2015–16 Port Vale F.C. season

The 2015–16 season was Port Vale's 104th season of football in the English Football League, and third successive season in League One. It was manager Rob Page's first full season in management. The season covers the period from 1 July 2015 through to 30 June 2016.

Port Vale

2015–16 season
Chairman	Norman Smurthwaite
Manager	Rob Page
Stadium	Vale Park
Football League One	12th (65 points)
FA Cup	Second Round (knocked out by Exeter City)
League Cup	Second Round (knocked out by West Bromwich Albion)
League Trophy	Second Round (knocked out by Blackpool)
Player of the Year	Anthony Grant
Top goalscorer	League: A-Jay Leitch-Smith (11) All: A-Jay Leitch-Smith (13)
Highest home attendance	6,822 vs. Sheffield United, 3 October 2015
Lowest home attendance	2,571 vs. Carlisle United, 1 September 2015
Average home league attendance	4,993
Biggest win	3–0 (twice) and 4–1 (once)
Biggest defeat	0–5 vs. Walsall, 8 May 2016
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Chairman Norman Smurthwaite announced a cut in the wage bill and reduced contract offers for many out-of-contract players, which led to Mark Marshall, Ben Williamson and top-scorer Tom Pope leaving the club on free transfers after rejecting contract offers. A new youth policy was unveiled, and eight free agents, five youth team players and two loan players were signed at the start of the campaign. They made an encouraging start to the campaign, with new names Enoch Andoh and Jak Alnwick impressing, beating Championship side Burnley in the League Cup before going out on penalties to Premier League club West Bromwich Albion. However a poor defeat in the Second Round of the FA Cup to League Two side Exeter City cost the club a lucrative Third Round tie with Liverpool and prompted Smurthwaite to officially put the club up for sale.

Vale remained positioned between 13th and 8th from November onwards, and realistic hopes of a play-off position were ended after a run of just one point from four games from 19 March. They ended this run of poor form by relegating local rivals Crewe Alexandra on 2 April. They were reliant on loan striker Uche Ikpeazu for goals early in the campaign, before Louis Dodds and A-Jay Leitch-Smith in particular found scoring form in the latter half of the season.

Overview

League One

Five youth team players were given professional contracts for the 2015–16 season: defender Lewis Bergin, midfielders Chekaine Steele, Billy Reeves and Omar Haughton, and striker Jonathon Kapend.[1] Manager Rob Page signed a new two-year contract in May 2015.[2] However he needed to avoid a poor start to the season as chairman Norman Smurthwaite warned he was prepared to make "ruthless decisions" if the club were struggling by September.[3] The first signings of the season were powerful former loanee defender Remie Streete from Newcastle United, and former Norwich City youth player Sam Kelly.[4] Midfielder Sam Foley also joined the "Valiants" on a two-year contract, choosing to leave relegated Yeovil Town just after picking up Yeovil's Player of the Year award.[5] Page further strengthened the defence and midfield by signing Walsall right-back Ben Purkiss and Crewe Alexandra defensive midfielder Anthony Grant.[6] Page needed to find a cost-effective forward with the club both short on strikers following the departure of Tom Pope and Ben Williamson and with little funds available due to a large cut to the wage bill, and so brought in young Watford striker Uche Ikpeazu on loan, having been impressed by Ikpeazu's performances for Crewe last season.[7] Another former Crewe favourite, A-Jay Leitch-Smith, was also signed after impressing Page during pre-season.[8] The eighth and final summer signing was Ryan Inniss, who was confirmed as joining on a season long loan from Crystal Palace after being linked with a return to Vale Park for many weeks.[9] On 6 August, Vale signed goalkeeper Jak Alnwick on a short-term deal; he was signed to compete with Sam Johnson for a first team place as Chris Neal was out injured at the start of the season.[10]

The season opened with the derby against Crewe Alexandra at Gresty Road, and the game ended 0–0 with eight players making their debuts for Vale; Crewe boss Steve Davis admitted Vale were the better team and had man of the match goalkeeper Ben Garratt to thank for the clean sheet.[11] Two days later a third former Newcastle United Academy graduate arrived in striker JJ Hooper, who had scored 20 goals in 29 games the previous season for Havant & Waterlooville.[12] The unbeaten start continued with a 1–1 draw with Gillingham, Louis Dodds scoring the equalising goal to secure the point.[13] An injury-time penalty from Sam Foley then rescued a point away at Swindon Town as Vale twice came from behind against an attractive Swindon side; the penalty was awarded in bizarre circumstances as Jordan Williams handled the ball from a corner to try and stop the game after seeing a teammate lying injured on the pitch.[14] Vale then cruised to a comfortable 3–0 home victory over Doncaster Rovers despite Foley missing a penalty early in the game.[15] Yet another player arrived in the form of central midfielder Jak McCourt, signed on a one-month loan from Leicester City.[16] The unbeaten start to the season came to an end at Bradford City when Devante Cole scored the only goal of the game four minutes into stoppage time.[17]

Vale let slip a two-goal lead over Wigan Athletic on 12 September, but Ikpeazu managed to claim all three points for Vale after Wigan's equalising goalscorer Leon Barnett was sent off for bringing down Andoh.[18] Millwall were the next visitors to Vale Park, and like Wigan had been relegated from the Championship the previous season, but unlike Wigan managed to beat the Vale 2–0 with a professional performance.[19] Vale then travelled to Bury and slipped to a 1–0 defeat in a poor game that was decided by a set-piece.[20] Vale came from behind at Fleetwood Town to win 2–1 after Page substituted top-scorer Ikpeazu for Colin Daniel, who went on to score the equalising goal.[21] The situation was reversed at home to Oldham Athletic, Ikpeazu coming off the bench to secure a point against the division's away draw specialists, though Page again bemoaned his team's habit of conceding form set pieces.[22]

