1998–99 Port Vale F.C. season

Port Vale

1998–99 season

Chairman

Bill Bell

Manager

John Rudge
(until January)
Brian Horton
(January onwards)

Stadium

Vale Park

Football League First Division

21st (47 Points)

Third Round

First Round

Top goalscorer

League: Martin Foyle (9)
All: Martin Foyle (9)

Highest home attendance

16,557 vs. Liverpool (3 January 1999)

Lowest home attendance

3,478 vs. Chester City (11 August 1998)

Average home league attendance

6,991

Home colours

← 1997–98

1999–2000 →

The 1998–99 season was Port Vale's 87th season of football in the Football League, and fifth successive season in the First Division. It was the end of an era for the club, as manager of sixteen years John Rudge was sacked in January, and was replaced by Brian Horton. As a testament to the upheaval at the club, a massive 43 players turned out for the Vale in the league over the course of the season. The Vale just avoided relegation on goals scored, despite suffering a final day defeat to Bury, who were relegated having scored ten fewer goals. Liverpool knocked them out of the FA Cup at the Third Round, and Vale were also knocked out of the League Cup by fourth tier Chester City in the First Round. The sacking of Rudge spoiled what was supposed to be a happy season for Vale fans, as Vale competed in a division above rivals Stoke City for only the fourth time.

Overview

First Division

The pre-season saw John Rudge splash out £300,000 on Bristol Rovers forward Peter Beadle and £100,000 on Scunthorpe United defender Michael Walsh. He also signed Dave Barnett (Dunfermline Athletic); Brian McGlinchey and Paul Beesley (Manchester City); and John McQuade (Hamilton Academical) on free transfers. Stéphane Pounewatchy also became the first French player to play for the club when he was signed on a monthly contract from Dundee. Scott Mean was loaned to the club by West Ham United, though he went on to sustain a knee injury during his spell that would damage his career. Also Andy Clarke was signed on loan from Wimbledon.

The season started poorly with three defeats, Lee Hughes scoring a hat-trick for West Bromwich Albion to finish this run off. Two wins opened the month of September, though the month ended with former-Valiant Lee Mills scoring a brace for Bradford City in a 4–0 win over Vale at Valley Parade. In October, Derek McGill signed from Queens Park Rangers, though he would move on to Hamilton Academical later in the year. On 29 October, Gareth Ainsworth became Vale's biggest ever transfer as he was sold to Wimbledon for £2 million. In November, Robin Berntsen became the first Norwegian to play for the Vale when he arrived on loan from Tromsø IL. In addition to this French forward Christophe Horlaville joined on loan from Le Havre, and Des Lyttle also arrived on loan from Nottingham Forest. After winning the first four games in October, Vale then went on a streak of twelve defeats in fifteen games, though the sole victory of this run, a 1–0 win over Bury on 19 December, would prove to be crucial at the end of the season. The win was not enough for Rudge, who would get the sack in January after he made his final two signings: Trinidadian midfielder Tony Rougier from Hibernian for £175,000, and young striker Marcus Bent from Crystal Palace for a £375,000 fee. After Rudge was sacked by Chairman Bill Bell, highly distressed fans formed a "flat cap protest" (Rudge's headwear of choice) against the decision. Offered the role of Director of Football at the club, he instead took up the same position at rivals Stoke City. To replace him, Bell appointed experienced manager and former Vale player Brian Horton.

In February, Peter Beadle was sold on to Notts County for £250,000, representing a £50,000 loss. The month of March saw Horton make his first signings as manager, bringing in five new faces: Dave Brammer (£300,000 from Wrexham); Tony Butler (£115,000 from Blackpool); Carl Griffiths (£100,000 from Leyton Orient); Alex Smith (£75,000 from Chester City); and Chris Allen (free from Nottingham Forest). This cost the club a total of £590,000. He also took in striker Alan Lee on loan from Aston Villa, and Craig Russell on loan from Manchester City. His changes finally paid off in April, as Vale went on a five game unbeaten run. Their penultimate game was a 2–0 victory over QPR, meaning that a final day 1–0 defeat at fellow relegation candidates Bury was inconsequential.

They finished in 21st position with 47 points, ahead of Bury on goals scored, but behind both Portsmouth and Queens Park Rangers on goals scored. Had the goals difference rule been in effect then Vale would have been relegated instead of Bury. Crewe Alexandra finished three places and one position higher than the Vale. Vale suffered 25 defeats, more than any other club in the league, and only Grimsby and Bury had scored fewer goals. Player of the Year Martin Foyle was the club's top-scorer with nine goals, representing the lowest total tally for the club's top-scorer since 1964–65. Only Paul Musselwhite and Allen Tankard managed to hit forty appearances, as 43 players managed to turn out for the club throughout the season.

