1989–90 Port Vale F.C. season

Port Vale 1989–90 football season

Port Vale

1989–90 season

Chairman

Bill Bell

Manager

John Rudge

Stadium

Vale Park

Football League Second Division

11th (61 Points)

FA Cup

Fourth Round
(knocked out by Aston Villa)

League Cup

Second Round
(knocked out by Wimbledon)

Full Members Cup

Second Round
(knocked out by Middlesbrough)

Player of the Year

Neil Aspin

Top goalscorer

League: Darren Beckford (17)
All: Darren Beckford (21)

Highest home attendance

22,075 vs. Stoke City, 3 February 1990

Lowest home attendance

4,441 vs. Walsall, 28 August 1989

Average home league attendance

8,978

Biggest win

5–0 vs. Ipswich Town, 1 January 1990

Biggest defeat

0–6 vs. Aston Villa, 27 January 1990

Home colours

Away colours

← 1988–89 1990–91 →

The 1989–90 season was Port Vale's 78th season of football in the English Football League and first (33rd overall) season back in the Second Division following their promotion from the Third Division. They were playing in the second tier, and at the same level as rivals Stoke City, for the first time since 1956–57. John Rudge led his side to a comfortable mid-table finish, whilst Stoke suffered relegation in bottom place despite the two derby matches finishing in draws. After beating top-flight Derby County, Vale exited the FA Cup in the Fourth Round with their biggest-ever loss in the competition, losing 6–0 to Aston Villa at Villa Park. They left both the League Cup and the Full Members Cup at the Second Round.

Overview

Second Division

The pre-season saw John Rudge sign solid young defender Neil Aspin from Leeds United for £150,000; 28-year-old forward Nicky Cross from Leicester City for £125,000; and veteran winger Ian Miller on a free transfer from Blackburn Rovers (as cover for an injured Gary Ford). The Burslem club had never previously spent anything close to the £275,000 spent in summer 1989. Yet, other clubs in the division far outspent the Vale. Vale Park was also upgraded at £250,000, though grants helped to halve the cost for the club itself. Inspectors closed the Bycars End down despite this effort due to safety issues. They reduced the stadium's capacity to 12,000 after cutting the capacity of the Railway Paddock by two-thirds. Season ticket sales more than doubled to 2,231. Phil Sproson attempted to return to the game, and so the club accepted a £50,000 transfer payment from Birmingham City. Meanwhile, the Vale were the bookmakers favourites for relegation, having started the season with six players out injured, including Ray Walker.

The season opened with a 2–2 draw with Bradford City at Valley Parade, missing out on all three points due to a late equaliser from Brian Tinnion. This was followed by a 2–1 home win over West Bromwich Albion the following week. The club soon scrapped their all-ticket rule after poor attendances in the first games. Vale went seven games without a win in the league, though on 23 September managed a 1–1 draw with Stoke at the Victoria Ground, some 27,004 fans in attendance. Rudge commented after the match that " proves that we have closed the gap on Stoke and are now competing on equal terms" On 7 October, Vale came from behind to beat Leicester City by two goals to one. The police bills for Vale games reached as much as £1.50 a head for some games, though the police went some way to justify this cost by arresting 85 people on the day of the Potteries derby. Rudge switched from a 4–4–2 formation to 4–3–3 so as to include Miller, and a mini-revival followed, ending with a 3–0 win over Barnsley at Oakwell. Six games without a win followed, and Alan Webb broke his leg during a 2–2 draw with Newcastle United at St James' Park. In November, Vale Park opened a new 48 seat disabled stand at a cost of £100,000. Ron Futcher was then sold to Fourth Division Burnley for £60,000, though an injury crisis in defence exposed the club's lack of squad depth. With Gary West out with damaged ligaments, big defender Tim Parkin was bought from Swindon Town for £60,000. The next month the Hamil End was reopened after £175,000 worth of renewal work. Rudge switched back to 4–4–2, utilizing Andy Porter in midfield.

