1975–76 Port Vale F.C. season

Port Vale 1975–76 football season

Port Vale

1975–76 season

Chairman

Mark Singer

Manager

Roy Sproson

Stadium

Vale Park

Football League Third Division

12th (46 Points)

FA Cup

Second Round
(knocked out by Huddersfield Town)

League Cup

First Round
(knocked out by Hereford United)

Player of the Year

John Ridley

Top goalscorer

League: Mick Cullerton (17)
All: Mick Cullerton (21)

Highest home attendance

6,121 vs. Crystal Palace, 4 October 1975

Lowest home attendance

2,789 vs. Grimsby Town, 20 December 1975

Average home league attendance

4,133

Biggest win

3–0 (twice) and 4–1

Biggest defeat

0–3 (twice)

Home colours

← 1974–75 1976–77 →

The 1975–76 season was Port Vale's 64th season of football in the Football League, and their sixth-successive season (12th overall) in the Third Division. Manager Roy Sproson brought Mick Cullerton back to Vale Park. Cullerton was to become the top-scorer for the season with 21 goals. However, the ongoing success of rivals Stoke City in winning the League Cup, playing in Europe, and competing at the top of the First Division caused Vale's support to suffer. The loyal support of a few thousand fans was not enough to balance the books, and so Brian Horton was controversially sold to Brighton & Hove Albion for £30,000.

Overview

Third Division

The pre-season saw failed attempts by Roy Sproson to sign Wales internationals Mike England and Wyn Davies. Instead he bought back Mick Cullerton from Stafford Rangers for £4,000, who had scored over seventy goals for Rangers in his two seasons away from Burslem. Another former player, Ken Hancock, re-signed as a player-coach, however, he soon found himself unable to play as he had received a pay-out upon his retirement in 1973. Just two days before the opening game Sproson quickly signed Terry Lees from Stoke City for £3,000 and Geoff Morris from Bangor City for £200.

The season opened with five draws, followed by two victories that took the Vale to second. Six games without a win soon brought the "Valiants" tumbling down the table, though, as Cullerton lost his scoring touch. At the end of October arrived Steve Taylor on loan from Bolton Wanderers, who put more 'bite' into the Vale attack. Home fans turned against the players, and coach Reg Berks was 'appalled by some of the abuse hurled at the players'. Taylor scored a brace past Sheffield Wednesday at Hillsborough on 8 November, only to return immediately back to Bolton. The team's poor disciplinary record continued from the previous campaigns, and The Football Association put the club 'under constant review' after Sproson arrived 45 minutes late to a disciplinary hearing in London after missing his train. Cullerton was back in scoring form as the Vale picked up victories and rose up the table. A season-low crowd of 2,789 on 20 December saw Vale come from 3–0 down to Grimsby Town to win the match 4–3. To motivate the players coach Reg Berks had told them at half-time that he was facing the sack if the team lost the game. The promotion-chasers pulled away from Vale in the New Year however. A rare event occurred on 17 January when the Vale directors permitted rivals Stoke to play a home game to Middlesbrough at Vale Park. This happened because a severe gale severely damaged the Victoria Ground; whilst the gale also caused £2,000 worth of damage to Vale Park, the damage to Stoke's ground was much more severe. A crowd of 21,009 saw Stoke win 1–0, the highest crowd at Vale Park in over a decade. Vale's campaign carried on, though injuries built up Ray Williams managed to break a 21-game goal drought to earn a credible point at Cardiff City's Ninian Park on 25 February. Eight more points in the next four games took the club to within three points of the promotion zone. Yet in March, the club sold Brian Horton to Brighton & Hove Albion for £30,000, a sum the club needed to balance the books. The club's form suffered immediately, resulting in mid-table. On 10 April, Brighton beat Vale 3–0 at the Withdean Stadium, and John Brodie broke his leg.

They finished in twelfth place with 46 points. Mick Cullerton hit 21 goals in all competitions to become the club's top scorer. To celebrate the club's centenary, a friendly was played with Stoke City, which finished 1–1 in front of 9,825 spectators. Stoke generously allowed the Vale to pocket the entire £6,500 worth of takings from the match.

Finances

On the financial side, the Horton transfer and donations of £19,965 from the Development Fund ensured a profit of £24,819. An increase in ticket prices offset the cost of a reduced average gate. An income of £2,775 was gained from renting out space to market traders; however, Stoke-on-Trent Council soon put a stop to this. Geoff Morris left on a free transfer in the summer, signing with Kidderminster Harriers.

