Not many thought Falkenbergs had a cat in hell's chance of avoiding the drop but they somehow managed not only to avoid the relegation placed but also the relegation play-off. It's an incredible feat for a club who was languishing in the bottom two for most of the 30 league games. Having conceded nine goals in two games against Elfsborg and AIK in 4-0 and 5-1 defeats respectively with two league games to go, the writing was on the wall for Hans Eklund's side. But they saved the best until last with a fantastic 3-2 away win against Kalmar, the only one they managed all season and ultimately sent Kalmar into the relegation play-off place, before edging out AFC Eskilstuna on the last day of the season with a late Nsima Peter strike.
The campaign started brightly with a 1-0 win over Orebro, but Falkenberg had to then wait until June until they won again, beating Elfsborg 2-1. They followed that up with heavy defeats against Hammarby and Orebro away from home, conceding ten goals in the two games, and they were completely incapable of stringing results together. So they saved the very best until the very last two games, and can now look forward to another season in the top flight.
The question remains whether Falkenbergs will be any more competitive next season? Their resources will be limited and the budget shoestring, so they will once again be reliant on bargains and players out to prove themselves. They will fancy finishing outside the bottom two again for sure with newly promoted Varberg Bois and Mjallby surely tipped for an immediate Superettan return, but Falkenbergs will also be hovering on the edge again. There has been no evidence that they will be able to climb the top flight table in recent campaigns, and they will just be delighted that they did enough on this occasion.