At the end of the season there was a complete clear-out, with ten players leaving: ten-year club veteran Neil Aspin (Darlington); Dave Barnett (Lincoln City); Brian McGlinchey (Gillingham); John McQuade (Raith Rovers); Chris Allen (Stockport County); Rogier Koordes (TOP Oss); Jan Jansson (IFK Norrköping); Paul Mahorn (Stevenage Borough); Stéphane Pounewatchy (Colchester United); and Paul Beesley (Blackpool).

Finances

The club's shirt sponsors were Tunstall Assurance.

Cup competitions

In the FA Cup, Vale hosted Premier League side Liverpool. The "Reds" left Burslem with a 3–0 victory, the goals scored by Michael Owen, Paul Ince, and Robbie Fowler.

In the League Cup, Third Division Chester City dispatched the Vale 2–1 at Vale Park, and held on to a 2–2 draw at the Deva Stadium to embarrass Vale fans with a minor giant-killing act.

Final league table

Main article: 1998–99 Football League

Pos	Team	P	W	D	L	F	A	Pts
1.	Sunderland	46	31	12	3	91	28	105
2.	Bradford City	46	26	9	11	82	47	87
3.	Ipswich Town	46	26	8	12	69	32	86
4.	Birmingham City	46	23	12	11	66	37	81
5.	Watford	46	21	14	11	65	56	77
6.	Bolton Wanderers	46	20	16	10	78	59	76
8.	Sheffield United	46	18	13	15	71	66	67
9.	Norwich City	46	15	17	14	62	61	62
10.	Huddersfield Town	46	15	16	15	62	71	61
11.	Grimsby Town	46	17	10	19	40	52	61
12.	West Bromwich Albion	46	16	11	19	69	76	59
13.	Barnsley	46	14	17	15	59	56	59
14.	Crystal Palace	46	14	16	16	58	71	58
15.	Tranmere Rovers	46	12	20	14	63	61	56
16.	Stockport County	46	12	17	17	49	60	53
17.	Swindon Town	46	13	11	22	59	81	50
18.	Crewe Alexandra	46	12	12	22	54	78	48
19.	Portsmouth	46	11	14	21	57	73	47
20.	Queens Park Rangers	46	12	11	23	52	61	47
21.	Port Vale	46	13	8	25	45	75	47
22.	Bury	46	10	17	19	35	60	47
23.	Oxford United	46	10	14	22	48	71	44
24.	Bristol City	46	9	15	22	57	80	42

P = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; Pts = Points

Results

Port Vale's score comes first

Legend

Win	Draw	Loss

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	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	A	H	A	H	A	H	A	H	H	A	H	H	A
Result	L	L	L	D	L	W	W	L	D	L	W	W	W	W	D	L	L	L	L	L	D	L	L	W	L	L	L	L	L	W	L	W	L	W	D	L	L	L	W	D	D	W	D	L	W	L
Position	23	24	24	24	24	22	19	19	21	23	20	18	15	12	13	13	13	15	16	20	19	22	22	20	20	21	22	23	23	22	22	21	21	20	20	21	21	22	21	22	21	20	20	21	20	21

Sourced from Statto.^[1]

