1996–97 Port Vale F.C. season

Port Vale
1996–97 season
Chairman	Bill Bell
Manager	John Rudge
Stadium	Vale Park
Football League First Division	8th (67 Points)
FA Cup	Third Round; (knocked out by Blackburn Rovers)
League Cup	Third Round; (knocked out by Oxford United)
Player of the Year	Lee Mills
Top goalscorer	League: Tony Naylor (17); All: Tony Naylor (20)
Highest home attendance	15,186 vs. Bradford City, 28 January 1997
Lowest home attendance	3,505 vs. Carlisle United, 17 September 1996
Average home league attendance	7,840
Biggest win	6–1 vs. Norwich City, 21 December 1996
Biggest defeat	0–3 (twice)
Home colours	Away colours
	← 1995–96 1997–98 →

The 1996–97 season was Port Vale's 85th season of football in the English Football League, and third-successive season in the First Division. John Rudge led the club to its joint-second-highest ever league finish, as Vale finished in eighth spot, four points from the play-offs. Vale exited both the FA Cup and the League Cup at the Third Round.

Overview

First Division

The pre-season saw John Rudge sign forward Justin O'Reilly from non-League Gresley Rovers for a £30,000 fee.

The season started poorly, with just two wins in the opening thirteen games, and protests began to develop against Chairman Bill Bell and his selling policy. On 2 October, Vale defeated Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road by two goals to one as Rudge experimented with a 4–5–1 formation with Stewart Talbot in place of a striker.^[1] A decent October, with wins over Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux and Birmingham City at home, was followed by a winless November – in which midfielder Jan Jansson became the first Swede to play for the club when he arrived on loan from IFK Norrköping. However, a run of four consecutive victories in December showed the squad's potential. Tony Naylor put a hat-trick past Charlton Athletic in a 3–1 win at The Valley on 14 December.^[2] After the match he said he actually hated playing as a lone striker but conceded that "it worked ok today".^[3] The following week Vale pulled Norwich City apart in a 6–1 win – Martin Foyle and Stewart Talbot both claiming braces, before the run was topped off with a 1–0 win over Manchester City in front of over 30,000 people at Maine Road.^[4]^[5] Meanwhile, O'Reilly was loaned out to Macclesfield Town to gain experience.

Vale's form tailed off, and on 19 January, they managed to go from 4–0 up against Queens Park Rangers at half-time to finish the game drawn 4–4, with Jermaine Holwyn scoring an own goal on his debut.^[6]^[7] In February, Rudge spent £75,000 to bring Dutch midfielder Rogier Koordes in from Telstar. However, he had to suffer the departure of winger Steve Guppy, who was sold to top-flight Leicester City for £850,000. Despite the loss, the "Valiants" marched on, as a late spurt of form saw them win four straight games to stand a great chance of reaching the play-offs with just three games to go. O'Reilly was moved to Southport in April, having not appeared in the Vale first-team. On 12 April, Vale beat Oldham Athletic 3–2 thanks to a goal from Mills and two from Naylor, leaving the club in the play-off places with three games left.^[8] Rivals Stoke City managed to dampen Vale's hopes by easing to a 2–0 victory at the Victoria Ground. More damaging though was the defeat at home to Wolves and a final day draw with eventual play-off winners Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.

They finished eighth with 67 points (a mere four points off Palace in the play-offs), representing their highest finish since 1933–34. They finished three points and four places higher than Stoke.

At the end of the season, legendary midfielder Ray Walker ended his nine years of association with the club, becoming a player-coach with non-League Leek Town. Another popular player's Vale career was starting, however, with Jan Jansson signing permanently for a £200,000 fee.

Finances

The club's shirt sponsors were Tunstall Assurance.

Cup competitions

In the FA Cup, Premier League Blackburn Rovers proved to be too strong, as Vale left Ewood Park having suffered a 1–0 defeat.