Vale went six games unbeaten over the new year, beating Ipswich Town 5–0 (their biggest win in the division since 1932) and fighting to a goalless home draw with Stoke in the process. The Stoke game was a disappointment as City were adrift at the foot of the table, and the pitch was 'as lumpy as porridge'. The Bycars End reopened after a £90,000 investment, 22,075 fans turned up for the game – the biggest gate for a league game since the visit of Grimsby Town in 1960. This moved Vale to within three points of the play-offs . A poor March dragged them down the table though, as the stadium's capacity was again reduced and the police bill spiralled. In April, Rudge sold David Riley to Peterborough United for £40,000, whilst £20,000 was spent bringing in Gary McKinstry from Portadown. On 11 April, Vale came from two goals down to win 3–2 at Middlesbrough with Beckford scoring a brace. The club's play-off dreams were killed off by a 2–1 defeat from Newcastle United, after which only two points were won from the final four games. Despite this the supporters held popular player Neil Aspin aloft following the team's final home game (a 2–1 defeat to Sunderland). The final game was a goalless draw with Oxford United at the Manor Ground, which was enough to ensure a top-half finish.

They finished in eleventh place with 61 points, their highest finish since 1933–34. Darren Beckford was top-scorer with 21 goals in all competitions, with Nicky Cross and Robbie Earle bagged 15 and 12 goals respectively. The average home attendance of 8,978 was the highest since 1963–64. The players were taken on a holiday to Spain as a reward for their efforts. Rudge retained the entire playing staff at the end of the season.

Finances

The club's shirt sponsors were ABC Minolta Copiers.

Cup competitions

In the FA Cup, Vale were drawn against top-flight Derby County in the Third Round and progressed 3–2 in the replay at The Baseball Ground having 'gave as good as they received' as they drew the original tie 1–1. The win was 'another famous cup victory' for the club, as three goals were put past Peter Shilton. Another difficult fixture awaited in the Fourth Round. On 27 January, Aston Villa inflicted Vale's biggest ever cup defeat with a 6–0 win in front of 36,532 fans at Villa Park. Nevertheless, the cup run raised £150,000.

In the League Cup, Vale overcame Third Division Walsall 3–1 on aggregate, having won 1–0 at home and 2–1 at Fellows Park. They then came unstuck against First Division Wimbledon, losing 2–1 at home before getting beat 3–0 at Plough Lane.

In the short-lived Full Members Cup, Vale made it past the First Round with a 2–1 win over Sunderland at Roker Park, with Walker and Cross getting the goals. They were then eliminated by Middlesbrough at the next stage, after losing 3–1 at Ayresome Park despite Rudge playing a strong side and the Vale holding a one goal lead at half-time.

League table

Main article: 1989–90 Football League

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts
9	Ipswich Town	46	19	12	15	67	66	+1	69
10	Wolverhampton Wanderers	46	18	13	15	67	60	+7	67
11	Port Vale	46	15	16	15	62	57	+5	61
12	Portsmouth	46	15	16	15	62	65	−3	61
13	Leicester City	46	15	14	17	67	79	−12	59

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

Results

Port Vale's score comes first

Football League Second 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	H	A	A	A	H	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A
Result	D	W	L	D	D	L	D	L	D	W	W	L	D	D	D	L	L	W	W	W	L	D	L	D	W	W	W	D	W	L	W	L	D	D	L	W	W	D	L	W	L	W	L	D	L	D
Position	10	7	13	17	12	19	18	20	20	20	13	15	16	15	15	15	16	15	14	13	13	14	15	16	14	12	9	10	9	10	9	9	10	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11	11

