Port Vale

1959–60 season
Chairman	Fred Burgess
Manager	Norman Low
Stadium	Vale Park
Football LeagueThird Division	14th (46 Points)
FA Cup	Fifth Round (knocked out byAston Villa)
Supporters' Clubs' Trophy	Runners–up (knocked out byStoke City)
Top goalscorer	League:Graham Barnett (14) All: Graham Barnett (17)
Highest home attendance	49,768 vs.Aston Villa, 20 February 1960
Lowest home attendance	5,514 vs.Swindon Town, 30 April 1960
Average home league attendance	10,733
Biggest win	7–0 vs.Halifax Town, 28 December 1959
Biggest defeat	0–6 vs.Tranmere Rovers, 5 September 1959
Home colours
← 1958–59 1960–61 →

The1958–59 season wasPort Vale's 48th season of football in theEnglish Football League, and their first season in theThird Division following theirpromotion from theFourth Division.^[1] Under the stewardship of managerNorman Low and chairman Fred Burgess, Vale finished a solid 14th with 46 points from 46 matches, nestled mid-table and comfortably clear of both relegation and promotion zones. The attack produced 80 league goals, withGraham Barnett finishing as both league top scorer with 14 goals and season top scorer with 17 across all competitions.

In theFA Cup, Vale enjoyed their most successful run since1953–54, reaching the Fifth Round, a journey which came to an end in a 2–1 home defeat toAston Villa before aclub record crowd of 49,768 atVale Park on 20 February 1960. They also took part in the inaugural Supporters' Clubs' Trophy, narrowly losing the final toPotteries derby rivalsStoke City by 5–3 on aggregate. Support at Vale Park remained steady, with an average attendance of 10,733, though spectator interest varied significantly — from a season‑low 5,514 againstSwindon Town on 30 April 1960, to the spectacular 49,768 in the cup tie with Villa. One of the season's standout league results was a 7–0 thrashing ofHalifax Town on Boxing Day 1959, Vale's largest win of the campaign.

The squad underwent notable changes: new signings includedMorgan Hunt,Stan March,Cliff Portwood,Peter Ford, andHarry Oscroft, while departures sawJack Wilkinson,John Cunliffe, and eventual top scorerGraham Barnett move on during the season — reflecting Low's continued reshaping of the team. Overall, the 1959–60 season was marked by a competent return to Third Division football. Vale consolidated their position with mid-table stability, a memorable FA Cup run that broke attendance records, and some emphatic league victories — laying down a foundation for further progress under Norman Low.

The pre-season saw the arrival ofMorgan Hunt fromNorwich City for a four-figure fee, and outside-leftCliff Portwood fromPreston North End for £750.^[1]

The season began with a 3–2 win overReading atElm Park,Norman Low having selected afirst XI without any of the new signings.^[1] However, after a 1–0 win overBournemouth & Boscombe Athletic, Vale began to struggle, picking up just a point in their next six games.^[1] Low tried to signStanley Matthews, still going strong aged 44 forBlackpool, but a deal could not be reached.^[1] On 5 September,Tranmere Rovers beat Vale 6–0 atPrenton Park afterRoy Sproson left the field in the first half with a gashed leg.^[1] Low then tradedJohn Cunliffe and £2,000 toStoke City in exchange for wingerHarry Oscroft and centre-halfPeter Ford.^[1] An improvement took place, and despite trouble in front of goal, the team won seven successive games atBurslem.^[1] In October,Jack Wilkinson was sold toExeter City for £2,500, having lost his place in the starting eleven.^[1] On 28 December, Vale recorded a 7–0 win overHalifax Town, causingThe Sentinel's "T.G.F." to remark that "rarely have the opposition been so completely outplayed".^[1]

