1949–50 Port Vale F.C. season explained

Club:Port Vale
Season:1949–50
Manager:Gordon Hodgson
Chairman:William Holdcroft
Stadium:The Old Recreation Ground
League:Football League
League Result:13th (41 Points)
Cup1:FA Cup
Cup1 Result:Fourth Round
League Topscorer:Cliff Pinchbeck (14)
Season Topscorer:Cliff Pinchbeck (16)
Lowest Attendance:8,496 vs. Torquay United, 27 March 1950
Average Attendance:12,983
Largest Win:4–0 vs. Millwall, 12 November 1949
Largest Loss:0–3 vs. Millwall, 1 April 1950
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Prevseason:1948–49
Nextseason:1950–51

The 1949–50 season was Port Vale's 38th season of football in the English Football League, and their fifth full season in the Third Division South.[1] It was the last season to be played at The Old Recreation Ground – despite numerous clashes with the authorities over the construction of the new stadium. The sale of Ronnie Allen raised a massive £20,000.

Overview

Third Division South

The pre-season saw the arrival of experienced full-back Lol Hamlett from Bolton Wanderers, young keeper Ray King from Leyton Orient (brother of George). On his arrival King stated that The Old Recreation Ground was like 'some shanty town out west' and compared the dressing room to 'a dungeon', despite which somehow he 'felt completely at home'. The playing staff now stood at 59 amateurs and 27 full-time professionals.

The season opened with a 1–0 win over Bristol Rovers, which was followed by a 1–0 reverse to Southend United at Roots Hall three days later. This loss was thanks to an own goal from Garth Butler, who put the ball into his own net despite being some distance from any Southend players. A seven match unbeaten run followed, built upon a defence that leaked just five goals, King and Hamlett settling in well. Bad news off the field returned however, when Stoke-on-Trent City Council rejected the club's application to move two stands from The Old Rec to the new stadium. As a result, the club set up a 100,000 Shilling Fund to build the two stands from scratch. On the pitch results began to turn against the "Valiants", and so striker Cliff Pinchbeck was signed from Brighton & Hove Albion for a £3,500 fee. Pinchbeck marked his debut with a hat-trick over Millwall, receiving a standing ovation from his new fans. More off-field stadium troubles came when the Regional Officer of the Minister of Works refused a licence for the stadium on unspecified grounds. Club officials were forced to travel to London to discuss the matter with the minister, eventually convincing him to change his mind. The home match with Newport County on 15 October was notable as the first Vale match to offer a matchday programme.[2]

A successful Christmas period took Vale into sixth place by mid-February. George King was then sold to Barrow for a four-figure fee, after which Pinchbeck was the only regular scorer. Six games without a win followed, ending the club's hopes of opening the new stadium in the Second Division. The Shilling Fund had only raised 17,738 shillings. So Ronnie Allen was sold to top-flight West Bromwich Albion for a massive £20,000, smashing the club's transfer record. Allen went on to play for England, whilst the fee went towards the new ground. Back to the league, the Vale were seventh at the start of April, but six defeats in their final eight games saw them tumble down the table.

They finished in thirteenth place with 41 points. The defence was the third strongest in the division. However, only Watford scored fewer goals. Pinchbeck was the only goalscorer of any consistency.

Finances

On the financial side, a profit of £10,671 was made, another record: this was due to the sale of Allen, which gave them a transfer credit of £15,000. The wage bill had risen by £6,000 to £22,333, whereas gate receipts had risen by around £3,000 to £29,050. Eric Eastwood was the only major departure of the summer. Trouble with the new ground continued, as the Regional Officer of the Ministry of Works refused to permit the transfer of the stand from the old to the new stadium, despite having approved similar procedures at Liverpool and Millwall. Chairman William Holdcroft felt this was unfair and was supported by Stoke-on-Trent North MP Albert Davies. Despite this set-back the stadium was opened on 2 August in a ceremony attended by 12,000 rain-soaked people.

Cup competitions

In the FA Cup, Vale progressed past Athenian League amateurs Wealdstone and Tranmere Rovers of the Third Division North with 1–0 home wins. Beating Newport County at Somerton Park with a Ronnie Allen brace, they came up against First Division Burnley in the Fourth Round at Turf Moor. There, they lost 2–1 in front of 49,692 spectators – including 12,000 Vale fans.

League table

See main article: 1949–50 Football League.

