1896–97 Burslem Port Vale F.C. season

Burslem Port Vale
1896–97 season
Chairman	Edward Oliver; (from 14 December)
Manager	Sam Gleaves; (from 14 December)
Stadium	Athletic Ground
Midland League	7th (31 points)
FA Cup	Fifth Qualification Round; (knocked out by Burton Swifts)
Birmingham Senior Cup	First Round; (knocked out by Brierley Hill Alliance)
Staffordshire Senior Cup	Preliminary Round; (knocked out by Dresden United)
Wellingborough Cup	Semi-finalists; (knocked out by Wellingborough Town)
Staffordshire Senior Charity Cup	Winners
Top goalscorer	League: Dick Evans (12); All: Dick Evans, Danny Simpson (14 each)
Average home league attendance	967
Biggest win	8–0 vs. Grantham Rovers, 20 February 1897
Biggest defeat	1–7 vs. Heanor Town, 5 December 1896
	Home colours
	Home colours
	← 1895–96 1897–98 →

The 1896–97 season was Burslem Port Vale's first season of football (third overall) back in the Midland League following a four-season stay in the Football League.^[1] The first half of the season saw low crowds and poor results, the consequence of which led to discussions about dissolving the club. However, the club returned from the brink, as a new committee was formed, with Edward Oliver installed as chairman and Sam Gleaves appointed club secretary. Good results and large crowds followed in the campaign's second half, and the club finished in seventh place and narrowly missed out on re-election to the Football League. Vale were beaten by Football League opposition in the fifth qualification round in the FA Cup, whilst exiting the Birmingham Senior Cup, Staffordshire Senior Cup and Wellingborough Cup in the early stages. However, they did beat Football League side Walsall in the latter competition. They won the Staffordshire Senior Charity Cup after beating Dresden United 3–0.

Overview

Midland League

Having failed a vote to stay in the Football League, Burslem Port Vale successfully re-applied for membership of the Midland League.^[1] They started positively with a 4–1 home win over Wellingborough Town, though only 200 spectators turned up to the Athletic Ground.^[1] Bad news followed as centre-half Ralph Barlow suffered a breakdown and was sent to a convalescent home.^[1] The team then lost home and away to Glossop North End, with Danny Simpson being sent off in the home fixture for making an "objectionable remark" to the referee.^[1] A 1–0 defeat at Worksop was followed by a 5–2 win over a strong Doncaster Rovers side. Wellingborough Town then took their revenge with a 3–2 win in Wellingborough.^[1] Feeling the need to raise funds, Vale sold goalkeeper Tom Baddeley to Wolverhampton Wanderers for £50.^[1] The financial boost was needed as a 3–1 home win over Barnsley St Peter's on 7 November saw just 100 spectators, raising gross takings of £5 for a match-day loss of around £8.^[1] In Baddeley's absence Vale conceded six in a home defeat to Rushden and "the disgust of the spectators was general".^[1] A public meeting was held on 14 December to debate the club's future, if any; the outlook seemed extremely bleak as a poorly attended meeting heard that the club had a debt of £110 and the current committee were unwilling to continue funding the club.^[1]

Heanor Town lent Vale the necessary £5 expenses for the trip to Heanor, and the home side subsequently romped to a 7–1 victory.^[1] Just as the club seemed to be heading for oblivion, a new committee of "all the football worthies in the town" was formed to take the club forward in a meeting at Burslem town hall that was "packed to suffocation"; Edward Oliver was voted as the new chairman, with Sam Gleaves as the new secretary.^[1] In January, a public company was floated with £2,000 capital in £1 shares.^[1] On 2 January, Vale recorded their first away win of the campaign, beaten second-bottom Grantham Rovers 1–0.^[1] The turnaround in form was confirmed with a 2–1 win over champions Kettering.^[1] Now in a position to strengthen the team, Vale signed left-sided attacker James Peake from Crewe Alexandra.^[1] A 7–2 defeat at Barnsley St Peter's proved to be the one blip in a run of nine unbeaten in the league, with the team grumbling about foul play from the hosts and "incompetence" from the referee.^[1] On 20 February, Vale managed to humiliate Grantham Rovers 8–0.^[1]

Supporters returned to the Athletic Ground, and a crowd of 1,500 witnessed a 3–1 victory over Long Eaton Rangers on 6 March.^[1] Two away victories saw the club rise to fourth in the league, including a 1–0 win at Rushden in which Fred Belfield was "advised to leave the field" by the referee as the home crowd were threatening to rush the pitch in response to Belfield's repeated kicking of defender Minney.^[1] More crowd trouble also occurred in the 1–0 win at Doncaster Rovers, as Dick Evans was grabbed by the throat and Teddy Morse was "hurled under the waggonette".^[1] Morse was sent off in the following game, a 1–0 home defeat by Ilkeston Town, after Willett claimed he had bitten his nose.^[1] Vale went on to win their final two home fixtures, ending the campaign in seventh-place with 31 points from 28 matches, just one point away from third-place.^[1] Dick Evans finished as the club's top-scorer, claiming 12 league goals – though some of these might have been scored by namesake Ted Evans.^[1] The team's form in 1897 saw the club given a vote on whether they should be readmitted into the Football League at the league's annual meeting; however, their 11 votes were two fewer than successful applicants Luton Town.^[1]

