Port Vale Football Club are a professional
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
club based in
Burslem
Burslem ( ) is one of the six towns that along with Hanley, Tunstall, Fenton, Longton and Stoke-upon-Trent form part of the city of Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England. It is often referred to as the "mother town" of Stoke on Trent.
T ...
,
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement ...
, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley of ports on the
Trent and Mersey Canal
The Trent and Mersey Canal is a canal in Derbyshire, Staffordshire and Cheshire in north-central England. It is a "narrow canal" for the vast majority of its length, but at the extremities to the east of Burton upon Trent and north of Middle ...
. They have never played top-flight football, and hold the record for the most seasons in the
English Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...
(111) and in the second tier (41) without reaching the first tier. After playing at the
Athletic Ground in
Cobridge
Cobridge is an area of Stoke-on-Trent, in the City of Stoke-on-Trent district, in the county of Staffordshire, England. Cobridge was marked on the 1775 Yates map as 'Cow Bridge' and was recorded in Ward records (1843) as Cobridge Gate.
Cobrid ...
and
The Old Recreation Ground
The Old Recreation Ground was a football stadium located in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, England, and home to Port Vale F.C. from 1913 to 1950. It was the sixth ground the club used.
Structure and facilities
The stadium was in rather bad conditio ...
in
Hanley, the club returned to Burslem when
Vale Park
Vale Park is a football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It has been the home ground of Port Vale F.C. since 1950.
The ground has seen its capacity go up and down, its peak being 42,000 in 1954 against Blackpool, although a club record 49, ...
was opened in 1950. Outside the ground is a statue to
Roy Sproson
Roy Sproson (23 September 1930 – 24 January 1997) was an English footballer and football manager for Port Vale. A one-club man, he holds the all-time appearance record for Vale, making 837 starts (and 5 substitute appearances) for Vale ...
, who played 842 competitive games for the club. The club's traditional rivals are
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
, and games between the two are known as the
Potteries derby
In Football in England, English football, the Potteries derby is the List of sports rivalries, local derby between the two major clubs in the city of Stoke-on-Trent – Port Vale F.C., Port Vale and Stoke City F.C., Stoke City, first contested i ...
.
After becoming one of the more prominent football clubs in
Staffordshire
Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...
, Burslem Port Vale were invited to become founder members of the
Football League Second Division
The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third ti ...
in
1892
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States.
* February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado.
* February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies for ...
. They spent 13 non-consecutive seasons in the division, punctuated by two seasons in the
Midland League
The Midland Football League is an English football league that was founded in 2014 by the merger of the former Midland Alliance and Midland Combination. The league has four divisions that sit at levels 9–12 of the football pyramid.
History
T ...
, before they resigned due to financial difficulties and entered liquidation in 1907. The name of Port Vale continued in the North Staffordshire Federation League, and this new club were successful enough to be reinstated into the Football League in 1919. They spent 16 non-consecutive seasons in the Second Division, punctuated by winning the
Third Division North
The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to ...
title in
1929–30, before dropping back into the third tier for a much longer stay at the end of the 1935–36 campaign. The
1953–54 season saw manager
Freddie Steele
Freddie Steele (December 18, 1912 – August 22, 1984) was a boxer and film actor born Frederick Earle Burgett in Seattle, Washington. He was recognized as the National Boxing Association (NBA) Middleweight Champion of the World between 1936 ...
's "Iron Curtain" defence win both a Third Division North title and a semi-final place in the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
. They failed to build on this success however, although they went on to finish as champions of the first
Fourth Division season under
Norman Low
Norman Harvey Low (23 March 1914 – 21 May 1994) was a Scottish football player and manager. He was the son of Scottish international footballer, Wilf Low.
A central defender, he played for Newcastle United between 1931 and 1933, before a ...
's stewardship in
1958–59.
The club had little success throughout the 1960s and 1970s, despite being briefly managed by
Stanley Matthews
Sir Stanley Matthews, CBE (1 February 1915 – 23 February 2000) was an English footballer who played as an outside right. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of the British game, he is the only player to have been knighted while stil ...
, and were forced to apply for re-election after breaking
FA rules on illegal payments in 1968.
Gordon Lee Gordon Lee may refer to:
*Gordon Lee (comic store owner) (1958–2013), American comic book store owner charged with distributing obscene materials
*Gordon Lee (congressman) (1859–1927), U.S. congressman from Georgia
*Gordon Lee (footballer) (193 ...
guided the club to promotion back to the Third Division the following season, where they would remain until relegation at the end of the 1977–78 campaign.
John McGrath steered the club to promotion in 1982–83, though he departed after relegation became inevitable the following season. His assistant,
John Rudge
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
, stepped up to become the club's longest-serving and most successful manager, leading the club from 1983 to 1999. Under his leadership Port Vale won promotions in
1985–86,
1988–89 and
1993–94, lifted the
Football League Trophy
The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Leag ...
in
1993
File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
and reached a post-war record finish of eighth in the second tier in the
1996–97 season.
After Rudge's reign ended the club entered a decline, slipping into the fourth tier whilst twice entering
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative assistant, Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an admini ...
in 2003 and 2012. The decline was arrested when manager
Micky Adams
Michael Richard Adams (born 8 November 1961) is an English former professional association football, footballer and football manager. As a player, he was a Full-back (football), full back, and made a total of 438 league appearances in a ninete ...
achieved automatic promotion from
League Two
The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
in the
2012–13 season, though they were relegated back into League Two at the end of the
2016–17 season after a failed experiment with a continental staff and playing style.