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

Matches

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
19 August 1989	Bradford City	A	2–2	10,242	Glover (pen), Beckford
26 August 1989	West Bromwich Albion	H	2–1	7,695	Glover (pen), Futcher
2 September 1989	Brighton & Hove Albion	A	0–2	7,218
9 September 1989	Blackburn Rovers	H	0–0	7,601
12 September 1989	Hull City	H	1–1	6,168	Earle
16 September 1989	Watford	A	0–1	8,445
23 September 1989	Stoke City	A	1–1	27,004	Earle
26 September 1989	Bournemouth	A	0–1	6,511
30 September 1989	Leeds United	H	0–0	11,156
7 October 1989	Leicester City	H	2–1	7,268	Beckford, Cross
14 October 1989	Barnsley	A	3–0	6,475	Cross (2), Earle
17 October 1989	Wolverhampton Wanderers	A	0–2	18,123
21 October 1989	West Ham United	H	2–2	8,899	o.g., Futcher
28 October 1989	Newcastle United	A	2–2	17,824	Earle, Futcher
30 October 1989	Middlesbrough	H	1–1	7,708	Glover (pen)
4 November 1989	Oxford United	H	1–2	6,994	Jeffers
11 November 1989	Portsmouth	A	0–2	7,708
18 November 1989	Swindon Town	H	2–0	7,393	Beckford, Cross
25 November 1989	Plymouth Argyle	A	2–1	7,034	Cross (2)
2 December 1989	Bradford City	H	3–2	6,762	Earle (2), Beckford
9 December 1989	Hull City	A	1–2	4,207	Earle
16 December 1989	Sheffield United	H	1–1	9,813	Cross
26 December 1989	Oldham Athletic	A	1–2	11,274	Parkin
30 December 1989	Sunderland	A	2–2	21,377	o.g., Millar
1 January 1990	Ipswich Town	H	5–0	8,617	Beckford (2), Earle, Cross, Miller
13 January 1990	West Bromwich Albion	A	3–2	13,575	Cross, Beckford, Porter
20 January 1990	Brighton & Hove Albion	H	2–1	8,666	Cross (2)
3 February 1990	Stoke City	H	0–0	22,075
10 February 1990	Watford	H	1–0	7,064	Earle
17 February 1990	Blackburn Rovers	A	0–1	9,257
24 February 1990	Plymouth Argyle	H	3–0	7,254	Hughes, Beckford, Mills
3 March 1990	Swindon Town	A	0–3	8,314
7 March 1990	Leeds United	A	0–0	29,550
10 March 1990	Bournemouth	H	1–1	7,131	Millar
17 March 1990	Leicester City	A	0–2	10,076
19 March 1990	Barnsley	H	2–1	7,036	o.g., Beckford
24 March 1990	Wolverhampton Wanderers	H	3–1	12,506	Millar, Beckford, Earle
31 March 1990	West Ham United	A	2–2	20,507	Beckford, Cross
7 April 1990	Newcastle United	H	1–2	10,290	Earle
11 April 1990	Middlesbrough	A	3–2	14,973	Beckford (2), Glover (pen)
14 April 1990	Ipswich Town	A	2–3	10,652	Earle, Cross (pen)
16 April 1990	Oldham Athletic	H	2–0	11,451	Beckford (2)
21 April 1990	Sheffield United	A	1–2	16,809	Beckford
28 April 1990	Portsmouth	H	1–1	7,492	Beckford
1 May 1990	Sunderland	H	1–2	9,447	Millar
5 May 1990	Oxford United	A	0–0	4,708

FA Cup

Main article: 1989–90 FA Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R3	7 January 1990	Derby County	H	1–1	17,478	Beckford
R3 Replay	10 January 1990	Derby County	A	3–2	21,389	o.g., Walker, Cross
R4	27 January 1990	Aston Villa	A	0–6	36,532

League Cup

Main article: 1989–90 Football League Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R1 1st Leg	22 August 1989	Walsall	A	2–1	4,774	Beckford (2)
R1 2nd Leg	28 August 1989	Walsall	H	1–0	4,441	Beckford
R2 1st Leg	18 September 1989	Wimbledon	H	1–2	5,827	Futcher
R2 2nd Leg	4 October 1989	Wimbledon	A	0–3	2,851

Full Members Cup

Main article: 1989–90 Full Members Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R1	14 November 1989	Sunderland	A	2–1	7,031	Walker, Cross
R2	29 November 1989	Middlesbrough	A	1–3	6,691	Jeffers

Player statistics

Appearances and goals

Pos.	Name	Football League		FA Cup		League Cup		Full Members Cup		Total
Pos.	Name	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
GK	Mark Grew	43	0	3	0	4	0	1	0	51	0
GK	Trevor Wood	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	4	0
DF	Alan Webb	14	0	0	0	4	0	0	0	18	0
DF	Simon Mills	45	1	3	0	4	0	2	0	54	1
DF	Darren Hughes	38	1	3	0	4	0	1	0	46	1
DF	Gary West	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
DF	Dean Glover	44	4	3	0	4	0	1	0	52	4
DF	Tim Parkin	12	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	12	1
DF	Neil Aspin	42	0	3	0	4	0	2	0	51	0
MF	Robbie Earle	43	12	3	0	4	0	2	0	52	12
MF	Andy Porter	36	1	3	0	3	0	2	0	44	1
MF	Ray Walker	40	0	3	1	2	0	2	1	47	1
MF	Kevin Finney	8	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	9	0
MF	John Jeffers	40	1	2	0	2	0	2	1	46	2
MF	Paul Millar	23	4	0	2	0	0	1	0	26	4
MF	Ian Miller	21	1	0	0	2	0	1	0	24	1
FW	Darren Beckford	42	17	3	1	4	3	2	0	51	21
FW	David Riley	2	0	1	0	0	0	2	0	5	0
FW	Ronnie Jepson	8	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	8	0
FW	Ron Futcher	11	3	0	0	4	1	0	0	15	4
FW	Nicky Cross	42	13	3	1	3	0	2	1	50	15

