourth Division after the conclusion of the Third Division/Fourth Division Playoffs |
| ▼Carlisle United were Relegated to the Fourth Division |
| ▼Darlington were Relegated to the Fourth Division |
| ▼Newport County Relegated to the Fourth Division |
| ▲Northampton Town were Promoted from the Fourth Division |
| ▲Preston North End were Promoted from the Fourth Division |
| ▲Southend United were Promoted from the Fourth Division |
| ▲Aldershot were Promoted from the Fourth Division via the Playoffs |