Carol Shanahan bought the club in 2019 and manager
Darrell Clarke
Darrell James Clarke (born 16 December 1977) is an English professional football manager and former player who played in the English Football League. He is the manager of club Port Vale.
A box-to-box midfielder, Clarke began his career with ...
secured promotion out of the League Two play-offs at the end of the
2021–22 season.
History
The official story reported on the club website is that Port Vale F.C. was formed in 1876, following a meeting at Port Vale House, from where the club was supposed to have taken its name.
However, documented evidence of football from that era is extremely scarce and research by historian
Jeff Kent
Jeffrey Franklin Kent (born March 7, 1968) is an American former professional baseball second baseman. He played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 1992–2008 for the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets, Cleveland Indians, San Francis ...
indicated that it was probably formed in 1879 as an offshoot of Porthill Victoria F.C. and took its name from the valley of canal ports where the team played. In the club's early days the team played their football at Limekiln Lane,
Longport and from 1880 at Westport. The club moved to Moorland Road in
Burslem
Burslem ( ) is one of the six towns that along with Hanley, Tunstall, Fenton, Longton and Stoke-upon-Trent form part of the city of Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England. It is often referred to as the "mother town" of Stoke on Trent.
T ...
in 1884, changing its name to Burslem Port Vale in the process, though stayed in Burslem for just one year before both turning professional and moving to
Cobridge
Cobridge is an area of Stoke-on-Trent, in the City of Stoke-on-Trent district, in the county of Staffordshire, England. Cobridge was marked on the 1775 Yates map as 'Cow Bridge' and was recorded in Ward records (1843) as Cobridge Gate.
Cobrid ...
to play at the
Athletic Ground.
In
1892
Events
January–March
* January 1 – Ellis Island begins accommodating immigrants to the United States.
* February 1 - The historic Enterprise Bar and Grill was established in Rico, Colorado.
* February 27 – Rudolf Diesel applies for ...
, the club were invited to become founder members of the
Football League Second Division
The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third ti ...
after proving themselves a strong club in the
Midland League
The Midland Football League is an English football league that was founded in 2014 by the merger of the former Midland Alliance and Midland Combination. The league has four divisions that sit at levels 9–12 of the football pyramid.
History
T ...
. They spent 13 seasons in the Second Division either side of a two-season return to the Midland League (1896–97 and 1897–98).
![Port Vale FC League Performance](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Port_Vale_FC_League_Performance.svg)
The club were forced to resign from the league at the end of the
1906–07 season and were subsequently liquidated. However, the name of Port Vale was continued after ambitious minor league side Cobridge Church opted to change their name. The new club subsequently moved into their new home of the
Old Recreation Ground
The Old Recreation Ground was a football stadium located in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, England, and home to Port Vale F.C. from 1913 to 1950. It was the sixth ground the club used.
Structure and facilities
The stadium was in rather bad conditi ...
in
Hanley in 1912, and returned to the Football League in
October 1919, taking over the fixture list of
Leeds City
Leeds City Football Club was the leading professional club in Leeds, England, before the First World War. It was dissolved in 1919 due to financial irregularities, after which Leeds United was established as a replacement.
History
The club was ...
in the Second Division, who were forced to disband because of financial irregularities.
Wilf Kirkham
Wilfred Thomas Kirkham (26 November 1901 – 20 October 1974) was an English footballer who holds four goalscoring records at Port Vale. His 153 league goals and 164 goals in all competitions are both records, as his tally of 38 goals in the ...
made his Vale debut in October 1923, and over the next ten years would score a
club record 164 league and cup goals, including a club record 41 goals in the
1926–27 campaign.
The club were relegated for the first time at the end of the
1928–29 season, going from the Second Division to the
Third Division North
The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to ...
. They came up as champions the
following season and in the
1930–31 season were placed fifth in the second tier of English football, their highest ever league finish. Vale went to beat
Chesterfield
Chesterfield may refer to:
Places Canada
* Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan
* Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom
* Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England
** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...
by a club record 9–1 margin on 24 September 1932. However, after these achievements the club were once again relegated in the
1935–36 season and remained in the third tier until
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.
Port Vale moved into their new home of
Vale Park
Vale Park is a football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It has been the home ground of Port Vale F.C. since 1950.
The ground has seen its capacity go up and down, its peak being 42,000 in 1954 against Blackpool, although a club record 49, ...
in 1950, and a year later
Freddie Steele
Freddie Steele (December 18, 1912 – August 22, 1984) was a boxer and film actor born Frederick Earle Burgett in Seattle, Washington. He was recognized as the National Boxing Association (NBA) Middleweight Champion of the World between 1936 ...
was appointed club manager.
Steele quickly established himself at the club, masterminding the celebrated '
Iron Curtain
The Iron Curtain was the political boundary dividing Europe into two separate areas from the end of World War II in 1945 until the end of the Cold War in 1991. The term symbolizes the efforts by the Soviet Union (USSR) to block itself and its s ...
' defence.
The
1953–54 season saw Vale winning the Third Division North title as well as reaching the semi-finals of the FA Cup, losing out to eventual winners
West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
in controversial fashion, in which an
Albert Leake goal was disallowed for
offside.
Three years later, the club were again relegated, and once again became founder members of a division – this time the
Football League Fourth Division
The Football League Fourth Division was the fourth-highest division in the English football league system from the 1958–59 season until the creation of the Premier League prior to the 1992–93 season. Whilst the division disappeared in name ...
.
Manager
Norman Low
Norman Harvey Low (23 March 1914 – 21 May 1994) was a Scottish football player and manager. He was the son of Scottish international footballer, Wilf Low.
