Blackpool F.C.
Season 1897-98 1897-98 in English football The 1897–98 season was the 27th season of competitive football in England.-Honours:Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour...
League	Division Two Football League Second Division From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...
Manager	None
League position	11th
Top goalscorer	Jack Cox (12)
Highest home attendance	4,000 (v. Burnley Burnley F.C. Burnley Football Club are a professional English Football League club based in Burnley, Lancashire. Nicknamed the Clarets, due to the dominant colour of their home shirts, they were founder members of the Football League in 1888... , Newton Heath Manchester United F.C. Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...  and Darwen Darwen F.C. A.F.C. Darwen is a football club from Darwen in Lancashire, North West England. The team, formed in 1870 as Darwen F.C., currently play in the Division One of the North West Counties League. They play their home games at the Anchor Ground.-History:... )
Lowest home attendance	200 (v. Luton Town Luton Town F.C. Luton Town Football Club is an English professional football club based since 1905 at Kenilworth Road, Luton, Bedfordshire. The club currently competes in the fifth tier of English football, the Conference National, for the third consecutive season during the 2011–12 season.Formed in 1885, it was... )
Previous season	← 1896-97 Blackpool F.C. season 1896-97 The 1896–97 season was Blackpool F.C.s first season in the Football League. They competed in the sixteen-team Division Two, then the second tier of English football, finishing eighth....
Next season	1898-99 Blackpool F.C. season 1898-99 The 1898-99 season was Blackpool F.C.s third consecutive season in the Football League. They competed in the eighteen-team Division Two, then the second tier of English football, finishing sixteenth...  →

The 1897–98

1897-98 in English football

The 1897–98 season was the 27th season of competitive football in England.-Honours:Notes = Number in parentheses is the times that club has won that honour...

 season was Blackpool F.C.

Blackpool F.C.

Blackpool Football Club are an English football club founded in 1887 from the Lancashire seaside town of Blackpool. They are competing in the 2011–12 season of the The Championship, the second tier of professional football in England, having been relegated from the Premier League at the end of the...

's second consecutive season in the Football League

The Football League

The Football League, also known as the npower Football League for sponsorship reasons, is a league competition featuring professional association football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest such competition in world football...

. They competed in the sixteen-team Division Two

Football League Second Division

From 1892 until 1992, the Football League Second Division was the second highest division overall in English football.This ended with the creation of the FA Premier League, prior to the start of the 1992–93 season, which caused an administrative split between The Football League and the teams...

, then the second tier of English football

Football in England

Association football is a national sport in England, where the first modern set of rules for the code were established in 1863, which were a major influence on the development of the modern Laws of the Game...

, finishing eleventh.

New signings for the season included Jack Cox from South Shore, Jack Leadbetter, Frank Wilson, and McHardie. Out had gone Fred Thompson (after making only six appearances the previous season), Tom Bradshaw, and John Clarke.

Cox was the club's top scorer, with twelve goals in seventeen appearances. Goalkeeper William Douglas

William Douglas (footballer)

William "Hugh" Douglas was a Scottish football goalkeeper. He was born in Dundee. He played for Ardwick, Newton Heath, Derby County, Blackpool, Warmley and Dundee.-Blackpool:...

 was ever-present throughout the club's 30 league games for the second consecutive season.

Season review

The season commenced with a trip to local rivals Burnley

Burnley F.C.

Burnley Football Club are a professional English Football League club based in Burnley, Lancashire. Nicknamed the Clarets, due to the dominant colour of their home shirts, they were founder members of the Football League in 1888...

. The hosts won 5–1, and even Blackpool’s goal was scored by a Clarets player.

Seven days later, the fixture was reversed. Jimmy Martin, Blackpool’s second-top scorer the previous season, scored the home side’s goal in a 1–1 draw.

Three consecutive defeats followed: 2–0 at home to Manchester City

Manchester City F.C.

Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...

, 1–0 at Newton Heath

Manchester United F.C.

Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...

, and 4–1 at Gainsborough Trinity

Gainsborough Trinity F.C.

Gainsborough Trinity Football Club are an English football club based in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire.Between 1896 and 1912 they were members of the Football League. They are currently in the Conference North, and play their home matches at The Northolme, which has a capacity of 4,304...

. Laurence Halsall scored Blackpool’s goal in the latter game.

On 9 October, Blackpool recorded their first win of the season, 2–1 at home to Burton Swifts

Burton Swifts F.C.

Burton Swifts were an English football club from Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire. The club ceased to exist in 1901 when they merged with Burton Wanderers to form Burton United.-History:...