Football League First Division

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
8 August 1998	Birmingham City	H	0–2	10,465
15 August 1998	Huddersfield Town	A	1–2	10,030	Ainsworth
22 August 1998	West Bromwich Albion	H	0–3	8,146
29 August 1998	Swindon Town	A	1–1	7,800	Ainsworth
31 August 1998	Ipswich Town	H	0–3	5,485
8 September 1998	Wolverhampton Wanderers	H	2–1	8,087	Beadle, Naylor
12 September 1998	Crystal Palace	A	1–0	15,983	Beadle
19 September 1998	Portsmouth	H	0–2	5,992
26 September 1998	Grimsby Town	A	2–2	5,747	Naylor, Beesley
29 September 1998	Bradford City	A	0–4	13,245
3 October 1998	Norwich City	H	1–0	5,580	Ainsworth
11 October 1998	Barnsley	A	2–0	16,195	Foyle, Beadle
17 October 1998	Bristol City	H	3–2	6,691	Ainsworth (2), Beesley
20 October 1998	Crewe Alexandra	H	1–0	8,205	Beesley
24 October 1998	Watford	A	2–2	8,750	Foyle, Tankard
31 October 1998	Sheffield United	H	2–3	6,737	Foyle, Beadle
4 November 1998	Bolton Wanderers	A	1–3	13,324	Beadle
8 November 1998	Stockport County	A	2–4	7,612	Beadle, Own goal
14 November 1998	Sunderland	H	0–2	8,839
21 November 1998	Oxford United	A	1–2	5,964	McGlinchey
28 November 1998	Tranmere Rovers	H	2–2	5,216	Foyle (2)
5 December 1998	Queens Park Rangers	A	2–3	10,498	Foyle, Barker
12 December 1998	Sunderland	A	0–2	37,583
19 December 1998	Bury	H	1–0	6,425	Barker (pen)
26 December 1998	West Bromwich Albion	A	2–3	14,929	Naylor (2)
28 December 1998	Bolton Wanderers	H	0–2	8,201
9 January 1999	Birmingham City	A	0–1	18,632
16 January 1999	Swindon Town	H	0–1	5,405
30 January 1999	Ipswich Town	A	0–1	16,328
6 February 1999	Huddersfield Town	H	2–0	6,499	Foyle (2)
13 February 1999	Wolverhampton Wanderers	A	1–3	20,952	Bogie
20 February 1999	Crystal Palace	H	1–0	6,051	Tankard
27 February 1999	Portsmouth	A	0–4	12,838
9 March 1999	Norwich City	A	4–3	12,960	Tankard, Russell, Walsh, Bogie
13 March 1999	Stockport County	H	1–1	6,456	Allen
20 March 1999	Sheffield United	A	0–3	15,515
23 March 1999	Grimsby Town	H	0–1	4,980
3 April 1999	Bristol City	A	0–2	11,039
5 April 1999	Barnsley	H	1–0	5,968	Foyle
10 April 1999	Crewe Alexandra	A	0–0	5,606
13 April 1999	Bradford City	H	1–1	6,998	Lee
17 April 1999	Oxford United	H	1–0	7,393	Tankard
24 April 1999	Tranmere Rovers	A	1–1	7,770	Lee
27 April 1999	Watford	H	1–2	7,126	Widdrington
1 May 1999	Queens Park Rangers	H	2–0	9,851	Gardner, Griffiths
9 May 1999	Bury	A	0–1	7,567

FA Cup

Main article: 1998–99 FA Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R3	3 January 1999	Liverpool	H	0–3	16,557

League Cup

Main article: 1998–99 Football League Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
R1 1st Leg	11 August 1998	Chester City	H	1–2	3,478	Ainsworth
R1 2nd Leg	18 August 1998	Chester City	A	2–2	2,461	Naylor (2)

Player statistics

Appearances

Pos.	Name	Football League		FA Cup		League Cup		Total
Pos.	Name	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
GK	Paul Musselwhite	38	0	0	0	2	0	40	0
GK	Kevin Pilkington	8	0	1	0	0	0	9	0
DF	Neil Aspin	30	0	1	0	1	0	32	0
DF	Allen Tankard	37	4	1	0	2	0	40	4
DF	Matt Carragher	10	0	0	0	2	0	12	0
DF	Paul Beesley	35	3	1	0	0	0	36	3
DF	Dave Barnett	27	0	1	0	0	0	28	0
DF	Liam Burns	4	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
DF	Mark Snijders	10	0	0	0	2	0	12	0
DF	Michael Walsh	19	1	1	0	2	0	22	1
DF	Tony Butler	4	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
DF	Anthony Gardner	15	1	0	0	0	0	15	1
DF	Des Lyttle	7	0	0	0	0	0	7	0
DF	Brian McGlinchey	15	1	1	0	1	0	17	1
DF	Stéphane Pounewatchy	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
DF	Alex Smith	8	0	0	0	0	0	8	0
MF	Ian Bogie	34	2	1	0	2	0	37	2
MF	Wayne Corden	14	0	1	0	1	0	16	0
MF	Stewart Talbot	33	0	0	0	2	0	35	0
MF	Rogier Koordes	17	0	0	0	1	0	18	0
MF	Jan Jansson	7	0	0	0	1	0	8	0
MF	Gareth Ainsworth	15	5	0	0	2	1	17	6
MF	Robin Berntsen	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
MF	Richard Eyre	11	0	0	0	0	0	11	0
MF	Tommy Widdrington	9	1	0	0	0	0	9	1
MF	Chris Allen	5	1	0	0	0	0	5	1
MF	Simon Barker	25	2	0	0	0	0	25	2
MF	Dave Brammer	9	0	0	0	0	0	9	0
MF	Neil Brisco	1	0	1	0	0	0	2	0
MF	John McQuade	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
MF	Scott Mean	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
MF	George O'Callaghan	4	0	1	0	0	0	5	0
MF	Tony Rougier	12	0	0	0	0	0	12	0
FW	Martin Foyle	35	9	0	0	2	0	37	9
FW	Tony Naylor	22	4	1	0	2	2	25	6
FW	Peter Beadle	23	6	1	0	2	0	26	6
FW	Marcus Bent	15	0	0	0	0	0	15	0
FW	Andy Clarke	6	0	0	0	0	0	6	0
FW	Carl Griffiths	3	1	0	0	0	0	3	1
FW	Christophe Horlaville	2	0	1	0	0	0	3	0
FW	Alan Lee	11	2	0	0	0	0	11	2
FW	Derek McGill	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	0
FW	Craig Russell	8	1	0	0	0	0	8	1

