Ian Elsby

Ian Christopher Elsby (born 13 September 1960) is an English former footballer who played for Port Vale, Cleveland Cobras, Macclesfield Town and Congleton Town. His uncle is the former footballer Jim Elsby.

Ian Elsby

Personal information
Full name	Ian Christopher Elsby[1]
Date of birth	(1960-09-13) 13 September 1960[1]
Place of birth	Stoke-on-Trent, England[1]
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)[2]
Playing position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
	Port Vale
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1979–1981	Port Vale	43	(1)
1979	→ Cleveland Cobras (loan)
1981–1987	Macclesfield Town	170	(0)
1990–1994	Congleton Town	103	(1)
Total		316+	(2+)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only

Playing career

Elsby graduated from the Port Vale youth team to sign as a professional in May 1978.[1] He was immediately sent out to the USA on loan with Jimmy Melia's American Soccer League side Cleveland Cobras, but returned to Vale Park by August of that year.[1] He played five Fourth Division games under Dennis Butler in 1978–79, before becoming a first team regular under new boss John McGrath from February 1980 to the end of the 1979–80 season.[1] He scored his first goal in the Football League on 9 February 1980, in a 1–1 draw with Huddersfield Town.[1] He fell out of favour the next season though, and was restricted to 23 appearances before being handed a free transfer in May 1981.[1] He moved on to Macclesfield Town (Northern Premier League) and Congleton Town.[1] He was voted Macclesfield's Player of the Year in 1981–82 and won the Cheshire Senior Cup in 1983.[3] In summer 1986 he was in a car crash with teammates Nigel Shaw, Steve Waddington and Trevor Brissett.[4]

Statistics

Source:[5]

Club	Season	Division	League		FA Cup		Other		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Port Vale	1978–79	Fourth Division	5	0	0	0	0	0	5	0
	1979–80	Fourth Division	21	1	0	0	1	0	22	1
	1980–81	Fourth Division	17	0	5	0	1	0	23	0
	Total		43	1	5	0	2	0	50	1
Macclesfield Town	1981–82[6]	Northern Premier League	42	0	1	0	10	0	53	0
	1982–83[7]	Northern Premier League	42	0	5	0	10	0	57	0
	1983–84[8]	Northern Premier League	36	0	7	0	8	0	51	0
	1984–85[9]	Northern Premier League	38	0	1	0	9	0	48	0
	1985–86[10]	Northern Premier League	12	0	0	0	0	0	12	0
	Total		170	0	14	0	37	0	221	0
Career total			213	1	19	0	39	0	271	1

Honours

Individual

• Macclesfield Town F.C. Player of the Year: 1981–82

Macclesfield Town

• Cheshire Senior Cup winner: 1983

References

1. Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 95. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
2. Rollin, Jack (1980). Rothmans football yearbook. London: Queen Anne Press. p. 299. ISBN 0362020175. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
3. "Profile". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Archived from the original on 5 November 2014. Retrieved 31 March 2015.
4. "Northern Premier League:". mtfc.co.uk. 30 November 2007. Retrieved 1 June 2010.
5. Ian Elsby at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
6. "Stats". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
7. "Stats". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
8. "Stats". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
9. "Stats". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2016.
10. "Stats". silkmenarchives.org.uk. Retrieved 12 July 2016.