1994–95 Port Vale F.C. season

Port Vale
1994–95 season
Chairman Bill Bell
Manager John Rudge
Stadium Vale Park
Football League First Division 17th (58 Points)
FA Cup Second Round
League Cup Second Round
Player of the Year Martin Foyle
Top goalscorer League: Martin Foyle (16)
All: Martin Foyle (20)
Highest home attendance 19,510 vs. Stoke City (14 March 1995)
Lowest home attendance 4,728 vs. Bristol Rovers (23 August 1994)
Average home league attendance 9,218
Home colours

The 1994–95 season was Port Vale's 83rd season of football in the Football League, and first ever season in the First Division following their promotion from the Second Division. John Rudge led his team to safety in the league, whilst reaching the Second Round of the FA Cup and League Cup. In the FA Cup they recorded a 6–0 victory over Hartlepool United, before suffering a shock defeat at Scarborough. Back in the same league as rivals Stoke City, they earned the season's bragging rights with a 1–1 draw at Vale Park and a 1–0 win at the Victoria Ground. Martin Foyle was the Player of the Year, having bagged twenty goals in all competitions. Club legend Ian Taylor had been sold before a ball was kicked, but new legends were born with the signatures of Tony Naylor, Steve Guppy, and Ian Bogie.

Overview

First Division

The pre-season saw John Rudge spend a small amount of the money received on the sales of Ian Taylor and Peter Swan to bring Tony Naylor to the club from Crewe Alexandra for a £150,000 fee. A further £200,000 was splashed out on Nottingham Forest forward Lee Glover. Another £4,500 was spent on Dutch goalkeeper Arjan van Heusden from VV Noordwijk. Arriving on free transfers were Craig Lawton (Manchester United) and Stewart Talbot (Moor Green).

The season started modestly, with two wins in the four August games. In September only Lee Glover, Tony Naylor and Martin Foyle could find the net, but the Vale managed to win six points from their five games. To help with his recovery from a serious injury, Ray Walker spent some time on loan at Cambridge United, and managed to win back his first team place in the Vale starting eleven upon his return. Meanwhile, Tony Kelly arrived at the club from Bolton Wanderers, but after a brief spell moved on to Millwall. Vale's poor attack was highlighted in October, though the defence managed to ensure three draws from five games. In November, Darren Hughes was allowed to leave the club for Northampton Town. Rudge decided to make another big signing, and bought winger Steve Guppy from Newcastle United for £225,000. On 5 November, Vale lost all their inhibitions in front of goal, beating Southend United 5–0 with five different scorers. However their draw with Swindon Town would prove to be the only point gained in December, as Vale were stuck in a relegation dogfight. John Jeffers spent January on loan at Shrewsbury Town. During this spell defender Kevin Scott arrived on loan from Tottenham Hotspur. The team gelled, forming a five-game unbeaten run based on just two goals conceded to shoot up the table. In March, midfielder Ian Bogie was signed from Leyton Orient for a £50,000 fee. Potteries derby day finally came on 14 March, and 19,510 turned up at Vale Park to witness a 1–1 draw with Stoke City, Naylor scoring the Vale's goal. Five defeats in seven games followed, raising concerns of the drop. However the Vale were unbeaten in their final five games to ensure safety. This included a 1–0 win over Stoke at the Victoria Ground on 22 April, Foyle scoring the goal.

They finished in seventeenth place with 58 points, leaving them ten points clear of relegated Swindon Town. They were five points short of Stoke, who finished six places above the Vale. Player of the Year Martin Foyle bagged twenty goals, double that of his nearest rival Tony Naylor.

At the end of the season Ollie Heald, Peter Billing, Mark Burke and John Burndred were released, who signed with Scarborough, Hartlepool United, Fortuna Sittard and Stafford Rangers respectively. Joe Allon was also sold to Brentford for £42,500.

Finances

The club's shirt sponsors were Tunstall Assurance.

Cup competitions

As members of the second tier, Vale should have qualified for the Third Round of the FA Cup, but were forced to take part in the First Round to make up the numbers after Aldershot went bust and Maidstone United resigned from the league.[1] Vale went on to easily beat Third Division side Hartlepool United 6–0 in Burslem, with Martin Foyle bagging a hat-trick.[1] Remarkably, this would be the last hat-trick scored by a Vale player at Vale Park until April 2011.[2] However a shock awaited in the Second Round, where Scarborough, also of the fourth tier, beat the Vale 1–0 at the McCain Stadium.

In the League Cup, Vale advanced past Second Division Bristol Rovers 4–2 on aggregate, having won 3–1 at the Memorial Stadium. In the Second Round they faced Premier League Manchester United. Alex Ferguson's "Red Devils" beat John Rudge's "Valiants" 2–1 at Vale Park in front of 18,605 supporters; Lee Glover scoring for Vale and Paul Scholes scoring a brace on his United debut. At the time Vale fans were disappointed to witness the then-unknown United reserves, though Scholes would go on to become a household name, as would teenage teammates Gary Neville, Nicky Butt, and David Beckham; the United first eleven would go on to win a combined total of more than 500 international caps over the course of their careers.[3] For the second leg there were 31,615 fans at Old Trafford to witness a 2–0 United victory, David May and Brian McClair getting the goals.