Scorers

All competitions

Scorer	Goals
Martin Foyle	9
Gareth Ainsworth	6
Peter Beadle
Tony Naylor
Allen Tankard	4
Paul Beesley	3
Alan Lee	2
Simon Barker
Ian Bogie
Craig Russell	1
Michael Walsh
Anthony Gardner
Brian McGlinchey
Tommy Widdrington
Chris Allen
Carl Griffiths

League

Scorer	Goals
Martin Foyle	9
Peter Beadle	6
Gareth Ainsworth	5
Tony Naylor	4
Allen Tankard	4
Paul Beesley	3
Alan Lee	2
Simon Barker
Ian Bogie
Craig Russell	1
Michael Walsh
Anthony Gardner
Brian McGlinchey
Tommy Widdrington
Chris Allen
Carl Griffiths

References

↑ Port Vale 1998–1999 : Results & Fixtures. Statto Organisation. Retrieved 28 April 2012.

Soccerbase

Port Vale F.C. seasons

1890–91 1891–92 1892–93 1893–94 1894–95 1895–96 1896–97 1897–98 1898–99 99–1900

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 99–2000

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

Port Vale Football Club

History Honours Managers Records Reserves & Youth Seasons

Grounds	Athletic Ground Old Recreation Ground Vale Park

Players	25+ appearances <25 appearances Player of the Year Winners

Matches	1989 Play-off Final 1993 League Trophy Final 1993 Play-off Final 1996 Anglo-Italian Final 2001 League Trophy Final Potteries derby

1998–99 in English football

« 1997–98

1999–2000 »

FA competitions

Premier League and
Football League

Football Conference

Football Conference
Conference League Cup

Lower leagues

European competitions

Related to national team

UEFA Euro 2000 qualifying (Qualification Group 5)
Glenn Hoddle
Howard Wilkinson (caretaker)
Kevin Keegan

Club seasons

Premier League	Arsenal Aston Villa Blackburn Rovers Charlton Athletic Chelsea Coventry City Derby County Everton Leeds United Leicester City Liverpool Manchester United Middlesbrough Newcastle United Nottingham Forest Sheffield Wednesday Southampton Tottenham Hotspur West Ham United Wimbledon

First Division	Barnsley Birmingham City Bolton Wanderers Bradford City Bristol City Bury Crewe Alexandra Crystal Palace Grimsby Town Huddersfield Town Ipswich Town Norwich City Oxford United Port Vale Portsmouth Queens Park Rangers Sheffield United Stockport County Sunderland Swindon Town Tranmere Rovers Watford West Bromwich Albion Wolverhampton Wanderers

Second Division	Bournemouth Blackpool Bristol Rovers Burnley Chesterfield Colchester United Fulham Gillingham Lincoln City Luton Town Macclesfield Town Manchester City Millwall Northampton Town Notts County Oldham Athletic Preston North End Reading Stoke City Walsall Wigan Athletic Wrexham Wycombe Wanderers York City

Third Division	Barnet Brentford Brighton & Hove Albion Cambridge United Cardiff City Carlisle United Chester City Darlington Exeter City Halifax Town Hartlepool United Hull City Leyton Orient Mansfield Town Peterborough United Plymouth Argyle Rochdale Rotherham United Scarborough Scunthorpe United Shrewsbury Town Southend United Swansea City Torquay United

Football Conference	Barrow Cheltenham Town Doncaster Rovers Dover Athletic Farnborough Town Forest Green Rovers Hayes Hednesford Town Hereford United Kettering Town Kidderminster Harriers Kingstonian Leek Town Morecambe Northwich Victoria Rushden & Diamonds Southport Stevenage Borough Telford United Welling United Woking Yeovil Town

Others	Newport

List of transfers

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