A central defender, he played for Newcastle United between 1931 and 1933, before a ...
instilled an attacking philosophy and in the
1958–59 season guided the team to the Fourth Division title with a club record 110 goals scored.
Vale ended a six-season stay in the Third Division with relegation at the end of the
1964–65 campaign. In 1967, former
Ballon d'Or
The Ballon d'Or (; ) is an annual football award presented by French news magazine ''France Football'' since 1956. Between 2010 and 2015, in an agreement with FIFA, the award was temporarily merged with the FIFA World Player of the Year (fo ...
winner
Stanley Matthews
Sir Stanley Matthews, CBE (1 February 1915 – 23 February 2000) was an English footballer who played as an outside right. Often regarded as one of the greatest players of the British game, he is the only player to have been knighted while stil ...
succeeded
Jackie Mudie
John Knight Mudie (10 April 1930 – 2 March 1992) was a Scottish international footballer who played as a forward. He won seventeen caps for his country, helping the Scotland national team to qualify for the 1958 FIFA World Cup.
Startin ...
as manager, though he resigned a year later after Vale were expelled from the Football League for allegedly making illegal payments to players in contravention of
FA rules – this punishment was reduced on appeal to a re-election vote, which the club won.
Gordon Lee Gordon Lee may refer to:
*Gordon Lee (comic store owner) (1958–2013), American comic book store owner charged with distributing obscene materials
*Gordon Lee (congressman) (1859–1927), U.S. congressman from Georgia
*Gordon Lee (footballer) (193 ...
took the helm following this punishment, and steered the club to promotion at the end of the
1969–70 campaign. However, the 1970s did not prove a successful period for the Valiants, as the club languished in the bottom half of the Third Division for much of the decade. Lee left in 1974, and a succession of managers failed to prevent relegation in
1977–1978. The
1979–80 season saw Port Vale finish 20th in the Fourth Division (88th overall), the club's worst ever finish. Despite this poor finish in
John McGrath's first season, they eventually achieved their first success for thirteen years in
1982–83 by winning promotion out of the Fourth Division in third place.
Following McGrath's dismissal, his assistant
John Rudge
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
was appointed as manager in December 1983. Though he was unable to halt Vale's immediate return to the bottom tier of the Football League, he succeeded in steadying the ship. Helped by the goals of prolific Welshman
Andy Jones, Vale were promoted back to the third tier in
1985–86 after losing just once at Vale Park in the league all season. A major cup upset came on 30 January 1988, when Vale defeated
First Division side
Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
2–1, thanks to a superb strike from
Ray Walker. After three seasons in the third tier, Rudge's Vale achieved another promotion in
1988–89 after
Robbie Earle
Robert Fitzgerald Earle MBE (born 27 January 1965) is an English-born Jamaican former international footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He played 578 league games in senior club football, scoring 136 goals.
A former youth playe ...
scored the winning goal at Vale Park to complete a 2–1 aggregate
play-off final victory over
Bristol Rovers
Bristol Rovers Football Club are a professional football club in Bristol, England. They compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
They play home matches at the Memorial Stadium in Horfield, they have been c ...
; this marked the club's return to the Second Division after a 33-year absence.
![Tom Pope](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/Tom_Pope.png)
Vale suffered relegation on the final day of the
1991–92 league campaign, and though they bounced back well by staying in the promotion picture for most of the
1992–93 season, they narrowly missed out as runners-up to local rivals
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
after being overtaken by
Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
on the final day. Instead Vale would visit
Wembley
Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...
twice in just over a week. They firstly ran out as 2–1 winners against
Stockport County
Stockport County Football Club are a professional football club in Stockport, England, who compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Formed in 1883 as Heaton Norris Rovers, they were renamed Stockport Co ...
in
the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
of the
Football League Trophy
The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Leag ...
.
However, they then lost
3–0 in the play-off final to West Bromwich Albion. Vale recovered from this setback and went on to confirm promotion as runners-up on the final day of the
1993–94 season. During the
1995–96 season Vale recorded one of their greatest FA Cup giant-killings when they defeated holders Everton 2–1. The team also had some success in the
Anglo-Italian Cup
The Anglo-Italian Cup ( it, Coppa Anglo-Italiana, also known as the Anglo-Italian Inter-League Clubs Competition and from 1976 to 1986 as the Alitalia Challenge Cup, Talbot Challenge Cup or Gigi Peronace Memorial) is a defunct European football c ...
, as they qualified for the final at Wembley, where they
lost 5–2 to then Italian
Serie B
The Serie B (), currently named Serie Balkrishna Industries, BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 ...
side
Genoa
Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...
.
Vale made a slow start to the
1996–97 campaign, with protests forming against chairman
Bill Bell, and the sale of
Steve Guppy
Stephen Andrew Guppy (born 29 March 1969) is an English football coach and former professional footballer who now coaches at Nashville SC.
A winger, he started his senior career with Wycombe Wanderers in 1989, over a five-year period he mad ...
to
Leicester City
Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...
for £800,000. Despite this Rudge masterminded an eighth-place finish – their highest in the pyramid since 1931.
In
1997–98, relegation was avoided on the final day of the season with a 4–0 win over
Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. Th ...
, at the expense of
Manchester City
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
and Stoke City. The
next season was another struggle, and John Rudge was controversially sacked in January 1999.
He was replaced by former player
Brian Horton
Brian "Nobby" Horton (born 4 February 1949) is an English former footballer and manager. He spent 16 years as a professional player and 22 years as a manager, making 689 appearances and managing 1,098 matches. In addition to this he spent four ...