In March,Graham Barnett was sold to Tranmere Rovers for £5,000, having lost his form.^[1] The "Valiants" continued to perform well at home but lost on their travels.^[1] The departure of top-scorer Barnett meant the club 'urgently needed a top-class inside-forward'.^[1] This was proven with a run of just four goals in seven matches, culminating in only two points and dashed hopes ofpromotion.^[1] On 12 March, Vale were beaten 4–1 atChesterfield and bothPeter Ford andTerry Miles suffered season-ending injuries. A 3–1 defeat atBury sawPeter Ford play as the eighth different player of the season in the centre forward role. In danger ofrelegation, the players rallied to win seven points from the final five games.^[1] The penultimate match was a 6–3 loss toMansfield Town atField Mill, whilst Vale then won againstSwindon Town 6–1 in a game that was alleged to have beenfixed byJimmy Gauld.^[1][2]

They finished in 14th spot with 46 points, a good finish for a club just promoted.^[1]Stan Steele had put in his third successive ever-present season, whilst Barnett was the top-scorer despite leaving in March.^[1] The club touredCzechoslovakia at the end of the season, due toStoke-on-Trent's close relationship with the town ofLidice that developed from local MPBarnett Stross's Lidice Shall Live campaign.^[3] The team defeated Cottwaldov, Přerov, Karlovy Vary; drew withFK Teplice; and were beaten byJihlava.^[4]

On the financial side, a £1,454 loss was announced despite a £10,352 donation from the Sportsmen's Association.^[1] Gate receipts had risen by £1,680 due to the Aston Villa game. However, average home attendance was down by around 2,000.^[1] Wages also increased by a more considerable £7,064, though there was atransfer credit of £3,500.^[1] There were 22 players retained,Roy Pritchard and Morgan Hunt were not amongst them, leaving forWellington Town andBoston United respectively.^[1]

In May, the club took a five-match tour ofCzechoslovakia.^[1] They experienced aculture shock, playing with a smaller, 'half-inflated' ball, and finding referees much more strict. However, the tour was a success and was much enjoyed by the players and their hosts.^[1]

In theFA Cup, Vale eased pastDorchester Town of the Western League 2–1 afterGraham Barnett injured Dorchester's keeper.^[5] In the next round Vale beatQueens Park Rangers 2–1 in areplay,^[1] after a 50 yards (46 m) strike fromDavid Raine helped them to a 3–3 draw in the original match.^[6] In the third round, they metSecond Division high-flyersCardiff City atNinian Park, and were not concerned asGraham Barnett responded to Low's warning thatthe Wales captain faced them by saying "So fucking what? My mother could play forWales".^[7] They beat Cardiff 2–0 with a solid performance.^[1] Drawn againstScunthorpe United atGlanford Park, 'the defence took the honours' in a 1–0 win.^[1] The fifth round draw saw Vale face a home tie withAston Villa, another second-tier club. A still-standingclub-record attendance of 49,768 turned up for the game on 20 February, resulting in £8,500 worth of gate receipts for the Vale.^[1] Vale sold tickets for the Villa game from kiosks inside the ground during a midweek home game against Grimsby Town, which saw a 12,000 higher-than-normal attendance as fans were so desperate to secure their tickets for the Villa game.^[8] Heavy snowfall preceded the match and 1,500 tonnes of snow were cleared off the pitch.^[8]Brian Jackson gave Vale a 36th-minute lead, but the "Villans" came back to win the match with six minutes to spare.^[1]

Vale lost to Stoke 5–3 onaggregate in the Supporters' Clubs' Trophy.^[1]

Reading v Port Vale

22 August 19591	Reading	2–3	Port Vale	Reading, Berkshire
		Report	Barnett Poole	Stadium:Elm Park Attendance: 14,917

Port Vale vBournemouth & Boscombe Athletic

24 August 19592	Port Vale	1–0	Bournemouth & Boscombe Athletic	Burslem
	Barnett	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 18,037

Port Vale vSouthampton

7 September 19596	Port Vale	1–1	Southampton	Burslem
	Poole	Report	O'Brien	Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 13,906

Norwich City v Port Vale

12 September 19597	Norwich City	5–1	Port Vale	Norwich
		Report	Poole	Stadium:Carrow Road Attendance: 27,041

Southampton v Port Vale

16 September 19598	Southampton	3–2	Port Vale	Southampton
	Huxford Reeves	Report	Barnett Steele	Stadium:The Dell Attendance: 17,009

