Richard Hope
Encyclopedia
Richard Paul Hope is an English former footballer who played as a defender
. He played for Darlington
, Northampton Town
, York City
, Chester City
and Shrewsbury Town
, Wrexham and Grimsby Town
, making over 350 appearances in the Football League
.
, Hope began his career as a trainee at Blackburn Rovers
but made no appearances for the club. He joined Darlington
on one-month loan in January, which brought him his first league
experience, and played five games in the Third Division
.
on loan in December 1998, which was quickly converted to a permanent signing a week later.
in 2000. Following the club's relegation to the Third Division at the end of the 2002–03 season, Hope was released by Northampton in August 2003.
on a one-month contract in August 2003. He then signed a three-month contract in the following month. He stayed at York for the rest of the season but after the club was relegated to the Conference National
at the end of the 2003–04 season he left the club.
on a two-year contract. Hope made 28 appearances in League Two
for Chester in the 2004–05 season, helping the club to avoid relegation.
signed Hope on free transfer in August 2005 after being allowed to leave Chester as he did not feature in manager Keith Curle
's plans for the 2005–06 season. He became a regular for Shrewsbury and was made club captain. He made over 75 appearances in two seasons, helping the club to the League Two play-off final in May 2007. Following defeat in the play-off final, Hope was released by Shrewsbury.
after being handed a two-year contract by Alan Buckley
in June. However after struggling to hold down a first team place, his contract at Grimsby was cancelled by mutual consent on 7 February 2009, departing Blundell Park
after only featuring seven times during the 2008–09
season.
.
Defender (association football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....
. He played for Darlington
Darlington F.C.
Darlington Football Club is a professional association football club based in Darlington, County Durham, currently playing in the Conference National. The club was founded in 1883, and originally played its games at Feethams, before moving to the Darlington Arena in 2003...
, Northampton Town
Northampton Town F.C.
Northampton Town Football Club are an English professional football club based in Northampton, Northamptonshire. They currently play in Football League Two, the lowest league division, after being relegated from League One on the last day of the 2008–09 season...
, York City
York City F.C.
York City Football Club is an English football club based in York, North Yorkshire. The club participates in the Conference National, the fifth tier of English football. Founded in 1922, they joined the Football League in 1929, and have spent most of their history in the lower divisions...
, Chester City
Chester City F.C.
Chester City Football Club was an English football team from Chester. The club was founded as Chester F.C., and joined the Football League in 1931, spending most of their time in the lower divisions. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. Chester won their first league title in 2004, the...
and Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town F.C.
Shrewsbury Town Football Club is an English Association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, who play in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club was formed in 1886 and has played in all the bottom three divisions in various guises since being elected into the Football...
, Wrexham and 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...
, making over 350 appearances 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...
.
Blackburn Rovers
Born in Stockton-on-TeesStockton-on-Tees
Stockton-on-Tees is a market town in north east England. It is the major settlement in the unitary authority and borough of Stockton-on-Tees. For ceremonial purposes, the borough is split between County Durham and North Yorkshire as it also incorporates a number of smaller towns including...
, Hope began his career as a trainee at Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers F.C.
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Blackburn, Lancashire. The team currently competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football....
but made no appearances for the club. He joined Darlington
Darlington F.C.
Darlington Football Club is a professional association football club based in Darlington, County Durham, currently playing in the Conference National. The club was founded in 1883, and originally played its games at Feethams, before moving to the Darlington Arena in 2003...
on one-month loan in January, which brought him his first 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...
experience, and played five games in the Third Division
Football League Third Division
The Football League Third Division was the 3 tier of English Football from 1920 until 1992 when after the formation of the Football Association Premier League saw the league renamed The Football League Division Two...
.
Darlington
He joined the club on a free transfer in the following month. He was a regular for Darlington for the following season-and-a-half, making over 60 league and cup appearances, but fell out of favour in the first half of the 1998–99 season and joined Northampton TownNorthampton Town F.C.
