After two failed attempts to gain promotion via the play-offs the pressure was now on Gudjon Thordarson to achieve automatic promotion. Graham Kavanagh was sold for £1 million as well as fan favourite Peter Thorne to Cardiff City and with the money raised Stoke went out and brought some useful additions. After a slow start City went on a 10 match unbeaten run which was brought to a halt by Wigan in November. In January Stoke lost their form and fell away from automatic promotion places and it became clear that it would be the play-offs again for Stoke. And it was Cardiff who were Stoke's opponents with the first leg ending in a 2–1 win for the "Bluebirds" and it seemed that in the second leg Cardiff would hold on for a goalless draw but two very late goals gave Stoke a famous victory and they went to secure promotion by beating Brentford 2–0 in the final. It was not enough however for Gudjon Thordarson to be offered a new contract.

The pressure was now on manager Gudjon Thordarson to finally end Stoke's spell in the Second Division with the owners wanting the club to start progressing though to the Premiership. First task Gudjon did was to sell key midfielder Graham Kavanagh to big spending Cardiff City for £1 million and with that money he brought in six new players, defender Peter Handyside from Grimsby Town who was made captain, goalkeeper Neil Cutler, Belarusian defender Sergei Shtanyuk, Belgian midfielder Jurgen Vandeurzen, David Rowson from Aberdeen and most impressively former Dutch international Peter Hoekstra. The season didn't get off the best of starts with Stoke losing 1–0 away at Queens Park Rangers but two wins over Northampton and Cambridge kick started Stoke's season. Stoke then drew 1–1 at home to Huddersfield Town with Peter Thorne scoring a 90th-minute equaliser, it proved to be his last act in a Stoke shirt as he left to join Kavanagh at Cardiff. With Stoke's main goal threat sold supporters questioned where the goals would come from, thankfully for Stoke they would be spread across the side.

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Wikipedia