Hartlepool United have sacked manager Graeme Lee only five months after he was appointed by the League Two club.

The 43-year-old started his career with Pools, making 225 league appearances before joining Sheffield Wednesday.

He returned as the club's manager after former boss Dave Challinor left for Stockport County in November.

Despite surviving in League Two this term, Pools have won just once in their past 11 games and picked up just seven points during that period.

"While we had some great results and occasions in cup competitions, unfortunately, our league performances have not been good enough with only seven wins since Graeme joined the club and as a board we have become increasingly concerned by the drop-off in form," chairman Raj Singh said.

"This has not been an easy decision to make. Graeme is a really good person and he has given everything to the job. I would like to place on record my thanks to Graeme for his efforts and I wish him and his family well for the future."

Assistant manager Michael Nelson and first-team coach Anthony Sweeney will take charge of the side for Pools' final game of the season on Saturday when they take on Colchester.

"After achieving promotion back to the Football League last year, we remain ambitious as a club to continue our progress with promotion to League One being our target," Singh added.

"We have a brilliant fan base and the crowds at the Suit Direct Stadium this season have been outstanding, with an average of 5,200."

Fleetwood Town defender Tom Clarke and forward Ellis Harrison have signed new one-year contracts, while centre-back Toto Nsiala has signed a new two-year deal with the League One side.

The club have triggered an extension to the contract of Clarke, 34, after he joined from Salford City in 2021.

Harrison, 28, has scored six goals in 18 appearances after joining the club from Portsmouth in January.

Nsiala, 30, signed from Ipswich in January and has made 20 appearances.

Meanwhile, Harrison Biggins, Callum Camps, Kieran O'Hara and Anthony Pilkington are all out of contract and will leave the club this summer.

The Lancashire side say they are also in negotiations with defender Danny Andrew over a new "long-term" deal with the Cod Army.

Gillingham manager Neil Harris has been given a one-match touchline ban and fined £1,000 after being sent off in his side's defeat by Portsmouth.

Harris, 44, admitted his language and behaviour was "abusive, insulting and improper" in his side's 3-1 defeat.

He was sent off shortly after Ronan Curtis' late first-half goal had given Pompey the lead in a loss that saw the Gills drop into the relegation places.

Harris' ban will be served on the opening day of next season.

Gillingham's relegation to League Two was confirmed on Saturday after losing 2-0 at home to Rotherham United - a draw or a win in the fixture would have seen the Gills stay up.

Midfielder Matt Butcher has left Accrington Stanley after rejecting the offer of an extended contract, boss John Coleman has confirmed.

The 24-year-old joined Stanley from Bournemouth in August 2020 and scored six goals in 84 appearances in total in his time at the Wham Stadium.

Butcher was a regular for Coleman's side this season, with four goals in 35 games across all competitions.

"Matt has been a good servant," Coleman told the club website.

"We did offer him a new contract but have been unable to offer him an improved contract, so he is now a free agent."

Stanley have released Stephen Sama, Lewis Mansell, Ben Pleavin, Luke Stowe and Kevin Spinelli, while there is no concrete news on new arrivals.

"I have spoken to one or two players but do not expect any signings until next month," Coleman added.

Premier League

Minizin      24pts 2CS 8CR 5GB 3BB 0SB
SCO          21pts 3CS 7CR 5GB -3BB 1SB
BaggieOne  21pts 3CS 5CR 5GB 6BB 0SB
Sanjay      19pts 2CS 7CR 5GB -3BB 1SB
Derby        14pts 1CS 6CR 5GB -3BB 0SB
Silver        13pts 2CS 4CR 5GB -3BB 1SB
BBB            13pts 0CS 7CR -3GB 3BB 1SB
Snooty        11pts 2CS 6CR -3GB -3BB 1SB

So heading into the final week of the regular season, it finally seems that the Premiership players are gettingtheir act together. Everyone managed to reach double figures in what was the second highest scoring week of the season so far. overall scores were helped by only 2 failures on the gamball though bonuses proved as elusive as ever.