Cup competitions

In the FA Cup, Vale progressed past Southern League Grantham 4–1 in Burslem following a 2–2 draw away. This proved a lucky escape for Vale as Brownbill's equalizing goal at Grantham was allowed to stand despite an obvious handball. Many Vale supporters said that the linesman had raised his flag, only to lower it after being threatened by irate Vale spectators. In the Second Round they faced Fourth Division Huddersfield Town at Leeds Road, and were eliminated 2–1.

In the League Cup, the new two-legged format only resulted in a 4–4 aggregate draw, and so a replay was held at Gay Meadow, Shrewsbury, which Hereford won 1–0. Cullerton scored a hat-trick in the first leg, thereby making 'a fairytale come true' by hitting three in his first game back at Vale Park.

League table

Main article: 1975–76 Football League

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GAv	Pts
10	Peterborough United	46	15	18	13	63	63	1.000	48
11	Mansfield Town	46	16	15	15	58	52	1.115	47
12	Port Vale	46	15	16	15	55	54	1.019	46
13	Bury	46	14	16	16	51	46	1.109	44
14	Chesterfield	46	17	9	20	69	69	1.000	43

Source:
Rules for classification: 1) Points; 2) Goal average; 3) Goals scored

Results

Port Vale's score comes first

Football League Third 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	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A
Result	D	D	D	D	D	W	W	L	D	L	D	L	L	W	L	W	L	W	L	W	W	W	L	W	L	W	D	L	D	W	L	D	W	W	D	D	L	L	D	D	W	L	D	W	D	L
Position	11	11	13	13	13	7	4	8	9	11	10	13	18	13	13	12	17	13	16	14	10	8	8	8	11	7	9	10	8	8	9	10	10	9	8	8	10	12	11	12	10	11	11	11	10	12

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

Matches

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
16 August 1975	Hereford United	A	0–0	6,219
23 August 1975	Preston North End	H	1–1	4,282	Cullerton
30 August 1975	Peterborough United	A	0–0	6,065
6 September 1975	Brighton & Hove Albion	H	1–1	3,289	Morris
13 September 1975	Southend United	A	3–3	4,569	Dulson, Cullerton (pen), Tartt
20 September 1975	Swindon Town	H	3–0	3,720	Bailey (2), Cullerton
22 September 1975	Cardiff City	H	2–1	5,143	Cullerton, Lees
27 September 1975	Wrexham	A	0–1	3,863
4 October 1975	Crystal Palace	H	0–0	6,121
11 October 1975	Gillingham	A	1–2	5,041	Chadwick
18 October 1975	Chesterfield	H	1–1	3,892	Cullerton
21 October 1975	Shrewsbury Town	A	0–1	4,673
25 October 1975	Colchester United	A	0–1	3,053
1 November 1975	Rotherham United	H	1–0	3,921	Ridley
3 November 1975	Aldershot	H	0–1	3,917
8 November 1975	Sheffield Wednesday	A	3–0	11,035	Taylor (2), Chadwick
15 November 1975	Chester	H	0–1	3,908
29 November 1975	Millwall	H	2–0	3,580	Horton (2)
6 December 1975	Walsall	A	1–3	4,526	Horton
20 December 1975	Grimsby Town	H	4–3	2,789	Cullerton (2), Harris, Lees
26 December 1975	Halifax Town	A	3–1	2,959	Cullerton (2), Brownbill
27 December 1975	Bury	H	2–1	5,957	Cullerton, Bailey
3 January 1976	Mansfield Town	A	1–3	5,417	Cullerton
10 January 1976	Peterborough United	H	2–0	4,013	Cullerton, Horton
17 January 1976	Swindon Town	A	1–2	5,730	Brownbill
24 January 1976	Chesterfield	A	1–0	4,058	Cullerton
31 January 1976	Shrewsbury Town	H	0–0	3,835
7 February 1976	Aldershot	A	0–2	3,446
9 February 1976	Southend United	H	1–1	3,494	Harris
16 February 1976	Sheffield Wednesday	H	1–0	5,569	Brownbill
21 February 1976	Chester	A	0–1	5,914
25 February 1976	Cardiff City	A	1–1	9,109	Williams
28 February 1976	Colchester United	H	3–2	3,803	Cullerton, Brownbill, Bailey
6 March 1976	Rotherham United	A	2–1	4,338	Dulson, Williams
9 March 1976	Crystal Palace	A	2–2	23,032	Cullerton, Tartt
13 March 1976	Gillingham	H	1–1	3,517	Williams
20 March 1976	Millwall	A	0–1	7,116
27 March 1976	Walsall	H	1–2	4,870	Bailey
30 March 1976	Grimsby Town	A	1–1	4,533	Cullerton (pen)
3 April 1976	Hereford United	H	1–1	4,430	Griffiths
5 April 1976	Wrexham	H	3–1	3,604	Bailey (2), Tartt
10 April 1976	Brighton & Hove Albion	A	0–3	19,194
17 April 1976	Halifax Town	H	1–1	3,169	Beech
19 April 1976	Bury	A	2–1	4,609	Cullerton, McLaren
20 April 1976	Mansfield Town	H	2–2	4,239	Bailey, Tartt
24 April 1976	Preston North End	A	0–3	5,783

