1902–03 Burslem Port Vale F.C. season

March 2015 March 2015 Burslem Port Vale 1902–03 Sam Gleaves Secretary Robert Audley Athletic Ground Football League Second Division 9th (34 points) FA Cup Fourth Qualification Round(eliminated by St. Helens Recreation) Birmingham Senior Cup First Round(eliminated by Stoke) Staffordshire Senior Cup First Round(eliminated by Stoke) Bass Charity Vase First Round(eliminated by Burton United) Adrian Capes (16) Adrian Capes (18) 5,000 vs Manchester City, 18 October 1902 500 vs Burton United, 28 March 1903 2,250+ 4–0 and 5–1 1–7 vs. Manchester City, 14 February 1903 _lightblue_stripes _lightbluestripes _lightblue_stripes 8b0000 8b0000 8b0000 ffffff 8b0000 1901–02 1903–04 The 1902–03 season was Burslem Port Vale's fifth consecutive season (ninth overall) of football in the English Football League.Kent Jeff The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale Witan Books 1990 50–70 The Hopeless Struggle (1898-1907) 0-9508981-4-7 Under secretary-manager Sam Gleaves and chairman Robert Audley, the club finished a respectable 9th‑place, amassing 34 points from 34 matches (13 wins, 8 draws, 13 losses), scoring 57 goals and conceding 62. Adrian Capes continued his prolific form to lead the scoring charts with 16 league goals (18 in all competitions) for a third consecutive season. In cup competitions, Vale were knocked out in the Fourth Qualifying Round of the FA Cup by St. Helens Recreation, and exited both the Birmingham Senior Cup and Staffordshire Senior Cup at the First Round stage, falling to Stoke in each case; their campaign in the Bass Charity Vase also ended at first hurdle with a defeat to Burton United. Attendance figures peaked at approximately 5,000 for the home fixture against Manchester City on 18 October 1902, while the lowest recorded crowd was just 500 for the match against Burton United on 28 March 1903, with an average attendance of around 2,250. The campaign also saw Vale suffer their heaviest league defeat, a 7–1 loss at Manchester City on 14 February 1903, while achieving dominant victories including 5–1 and 4–0 results at home. Overview thumb|right|Right-back Ernest Mullineux played 34 games for the club in all competitions. thumb|right|200px|Loyal Valeite Bert Eardley was a key first team member. thumb|right|160px|Winger Billy Heames missed just one game in the league. thumb|right|160px|George Price was an important player yet again. Second Division The pre-season saw tough-tackling left-back Arthur Hartshorne arrive from Wolverhampton Wanderers, whilst left-half W. Perkins and forward William Loverseed both arrived from Newark. The new kit was a claret and blue jersey with white knickers. The season opened at the Athletic Ground with a 1–1 draw with Blackpool, Vale missing a penalty. A 3–0 victory over Doncaster Rovers on 20 September was the team's only win in the opening ten games. In September, experienced right-half Arthur Rowley arrived from Bristol Rovers as management tried a variety of starting combinations. The 4–1 defeat at home to Manchester City saw The Staffordshire Sentinel report that "it would be difficult for Port Vale to give a worse exhibition of football". In particular, half-backs Lucien Boullemier and Danny Simpson were judged to be too old to contribute at the Second Division level, and Boullemier retired to concentrate on his career in pottery. Changes were made for the trip to Burnley on 25 October, with the result being a creditable 3–3 draw despite the Turf Moor fans seemingly influencing a weak referee. A second league win came on 10 November, when second-from-bottom Stockport County were beaten by three goals to one in a turgid game. This was the first