The 2001–02 season turned out to be the Stockport's worst ever season at the time. With Stockport already bottom of the league, a 4–0 home defeat to
Millwall saw manager Kilner sacked. Shortly after he was replaced with former
England international
Carlton Palmer. A 2–1 win over
Norwich gave them some hope, but Stockport then went on to lose 11 matches in a row, another unwanted club record. The Hatters picked up just 3 more wins during the rest of the season (one of these being another unforgettable 2–1 victory over Manchester City, having been 1–0 down with just 5 minutes left) finishing the season with just 26 points, going down on 16 March, the quickest post-war relegation until that point, later surpassed by Sheffield Wednesday in the 2025–26 season (though partly because of an 18-point deduction). ==Final league table==