[3] He joined League champions Aston Villa for a fee which, after much speculation, was confirmed at Small Heath's Annual General Meeting as £350 guaranteed, plus the proceeds of a match to be played between the two clubs.

First-half goals from Alex Leake, Jimmy Inglis with a header from Tom Farnall's free kick, and Jack Jones gave Small Heath a 3–1 victory,[6] prompting the press to predict a finish in the test match positions.

[7][8] In the return fixture, Newcastle led 3–2 at half time – three goals for Richard Smellie against Jones's two – but were reduced to ten men, William Graham having broken his arm.

[14] Playing with the benefit of the slope, Walsall took the lead twice in the Staffordshire Cup, but on change of ends, Small Heath equalised, and scored twice more in extra time to progress to the next round.

The Dundee Courier & Argus assessed the player thus:[16]Aston Villa have so many clever forwards that they afford to dispense with a man like Hodgetts, who is now naturally slow, and disinclined to work.

Small Heath took a two-goal lead through Inglis and Leake, the visitors brought the scores level before half time, and with 15 minutes left, Trinity's John Scott was sent off for striking Jack Jones.

[17] When the matter came before the County Association, the player received a suspension of one week – the minimum punishment permissible – because of his 17 years unblemished conduct and having acted under "great provocation, Jones having kicked him off his legs and he 'only cleaned one hand on him'.

[19] Perhaps fortunate to find Walsall without their first-choice goalkeeper and three forwards, Small Heath won 6–1 away from home, with two goals from Inglis and Walton and one apiece from Jones and Charles Izon.

[22] On a raw day, only 500 spectators watched Small Heath's 2–0 victory[23] which failed to entertain the Penny Illustrated Paper:[24]That the paid player is wanting in keenness when the match is "friendly", i.e. not associated with League or Cup competition, has very nearly, if not quite, become proverbial.

Small Heath and Wolverhampton Wanderers gave an exhibition at the Crystal Palace which could not be calculated to impress visitors favourably.Back in the League, Woolwich Arsenal took an early lead at Coventry Road but were 4–1 down by half time, Hodgetts scoring twice and Walton and Robertson once each.

[30] Back in the league, a fine attacking display gave Grimsby Town a 2–0 half-time lead; on change of ends, playing against the wind, Small Heath's performance improved, and Hare scored on the break ten minutes from time, but they were unable to equalise.

On Boxing Day, the visitors, Scottish League leaders Hibernians, began the match "in brilliant style",[37] and although the heavy pitch initially inhibited their shooting, they came out winners by five goals to two.

[38] The Owl's correspondent approved of the selection of Hare at centre-forward, but suggested that until the club signed "two or three good men" to play in defensive positions, the team's decline would continue.

[46] Without a fixture for the following Saturday, Small Heath attempted to arrange another friendly in the south of England, but after their previous performances in such matches, no potential opponent were prepared to offer a sufficient financial guarantee for them to agree to travel.

Blackpool took the lead after only five minutes, but their cause was hindered soon afterwards when they lost Harry Stirzaker to a head injury early in the game, and Tom Oakes scored twice as Small Heath exploited their numerical advantage to win 3–1.

[53] Small Heath put out a strong side against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the second round of the Birmingham Cup, but lost Oakes to injury in the first half, and suffered defeat by eight goals to two.

[55] They returned to League action with a 6–2 win at Burton Wanderers, including two goals on debut for reserve forward Walter Gadsby; a five-goal lead soon after half time led to "the visitors' backs taking things rather too easy".

[56] A comfortable 5–1 win against a weakened Liverpool team, in which Charlie Hare, "shooting in a very dangerous manner, and making the best use of openings given him", scored a hat-trick,[57] preceded the return fixture against Burton Wanderers, who featured former Small Heath regulars Will and Ted Devey.

An exciting game saw Small Heath fight back to win 3–2 to secure their fourth consecutive victory, marred by a first-half injury to Billy Walton that proved to be a broken shoulderblade that kept him out for the remainder of the season.

[69] Playing with the wind in their favour at Coventry Road, Leicester Fosse had a one-goal lead at the interval, but on change of ends Inglis equalised, and the game finished two goals apiece.

[72] When the Football Association announced the list of clubs exempt from the qualifying competition for the 1897–98 FA Cup, Small Heath were not on it, although their less successful local rivals Walsall were.

[75] The club made a loss of £369 on the year, which the Dart suggested was due less to the effects of bad weather, as claimed in the annual report, than to a "penny wise and pound foolish" approach to the signing of players which they hoped would not be repeated in the season to come.

[78] The Dart's initial opinion was that the standard of replacement for Hodgetts, who had been reinstated as an amateur, Jones and Farnall – "two or three players who have done well with local clubs have been signed up, and a smart left-wing forward in Kirton, of Lincoln City, has also been secured" – but as the directors preferred to spend their money on ground improvements, in the shape of the purchase of Aston Villa's old stands from the Perry Barr ground, rather than on "stars", these would be inadequate to return the club to the First Division.