Cup competitions

Vale claimed a walkover victory over Hereford in the third qualification round of the FA Cup after they could not guarantee the visitor's expenses.^[1] They then beat Birmingham League side Stourbridge in the next round, but failed to overcome Football League Second Division side Burton Swifts in the fifth qualification round in what was described as "the best game seen at Cobridge for two years".^[1] They exited the Birmingham Senior Cup at the first round, losing 2–1 to Brierley Hill Alliance.^[1] They failed to make it past the preliminary round of the Staffordshire Senior Cup, falling to a 4–2 defeat at Dresden United in a replayed fixture after the initial match was tied 1–1.^[1] In the Wellingborough Cup, Vale beat Football League Second Division side Walsall 3–2 at Fellows Park, but then lost 3–1 at Wellingborough Town in the semi-finals.^[1] On 28 April, Vale claimed the Staffordshire Senior Charity Cup after beating Dresden United 3–0.^[1]

Results

Burslem Port Vale's score comes first

Legend

Win	Draw	Loss

Midland League

Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Scorers
5 September 1896	Wellingborough Town	H	4–1	200	Mason, D.Evans, Randles, Fallows
19 September 1896	Glossop North End	A	1–3	immense	D.Evans
26 September 1896	Glossop North End	H	0–1	500
17 October 1896	Worksop	A	0–1	1,000
24 October 1896	Doncaster Rovers	H	5–2	500	Simpson (2), T.Evans (2), D.Evans
31 October 1896	Wellingborough Town	A	2–3		D.Evans, McLean
7 November 1896	Barnsley St Peter's	H	3–1	100	T.Evans (2), Belfield
14 November 1896	Rushden	H	0–6	few
28 November 1896	Worksop	H	4–1	100	Proctor (2), T.Evans, o.g.
5 December 1896	Heanor Town	A	1–7	fair	Simpson
19 December 1896	Chesterfield	A	2–3	1,000	scrimmage, Simpson
25 December 1896	Dresden United	A	2–2	2,000	Hewitt, Fallows
26 December 1896	Ilkeston Town	A	3–3	2,000	Simpson (2), T.Evans
2 January 1897	Grantham Rovers	A	1–0	more than the rule	Belfield
9 January 1897	Kettering	H	2–1		Belfield, Hewitt
16 January 1897	Mexborough	H	2–0		Proctor, Fallows
23 January 1897	Barnsley St Peter's	A	2–7	small	D.Evans, Belfield
6 February 1897	Long Eaton Rangers	A	3–2		D.Evans, Simpson, Belfield
13 February 1897	Kettering	A	2–2		D.Evans (2)
20 February 1897	Grantham Rovers	H	8–0	record	Belfield (2), T.Evans (2), Peake, Simpson, D.Evans, Beech
27 February 1897	Mexborough	A	2–3	1,500	D.Evans, other
6 March 1897	Long Eaton Rangers	H	3–1	1,500	scrimmage, Simpson, D.Evans
13 March 1897	Chesterfield	H	2–3	2,000	Peake, T.Evans
20 March 1897	Rushden	A	1–0	1,200	Simpson
27 March 1897	Doncaster Rovers	A	1–0	1,500	Hewitt
3 April 1897	Ilkeston Town	H	0–1	800
10 April 1897	Heanor Town	H	3–0	1,000	T.Evans, Simpson, Peake
16 April 1897	Dresden United	H	3–2	2,000	Morse, scrimmage, D.Evans

FA Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
3Q	21 November 1896	Hereford	A	walkover
4Q	12 December 1896	Stourbridge	A	3–1	100	Simpson (2), T.Evans
5Q	7 January 1897	Burton Swifts	H	2–3	2,000	D.Evans, other

Birmingham Senior Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
1R	14 December 1896	Brierley Hill Alliance	H	1–2	large	Fallows

Staffordshire Senior Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
P	10 October 1896	Dresden United	H	1–1	1,500	Proctor
Replay	26 October 1896	Dresden United	A	2–4

Wellingborough Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
1R	30 January 1897	Walsall	A	3–2	200	D.Evans, T.Evans, Belfield
SF	20 April 1897	Wellingborough Town	A	1–3		Simpson

Staffordshire Senior Charity Cup


Round	Date	Opponent	Venue	Result	Attendance	Goalscorers
F	28 April 1897	Dresden United	N	3–0

