1898–99 Burslem Port Vale F.C. season
The 1898–99 season was Burslem Port Vale's fifth season of football in the English Football League; it followed a two-season absence, which the club spent in the Midland Football League.[1] A solid return to the Football League, they finished in mid-table. They had the strongest defence in the division as they conceded less goals than any other team in the division. It was instead a lack of firepower in front of goal that prevented a push for promotion.
1898–99 season | ||
---|---|---|
Chairman | Robert Audley | |
Manager | Sam Gleaves | |
Stadium | Athletic Ground | |
Football League Second Division | 9th (39 Points) | |
FA Cup | Fifth Qualifying Round (knocked out by Small Heath) | |
Birmingham Senior Cup | Runners-up (knocked out by Aston Villa) | |
Staffordshire Senior Cup | Semi-final (knocked out by Walsall) | |
Top goalscorer | League: James Peake (11) All: James Peake (17) | |
Highest home attendance | 12,000 vs Manchester City, 1 April 1899 | |
Lowest home attendance | 1,000 vs Gainsborough Trinity, 26 November 1898 | |
Average home league attendance | 4,500+ | |
Biggest win | 5–0 (twice) and 6–1 | |
Biggest defeat | 0–7 vs. Small Heath, 10 December 1898 | |
| ||
Winning their opening six league games, just two points gained from their final five games ensured a top two position was out of their reach. Safety from the lottery of re-election was never in doubt though, as they finished nineteen points above the re-election places. Over the next eight seasons they never bettered their league finish of 1898–99, though they twice equalled it.
Overview
Second Division
Their FA Cup win over First Division champions Sheffield United in 1897–98 won Vale the respect (and votes) they needed to win re-election to the Football League for 1898–99.[1][2] To ensure a competitive campaign they signed striker Howard Harvey from Aston Villa for £50.[1] Winning their opening six league games, the semi-professional side conceded just one goal in this run. However Tommy Clare broke a leg at their final win of the streak of six, and their run ended at Newton Heath the following week – the team badly missed Clare.[1] Their fading hopes of promotion were bolstered by four wins in January, including a 6–1 win over Blackpool aided by a four-goal haul from James Peake.[1] Yet they finished the season with two points from five games, dropping into ninth place – their lowest position all season.[1]
Of the two clubs that failed to gain re-election, Darwen, who picked up a League record eighteen consecutive defeats, played regional football for the rest of their existence; whereas Blackpool gained re-election at the end of the following season, and never lost their League status again.
Right-half Lucien Boullemier was an ever-present throughout the campaign, with goalkeeper Herbert Birchenough missing just one game.[1] Winger Billy Heames and forward Howard Harvey rarely missed a game between them.[1]
Finances
Financially, the club lost £300 over the season.[1]
Cup competitions
Defending champions of the Staffordshire Senior Cup, Vale reached the semi-final, where they lost 4–0 to Walsall in a replay.[1] In the Birmingham Senior Cup, they defeated Walsall in the semi-final, in a replay, going on to lose 4–0 to Aston Villa in the final.[1] In the FA Cup they were turned over 7–0 at Small Heath in the qualification rounds.[1]
League table
Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GAv | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
