The 1962–63 season was Port Vale's 51st season of football in the English Football League, and their fourth season in the Third Division. A season of near-glory and managerial upheaval, it began under Norman Low, who unexpectedly resigned on 30 October, with Freddie Steele returning to the helm and re-establishing his famous "Steele Curtain" defence. Vale powered their way to a third‑place finish with 54 points, just four behind promotion, although rivals Stoke City and Crewe Alexandra's promotions made Vale's strong campaign feel particularly bittersweet.

In the FA Cup, Vale advanced to the Fourth Round, eventually falling 2–1 to First Division side Sheffield United in front of a home crowd of 22,207 on 13 March 1963 — their highest attendance of the season. In the League Cup, Vale were knocked out in the First Round by Bristol Rovers. Tony Richards became the club's league and overall top scorer, netting 13 goals in just 14 appearances, despite only being signed for £9,000 from Walsall in March. Earlier-season goalscoring had proven meagre until his mid-season arrival. Attendance figures reflected cautious optimism at Vale Park: an average of approximately 8,130, with the low point at 4,673 against Hull City (20 April) and the standout high during the cup clash with Sheffield United.

Ultimately, the 1962–63 campaign was defined by resurgence under Steele, a haul of crucial clean sheets, and a thrilling FA Cup run — but promotion narrowly slipped through Vale's grasp.

Overview

Third Division The pre-season saw the arrival of John Rowland, a 'tall and skilful' outside-right from Nottingham Forest for £6,000.

The season opened with six points from four games, with three clean sheets. The increasing violence in the game was in evidence, though, as trainer Eric Jones was hit with a bottle in the 1–0 victory at Wrexham. The players remained unfazed and managed to claim a goalless draw at Millwall's Den on 27 August. Rowland was dropped from the first XI following a 2–0 defeat at Ashton Gate on 1 September. Vale responded two days later with a "rip-roaring display of punchy soccer" in a 4–2 victory over Colchester United. They then became inconsistent, and so Low added young forward Terry Harkin to the squad from Coleraine, and transfer-listed Stan Steele after he began to be targeted by hecklers at Vale Park. Despite coming from a goal down to beat Southend United 5–1, the club continued to fall down the table. They then began a nine-game unbeaten streak on 20 October with a 1–1 draw with Carlisle United at Brunton Park.

On 30 October, manager Norman Low tendered his resignation, to the shock of fans and pundits. Low cited disagreements with the board as the reason for his departure. The club felt they needed a marquee signing and so approached first Tom Finney and then European cup winning coach Béla Guttmann, who had just departed Benfica, both declined the role. Low's successor instead proved to be his predecessor, Freddie Steele, in another development that took many by surprise. Roy Sproson later noted "He [Steele] had changed. He had not got the enthusiasm or drive as before, but the lads still responded to him".

On 9 November, Vale beat Barnsley by a goal to nil, though a section of the Vale Park crowd threatened violence against referee Jack Pickles after he sent off Stan Steele. It took until the sixth game of Freddie Steele's reign for a goal to be conceded (525 minutes) as 'the Steele Curtain' again descended upon Vale Park. The goal was scored by former Valiant turned bogey player Ronnie Allen for Crystal Palace in a 4–1 home win for Vale. This win was followed by a 2–2 draw with Wrexham that left the Vale within two points of second place. They finished the year chasing promotion, despite losing 4–3 to Reading at Elm Park. No league games were played in January or February due to the Big Freeze. To help with finances during this spell of two months without competitive action, Bert Llewellyn was sold to Northampton Town for £7,000 and Arthur Longbottom was sold to Millwall for £2,000.

Back in action in March, Steele found his offence wanting, and so purchased Tony Richards from Walsall for £9,000. Richards immediately impacted himself on the club's scoring charts, bagging a brace at Halifax Town, eventually finishing as top-scorer for his two months of work. A 2–0 victory over Carlisle United was the first game at Vale Park in 12 weeks, as the club had found themselves with up to four games in hand on their rivals. For the four weeks following 20 April, Vale recorded eight wins from their final ten matches, though this would prove to be too little too late regarding promotion. Hopes of promotion were extinguished with a 3–0 home defeat to Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic on 13 May.

They finished in third spot with 54 points, four short of promotion, though enough to earn them £500 in talent money. Their 58 goals conceded total was fewer only than Swindon Town.

Finances On the financial side, a profit of £2,275 was made despite an operating loss of £20,557. A donation from the Sportsmen's Association and social club stood at a highly impressive £22,832. Whilst wages remained fairly constant at £33,120, gate receipts had fallen by £8,000. The club's overdraft stood at £41,000, leading to a discussion over whether or not to take out a mortgage on Vale Park. The club management decided to replace the black and amber kit with the traditional white shirts, black shorts and black and white socks – the kit Steele's men triumphed in almost ten years previously. On the playing front, Peter Ford's departure to Macclesfield Town was the only transfer of note.

Cup competitions In the FA Cup, Vale took their revenge upon Bristol Rovers, dumping them out of the competition at the first stage with a 2–0 win at Burslem on 21 November. Three weeks later, Aldershot suffered the same fate in Sproson's 500th appearance for the club. In the third round they beat Fourth Division side Gillingham 4–2 at Priestfield. The tie had been postponed 12 times due to consistently freezing conditions. They then lost 2–1 to First Division club Sheffield United in front of 22,207 rain-soaked supporters.

In the League Cup, Bristol Rovers won the first round clash at the Memorial Stadium 2–0.

Results Football League Third Division

League table

Results by matchday

Matches

FA Cup

League Cup

Squad statistics Appearances and goals Key to positions: GK – Goalkeeper; DF – Defender; MF – Midfielder; FW – Forward

|colspan="14"|Players who featured but departed the club during the season:

Top scorers PlacePositionNationNameThird DivisionFA CupLeague CupTotal1FWTony Richards1300132FWTerry Harkin100010–FWBert Llewellyn730104MFStan Edwards62085FWJohn Rowland7007–FWStan Steele6107–MFColin Grainger52078FWPeter Ford51069MFTerry Miles3003–FWHarry Poole300311MFBernard Wright2002–FWArthur Longbottom200213DFRoy Sproson1001–––Own goals2002TOTALS729081

Transfers

Transfers in Date from Position Nationality Name From Fee Ref. August 1962 FW John Rowland Nottingham Forest £6,000 August 1962 MF Bernard Wright Sligo Rovers Free transfer September 1962 MF Terry Harkin Coleraine £2,000 September 1962 MF Jim Watton De Graafschap Free transfer March 1963 FW Tony Richards Walsall £9,000

Transfers out Date from Position Nationality Name To Fee Ref. January 1963 FW Arthur Longbottom Millwall £2,000 February 1963 FW Bert Llewellyn Northampton Town £7,000 May 1963 MF Bernard Wright Released July 1963 MF Stan Edwards Bangor City Free transfer Summer 1963 MF Peter Ford Macclesfield Town Released

Loans out Date from Position Nationality Name To Date until Ref. April 1963 MF Bernard Wright Stafford Rangers May 1963

References Specific

General