Player statistics

Appearances and goals

Pos.	Name	League		FA Cup		Other		Total
Pos.	Name	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
GK	Tom Baddeley	2	0	0	0	1	0	3	0
GK	Bert Hammond	14	0	2	0	2	0	18	0
GK	George Lawton	9	0	0	0	1	0	10	0
DF	Teddy Morse	25	1	2	0	5	0	32	0
DF	Jim Beech	24	1	2	0	5	0	31	1
DF	Buck	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
DF	George Hulme	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
DF	Teddy Morse	25	1	2	0	5	0	32	1
DF	Henry Platt	13	0	2	0	4	0	19	0
DF	Thomas Spilsbury	9	0	0	0	0	0	9	0
DF	George Youds	3	0	0	0	1	0	4	0
MF	James Holdcroft	16	0	1	0	4	0	21	0
MF	Jos Randles	4	1	0	0	1	0	5	1
MF	Ralph Barlow	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
MF	John Fallows	21	3	2	0	3	1	26	4
MF	Fred Belfield	22	7	1	0	4	1	27	8
MF	Bentley	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
MF	Fred Bickerton	5	0	1	0	1	0	7	0
MF	Tommy Lander	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
MF	James Peake	12	3	0	0	2	0	14	3
MF	Smith	2	0	0	0	1	0	3	0
FW	Jim Mason	7	1	1	0	1	0	9	1
FW	Dick Evans	27	12	2	1	5	1	34	14
FW	Danny Simpson	25	11	2	2	5	1	32	14
FW	Ted Evans	21	10	1	1	4	1	26	12
FW	George Hewitt	4	3	1	0	1	0	6	3
FW	J McLean	1	1	0	0	1	0	2	1
FW	Edward Proctor	13	3	2	0	2	1	17	4
FW	Salmon	3	0	0	0	1	0	4	0

Top scorers

Place	Position	Nation	Name	Midland League	FA Cup	Other	Total
1	FW	England	Dick Evans	12	1	1	14
–	FW		Danny Simpson	11	2	1	14
3	FW	England	Ted Evans	10	1	1	12
4	MF	England	Fred Belfield	7	0	1	8
5	FW		Edward Proctor	3	0	1	4
–	MF		John Fallows	3	0	1	4
7	FW		George Hewitt	3	0	0	3
–	MF	England	James Peake	3	0	0	3
9	FW		J McLean	1	0	0	1
–	FW		Jim Mason	1	0	0	1
–	MF	England	Jos Randles	1	0	0	1
–	DF	England	Teddy Morse	1	0	0	1
–	DF		Jim Beech	1	0	0	1
–	–	–	Own goals	1	0	0	1
–	–	–	Scrimmage	3	0	0	3
–	–	–	Unknown	1	0	0	1
			TOTALS	62	4	6	72

Transfers

Transfers in

Date from	Position	Name	From	Fee	Ref.
1896	DF	George Hulme		Free transfer	^[2]
Summer 1896	GK	Bert Hammond	Newcastle White Star	Free transfer	^[2]
Summer 1896	FW	J McLean	Sneyd	Free transfer	^[2]
Summer 1896	DF	Henry Platt		Free transfer	^[2]
Summer 1896	FW	Salmon		Free transfer	^[2]
Autumn 1896	FW	Ted Evans	Bury	Free transfer	^[2]
Autumn 1896	FW	George Hewitt		Free transfer	^[2]
October 1896	FW	Edward Proctor	Stoke	Free transfer	^[2]
January 1897	MF	James Peake	Crewe Alexandra	Free transfer	^[2]
February 1897	DF	Thomas Spilsbury		Free transfer	^[2]
March 1897	DF	Tommy Lander	Talke Alexandra	Free transfer	^[2]
April 1897	MF	Smith		Free transfer	^[2]

Transfers out

Date from	Position	Name	To	Fee	Ref.
October 1896	GK	Tom Baddeley	Wolverhampton Wanderers	£50	^[2]
Summer 1897	DF	Ralph Barlow		Released	^[2]
Summer 1897	MF	Fred Bickerton		Released	^[2]
Summer 1897	MF	John Fallows		Released	^[2]
Summer 1897	FW	Edward Proctor		Released	^[2]
1897	DF	James Holdcroft		Released	^[2]
1897	FW	J McLean		Released	^[2]
1897	FW	Salmon		Released	^[2]
1897	DF	George Youds		Released	^[2]

References

Specific

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab ^ac ^ad ^ae Kent, Jeff (1990). "Trying to make the Grade (1888-1898)". The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale. Witan Books. pp. 26–50. ISBN 0-9508981-4-7.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u 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.

[Kent-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab ^ac ^ad ^ae Kent, Jeff (1990). "Trying to make the Grade (1888-1898)". The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale. Witan Books. pp. 26–50. ISBN 0-9508981-4-7.

[transfers-2] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.

[1]

[2]

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