1996–97 Hartlepool United F.C. season
During the 1996–97 English football season, Hartlepool United F.C. competed in the Football League Third Division.
Season summary
In the 1996-97 season, Hartlepool started the campaign with wins over Colchester United and Fulham, but Houchen's playing career came to an end after the fifth game of the season, against Wigan Athletic, when he retired due to a persistent knee injury. Houchen continued to bemoan referring decisions which seemed to consistently go against Hartlepool. This in turn led to continued punishments from the FA over his use of foul language towards officials. With Hartlepool on a poor run of results at the foot of the table, he left the club by mutual consent on 4 November 1996. His assistant Mick Tait led the club to a 20th-place finish, and organised a benefit match for Houchen against Middlesbrough, which raised £23,000.There was also a change of ownership in 1997, when Harold Hornsey sold the club to an oil company called IOR.
Final league table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | W | D | L | F | A | F | A | GD | Pts | - | ||||
| 1 | Wigan Athletic | 46 | 17 | 3 | 3 | 53 | 21 | 9 | 6 | 8 | 31 | 30 | 84 | 51 | +33 | 87 | - | ||||
| 2 | Fulham | 46 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 41 | 20 | 12 | 7 | 4 | 31 | 18 | 72 | 38 | +34 | 87 | - | ||||
| 3 | Carlisle United | 46 | 16 | 3 | 4 | 41 | 21 | 8 | 9 | 6 | 26 | 23 | 67 | 44 | +23 | 84 | - | ||||
| 4 | Northampton Town | 46 | 14 | 4 | 5 | 43 | 17 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 24 | 27 | 67 | 44 | +23 | 72 | - | ||||
| 5 | Swansea City | 46 | 13 | 5 | 5 | 37 | 20 | 8 | 3 | 12 | 25 | 38 | 62 | 58 | +4 | 71 | - | ||||
| 6 | Chester City | 46 | 11 | 8 | 4 | 30 | 16 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 25 | 27 | 55 | 43 | +12 | 70 | - | ||||
| 7 | Cardiff City | 46 | 11 | 4 | 8 | 31 | 24 | 9 | 5 | 9 | 26 | 31 | 56 | 54 | +2 | 69 | - | ||||
| 8 | Colchester United | 46 | 11 | 9 | 3 | 36 | 23 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 26 | 28 | 62 | 51 | +11 | 68 | - | ||||
| 9 | Lincoln City | 46 | 10 | 8 | 5 | 35 | 25 | 8 | 4 | 11 | 35 | 44 | 70 | 69 | +1 | 66 | - | ||||
| 10 | Cambridge United | 46 | 11 | 5 | 7 | 30 | 27 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 23 | 32 | 53 | 59 | –6 | 65 | - | ||||
| 11 | Mansfield Town | 46 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 21 | 17 | 7 | 8 | 8 | 26 | 28 | 47 | 45 | +2 | 64 | - | ||||
| 12 | Scarborough | 46 | 9 | 9 | 5 | 36 | 31 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 30 | 38 | 65 | 68 | –3 | 63 | - | ||||
| 13 | Scunthorpe United | 46 | 11 | 3 | 9 | 36 | 33 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 23 | 29 | 59 | 62 | –3 | 63 | - | ||||
| 14 | Rochdale | 46 | 10 | 6 | 7 | 34 | 24 | 4 | 10 | 9 | 24 | 34 | 58 | 58 | ±0 | 58 | - | ||||
| 15 | Barnet | 46 | 9 | 9 | 5 | 32 | 23 | 5 | 7 | 11 | 14 | 28 | 46 | 51 | –5 | 58 | - | ||||
| 16 | Leyton Orient | 46 | 11 | 6 | 6 | 28 | 20 | 4 | 6 | 13 | 22 | 38 | 50 | 58 | –8 | 57 | - | ||||
| 17 | Hull City | 46 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 29 | 26 | 4 | 10 | 9 | 15 | 24 | 44 | 50 | –6 | 57 | - | ||||
| 18 | Darlington | 46 | 11 | 5 | 7 | 37 | 28 | 3 | 5 | 15 | 27 | 50 | 64 | 78 | –14 | 52 | - | ||||
| 19 | Doncaster Rovers | 46 | 9 | 7 | 7 | 29 | 23 | 5 | 3 | 15 | 23 | 43 | 52 | 66 | –14 | 52 | - | ||||
| 20 | Hartlepool United | 46 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 33 | 32 | 6 | 3 | 14 | 20 | 34 | 53 | 66 | –13 | 51 | - | ||||
| 21 | Torquay United | 46 | 9 | 4 | 10 | 24 | 24 | 4 | 7 | 12 | 22 | 38 | 46 | 62 | –16 | 50 | - | ||||
| 22 | Exeter City | 46 | 6 | 9 | 8 | 25 | 30 | 6 | 3 | 14 | 23 | 43 | 48 | 73 | –25 | 48 | - | ||||
| 23 | Brighton & Hove Albion | 46 | 12 | 6 | 5 | 41 | 27 | 1 | 4 | 18 | 12 | 43 | 53 | 70 | –17 | 47 | |||||
| 24 | Hereford United | 46 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 26 | 25 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 24 | 40 | 50 | 65 | –15 | 47 | - |
- Pld = Matches ; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points
- NB: In the Football League goals scored takes precedence over goal difference.
| Key | |
| Division Champions, promoted | |
| Promoted | |
| Participated in play-offs | |
| Promoted through play-offs | |
| New club in the league | |
| Relegated to Conference |
Results
Hartlepool United's score comes firstLegend
Football League Third Division
FA Cup
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 | 16 November 1996 | York City | H | 0–0 | 3,011 | |
| R1R | 26 November 1996 | York City | A | 0–3 | 3,257 |
League Cup
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 1st Leg | 20 August 1996 | Lincoln City | H | 2–2 | 2,073 | Davies, Allon |
| R1 2nd Leg | 3 September 1996 | Lincoln City | A | 2–3 | 2,389 | Allon, Beech |
Football League Trophy
| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| NR1 | 10 December 1996 | Burnley | H | 0–2 | 921 |