Vale put in a highly impressive performance to defeat Sheffield United 2–1 and climb to within one point of the play-off places.[23] They failed to build on the result however, falling to a 1–0 loss at Southend United; Phil Brown said the Southend performance was the best he had seen as Southend manager.[24] The story before the Peterborough United game was that Jak Alnwick was to line up against his elder brother Ben Alnwick, though the headlines after the game focused on Vale's penalty takers, as Michael O'Connor marked his return from injury by missing a penalty and central midfield partner Foley later missed a second penalty in the game to squander two points in what ended as a 1–1 draw.[25] Vale then had a tough mid-week game at Colchester United, and lost 2–1 after suffering two injuries in the first half.[26] More significantly Andoh suffered damage to his anterior cruciate ligament and was ruled out for the rest of the season.[27] Ikpeazu was sent off 25 minutes into Vale's trip to high-flying Burton Albion, but ironically it was only after the hosts also went down to ten men late into the game that Vale conceded two goals to lose 2–0.[28] Vale ended a poor October with a 2–0 home victory over Shrewsbury Town.[29]

On 14 November, Vale picked up all three points at Oakwell after a 2–1 victory over Barnsley.[30] Less than 40 hours after their FA Cup first round victory, Vale then had a home fixture against Chesterfield on a snow covered pitch, but managed to put in a high quality performance and claim a 3–2 win.[31] Their home game against Blackpool was the players' third game in five days, but they showed no signs of fatigue as two late goals secured a 2–0 victory.[32] They failed to end the month unbeaten however as they fell to a 2–1 defeat at Rochdale; after the game Page said he was "gobsmacked" by the referee's key decisions to award Rochdale a penalty when Carl Dickinson had "definitely taken the ball", to deny Vale a penalty after Ikpeazu was "absolutely poleaxed" in the penalty box, and to send Dickinson off when he "hasn't touched the lad at all and the lad goes down like he has been shot."[33] Page was nominated for the League One Manager of the Month award.[34]

Despite revelations off-the-pitch and a disappointing FA Cup exit, Vale kept their league form steady on 12 December with a 1–1 home draw with Scunthorpe United.[35] However they then came away from a trip to high-flying Walsall with a 2–0 defeat in a game that typified the team's unsuccessful negative tactics away from home.[36] Captain Carl Dickinson defended the team's record however, stating that negative fans who booed should "shut up and get behind the team".[37] A trip to the Ricoh Arena on boxing day to face Coventry City seemed to be heading for a goalless draw until Coventry took the lead ten minutes from full-time, leaving Page to rue his team's missed opportunities in the first half.[38] Vale ended the year with a 1–0 home win over Bury, maintaining their excellent form at Vale Park.[39]

A waterlogged pitch meant Vale had to wait until a trip to Blackpool on 9 January to open the year, and Vale managed to continue their good form with a hard-earned 1–0 victory, Leitch-Smith the goalscorer.[40] Their away form remained poor however, as they were well beaten at Millwall on 17 January.[41] The team were then booed off after surrendering a 1–0 lead over ten man Bradford to draw 1–1.[42] Page then entered the transfer market, bringing in Jamaica international striker Theo Robinson and taking Cardiff City winger Matty Kennedy on a one-month loan (which was later extended by two months[43]).[44] Kennedy started the next game, as Leitch-Smith scored both of Vale's goals in a 2–1 win over Doncaster Rovers.[45] However Vale ended the month with a 3–0 defeat at Wigan following a first half red card for Ryan McGivern.[46]

Vale began February just a point outside the play-offs after recording what Page described as an "ugly" 1–0 win over Swindon.[47] Vale then outplayed Coventry, but needed a sensational goal from Sam Kelly to win a point and a 1–1 draw.[48] Vale then rounded off a series of three successive home games with a 0–0 draw with Fleetwood.[49] Injury to Alnwick meant that Neal was recalled from his loan spell at Doncaster Rovers for the trip to Sheffield United, which ended in a 1–0 defeat from a Billy Sharp goal.[50] They ended the month with an impressive 3–1 home win over Southend to remain in touch with the play-off places.[51]

Struggling Oldham held Vale to a 1–1 draw on 1 March, having lost their slender lead to a disputed penalty.[52] A 2–0 home win over bottom-club Colchester kept the Vale in touch of the play-offs.[53] The season appeared to be petering out as Vale trailed by 2–0 at half-time at Peterborough, but they turned the game around completely in the second half to claim a 3–2 victory.[54] Page praised the character of his players after revealing eight players had paid to stay in a local hotel the night before to save travelling on the day.[55] However the next game saw Page apologizing to the fans after league leaders Burton ended Vale's 14-game unbeaten league run at home with a 4–0 win.[56] Vale were heading for a 1–0 victory over Shrewsbury when a late error from Alnwick allowed Sullay Kaikai's long-distance strike to become an equalizing goal.[57] A 1–0 home defeat to play-off chasing Barnsley then ended any realistic hopes of a play-off place for the Vale.[58]

On 2 April, Port Vale collapsed away at Chesterfield, losing a convincing 1–0 half-time lead to lose 4–2; Page described the performance as "embarrassing" and "not acceptable".[59] Seven days later Vale went on to relegate nearby Crewe Alexandra with a comfortable 3–0 home victory, Dodds scoring a brace and Hooper claiming one goal.[60] Vale went on to record a 2–0 win at sixth-place Gillingham using a 3–5–2 formation with McGivern, Streete, and Richard Duffy operating as central defenders.[61] The winning run continued with a comfortable 4–1 victory over Rochdale, before coming to an end with a 1–0 defeat at Scunthorpe.[62][63] Walsall inflicted a heavy 5–0 on Vale on the final game of the season.[64]

