1919–20 Port Vale F.C. season

Port Vale

1919–20 season
Chairman	Frank Huntbach
Secretary-manager	Tom Holford Joe Schofield (from March)
Stadium	Old Recreation Ground
Football League Second Division	13th (40 Points)
FA Cup	First Round (knocked out by Manchester United)
Staffordshire Senior Cup	Champions
North Staffordshire Infirmary Cup	Champions (shared with Stoke)
Top goalscorer	League: Bobby Blood (24) All: Bobby Blood (26)
Highest home attendance	22,697 vs Stoke, 6 March 1920
Lowest home attendance	3,000 vs Stockport County, 8 April 1920
Average home league attendance	11,247+
Biggest win	4–0 (three games)
Biggest defeat	0–4 vs. Fulham, 1 May 1920
Home colours
← 1918–19 1920–21 →

The 1919–20 season was Port Vale's first season of football back in the English Football League (their 14th overall following their brief 1892–96 and 1898–1907 spells in the league).^[1] Following Leeds City's expulsion in October 1919, the club was elected to fill their position in the Second Division. This season also saw the introduction of the club's nickname, "the Valiants," coined by chairman Frank Huntbach. Managed by Tom Holford until March, he was succeeded by Joe Schofield, who would go on to serve as secretary-manager throughout the decade. The team played their home matches at the Old Recreation Ground and finished 13th in the 22-team league, accumulating 40 points from 42 matches.

A standout feature of the season was the prolific performance of forward Bobby Blood, who netted 24 league goals and 26 in all competitions, making him the club's top scorer. His contributions were instrumental in Vale's mid-table finish, providing a solid foundation in their first full season back in the league. The club also achieved success in cup competitions, lifting the Staffordshire Senior Cup and sharing the North Staffordshire Infirmary Cup with Potteries derby rivals Stoke.

The season's highlights included three 4–0 victories, showcasing the team's attacking prowess. However, they also suffered a heavy 4–0 defeat to Fulham in their final match of the season, highlighting areas for improvement. Despite these fluctuations, the team's performance was commendable for a club re-establishing itself in the Football League.

In terms of attendance, the club attracted an average home crowd of approximately 11,247, with the highest recorded attendance being 22,697 for the local derby against Stoke on 6 March 1920. This strong support underscored the community's enthusiasm for the club's return to league football. Overall, the 1919–20 season was a positive step in Port Vale's re-entry into the Football League, setting the stage for future growth and success.

Following Port Vale's resignation from the English Football League in 1907 and Stoke's resignation the years after, Staffordshire had been without representation in the league for eleven years. Following the end of the Great War, the Football League was organised back into its national form.^[1] In March 1919, Stoke, West Ham United, South Shields, Rotherham County, and Coventry City all gained re-election to the league – Port Vale were short by just one vote.^[1]

In the Central League, Vale had won five of their eight games against the reserve sides of Football League First Division clubs Aston Villa, Manchester United, Manchester City, Everton, Blackburn Rovers, and the reserve side of Second Division Huddersfield Town.^[1] They lost the match against Manchester United after a rail strike meant they travelled to Old Trafford in taxi cabs.^[1]

On 13 October 1919, Leeds City were expelled from the Football League over illegal payments to their players.^[1] Port Vale were elected to fill their spot (ahead of a bid from Tranmere Rovers).^[1] The club who had competed their 1906–07 season in the North Staffordshire Church League had taken the Port Vale name and played their way to the second tier of the national league within twelve years.^[1]

Port Vale's reserve side fulfilled the remaining fixtures in the Central League. Leeds City had already played their games against Blackpool, Coventry City, Hull City, and Wolverhampton Wanderers, leaving Vale with a solid starting point of ten points from eight matches.^[1]

The club had built a strong side for the 1919–20 Central League campaign, signing skilful forward William Aitken and former Scotland international Peter Pursell from Rangers.^[1]

