1995–96 Port Vale F.C. season

The 1995–96 season was Port Vale's 84th season of football in the English Football League, and second successive season in the First Division. Despite a poor start to the season, John Rudge led his side to a twelfth-place finish. The league highlights were two derby wins over Stoke City, had these results gone the other way then Stoke would have won automatic promotion to the Premier League. Vale's excellent mid-season form also raised hopes of a promotion campaign, but they faded away at the final stages. In the FA Cup, Vale achieved a celebrated upset by knocking out holders Everton with a 2–1 win at Vale Park. They were then eliminated at the Fifth Round, after taking Leeds United to a replay. They reached the final of the Anglo-Italian Cup, where they were defeated 5–2 by Genoa. These successes did not translate to the League Cup, where Vale exited at the First Round. Key new signings were Lee Mills and Player of the Year Jon McCarthy, though it was established star Tony Naylor who was the club's top-scorer.

Port Vale
1995–96 season
ChairmanBill Bell
ManagerJohn Rudge
StadiumVale Park
Football League First Division12th (60 Points)
FA CupFifth Round
(knocked out by Leeds United)
League CupFirst Round
(knocked out by Huddersfield Town)
Anglo-Italian CupRunners-up
(knocked out by Genoa)
Player of the YearJon McCarthy
Top goalscorerLeague: Tony Naylor (11)
All: Tony Naylor (12)
Highest home attendance19,197 vs. Everton, 14 February 1996
Lowest home attendance4,380 vs. Huddersfield Town, 22 August 1995
Average home league attendance8,217
Biggest win3–0 vs. Barnsley, 30 March 1996
Biggest defeat1–5 vs. Ipswich Town, 1 January 1996

Overview

First Division

The pre-season saw John Rudge make three key signings.. He bought Lee Mills from Derby County with Robin van der Laan going in the opposite direction with Vale receiving an additional £475,000; as well as Jon McCarthy from York City for a, still club record, £500,000; and defender Andy Hill from Manchester City for £200,000. He also signed Dutch defender Jermaine Holwyn from AFC Ajax for a £5,000 fee.

The season started terribly, as Vale won just one of their opening ten league games, failing to find the net in half of these fixtures. However the one win during this time was against the most important of opponents, rivals Stoke City at the Victoria Ground. The derby took place on 27 August, and a crowd of 14,283 witnessed Ian Bogie score the only goal of the game. Their win over Huddersfield Town at the Alfred McAlpine Stadium at the start of the October was also followed by a sequence of eight games without a win, leaving the club staring relegation in the face. In November, Canadian international defender Randy Samuel signed after impressing on trial, but soon was sidelined with a serious knee injury. Meanwhile, John Jeffers left the club for Stockport County. The Vale turned a corner in December, and would remain one of the division's form sides until April, losing just two league games in a run of nineteen games, picking up eleven wins. One of these wins was against Stoke, who left Burslem on 12 March with a 1–0 defeat. To Stoke, Bogie lived up to his name, as he scored his second league goal of the campaign in front of a Vale Park crowd of 16,737. Vale were facing the prospect of a promotion battle to reach the top-flight of English football, the Premier League, for the first time in their history. However just two wins came in the final ten games, leaving Vale to settle for a top-half finish.

They finished in twelfth place with sixty points, eleven points shy of Charlton Athletic in the play-off zone, and eight points clear of Millwall in the relegation zone. Tony Naylor was top-scorer with twelve goals in all competitions, closely followed by Martin Foyle, Andy Porter, and Jon McCarthy.

At the end of the season Kevin Kent retired, and took up a coaching role at the club. Young winger Craig Lawton had not established himself at Vale, and so was transferred to non-league Colwyn Bay. Randy Samuel was also permitted to leave for Norwegian club Harstad IL. Bradley Sandeman was another departing player, as he was given a free transfer to Rotherham United, whilst Lee Glover also joined the "Millers" for a £150,000 fee.

Finances

The club's shirt sponsors were Tunstall Assurance.

Cup competitions

In the FA Cup, Vale faced a difficult tie against Crystal Palace. After a goalless draw at Selhurst Park, the Vale advanced with a 4–3 win thanks to a brace from Ray Walker. They then faced the Premier League cup-holders Everton at Goodison Park.[1] Foyle equalized after the "Toffees" scored the opener, and Ian Bogie saved the day with a deflected goal in injury time after Everton had again taken the lead through Duncan Ferguson.[2] This goal saved the blushes of Foyle, who missed a sitter from six yards earlier in the game, and Paul Musselwhite, who gifted Ferguson his goal when he spilled Anders Limpar's cross.[3] Back at Vale Park, the "Valiants" added another scalp to their collection with goals from Bogie and McCarthy to win the match 2–1.[4] The club also took in their highest ever gate receipt total, as the game saw Vale bank £170,349. They then faced another top side away in the Fifth Round, Leeds United at Elland Road. A goalless draw raised hopes of another cup upset, and hopes turned to expectations as Naylor put Vale ahead in the replay. However two goals from Gary McAllister saved United's blushes, dumping Vale out of the cup. For their efforts, John Rudge's side were handed the FA's Giantkillers award for the season.

In the League Cup, Vale faced league rivals Huddersfield Town. Despite a 2–1 victory at the Alfred McAlpine Stadium, the "Terriers" escaped from Burslem with a 3–1 victory to knock Vale out of the competition.