Page offered new contracts to 13 out-of-contract players, and opted to release nine players: Lewis Bergin, Achille Campion, Colin Daniel, Omar Haughton (who was later re-signed after Page departed[65]), Jonathon Kapend, Ryan McGivern, Chris Neal, Chekaine Steele, and Theo Robinson.[66] However Page himself would not stay to see any of these contracts signed, as he left the club to take charge at newly promoted Northampton Town.[67] The first player to leave the club after rejecting a contract was Louis Dodds, who joined league rivals Shrewsbury Town.[68] He was quickly followed by Richard Duffy, who dropped down two divisions to join National League club Eastleigh.[69] Star midfielder Michael O'Connor, top-scorer A-Jay Leitch-Smith, and club captain Carl Dickinson also confirmed that they would be leaving the club after rejecting the club's new contract offer.[70][71] The last to leave was Enoch Andoh, who could not agree terms with the club despite protracted negotiations.[72]

Finances & ownership issues

Chairman Norman Smurthwaite stated that due to falling gate figures the club's wage bill would be cut for the 2015–16 season, meaning a severely reduced contract offer for star striker Tom Pope, who chose to leave the club.[73] In a statement released in March 2017, Smurthwaite stated that on 10 November 2015 he was approached by an American hedge fund consortium who were looking to buy the club.[74] He further stated that a local business also approached the club secretary to purchase the club behind Smurthwaite's back.[74] Following the club's FA Cup exit Smurthwaite officially put the club up for sale, saying that he felt "humiliated, ashamed and embarrassed" after witnessing the team's performance.[75] He set an asking price of £4.25 million, stating "I have never lost money on a transaction in my adult life and I am not starting now".[76] He also stated that plans to sign a striker in the January transfer window would be scrapped.[77] He continued to reveal that he had been physically assaulted by three Vale supporters in April 2014, though Staffordshire Police could find no record of Smurthwaite's complaint.[78] He also admitted that he had been planning on buying Torquay United before being told by the Football League that he would not be allowed to own two clubs.[79] He further claimed that he had considered appointing Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink as manager in September 2014, but decided against it partly because he believed that a racist minority of the club's supporters would make appointing a black manager a bad idea.[80]

"I just feel I have let the club down because I have tried to do everything myself which meant cut costs to put every available penny on to the pitch. Clearly that must be wrong because yesterday if the players had put the same amount of effort into playing as I do into paying them every month we would have knocked that club for six."

— Smurthwaite became disillusioned with the club following the FA Cup defeat.[81]

Smurthwaite signed an exclusivity deal with a local company in February 2016.[82][74] He said that if the club were not sold than next season's budget would be slashed by £800,000 and the playing squad would be reduced; Page said that Smurthwaite's comments were "unwelcome".[83] Ben Purkiss admitted that Smurthwaite's threat to cut player's wages by 40% had a destabilising effect on the squad.[84] The exclusivity agreement ended in early March, with the club back on general sale.[85] Smurthwaite said this was because the company had significantly reduced their offer and admitted that they needed to find further finances to conclude the deal.[74] A consortium from Boston, USA then signed an exclusivity deal on 14 March.[74] Smurthwaite ended the negotiations after finding that the investors had no working capital.[74] Port Vale owed Norman Smurthwaite £3 million as a director's loan at the end of June 2016.[86]

Cup competitions

Vale's first opponents in the FA Cup were Maidenhead United of the National League South, who came back from Byron Moore's first half opener to bring about a replay after a stoppage time equaliser.[87] An upset seemed on the cards in the replay when Maidenhead took the lead, but Vale gradually took control of the game and A-Jay Leitch-Smith scored a brace in an eventual 3–1 victory.[88] Smurthwaite was rumoured to have planned to sack Page live on BT Sport if the club lost the game, though he dismissed the rumour as untrue.[89] A trip to mid-table League Two side Exeter City awaited in the second Round, and an all-round "hugely disappointing performance" resulted in a 2–0 defeat.[90] After the game Smurthwaite and Page had a heated confrontation on the pitch, leading to speculation on the manager's future.[91] Had Vale beaten Exeter then they would have had a lucrative home tie with Liverpool in the Third Round.[92]

In the League Cup First Round Vale hosted Burnley, who had been relegated from the Premier League the previous season; Byron Moore scored the only goal of the game on 82 minutes.[93] The Second Round draw took them to Premier League side West Bromwich Albion, and Vale held Tony Pulis's side to a 0–0 draw until the end of extra-time before losing the penalty shoot-out.[94]

Vale hosted League Two side Carlisle United in the First Round of the Football League Trophy, and Page named the strongest side at his disposal whilst "Blues" boss Keith Curle left top-scorer Jabo Ibehre on the bench; Uche Ikpeazu scored the only goal of the game as a Vale booked their place in the Second Round.[95] Despite naming a strong team at home to struggling Blackpool, who made eight changes, Page was angered with the team for their performance as they crashed out at the Second round with a 2–1 defeat.[96]

Results

Pre-season

Newcastle Town v Port Vale

11 July 2015 (2015-07-11)	Newcastle Town	0–3	Port Vale	Newcastle-under-Lyme
14:30 BST		Report	Daniel  17' Brown  28' Campion  79'	Stadium: Lyme Valley Stadium Attendance: 1,612

Alsager Town v Port Vale

14 July 2015 (2015-07-14)	Alsager Town	2–5	Port Vale	Alsager
19:30 BST	Hill Johnson  43'	Report	Moore O'Connor  60' (pen.) Andoh  68' Daniel  70' Campion  82'	Stadium: Wood Park Stadium

Kidsgrove Athletic v Port Vale

15 July 2015 (2015-07-15)	Kidsgrove Athletic	0–5	Port Vale	Kidsgrove
19:30 BST		Report	Daniel  10' McGivern  18' Birchall  46' Leitch-Smith  73', 83'	Stadium: The Novus Stadium Attendance: 818

Port Vale v Notts County

21 July 2015 (2015-07-21)	Port Vale	2–1	Notts County	Burslem
19:30 BST	Dickinson  68' Dodds  72'	Report	Stead  58'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 768

