The 1997–98 season was Port Vale's 86th season of football in the English Football League, and fourth successive season in the First Division. Under the stewardship of manager John Rudge and chairman Bill Bell, the club produced a dramatic final-day escape from relegation, securing a vital 4–0 win over Huddersfield Town that ensured Vale survived while Potteries derby rivals Stoke City were relegated — leaving Port Vale as the proud top club in the Potteries.

In cup competitions, Vale put up a commendable fight in the FA Cup, drawing Arsenal away before falling in a tense Third Round replay on penalties. Their League Cup campaign ended at the First Round stage. The campaign also marked a transition in the squad: key departures included high-performing duo Lee Mills and Jon McCarthy, alongside stalwarts Dean Glover, Andy Porter, and Andy Hill. In a bid to strengthen, Vale broke their transfer record by signing Gareth Ainsworth from Lincoln City for £500,000. On the scoring front, Lee Mills finished as both league (14) and season top scorer (16 goals). Attendance peaked at 14,964 for the FA Cup tie against Arsenal and dropped to a low of 2,749 vs. York City, with an average attendance of 8,263. The club's heaviest league reverse was a 5–1 defeat to Ipswich Town on 18 April 1998.

Overview

First Division The pre-season saw the arrival of Swedish midfielder Jan Jansson from IFK Norrköping for a £200,000 fee. Dutch defender Mark Snijders also signed from AZ.

The Vale started the season in modest form, picking up 14 points in the opening nine games. On 23 August, they defeated Sunderland by three goals to one after Tony Naylor secured the three points in the 72nd minute by nutmegging Andy Melville on a run that began just inside the Sunderland half and ended with a swerving right-foot shot into the corner of the net. On 11 September, John Rudge made the club's record signing by paying Lincoln City £500,000 for the services of midfielder Gareth Ainsworth. To pay for this, Jon McCarthy was sold to Birmingham City for £1.5m. Also heading away from Stoke-on-Trent was Arjan van Heusden, who joined Oxford United on loan. The next month, Gareth Griffiths left for a loan spell at Shrewsbury Town. Disappointment came on 12 October, with a 2–1 defeat to rivals Stoke City at the newly opened Britannia Stadium. Vale's indifferent form continued, one highlight being a 3–2 win over Manchester City at Maine Road on 4 November in which Andy Porter man-marked Georgi Kinkladze out of the game. Later in the year, Paul Beesley joined on loan from Man City, and played a handful of games. The club's indifferent form then turned to a terrible run of ten defeats in twelve games, which included a run of one goal scored in seven games. Their form picked up in February, though they were still inconsistent.

On 1 March, Stoke, who were also in relegation danger, escaped from Vale Park with a goalless draw. On 7 March, Vale beat Reading 3–0 at Elm Park after going into a two-goal lead inside 20 minutes. Later in month Rudge signed young Tottenham Hotspur forward Paul Mahorn on non-contract terms. On 14 March, a 2–1 win over Manchester City was to prove crucial – the club's first home win over Manchester City, though Vale were still in danger of the drop. Going into their final game with Huddersfield Town at the Alfred McAlpine Stadium Vale had lost three straight games, and needed a win to ensure their safety in the league. A brace from Jansson, and one each from Martin Foyle and Lee Mills earned Vale a 4–0 win. Rudge said: "It all ended happily in the end but we must take that as a warning and not ignore it".

They finished in 19th place, one point above Manchester City in the relegation zone. Stoke City were also relegated, and had Stoke beat Vale in Burslem, then Vale would have taken Stoke's place in the relegation zone. Lee Mills was the club's top-scorer with 16 goals, whilst Tony Naylor also hit double-figures.

At the end of the season, Lee Mills was signed by Premier League Bradford City, becoming Bradford's first million-pound player. Twelve-year club veteran Andy Porter signed for Wigan Athletic, as did Griffiths. Another major departure was nine-year club veteran defender Dean Glover, who joined non-League Kidderminster Harriers. Another older player, Andy Hill, retired outright. Other departures were Dave Barnett to Lincoln City, Dean Stokes to Third Division Rochdale, and Dutch keeper Arjan van Heusden also headed into the basement division with Cambridge United. Fellow Dutchman Jermaine Holwyn returned to the Netherlands to play for HFC Haarlem.

Finances The club's shirt sponsors were Tunstall Assurance.

Cup competitions In the FA Cup, Vale faced a trip to Highbury to face Arsenal. Rudge's "Valiants" battled to a goalless draw with the "Gunners" to take the Londoners back to Burslem; manager Arsène Wenger remarked that it was "amazing how teams who do not do especially well in their own league suddenly become monsters". Again goalless, Dennis Bergkamp scored in the tenth minute of extra time, but Wayne Corden equalized eight minutes before the full-time whistle. Lee Dixon missed the first penalty of the shoot-out, but Arsenal recovered to win the game 4–3 on penalties, and later went on to lift the cup. Rudge later told the story of the kit lady informing him the washing machine had broken down before the match and could Rudge contact the suppliers, leaving him to contemplate "I wonder if Arsene Wenger is doing this?" Bell said the club made a total of £300,000 from the two ties.

In the League Cup, Second Division York City eliminated the Vale with a 3–2 aggregate victory.

Results Football League First 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 PlacePositionNationNameFirst DivisionFA CupLeague CupTotal1FWLee Mills1402162FWTony Naylor1000103FWMartin Foyle80084MFStewart Talbot60065MFJan Jansson5005–MFGareth Ainsworth50057MFWayne Corden1102–DFMark Snijders20029DFDean Glover1001–DFDave Barnett1001–MFIan Bogie1001–MFAndy Porter1001––Own goals1001TOTALS561259

Transfers

Transfers in Date from Position Nationality Name From Fee Ref. 1997 DF Matt Carragher Wigan Athletic Free transfer Summer 1997 MF Jan Jansson IFK Norrköping £200,000 Summer 1997 DF Mark Snijders AZ Alkmaar Free transfer 12 September 1997 MF Gareth Ainsworth Lincoln City £500,000

Transfers out Date from Position Nationality Name To Fee Ref. 11 September 1997 MF Jon McCarthy Birmingham City £1.5 million 1998 DF Jermaine Holwyn HFC Haarlem Free transfer 26 March 1998 FW Justin O'Reilly Southport Free transfer July 1998 MF Andy Porter Wigan Athletic Free transfer June 1998 DF Gareth Griffiths Wigan Athletic Free transfer Summer 1998 DF Dean Glover Kidderminster Harriers Free transfer Summer 1998 DF Andy Hill Retired 7 August 1998 FW Lee Mills Bradford City £1,000,000 Summer 1998 DF Dean Stokes Rochdale Free transfer August 1998 GK Arjan van Heusden Cambridge United Free transfer

Loans in Date from Position Nationality Name From Date to Ref. 24 December 1997 DF Paul Beesley Manchester City December 1997 March 1998 DF Dave Barnett Dunfermline Athletic End of season

Loans out Date from Position Nationality Name To Date to Ref. 8 August 1997 GK Matthew Boswell Witton Albion 199? 26 September 1997 GK Arjan van Heusden Oxford United October 1997 31 October 1997 DF Gareth Griffiths Shrewsbury Town November 1997 23 December 1997 FW Simon Armstrong Boston United End of season 30 January 1998 FW Steve Williams Witton Albion 1998 25 March 1998 GK Matthew Boswell Barnet End of season

References Specific

General Soccerbase