Northampton Town Football Club are an English professional football club based in Northampton, Northamptonshire. They currently play in Football League Two, the lowest league division, after being relegated from League One on the last day of the 2008–09 season...
on loan in December 1998, which was quickly converted to a permanent signing a week later.
Northampton Town
Hope made over 150 appearances in four-and-a-half seasons at Northampton, helping the club to automatic promotion to the Second DivisionFootball 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...
in 2000. Following the club's relegation to the Third Division at the end of the 2002–03 season, Hope was released by Northampton in August 2003.
York City
Hope joined York CityYork City F.C.
York City Football Club is an English football club based in York, North Yorkshire. The club participates in the Conference National, the fifth tier of English football. Founded in 1922, they joined the Football League in 1929, and have spent most of their history in the lower divisions...
on a one-month contract in August 2003. He then signed a three-month contract in the following month. He stayed at York for the rest of the season but after the club was relegated to the Conference National
Conference National
Conference National is the top division of the Football Conference in England. It is the highest level of the National League System and fifth highest of the overall English football league system...
at the end of the 2003–04 season he left the club.
Chester City
He then signed for Conference champions Chester CityChester City F.C.
Chester City Football Club was an English football team from Chester. The club was founded as Chester F.C., and joined the Football League in 1931, spending most of their time in the lower divisions. They changed their name to Chester City in 1983. Chester won their first league title in 2004, the...
on a two-year contract. Hope made 28 appearances in League Two
Football League Two
Football League Two is the third-highest division of The Football League and fourth-highest division overall in the English football league system....
for Chester in the 2004–05 season, helping the club to avoid relegation.
Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury TownShrewsbury Town F.C.
Shrewsbury Town Football Club is an English Association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, who play in League Two, the fourth tier of English football. The club was formed in 1886 and has played in all the bottom three divisions in various guises since being elected into the Football...
signed Hope on free transfer in August 2005 after being allowed to leave Chester as he did not feature in manager Keith Curle
Keith Curle
Keith Curle is an English former professional football player, who is currently first team coach at Queens Park Rangers.As a player, he was capped three times by England at senior level.-Playing career:...
's plans for the 2005–06 season. He became a regular for Shrewsbury and was made club captain. He made over 75 appearances in two seasons, helping the club to the League Two play-off final in May 2007. Following defeat in the play-off final, Hope was released by Shrewsbury.
Wrexham
His next port of call was to sign for Wrexham in June 2007. He made 35 league and cup appearances for Wrexham in the 2007–08 season but was transfer listed in May 2008 following the club's relegation to the Conference.Grimsby Town
He returned to League Two with a move to Grimsby TownGrimsby 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...
after being handed a two-year contract by Alan Buckley
Alan Buckley
Alan Peter Buckley is an English football manager. He was manager of League Two side Grimsby Town until his dismissal in September 2008...
in June. However after struggling to hold down a first team place, his contract at Grimsby was cancelled by mutual consent on 7 February 2009, departing Blundell Park
Blundell Park
Blundell Park is a football ground in Cleethorpes, North East Lincolnshire, England and home to Grimsby Town Football Club. The stadium was built in 1898, but only one of the original stands remain. The current capacity of the ground is 9546, though with the introduction of all seating in the late...
after only featuring seven times during the 2008–09
2008–09 in English football
The 2008–09 season was the 129th season of competitive football in England.-Overview:* West Bromwich Albion, Stoke City and Hull City were all playing in the Premier League after winning promotion from the Championship last season. Stoke returned to the top flight after a 23-year absence, while...
season.
Personal life
Hope since retired from football and retrained to work on oil rigs in the North SeaNorth Sea
In the southwest, beyond the Straits of Dover, the North Sea becomes the English Channel connecting to the Atlantic Ocean. In the east, it connects to the Baltic Sea via the Skagerrak and Kattegat, narrow straits that separate Denmark from Norway and Sweden respectively...
.