Football League Second Division 1896/97
| Pos | Club | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | GA | Pts | Notes |
| 1st |  Notts
County |
30 | 19 | 4 | 7 | 92 | 43 | 2.140 | 42 | ♦▲Champions |
| 2nd | Newton
Heath |
30 | 17 | 5 | 8 | 56 | 34 | 1.647 | 39 | ♦►Remained |
| 3rd |
Grimsby
Town |
30 | 17 | 4 | 9 | 66 | 45 | 1.467 | 38 | - |
| 4th |
Small
Heath |
30 | 16 | 5 | 9 | 69 | 47 | 1.468 | 37 | - |
| 5th |
Newcastle
United |
30 | 17 | 1 | 12 | 56 | 52 | 1.077 | 35 | - |
| 6th |
Manchester
City |
30 | 12 | 8 | 10 | 58 | 50 | 1.160 | 32 | - |
| 7th |
Gainsborough
Trinity |
30 | 12 | 7 | 11 | 50 | 47 | 1.064 | 31 | - |
| 8th |
Blackpool |
30 | 13 | 5 | 12 | 59 | 56 | 1.054 | 31 | - |
| 9th |
Leicester
Fosse |
30 | 13 | 4 | 13 | 59 | 57 | 1.054 | 30 | - |
| 10th |
Woolwich
Arsenal |
30 | 13 | 4 | 13 | 68 | 70 | 0.971 | 30 | - |
| 11th |
Darwen |
30 | 14 | 0 | 16 | 67 | 61 | 1.098 | 28 | - |
| 12th |
Walsall |
30 | 11 | 4 | 15 | 54 | 69 | 0.768 | 26 | - |
| 13th | Loughborough | 30 | 12 | 1 | 17 | 50 | 64 | 0.781 | 25 | - |
| 14th | Burton Swifts | 30 | 9 | 6 | 15 | 46 | 61 | 0.754 | 24 | ►Re Elected |
| 15th | Burton Wanderers | 30 | 9 | 2 | 19 | 31 | 67 | 0.463 | 20 | ▼Not Re Elected |
| 16th | Lincoln City | 30 | 5 | 2 | 23 | 27 | 85 | 0.318 | 12 | ►Re Elected |
-
|
Football League Test Match Series |
|||
|
Promotion and relegation between the two divisions was again decided by a series of Test Matches. As in the previous season the top two clubs in the Second Division and the bottom two in the First Division met in a mini-league. Each club played four matches - home and away matches against the two sides from the other division. At the conclusion of the matches the first and second sides in the league played in the First Division and the third and fourth sides in Second Division. |
|||
| Date | Home | Score | Away |
| 17/04/1897 | Notts County | 1-0 | Sunderland |
| 19/04/1897 | Burnley | 2-0 | Newton Heath |
| 19/04/1897 | Sunderland | 0-0 | Notts County |
| 21/04/1897 | Newton Heath | 2-0 | Burnley |
| 24/04/1897 | Newton Heath | 1-1 | Sunderland |
| 24/04/1897 | Notts County | 1-1 | Burnley |
| 26/04/1897 | Burnley | 0-1 | Notts County |
| 26/04/1897 | Sunderland | 2-0 | Newton Heath |
Football League Test Match Series Standings
| Pos | Club | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | Pts | Outcome |
| 1st | Notts County | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 6 | ▲Promoted to First Division |
| 2nd | Sunderland | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 | 4 | Retained First Division Status |
| 3rd | Burnley | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 3 | ▼Relegated from First Division |
| 4th | Newton Heath | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 3 | Remained in Second Division |
-
|
Election for League Membership |
||
| The three bottom clubs were required to seek re-election to the League. They were joined in the vote for League membership by 7 non-league clubs. | ||
| Votes | Club | End Result |
| 21 | Lincoln City | Re Elected to the League |
| 15 | Burton Swifts | Re Elected to the League |
| 13 | Luton Town | ▲Elected to the League |
| 11 | Burslem Port Vale | Not Elected to the League |
| 9 | Burton Wanderers | ▼Not Re-Elected to the League |
| 7 | Nelson | Not Elected to the League |
| 5 | Glossop North End | Not Elected to the League |
| 3 | Fairfield Athletic | Not Elected to the League |
| 2 | Crewe Alexandra | Not Elected to the League |
| 1 | Millwall Athletic | Not Elected to the League |
----
|
End of Season Notes |
|
▲Notts County were Promoted to the Football League First Division |
|
► Burton Swifts were Re-Elected to the Football League |
|
► Lincoln City were Re-Elected to the Football League |
|
▼Burton Wanderers were Not Re-Elected to the Football League |
|
▲Luton Town were Elected to the Football League |