FA Cup

Main article: 1975–76 FA Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R1	20 November 1975	Grantham	A	2–2	2,853	Brownbill (2)
R1 Replay	24 November 1975	Grantham	H	4–1	4,851	Brownbill (2), Cullerton, Tartt
R2	13 December 1975	Huddersfield Town	A	1–2	6,218	Brownbill

League Cup

Main article: 1975–76 Football League Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R1 1st Leg	20 August 1975	Hereford United	H	4–2	3,787	Cullerton (3 ), Bailey
R1 2nd Leg	20 August 1975	Hereford United	A	0–2	4,107
R1 Replay	1 September 1975	Hereford United	N	0–1	3,676

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	John Connaughton	45	0	3	0	3	0	51	0
GK	David Ryan	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
DF	John Brodie	12	0	0	0	0	0	12	0
DF	Neil Griffiths	32	1	2	0	1	0	35	1
DF	David Harris	32	2	2	0	3	0	37	2
DF	Garry Dulson	30	2	1	0	3	0	34	2
DF	Trevor Robson	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
DF	Terry Lees	41	2	3	0	3	0	47	2
MF	Tommy McLaren	31	1	3	0	1	0	35	1
MF	Brian Horton	31	4	3	0	1	0	35	4
MF	Colin Tartt	42	4	3	1	3	0	48	5
MF	John Ridley	46	1	3	0	3	0	52	1
MF	Keith Chadwick	14	2	1	0	3	0	18	2
MF	Terry Bailey	43	8	3	0	3	1	49	9
MF	Kenny Beech	7	1	0	0	0	0	7	1
MF	Geoff Morris	15	1	0	0	2	0	17	1
FW	Ray Williams	29	3	3	0	2	0	34	3
FW	Derek Brownbill	36	4	3	5	2	0	41	9
FW	Steve Taylor	4	2	0	0	0	0	4	2
FW	Mick Cullerton	41	17	3	1	3	3	47	21
FW	Tony Betts	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0

Top scorers

Place	Position	Nation	Name	Third Division	FA Cup	League Cup	Total
1	FW	Scotland	Mick Cullerton	17	1	3	21
2	MF	England	Terry Bailey	8	0	1	9
–	FW	England	Derek Brownbill	4	5	0	9
4	MF	England	Colin Tartt	4	1	0	5
5	MF	England	Brian Horton	4	0	0	4
6	FW	England	Ray Williams	3	0	0	3
7	MF	England	Keith Chadwick	2	0	0	2
–	FW	England	Steve Taylor	2	0	0	2
–	DF	England	David Harris	2	0	0	2
–	DF	England	Garry Dulson	2	0	0	2
–	DF	England	Terry Lees	2	0	0	2
12	MF	Scotland	Tommy McLaren	1	0	0	1
–	DF	England	Neil Griffiths	1	0	0	1
–	MF	England	John Ridley	1	0	0	1
–	MF	England	Kenny Beech	1	0	0	1
–	MF	England	Geoff Morris	1	0	0	1
			TOTALS	55	7	4	66

Transfers

Transfers in

Date from	Position	Name	From	Fee
June 1975	FW	Mick Cullerton	Stafford Rangers	£5,000
August 1975	MF	Terry Lees	Stoke City	£3,000
August 1975	MF	Geoff Morris	Bangor City	£200
September 1975	FW	Tony Betts	Portland Timbers	Trial

Transfers out

Date from	Position	Name	To	Fee
November 1975	FW	Tony Betts	Boldmere St. Michael's	Trial ended
10 March 1976	MF	Brian Horton	Brighton & Hove Albion	£30,000
May 1976	MF	Geoff Morris	Kidderminster Harriers	Free transfer
August 1976	MF	Terry Lees	Sparta Rotterdam	£25,000

Loans in

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Date to	Ref.
29 October 1975	FW		Steve Taylor	Bolton Wanderers	November 1975
16 January 1976	GK		David Ryan	Manchester United	January 1976