In the League Cup, nearby Second Division side Crewe Alexandra lost 1–0 at Vale Park, before Vale blasted them away with a 5–1 win at Gresty Road. They then advanced past Third Division Carlisle United with a 3–2 aggregate victory. Pitted against Oxford United in the Third Round, a 2–0 defeat at the Manor Ground meant Vale were out of the competition.

League table

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification or relegation
6	Crystal Palace (O, P)	46	19	14	13	78	48	+30	71	Qualification for the First Division play-offs
7	Portsmouth	46	20	8	18	59	53	+6	68
8	Port Vale	46	17	16	13	58	55	+3	67
9	Queens Park Rangers	46	18	12	16	64	60	+4	66
10	Birmingham City	46	17	15	14	52	48	+4	66

Source: ^[9]
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goals scored; 3) Goal difference
(O) Play-off winners; (P) Promoted

Results

Port Vale's score comes first

Football League First Division

Results by matchday

Round	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	25	26	27	28	29	30	31	32	33	34	35	36	37	38	39	40	41	42	43	44	45	46
Ground	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A
Result	D	D	L	W	D	L	D	D	D	W	L	D	L	W	W	L	W	D	D	L	D	W	W	W	W	L	D	D	W	L	D	L	D	W	W	L	D	W	L	W	W	W	W	L	L	D
Position	10	16	18	13	12	17	19	18	19	14	15	17	20	15	11	13	12	10	11	14	16	15	12	9	8	9	10	11	7	8	8	12	10	9	7	9	8	8	8	6	5	5	5	6	8	8

Source: Statto^[10]
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
17 August 1996	Bolton Wanderers	H	1–1	10,057	Naylor
24 August 1996	Swindon Town	A	1–1	8,706	McCarthy
27 August 1996	Tranmere Rovers	A	0–2	6,123
31 August 1996	Oxford United	H	2–0	6,016	Naylor, Mills
7 September 1996	Portsmouth	A	1–1	6,448	Porter
10 September 1996	Manchester City	H	0–2	10,770
14 September 1996	Grimsby Town	H	1–1	4,892	Hill
21 September 1996	Southend United	A	0–0	4,025
29 September 1996	Bradford City	A	1–1	4,706	Guppy
2 October 1996	Queens Park Rangers	A	2–1	8,727	Guppy, Naylor
5 October 1996	Oldham Athletic	A	0–3	6,051
13 October 1996	Stoke City	H	1–1	14,396	Mills
16 October 1996	Crystal Palace	H	0–2	4,522
19 October 1996	Wolverhampton Wanderers	A	1–0	22,755	Naylor
26 October 1996	Huddersfield Town	A	1–0	11,017	McCarthy
29 October 1996	Barnsley	H	1–3	5,231	Guppy
2 November 1996	Birmingham City	H	3–0	8,388	Naylor (2), Guppy
9 November 1996	West Bromwich Albion	A	1–1	13,975	Guppy
16 November 1996	Sheffield United	H	0–0	8,352
23 November 1996	Ipswich Town	A	1–2	9,491	Naylor
30 November 1996	Huddersfield Town	H	0–0	6,026
7 December 1996	Reading	A	1–0	6,445	Talbot
14 December 1996	Charlton Athletic	A	3–1	10,003	Naylor (3)
21 December 1996	Norwich City	H	6–1	6,278	Talbot (2), Foyle (2), Porter, Mills
26 December 1996	Manchester City	A	1–0	30,344	Foyle
28 December 1996	Portsmouth	H	0–2	7,382
11 January 1997	Grimsby Town	A	1–1	3,863	Tankard
19 January 1997	Queens Park Rangers	H	4–4	5,736	Glover, Mills, Jansson, Brazier (og)
25 January 1997	Southend United	H	2–1	5,588	Guppy, McCarthy
28 January 1997	Bradford City	H	0–1	15,186
1 February 1997	West Bromwich Albion	H	2–2	8,093	Naylor (2)
8 February 1997	Barnsley	A	0–1	12,246
15 February 1997	Ipswich Town	H	2–2	6,115	Mills, Porter (pen)
23 February 1997	Birmingham City	A	2–1	13,192	Porter, Glover
1 March 1997	Reading	H	1–0	6,057	Naylor
4 March 1997	Sheffield United	A	0–3	14,950
8 March 1997	Norwich City	A	1–1	16,101	McCarthy
15 March 1997	Charlton Athletic	H	2–0	5,905	Mills (2)
18 March 1997	Bolton Wanderers	A	2–4	14,150	Bogie, Talbot
22 March 1997	Swindon Town	H	1–0	6,142	Mills
31 March 1997	Tranmere Rovers	H	2–1	7,469	Mills (2)
5 April 1997	Oxford United	A	2–0	7,370	Mills, Naylor
12 April 1997	Oldham Athletic	H	3–2	8,114	Naylor (2), Mills
20 April 1997	Stoke City	A	0–2	16,246
27 April 1997	Wolverhampton Wanderers	H	1–2	13,615	Naylor
4 May 1997	Crystal Palace	A	1–1	16,401	Mills