Port Vale vBrentford

19 September 19599	Port Vale	3–1	Brentford	Burslem
	Steele Barnett	Report	Francis	Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 12,817

Port Vale vBarnsley

21 September 195910	Port Vale	1–0	Barnsley	Burslem
	Sproson	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 10,886

Colchester United v Port Vale

26 September 195911	Colchester United	3–1	Port Vale	Colchester
	King	Report	Poole	Stadium:Layer Road Attendance: 7,822

Port Vale vSouthend United

3 October 195913	Port Vale	3–1	Southend United	Burslem
	Leake Steele Jackson	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 12,008

Port Vale vAccrington Stanley

10 October 195914	Port Vale	2–0	Accrington Stanley	Burslem
	Jackson (pen.) Barnett	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 10,712

Port Vale vMansfield Town

12 October 195915	Port Vale	4–1	Mansfield Town	Burslem
	Jackson Oscroft Barnett Wilkinson	Report	Jones	Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 9,230

Newport County v Port Vale

19 October 195916	Newport County	4–3	Port Vale	Newport, Wales
	McPherson Meyer McSeveney	Report	Whalley Barnett	Stadium:Somerton Park Attendance: 7,996

Port Vale vChesterfield

24 October 195917	Port Vale	3–1	Chesterfield	Burslem
	Oscroft Barnett Steele	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 7,946

Wrexham v Port Vale

31 October 195918	Wrexham	1–0	Port Vale	Wrexham
15:15GMT	Weston 78'	Report		Stadium:Racecourse Ground Attendance: 8,150 Referee: G. McCabe Assistant referees: H. Tonge, T.B. Edwards

Port Vale vYork City

7 November 195919	Port Vale	2–0	York City	Burslem
	Oscroft (og.)	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 8,425

Queens Park Rangers v Port Vale

28 November 195921	Queens Park Rangers	2–2	Port Vale	Shepherd's Bush,West London
	Bedford	Report	Poole	Stadium:Loftus Road Attendance: 8,775

Swindon Town v Port Vale

12 December 195922	Swindon Town	2–3	Port Vale	Swindon
	Layne 15' Marshall 59'	Report	Barnett 13' Jackson 40' Portwood 83'	Stadium:County Ground Attendance: 7,716 Referee: C.W. Kingston

Port Vale vReading

19 December 195923	Port Vale	4–1	Reading	Burslem
	Poole Jackson Portwood	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 6,723

Halifax Town v Port Vale

26 December 195924	Halifax Town	1–1	Port Vale	Halifax, West Yorkshire
		Report	Steele	Stadium:The Shay Attendance: 6,175

Port Vale vHalifax Town

28 December 195925	Port Vale	7–0	Halifax Town	Burslem
	Barnett Jackson Poole	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 9,664

Shrewsbury Town v Port Vale

2 January 196026	Shrewsbury Town	2–1	Port Vale	Shrewsbury
		Report	Steele	Stadium:Gay Meadow Attendance: 9,754

Port Vale vTranmere Rovers

16 January 196027	Port Vale	1–1	Tranmere Rovers	Burslem
	Poole	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 9,706

Port Vale vNorwich City

23 January 196028	Port Vale	2–1	Norwich City	Burslem
	Steele Miles	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 11,040

Brentford v Port Vale

6 February 196029	Brentford	2–0	Port Vale	Brentford
	Towers Francis	Report		Stadium:Griffin Park Attendance: 10,141

Port Vale vGrimsby Town

10 February 196030	Port Vale	2–1	Grimsby Town	Burslem
	Portwood	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 22,987

Port Vale vColchester United

13 February 196031	Port Vale	1–1	Colchester United	Burslem
	Donaldson	Report	King	Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 10,248

Southend United v Port Vale

22 February 196032	Southend United	2–1	Port Vale	Southend-on-Sea
		Report	Steele	Stadium:Roots Hall Attendance: 6,534

Accrington Stanley v Port Vale

27 February 196033	Accrington Stanley	1–3	Port Vale	Accrington
		Report	Donaldson Steele	Stadium:Peel Park Attendance: 3,109