, who spent big to secure the club's second consecutive final-day escape from relegation. There was no avoiding relegation in
1999–2000, though, as they were some thirteen points short of safety. Horton led the club to Football League Trophy success in 2001, as
Marc Bridge-Wilkinson
Marc Bridge-Wilkinson (born 16 March 1979) is an English football coach and former player.
A left-sided midfielder and also a winger, he was known for his goal-scoring ability. He started his career at Derby County in 1998, but instead made hi ...
and
Steve Brooker
''yes'Steve is a masculine given name, usually a short form (hypocorism) of Steven or Stephen
Notable people with the name include:
steve jops
* Steve Abbott (disambiguation), several people
* Steve Adams (disambiguation), several people
* Steve ...
scored the goals to secure a 2–1 victory over
Brentford
Brentford is a suburban town in West London, England and part of the London Borough of Hounslow. It lies at the confluence of the River Brent and the Thames, west of Charing Cross.
Its economy has diverse company headquarters buildings whi ...
in
the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
at the
Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm y Mileniwm), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Principality) for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it is the home of the Wales national rug ...
.
In December 2002, Bill Bell called in the administrators, with the club around £1.5 million in debt.
The club came out of administration in
2003–04 under a fan-ownership consortium headed by
Bill Bratt's Valiant 2001 consortium. However, Horton left in February 2004, unwilling to accept the financial cutbacks imposed by the new board, and was replaced by former player
Martin Foyle
Martin John Foyle (born 2 May 1963) is an English former professional footballer and manager who is the Head of Recruitment at club St Mirren. In his 20-year playing career he played 533 League games, scoring 155 goals. As a manager, he took ...
. Foyle was dismissed in November 2007, and his successor,
Lee Sinnott
Lee Sinnott (born 12 July 1965) is an English professional football manager and former player who was most recently manager of Gainsborough Trinity.
As a player, he was a defender for Walsall, Watford, Bradford City, Crystal Palace, Hudder ...
, proved unable to prevent the club from being relegated into
League Two
The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
after a 23rd-place finish and also oversaw a defeat to
Southern League Division One Midlands
The Southern League is a men's football competition featuring semi-professional clubs from the South and Midlands of England. Together with the Isthmian League and the Northern Premier League it forms levels seven and eight of the English foot ...
club
Chasetown
Chasetown is a village in the town of Burntwood in Staffordshire, England. It is split between the civil parishes of Burntwood and Hammerwich.
History
Chasetown developed in the mid 19th century as a coal mining village. At first the village wa ...
in the FA Cup. Sinnott was sacked in September 2008 and following an unsuccessful tenure from
Dean Glover
Dean Victor Glover (born 29 December 1963) is an English former football player and manager. A cultured and stylish defender, he had the ball control skills of a midfielder. He played 457 league games in a seventeen-year career in the English ...
,
Micky Adams
Michael Richard Adams (born 8 November 1961) is an English former professional association football, footballer and football manager. As a player, he was a Full-back (football), full back, and made a total of 438 league appearances in a ninete ...
was appointed as the club's new manager in June 2009.
Adams left the club in December 2010 with Vale second in the table and
Jim Gannon
James Paul Gannon (born 7 September 1968) is a professional football manager and former player who most recently was manager of Hyde United. He started and finished his career as a player in Ireland, but made most of his professional appear ...
was selected to finish the promotion job. However, Gannon's turbulent reign ended after 74 days. Adams returned as manager at the end of the
2010–11 campaign, but this was not enough to placate fans who demanded a change in the boardroom after a series of promised investments failed to come to fruition.
Genuine hopes of promotion in
2011–12 were brought to an end after the club was issued with a
winding up
Liquidation is the process in accounting by which a company is brought to an end in Canada, United Kingdom, United States, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, and many other countries. The assets and property of the company are redistrib ...
petition by
HM Revenue and Customs
HM Revenue and Customs (His Majesty's Revenue and Customs, or HMRC) is a non-ministerial government department, non-ministerial Departments of the United Kingdom Government, department of the His Majesty's Government, UK Government responsible fo ...
on 29 February 2012; the club were by this time unable to pay tax bills, creditors, or staff wages. The club entered
administration
Administration may refer to:
Management of organizations
* Management, the act of directing people towards accomplishing a goal
** Administrative assistant, Administrative Assistant, traditionally known as a Secretary, or also known as an admini ...
on 9 March. The club finally exited administration on 20 November 2012, and
Tom Pope
Thomas John Pope (born 27 August 1985) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre forward for side Congleton Town.
A Crewe Alexandra Academy graduate, he turned professional with the club in 2005 after impressing at non-leag ...
scored 33 goals to fire Vale to promotion back to
League One
The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...
with a third-place finish. They stabilised in the division under new boss
Rob Page
Robert John Page (born 3 September 1974) is a Welsh football manager and former player, who is currently the manager of the Wales national team. In an 18-year career in the Premier League and the English Football League, he made 550 competitiv ...
, before chairman
Norman Smurthwaite
Norman Smurthwaite (born 8 August 1960) is an English businessman and former football club chairman.
He qualified as an engineer and built a successful business career and property portfolio before retiring at the age of 50. He took over as chair ...
orchestrated the departure of Page and his squad in favour of the club's first foreign manager,
Bruno Ribeiro
Bruno Miguel Fernandes Ribeiro (born 22 October 1975) is a Portuguese football manager and former player who is now the head coach at Campeonato de Portugal club Moura.