FA Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R3	4 January 1997	Blackburn Rovers	A	0–1	19,891

League Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R1 1st Leg	20 August 1996	Crewe Alexandra	H	1–0	5,236	Naylor
R1 2nd Leg	3 September 1996	Crewe Alexandra	A	5–1	4,471	Bogie, McCarthy, Foyle, Naylor, Mills
R2 1st Leg	17 September 1996	Carlisle United	H	1–0	3,505	Naylor
R2 2nd Leg	24 September 1996	Carlisle United	A	2–2	5,545	McCarthy, Mills
R3 1st Leg	22 October 1996	Oxford United	H	0–0	4,942
R3 2nd Leg	5 November 1996	Oxford United	A	0–2	5,279

Player statistics

Appearances and goals

Pos.	Name	Football League		FA Cup		League Cup		Total
Pos.	Name	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
GK	Paul Musselwhite	33	0	1	0	2	0	36	0
GK	Arjan van Heusden	13	0	0	0	4	0	17	0
GK	Matthew Boswell	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
DF	Dean Glover	42	2	1	0	5	0	48	2
DF	Neil Aspin	33	0	1	0	4	0	38	0
DF	Allen Tankard	37	1	1	0	6	0	44	1
DF	Dean Stokes	10	0	1	0	0	0	11	0
DF	Jon McCarthy	45	4	1	0	6	2	52	6
DF	Andy Hill	38	1	0	0	5	0	43	1
DF	Jermaine Holwyn	7	0	0	0	0	0	7	0
DF	Gareth Griffiths	26	0	1	0	4	0	31	0
MF	Andy Porter	44	4	1	0	6	0	51	4
MF	Ray Walker	17	0	0	0	2	0	19	0
MF	Ian Bogie	31	1	1	0	4	0	36	1
MF	Wayne Corden	12	0	0	0	1	0	13	0
MF	Steve Guppy	34	6	1	0	5	0	40	6
MF	Stewart Talbot	34	4	0	0	2	0	36	4
MF	Rogier Koordes	13	0	0	0	0	0	13	0
MF	Jan Jansson	11	1	1	0	0	0	12	1
FW	Martin Foyle	37	3	1	0	5	1	43	4
FW	Lee Mills	35	13	0	0	6	2	41	15
FW	Tony Naylor	43	17	1	0	5	3	49	20
FW	Justin O'Reilly	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Top scorers

Place	Position	Nation	Name	First Division	League Cup	Total
1	FW	England	Tony Naylor	17	3	20
2	FW	England	Lee Mills	13	2	15
3	MF	England	Steve Guppy	6	0	6
–	FW	Northern Ireland	Jon McCarthy	4	2	6
5	MF	England	Stewart Talbot	4	0	4
–	MF	England	Andy Porter	4	0	4
–	FW	England	Martin Foyle	3	1	4
8	FW	England	Ian Bogie	2	0	2
–	DF	England	Dean Glover	2	0	2
10	DF	England	Allen Tankard	1	0	1
–	DF	England	Andy Hill	1	0	1
–	MF	Sweden	Jan Jansson	1	0	1
			TOTALS	58	9	67

