Ritchie Humphreys

Number 3

D.O.B.

30/11/1977

Birthplace

Sheffield

Position

Defender/Midfielder

Signed

June 2001

Fee

Free

Former Clubs

Sheffield Wednesday, Scunthorpe United (loan), Cardiff City (loan), Cambridge United, Port Vale (loan)

International

England U21 (3 Caps, 0 Goals)

Pen Pic

Richie Humphreys began his career at Sheffield Wednesday but after an influx of big name foreign signings at Hillsborough he was deemed surplus to requirements.

After a trial at Cambridge, Pools Chris Turner signed him up for the 2000/2001 season and he featured heavily, playing 44 games upfront for Pools and scoring 5 goals. The season ended in disappointment after Humphreys missed a penalty in the Play-Off semi final against Cheltenham.

In his second season he moved to midfield and this proved successful for both Pools and Richie as he helped Hartlepool win promotion with 11 goals in 44 games. He won Hartlepool United's Supporters Player of the Season as well as being named in the PFA Division 3 team of the season.

Humphreys put his Cheltenham nightmare behind him after he scored the winning penalty in the Play-Off semi final against Tranmere Rovers which sent Pools to the League One play-off final in 2005. Richie was switched to Left Back as Pools were relegated back to League Two in 2006, he impressed in this position and won several awards including the North East Football Awards Football League Player of the Season.

During this time Ritchie clocked up 163 consecutive games for Pools until Manager Danny Wilson and sent him on loan to Port Vale, on his return he went on to play in 37 games as Pools bounced back to League One at the first attempt.

Humphreys picked up the Player of the Year again after a consistent display in the 2007/08 season. He was also declared the Player of the Century in 2008. He continued to be a regular at left back before making the switch back to central midfield for the 2009/10 season.

Page last updated 3rd Jan 2010
Click here for Ritchie Humphreys' profile at In The Mad Crowd