Top this week is Minizin (not a bad week for the Zins!) with 24 points, only failing to score on 2 games, though he really should lose a few points for playing a scoreball on a game where one team failed to get a shot on target. SCO and BaggieOne both breached the 20 point barrier, both scoring maximums on 3 games with BaggieOne getting the week's only bonus maximum. Sanjay continued his good run with 19 points, one of 4 players to get 7 correct results and 5 ahead of Derby - could the title still be in play?

No real poor performances with Silver and BBB both on 13 points, BBB failing to convert any of his 7 correct results into a correct score with snooty at the foot of the table with 11 points - a score that would have seen him top the table 4 times this season!

Derby 341
Sanjay 333
SCO 309
Minizin 304
Silver 300
Snooty 288
BBB 279
BaggieOne 253
AAA 79

They thought it was all over.....but apparently not as we head into the final week of the regular season. Sanjay has been gradually crawling up on Derby over the last few weeks and now sits just 8 points behind. History suggests (i.e. when someone clawed back a double figure deficit in the final week to pip Beefy to the title by a single point - I can't think who that player was!) that the race isn't over yet. The usual shuffling of the pack sees Minzin climb ahead of Silver but at the bottom we have another possible late season drama as BBB is just 9 points behind Snooty in the fight to avoid the play off.

This could be an interesting final week!
Zin

Championship

Zinman 15pts 0CS 5CR 5GB 3BB 1SB
Dingle 15pts 2CS 3CR 5GB -3BB 1SB
Salop 14pts 0CS 6CR NPGB 3BB 1SB
Themaclad 13pts 2CS 3CR -3GB 3BB 1SB
Lady Jane 12pts 1CS 4CR -3GB 6BB 1SB
Stairs 12pts 1CS 3CR NPGB 3BB 1SB
Blue Baggie 7pts 0CS 4CR -3GB 3BB 1SB
Twerton 7pts 1CS 2CR -3GB 3BB 1SB
Amelia 6pts 0CS 4CR NPGB -3BB 1SB

Just one week left after this one so while this week will not likely decide anything it could go a long way to sorting out the places.  Zinman and Dingle lead the way this week with 15 points.  Zin's second week on the trot at the top and a welcome good week for Dingle, they were the only two to get positive points on the Gamball and that always helps!!  Salop is in 3rd with 14 points, he scored on 6 games and had he been able to turn any of those in CSs then he may have topped the tale this week.

Themaclad is 4th with 13 points and seems to have stopped his slide, Lady Jane finally has a good week and Stairs scored well but will it be enough to secure promotion.

The bottom 3 this week include our leader Blue who scored just 7 points, could his title chase be in jeopardy??  Twerton and Amelia fill the last two spots with scores that will not help their causes at all.

326 - Blue Baggie
321 - Stairs
294 - Zinman
276 - Salop
263 - Themaclad
262 - Dingle
237 - Twerton
232 - Amelia
230 - Lady Jane

Absolutely no positional changes this week but Stairs is closing in on Blue at the top and is now just 5 points behind.  Zinman will be in the playoffs unless he has a disaster and Salop has a storming week.  Other than that the only real race left is who will finish bottom, LJ still holds that place but is just 2 points behind Amelia.

Lots to decide in the final week!!

Cheers
SCO

Ron Gourlay today issued a statement outlining the club’s plans for the summer transfer window. A touch of honesty perhaps?

“This season has been unacceptable, and we must now ensure we are better prepared for the challenge of the Sky Bet Championship when the new campaign gets underway at the end of July.

Our results, performances and league position have all fallen short of what is expected of this football club, and I am now committed to a summer of change as we build for the future. I understand the frustrations of our supporters and I will do all in my power to help build a team they can be proud of next season.

We must recruit players who are proud to play for this great football club, who are hungry to achieve success here, and who have the character and ability to drive us forward. Likewise, we will need to move on players who do not meet those criteria. While we will do all we can to move things forward this summer, we must be realistic enough to accept it may take more than one transfer window to complete this process.

It will not be easy to implement these changes and we will need to be shrewd in the transfer market. While the club remains financially sound, we continue to pay high wages and significant amortised fees for previous transfers, which inevitably restricts what we can commit to transfers this summer. With that in mind, I simply will not spend more than we can afford.