Port Vale v Getafe

25 July 2015 (2015-07-25)	Port Vale	2–2	Getafe	Burslem
15:00 BST	Leitch-Smith  6', 45'	Report	Wanderson Campos  8' Villameuela  69'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 1,652

Port Vale v Bolton Wanderers

28 July 2015 (2015-07-28)	Port Vale	1–2	Bolton Wanderers	Burslem
19:30 BST	Foley  69'	Report	Madine  39', 59'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 1,288

Altrincham v Port Vale

1 August 2015 (2015-08-01)	Altrincham	1–2	Port Vale	Altrincham
15:00 BST	Reeves	Report	Daniel  28' Ikpeazu  39'	Stadium: Moss Lane Attendance: 494

League One

Main article: 2015–16 Football League One

League table

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
10	Rochdale	46	19	12	15	68	61	+7	69
11	Sheffield United	46	18	12	16	64	59	+5	66
12	Port Vale	46	18	11	17	56	58	−2	65
13	Peterborough United	46	19	6	21	82	73	+9	63
14	Southend United	46	16	11	19	58	64	−6	59

Updated to match(es) played on 1 July 2016. Source: BBC Sport
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal difference; 3) Number of goals scored

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	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	A	H	A	A	H	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H
Result	D	D	D	W	L	W	L	L	W	D	W	L	D	L	L	W	W	W	W	L	D	L	L	W	W	L	D	W	L	W	D	D	L	W	D	W	W	L	D	L	L	W	W	W	L	L
Position	17	15	13	11	13	12	14	15	12	13	8	11	11	16	17	15	13	12	10	11	11	13	13	11	10	11	11	10	10	8	9	9	11	10	10	9	9	10	10	11	13	12	11	11	12	12

Source: Statto[97]
A = Away; H = Home; W = Win; D = Draw; L = Loss

Matches

Crewe Alexandra v Port Vale

8 August 2015 (2015-08-08) 1	Crewe Alexandra	0–0	Port Vale	Crewe
15:00 BST		Report		Stadium: Gresty Road Attendance: 6,751 Referee: Dean Whitestone

Port Vale v Gillingham

15 August 2015 (2015-08-15) 2	Port Vale	1–1	Gillingham	Burslem
15:00 BST	Dodds  35'	Report	Dack  17'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 5,067 Referee: Fred Graham

Swindon Town v Port Vale

18 August 2015 (2015-08-18) 3	Swindon Town	2–2	Port Vale	Swindon
19:45 BST	Robert  12' Rodgers  66'	Report	Ikpeazu  21' Foley  90+6' (pen.)	Stadium: County Ground Attendance: 7,026 Referee: Brendan Malone

Port Vale v Doncaster Rovers

22 August 2015 (2015-08-22) 4	Port Vale	3–0	Doncaster Rovers	Burslem
15:00 BST	Foley  35' Ikpeazu  46' Moore  88'	Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,775 Referee: Robert Lewis

Bradford City v Port Vale

29 August 2015 (2015-08-29) 5	Bradford City	1–0	Port Vale	Bradford
15:00 BST	Cole  90+4'	Report		Stadium: Valley Parade Attendance: 17,806 Referee: Jeremy Simpson

Port Vale v Wigan Athletic

12 September 2015 (2015-09-12) 6	Port Vale	3–2	Wigan Athletic	Burslem
15:00 BST	Grant  34' Dodds  64' Ikpeazu  90'	Report	McCann  66' Barnett  83'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 5,953 Referee: Mark Haywood

Port Vale v Millwall

15 September 2015 (2015-09-15) 7	Port Vale	0–2	Millwall	Burslem
19:45 BST		Report	Beevers  66' Gregory  90+2' (pen.)	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,477 Referee: Oliver Langford

Bury v Port Vale

19 September 2015 (2015-09-19) 8	Bury	1–0	Port Vale	Bury
15:00 BST	Cameron  78'	Report		Stadium: Gigg Lane Attendance: 4,323 Referee: Darren Drysdale

Fleetwood Town v Port Vale

26 September 2015 (2015-09-26) 9	Fleetwood Town	1–2	Port Vale	Fleetwood
15:00 BST	Grant  14'	Report	Daniel  56' Foley  65' (pen.)	Stadium: Highbury Stadium Attendance: 3,560 Referee: Seb Stockbridge

Port Vale v Oldham Athletic

29 September 2015 (2015-09-29) 10	Port Vale	1–1	Oldham Athletic	Burslem
19:45 BST	Ikpeazu  70'	Report	Higdon  35'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,065 Referee: Kevin Johnson

Port Vale v Sheffield United

3 October 2015 (2015-10-03) 11	Port Vale	2–1	Sheffield United	Burslem
15:00 BST	Moore  17' Ikpeazu  45'	Report	Done  90+5'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 6,822 Referee: Graham Salisbury

Southend United v Port Vale

10 October 2015 (2015-10-10) 12	Southend United	1–0	Port Vale	Southend-on-Sea
15:00 BST	Pigott  63'	Report		Stadium: Roots Hall Attendance: 6,543 Referee: Iain Williamson

Port Vale v Peterborough United

17 October 2015 (2015-10-17) 13	Port Vale	1–1	Peterborough United	Burslem
15:00 BST	Andoh  40'	Report	Bostwick  56' (pen.)	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,864 Referee: Richard Clark

Colchester United v Port Vale

20 October 2015 (2015-10-20) 14	Colchester United	2–1	Port Vale	Colchester
19:45 BST	Elokobi  25' Sordell  73'	Report	Daniel  45'	Stadium: Colchester Community Stadium Attendance: 2,785 Referee: Darren Deadman