. Jack Cox, in only his second start for the club since his arrival from South Shore, scored both Blackpool goals.

Cox scored another brace in the following game, a 4–1 victory over Small Heath at Stanley Park

Stanley Park, Blackpool

Stanley Park is a municipal park in the town of Blackpool on the Fylde coast in the county of Lancashire, England. It is the largest park in the town, bounded by a roughly circular perimeter of 2.2 miles and covering an area of...

's Athletic Grounds. John Clarkin

John Clarkin

John Clarkin was a Scottish footballer. His regular position was as a forward. He was born in Neilston. He played for Neilston, Bootle, Glasgow Thistle, Newton Heath and Blackpool.-Blackpool:...

 and Bob Birkett

Bob Birkett

Robert Kirkham "Bob" Birket was an English professional footballer who spent his entire ten-year football league career with Blackpool after signing from Fleetwood Rangers....

 netted the other goals for the home side.

On 23 October, Blackpool travelled to Newcastle United

Newcastle United F.C.

Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...

 and returned empty-handed after a 2–0 defeat.

November proved to be a fruitless month, with defeats at Leicester Fosse (4–1), Darwen

Darwen F.C.

A.F.C. Darwen is a football club from Darwen in Lancashire, North West England. The team, formed in 1870 as Darwen F.C., currently play in the Division One of the North West Counties League. They play their home games at the Anchor Ground.-History:...

 (3–1), Woolwich Arsenal (2–1) and Luton Town

Luton Town F.C.

Luton Town Football Club is an English professional football club based since 1905 at Kenilworth Road, Luton, Bedfordshire. The club currently competes in the fifth tier of English football, the Conference National, for the third consecutive season during the 2011–12 season.Formed in 1885, it was...

 (3–1). Martin scored Blackpool’s goals in the first three losses, and Clarkin in the final one.

After a three-week break, Blackpool beat Gainsborough Trinity 5–0 at the Athletic Grounds. Cox, Harry Stirzaker

Harry Stirzaker

Henry "Harry" Stirzaker was an English professional footballer. He played as a defender and spent his entire professional career with Blackpool....

 and Jack Parkinson

Jack Parkinson (footballer born 1869)

John "Jack" Parkinson was an English professional football player. He played as a forward.-Career:Born in Blackpool, Lancashire, Parkinson, with fifteen goals, he was top scorer for his hometown club in 1896-97, their first-ever season in the Football League; indeed, he played in the club's first...

 scored, alongside two own-goals by the visitors.

Cox scored two more in the following game a week later, a 3–2 home defeat by Newcastle.

1897 was closed out with a 6–0 defeat at Walsall

Walsall F.C.

Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...

.

Blackpool began the New Year with a 3–3 draw at home to Woolwich Arsenal. Cox netted twice, with Birkett also scoring.

On 8 January, Parkinson and Martin combined to lift Blackpool to a 2–1 victory over Leicester Fosse.

Continuing their inconsistent season, the Seasiders lost the following game, their third consecutive home match, 4–0 to Newton Heath.

At the end of the month, Blackpool travelled to Small Heath and recorded a 3–2 victory. Parkinson, Martin and Cox were the scorers.

February began with a defeat, 3–2 at Lincoln City; however, Blackpool exacted revenge six days later in the return match: two goals apiece from Birkett and Cox, plus one more from Parkinson, gave them a 5–0 victory. This was Cox's final appearance for Blackpool before he was sold to Liverpool

Liverpool F.C.

Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...

, but his twelve goals remained unbeaten in the remaining nine games.

Birkett scored in the following game, at Burton Swifts on 26 February, but he could not carry them to victory, Swifts winning 2–1.

Blackpool didn’t play again until 19 March, when they travelled to Grimsby Town

Grimsby Town F.C.

Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...

. The home side won 3–0.

Seven days later, Blackpool hosted Loughborough

Loughborough F.C.

Loughborough Athletic and Football Club were an English football club based in Loughborough, Leicestershire, that played in The Football League at the end of the 19th century.-History:...

. Goals from Birkett and Jack Leadbetter, his first of the season, gave Blackpool a 2–0 victory.

March ended with a 3–3 draw at Manchester City, featuring two goals from Parkinson and one from Clarkin.

Another draw followed, this time 1–1 with Walsall, in the first of five consecutive home games for Blackpool. Martin scored his seventh of the season.

On 8 April, Clarkin scored the only goal of the game as Blackpool beat Darwen.

Eight days later, Leadbetter scored his second goal of the season in a 1–1 draw with Grimsby.

