The Football League Trophy 1987–88, known as the Sherpa Van Trophy 1987–88 for sponsorship reasons (although the competition began under its previous title of the Freight Rover Trophy), was the 5th staging of the Football League Trophy, 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 only time two previous English champions have met in the final of this competition, and made Wolves the only former champions to have won the trophy.
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 face each other in the combined final for the honour of the trophy.
Preliminary round
Northern Section
Group 1
0Oct 130000Rochdale 0–0 Tranmere Rovers
0Oct 270000Tranmere Rovers 1–2 Burnley
0Nov 240000Burnley 3–2 Rochdale
Group 4
0Oct 130000Wigan Athletic 2–2 Crewe Alexandra
0Nov 240000Bury 5–2 Wigan Athletic
0Dec 040000Crewe Alexandra 0–0 Bury
Group 7
0Oct 130000Scunthorpe United 2–0 Grimsby Town
0Oct 270000Grimsby Town 2–1 Halifax Town
0Nov 240000Halifax Town 3–0 Scunthorpe United
0Play-off to determine second place:
0Dec 150000Grimsby Town 1–2 Scunthorpe United
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Group 2
0Oct 130000Carlisle United 2–1 Chester City
0Oct 280000Chester City 2–1 Blackpool
0Nov 240000Blackpool 0–1 Carlisle United
Group 5
0Oct 130000York City 3–4 Darlington
0Nov 240000Chesterfield 2–0 York City
0Dec 050000Darlington 2–1 Chesterfield
Group 8
0Oct 130000Doncaster Rovers 0–1 Mansfield Town
0Oct 270000Mansfield Town 3–2 Hartlepool United
0Nov 240000Hartlepool United 1–0 Doncaster Rovers
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Group 3
0Oct 130000Bolton Wanderers 0–0 Preston NE
0Oct 270000Preston NE 5–2 Stockport County
0Nov 240000Stockport County 1–3 Bolton Wanderers
Group 6
0Oct 130000Rotherham United 1–0 Scarborough
0Oct 280000Scarborough 0–3 Sunderland
0Nov 240000Sunderland 7–1 Rotherham United
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Southern Section
Group 1
0Oct 130000Notts County 1–0 Northampton Town
0Oct 280000Northampton Town 1–0 Brentford
0Nov 240000Brentford 3–2 Notts County
Group 4
0Oct 130000Colchester United 3–2 Peterborough United
0Nov 240000Cambridge United 0–0 Colchester United
0Dec 010000Peterborough United 3–0 Cambridge United
Group 7
0Oct 130000Southend United 1–0 Fulham
0Oct 270000Fulham 1–6 Brighton
0Nov 250000Brighton 3–2 Southend United
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Group 2
0Oct 130000Cardiff City 3–2 Wrexham
0Oct 270000Wrexham 2–2 Walsall
0Nov 240000Walsall 3–1 Cardiff City
Group 5
0Oct 130000Torquay United 2–0 Bristol Rovers
0Oct 280000Bristol Rovers 0–2 Hereford United
0Nov 250000Hereford United 0–2 Torquay United
Group 8
0Oct 270000Swansea City 1–1 Wolves
0Nov 100000Bristol City 2–0 Swansea City
0Nov 240000Wolves 3–1 Bristol City
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Group 3
0Oct 130000Aldershot 3–1 Gillingham
0Oct 270000Gillingham 2–2 Leyton Orient
0Nov 240000Leyton Orient 2–2 Aldershot
Group 6
0Oct 130000Newport County 2–0 Port Vale
0Oct 260000Port Vale 2–0 Exeter City
0Nov 240000Exeter City 0–1 Newport County
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First round
Northern Section
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Southern Section
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Quarter-finals
Northern Section
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Southern Section
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Area semi-finals
Northern Section
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Southern Section
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Area finals
Northern Area final
Burnley won 3–1 on aggregate.
Southern Area final
Wolverhampton Wanderers won 4–1 on aggregate.
Final
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