Final league table

Pos. Team Pld W D L GF GA Pts
1. Middlesbrough46231310674082
2. Reading46231013584479
3. Bolton Wanderers46211411674577
4. Wolverhampton Wanderers46211312776176
5. Tranmere Rovers46221014675876
6. Barnsley46201214635272
7. Watford46191314524670
8. Sheffield United46171712745568
9. Derby County46181216665166
10. Grimsby Town46171415625665
11. Stoke City46161515505363
12. Millwall46161416606062
13. Southend United4618820547362
14. Oldham Athletic46161317606061
15. Charlton Athletic46161119586659
16. Luton Town46151318616458
17. Port Vale46151318586458
18. Portsmouth46151318536358
19. West Bromwich Albion46161020515758
20. Sunderland46121816414554
21. Swindon Town46121222547348
22. Burnley46111322497446
23. Bristol City46111223426345
24. Notts County4691324456640

P = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; Pts = Points

Results

Port Vale's score comes first

Legend

Win Draw Loss
Round12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334353637383940414243444546
GroundAHAHHAAHHAAHHAAHAHHAAHHAHAAHHHAAHHAHAAHAHAHAAH
Result L W D W L W L W L L D L D D D W L W D L L D L L W W D W W L D L W D L W L L L W L D W W D D
Position 22 11 10 7 12 4 6 7 8 11 15 18 18 20 20 14 18 17 14 16 17 18 21 22 21 18 20 17 15 18 17 17 15 15 17 14 17 17 17 16 17 17 16 14 17 17

Sourced from Statto.[4]

Football League First Division

DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
14 August 1994 Swindon TownA0–210,431
20 August 1994 Oldham AthleticH3–110,051Foyle, Kenny (og), Naylor
27 August 1994 Bristol CityA0–08,588
30 August 1994 BarnsleyH2–17,228Burke, L.Glover
3 September 1994 Luton TownH0–18,541
10 September 1994 PortsmouthA2–08,989L.Glover, Naylor
13 September 1994 Grimsby TownA1–43,216Foyle
17 September 1994 MiddlesbroughH2–110,313L.Glover, Naylor
24 September 1994 Sheffield UnitedH0–29,324
1 October 1994 Wolverhampton WanderersA1–227,649Allon
8 October 1994 Notts CountyA2–26,903Foyle, Kelly
15 October 1994 Charlton AthleticH0–27,707
22 October 1994 Bolton WanderersH1–110,003Allon
29 October 1994 Tranmere RoversA1–16,972Jeffers
2 November 1994 West Bromwich AlbionA0–014,513
5 November 1994 Southend UnitedH5–07,141Allon, Foyle, Porter, Walker, van der Laan
19 November 1994 Derby CountyA0–213,357
26 November 1994 MillwallH2–18,016Allon, Burke
29 November 1994 SunderlandH0–08,121
6 December 1994 Bolton WanderersA0–110,324
10 December 1994 Oldham AthleticA2–37,712Guppy, van der Laan
17 December 1994 Swindon TownH2–27,747Foyle (2)
28 December 1994 ReadingH0–27,891
31 December 1994 WatfordA2–37,794Foyle (2)
15 January 1995 Tranmere RoversH2–07,944Foyle, Tankard
28 January 1995 Southend UnitedA2–13,619Foyle, van der Laan
4 February 1995 SunderlandA1–113,377Naylor
11 February 1995 West Bromwich AlbionH1–010,751Guppy
21 February 1995 Derby CountyH1–09,387Kent
25 February 1995 Wolverhampton WanderersH2–413,676Kent, Naylor
4 March 1995 Sheffield UnitedA1–113,647L.Glover
7 March 1995 Luton TownA1–25,947Porter
11 March 1995 Bristol CityH2–17,646Naylor, Scott
14 March 1995 Stoke CityH1–119,510Naylor
18 March 1995 BarnsleyA1–36,878Allon
21 March 1995 PortsmouthH1–07,388Allon
26 March 1995 MiddlesbroughA0–317,401
28 March 1995 BurnleyA3–410,058Foyle (2), Allon
1 April 1995 Grimsby TownH1–27,150Naylor
5 April 1995 MillwallA3–15,260Bogie, Foyle, van der Laan
8 April 1995 WatfordH0–17,276
15 April 1995 ReadingA3–38,635Bogie, Naylor, Porter
17 April 1995 BurnleyH1–09,663van der Laan
22 April 1995 Stoke CityA1–020,429Foyle
29 April 1995 Charlton AthleticA1–112,596Foyle
7 May 1995 Notts CountyH1–19,542Foyle

FA Cup

Main article: 1994–95 FA Cup
RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceGoalscorers
R112 November 1994 Hartlepool UnitedH6–06,199Foyle (3), Allon, D.Glover, Griffiths
R23 December 1994 ScarboroughA0–12,382