Results

Port Vale's score comes first

Football League Third Division South

Matches

DateOpponentVenueResultAttendanceScorers
20 August 1949 Bristol RoversH1–015,097Allen
23 August 1949 Southend UnitedA0–19,434
27 August 1949 Bournemouth & Boscombe AthleticA2–219,101King (2)
29 August 1949 Southend UnitedH0–014,686
3 September 1949 Crystal PalaceH2–013,788Martin (2)
5 September 1949 Ipswich TownH2–212,297Martin, Cheadle
10 September 1949 WatfordA2–010,583King, Aveyard
17 September 1949 ReadingH1–112,948o.g.
24 September 1949 Leyton OrientA0–115,698
1 October 1949 Exeter CityH1–011,499Martin
8 October 1949 Norwich CityA1–026,831Allen
15 October 1949 Newport CountyH1–012,599Allen
22 October 1949 Bristol CityA0–219,855
29 October 1949 Brighton & Hove AlbionH3–011,189Aveyard, Allen, Barber
5 November 1949 WalsallA0–19,605
12 November 1949 MillwallH4–012,918Pinchbeck (3), Aveyard
19 November 1949 Swindon TownA0–09,039
3 December 1949 AldershotA0–14,043
17 December 1949 Bristol RoversA1–210,105Palk
24 December 1949 Bournemouth & Boscombe AthleticH1–113,092Pinchbeck
26 December 1949 Northampton TownH3–117,212Pinchbeck (2), Martin
27 December 1949 Northampton TownA1–119,263Martin
31 December 1949 Crystal PalaceA1–012,609Pinchbeck
14 January 1950 WatfordH2–017,387Allen, Pinchbeck
21 January 1950 ReadingA1–211,284Pinchbeck
4 February 1950 Leyton OrientH2–014,176Allen, Martin
11 February 1950 Nottingham ForestH1–118,218Pinchbeck
18 February 1950 Exeter CityA1–39,632Pinchbeck
25 February 1950 Norwich CityH2–211,204Hayward, Palk
4 March 1950 Newport CountyA1–18,762Aveyard
11 March 1950 Bristol CityH0–211,444
18 March 1950 Brighton & Hove AlbionA1–211,852Aveyard
25 March 1950 WalsallH2–09,763Aveyard, Pinchbeck
27 March 1950 Torquay UnitedH2–08,496Hulligan, Potts
1 April 1950 MillwallA0–318,088
7 April 1950 Notts CountyA1–332,097Palk
8 April 1950 Swindon TownH0–19,607
10 April 1950 Notts CountyH3–115,380Pinchbeck (2), Hulligan
15 April 1950 Torquay UnitedA0–08,037
22 April 1950 AldershotH0–19,645
29 April 1950 Nottingham ForestA0–25,906
6 May 1950 Ipswich TownA1–212,451McGarry

FA Cup

See main article: 1949–50 FA Cup.

!Round!!Date!!Opponent!!Venue!!Result!!Attendance!!Goalscorers
R126 November 1949 WealdstoneH1–014,935Pinchbeck
R210 December 1949 Tranmere RoversH1–014,716Pinchbeck
R37 January 1950 Newport CountyA2–117,781Allen (2)
R428 January 1950 BurnleyA1–249,692Martin

Player statistics

Appearances

Pos.NameFootball LeagueFA CupTotal
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
GK George Heppell300030
GK Ray King39040430
DF Basil Hayward110011
DF Tommy Cheadle42140461
DF Garth Butler39040430
DF Reg Potts310031
DF Jim Elsby200020
DF Lol Hamlett40040440
MF Jimmy Todd37040410
MF Alan Martin24741288
MF Bill McGarry42140461
MF Mick Hulligan38240422
MF Alan Bennett10000100
MF Norman Hallam100010
MF Colin Askey400040
FW Ronnie Allen27642318
FW Pat Raftery300030
FW George King830083
FW Stan Palk42340463
FW Walter Aveyard23600236
FW Cliff Pinchbeck2714423116
FW Ken Griffiths200020
FW Len Barber510051

Top scorers

width=60Placewidth=60Positionwidth=180Nationwidth=150Namewidth=80Third Division Southwidth=80FA Cupwidth=80Total
1FWCliff Pinchbeck14216
2MFAlan Martin718
FWRonnie Allen628
4FWWalter Aveyard606
5FWStan Palk303
FWGeorge King303
7MFMick Hulligan202
8FWLen Barber101
DFBasil Hayward101
DFReg Potts101
DFTommy Cheadle101
MFBill McGarry101
Own goals101
TOTALS47552

Transfers

Transfers in

Date fromPositionNationalityNameFromFeeRef.
May 1949 DF Ravenscliffe Free transfer [3]
May 1949 GK Free transfer
May 1949 DF Free transfer
July 1949 DF Free transfer
November 1949 FW £3,500
February 1950 FW Northwood Mission Free transfer
February 1950 MF Stoke City Free transfer
March 1950 FW Free transfer

Transfers out

Date fromPositionNationalityNameToFeeRef.
November 1949 MF Free transfer
February 1950 FW 'four-figure fee'
February 1950 FW Free transfer
March 1950 FW £20,000
April 1950 DF Released
April 1950 MF Free transfer

References

Specific
General

Notes and References

  1. Book: Kent, Jeff. The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale. Witan Books. 1990. 151–171. Creating Sunshine from the Shadows (1939–1950). 0-9508981-4-7.
  2. News: The first Vale Park match programme . 4 June 2020 . onevalefan.co.uk . 20 October 2013.
  3. Book: Kent, Jeff. Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. 1996. 0-9529152-0-0.