of an eight-game sequence which contained only one loss. Wins were secured over Gainsborough Trinity and third-placed Bristol City, though a loss came at Glossop. Management came upon the idea of playing two centre-forwards – Adrian Capes and William Loverseed – for the trip to Edgeley Park on 13 December, and a Capes hat-trick set up a 4–0 victory over Stockport County. A 5–2 win over Blackpool at Bloomfield Road on 3 January belied the team's dominance as ten-man Blackpool rarely troubled Vale goalkeeper Harry Cotton. Vale nearly defeated promotion-chasing Woolwich Arsenal seven days later, though had to be content with a 1–1 draw. There were 33 goals in the next six games, though 21 of them went against Vale. Having beaten Lincoln City 5–1 on 24 January, they went on to lose to Small Heath by the same scoreline a week later, despite the play being quite even. Vale then beat Leicester Fosse by two clear goals, only to fall to heavy defeats on the road to "classy" eventual champions Manchester City and Preston North End. Inside-right George Price was held accountable for the Preston defeat, having been sent off, with the referee and Harry Cotton also facing criticism. Three wins and a draw followed in March, though low attendances of well under one thousand continued to be a concern. With this in mind, and safety from re-election no longer a concern, management decided to transfer Ted Holdcroft and Arthur Hartshorne to Stoke for just over £500. Despite having sold two key players, Vale ended the campaign with five points from five games, including a final day 2–0 victory over Barnsley that stretched the club's run of unbeaten home league games to 12, of which 10 had been won. The team's fine home form was offset by a terrible away record, though, and they ended the season with 34 points from as many games to finish in ninth place. Adrian Capes was the top scorer with 18 goals in 37 games, missing just one league game. Goalkeeper Harry Cotton played 36 games; Billy Heames, W. Perkins, Ernest Mullineux, Arthur Hartshorne, Bert Eardley, Arthur Rowley, George Price, and William Loverseed were all constant figures in the first XI. At the end of the campaign, all the major players were kept on, and no big signings were made. Finances Player sales gave the club a profit of £112 on the campaign. Poor attendance figures saw gate income fall by £200 from the previous season. The club's debt was totalled at £171, and subsequently the club's reserve team was moved from The Football Combination to the North Staffordshire League to save on travel costs. Cup competitions In cup competitions, Vale performed poorly, falling at the first hurdle in the Staffordshire Senior Cup, Birmingham Senior Cup, and Bass Charity Vase. Losing to rivals Stoke in the county cups: 2–0 at home in the Birmingham Cup and 5–3 away in the Staffordshire Cup replay following a 1–1 draw at home. In the Charity Vase, they were conquered by Second Division rivals Burton United 5–1 away in a replay, following a 1–1 draw at home. The club failed to qualify for the FA Cup, after losing 2–1 away on St. Helens Recreation's (Lancashire League) short, sloped, boggy pitch. Vale complained that the pitch markings were inadequate to the extent that they had scored an equalising goal but were instead awarded a throw-in. Entering the Bass Charity Vase had proved a mistake as it added to fixture congestion, and following a 1–1 draw it was decided to play the reserves and accepted a 5–1 defeat at Burton United. Results Football League Second Division 1902–03 Football League League table Second Division y BPV Results by matchday table b Round Ground