Back in the Second Division, the club faced a battle to register their players in time for the nine-hour trip to South Shields, where they lost 2–0.^[1] Two defeats to eventual champions Tottenham Hotspur followed, before the club scored their first goal, and picked up their first win against South Shields on 10 November thanks to an Aaron Lockett strike.^[1] The club signed Bobby Blood from Leek United for £50 to bolster their strike force. The player had one leg shorter than the other and was riddled with bullets from his valiant efforts in the First World War. Yet, he would still prove the doctors wrong who said he would never play football again.^[1] The win against South Shields initiated a run of three wins in five games. It was around this time that chairman Frank Huntbach instilled the club with the official nickname of "The Valiants". However, this was followed by a streak of seven games without victory.^[1]

Vale had settled in the league by January, despite going four goals down at Fulham on New Year's Day, they pulled back three goals to make the final score respectable. Billy Fitchford was seen as a vital influence as the team recorded just one defeat in eight games from mid-January. The first away win came at Nottingham Forest on 18 February. Ten days later, Blood scored all four goals in a 4–2 victory over Rotherham County after having previously claimed a hat-trick in a 4–1 win over Nottingham Forest. They faced Potteries derby rivals Stoke for the first time in the Football League on 6 March, losing 3–0 in front of the biggest attendance in the history of the Old Recreation Ground. Seven days later, Vale went to Stoke to claim a point in front of 27,000 fans.^[1]

Joe Schofield was hired as secretary-manager in March. They opened April with a 4–0 win at Stockport County, though they lost three of their final four games. At the end of the season, Vale finished with 40 points, 30 of which came from their efforts and 10 from Leeds City.^[1] Easily, the club's top scorer was Bobby Blood with 26 goals, 24 of which were in the league (Second Division).^[1] Blood was playing in the Football League for the first time at the age of 25. Billy Briscoe scored eight goals in seven Central League games but failed to transfer this success to the Football League.^[1] "The Placer", writing in The Staffordshire Sentinel, reported that the club had three outstanding players: goalscorer Blood, "consistently fine half-back" Tom Holford, and the skillful Peter Pursell. All first-team players were retained, except for Billy Aitken, who was sold to Newcastle United.^[1]

Financially, the club were on much better terms than twelve years ago, with even practice matches well attended and supporters groups busy raising cash to improve the Old Recreation Ground.^[1] Seats were priced between one and two shillings.^[1] The club had also made almost £700 on their 1918–19 Central League season.^[1] In 1919–20, they recorded a profit of almost £650.^[1]

The club qualified for the FA Cup by easily dispatching Central Alliance side Loughborough Corinthians 4–0.^[1] In the first round the Vale put up a brave fight against Manchester United, going out 1–0 in front of almost 15,000 supporters – thanks in part due to a great performance from opposition keeper Jack Mew, who remained unphased by constant attempts from the home fans to put him off his game.^[1]

The club lifted the Staffordshire Senior Cup for the first time in their history, dispatching Stoke Reserves 1–0 in the first round, before an epic semi-final with West Bromwich Albion Reserves that was settled after three replays with a Bobby Blood penalty.^[1] Billy Fitchford scored the only goal in the final against Birmingham Reserves at the Victoria Ground.^[1]

The annual North Staffordshire Infirmary Cup game finished goalless, so the trophy was shared with Stoke.^[1] The match raised £309 for the local hospital.^[2]

Win

Draw

Loss

Pos	Team v t e	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GAv	Pts
11	Hull City	42	18	6	18	78	72	1.083	42
12	Barnsley	42	15	10	17	61	55	1.109	40
13	Port Vale (Leeds City)[a]	42	16	8	18	59	62	0.952	40
14	Leicester City	42	15	10	17	41	61	0.672	40
15	Clapton Orient	42	16	6	20	51	59	0.864	38

