The story of the first full season of the new millennium, perhaps debatably, was not the runaway juggernaut of Manchester United’s cruise towards a seventh title in nine years.

Yes, the Red Devils may have dished out swashbuckling football as they steamrolled past Premiership oppositions, which included ruthless 6-1 demolition of bitter rivals Arsenal at Old Trafford, with Dwight York plundering a hat-trick.

They may have also entered the month of February with a massive 15 point lead, before eventually wrapping up the championship with a staggering seven games to spare.

But their powerful dominance on the English football scene, though highly impressive, was also starting to become more like a formality, without any real element of surprise in it.

Working on a limited budget and hotly tipped as relegation favorites at the beginning of the season, George Burley’s newly promoted Ipswich Town went on a steady and wholly unexpected journey that had many fans shaking their heads in disbelief.

For much of the season, the small town club had looked like they were gunning for a top-three spot. They eventually clinched the fifth position in the Premiership final table, which earned them a place in next season’s UEFA Cup competitions for the first time in almost 20 years.

Ipswich’s chief striker Marcus Stewart played a vital role in his team’s excellent form, having amassed a stunning 19 goals to finish as the second highest scorer in the league behind Chelsea’s Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.

Manager Burley also received many plaudits for his amazing achievements over at the modest club. He was later voted Manager of the Year ahead of Manchester United’s Sir Alex Ferguson and Gerald Houllier from Liverpool.

But Ipswich were not the only newly-promoted club to deliver encouraging results as season 2000/01 turned out to be probably the best season yet for the minnows in the Premiership.

Charlton Athletic, under the astute stewardship of Alan Curbishley, were the other new boys to feel truly at home in the Premiership.

The addicks won many admirers by finishing in an excellent ninth position with 57 points. They would have ended up in a higher position and possibly even qualified for Europe, had their defence not been the most porous of any in the top 10 and sixth leakiest in the league.

Nevertheless, it was still a superb achievement for a side who had been among the favorites of may punters to suffer an immediate return back to the Nationwide League after just one season in the top flight.

Then there was Sunderland, who were deploying a slightly more direct style of play but reaping justified rewards. Peter Reid’s charges briefly occupied second place in February but they were unable to keep up their strong form and had to settle for seventh position come the end of the second, missing out on the UEFA Cup qualification once again.

20001/01 season also represented the high watermark of Houllier’s reign at Anfield , as his Liverpool team, after many years of underachievement, have finally come good with the winning of a unique treble of FA Cup, League Cup and the UEFA Cup.

But it is worth noting that the three cups actually came courtesy of contrasting finals. A penalty shoot-out victory over First Division outfit Birmingham City, for whom a young Andy Johnson missed the decisive spot-kick , won Liverpool the League Cup after they had ridden their luck throughout.

Then in the FA Cup final, the Reds staged a dramatic comeback to beat Arsenal to the trophy. Swedish winger Freddie Ljungberg’s goal looked to have won it for the Gunners before two quick-fire goals from Michael Owen in the last 10 minutes turned the tide around and handed Liverpool the win.

The Reds then went on to seal the UEFA Cup in a topsy-turvy and error strewn final, which was ultimately settled by a golden goal, or more accurately, a golden own-goal.

Liverpool were ahead for 85 of the 90 minutes, but a 4-4 draw forced the extra period of play before Alaves defender Delfi Geli agonizingly put through his own net with three minutes left on the clock.

Liverpool celebrated, and for once, the attention was taken away from the title winning Man United.