References

Specific

^ Kent, Jeff (1990). "Surviving on a Shoestring (1969–1979)". The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale. Witan Books. pp. 227–257. ISBN 0-9508981-4-7.
Kent, Jeff (December 1991). Port Vale Tales: A Collection Of Stories, Anecdotes And Memories. Witan Books. p. 52. ISBN 0-9508981-6-3.
Kent, Jeff (November 1998). The Potteries Derbies. Witan Books. p. 169. ISBN 0-9529152-3-5.
Baggaley, Mike (19 December 2024). "Ready for Carlisle and more". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 21 December 2024.
Kent, Jeff (December 1991). Port Vale Tales: A Collection Of Stories, Anecdotes And Memories. Witan Books. p. 254. ISBN 0-9508981-6-3.
Johnson, Dave. Fifty Shades of Black & White: Tales From the Vale. p. 178.
Port Vale 1975–1976 : Results & Fixtures Archived 15 September 2016 at the Wayback Machine. Statto Organisation. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
^ Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.

General

Kent, Jeff (1993). The Port Vale Record 1879-1993. Witan Books. ISBN 0-9508981-9-8.

v t e Port Vale F.C. seasons
1880–81 1881–82 1882–83 1883–84 1884–85 1885–86 1886–87 1887–88 1888–89 1889–90
1890–91 1891–92 1892–93 1893–94 1894–95 1895–96 1896–97 1897–98 1898–99 1899–00
1900–01 1901–02 1902–03 1903–04 1904–05 1905–06 1906–07 1907–08 1908–09 1909–10
1910–11 1911–12 1912–13 1913–14 1914–15 1915–16 1916–17 1917–18 1918–19 1919–20
1920–21 1921–22 1922–23 1923–24 1924–25 1925–26 1926–27 1927–28 1928–29 1929–30
1930–31 1931–32 1932–33 1933–34 1934–35 1935–36 1936–37 1937–38 1938–39 1939–40
1940–41 1941–42 1942–43 1943–44 1944–45 1945–46 1946–47 1947–48 1948–49 1949–50
1950–51 1951–52 1952–53 1953–54 1954–55 1955–56 1956–57 1957–58 1958–59 1959–60
1960–61 1961–62 1962–63 1963–64 1964–65 1965–66 1966–67 1967–68 1968–69 1969–70
1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80
1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90
1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–00
2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10
2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20
2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26 2026–27 2027–28 2028–29 2029–30

1975–76 in English football

« 1974–75 1976–77 »

National teams

League competitions

Levels 1–4	Football League (First Division, Second Division, Third Division, Fourth Division)
Levels 5–6	Isthmian League (One, Two) Northern Premier League (level 5 only) Southern League (Premier, One North, One South)
Levels 7–9	Athenian League (One, Two) Cheshire County League (level 7 only) Eastern Counties League (level 7 only) Essex Senior League (level 7 only) Hellenic League (Premier, One) Kent League (level 7 only) Lancashire Combination (level 7 only) London Spartan League (One, Two) Midland Football Combination (level 7 only) Midland League (Premier, One) Northern League (level 7 only) South Midlands League (Premier, One) Sussex County League (One, Two) United Counties League (Premier, One, Two) West Midlands (Regional) League (level 7 only) Western League (level 7 only) Yorkshire League (One, Two, Three)

Cup competitions

FA cups	FA Cup (Qualifying rounds, Final) Charity Shield FA Trophy (Final) FA Vase
Football League cups	League Cup (Final)

European competitions

Club seasons
First Division	Arsenal Aston Villa Birmingham City Burnley Coventry City Derby County Everton Ipswich Town Leeds United Leicester City Liverpool Manchester City Manchester United Middlesbrough Newcastle United Norwich City Queens Park Rangers Sheffield United Stoke City Tottenham Hotspur West Ham United Wolverhampton Wanderers
Second Division	Blackburn Rovers Blackpool Bolton Wanderers Bristol City Bristol Rovers Carlisle United Charlton Athletic Chelsea Fulham Hull City Luton Town Nottingham Forest Notts County Oldham Athletic Orient Oxford United Plymouth Argyle Portsmouth Southampton Sunderland West Bromwich Albion York City
Third Division	Aldershot Brighton & Hove Albion Bury Cardiff City Chester Chesterfield Colchester United Crystal Palace Gillingham Grimsby Town Halifax Town Hereford United Mansfield Town Millwall Peterborough United Port Vale Preston North End Rotherham United Sheffield Wednesday Shrewsbury Town Southend United Swindon Town Walsall Wrexham
Fourth Division	Barnsley Bournemouth Bradford City Brentford Cambridge United Crewe Alexandra Darlington Doncaster Rovers Exeter City Hartlepool United Huddersfield Town Lincoln City Newport County Northampton Town Reading Rochdale Scunthorpe United Southport Stockport County Swansea City Torquay United Tranmere Rovers Watford Workington

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