In the Anglo-Italian Cup, Vale drew 2–2 with Cesena, beat Ancona 2–0, and drew 0–0 with Genoa, before beating Perugia 5–3. This took Vale through the Group Stage, along with Birmingham City, as they finished ahead of both Oldham Athletic and Luton Town. Facing Ipswich Town in the English semi-final, they progressed with a 4–2 win. They still had to beat West Bromwich Albion in a two-legged affair to reach the final. They beat the "Baggies" 3–1 to become the last English team in the competition, and face Genoa again, this time to decide the tournament's winner. Despite a brace from Foyle, the Serie B side were the 5–2 victors, former Italian international Gennaro Ruotolo scoring a hat-trick.

League table
Main article: 1995–96 Football League
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
10 Barnsley 46 14 18 14 60 66 −6 60
11 West Bromwich Albion 46 16 12 18 60 68 −8 60
12 Port Vale 46 15 15 16 59 66 −7 60
13 Tranmere Rovers 46 14 17 15 64 60 +4 59
14 Southend United 46 15 14 17 52 61 −9 59
Source:

Results

Port Vale's score comes first

Football League First Division

Results by matchday
Round12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031323334353637383940414243444546
GroundAHAHAHHAAHAHAHAHHAAHHAAHAAHAAAHHHHAHAAHAHHHHAA
ResultDLWDLLLLDDWLDLDLDLDWWWLWLWDDDDWWWWWWDLLLWDWLLD
Position1422181820222424232423232224232424242424202121181918192112232319171714121112161710129101112
Source: Statto[5]
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches
DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
13 August 1995Derby CountyA0–010,869
19 August 1995MillwallH0–18,202
27 August 1995Stoke CityA1–014,283Bogie
30 August 1995SunderlandH1–17,693Porter
2 September 1995Norwich CityA1–213,908Mills
9 September 1995PortsmouthH0–27,374
12 September 1995Leicester CityH0–28,814
16 September 1995Grimsby TownA0–14,066
23 September 1995ReadingA2–27,819Lee Glover, Lee Mills
30 September 1995Wolverhampton WanderersH2–211,550Porter, Richards (og)
7 October 1995Huddersfield TownA2–011,335Guppy, McCarthy
15 October 1995Crystal PalaceH1–26,935L.Glover
21 October 1995BarnsleyA1–17,332Guppy
29 October 1995Birmingham CityH1–28,875Porter
5 November 1995Oldham AthleticA2–25,138Mills (2)
11 November 1995Sheffield UnitedH2–37,284Mills, Naylor
18 November 1995WatfordH1–16,265Samuel
22 November 1995Tranmere RoversA1–26,681Naylor
25 November 1995Charlton AthleticA2–210,174Griffiths, Porter
2 December 1995Huddersfield TownH1–07,701Foyle
9 December 1995ReadingH3–26,376Foyle, Guppy, Porter
16 December 1995Wolverhampton WanderersA1–023,329Porter
20 December 1995Southend UnitedA1–24,506Naylor
26 December 1995West Bromwich AlbionH3–110,807Foyle, Guppy, Naylor
1 January 1996Ipswich TownA1–59,926Naylor
13 January 1996MillwallA2–114,220Foyle, Naylor
20 January 1996Derby CountyH1–111,947Naylor
10 February 1996SunderlandA0–015,954
17 February 1996Leicester CityA1–113,758McCarthy
2 March 1996West Bromwich AlbionA1–113,707McCarthy
9 March 1996Southend UnitedH2–16,222L.Glover, McCarthy
12 March 1996Stoke CityH1–016,737Bogie
20 March 1996Norwich CityH1–06,085Foyle
23 March 1996Ipswich TownH2–17,277Bogie, McCarthy
27 March 1996PortsmouthA2–16,335Griffiths, Naylor
30 March 1996BarnsleyH3–07,358Foyle, Naylor, Porter
2 April 1996Crystal PalaceA2–214,180Foyle, McCarthy
6 April 1996Birmingham CityA1–317,469Porter
8 April 1996Oldham AthleticH1–37,796Mills
13 April 1996WatfordA2–59,066McCarthy, Porter
16 April 1996Grimsby TownH1–05,796Aspin
20 April 1996Tranmere RoversH1–17,419Naylor
23 April 1996Luton TownH1–06,054Mills
27 April 1996Charlton AthleticH1–38,428McCarthy
30 April 1996Luton TownA2–35,443?, ?
4 May 1996Sheffield UnitedA1–118,741Naylor

FA Cup
Main article: 1995–96 FA Cup
RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceGoalscorers
R36 January 1996Crystal PalaceA0–010,456
R3 Replay16 January 1996Crystal PalaceH4–36,754Walker (2), Foyle, Porter
R427 January 1996EvertonA2–233,168Bogie, Foyle
R4 Replay14 February 1996EvertonH2–119,197Bogie, McCarthy
R521 February 1996Leeds UnitedA0–018,607
R5 Replay27 February 1996Leeds UnitedH1–214,023Naylor

League Cup
Main article: 1995–96 Football League Cup
RoundDateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceGoalscorers
R1 1st Leg15 August 1995Huddersfield TownA2–15,363Sedgley (og)
R1 2nd Leg22 August 1995Huddersfield TownH1–34,380L.Glover

Player statistics
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