# 2011–12 Hartlepool United F.C. season

The 2011–12 season was Hartlepool United's 103rd year in existence and their fifth consecutive season in League One. Along with competing in League One, the club also participated in the FA Cup, League Cup and League Trophy. The season covers the period from 1 July 2011 to 30 June 2012.

## Background and pre-season

In pre-season, Hartlepool received media attention having announced a season ticket deal whereby the price would be only £100 if over 4,000 tickets would be sold. The club ultimately sold over 5,600 season tickets. The club also announced the signing of former Newcastle United player Nolberto Solano. During pre-season, Hartlepool played a testimonial for the club's record appearance maker Ritchie Humphreys against local side Sunderland.

## Review and events

The club began the 2011–12 campaign with a trip to Milton Keynes Dons. Hartlepool twice took the lead thanks to goals by Adam Boyd and James Brown but were pegged back late in the match to draw 2–2. They were subsequently eliminated in the first round of the League Cup after a penalty shootout defeat to Sheffield United. Hartlepool would draw three matches in a row before winning five in a row to go 3rd in the league. This was the first time in the club's history that they had gone unbeaten in their first nine matches of a season. This run was ended with a home defeat to Sheffield Wednesday in early October. The following week, Pools suffered defeat once again away to Notts County, losing 3–0 in the televised fixture. Despite the impressive start, Hartlepool would suffer poor home form. Six consecutive home defeats was a club record and signalled the end of Mick Wadsworth's tenure as Hartlepool manager.
Former manager Neale Cooper was announced as Wadsworth's successor. Cooper's first match back at the club saw Hartlepool's eighth successive home defeat. In the next home fixture, Cooper took the decision to start 17-year old Luke James. James scored in the 2–0 win against Rochdale to become the youngest goalscorer for the club in its history. This was a theme at the beginning of Cooper's second spell; giving opportunities to many younger players whilst criticising the performances of more experienced players. This win against Rochdale was followed up with an impressive away point at Sheffield Wednesday and then a comprehensive 4–0 home victory against rivals Carlisle United which gave hopes for a late play-off charge. However, Hartlepool would suffer a 5–0 away defeat to relegation threatened Wycombe Wanderers. Pools struggled in front of goal for their remaining matches and ultimately finished in 13th position.

## Players

    As of End of Season.

### Current squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 1 | GK | ENG | Scott Flinders |
| 2 | DF | ENG | Neil Austin |
| 3 | MF | ENG | Ritchie Humphreys |
| 4 | DF | ENG | Gary Liddle |
| 5 | DF | ENG | Sam Collins |
| 6 | DF | ENG | Evan Horwood |
| 7 | FW | ENG | James Brown |
| 8 | FW | ENG | James Poole |
| 9 | FW | SCO | Colin Nish |
| 10 | FW | ENG | Adam Boyd |
| 11 | MF | ENG | Andy Monkhouse |
| 14 | MF | ENG | Nathan Luscombe |
| 15 | MF | ENG | Antony Sweeney |
| 16 | DF | ENG | Steven Haslam |
| 18 | DF | ENG | Jack Baldwin |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 19 | DF | ENG | Jordan Richards |
| 20 | MF | ENG | Paul Murray |
| 21 | GK | ENG | Andy Rafferty |
| 23 | FW | ENG | Callum Hassan |
| 24 | MF | PER | Nolberto Solano |
| 26 | DF | ENG | Paul Johnson |
| 27 | FW | NIR | Colin Larkin |
| 28 | DF | ENG | Josh Rowbotham |
| 29 | DF | ENG | Peter Hartley |
| 30 | DF | ENG | Darren Holden |
| 33 | FW | ENG | Luke James |
| 34 | MF | ENG | Lewis Hawkins |
| 35 | FW | ENG | Ryan Noble |
| 36 | MF | ENG | Greg Rutherford |

## Transfers
### Transfers in

| Date | Position | Player | From | Fee |
| 13 May 2011 | FW | James Poole | Manchester City | Free |
| 13 May 2011 | MF | Nolberto Solano | Leicester City | Free |
| 27 June 2011 | FW | Colin Nish | Hibernian | Free |
| 22 July 2011 | DF | Jack Baldwin | Faversham Town | Undisclosed |
| 2 September 2011 | DF | Stephen Wright | Brentford | Free |

### Transfers out

| Date | Position | Player | To | Fee |
| 16 June 2011 | MF | Leon McSweeney | Leyton Orient | Free |
| 23 June 2011 | MF | Joe Gamble | Limerick | Free |
| 23 June 2011 | FW | Denis Behan | Limerick | Free |
| 11 July 2011 | DF | Dylan Purvis | Blyth Spartans | Free |
| 5 August 2011 | FW | Michael Mackay | Consett | Free |
| 7 August 2011 | FW | Billy Greulich | Durham City | Free |
| 10 August 2011 | MF | Fabián Yantorno | Sud América | Free |
| 13 August 2011 | MF | Billy Blackford | Whitby Town | Free |
| 15 September 2011 | DF | Ármann Björnsson | ÍA | Free |
| 11 January 2012 | DF | Jordan Mellish | Blyth Spartans | Free |
| 24 January 2012 | DF | Stephen Wright | Wrexham | Free |

### Loans in

| Date from | Position | Player | From | Date until | Ref |
| 2 March 2012 | FW | Samuel Adjei | Newcastle United | 2 April 2012 | |
| 20 March 2012 | FW | Ryan Noble | Sunderland | 1 June 2012 | |