A midfielder with a powerful left-foot strike, he began his playing ca ...
, in June 2016. The result was relegation back into
League Two
The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
at the end of the
2016–17 season, after which Smurthwaite resigned as chairman.
He returned to the role the following season and threatened to put the club into administration if a buyer was not found by May 2019, a fate which was avoided when
Carol and Kevin Shanahan completed their takeover. Manager
Darrell Clarke
Darrell James Clarke (born 16 December 1977) is an English professional football manager and former player who played in the English Football League. He is the manager of club Port Vale.
A box-to-box midfielder, Clarke began his career with ...
returned from a close family bereavement to lead Vale through the
League Two play-off semi-finals at the end of the
2021–22 season. Promotion was secured with a 3–0 victory over
Mansfield Town
Mansfield Town Football Club is a professional football club based in the town of Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Stags', they play in a blue and ...
in
the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event
** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...
.
Club identity
Around November 1920, club chairman Frank Huntbach came up with the nickname of "the Valiants". The next year the club adopted their familiar white and black strip after having experimented with numerous colours, including plain red, gold and black stripes, claret and blue, and even during 1898–1902 playing in the red and white stripes now used by rivals
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
for over a century. However, the kit soon changed to plain red shirts with white shorts in 1923, a style which lasted until 1934, when the white shirt, black shorts and socks kit was re-adopted. Between 1958 and 1963 the club adopted various gold and black designs, before once again returning to the black and white theme.
The initial club crest was modelled on the coat of arms of the Borough of Burslem.
From 1952 to 1956 the club used a Staffordshire knot with the letters "PVFC" inside it.
Four years later a more complex badge emerged, again based on the Burslem coat of arms but this time also featuring the scythe of the
Tunstall arms, the fretted cross of
Audley, and two
Josiah Wedgwood
Josiah Wedgwood (12 July 1730 – 3 January 1795) was an English potter, entrepreneur and abolitionist. Founding the Wedgwood company in 1759, he developed improved pottery bodies by systematic experimentation, and was the leader in the indust ...
pots.
The crest was removed in 1964, and replaced by a 'P.V.F.C.' monogramme, which in turn was abandoned in 1978.
For the next four years the club switched to a design of a knight on a horse with the text "Port Vale" at the top.
From 1982 the club introduced a design based on that of a schoolchild who won a competition, which featured a
bottle oven
A bottle oven or bottle kiln is a type of kiln. The word 'bottle' refers to the shape of the structure and not to the kiln's products, which are usually pottery, not glass.
Bottle kilns were typical of the industrial landscape of Stoke-on-Trent ...
and the
Stafford knot
The Stafford knot, more commonly known as the Staffordshire knot, is a distinctive three-looped knot that is the traditional symbol of the English county of Staffordshire and of its county town, Stafford. It is a particular representation of the s ...
, associated with the city of
Stoke-on-Trent
Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England, with an area of . In 2019, the city had an estimated population of 256,375. It is the largest settlement ...
's
pottery
Pottery is the process and the products of forming vessels and other objects with clay and other ceramic materials, which are fired at high temperatures to give them a hard and durable form. Major types include earthenware, stoneware and por ...
industry and the history of the local area.
The current crest was introduced in February 2013, which was a modern rehash of the crest the club introduced in 1956; it included local historical references: the Portland Vases representing Josiah Wedgwood, the Scythe coming from the house crest of the Sneyd family and the silver cross appearing from the house crest of the
Audley family, as well as the
Stafford knot
The Stafford knot, more commonly known as the Staffordshire knot, is a distinctive three-looped knot that is the traditional symbol of the English county of Staffordshire and of its county town, Stafford. It is a particular representation of the s ...
above the crest.
A table of kit suppliers and shirt sponsors appear below:
Grounds
![Vale Park](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Vale_Park.jpg)
When they joined the
English Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...
in 1892, Port Vale were playing at their fourth home ground. They began at the Meadows in Limekiln Lane,
Longport, now Scott Lidgett Road,
and then moved on to Westport Meadows in 1881, where they played for three years.
An area prone to flooding, today
Westport Lake now lies where the ground once stood.
In 1884, the club moved to the Burslem Football and Athletic ground, where they would stay for just two years.
Located close to
Burslem railway station, the club took the area's name.
The first match was a 6–0 win over
Everton in a friendly and the ground also hosted
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
matches for the first time.
It proved to be inadequate however, and Port Vale moved on to the
Athletic Ground.
Located opposite the church on Waterloo Road, directly on the
Hanley and
Burslem
Burslem ( ) is one of the six towns that along with Hanley, Tunstall, Fenton, Longton and Stoke-upon-Trent form part of the city of Stoke-on-Trent in Staffordshire, England. It is often referred to as the "mother town" of Stoke on Trent.
T ...
tram line, it played host to the club for 27 years, including twelve Football League seasons.
It was so named as it also hosted athletics.
The
Old Recreation Ground
The Old Recreation Ground was a football stadium located in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, England, and home to Port Vale F.C. from 1913 to 1950. It was the sixth ground the club used.
Structure and facilities
The stadium was in rather bad conditi ...
was Vale's home from 1913 to 1950, and was located in
Hanley, standing on what is now the
multi-storey car park
A multistorey car park (British and Singapore English) or parking garage (American English), also called a multistory, parking building, parking structure, parkade (mainly Canadian), parking ramp, parking deck or indoor parking, is a build ...
for the
Potteries Shopping Centre
Potteries Shopping Centre (formerly Intu Potteries) is an indoor shopping centre in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent, in the Staffordshire Potteries.