Leadbetter was also one of the scorers as Blackpool completed a double over Loughborough. Parkinson (two) and Birkett scored the other goals of the 4–0 victory. Blackpool started the match a man short.

The season ended with a single-goal victory over Luton, Clarkin scoring his fifth of the campaign.

Table

		P	W	D	L	F	A	GA	Pts
1	Burnley Burnley F.C. Burnley Football Club are a professional English Football League club based in Burnley, Lancashire. Nicknamed the Clarets, due to the dominant colour of their home shirts, they were founder members of the Football League in 1888...	30	20	8	2	80	24	3.333	48
2	Newcastle United Newcastle United F.C. Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Newcastle upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End and Newcastle West End, and has played at its current home ground, St James' Park, since the merger...	30	21	3	6	64	32	2.000	45
3	Manchester City Manchester City F.C. Manchester City Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Manchester. Founded in 1880 as St. Mark's , they became Ardwick Association Football Club in 1887 and Manchester City in 1894...	30	15	9	6	66	36	1.833	39
4	Newton Heath Manchester United F.C. Manchester United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, that plays in the Premier League. Founded as Newton Heath LYR Football Club in 1878, the club changed its name to Manchester United in 1902 and moved to Old Trafford in 1910.The 1958...	30	16	6	8	64	35	1.829	38
5	Woolwich Arsenal Arsenal F.C. Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...	30	16	5	9	69	49	1.408	37
6	Small Heath Birmingham City F.C. Birmingham City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Birmingham, England. Formed in 1875 as Small Heath Alliance, they became Small Heath in 1888, then Birmingham in 1905, finally becoming Birmingham City in 1943.They were relegated at the end of the...	30	16	4	10	58	50	1.160	36
7	Leicester Fosse Leicester City F.C. Leicester City Football Club , also known as The Foxes, is an English professional football club based at the King Power Stadium in Leicester...	30	13	7	10	46	35	1.314	33
8	Luton Town Luton Town F.C. Luton Town Football Club is an English professional football club based since 1905 at Kenilworth Road, Luton, Bedfordshire. The club currently competes in the fifth tier of English football, the Conference National, for the third consecutive season during the 2011–12 season.Formed in 1885, it was...	30	13	4	13	68	50	1.360	30
9	Gainsborough Trinity Gainsborough Trinity F.C. Gainsborough Trinity Football Club are an English football club based in Gainsborough, Lincolnshire.Between 1896 and 1912 they were members of the Football League. They are currently in the Conference North, and play their home matches at The Northolme, which has a capacity of 4,304...	30	12	6	12	50	54	0.926	30
10	Walsall Walsall F.C. Walsall Football Club are an English association football club based in Walsall, West Midlands. They currently play in League One. The club was founded in 1888 as Walsall Town Swifts, an amalgamation of Walsall Town F.C. and Walsall Swifts F.C. The club was one of the founder members of the Second...	30	12	5	13	58	58	1.000	29
11	Blackpool Blackpool F.C. Blackpool Football Club are an English football club founded in 1887 from the Lancashire seaside town of Blackpool. They are competing in the 2011–12 season of the The Championship, the second tier of professional football in England, having been relegated from the Premier League at the end of the...	30	10	5	15	49	61	0.803	25
12	Grimsby Town Grimsby Town F.C. Grimsby Town Football Club is an English football club based in the seaside town of Cleethorpes, in North East Lincolnshire, England, who compete in the Conference National. They were formed in 1878 as Grimsby Pelham and later became Grimsby Town...	30	10	4	16	52	62	0.839	24
13	Burton Swifts Burton Swifts F.C. Burton Swifts were an English football club from Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire. The club ceased to exist in 1901 when they merged with Burton Wanderers to form Burton United.-History:...	30	8	5	17	38	69	0.551	21
14	Lincoln City Lincoln City F.C. Lincoln City Football Club is an English professional association football club based in Lincoln, Lincolnshire. The club are currently members of the Conference National in 2011–12 following relegation from the Football League....	30	6	5	19	43	82	0.524	17
15	Darwen Darwen F.C. A.F.C. Darwen is a football club from Darwen in Lancashire, North West England. The team, formed in 1870 as Darwen F.C., currently play in the Division One of the North West Counties League. They play their home games at the Anchor Ground.-History:...	30	6	2	22	31	76	0.408	14
16	Loughborough Loughborough F.C. Loughborough Athletic and Football Club were an English football club based in Loughborough, Leicestershire, that played in The Football League at the end of the 19th century.-History:...	30	6	2	22	24	87	0.276	14

P = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GA = Goal average; Pts = Points

Appearances

• William Douglas
  William Douglas (footballer)
  William "Hugh" Douglas was a Scottish football goalkeeper. He was born in Dundee. He played for Ardwick, Newton Heath, Derby County, Blackpool, Warmley and Dundee.-Blackpool:...
  