Port Vale vNewport County

5 March 196034	Port Vale	2–1	Newport County	Burslem
	Donaldson Jackson	Report	McSeveney	Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 9,073

Coventry City v Port Vale

7 March 196035	Coventry City	1–1	Port Vale	Coventry
	Simcoe (og.)	Report	Leake	Stadium:Highfield Road Attendance: 15,549

Chesterfield v Port Vale

12 March 196036	Chesterfield	4–1	Port Vale	Chesterfield, Derbyshire
		Report	(og.)	Stadium:Saltergate Attendance: 6,152

Bradford City v Port Vale

9 April 196040	Bradford City	3–1	Port Vale	Bradford
		Report	Poole	Stadium:Valley Parade Attendance: 5,986

Bury v Port Vale

15 April 196041	Bury	3–1	Port Vale	Bury, Greater Manchester
		Report	Hall	Stadium:Gigg Lane Attendance: 6,397

Port Vale vWrexham

16 April 196042	Port Vale	3–1	Wrexham	Burslem
15:15BST	Portwood 31' Archer 60',87'	Report	Harbertson 58'	Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 6,798 Referee: H.P. Hackney

Port Vale vBury

18 April 196043	Port Vale	3–0	Bury	Burslem
	Portwood Poole	Report		Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 7,875

Grimsby Town v Port Vale

23 April 196044	Grimsby Town	1–1	Port Vale	Cleethorpes
		Report	Hall	Stadium:Blundell Park Attendance: 8,413

Mansfield Town v Port Vale

25 April 196045	Mansfield Town	6–3	Port Vale	Mansfield
	Hollett Delapenha Fitzsimons Wragg	Report	Portwood Archer Kinsey	Stadium:Field Mill Attendance: 4,970

Port Vale vSwindon Town

30 April 196046	Port Vale	6–1	Swindon Town	Burslem
	Oscroft 14',25',30',65' Chamberlin 27' (og.) Portwood 60'	Report	Gauld 87'	Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 5,514 Referee: L.J. Hamer

Dorchester Town v Port Vale

14 November 1959R1	Dorchester Town	1–2	Port Vale	Dorchester, Dorset
		Report	Poole Barnett	Attendance: 4,100

Queens Park Rangers v Port Vale

5 December 1959R2	Queens Park Rangers	3–3	Port Vale	Shepherd's Bush,West London
	Longbottom Bedford	Report	Portwood Leake Raine	Stadium:Loftus Road Attendance: 11,143

Port Vale vQueens Park Rangers

7 December 1959Replay	Port Vale	2–1	Queens Park Rangers	Burslem
	Barnett	Report	Andrews	Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 9,544

Cardiff City v Port Vale

9 January 1960R3	Cardiff City	0–2	Port Vale	Cardiff
14:15GMT		Report	Steele Portwood	Stadium:Ninian Park Attendance: 25,588 Referee:George McCabe

Scunthorpe United v Port Vale

30 January 1960R4	Scunthorpe United	0–1	Port Vale	Scunthorpe
		Report	Portwood	Stadium:Old Show Ground Attendance: 14,043

Port Vale vAston Villa

20 February 1960R5	Port Vale	1–2	Aston Villa	Burslem
	Jackson 36' (pen.)	Report	Hitchens 58' Thomson 84'	Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 49,768 Referee: Tommy Langdale

Stoke City v Port Vale

5 October 1959Final 1st Leg	Stoke City	3–1	Port Vale	Stoke-upon-Trent
			Jackson	Stadium:Victoria Ground Attendance: 9,045

Port Vale vStoke City

26 October 1959Final 2nd Leg	Port Vale	2–2 (3–5agg.)	Stoke City	Burslem
	Steele Jackson			Stadium:Vale Park Attendance: 7,506