Stores and facilities
The centre houses anchor outlet Primark, as well as a Starbucks coffee shop, a Rive ...
. The club endured hard financial times during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
, and sold the ground to the council, who were reluctant to allow the club to rent it back.
The club received £13,500 for the ground, which they needed to pay off a £3,000 debt.
Vale Park
Vale Park is a football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It has been the home ground of Port Vale F.C. since 1950.
The ground has seen its capacity go up and down, its peak being 42,000 in 1954 against Blackpool, although a club record 49, ...
has been Port Vale's home ground since 1950; it is located on Hamil Road, opposite Burslem Park. Originally planned to be as massive as an 80,000 capacity stadium, the development was known as the "Wembley of the North". However the £50,000 project opened at a capacity of 40,000 (360 seated); still highly ambitious.
The capacity was increased to a sell-out 49,768 for an FA Cup tie with
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
in 1960.
The stadium underwent numerous upgrades after
Bill Bell was elected as chairman in 1987, who aimed to make it "fit for the
Premiership".
Outside the ground is a statue to
Roy Sproson
Roy Sproson (23 September 1930 – 24 January 1997) was an English footballer and football manager for Port Vale. A one-club man, he holds the all-time appearance record for Vale, making 837 starts (and 5 substitute appearances) for Vale ...
, who played 842 competitive games for the club.
Rivalries and supporters
![Average attendances graph](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Average_attendances_graph.JPG)
The club has a
fierce rivalry with
Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
, as City are based in the town of
Stoke-upon-Trent
Stoke-upon-Trent, commonly called Stoke is one of the six towns that along with Hanley, Burslem, Fenton, Longton and Tunstall form the city of Stoke-on-Trent, in Staffordshire, England.
The town was incorporated as a municipal borough in 18 ...
, but only a small percentage of residents in the town are Vale fans. Stoke City also enjoy a higher support base in the city as a whole, especially in recent times when they have achieved promotion to the country's
top division. With 215,206 supporters turning out in 46 League Two games during the 2009–10 season, Vale attracted an average league attendance of 4,678. Stoke and Vale first met on 2 December 1882, and played out a total of 44 Football League games up until 10 February 2002, when the two clubs last met in the Second Division; Stoke won the first match 1–0, whilst Vale were 1–0 victors in the latest encounter.
Stoke have been the more successful team over the years, as Vale have finished higher in the league on only seven occasions.
Port Vale also maintain a fiery rivalry with
Crewe Alexandra
Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...
, which has taken on greater significance since Stoke were promoted to a higher league than Vale at the end of the
2001–02 season. One study in 2019 ranked the Port Vale-Stoke City rivalry as the joint-28th biggest rivalry in English professional football, with the Port Vale-Crewe Alexandra game being the 14th biggest rivalry. Vale also maintain rivalries with
Shrewsbury Town
Shrewsbury Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. The team competes in League One, the third tier of English football. The club plays its home games at the New Meadow, having mo ...
and
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands County, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east ...
, as well as less significant rivalries with
Burton Albion
Burton Albion Football Club is a professional association football club in the town of Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England. The team compete in League One, the third tier of the English football league system. The club moved its home groun ...
,
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...
and
Macclesfield Town
Macclesfield Town Football Club was an English professional association football, football club based in Macclesfield, Cheshire, that was liquidation, wound-up after a High Court of Justice, High Court ruling on 16 September 2020.
Initially kno ...
.
The club's official matchday programme is highly rated, and was voted the best in League Two in 2010–11. Supporters also produced three unofficial
fanzine
A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...
s. The oldest are ''The Memoirs of Seth Bottomley'' printed in the 1990s and the ''Vale Park Beano'', which has been printed since 1997. ''Derek I'm Gutted!'' is also a long-running fanzine, and has been printed since August 2000; the name was inspired by a remark by then-manager
Brian Horton
Brian "Nobby" Horton (born 4 February 1949) is an English former footballer and manager. He spent 16 years as a professional player and 22 years as a manager, making 689 appearances and managing 1,098 matches. In addition to this he spent four ...
to local journalist Derek Davis following a defeat to
Tranmere Rovers
Tranmere Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ado ...
. The ''OneValeFan'' fansite is the largest independent Port Vale website and has been running since 1996; it was originally titled ''There's only one Vale fan in Bristol?'' in reference to founder Rob Fielding's location.
![Robbie Williams SoccerAid2006 Pre-Match Training](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4a/Robbie_Williams_SoccerAid2006_Pre-Match_Training.jpg)
The club's most famous supporter is singer
Robbie Williams
Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, and achieved commercial success after launching a solo career in 1996. His debut stud ...
, who was raised in Stoke-on-Trent. Before administration in 2012, he was a major shareholder, having bought £240,000 worth of available shares in the club in February 2006. For this investment, a restaurant at
Vale Park
Vale Park is a football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It has been the home ground of Port Vale F.C. since 1950.
The ground has seen its capacity go up and down, its peak being 42,000 in 1954 against Blackpool, although a club record 49, ...
is named after him. For the football game ''
FIFA 2000
''FIFA 2000'' (titled ''FIFA 2000: Major League Soccer'' in North America) is a football simulation video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts. It was the seventh game in the main ''FIFA'' series. The game was released fo ...
'', he provided an original theme song with "
It's Only Us
"It's Only Us" is a song by British singer Robbie Williams, released as a double A-side with a cover of " She's the One" on 8 November 1999. Unlike "She's the One", "It's Only Us" was a brand new recording made for the ''FIFA 2000'' soundtrack. ...
