1969–70 Port Vale F.C. season

The 1969–70 season was Port Vale's 58th season of football in the English Football League and their fifth-successive season (sixth overall) in the Fourth Division.^[1] Under manager Gordon Lee, and with Arthur McPherson serving as chairman until March before Mark Singer took over, Vale mounted a sustained promotion challenge — finishing 4th with 59 points and earning promotion back to the Third Division.

The season opened with a club record unbeaten run of 18 league matches, and after a brief mid‑season dip, Vale regrouped to end with a nine‑game unbeaten run to seal promotion. Lee credited the rise to the fitness, cohesion, and consistency of a remarkably settled squad — ten players made at least 35 league appearances during the campaign. In cup competitions, Vale reached the Second Round of the FA Cup, only to be eliminated by Tranmere Rovers after a replay, and exited the League Cup in the First Round, also at the hands of Tranmere.

John James led the scoring charts with 14 league goals and 17 in all competitions, while John Green was voted Player of the Year for his commanding defensive displays. Attendance figures were encouraging: the highest attendance was 12,538 for the home fixture against Crewe Alexandra on 15 September 1969, the lowest was 3,955 versus York City on 7 February 1970, and the average league gate stood at 6,894 fans per match.

Overall, the 1969–70 season represented a major turnaround — transforming Vale from a struggling Fourth Division outfit into promotion winners, powered by strong leadership under Gordon Lee, squad stability, and on-field consistency.

In the pre-season, there were talks of bringing speedway to Vale Park, introducing a new team to the British League Division Two.^[1] However, many were opposed to the idea, and a 2,600 strong petition was given to local MP John Forrester.^[1] The idea was killed when the council failed to grant planning permission, despite a 3,000 strong petition in favour of the proposal.^[1] The club had hoped to profit from the venture; however, many locals were concerned about noise pollution.^[1] Gordon Lee meanwhile had little in the way of funds when it came to signing new players, and so he was only able to bring in three new attackers on free transfers: 22-year-old centre-forward Ken Wookey (Newport County); outside-right Stuart Shaw (Southport); and lively frontrunner Eric Magee (Oldham Athletic).^[1]

They continued from their unbeaten result at the end of the previous season to make a club-record unbeaten sequence of ten away games and 19 games home and away (5 May to 8 November). Five of these results were goalless draws, as the defence proved stronger than the attack following the departure of top-scorer Roy Chapman at the end of the previous season.^[1] The season began with a 0–0 draw at home with Peterborough United, during which Posh had a man sent off on the 31st-minute. Nevertheless, the run put them at the top of the table. Lee credited his team's hard work and fitness.^[1] John James played on despite an injured ankle, Mick Morris found himself a permanent fixture as an energetic utility man, whilst Tommy McLaren also worked his way into the first XI.^[1] The defence conceded just six goals in the opening 15 league games. The run included a 1–0 win over Chesterfield at Saltergate, a 2–0 win over nearby Crewe Alexandra in front of a season-best Burslem crowd of 12,538, and a 'war of attrition' in a 1–1 draw 'full of ugly incidents' with Wrexham at the Racecourse Ground in front of a crowd of 19,946.^[1] Young Tommy McLaren established himself in the first XI, replacing Eric Magee. On 11 October, Vale ended fourth-placed York City's 100% home record by beating them by a goal to nil. A 0–0 draw with Swansea City was played out a week later, with John King featuring despite a bout of chickenpox.^[1]

Some 5,000 Vale supporters had travelled to Wrexham on a British Rail 'Soccer Special' to witness the top-of-the-table clash, and saw two red cards as Wrexham's Steve Ingle and Vale's John James were both sent off.^[2] Their 22 November fixture at the Old Showground with Scunthorpe United could have seen the Vale equal their best start to an English League season in the 20th century.^[1] After a Wookey goal put them ahead they lost after a disputed penalty and a bizarre own goal from Roy Sproson.^[1] Meanwhile, Vale could not afford the £500 registration fee for Ian Buxton following the player's departure from Notts County. So the club could only sign him for an initial three-month period.^[1] They returned to the summit with a 1–1 draw at Chester on 20 December.^[1]