Transfers

Transfers in

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Fee	Ref.
February 1997	MF		Rogier Koordes	SC Telstar	£75,000	^[11]

Transfers out

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	To	Fee	Ref.
28 February 1997	MF		Steve Guppy	Leicester City	£850,000	^[11]
May 1997	MF		Ray Walker	Leek Town	Free transfer	^[11]

Loans in

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Date to	Ref.
November 1996	MF		Jan Jansson	IFK Norrköping	January 1991	^[11]

Loans out

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Date to	Ref.
23 September 1996	GK		Matthew Boswell	Hinkley Town	1996	^[12]
6 December 1996	GK		Matthew Boswell	Redditch United	?	^[12]

References

Specific

^ Baggaley, Mike (2 October 2024). "Two points thrown away". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 2 October 2024.
^ Baggaley, Mike (18 November 2016). "Port Vale archives: When Tony Naylor walloped Charlton". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 19 November 2016.^{[permanent dead link]}
^ Baggaley, Mike (4 January 2024). "Injury and transfer window update as Port Vale prepare for Charlton". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
^ Baggaley, Mike (21 December 2023). "Port Vale injury and loan updates ahead of Wycombe". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
^ Fielding, Rob (3 October 2019). "Five of the best thumping Port Vale home victories". onevalefan.co.uk. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
^ Sherwin, Phil (2010). The Port Vale Miscellany. Brimscombe Port: The History Press. p. 103. ISBN 978-0-7524-5777-2.
^ Baggaley, Mike (22 January 2024). "Assessing the squad as Port Vale prepare for transfer deals". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
^ Baggaley, Mike (14 April 2024). "Awful second half leaves Vale on the brink". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
^ "England 1996–97". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 28 March 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2010.
^ Port Vale 1996–1997 : Results & Fixtures Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Statto Organisation. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Port Vale FC Club Details | Transfers | Soccer Base". www.soccerbase.com. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
^ ^a ^b Rothmans football yearbook, 1997-98. London : Headline. 1997. ISBN 978-0-7472-7738-5. Retrieved 27 November 2022.

General

Soccerbase

[1] Baggaley, Mike (2 October 2024). "Two points thrown away". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 2 October 2024.

[2] Baggaley, Mike (18 November 2016). "Port Vale archives: When Tony Naylor walloped Charlton". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 19 November 2016.^{[permanent dead link]}

[3] Baggaley, Mike (4 January 2024). "Injury and transfer window update as Port Vale prepare for Charlton". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 5 January 2024.

[4] Baggaley, Mike (21 December 2023). "Port Vale injury and loan updates ahead of Wycombe". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 22 December 2023.

[5] Fielding, Rob (3 October 2019). "Five of the best thumping Port Vale home victories". onevalefan.co.uk. Retrieved 5 June 2020.

[6] Sherwin, Phil (2010). The Port Vale Miscellany. Brimscombe Port: The History Press. p. 103. ISBN 978-0-7524-5777-2.

[7] Baggaley, Mike (22 January 2024). "Assessing the squad as Port Vale prepare for transfer deals". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 23 January 2024.

[8] Baggaley, Mike (14 April 2024). "Awful second half leaves Vale on the brink". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 14 April 2024.

[9] "England 1996–97". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Archived from the original on 28 March 2010. Retrieved 24 February 2010.

[10] Port Vale 1996–1997 : Results & Fixtures Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Statto Organisation. Retrieved 28 April 2012.

[soctransfer-11] "Port Vale FC Club Details | Transfers | Soccer Base". www.soccerbase.com. Retrieved 7 October 2016.

[Rothmans-12] Rothmans football yearbook, 1997-98. London : Headline. 1997. ISBN 978-0-7472-7738-5. Retrieved 27 November 2022.

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