Former Hartlepool United player Oliver Finney appears in court charged with raping a woman

Midfielder Oliver Finney is accused of committing the alleged offence in Sandbach, in Cheshire, before he joined Pools.

Finney, 25, of Friesian Gardens, Chesterton, in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, was granted conditional bail after the case was first heard at Warrington Magistrates’ Court earlier this month.

He will appear before a Chester Crown Court judge for the first time in connection with the charge on Monday, December 11.

Finney, whose previous address was on the Headland, in Hartlepool, was granted conditional bail until then.

He made 20 starts for Hartlepool in both League Two and the National League, scoring two goals, after joining the club from Crewe Alexandra in January of this year.

Pools say they suspended Finney last month “upon being informed of the allegation and investigation for the first time”.

His departure was confirmed just days later.