Top scorers

Place	Position	Nation	Name	Second Division	FA Cup	League Cup	Full Members Cup	Total
1	FW	England	Darren Beckford	17	1	3	0	21
2	FW	England	Nicky Cross	13	1	0	1	15
3	MF	Jamaica	Robbie Earle	12	0	0	0	12
4	MF	Northern Ireland	Paul Millar	4	0	0	0	4
–	DF	England	Dean Glover	4	0	0	0	4
–	FW	England	Ron Futcher	3	0	1	0	4
7	MF	England	John Jeffers	1	0	0	1	2
–	MF	England	Ray Walker	0	1	0	1	2
9	MF	England	Ian Miller	1	0	0	0	1
–	MF	England	Andy Porter	1	0	0	0	1
–	DF	England	Simon Mills	1	0	0	0	1
–	DF	England	Tim Parkin	1	0	0	0	1
–	FW	England	Darren Hughes	1	0	0	0	1
–		–	Own goals	3	1	0	0	4
			TOTALS	62	4	4	3	73

Transfers

Transfers in

Date from	Position	Name	From	Fee
June 1989	FW	Nicky Cross	Leicester City	£125,000
June 1989	MF	Ian Miller	Blackburn Rovers	Free transfer
28 July 1989	DF	Neil Aspin	Leeds United	£150,000
8 December 1989	DF	Tim Parkin	Swindon Town	£60,000
3 April 1990	FW	Gary McKinstrey	Portadown

Transfers out

Date from	Position	Name	To	Fee
13 November 1989	FW	Ron Futcher	Burnley	£60,000
3 April 1990	FW	David Riley	Peterborough United	£40,000
August 1990	MF	Ian Miller	Scunthorpe United	Free transfer

Loans out

Date from	Position	Name	To	Date to
25 January 1990	FW	Ronnie Jepson	Peterborough United	March 1990
1 March 1990	FW	David Riley	Peterborough United	April 1990
16 March 1990	MF	Paul Atkinson	Hartlepool United	End of season
22 March 1990	MF	Gary Ford	Walsall	End of season

References

Specific

^ Kent, Jeff (1990). "From Rags to Riches (1979–1990)". The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale. Witan Books. pp. 258–290. ISBN 0-9508981-4-7.
Baggaley, Mike (5 August 2024). "Strength in depth off the pitch". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 6 August 2024.
Bullock, Liam (2023). El Ceramico: The Story of the Potteries Derby. Pitch. ISBN 978-1-80150-393-8.
Baggaley, Mike (7 October 2024). "Vale gathering momentum". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 7 October 2024.
Baggaley, Mike (11 April 2024). "Vale back in drop zone as they are outclassed…". Retrieved 11 April 2024.
Baggaley, Mike (2 December 2024). "Battling to stay top in a big week". Valiant's Substack. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
Port Vale 1989–1990 : Results & Fixtures Archived 4 March 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

1989–90 in English football

« 1988–89 1990–91 »

National teams

League
competitions

Levels 1–4	Football League (First Division, Second Division, Third Division, Fourth Division, play-offs)
Level 5	Football Conference
Levels 6–7	Isthmian League (Premier, One) Northern Premier League (Premier, One) Southern League (Premier, Midland, Southern)
Levels 8–9	Isthmian League (Two North, Two South) Combined Counties League (level 8 only) Eastern Counties League (Premier, One) Essex Senior League (level 8 only) Hellenic League (Premier, One) Kent League (level 8 only) Midland Football Combination (level 8 only) North West Counties League (One, Two) Northern Counties East League (Premier, One) Northern League (One, Two) South Midlands League (Premier, One) Spartan League (Premier, One) Sussex County League (One, Two) United Counties League (Premier, One) Wessex League (level 8 only) West Midlands (Regional) League (level 8 only) Western League (Premier, One)

Cup
competitions

FA cups	FA Cup (Qualifying rounds, Final) Charity Shield FA Trophy (Final)
Football League cups	League Cup (Final) Full Members' Cup (Final) Associate Members' Cup (Final)

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

Categories: