1997–98 Port Vale F.C. season

March 2015 March 2015 Port Vale 1997–98 John Rudge Bill Bell Vale Park Football League First Division 19th (49 points) FA Cup Third Round(eliminated by Arsenal) League Cup First Round(eliminated by York City) Player of the Year Gareth Ainsworth Lee Mills (14) Lee Mills (16) 14,964 vs. Arsenal, 14 January 1998 2,749 vs. York City, 12 August 1997 8,263 4–0 vs. Huddersfield Town, 3 May 1998 1–5 vs. Ipswich Town, 18 April 1998 _blackcollar _color_3_stripes_white ffffff ffffff ffffff 000000 000000 _blackquarters14 ffd700 000000 ffd700 ffd700 ffd700 _hoops_black 1996–97 1998–99 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.Baggaley Mike State of play as Wigan await https://portvalethevaliant.substack.com/p/state-of-play-as-wigan-await 18 October 2025 Valiant's Substack 16 October 2025 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.Baggaley Mike Old failings return as Port Vale are held at Lincoln City https://portvalethevaliant.substack.com/p/old-failings-return-as-port-vale#poll-118963 12 November 2023 Valiant's Substack 12 November 2023 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.Baggaley Mike Port Vale, huge game and responding to ticket concerns https://portvalethevaliant.substack.com/p/port-vale-huge-game-and-responding 12 November 2023 Valiant's Substack 9 November 2023 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.Baggaley Mike Port Vale transfer and injury update ahead of Reading https://portvalethevaliant.substack.com/p/port-vale-transfer-and-injury-update 12 January 2024 Valiant's Substack 11 January 2024 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.Baggaley Mike Port Vale injury news and talking points ahead of Oxford https://portvalethevaliant.substack.com/p/port-vale-injury-news-and-talking 15 March 2024 Valiant's Substack 14 March 2024 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.Baggaley Michael Last day drama when Port Vale stayed up but Man City and Stoke City went down https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/last-day-drama-port-vale-4100853 4 May 2020 Stoke Sentinel 3 May 2020 A brace from Jansson, and one each from Martin Foyle and Lee Mills earned Vale a 4–0 win.Baggaley Mike Recruitment, the squad and big decisions https://portvalethevaliant.substack.com/p/recruitment-the-squad-and-big-decisions 10 May 2026 Valiant's Substack 7 May 2026 Rudge said: "It all ended happily in the end but we must take that as a warning and not ignore it".Baggaley Mike Questions answered about recruitment, budget and plans https://portvalethevaliant.substack.com/p/questions-answered-about-recruitment 7 May 2024 Valiant's Substack 3 May 2024 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".Baggaley Mike Sympathy and frustration as Port Vale are caught up in Reading chaos https://portvalethevaliant.substack.com/p/sympathy-and-frustration-as-port 14 January 2024 Valiant's Substack 14 January 2024 Again goalless, Dennis Bergkamp scored in the tenth minute of extra time, but Wayne Corden equalized eight minutes before the full-time whistle.Football: Arsenal let off the hook by Tankard Phil Shaw https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-arsenal-let-off-the-hook-by-tankard-1138829.html https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220501/https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football-arsenal-let-off-the-hook-by-tankard-1138829.html 1 May 2022 subscription live The Independent London 15 January 1998 3 June 2012 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.Sports photographs from our archives http://www.thisisstaffordshire.co.uk/Sentinel-gallery-Sports-photographs-archives/story-19490583-detail/story.html#axzz2YIXk1g7b 9 July 2013 The Sentinel 8 July 2013Baggaley Michael When Port Vale gave Arsenal an almighty FA Cup scare http://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/sport/football/port-vale-arsenal-fa-cup-1063053 14 January 2018 Stoke Sentinel 14 January 2018 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?"Baggaley Mike Ready for Arsenal https://portvalethevaliant.substack.com/p/ready-for-arsenal 22 September 2025 Valiant's Substack 22 September 2025 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 1997–98 Football League First Division League table PVL Results by matchday table b Round Ground H/A/H/A/H/A/A/H/H/A/A/H/H/A/H/A/A/H/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/A/H/H/A/A/H/H/A/A/H/H/A/H/A/A/H/A/H/A/H/A Result L/L/W/D/W/L/W/D/W/L/L/D/W/L/D/W/W/L/D/L/L/L/L/L/L/L/W/L/L/D/D/L/W/L/D/L/W/W/D/L/W/D/L/L/L/W Position 20/22/14/17/11/14/9/11/8/8/11/14/8/13/14/10/7/11/9/11/13/14/17/18/18/20/18/19/21/20/21/21/21/21/24/24/23/19/20/20/18/17/19/20/20/19 Points 0p/0p/3p/4p/7p/7p/10p/11p/14p/14p/14p/15p/18p/18p/19p/22p/25p/25p/26p/26p/26p/26p/26p/26p/26p/26p/29p/29p/29p/30p/31p/31p/34p/34p/35p/35p/38p/41p/42p/42p/45p/46p/46p/46p/46p/49p Home Away green2 Win yellow2 Draw red2 Loss green1 red1 StattoPort Vale 1997–1998 : Results & Fixtures. Statto Organisation. Retrieved 28 April 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304044639/http://www.statto.com/football/teams/port-vale/1997-1998/results 4 March 2016 Matches 1 9 August 1997 15:00 BST Port Vale 0–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-nottingham-forest-09-august-1997-181582/ Nottingham Forest Campbell 39 Vale Park Burslem Phil Richards 12,533 2 16 August 1997 Portsmouth 3–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/portsmouth-v-port-vale-16-august-1997-181616/ Port Vale Aloisi 24 Svensson 38 47 Talbot 43 Fratton Park Portsmouth Rob Harris 10,605 3 23 August 1997 Port Vale 3–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-sunderland-23-august-1997-181656/ Sunderland Mills 3 Naylor 39 72 Phillips 76 Vale Park Burslem Andy D'Urso 8,290 4 3 September 1997 Wolverhampton Wanderers 1–1 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/wolverhampton-wanderers-v-port-vale-03-september-1997-181751/ Port Vale Bull 74 Foyle 82 Molineux Stadium Wolverhampton Alan Butler 21,524 5 9 September 1997 19:45 BST Port Vale 2–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-stockport-county-09-september-1997-181758/ Stockport County Mills 1 36 Dinning 43 pen. Vale Park Burslem Graham Laws 6,615 6 13 September 1997 Norwich City 1–0 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/norwich-city-v-port-vale-13-september-1997-181793/ Port Vale Fleck 59 Carrow Road Norwich 11,269 7 16 September 1997 Crewe Alexandra 0–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/crewe-alexandra-v-port-vale-16-september-1997-181716/ Port Vale Mills 55 Gresty Road Crewe 5,519 8 20 September 1997 Port Vale 1–1 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-bury-20-september-1997-181832/ Bury Ainsworth 7 Swan 82 Vale Park Burslem Trevor Jones 6,781 9 27 September 1997 Port Vale 2–0 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-queens-park-rangers-27-september-1997-181868/ Queens Park Rangers Snijders 17 Naylor 20 Vale Park Burslem Eddie Wolstenholme 7,197 10 4 October 1997 Swindon Town 4–2 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/swindon-town-v-port-vale-04-october-1997-181906/ Port Vale Hay 49 81 85 Taylor 67 Glover 36 Foyle 86 County Ground Swindon Steve Bennett 8,048 11 12 October 1997 Stoke City 2–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/stoke-city-v-port-vale-12-october-1997-181969/ Port Vale Forsyth 5 Keen 34 Naylor The Britannia Stoke-on-Trent Clive Wilkes 20,125 12 18 October 1997 Port Vale 0–0 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-bradford-city-18-october-1997-181978/ Bradford City Vale Park Burslem Paul Danson 7,148 13 21 October 1997 Port Vale 4–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-huddersfield-town-21-october-1997-182010/ Huddersfield Town Horne 26 og. Talbot 47 Ainsworth 73 Naylor 83 Stewart 86 Vale Park Burslem Mike Bailey 5,244 14 25 October 1997 Middlesbrough 2–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/middlesbrough-v-port-vale-25-october-1997-182049/ Port Vale Merson 11 68 pen. Foyle 90 Riverside Stadium Middlesbrough Scott Mathieson 30,096 15 1 November 1997 Port Vale 0–0 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-reading-01-november-1997-182087/ Reading Vale Park Burslem George Cain 6,569 16 4 November 1997 Manchester City 2–3 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/manchester-city-v-port-vale-04-november-1997-182119/ Port Vale Wiekens 15 Dickov 41 Snijders 17 Talbot 45 Naylor 50 Maine Road Manchester Mike Brandwood 24,554 17 8 November 1997 Tranmere Rovers 1–2 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/tranmere-rovers-v-port-vale-08-november-1997-182160/ Port Vale Irons 51 Naylor 14 67 Prenton Park Prenton Kevin Lynch 7,063 18 15 November 1997 Port Vale 1–2 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-west-bromwich-albion-15-november-1997-182193/ West Bromwich Albion Mills 48 Hunt 57 Hamilton 68 Vale Park Burslem Roger Furnandiz 11,124 19 22 November 1997 Port Vale 0–0 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-sheffield-united-22-november-1997-182229/ Sheffield United Vale Park Burslem David Pugh 8,017 20 29 November 1997 Oxford United 2–0 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/oxford-united-v-port-vale-29-november-1997-182264/ Port Vale Beauchamp 32 Jemson 57 Manor Ground Oxford Mick Fletcher 5,762 21 6 December 1997 Port Vale 0–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-birmingham-city-06-december-1997-182322/ Birmingham City Cottee 18 Vale Park Burslem Eddie Lomas 7,509 22 13 December 1997 Charlton Athletic 1–0 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/charlton-athletic-v-port-vale-13-december-1997-182334/ Port Vale Newton 84 The Valley Charlton, London Mark Halsey 11,077 23 20 December 1997 Port Vale 1–3 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-ipswich-town-20-december-1997-182375/ Ipswich Town Foyle 50 Mathie 10 22 Johnson 43 Vale Park Burslem Terry Heilbron 5,784 24 26 December 1997 15:00 GMT Stockport County 3–0 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/stockport-county-v-port-vale-26-december-1997-182408/ Port Vale Travis 66 80 Bennett 71 Edgeley Park Stockport Guy Stretton 10,003 25 28 December 1997 Port Vale 0–2 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-wolverhampton-wanderers-28-december-1997-182443/ Wolverhampton Wanderers Muscat 45 Freedman 87 Vale Park Burslem Paul Taylor 10,898 26 10 January 1998 15:00 GMT Nottingham Forest 2–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/nottingham-forest-v-port-vale-10-january-1998-182501/ Port Vale van Hooijdonk 27 83 Mills 16 City Ground Nottingham Andy D'Urso 17,639 27 17 January 1998 Port Vale 2–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-portsmouth-17-january-1998-182541/ Portsmouth Talbot 29 Mills 56 Durnin 36 Vale Park Burslem Mike Bailey 6,028 28 24 January 1998 Port Vale 2–3 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-crewe-alexandra-24-january-1998-182597/ Crewe Alexandra Naylor 1 Porter 74 pen. Smith 2 pen. Whalley 33 Foran 41 Vale Park Burslem Phil Richards 6,683 29 31 January 1998 Sunderland 4–2 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/sunderland-v-port-vale-31-january-1998-182614/ Port Vale Johnston 12 Phillips 13 Quinn 20 Carragher 87 og. Talbot 39 Jansson 90 Stadium of Light Sunderland Mike Pike 39,258 30 7 February 1998 Bury 2–2 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/bury-v-port-vale-07-february-1998-182643/ Port Vale Battersby 30 Ellis 60 Mills 10 Bogie 17 Gigg Lane Bury, Greater Manchester Brian Coddington 5,285 31 14 February 1998 Port Vale 2–2 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-norwich-city-14-february-1998-182684/ Norwich City Mills 34 85 Grant 64 Jackson 68 Vale Park Burslem Alan Wiley 6,664 32 17 February 1998 Port Vale 0–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-swindon-town-17-february-1998-182718/ Swindon Town Collins 4 Vale Park Burslem Matt Messias 5,925 33 21 February 1998 Queens Park Rangers 0–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/queens-park-rangers-v-port-vale-21-february-1998-182731/ Port Vale Mills 24 Loftus Road Shepherd's Bush, West London Alan Butler 14,198 34 24 February 1998 Bradford City 2–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/bradford-city-v-port-vale-24-february-1998-182764/ Port Vale Melville 34 Pepper 58 Foyle 29 Valley Parade Bradford William Burns 13,293 35 1 March 1998 Port Vale 0–0 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-stoke-city-01-march-1998-182806/ Stoke City Vale Park Burslem Paul Rejer 13,853 36 4 March 1998 Port Vale 0–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-tranmere-rovers-04-march-1998-182840/ Tranmere Rovers Kelly 47 Vale Park Burslem Anthony Leake 5,465 37 7 March 1998 Reading 0–3 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/reading-v-port-vale-07-march-1998-182879/ Port Vale Mills 7 Talbot 19 Jansson 82 Elm Park Reading, Berkshire Mark Halsey 7,139 38 14 March 1998 Port Vale 2–1 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-manchester-city-14-march-1998-182915/ Manchester City Foyle 13 Ainsworth 73 Wiekens 61 Vale Park Burslem Roger Furnandiz 13,122 39 21 March 1998 West Bromwich Albion 2–2 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/west-bromwich-albion-v-port-vale-21-march-1998-182956/ Port Vale Flynn 24 Taylor 83 Jansson 69 Foyle 90 The Hawthorns West Bromwich Terry Heilbron 14,242 40 28 March 1998 Sheffield United 2–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/sheffield-united-v-port-vale-28-march-1998-182988/ Port Vale Marcelo 83 Saunders 89 Corden 90 Bramall Lane Sheffield Steve Bennett 15,860 41 4 April 1998 Port Vale 3–0 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-oxford-united-04-april-1998-183022/ Oxford United Mills 29 Naylor 42 Ainsworth 84 Vale Park Burslem Kevin Lynch 6,524 42 11 April 1998 Birmingham City 1–1 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/birmingham-city-v-port-vale-11-april-1998-183053/ Port Vale Ndlovu 87 Ainsworth 58 St Andrew's Birmingham George Cain 17,193 43 13 April 1998 Port Vale 0–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-charlton-athletic-13-april-1998-183094/ Charlton Athletic Mendonca 73 pen. Vale Park Burslem Eddie Wolstenholme 9,973 44 18 April 1998 Ipswich Town 5–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/ipswich-town-v-port-vale-18-april-1998-183129/ Port Vale Johnson 4 58 Petta 27 29 Mathie 56 Barnett 65 Portman Road Ipswich Paul Taylor 16,205 45 24 April 1998 Port Vale 0–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-middlesbrough-24-april-1998-183168/ Middlesbrough Merson 2 Vale Park Burslem Clive Wilkes 12,096 46 3 May 1998 Huddersfield Town 0–4 W https://www.11v11.com/matches/huddersfield-town-v-port-vale-03-may-1998-183222/ Port Vale Foyle 2 Jansson 25 60 Mills 79 Kirklees Stadium Huddersfield Guy Stretton 15,610 FA Cup 1997–98 FA Cup R3 3 January 1998 Arsenal 0–0 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/arsenal-v-port-vale-03-january-1998-25474/ Port Vale Arsenal Stadium Highbury, North London Paul Alcock 37,471 Replay 14 January 1998 Port Vale 1–1 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-arsenal-14-january-1998-25575/ Arsenal Corden 112 Bergkamp 100 Vale Park Burslem Neale Barry 14,964 3–4 yes League Cup 1997–98 Football League Cup R1 1st Leg 12 August 1997 Port Vale 1–1 D https://www.11v11.com/matches/port-vale-v-york-city-12-august-1997-33256/ York City Mills 24 Bull 32 Bushell 90 Vale Park Burslem Anthony Leake 2,749 R1 2nd Leg 26 August 1997 York City 2–1 L https://www.11v11.com/matches/york-city-v-port-vale-26-august-1997-33293/ Port Vale Barras 37 Mills 89 Bootham Crescent York Brian Coddington 3,195 3–2 Squad statistics Appearances and goals Key to positions: GK – Goalkeeper; DF – Defender; MF – Midfielder; FW – Forward First Division FA Cup League Cup GK ENG Matthew Boswell 0 0 0 0 0 0 GK ENG Paul Musselwhite 41 0 2 0 2 0 GK NLD Arjan van Heusden 5 0 0 0 0 0 DF ENG Neil Aspin 26 0 2 0 2 0 DF ENG Dave Barnett 9 1 0 0 0 0 DF NIR Liam Burns 1 0 0 0 0 0 DF ENG Matt Carragher 26 0 0 0 0 0 DF ENG Dean Glover 25 1 1 0 1 0 DF ENG Gareth Griffiths 3 0 0 0 0 0 DF ENG Andy Hill 27 0 2 0 2 0 DF NLD Mark Snijders 24 2 0 2 0 0 DF ENG Dean Stokes 8 0 0 0 1 0 DF ENG Allen Tankard 39 0 2 0 2 0 MF ENG Gareth Ainsworth 40 5 2 0 0 0 MF ENG Ian Bogie 38 1 2 0 1 0 MF ENG Wayne Corden 33 1 2 1 2 0 MF ENG Richard Eyre 1 0 0 0 0 0 MF SWE Jan Jansson 33 5 0 0 2 0 MF NLD Rogier Koordes 10 0 0 0 0 0 MF ENG Andy Porter 41 1 2 0 1 0 MF WAL Scott Ruscoe 0 0 0 0 0 0 MF ENG Stewart Talbot 42 6 2 0 2 0 FW ENG Simon Armstrong 0 0 0 0 0 0 FW ENG Dean Cunningham 0 0 0 0 0 0 FW ENG Martin Foyle 39 8 2 0 2 0 FW ENG Lee Mills 42 14 1 0 2 2 FW ENG Tony Naylor 38 10 2 0 2 0 FW ENG Steve Williams 0 0 0 0 0 0 |- |colspan="14"|Players who featured but departed the club during the season: DF ENG Paul Beesley 5 0 0 0 0 0 DF NIR Jon McCarthy 4 0 0 0 2 0 FW ENG Justin O'Reilly 0 0 0 0 0 0 |} Top scorers PlacePositionNationNameFirst DivisionFA CupLeague CupTotal1FWEnglandLee Mills1402162FWEnglandTony Naylor1000103FWEnglandMartin Foyle80084MFEnglandStewart Talbot60065MFSwedenJan Jansson5005–MFEnglandGareth Ainsworth50057MFEnglandWayne Corden1102–DFNetherlandsMark Snijders20029DFEnglandDean Glover1001–DFEnglandDave Barnett1001–MFEnglandIan Bogie1001–MFEnglandAndy Porter1001––Own goals1001TOTALS561259 Transfers Transfers in Date from Position Nationality Name From Fee Ref. 1997 DF ENG Matt Carragher Wigan Athletic Free transfer Port Vale FC Club Details Transfers Soccer Base http://www.soccerbase.com/teams/team.sd?team_id=2083&teamTabs=transfers www.soccerbase.com 7 October 2016 Summer 1997 MF SWE Jan Jansson SWE IFK Norrköping £200,000 Summer 1997 DF NED Mark Snijders NED AZ Alkmaar Free transfer 12 September 1997 MF ENG Gareth Ainsworth Lincoln City £500,000 Transfers out Date from Position Nationality Name To Fee Ref. 11 September 1997 MF NIR Jon McCarthy Birmingham City £1.5 million 1998 DF NED Jermaine Holwyn NED HFC Haarlem Free transfer 26 March 1998 FW ENG Justin O'Reilly Southport Free transfer July 1998 MF ENG Andy Porter Wigan Athletic Free transfer June 1998 DF ENG Gareth Griffiths Wigan Athletic Free transfer Summer 1998 DF ENG Dean Glover Kidderminster Harriers Free transfer Summer 1998 DF ENG Andy Hill Retired 7 August 1998 FW ENG Lee Mills Bradford City £1,000,000 Summer 1998 DF ENG Dean Stokes Rochdale Free transfer August 1998 GK NED Arjan van Heusden Cambridge United Free transfer Loans in Date from Position Nationality Name From Date to Ref. 24 December 1997 DF ENG Paul Beesley Manchester City December 1997 March 1998 DF ENG Dave Barnett SCO Dunfermline Athletic End of season Loans out Date from Position Nationality Name To Date to Ref. 8 August 1997 GK ENG Matthew Boswell Witton Albion 199? Rothmans football yearbook 1998-99 1998 London Headline Book 978-0-7472-7652-4 https://archive.org/details/rothmansfootball1998unse/page/544/mode/2up?q=Port+Vale 30 November 2022 26 September 1997 GK NED Arjan van Heusden Oxford United October 1997 31 October 1997 DF ENG Gareth Griffiths Shrewsbury Town November 1997 23 December 1997 FW ENG Simon Armstrong Boston United End of season 30 January 1998 FW ENG Steve Williams Witton Albion 1998 25 March 1998 GK ENG Matthew Boswell Barnet End of season References Specific General Soccerbase Category:Port Vale F.C. seasons Port Vale