Burton Albion v Port Vale

24 October 2015 (2015-10-24) 15	Burton Albion	2–0	Port Vale	Burton upon Trent
15:00 BST	Naylor  84' El Khayati  90'	Report		Stadium: Pirelli Stadium Attendance: 4,076 Referee: David Coote

Port Vale v Shrewsbury Town

31 October 2015 (2015-10-31) 16	Port Vale	2–0	Shrewsbury Town	Burslem
15:00 GMT	Dodds  52' O'Connor  80' (pen.)	Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,880 Referee: Darren Handley

Barnsley v Port Vale

14 November 2015 (2015-11-14) 17	Barnsley	1–2	Port Vale	Barnsley
15:00 GMT	Winnall  77'	Report	Leitch-Smith  40' Foley  47'	Stadium: Oakwell Attendance: 8,696 Referee: Tony Harrington

Port Vale v Chesterfield

21 November 2015 (2015-11-21) 18	Port Vale	3–2	Chesterfield	Burslem
15:00 GMT	Kelly  6' Leitch-Smith  10' Dodds  48'	Report	Simons  8' Novak  90'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,420 Referee: Michael Bull

Port Vale v Blackpool

24 November 2015 (2015-11-24) 19	Port Vale	2–0	Blackpool	Burslem
19:45 GMT	Leitch-Smith  82' Birchall  86'	Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 3,640 Referee: David Webb

Rochdale v Port Vale

28 November 2015 (2015-11-28) 20	Rochdale	2–1	Port Vale	Rochdale
15:00 GMT	Henderson  40' (pen.) Mendez-Laing  78'	Report	Birchall  13'	Stadium: Spotland Stadium Attendance: 2,510 Referee: Darren England

Port Vale v Scunthorpe United

12 December 2015 (2015-12-12) 21	Port Vale	1–1	Scunthorpe United	Burslem
15:00 GMT	Leitch-Smith  45+2'	Report	King  36'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 3,983 Referee: Lee Collins

Walsall v Port Vale

20 December 2015 (2015-12-20) 22	Walsall	2–0	Port Vale	Walsall
12:00 GMT	Cook  64', 83'	Report		Stadium: Bescot Stadium Referee: Kevin Wright

Coventry City v Port Vale

26 December 2015 (2015-12-26) 23	Coventry City	1–0	Port Vale	Coventry
15:00 GMT	Maddison  80'	Report		Stadium: Ricoh Arena Attendance: 17,779 Referee: Robert Lewis

Port Vale v Bury

28 December 2015 (2015-12-28) 24	Port Vale	1–0	Bury	Burslem
15:00 GMT	Kelly  57'	Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 5,467 Referee: James Adcock

Blackpool v Port Vale

9 January 2016 (2016-01-09) 25	Blackpool	0–1	Port Vale	Blackpool
15:00 GMT		Report	Leitch-Smith  49'	Stadium: Bloomfield Road Attendance: 6,527 Referee: Seb Stockbridge

Millwall v Port Vale

17 January 2016 (2016-01-17) 26	Millwall	3–1	Port Vale	New Cross
15:00 GMT	Gregory  14', 34' Morison  44'	Report	Hooper  61'	Stadium: The Den Attendance: 7,773 Referee: Andy Davies

Port Vale v Bradford City

23 January 2016 (2016-01-23) 27	Port Vale	1–1	Bradford City	Burslem
15:00 GMT	Leitch-Smith  2'	Report	Proctor  65'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,849 Referee: Lee Swabey

Doncaster Rovers v Port Vale

26 January 2016 (2016-01-26) 28	Doncaster Rovers	1–2	Port Vale	Doncaster
19:45 GMT	Evina  88'	Report	Leitch-Smith  6', 65'	Stadium: Keepmoat Stadium Attendance: 4,799 Referee: Geoff Eltringham

Wigan Athletic v Port Vale

30 January 2016 (2016-01-30) 29	Wigan Athletic	3–0	Port Vale	Wigan
15:00 GMT	Duffy  7' (og.) Grigg  41' (pen.), 69'	Report		Stadium: DW Stadium Attendance: 9,627 Referee: Darren Drysdale

Port Vale v Swindon Town

2 February 2016 (2016-02-02) 30	Port Vale	1–0	Swindon Town	Burslem
19:45 GMT	Dickinson  6'	Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 3,256 Referee: Peter Bankes

Port Vale v Coventry City

7 February 2016 (2016-02-07) 31	Port Vale	1–1	Coventry City	Burslem
14:00 GMT	Kelly  84'	Report	Murphy  42'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 6,320 Referee: Phil Gibbs

Port Vale v Fleetwood Town

13 February 2016 (2016-02-13) 32	Port Vale	0–0	Fleetwood Town	Burslem
15:00 GMT		Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,194 Referee: Charles Breakspear

Sheffield United v Port Vale

20 February 2016 (2016-02-20) 33	Sheffield United	1–0	Port Vale	Sheffield
15:00 GMT	Sharp  50'	Report		Stadium: Bramall Lane Attendance: 18,276 Referee: Ben Toner

Port Vale v Southend United

26 February 2016 (2016-02-26) 34	Port Vale	3–1	Southend United	Burslem
19:45 GMT	Leitch-Smith  18' O'Connor  38' Coker  40' (og.)	Report	McQueen  90+3'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 3,957 Referee: Andy Haines

Oldham Athletic v Port Vale

1 March 2016 (2016-03-01) 35	Oldham Athletic	1–1	Port Vale	Oldham
19:45 GMT	Kelly  68'	Report	Foley  60'	Stadium: Boundary Park Attendance: 3,507 Referee: Darren Handley

Port Vale v Colchester United

5 March 2016 (2016-03-05) 36	Port Vale	2–0	Colchester United	Burslem
15:00 GMT	Robinson  9' Foley  73'	Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,116 Referee: Jeremy Simpson