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

Pos.	Name	Football League		FA Cup		Other		Total
		Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
GK	Jonathan Hammond	2	0	0	0	9	0	11	0
GK	Alfred Bourne	32	0	2	0	6	0	40	0
FB	Edgar Bentley	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
FB	Peter Pursell	33	0	2	0	14	0	49	0
FB	Tom Lyons	32	0	2	1	13	0	47	1
FB	Percy Ellis	12	0	0	0	3	0	15	0
FB	Ben Marsden	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
HB	Tommy Sinclair	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
HB	Arthur McGarry	30	0	2	0	13	0	45	0
HB	Andie Newton	14	0	2	0	6	0	22	0
HB	Ernest Perry	26	1	2	0	6	0	34	1
HB	Tom Holford	26	0	0	0	11	2	37	2
HB	Joe Brough	22	4	1	2	2	0	25	6
FW	Robert Waine	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
FW	James Wootton	19	0	2	0	9	1	30	1
FW	Archie Dyke	0	0	0	0	2	0	2	0
FW	Billy Fitchford	19	2	2	0	9	2	30	4
FW	James Hill	15	1	0	0	6	1	21	2
FW	Albert Broadhouse	4	0	2	0	8	1	14	1
FW	George Shelton	2	0	0	0	0	0	2	0
FW	Harry Wainwright	4	0	0	0	0	0	4	0
FW	Alfred Manning	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
FW	Albert Pearson	0	0	0	0	6	0	6	0
FW	Aaron Lockett	9	3	0	0	5	2	14	5
FW	Billy Briscoe	12	2	0	0	13	8	25	10
FW	William Aitken	30	4	1	0	13	5	44	9
FW	Bobby Blood	28	24	2	1	2	0	32	26
FW	Dick Burgess	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Place	Position	Nation	Name	Second Division	FA Cup	Other	Total
1	FW	England	Bobby Blood	24	1	1	26
2	FW	England	Billy Briscoe	2	0	8	10
3	FW	Scotland	William Aitken	4	0	5	9
4	HB	England	Joe Brough	4	2	0	6
5	FW	England	Aaron Lockett	3	0	2	5
6	FW	England	Billy Fitchford	2	0	2	4
7	FW	England	James Hill	1	0	1	2
–	FW	England	Tom Holford	0	0	2	2
9	FW		Albert Broadhouse	0	0	1	1
–	HB	England	Ernest Perry	1	0	0	1
–	FW	England	James Wootton	0	0	1	1
–	FW	England	Tom Lyons	0	1	0	1
–	–	–	Leeds City	17	0	0	17
–	–	–	Own goals	1	0	0	1
			TOTALS	59	4	23	86

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	From	Fee	Ref.
Summer 1919	FW		William Aitken	Rangers	£500	[3]
Summer 1919	FB		Percy Ellis	Walsall	Free transfer	[3]
August 1919	FW		Archie Dyke	Aston Villa	Free transfer	[3]
August 1919	HB		Ernest Perry	Stoke	Free transfer	[3]
August 1919	FB		Peter Pursell	Rangers	£2,500	[3]
August 1919	FW		James Wootton	Leek Alexandra	Free transfer	[3]
September 1919	FW		Aaron Lockett	Stafford Rangers	Free transfer	[3]
November 1919	FW		Bobby Blood	Leek United	£50	[3]
December 1919	FW		Harry Wainwright	Highfields	Free transfer	[3]
January 1920	FW		John Davis	Bredbury United	Free transfer	[3]
April 1920	HB		Jack Mellor	New Mills	Free transfer	[3]

Date from	Position	Nationality	Name	To	Fee	Ref.
October 1919	FW		Archie Dyke	Stafford Rangers	Free transfer	[3]
May 1920	FW		William Aitken	Newcastle United	£2,500	[3]
Summer 1920	FB		Edgar Bentley		Released	[3]
Summer 1920	FW		Albert Broadhouse		Released	[3]
Summer 1920	FW		Aaron Lockett	Audley	Released	[3]
Summer 1920	FW		Alfred Manning	Shildon	Free transfer	[3]
Summer 1920	HB		Andie Newton	Southend United	Released	[3]
Summer 1920	FW		George Shelton		Released	[3]
Summer 1920	FW		Harry Wainwright	Highfields	Released	[3]

Specific

General

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