League Cup

RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceGoalscorers
R1 1st Leg17 August 1994 Bristol RoversA3–13,307Foyle, L.Glover, Naylor
R1 2nd Leg23 August 1994 Bristol RoversH1–14,728L.Glover
R2 1st Leg21 September 1994 Manchester UnitedH1–218,605L.Glover
R2 2nd Leg5 October 1994 Manchester UnitedA0–231,615

Player statistics

Appearances

Pos. Name Football League FA Cup League Cup Total
Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
GKEngland Paul Musselwhite 4402040500
GKNetherlands Arjan van Heusden 20000020
DFEngland Dean Glover 2902140351
DFEngland Neil Aspin 3702010400
DFEngland Bradley Sandeman 3700040410
DFEngland Peter Billing 60000060
DFEngland Gareth Griffiths 2002130251
DFEngland Dean Stokes 30000030
DFEngland Allen Tankard 3912040451
DFEngland Kevin Scott 1710000171
MFEngland Andy Porter 4432040503
MFEngland Ray Walker 2312010261
MFEngland John Jeffers 1011000111
MFNetherlands Robin van der Laan 4452040505
MFEngland Kevin Kent 2320040272
MFEngland Ian Bogie 921000102
MFEngland Mark Burke 1522030202
MFEngland Wayne Corden 10000010
MFEngland Steve Guppy 2721000292
MFEngland Tony Kelly 41001051
MFWales Craig Lawton 10000010
MFEngland Stewart Talbot 20000020
FWEngland Martin Foyle 421623414820
FWEngland Joe Allon 1972110228
FWEngland John Burndred 10000010
FWScotland Lee Glover 2842043347
FWEngland Tony Naylor 33900313610

Scorers

All competitions

Scorer Goals
England Martin Foyle 20
England Tony Naylor 10
Scotland Lee Glover 7
England Joe Allon
Netherlands Robin van der Laan 5
England Andy Porter 3
England Mark Burke 2
England Ian Bogie
England Kevin Kent
England Steve Guppy
England Tony Kelly 1
England John Jeffers
England Ray Walker
England Allen Tankard
England Kevin Scott
England Gareth Griffiths
England Dean Glover

League

Scorer Goals
England Martin Foyle 16
England Tony Naylor 9
England Joe Allon 6
Netherlands Robin van der Laan 5
Scotland Lee Glover 4
England Andy Porter 3
England Mark Burke 2
England Ian Bogie
England Kevin Kent
England Steve Guppy
England Tony Kelly 1
England John Jeffers
England Ray Walker
England Allen Tankard
England Kevin Scott

Transfers

Transfers in

Date from Position Nationality Name From Fee Ref.
1994 FW England Tony Naylor Crewe Alexandra £150,000 [5]
May 1994 GK Netherlands Arjan van Heusden Netherlands VV Noordwijk £4,500 [5]
July 1994 MF England Wayne Corden Free transfer [5]
July 1994 FW England Lee Glover Nottingham Forest £200,000 [5]
July 1994 MF Wales Craig Lawton Manchester United Free transfer [5]
August 1994 MF England Mark Burke Wolverhampton Wanderers Free transfer [5]
August 1994 MF England Stewart Talbot Moor Green Free transfer [5]
September 1994 MF England Tony Kelly Bolton Wanderers Free transfer [5]
November 1994 MF England Steve Guppy Newcastle United £225,000 [5]
February 1995 MF England John Burndred Knypersley Victoria Free transfer [5]
March 1995 MF England Ian Bogie Leyton Orient £50,000 [5]

Transfers out

Date from Position Nationality Name To Fee Ref.
1994 MF England Tony Kelly Millwall Free transfer [5]
November 1994 DF England Darren Hughes Northampton Town Quit [5]
May 1995 DF England Peter Billing Hartlepool United Free transfer [5]
May 1995 MF England John Burndred Stafford Rangers Free transfer [5]
May 1995 MF Canada Ollie Heald Scarborough Free transfer [5]
July 1995 FW England Joe Allon Lincoln City £42,500 [5]
Summer 1995 MF England Mark Burke Netherlands Fortuna Sittard Free transfer [5]
Summer 1995 MF Netherlands Robin van der Laan Derby County £475,000 [5]

Loans in

Date from Position Nationality Name From Date to Ref.
January 1995 DF England Kevin Scott Tottenham Hotspur End of season [5]

Loans out

Date from Position Nationality Name To Date to Ref.
January 1995 MF England John Jeffers Shrewsbury Town January 1995 [5]

References

Specific
  1. 1 2 Baggaley, Mike (12 November 2016). "Port Vale archives: Martin Foyle crushes Hartlepool in FA Cup". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  2. Phil Sherwin. "Phil Sherwin: Bizarre victory a fitting Vale Park finale for a bizarre season". The Sentinel. Retrieved 2011-05-02.
  3. Sherwin, Phil (11 February 2012). "Beckham fails to win over fans at Vale Park". The Sentinel.
  4. Port Vale 1994–1995 : Results & Fixtures. Statto Organisation. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 "Port Vale FC Club Details | Transfers | Soccer Base". www.soccerbase.com. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
General
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/12/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.