Peterborough United v Port Vale

12 March 2016 (2016-03-12) 37	Peterborough United	2–3	Port Vale	Peterborough
15:00 GMT	Taylor  2' Williams  41'	Report	Moore  49' Hooper  86' Dodds  89'	Stadium: London Road Stadium Attendance: 4,942 Referee: Darren Bond

Port Vale v Burton Albion

19 March 2016 (2016-03-19) 38	Port Vale	0–4	Burton Albion	Burslem
15:00 GMT		Report	Akins  34' Grant  45+1' (og.) Duffy  50' Butcher  60'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 6,157 Referee: Eddie Ilderton

Shrewsbury Town v Port Vale

25 March 2016 (2016-03-25) 39	Shrewsbury Town	1–1	Port Vale	Shrewsbury
15:00 GMT	Kaikai  73'	Report	Dodds  60'	Stadium: New Meadow Attendance: 7,019 Referee: Mark Heywood

Port Vale v Barnsley

28 March 2016 (2016-03-28) 40	Port Vale	0–1	Barnsley	Burslem
15:00 BST		Report	Hourihane  9'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,839 Referee: Scott Duncan

Chesterfield v Port Vale

2 April 2016 (2016-04-02) 41	Chesterfield	4–2	Port Vale	Chesterfield
15:00 BST	Campbell-Ryce  47' Hird  60' Ariyibi  73' O'Shea  83'	Report	Leitch-Smith  36' Hooper  70'	Stadium: Proact Stadium Attendance: 5,917 Referee: Kevin Wright

Port Vale v Crewe Alexandra

9 April 2016 (2016-04-09) 42	Port Vale	3–0	Crewe Alexandra	Burslem
15:00 BST	Dodds  3', 83' Hooper  90+2'	Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 5,771 Referee: Paul Tierney

Gillingham v Port Vale

16 April 2016 (2016-04-16) 43	Gillingham	0–2	Port Vale	Gillingham, Kent
15:00 BST		Report	Leitch-Smith  19' Dickinson  21'	Stadium: Priestfield Stadium Attendance: 5,887 Referee: Ross Joyce

Port Vale v Rochdale

23 April 2016 (2016-04-23) 44	Port Vale	4–1	Rochdale	Burslem
15:00 BST	Robinson  37' O'Connor  45' (pen.), pen.' Hooper  46'	Report	Andrew  50'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,380 Referee: Nick Kinseley

Scunthorpe United v Port Vale

30 April 2016 (2016-04-30) 45	Scunthorpe United	1–0	Port Vale	Scunthorpe
15:00 BST	Madden  61'	Report		Stadium: Glanford Park Attendance: 7,275 Referee: Ben Toner

Port Vale v Walsall

8 May 2016 (2016-05-08) 46	Port Vale	0–5	Walsall	Burslem
15:00 BST		Report	Downing  23' Bradshaw  26' Forde  38', 67' Mantom  71'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 8,595 Referee: Nigel Miller

FA Cup

Port Vale v Maidenhead United

8 November 2015 (2015-11-08) 1	Port Vale	1–1	Maidenhead United	Burslem
15:00	Moore  31'	Report	Mulley  90+4'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 3,977 Referee: Adrian Holmes

Maidenhead United v Port Vale

19 November 2015 (2015-11-19) Replay	Maidenhead United	1–3	Port Vale	Maidenhead
19:45	Massey  15'	Report	O'Connor  35' Leitch-Smith  49', 57'	Stadium: York Road Attendance: 2,212 Referee: Dean Whitestone

Exeter City v Port Vale

6 December 2015 (2015-12-06) 2	Exeter City	2–0	Port Vale	Exeter
14:00	Tillson  19' Watkins  89'	Report		Stadium: St James Park Attendance: 3,565 Referee: Trevor Kettle

League Cup

Port Vale v Burnley

10 August 2015 1	Port Vale	1–0	Burnley	Burslem
19:45 BST	Moore  82'	Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 4,634 Referee: Trevor Kettle

West Bromwich Albion v Port Vale

25 August 2015 2	West Bromwich Albion	0–0 (5–3 p)	Port Vale	West Bromwich
20:00 BST		Report		Stadium: The Hawthorns Attendance: 13,915 Referee: Keith Stroud
	Penalties
	Lambert Yacob McManaman McClean Chester		Leitch-Smith Duffy Purkiss Foley

Football League Trophy

Port Vale v Carlisle United

1 September 2015 (2015-09-01) 1	Port Vale	1–0	Carlisle United	Burslem
19:45 BST	Ikpeazu  60'	Report		Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 2,571 Referee: Darren England

Port Vale v Blackpool

6 October 2015 (2015-10-06) 2	Port Vale	1–2	Blackpool	Burslem
19:45 BST	Grant  52' (pen.)	Report	Rivers  44' Robertson  56'	Stadium: Vale Park Attendance: 2,720 Referee: Mark Heywood

Staffordshire Senior Cup

Port Vale and Stoke City field reserve teams for the competition, and player statistics are not recorded in the 'squad statistics' section listed below.

Brocton v Port Vale

27 October 2015 (2015-10-27) 1	Brocton	0–3	Port Vale	Brocton
19:30 GMT		Report	Turner  1' Kapend  71' Barton  76'	Stadium: Silkmore Lane Attendance: 79

Leek Town v Port Vale

15 December 2015 (2015-12-15) QF	Leek Town	4–1	Port Vale	Leek, Staffordshire
19:45 GMT	Grice  6' Curley  93' Cropper  96' Beaumont  103'	Report	Turner  90'	Stadium: Harrison Park Attendance: 175

