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The Football Conference season of 1996–97 was the eighteenth season of the Football Conference, also known as the Vauxhall Conference for sponsorship reasons.
Overview
Macclesfield Town won their second Conference title in three years, and this time earned a promotion to the Football League – thanks to their upgraded stadium – at the expense of Hereford United.
New teams in the league this season
- Hayes (promoted 1995–96)
- Rushden & Diamonds (promoted 1995–96)
Final league table
Pos | Team | Pld | HW | HD | HL | HGF | HGA | AW | AD | AL | AGF | AGA | GD | Pts | Promotion or relegation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Macclesfield Town | 42 | 15 | 4 | 2 | 41 | 11 | 12 | 5 | 4 | 39 | 19 | +50 | 90 | Football Conference Champions, promoted to Football League Third Division |
2 | Kidderminster Harriers | 42 | 14 | 4 | 3 | 48 | 18 | 12 | 3 | 6 | 36 | 24 | +42 | 85 | Conference League Cup winners |
3 | Stevenage Borough | 42 | 15 | 4 | 2 | 53 | 23 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 34 | 30 | +34 | 82 | |
4 | Morecambe | 42 | 10 | 5 | 6 | 34 | 23 | 9 | 4 | 8 | 35 | 33 | +13 | 66 | |
5 | Woking | 42 | 10 | 5 | 6 | 41 | 29 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 30 | 34 | +8 | 64 | FA Trophy winners |
6 | Northwich Victoria | 42 | 11 | 5 | 5 | 31 | 20 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 30 | 34 | +7 | 63 | |
7 | Farnborough Town | 42 | 9 | 6 | 6 | 35 | 29 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 23 | 24 | +5 | 61 | |
8 | Hednesford Town | 42 | 10 | 7 | 4 | 28 | 17 | 6 | 5 | 10 | 24 | 33 | +2 | 60 | |
9 | Telford United | 42 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 21 | 30 | 10 | 3 | 8 | 25 | 26 | −10 | 58 | |
10 | Gateshead | 42 | 8 | 6 | 7 | 32 | 27 | 7 | 5 | 9 | 27 | 36 | −4 | 56 | |
11 | Southport | 42 | 8 | 5 | 8 | 27 | 28 | 7 | 5 | 9 | 24 | 33 | −10 | 55 | |
12 | Rushden & Diamonds[a] | 42 | 8 | 8 | 5 | 30 | 25 | 6 | 3 | 12 | 31 | 38 | −2 | 53 | |
13 | Stalybridge Celtic | 42 | 9 | 5 | 7 | 35 | 29 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 18 | 29 | −5 | 52 | |
14 | Kettering Town | 42 | 9 | 4 | 8 | 30 | 28 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 23 | 34 | −9 | 51 | |
15 | Hayes[a] | 42 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 27 | 21 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 27 | 34 | −1 | 50 | |
16 | Slough Town | 42 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 42 | 32 | 5 | 7 | 9 | 20 | 33 | −3 | 50 | |
17 | Dover Athletic | 42 | 7 | 9 | 5 | 32 | 30 | 5 | 5 | 11 | 25 | 38 | −11 | 50 | |
18 | Welling United | 42 | 9 | 2 | 10 | 24 | 26 | 4 | 7 | 10 | 26 | 34 | −10 | 48 | |
19 | Halifax Town | 42 | 9 | 5 | 7 | 39 | 37 | 3 | 7 | 11 | 16 | 37 | −19 | 48 | |
20 | Bath City | 42 | 9 | 5 | 7 | 27 | 28 | 3 | 6 | 12 | 26 | 52 | −27 | 47 | Relegated to the Southern League |
21 | Bromsgrove Rovers | 42 | 8 | 4 | 9 | 29 | 30 | 4 | 1 | 16 | 12 | 37 | −26 | 41 | |
22 | Altrincham | 42 | 6 | 3 | 12 | 25 | 34 | 3 | 9 | 9 | 24 | 39 | −24 | 39 | Relegated to the Northern Premier League |
Source: [1]
Notes:
Notes:
Results
Promotion and relegation
Promoted
- Macclesfield Town (to the Football League Third Division)
- Cheltenham Town (from the Southern Premier League)
- Leek Town (from the Northern Premier League)
- Yeovil Town (from the Isthmian League)
Relegated
- Hereford United (from the Football League Third Division)
- Altrincham (to the Northern Premier League)
- Bath City (to the Southern Premier League)
- Bromsgrove Rovers (to the Southern Premier League)
Top scorers in order of league goals
Rank | Player | Club | League | FA Cup | FA Trophy | League Cup | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Lee Hughes | Kidderminster Harriers | 30 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 34 |
2 | Lennie Dennis | Welling United | 21 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 25 |
3 | Andy Whittaker | Southport | 19 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 27 |
4 | Gary Abbott | Slough Town | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 |
5 | Justin Jackson | Woking | 17 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 23 |
6 | Barry Hayles | Stevenage Borough | 16 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 21 |
= | David Leworthy | Rushden & Diamonds | 16 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
= | Lee Steele | Northwich Victoria | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 |
9 | Joe O'Connor | Hednesford | 15 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
= | Paul Thompson | Gateshead | 15 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 23 |
= | Clive Walker | Woking | 15 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 19 |
= | Steve Wood | Macclesfield Town | 15 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 16 |
13 | Mike Davis | Bath City | 14 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
= | Neil Doherty | Kidderminster Harriers | 14 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 16 |
= | Niell Hardy | Altrincham | 14 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 18 |
= | Mickey Norbury | Halifax Town | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
17 | Carl Alford | Rushden & Diamonds | 13 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
= | Ian Arnold | Stalybridge Celtic | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
= | Chris Boothe | Farnborough Town | 13 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 25 |
= | Martin Randall | Hayes | 13 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 17 |
= | Phil Wingfield | Farnborough Town | 13 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 16 |
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