A review of previous transfer windows shows us that this club has spent poorly in recent years. It has overpaid for players who have not improved the performance of the team. It is honest, if not glamourous, to say we must now cut our cloth accordingly, seeking out better value in the market than we have in the past. Large amounts of money, while helpful, are not the only recipe to success in this league, which is evidenced by the performance of clubs who have spent significantly less on transfers and wages than we have, while achieving better results.

In Steve Bruce we have a manager who has a proven track record of success in the circumstances I have outlined above, taking Birmingham and Hull to promotions and Aston Villa to a play-off final with limited resources. Steve and I are in strong agreement on the changes we must make to the first-team squad for us to be successful. We continue to work tirelessly alongside the club’s football board to ensure we are ready to act when the window opens.

We have a big summer ahead and we are already taking the appropriate forward steps. We remain committed and confident we can achieve success.

We do not take the loyalty of our fans for granted and we thank them for their patience during what has been a disappointing season. Upon my appointment I said I would measure my own success here by returning The Hawthorns to the vibrant atmosphere for which it is famous, and I remain determined to achieve that goal.”

Veteran midfielder Wes Hoolahan has been released by Cambridge United.

The 39-year-old played 66 games and scored eight goals in his two years at the club, and helped the U's to promotion to League One last season.

Hoolahan won 43 caps for the Republic of Ireland and played at Euro 2016, and also twice won promotion to the Premier League in a 10-year stint at Norwich.

Goalkeeper Kai-McKenzie Lyle and defender Tom Dickens have also been released by Cambridge.

"To play as much as I did and for us to have achieved what I did, it has been a really special part of my life and career," Hoolahan told the club's website.

"The day we won promotion is the day that will live with me the longest.

"Nobody gave us a chance that season and for us to finally get over the line - after a bit of a wobble - and then to celebrate with the fans on the roof was definitely my biggest highlight. Just an unbelievable day, season and moment for the club."

Hoolahan began his career at Shelbourne, in Ireland, before moving to Livingston in 2005.

He joined Blackpool after a successful loan before moving to the Canaries in 2008, where he played four seasons in the Premier League.

The attacking midfielder was named in the League Two team of the season for his role in Cambridge's promotion last season.

The club has also offered new contracts to Greg Taylor, Jack Iredale, Liam O'Neil, Harrison Dunk, Adam May and Will Mannion.

Plymouth have exercised their option to keep midfielder Jordan Houghton at Home Park for a further 12 months.

The 26-year-old played 50 times this season but was sent off in Saturday's 5-0 thrashing by MK Dons as Argyle missed out on the League One play-offs.

Plymouth had already taken up their option to extend fellow midfielder Panutche Camara's contract.

Wing-back Ryan Law, 22, whose deal expires this summer, has been offered a new contract.

The club have also taken up the option to extend the contract of Brandon Pursall, 18, but fellow defender Ollie Tomlinson, 19, has been released.

Bradford City striker Lee Angol has signed a one-year contract extension, with the option of a further 12 months.

The 27-year-old joined the Bantams on a one-year deal last summer and has scored six goals in 21 appearances.

"We are pleased to have Lee on board for next year, and are looking forward to continuing to have him available," Bradford boss Mark Hughes told the club website.

"He is a very good footballer and an asset for us to have in our side."

The Football Association is investigating allegations of discriminatory words and conduct by Crawley Town manager John Yems towards the League Two club's players.

The 62-year-old was suspended indefinitely last month following "serious and credible accusations".

Crawley said at the time that they were looking into the claims and would consider "further punitive action".

The FA has confirmed it is investigating the claims.

"We are aware of allegations made against Crawley manager John Yems," an FA spokesperson said.

"We are treating the allegations extremely seriously and are currently conducting an investigation into them.

"We cannot comment further until that has concluded."

The Daily Mail reported some of the detail of the allegations against Yems on Wednesday.

It included the use of discriminatory language towards black and Asian players at the club, and an allegation that the training ground was segregated.