Squad statistics

Appearances and goals

Pos.	#	Name	League One		FA Cup		League Cup		League Trophy		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
GK	1	Chris Neal	6	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	6	0
DF	2	Ben Purkiss	39	0	2	0	2	0	2	0	45	0
DF	3	Carl Dickinson	44	2	2	0	2	0	2	0	50	2
DF	4	Remie Streete	13	0	2	0	1	0	2	0	18	0
DF	5	Ryan McGivern	28	0	3	0	0	0	1	0	32	0
DF	6	Richard Duffy	45	0	3	0	2	0	2	0	52	0
MF	7	Chris Birchall	10	2	1	0	0	0	1	0	12	2
MF	8	Michael O'Connor	26	4	3	1	0	0	0	0	29	5
FW	10	Louis Dodds	37	8	3	0	2	0	2	0	44	8
MF	11	Sam Foley	45	6	3	0	2	0	0	0	50	6
GK	12	Sam Johnson	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
MF	14	Colin Daniel	20	2	2	0	1	0	2	0	25	2
FW	15	JJ Hooper	28	5	1	0	0	0	1	0	30	5
DF	16	Adam Yates	11	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	12	0
MF	17	Michael Brown	13	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	14	0
MF	18	Sam Kelly	28	3	1	0	2	0	0	0	31	3
MF	19	Byron Moore	36	3	2	1	2	1	1	0	41	5
FW	20	A-Jay Leitch-Smith	37	11	3	2	2	0	1	0	43	13
GK	21	Jak Alnwick	41	0	3	0	2	0	2	0	48	0
MF	22	Ryan Lloyd	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
GK	23	Ryan Boot	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
DF	24	Nathan Smith	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
FW	25	Theo Robinson	14	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	14	2
DF	26	Ryan Inniss	15	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	17	0
MF	27	Enoch Andoh	12	1	0	0	2	0	2	0	16	1
FW	28	Achille Campion	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
FW	30	Dan Turner	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
MF	31	Billy Reeves	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
DF	32	Lewis Bergin	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
MF	33	Chekaine Steele	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
FW	34	Jonny Kapend	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
MF	35	Omar Haughton	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
MF	42	Anthony Grant	38	1	3	0	2	0	2	1	45	2
Players that left the club mid-season:
FW	9	Uche Ikpeazu	21	5	3	0	2	0	2	1	28	6
MF	9	Matty Kennedy	12	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	12	0
MF	25	Jak McCourt	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	3	0
DF	38	Aziz Deen-Conteh	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Top scorers

Place	Position	Nation	Number	Name	League One	FA Cup	League Cup	League Trophy	Total
1	FW	England	20	A-Jay Leitch-Smith	11	2	0	0	13
2	FW	England	10	Louis Dodds	8	0	0	0	8
3	MF	Republic of Ireland	11	Sam Foley	6	0	0	0	6
–	FW	Uganda	9	Uche Ikpeazu	5	0	0	1	6
5	MF	England	15	JJ Hooper	5	0	0	0	5
–	MF	England	19	Byron Moore	3	1	1	0	5
–	MF	Northern Ireland	8	Michael O'Connor	4	1	0	0	5
8	MF	Republic of Ireland	18	Sam Kelly	3	0	0	0	3
9	MF	Trinidad and Tobago	7	Chris Birchall	2	0	0	0	2
–	MF	England	14	Colin Daniel	2	0	0	0	2
–	MF	England	3	Carl Dickinson	2	0	0	0	2
–	MF	England	42	Anthony Grant	1	0	0	1	2
–	FW	Jamaica	25	Theo Robinson	2	0	0	0	2
14	MF	Ghana	27	Enoch Andoh	1	0	0	0	1
–		–	–	Own goals	1	0	0	0	1
				TOTALS	56	4	1	2	63

Disciplinary record

Number	Nation	Position	Name	League One		FA Cup		League Cup		League Trophy		Total
3	England	DF	Carl Dickinson	4	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	5	1
9	Uganda	FW	Uche Ikpeazu	3	1	0	0	2	0	0	0	5	1
5	Northern Ireland	DF	Ryan McGivern	4	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	1
42	England	MF	Anthony Grant	13	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	15	0
6	Wales	DF	Richard Duffy	11	0	1	0	1	0	1	0	14	0
11	Republic of Ireland	MF	Sam Foley	6	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	7	0
8	Northern Ireland	MF	Michael O'Connor	5	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	6	0
21	England	GK	Jak Alnwick	3	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	4	0
18	Republic of Ireland	MF	Sam Kelly	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
2	England	DF	Ben Purkiss	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
4	England	DF	Remie Streete	2	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	4	0
14	England	MF	Colin Daniel	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
26	England	DF	Ryan Inniss	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
9	Northern Ireland	MF	Matty Kennedy	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
7	Trinidad and Tobago	MF	Chris Birchall	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
17	England	MF	Michael Brown	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
15	England	FW	JJ Hooper	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
20	England	FW	A-Jay Leitch-Smith	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
25	England	MF	Jak McCourt	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
19	England	MF	Byron Moore	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
			TOTALS	71	3	5	0	7	0	3	0	86	3

Sourced from Soccerway.[98]

Awards

End of Season Awards	Winner[99]
Player of the Year	Anthony Grant
Away Travel Player of the Year	Louis Dodds
Supporters' Club's Trophy	Anthony Grant
Players' Player of the Year	Anthony Grant
Young Player of the Year	Jak Alnwick
Youth Player of the Year	Dan Turner
Goal of the Season	Sam Kelly (vs Coventry City, 7 February 2016)

Transfers

Transfers in

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Fee	Ref.
1 July 2015	MF		Sam Foley	Yeovil Town	Free transfer	[5]
1 July 2015	MF		Anthony Grant	Crewe Alexandra	Free transfer	[6]
1 July 2015	MF		Sam Kelly	Norwich City	Free transfer	[4]
1 July 2015	DF		Ben Purkiss	Walsall	Free transfer	[6]
1 July 2015	DF		Remie Streete	Newcastle United	Free transfer	[4]
20 July 2015	FW		A-Jay Leitch-Smith	Yeovil Town	Free transfer	[8]
6 August 2015	GK		Jak Alnwick	Newcastle United	Free transfer	[10]
10 August 2015	FW		JJ Hooper	Havant & Waterlooville	£8,400 (compensation)	[100]
25 January 2016	FW		Theo Robinson	Motherwell	Free transfer	[44]