Injuries and suspensions helped to dent the Vale's form, as they lost their status as league leaders.^[1] On 17 January, Sproson made his 800th senior appearance in a 2–0 victory over Exeter City.^[1] Only 3,955 turned up at Vale Park to witness a 1–1 draw with York City on 7 February. In an attempt to lift the club, Lee signed wing-half Tony Lacey on loan from Stoke City, and also bought Bill Summerscales from Leek Town for £400.^[1] Heading into a six-game unbeaten run, Lee signed Buxton permanently despite the player's decision to retire at the end of the season.^[1] On 21 February, Vale defeated Bradford (Park Avenue) in "wretched conditions" by four goals to one, with James scoring a hat-trick.^[3] On 28 February, Vale held promotion rivals Swansea City to a goalless draw at Vetch Field.

In March, Chairman Arthur McPherson pleaded guilty to receiving stolen goods and was sentenced to an 18-month suspended sentence and fined £1,500.^[1] Resigning his position at the club, he was replaced by Mark Singer.^[1] On 9 March, the match against Hartlepool had to be suspended for five minutes after Vale fans continually pelted the opposition keeper with snowballs.^[1] On 21 March, Lee named an unchanged side for the eighth successive game as Vale recorded a 4–0 home victory over Darlington, with all four goals coming in the last half hour.^[4] Signing Lacey permanently for £2,500, and Sammy Morgan on a free from Gorleston, Vale were in a close battle for promotion.^[1] A 4–0 win over Darlington came on 21 March despite Vale Park attendants giving slow claps with the game goalless after an hour. The unbeaten home record fell two days later with a 2–0 defeat to Scunthorpe United.^[1]

On 1 April, Vale returned to form with a 1–0 win over fourth-placed Wrexham, though a supporter was knocked unconscious after confronting goalkeeper David Gaskell. On 8 April, Vale came away from Notts County with a 2–1 victory after coming from a goal down, as Buxton concluded his time with the club with the winning goal three minutes from time.^[5] On 18 April, Vale drew 1–1 at home to Notts County after coming from behind to a Don Masson goal to secure a vital point.^[6] Unbeaten in their final nine games, they secured promotion with what The Sentinel's Peter Hewitt called a 'blockade formula' – they conceded just four goals in this run.^[1]

They finished in fourth place with 59 points, three points clear of fifth place. His side promoted, Lee said that 'no team could have deserved reward as much for their hard work and strength of character'.^[1] With 33 goals conceded, only Chesterfield conceded fewer.^[1] Only 17 players were used all season, whilst eight barely missed a game between them.^[1] On 31 May, they played a Potteries derby friendly with First Division Stoke and won 3–2 at the Victoria Ground.^[1] Roy Sproson was named Gillette Sportsman of the Year.^[1]

On the financial side, a loss of £3,003 was made despite fundraising donations of £17,925.^[1] Gate receipts were up by over £13,000 as home attendances were encouraging. However, expenditure had increased, and there was a transfer deficit of £2,900.^[1] Six players were let go at the season's end, including Ken Wookey (Workington); Stuart Shaw (Morecambe); Eric Magee (Linfield); Stuart Chapman (Stafford Rangers); and Gordon Logan (Kettering Town).^[1]

In the FA Cup, they had to overcome Northern Premier League side Wigan Athletic on a very heavy Springfield Park pitch, but could only manage a 1–1 draw.^[1] After a 2–2 draw back in Stoke-on-Trent, the second replay was held at Old Trafford, Manchester.^[1] James scored two minutes from the end of extra time to finally kill off the non-Leaguers.^[1] After a 3–1 defeat at Prenton Park to Tranmere Rovers in a replay, the Vale were out of the competition with a profit of £5,000 from their five games.^[1]

In the League Cup, a first-round exit came courtesy of Third Division Tranmere Rovers at Vale Park.^[1]

Key to positions: GK – Goalkeeper; DF – Defender; MF – Midfielder; FW – Forward

Specific

General

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