H/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/A/H/H/H/A/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/A/H/A//H/H/A/A/H/A/H Result D/D/L/W/L/D/L/L/D/L/W/W/W/L/W/D/W/D/L/W/L/W/L/L/W/D/W/W/L/L/W/D/L/W Position 8/8/13/9/13/12/13/15/13/14/12/9/9/9/8/8/8/8/9/8/9/8/10/12/10/9/9/9/9/9/8/9/9/9 Points 1p/2p/2p/4p/4p/5p/5p/5p/6p/6p/8p/10p/12p/12p/14p/15p/17p/18p/18p/20p/20p/22p/22p/22p/24p/25p/27p/29p/29p/29p/31p/32p/32p/34p Home Away green2 Win yellow2 Draw red2 Loss green1 red1 gold green1 red1 StattoPort Vale 1902–1903 : Results & Fixtures https://web.archive.org/web/20100419164153/http://www.statto.com/football/teams/port-vale/1902-1903/results 19 April 2010 . Statto Organisation. Retrieved 28 April 2012. Matches 1 6 September 1902 Port Vale 1–1 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-blackpool-06-september-1902-200958/ Blackpool Capes Athletic Ground Cobridge 3,200 2 8 September 1902 Port Vale 0–0 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-preston-north-end-08-september-1902-203595/ Preston North End Athletic Ground Cobridge 2,000 3 13 September 1902 Woolwich Arsenal 3–0 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/woolwich-arsenal-v-port-vale-13-september-1902-203478/ Port Vale Dick Briercliffe Coleman Manor Ground Plumstead, Greenwich 12,000 4 20 September 1902 Port Vale 3–0 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-doncaster-rovers-20-september-1902-201945/ Doncaster Rovers Cook Loverseed Capes Athletic Ground Cobridge 2,000 5 27 September 1902 Lincoln City 4–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/lincoln-city-v-port-vale-27-september-1902-203472/ Port Vale D.Simpson Sincil Bank Lincoln 3,000 6 4 October 1902 Port Vale 2–2 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-small-heath-04-october-1902-200883/ Small Heath Perkins Croxton McMillan Athersmith Athletic Ground Cobridge 4,000 7 11 October 1902 Leicester Fosse 2–0 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/leicester-city-v-port-vale-11-october-1902-203488/ Port Vale Lewis Mills Filbert Street Leicester 1,000 8 18 October 1902 Port Vale 1–4 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-manchester-city-18-october-1902-203130/ Manchester City Croxton Gillespie Meredith Drummond Athletic Ground Cobridge 5,000 9 25 October 1902 Burnley 3–3 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/burnley-v-port-vale-25-october-1902-203468/ Port Vale Eardley Rowley Holdcroft pen. Turf Moor Burnley 1,200 10 8 November 1902 Chesterfield 3–0 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/chesterfield-town-v-port-vale-08-november-1902-203436/ Port Vale Saltergate Chesterfield, Derbyshire 2,000 11 10 November 1902 Port Vale 3–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-stockport-county-10-november-1902-203660/ Stockport County Heames Hartshorne Eardley Stansfield Athletic Ground Cobridge 1,000 12 22 November 1902 Port Vale 3–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-gainsborough-trinity-22-november-1902-202108/ Gainsborough Trinity Capes Eardley Athletic Ground Cobridge 13 6 December 1902 Port Vale 2–0 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-bristol-city-06-december-1902-201367/ Bristol City Eardley Loverseed Athletic Ground Cobridge 2,000 14 9 December 1902 Glossop 2–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/glossop-north-end-v-port-vale-09-december-1902-203474/ Port Vale Heames North Road Glossop 3,000 15 13 December 1902 Stockport County 0–4 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/stockport-county-v-port-vale-13-december-1902-203483/ Port Vale Capes Price Edgeley Park Stockport 16 20 December 1902 Port Vale 1–1 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-manchester-united-20-december-1902-203263/ Manchester United Price Peddie Athletic Ground Cobridge 2,000 17 3 January 1903 Blackpool 2–5 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/blackpool-v-port-vale-03-january-1903-203439/ Port Vale Loverseed Capes Hartshorne Price Bloomfield Road Blackpool 1,000 18 10 January 1903 Port Vale 1–1 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-woolwich-arsenal-10-january-1903-200623/ Woolwich Arsenal Price Briercliffe Athletic Ground Cobridge 4,000 19 17 January 1903 Doncaster Rovers 3–2 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/doncaster-rovers-v-port-vale-17-january-1903-203535/ Port Vale Capes Eardley Intake Ground Doncaster 3,000 20 24 January 1903 Port Vale 5–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-lincoln-city-24-january-1903-203005/ Lincoln City Capes Price Athletic Ground Cobridge 2,000 21 31 January 1903 Small Heath 5–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/small-heath-v-port-vale-31-january-1903-203418/ Port Vale McRoberts Jones Beer Windridge Price Muntz Street Small Heath 3,000 22 7 February 1903 Port Vale 2–0 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-leicester-city-07-february-1903-202732/ Leicester Fosse Eardley Capes Athletic Ground Cobridge 1,000 23 14 February 1903 Manchester City 7–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/manchester-city-v-port-vale-14-february-1903-203453/ Port Vale Bannister Gillespie Turnbull Meredith McOustra Hartshorne Hyde Road Gorton 12,000 24 28 February 1903 Preston North End 5–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/preston-north-end-v-port-vale-28-february-1903-203497/ Port Vale Mullineux Deepdale Preston, Lancashire 3,000 25 7 March 1903 Port Vale 2–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-chesterfield-town-07-march-1903-201845/ Chesterfield Rowley og. Athletic Ground Cobridge 800 26 21 March 1903 Gainsborough Trinity 1–1 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/gainsborough-trinity-v-port-vale-21-march-1903-203495/ Port Vale Capes The Northolme Gainsborough, Lincolnshire 3,000 27 28 March 1903 Port Vale 4–2 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-burton-united-28-march-1903-201600/ Burton United Eardley unknown Capes unknown Athletic Ground Cobridge 500 28 30 March 1903 Port Vale 3–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-burnley-30-march-1903-201484/ Burnley Loverseed Price T.Simpson Athletic Ground Cobridge 29 4 April 1903 Bristol City 3–0 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/bristol-city-v-port-vale-04-april-1903-203523/ Port Vale St John's Lane Bristol 2,000 30 10 April 1903 Barnsley 1–0 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/barnsley-v-port-vale-10-april-1903-203437/ Port Vale Oakwell Barnsley 4,000 31 11 April 1903 Port Vale 1–0 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-glossop-north-end-11-april-1903-202222/ Glossop Price Athletic Ground Cobridge 2,000 32 13 April 1903 Burton United 0–0 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/burton-united-v-port-vale-13-april-1903-203485/ Port Vale Peel Croft Burton upon Trent 33 18 April 1903 Manchester United 2–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/manchester-united-v-port-vale-18-april-1903-203531/ Port Vale Schofield Rushton Bank Street Clayton, Manchester 8,000 34 20 April 1903 Port Vale 2–0 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-barnsley-20-april-1903-200866/ Barnsley Rushton Capes Athletic Ground Cobridge FA Cup 1902–03 FA Cup 3Q 1 November 1902 Port Vale 3–1 W Stalybridge Rovers Eardley Price Capes Athletic Ground Cobridge 4Q 15 November 1902 St. Helens Recreation 2–1 L Port