### Loans out

| Date from | Position | Player | To | Date until |
| 12 August 2011 | FW | Callum Hassan | Harrogate Town | 12 September 2011 |
| 19 September 2011 | FW | Callum Hassan | Whitby Town | 19 October 2011 |
| 19 September 2011 | MF | Lewis Hawkins | Whitby Town | 19 October 2011 |
| 4 November 2011 | DF | Paul Johnson | Workington | 3 March 2012 |
| 4 November 2011 | FW | Steven Snaith | Workington | 4 January 2012 |
| 16 March 2012 | DF | Paul Johnson | Darlington | 1 June 2012 |

## Results
### League One
#### League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 11 | AFC Bournemouth | 46 | 15 | 13 | 18 | 48 | 52 | −4 | 58 |
| 12 | Tranmere Rovers | 46 | 14 | 14 | 18 | 49 | 53 | −4 | 56 |
| 13 | Hartlepool United | 46 | 14 | 14 | 18 | 50 | 55 | −5 | 56 |
| 14 | Bury | 46 | 15 | 11 | 20 | 60 | 79 | −19 | 56 |
| 15 | Preston North End | 46 | 13 | 15 | 18 | 54 | 68 | −14 | 54 |

#### Results summary

| Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Overall | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Home | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away | Away |

#### Results by matchday

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 |
| Ground | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A |
| Result | D | D | D | D | W | W | W | W | W | L | L | L | W | L | L | D | W | L | L | L | L | W | L | L | W | D | D | W | D | L | W | L | W | D | L | D | D | L | W | L | D | D | L | D | W | L |
| Position | 9 | 13 | 14 | 16 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 3 | 7 | 9 | 10 | 7 | 10 | 13 | 12 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 12 | 16 | 17 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 10 | 10 | 14 | 9 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 11 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 12 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 11 | 13 |

### Football League Trophy
## Squad statistics
### Appearances and goals

| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Total | Total | League One | League One | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Other | Other |
| No. | Pos | Nat | Player | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| 1 | GK | ENG | Scott Flinders | 48 | 0 | 45 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 2 | DF | ENG | Neil Austin | 49 | 1 | 46 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 3 | MF | ENG | Ritchie Humphreys | 32 | 1 | 30 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | DF | ENG | Gary Liddle | 40 | 4 | 37 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 5 | DF | ENG | Sam Collins | 37 | 1 | 36 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 6 | DF | ENG | Evan Horwood | 44 | 1 | 41 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 7 | FW | ENG | James Brown | 25 | 1 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 8 | FW | ENG | James Poole | 30 | 7 | 27 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 9 | FW | SCO | Colin Nish | 20 | 4 | 19 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 | FW | ENG | Adam Boyd | 36 | 6 | 33 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 11 | MF | ENG | Andy Monkhouse | 48 | 3 | 45 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 12 | DF | ENG | Stephen Wright | 11 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 14 | MF | ENG | Nathan Luscombe | 16 | 1 | 13 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 15 | MF | ENG | Antony Sweeney | 42 | 9 | 39 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 16 | DF | ENG | Steven Haslam | 11 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 17 | MF | SWE | Samuel Adjei | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | DF | ENG | Jack Baldwin | 17 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 19 | DF | ENG | Jordan Richards | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 20 | MF | ENG | Paul Murray | 46 | 1 | 45 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 21 | GK | ENG | Andy Rafferty | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 23 | FW | ENG | Callum Hassan | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 24 | MF | PER | Nolberto Solano | 16 | 2 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 27 | FW | IRL | Colin Larkin | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 28 | DF | ENG | Josh Rowbotham | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 29 | DF | ENG | Peter Hartley | 47 | 4 | 44 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| 30 | DF | ENG | Darren Holden | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 33 | MF | ENG | Luke James | 19 | 3 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 34 | MF | ENG | Lewis Hawkins | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 35 | FW | ENG | Ryan Noble | 9 | 2 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 36 | MF | ENG | Greg Rutherford | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

### Goalscorers

| Rank | Name | League One | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total |
| 1 | Antony Sweeney | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 |
| 2 | James Poole | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 3 | Adam Boyd | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 4 | Peter Hartley | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Gary Liddle | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Colin Nish | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 7 | Luke James | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 7 | Andy Monkhouse | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 9 | Neil Austin | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 9 | Ryan Noble | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 9 | Nolberto Solano | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 12 | James Brown | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | Sam Collins | 1 | 0 | 0 | ) | 1 |
| 12 | Ritchie Humphreys | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | Nathan Luscombe | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 12 | Paul Murray | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |

### Clean Sheets

| Rank | Name | League One | FA Cup | League Cup | Other | Total |
| 1 | Scott Flinders | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| 2 | Andy Rafferty | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |

### Penalties

| Date | Name | Opposition | Scored? |
| 20 August 2011 | Adam Boyd | Stevenage | Y |
| 15 October 2011 | Adam Boyd | Wycombe Wanderers | Y |
| 5 November 2011 | Neil Austin | Leyton Orient | Y |

### Suspensions

| Date Incurred | Name | Games Missed | Reason |
| 13 August 2011 | Nathan Luscombe | 3 | (vs. Walsall) |
| 5 November 2011 | Paul Murray | 1 | (vs. Leyton Orient) |
| 12 November 2011 | Scott Flinders | 1 | (vs. Stevenage) |
| 31 March 2012 | Peter Hartley | 1 | (vs. Sheffield United) |

## Awards

| End of Season Awards | Winner |
| Hartlepool Mail Player of the Year | Peter Hartley |
| Players' Player of the Year | Peter Hartley |
| Michael Maidens' Goal of the Season | Luke James vs Rochdale |
| Supporters' Association Youth Team Player of the Year | Josh Rowbotham |

## Aftermath

Following the conclusion of the season, Cooper opted to release experienced players such as Adam Boyd and James Brown. Steve Haslam, Nolberto Solano and Colin Larkin also departed. The 2012–13 season saw Hartlepool relegated to the fourth tier after six seasons in League One.