The season when ~ Gary Andrews remembers Exeter City's disastrous flirtation with Uri Geller, Lee Sharpe, Paul Gascoigne, Michael Jackson and Darth Vader in 2002-03

It is August 2002 and Exeter City fans are gripped by uncharacteristic excitement. The previous season, new manager John Cornforth led the Grecians to a comfortable 16th-place finish and now a crack at the play-offs isn't out of the question.

Elderly chairman Ivor Doble has finally stepped down to a new consortium containing Uri Geller, and club legend Kevin Miller has re-signed. Finally, after years when a good season was measured by beating Plymouth and Torquay, and not getting relegated, things are looking up.

But the new dawn wasn't without warning signs. Scarborough and Swansea fans sounded alarm bells about the new chairman John Russell and his vice-chair Mike Lewis. Michael Jackson and Darth Vader (aka actor and stuntman David Prowse) joined the board. And Cornforth was amassing a large squad.

After a defeat to Shrewsbury on the opening day, expectation levels rose when Lee Sharpe signed on a pay-as-you-play basis and scored during a 3-1 demolition of promotion favourites Hull. That was as good as it got. Sharpe disappeared after four games, while Exeter failed to win their next 12 matches, resulting in the dismissal of Cornforth.

After a brief flirtation with the idea of appointing Gazza as manager, Russell and Lewis plumped for Neil McNab, whose brief stint in charge still brings a shudder of horror to City fans. The Grecians won just three league games under him, although an FA Cup third round tie against Premier League Charlton provided respite. After four months, McNab was sacked and Gary Peters was handed the unenviable task of keeping Exeter in the League.

Despite a 1-0 win over Southend on the final day, Swansea's victory over Hull meant that Exeter became the first team to be relegated from the Football League without finishing bottom.

This, however, doesn't tell the whole story of the unfolding crisis. The club's reselling of already-sold seats for the Southend game was just one of a number of alarming incidents. Money for charity from an appearance by Michael Jackson only turned up after persistent questioning by fans and bills went unpaid. Stories abound of Russell and Lewis keeping gate money in their car over the weekend before taking it to the bank.

Geller left the board voicing concerns over the custodianship of the chairmen, while the pair's appearance on Talksport left fans concerned that even being in charge of an electric toothbrush might be beyond them.

Following the club's relegation, Russell and Lewis were arrested on fraud charges. Four years later they pleaded guilty, closing a traumatic chapter for Exeter fans. But in a strange way, the season where Exeter nearly lost everything turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

The supporters' trust took control, and the city discovered what it was like to have a team that not only cared about their community, but one that won games on a regular basis. From a battered, broken husk, Exeter regained their self-respect. Now in League One, relegation may have been the best thing that could have happen to the Grecians. Gary Andrews

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