   – 30
• Jimmy Martin – 29
• Henry Parr – 28
• John Clarkin
  John Clarkin
  John Clarkin was a Scottish footballer. His regular position was as a forward. He was born in Neilston. He played for Neilston, Bootle, Glasgow Thistle, Newton Heath and Blackpool.-Blackpool:...
  
   – 26
• Harry Stirzaker
  Harry Stirzaker
  Henry "Harry" Stirzaker was an English professional footballer. He played as a defender and spent his entire professional career with Blackpool....
  
   – 25
• D. McHardie – 24
• Jack Parkinson
  Jack Parkinson (footballer born 1869)
  John "Jack" Parkinson was an English professional football player. He played as a forward.-Career:Born in Blackpool, Lancashire, Parkinson, with fifteen goals, he was top scorer for his hometown club in 1896-97, their first-ever season in the Football League; indeed, he played in the club's first...
  
   – 24
• Bob Norris – 23
• Frank Wilson – 23
• Jack Cox – 17
• Jack Leadbetter – 17
• Bill Keech – 16
• Bob Birkett
  Bob Birkett
  Robert Kirkham "Bob" Birket was an English professional footballer who spent his entire ten-year football league career with Blackpool after signing from Fleetwood Rangers....
  
   – 14
• Alex Stuart – 10
• Tommy Bowman
  Tommy Bowman
  Thomas "Tommy" Bowman was a Scottish professional footballer who played as a half back in the 1902 FA Cup final for Southampton.-Playing career:...
  
   – 8
• G. Cardwell – 6
• Laurence Halsall – 5
• John Scarr – 3
• J. Banks – 1

Players used: 19

Goals

• Jack Cox – 12
• Bob Birkett
  Bob Birkett
  Robert Kirkham "Bob" Birket was an English professional footballer who spent his entire ten-year football league career with Blackpool after signing from Fleetwood Rangers....
  
   – 8
• Jack Parkinson
  Jack Parkinson (footballer born 1869)
  John "Jack" Parkinson was an English professional football player. He played as a forward.-Career:Born in Blackpool, Lancashire, Parkinson, with fifteen goals, he was top scorer for his hometown club in 1896-97, their first-ever season in the Football League; indeed, he played in the club's first...
  
   – 8
• Jimmy Martin – 7
• John Clarkin
  John Clarkin
  John Clarkin was a Scottish footballer. His regular position was as a forward. He was born in Neilston. He played for Neilston, Bootle, Glasgow Thistle, Newton Heath and Blackpool.-Blackpool:...
  
   – 5
• Jack Leadbetter – 3
• Harry Stirzaker
  Harry Stirzaker
  Henry "Harry" Stirzaker was an English professional footballer. He played as a defender and spent his entire professional career with Blackpool....
  
   – 1
• Frank Wilson – 1
• Laurence Halsall – 1

Total goals scored: 46 (plus three own-goals)

In

{| border="0" width="100%"
|-
|bgcolor="#FFFFFF" valign="top" align="left" width="100%"|
{| border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2"
|- bgcolor=AAD0FF
!width=20% |Date
!width=25% |Player
!width=30% |From
!width=15% |Fee
|-
| 1897 ||J. Banks||Unknown||Unknown||
|-
| 1897 ||G. Cardwell||Unknown||Unknown||
|-
| 1897 ||Jack Cox||South Shore||Unknown||
|-
| 1897 ||Laurence Halsall||Southport Central||Unknown||
|-
| 1897 ||Bill Keech||Unknown||Unknown||
|-
| 1897 ||Jack Leadbetter||Unknown||Unknown||
|-
| 1897 ||D. McHardie||Unknown||Unknown||
|-
| 1897 ||Frank Wilson||Unknown||Unknown||
|}

Out

The following players left after the final game of the previous season:
{| border="0" width="100%"
|-
|bgcolor="#FFFFFF" valign="top" align="left" width="100%"|
{| border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="2"
|- bgcolor=AAD0FF
!width=20% |Date
!width=25% |Player
!width=30% |To
!width=15% |Fee
|-
|1897||Fred Thompson||Unknown||Unknown
|-
|1897||Tom Bradshaw||Unknown||Unknown
|-
|1897||John Clarke||Unknown||Unknown
|}