Watford commenced the 2002-2003 season looking for a mid table finish and they achieved that by the end of the season, a 13th position placing. The highlight of their season was their outstanding form in the FA cup, they were emphatic in reaching the semi finals, however they were defeated by a strong Southampton team in the semis. Watford could not repeat their cup romance the following season as they crashed out of the FA Cup in the third round, suffering a 4-0 hammering at the hands of Chelsea. They were also eliminated out early of the League cup, losing to lower league club, Bristol City. A poor 2003-04 campaign was capped off with a negative finish, they could only manage 16th position.
The 2004-05 campaign proved to be a debacle for the Hornets, they totally stuttered in the league, fortunate to even reach as high as 18th position. They crashed out of the FA Cup early in the third round, being defeated by Fulham, however they were emphatic in the league cup, reaching the semi finals, it was the second time in three seasons they had reached the last four of a domestic cup competition. They met Liverpool in the last four and put on a good show; however they could not manage to overcome Liverpool’s technical superiority and stumbled out the tournament, losing 1-0.
The Hornets lost big players at the start of the 2005-06 season and hired a new manager, Aidy Bothrooyd. Their major objective was avoiding relegation, however they even surprised themselves with their third place finish, earning themselves a birth in the play offs. They met Leeds in the final and won the encounter at Cardiff 3-0, in turn resulting in a shock promotion. Their high finish was helped by Marlon Kings prolific form, scoring 21 goals.