Lillestrøm started the season determined to enjoy a better campaign than last season, having narrowly scraped to safety. Arne Erlandsen was never really going to win plaudits for exciting football but his main focus was to ensure that his side were compact and pretty solid across the back. They actually suffered four losses in the opening five games but played some pretty encouraging football during that period and actually started to get the results they deserve after the opening ten games or so. A run of one win in nine games left the Yellow and Blacks too close to the bottom places but they managed to hold leaders Rosenborg to a surprise draw on the road at the end of that run and took a whole load of confidence from it. An excellent three-game winning streak followed in which Erling Knudzton enjoyed a superb run in front of goal. The whole team started to click and play a more cohesive sort of football as players like Aleksandar Melgalvic, Frode Krogstad and Morten Haakensted started to feel more accustomed to the top-division after joining at the the start of the season from lower clubs. Lillestrøm stabilised in mid-table after a run of one loss in eight games at the midway point of the season but wins became rarer and rarer as the campaign progressed. Relegation danger was never really a real concern over the course of the campaign but the team was never able to build a substantial lead on the bottom three. Thus, there was a bit of tension in that regard late in the season but a commanding 4:0 win over Aalesund with four games remaining left no doubt that LSK will be playing top-flight football again. The undoubted highlight of their season was in the NM Cup where Erlandsen men mounted on an excellent run and went all the way to the final. The team showed superb organisation and efficiency to oust a strong Molde side away from home in the semi-finals in September and booked a date with a strong Sarpsborg side at the end of the season, with the trophy at stake. A stunning start saw them open up a two-goal lead after 12 minutes but the opposition came back strong and pushed them hard after pulling a goal back. Frode Kippe made it 3:1 after the break and some wholehearted defending and a little bit of luck earned LSK a 3:2 win, a precious piece of silverware and a place in Europe.