", on the condition that Port Vale should be included in the game, which they were, located in the Rest of World section. This song was also featured on the only FIFA Soundtrack CD release by
EMI
EMI Group Limited (originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records Ltd. or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At the time of its break-up in 201 ...
. In 2005 Williams founded
Los Angeles Vale F.C.
Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, and achieved commercial success after launching a solo career in 1996. His debut stud ...
, a Super Metro League team in the United States, named after Port Vale and based at his
L.A.
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
home. His best friend, TV presenter
Jonathan Wilkes
Jonathan Wilkes (born 1 August 1978) is an English television presenter and singer.
Early life and career
Jonathan Wilkes was born in Baddeley Green, Stoke-on-Trent, to Eileen Wilkes and Graham Wilkes, and spent most of his childhood in ...
, is also a Vale fan. Another famous fan is
darts
Darts or dart-throwing is a competitive sport in which two or more players bare-handedly throw small projectile point, sharp-pointed projectile, missiles known as dart (missile), darts at a round shooting target, target known as a #Dartboard, dar ...
legend
Phil Taylor; Burslem born, "The Power" is a 16 time world champion of the sport. The singer
Simon Webbe was signed up to the club's youth side as a teenager until a torn ligament at age seventeen put an end to any sporting ambitions. The children's illustrator and author
Bob Wilson, is also a fan. His ''Stanley Bagshaw'' series of books is set in an area based on Stoke, and the protagonist supports a thinly disguised version of the Vale; even basing a book on their 1954 Cup run – albeit with a successful conclusion.
Records and statistics
![Gareth Ainsworth](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/42/Gareth_Ainsworth.png)
Port Vale's highest Football League finish was fifth place in the
Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
(second tier) in
1930–31, whilst their best ever
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
finish saw them reach the semi-finals in
1953–54.
Port Vale's largest Football League victory was a 9–1 win over
Chesterfield
Chesterfield may refer to:
Places Canada
* Rural Municipality of Chesterfield No. 261, Saskatchewan
* Chesterfield Inlet, Nunavut United Kingdom
* Chesterfield, Derbyshire, a market town in England
** Chesterfield (UK Parliament constitue ...
in the Second Division in 1932, while the heaviest loss was 10–0 to
Sheffield United
Sheffield United Football Club is a professional football club in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . They are nicknamed "the Blades" due to Sheffield's history of cutlery production. The team have played home games at ...
in 1892 in the same division.
Other club record scorelines include a 16–0 victory over Middlewich in a friendly in 1884 and a 12–0 defeat to
Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
in the
Staffordshire Senior Cup
The Staffordshire Senior Challenge Cup is a football cup tournament based in the county of Staffordshire in England first competed for in 1877–78. Organised by the Staffordshire Football Association, it is competed for by a mix of clubs from S ...
in 1891.
The record for the most appearances for Port Vale is held by
Roy Sproson
Roy Sproson (23 September 1930 – 24 January 1997) was an English footballer and football manager for Port Vale. A one-club man, he holds the all-time appearance record for Vale, making 837 starts (and 5 substitute appearances) for Vale ...
, who played 842 matches in all competitions. Sproson also holds the record for the most league appearances for the club, with 760. His nephew,
Phil Sproson, made 500 appearances in all competitions.
Wilf Kirkham
Wilfred Thomas Kirkham (26 November 1901 – 20 October 1974) was an English footballer who holds four goalscoring records at Port Vale. His 153 league goals and 164 goals in all competitions are both records, as his tally of 38 goals in the ...
is the club's top goalscorer with 164 goals in all competitions, which includes 153 in the league and 11 in the FA Cup. Kirkham's tally of 41 goals in the
1926–27 season is also a club record.
Tom Pope
Thomas John Pope (born 27 August 1985) is an English professional footballer who plays as a centre forward for side Congleton Town.
A Crewe Alexandra Academy graduate, he turned professional with the club in 2005 after impressing at non-leag ...
and
Martin Foyle
Martin John Foyle (born 2 May 1963) is an English former professional footballer and manager who is the Head of Recruitment at club St Mirren. In his 20-year playing career he played 533 League games, scoring 155 goals. As a manager, he took ...
have also scored more than 100 goals for the club. The first player to be capped at international level while playing for Vale was
Teddy Peers
Edward John Peers (31 December 1886 – 20 September 1935) was a Wales international football goalkeeper. He won 12 caps for Wales and spent 1911 to 1921 at Wolverhampton Wanderers and then January 1922 to May 1923 at Port Vale.
Career
Peers p ...
, when he made his debut for
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
.
The most capped player is
Chris Birchall
Christopher Birchall CM (born 5 May 1984) is a former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He scored 21 goals in 322 league and cup appearances in a 16-year professional career, and scored four goals in 44 international matches ...
, who earned 27 caps for
Trinidad and Tobago
Trinidad and Tobago (, ), officially the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, is the southernmost island country in the Caribbean. Consisting of the main islands Trinidad and Tobago, and numerous much smaller islands, it is situated south of ...
while at the club. The first Vale player to score in an international match was
Sammy Morgan, who scored for
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
against
Spain
, image_flag = Bandera de España.svg
, image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg
, national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond")
, national_anthem = (English: "Royal March")
, i ...
on 16 February 1972.
The club's highest attendance at
Vale Park
Vale Park is a football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It has been the home ground of Port Vale F.C. since 1950.
The ground has seen its capacity go up and down, its peak being 42,000 in 1954 against Blackpool, although a club record 49, ...
is 49,768 against Aston Villa in the FA Cup on 20 February 1960, whilst the lowest is 554 against
Middlesbrough U21 in the
EFL Trophy
The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Le ...
on 16 October 2018.