Vale Capes City Road St Helens, Merseyside 8,000 Birmingham Senior Cup 1R 29 September 1902 Port Vale 0–2 L Stoke Athletic Ground Cobridge 3,000 Staffordshire Senior Cup 1R 22 September 1902 Port Vale 1–1 D Stoke unknown Athletic Ground Cobridge 2R 6 October 1902 Stoke 5–3 L Port Vale unknown Victoria Ground Stoke-upon-Trent Bass Charity Vase 1R 9 March 1902 Port Vale 1–1 D Burton United Eardley Athletic Ground Cobridge poor Replay 18 March 1902 Burton United 5–1 L Port Vale Coxon Peel Croft Burton upon Trent thumb|right|160px|Top scorer Adrian Capes. thumb|right|160px|Danny Simpson had his last season with the club. thumb|right|Right-half Lucien Boullemier retired in October 1902 to concentrate on his pottery; he enjoyed a benefit match. thumb|right|Half-back Harry Croxton. thumb|right|Albert Cook played a cameo role. Squad statistics Appearances and goals Key to positions: GK – Goalkeeper; FB – Full back; HB – Half back; FW – Forward Second Division FA Cup Other GK ENG William Chadwick 2 0 0 0 1 0 GK ENG Harry Cotton 32 0 1 0 3 0 GK J.Powell 0 0 0 0 1 0 FB T.Boole 0 0 0 0 1 0 FB ENG Tom Davies 1 0 0 0 0 0 FB ENG Ernest Mullineux 32 1 2 0 0 0 HB ENG Albert Cook 4 1 0 0 1 0 HB ENG Harry Croxton 16 2 0 0 1 0 HB W. H. Machin 1 0 0 0 0 0 HB W. Perkins 31 1 2 0 2 0 HB ENG Arthur Rowley 27 2 2 0 2 0 FW ENG Arthur Bourne 3 0 0 0 0 0 FW ENG Adrian Capes 33 16 2 2 2 0 FW ENG Tom Coxon 2 0 0 0 2 1 FW ENG Bert Eardley 25 7 2 1 3 1 FW ENG Billy Heames 33 2 2 0 0 0 FW Leonard Jones 1 0 0 0 0 0 FW ENG William Loverseed 28 5 0 0 2 0 FW ENG George Price 27 9 2 1 3 0 FW ENG George Rushton 2 2 0 0 0 0 FW ENG Danny Simpson 6 1 0 0 0 0 FW Tom Simpson 11 1 0 0 2 0 FW William Tunstall 6 0 2 0 0 0 |- |colspan="14"|Players who featured but departed the club during the season: FB ENG Arthur Hartshorne 28 3 2 0 2 0 HB ENG Lucien Boullemier 7 0 0 0 1 0 HB ENG Ted Holdcroft 16 1 2 0 0 0 |} Top scorers PlacePositionNationNameSecond DivisionFA CupOtherTotal1FWEnglandAdrian Capes1620182FWEnglandGeorge Price910103FWEnglandBert Eardley71194FWEnglandWilliam Loverseed50055FBEnglandArthur Hartshorne30036FWEnglandBilly Heames2002–HBEnglandHarry Croxton2002–HBEnglandArthur Rowley2002–FWEnglandGeorge Rushton200210FWEnglandAlbert Cook1001–FWEnglandTom Coxon0011–FWEnglandTed Holdcroft1001–FBEnglandErnest Mullineux1001–HBW. Perkins1001–FWEnglandDanny Simpson1001–FWTom Simpson1001–––Unknown2022–––Own goals1001TOTALS574263 Transfers Transfers in Date from Position Nationality Name From Fee Ref. May 1902 HB W. Perkins Newark Free transfer Kent Jeff Port Vale Personalities Witan Books 1996 0-9529152-0-0 June 1902 FB ENG Arthur Hartshorne Wolverhampton Wanderers Free transfer June 1902 FW ENG William Loverseed Newark Free transfer September 1902 HB ENG Arthur Rowley Bristol Rovers Free transfer January 1903 FW ENG George Rushton Barrow Free transfer February 1903 FW ENG Edward Williams East Vale Free transfer March 1903 FB ENG James Hamilton Burslem Town Free transfer April 1903 FW ENG Dick Allman Burslem Higherhave Free transfer Transfers out Date from Position Nationality Name To Fee Ref. September 1902 HB ENG Lucien Boullemier USA Philadelphia Hibernian Released March 1903 HB ENG Ted Holdcroft Stoke £500 April 1903 FB ENG Arthur Hartshorne Stoke Unknown Summer 1903 FW Arthur Bourne Released Summer 1903 FB ENG Duncan Cooper Released Summer 1903 FB Tom Davies Released Summer 1903 FW Leonard Jones Released Summer 1903 FW ENG George Rushton Brighton & Hove Albion Free transfer Summer 1903 FW ENG Danny Simpson Released References Specific General Kent, Jeff Jeff Kent (author) The Port Vale Record 1879-1993 Witan Books 1993 0-9508981-9-8 Category:Port Vale F.C. seasons Burslem Port Vale