Transfers out

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	To	Fee	Ref.
29 January 2016	DF		Aziz Deen-Conteh	Zaria Bălți	Released	[101][102]
8 May 2016	FW		Achille Campion	Sligo Rovers	Released	[103]
13 May 2016	DF		Lewis Bergin	Newcastle Town	Released	[104]
13 May 2016	FW		Colin Daniel	Blackpool	Released	[105]
13 May 2016	FW		Jonathon Kapend	Nantwich Town	Released	[106]
13 May 2016	DF		Ryan McGivern	Shrewsbury Town	Released	[107]
13 May 2016	GK		Chris Neal	Fleetwood Town	Released	[108]
13 May 2016	MF		Chekaine Steele	Worcester City	Released	[66][109]
13 May 2016	FW		Theo Robinson	Lincoln City	Released	[110]
26 May 2016	FW		Louis Dodds	Shrewsbury Town	Rejected contract	[68]
27 May 2016	DF		Richard Duffy	Eastleigh	Rejected contract	[69]
27 May 2016	MF		Michael O'Connor	Notts County	Rejected contract	[111]
31 May 2016	FW		A-Jay Leitch-Smith	Shrewsbury Town	Rejected contract	[107]
17 June 2016	FW		Byron Moore	Bristol Rovers	Rejected contract	[112]
23 June 2016	DF		Carl Dickinson	Notts County	Rejected contract	[113]
1 July 2016	MF		Chris Birchall	Kidsgrove Athletic	Rejected contract	[114]
5 July 2016	MF		Enoch Andoh	Whitehawk	Rejected contract	[72]

Loans in

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Date until	Ref.
13 July 2015	FW		Uche Ikpeazu	Watford	2 January 2016	[7]
27 July 2015	DF		Ryan Inniss	Crystal Palace	End of season	[9]
28 August 2015	MF		Jak McCourt	Leicester City	26 September 2015	[16]
25 January 2016	MF		Matty Kennedy	Cardiff City	7 April 2016	[115]

Loans out

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	To	Date until	Ref.
27 July 2015	DF		Nathan Smith	Torquay United	End of season	[116]
11 August 2015	DF		Aziz Deen-Conteh	Boston United	12 September 2015	[117]
24 August 2015	DF		Adam Yates	Northampton Town	8 September 2015	[118]
25 August 2015	DF		Lewis Bergin	Kidsgrove Athletic	End of season	[119]
28 August 2015	FW		Jonathon Kapend	Stafford Rangers	26 September 2015	[120]
28 August 2015	MF		Chekaine Steele	Buxton	26 September 2015	[120]
11 September 2015	MF		Omar Haughton	Newcastle Town	9 October 2015	[121]
29 October 2015	FW		Achille Campion	Torquay United	29 November 2015	[122]
6 November 2015	MF		Billy Reeves	Witton Albion	6 February 2016	[123]
24 November 2015	MF		Ryan Lloyd	Chester	End of season	[124]
27 November 2015	GK		Sam Johnson	F.C. Halifax Town	End of season	[125]
29 January 2016	MF		Omar Haughton	Leek Town	End of season	[126]
29 January 2016	MF		Chekaine Steele	Witton Albion	27 February 2016	[127]
1 February 2016	GK		Chris Neal	Doncaster Rovers	20 February 2016	[128]
12 February 2016	FW		Jonathon Kapend	Kidsgrove Athletic	12 March 2016	[129]
12 February 2016	MF		Billy Reeves	Hyde United	12 March 2016	[129]
23 February 2016	FW		Colin Daniel	Mansfield Town	End of season	[130]
18 March 2016	GK		Chris Neal	Bury	End of season	[131]

References

Specific

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2. "Rob Page: Port Vale award new two-year contract to manager". BBC Sport. 6 May 2015. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
3. "Rob Page looks to build as chairman backs him at least until September". The Sentinel. 6 May 2015. Retrieved 9 May 2015.
4. "Port Vale: Remie Streete and Sam Kelly sign two-year contracts". BBC Sport. 15 June 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
5. "Sam Foley: Port Vale sign Yeovil Town midfielder". BBC Sport. 18 June 2015. Retrieved 18 June 2015.
6. "Port Vale: Anthony Grant and Ben Purkiss sign for League One club". BBC Sport. 24 June 2015. Retrieved 24 June 2015.
7. "Watford striker Uche Ikpeazu seals six-month loan move". BBC Sport. 13 July 2015. Retrieved 13 July 2015.
8. "Port Vale: A-Jay Leitch-Smith agrees 12-month deal at Vale Park". BBC Sport. 20 July 2015. Retrieved 20 July 2015.
9. "Ryan Inniss: Port Vale sign Crystal Palace defender on season's loan". BBC Sport. 27 July 2015. Retrieved 27 July 2015.
10. "Goalkeeper Jak Alnwick Agrees To Join Port Vale". Port Vale FC. 6 August 2015. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
11. Sharpe, Rich (8 August 2015). "Crewe Alexandra 0 Port Vale 0: Steve Davis admits the Valiants had the better of the game". The Sentinel. Retrieved 9 August 2015.
12. "Ex-Newcastle striker JJ Hooper signs two-year deal". BBC Sport. 10 August 2015. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
13. Baggaley, Michael (15 August 2015). "Rob Page says Vale didn't do enough in second half". The Sentinel. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
14. Smith, Pete (19 August 2015). "Watch bizarre injury-time handball that helped seal draw at Swindon Town". The Sentinel. Retrieved 20 August 2015.
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49. Baggaley, Mike (14 February 2016). "Port Vale 0, Fleetwood 0, Comment: Visitors give Vale the World Cup Willies". The Sentinel. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
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