The highest transfer fee received for a Vale player is £2,000,000 from
Wimbledon
Wimbledon most often refers to:
* Wimbledon, London, a district of southwest London
* Wimbledon Championships, the oldest tennis tournament in the world and one of the four Grand Slam championships
Wimbledon may also refer to:
Places London
* ...
for
Gareth Ainsworth
Gareth Ainsworth (born 10 May 1973) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the manager of club Queens Park Rangers.
A former youth player at Blackburn Rovers, the midfielder, who was known for his crossing ability ...
on 29 October 1998, while Ainsworth was also the most expensive player bought, costing £500,000 from
Lincoln City on 11 September 1997.
The youngest player to play for the club is
Nelson Agho, who was aged 15 years and 262 days on his debut against
Walsall
Walsall (, or ; locally ) is a market town and administrative centre in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands County, England. Historic counties of England, Historically part of Staffordshire, it is located north-west of Birmingham, east ...
in the EFL Trophy on 13 November 2018. The oldest player is
Tom Holford, who played his last match aged 46 years and 68 days against
Derby County
Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group.
Founded in 1884 ...
in the Second Division on 5 April 1924. Port Vale are the only club in the top four divisions of English football to have beaten the other 91 clubs of the Football League and Premier League in a competitive league fixture.
Players
Current squad
Out on loan
Youth team
Women's team
Port Vale Ladies was formed in 2017 and won the Staffordshire County League in their maiden season, before they entered the
West Midlands Regional Women's League at the start of the 2018–19 season.
The name was changed to Port Vale F.C. Women at the end of the 2020–21 season. The women's section also runs girls teams at under-9, under-11, under-12, under-13, under-14 and under-16 level.
Club management
Coaching positions
;Source: Port Vale F.C.
Managerial history
Tom Morgan was the first Port Vale manager to win a league title with the club, taking them to the top of the
Third Division North
The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to ...
at the end of the
1929–30 season.
Freddie Steele
Freddie Steele (December 18, 1912 – August 22, 1984) was a boxer and film actor born Frederick Earle Burgett in Seattle, Washington. He was recognized as the National Boxing Association (NBA) Middleweight Champion of the World between 1936 ...
repeated the feat during the
1953–54 campaign, also taking the club to the semi-finals of the
FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
. He was followed by
Norman Low
Norman Harvey Low (23 March 1914 – 21 May 1994) was a Scottish football player and manager. He was the son of Scottish international footballer, Wilf Low.
A central defender, he played for Newcastle United between 1931 and 1933, before a ...
, who led Vale to the
Fourth Division title in
1958–59.
Gordon Lee Gordon Lee may refer to:
*Gordon Lee (comic store owner) (1958–2013), American comic book store owner charged with distributing obscene materials
*Gordon Lee (congressman) (1859–1927), U.S. congressman from Georgia
*Gordon Lee (footballer) (193 ...
(
1969–70),
John McGrath (
1982–83) and
Micky Adams
Michael Richard Adams (born 8 November 1961) is an English former professional association football, footballer and football manager. As a player, he was a Full-back (football), full back, and made a total of 438 league appearances in a ninete ...
(
2012–13) also secured promotions.
[ Retrieved 11 June 2020.] John Rudge
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Second ...
led the club to three promotions –
1985–86,
1988–89 and
1993–94 – as well as a
Football League Trophy
The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Leag ...
title in
1993
File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
. His successor,
Brian Horton
Brian "Nobby" Horton (born 4 February 1949) is an English former footballer and manager. He spent 16 years as a professional player and 22 years as a manager, making 689 appearances and managing 1,098 matches. In addition to this he spent four ...
also secured a Football League Trophy final victory in
2001
The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...
.
Honours and achievements
![EFL_League_Two_play-off_trophy](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d8/EFL_League_Two_play-off_trophy.jpg)
*
Third Division /
Third Division North
The Third Division North of the Football League was a tier in the English football league system from 1921 to 1958. It ran in parallel with the Third Division South with clubs elected to the League or relegated from a higher division allocated to ...
/
League One
The English Football League One (often referred to as League One for short or Sky Bet League One for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League One from 2004 until 2016) is the second-highest division of the English Football Leag ...
(Tier 3)
**Champions:
1929–30,
1953–54
**2nd place promotion:
1993–94
**Play-off winners:
1988–89
*
Fourth Division /
League Two
The English Football League Two (often referred to as League Two for short or Sky Bet League Two for sponsorship purposes, and known as the Football League Two from 2004 until 2016) is the third and lowest division of the English Football Lea ...
(Tier 4)
**Champions:
1958–59
**3rd place promotion:
1982–83,
2012–13
**4th place promotion:
1969–70,
1985–86
**Play-off winners:
2021–22
*
Football League Trophy
The English Football League Trophy, known for sponsorship purposes as the Papa Johns Trophy after restaurant chain Papa John's Pizza, is an annual English association football knockout competition open to all clubs in EFL League One and EFL Leag ...
**Winners:
1993
File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...
,
2001
The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...
References and notes
General references
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Notes
Citations
{{Authority control
1876 establishments in England
1907 disestablishments in England
1907 establishments in England
Association football clubs disestablished in 1907
Association football clubs established in 1876
Association football clubs established in 1907
Companies that have entered administration in the United Kingdom
EFL Trophy winners
English Football League clubs
Football clubs in England
Football clubs in Staffordshire
Midland Football League (1889)
Sport in Stoke-on-Trent