Key to positions: GK –Goalkeeper; FB –Full back; HB –Half back; FW –Forward

Pos.	Name	Football League		FA Cup		Supporters' Club's Trophy		Total
		Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
GK	Ken Hancock	23	0	1	0	2	0	26	0
GK	John Poole	23	0	5	0	0	0	28	0
FB	David Raine	39	0	6	1	2	0	47	1
FB	Selwyn Whalley	12	2	0	0	1	0	13	2
FB	Fred Donaldson	8	4	0	0	0	0	8	4
FB	Roy Pritchard	6	0	0	0	0	0	6	0
HB	Roy Sproson	41	1	6	0	2	0	49	1
HB	Albert Leake	33	2	5	1	1	0	39	3
HB	Terry Miles	34	1	6	0	1	0	41	1
HB	Morgan Hunt	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
HB	Peter Ford	25	0	6	0	2	0	33	0
HB	Colin Davies	10	0	0	0	0	0	10	0
FW	John Cunliffe	6	0	0	0	0	0	6	0
FW	Peter Hall	4	2	0	0	0	0	4	2
FW	Brian Jackson	45	8	6	1	2	2	53	11
FW	Harry Oscroft	26	7	1	0	2	0	29	7
FW	Cliff Portwood	20	9	5	3	0	0	25	12
FW	Harry Poole	44	12	6	1	2	0	52	13
FW	Stan Steele	46	10	6	1	2	1	54	11
FW	Jack Wilkinson	6	1	0	0	0	0	6	1
FW	Noel Kinsey	19	1	1	0	1	0	21	1
FW	Graham Barnett	27	14	6	3	2	0	35	17
FW	Stan March	1	0	0	0	1	0	2	0
FW	John Archer	6	3	0	0	0	0	6	3

Place	Position	Nation	Name	Third Division	FA Cup	Other	Total
1	FW	England	Graham Barnett	14	3	0	17
2	FW	England	Harry Poole	12	1	0	13
3	FW	England	Cliff Portwood	9	3	0	12
4	FW	England	Stan Steele	10	1	1	11
–	MF	England	Brian Jackson	8	1	2	11
6	FW	England	Harry Oscroft	7	0	0	7
7	FB	England	Fred Donaldson	4	0	0	4
8	FW	England	John Archer	3	0	0	3
–	HB	England	Albert Leake	2	1	0	3
10	FW	England	Peter Hall	2	0	0	2
–	FB	England	Selwyn Whalley	2	0	0	2
11	FW	England	Jack Wilkinson	1	0	0	1
–	FW	Wales	Noel Kinsey	1	0	0	1
–	HB	England	Roy Sproson	1	0	0	1
–	HB	England	Terry Miles	1	0	0	1
–	FB	England	David Raine	0	1	0	1
–	–	–	Own goals	3	0	0	3
			TOTALS	80	11	3	94

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Fee	Ref.
July 1959	HB		Morgan Hunt	Norwich City	'four figure fee'	[10]
August 1959	FW		Stan March	Altrincham	£250	[10]
August 1959	FW		Cliff Portwood	Preston North End	£750	[10]
September 1959	HB		Peter Ford	Stoke City	Exchange	[10]
September 1959	FW		Harry Oscroft	Stoke City	Exchange	[10]

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	To	Fee	Ref.
September 1959	FW		John Cunliffe	Stoke City	Exchange	[10]
October 1959	FW		Jack Wilkinson	Exeter City	£2,500	[10]
March 1960	FW		Graham Barnett	Tranmere Rovers	£5,000	[10]
May 1960	FB		Jimmy Adams	Crewe Alexandra	Free transfer	[10]
May 1960	FB		Roy Pritchard	Wellington Town	Free transfer	[10]
August 1960	FB		Fred Donaldson	Exeter City	£2,000	[10]
Summer 1960	HB		Morgan Hunt	Boston United	Released	[10]
Summer 1960	FW		Jimmy McLean	Wellington Town	Released	[10]

Specific

General

• Kent, Jeff (1993).The Port Vale Record 1879-1993. Witan Books.ISBN 0-9508981-9-8.

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• English football clubs 1959–60 season

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