The rivalry between the clubs was intense, and it was the main reason that both narrowly failed to achieve promotion to the 1st Division in the 1962-63 season.

A league reorganization in 1982-83 in order to facilitate the establishment of a national 3rd Division meant the club were relegated to this level for the first time.

The mid 90's saw the team re-establish itself as a strong 2nd Division side, regularly playing in front of very large crowds.

AOT were relegated 3 times in 4 years, with 2002-03 bringing a new low as the club failed to fulfill fixtures and was expelled from the league.

However, it was proved that the owner Vangelis Plexidas had submitted a dishonoured check as a bank guarantee (a prerequisite for a licence by the Greek FA).

The club started the season with a great performance in the Greek Cup as they eliminated Kastoria and went on to play fierce local rivals Anagennisi Karditsas at home.

In the 4th round, Trikala had another memorable game when they beat top-flight club Iraklis Salonica in front of over 7,000 home fans.

Despite the good run in the Greek Cup, the team's league performance at the start of the season suffered as their inability to score away from home meant that Trikala dropped many points.

But a 9-game streak of consecutive victories at the end of the season meant that Trikala achieved a second-place finish, which qualified them for a playoff match against the division runner-ups.

More than 4000 Trikala fans travelled 7 hours to watch their team produce a memorable display and beat Vyzas Megaron by 2–0, with Costa Rican striker Enoc Perez netting both goals.

It was a happy end to the season as AO Trikala had finally started to form a team worthy of its bright history.

The team conceded just 11 goals in 35 league games (including the playoff match), which was a European record for the season.

The team never had the opportunity to participate in the playoffs when they were disqualified after emergence of counterfeit bank guarantees proved their financial viability.

The repercussions from the false guarantees did not end there, as the team relegated to the lowest tier of the Greek football Delta Ethniki.

When he successfully fought in the three highest national categories, there were a record of thousands of fans in the stadiums, with AOT vs Panathinaikos 1–2 being the absolute winner on March 12, 1972 (8 months after the final of European Cup at Wembley) 18,231 tickets were available, while the viewers were certainly much more.

[2] The precursor of Sakafliades was the unofficial link of the Hobo Boys, who first organized and created a warm atmosphere in AOT matches.