7 | Woolwich Arsenal | 34 | 18 | 5 | 11 | 72 | 41 | 1.756 | 41 |
8 | Small Heath | 34 | 17 | 7 | 10 | 85 | 50 | 1.700 | 41 |
9 | Burslem Port Vale[lower-alpha 1] | 34 | 17 | 5 | 12 | 56 | 34 | 1.647 | 39 |
10 | Grimsby Town | 34 | 15 | 5 | 14 | 71 | 60 | 1.183 | 35 |
11 | Barnsley[lower-alpha 1] | 34 | 12 | 7 | 15 | 52 | 56 | 0.929 | 31 |
Notes:
- New club in the league
Results
Burslem Port Vale's score comes first
Football League Second Division
Results by matchday
Matches
Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
3 September 1898 | Barnsley | H | 2–0 | 4,000 | Peake, Evans |
5 September 1898 | Woolwich Arsenal | H | 3–0 | 5,000 | Evans (2), unknown |
10 September 1898 | Small Heath | A | 2–1 | 5,500 | Evans, Peake |
17 September 1898 | Loughborough | H | 3–0 | 5,000 | Peake (2), Simpson |
24 September 1898 | Blackpool | A | 4–0 | 1,000 | Peake (2), Harvey, Beech |
1 October 1898 | Grimsby Town | H | 2–0 | 6,000 | Simpson, Evans |
8 October 1898 | Newton Heath | A | 1–2 | 10,000 | Simpson |
15 October 1898 | New Brighton Tower | H | 0–0 | 5,000 | |
22 October 1898 | Lincoln City | A | 0–1 | 4,000 | |
5 November 1898 | Luton Town | A | 1–0 | 2,000 | Evans |
12 November 1898 | Leicester Fosse | H | 0–2 | 4,000 | |
26 November 1898 | Gainsborough Trinity | H | 2–1 | 1,000 | Evans, Harvey |
3 December 1898 | Manchester City | A | 1–3 | 6,000 | Peake |
17 December 1898 | Walsall | A | 1–1 | 3,000 | Evans |
24 December 1898 | Burton Swifts | H | 4–1 | 2,000 | Beckett (2), Harvey, Beech |
31 December 1898 | Barnsley | A | 1–2 | 1,000 | Evans |
2 January 1899 | Darwen | A | 3–1 | 400 | Harvey (2), Mitchell |
7 January 1899 | Small Heath | H | 1–0 | 5,000 | Beckett |
14 January 1899 | Loughborough | A | 3–0 | 2,000 | Evans, Harvey, Beckett |
21 January 1899 | Blackpool | H | 6–1 | Peake (4), Beech, Beckett | |
28 January 1899 | Burton Swifts | A | 0–2 | 500 | |
4 February 1899 | Newton Heath | H | 1–0 | 6,000 | Belfield |
11 February 1899 | New Brighton Tower | A | 0–1 | 2,000 | |
18 February 1899 | Lincoln City | H | 2–1 | 3,000 | Harvey, Beech |
21 February 1899 | Grimsby Town | A | 1–3 | 2,500 | Beckett |
25 February 1899 | Woolwich Arsenal | A | 0–1 | 6,000 | |
4 March 1899 | Luton Town | H | 4–1 | 4,000 | McDonald (3), Simpson |
11 March 1899 | Leicester Fosse | A | 1–1 | 9,000 | Harvey |
18 March 1899 | Darwen | H | 3–1 | Harvey, Beckett, McDonald | |
25 March 1899 | Gainsborough Trinity | A | 2–3 | Simpson, Beckett | |
1 April 1899 | Manchester City | H | 1–1 | 12,000 | Heames |
3 April 1899 | Glossop North End | H | 1–2 | 4,000 | Beckett |
8 April 1899 | Glossop North End | A | 0–0 | 3,500 | |
15 April 1899 | Walsall | H | 0–1 | 1,500 |
FA Cup
Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
3Q | 29 October 1898 | Wellington Town | H | 5–0 | 1,000 | Peake (2), Evans (2), Price |
4Q | 19 November 1898 | Burton Wanderers | H | 3–0 | 1,500 | Peake, Simpson, Harvey |
5Q | 10 December 1898 | Small Heath | A | 0–7 | 7,000 |
Birmingham Senior Cup
Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 19 December 1898 | Leicester Fosse | H | 5–0 | 800 | Harvey (2), McDonald (2), rush |
BYE | ||||||
BYE | ||||||
SF | 13 March 1899 | Walsall | N | 1–1 | 4,000 | McDonald |
Replay | 20 March 1899 | Walsall | N | 2–0 | 1,000 | Harvey, Mitchell |
Final | 27 March 1899 | Aston Villa | A | 0–4 | 3,634 |
Staffordshire Senior Cup
Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 19 September 1898 | Burton Wanderers | H | 1–1 | 3,000+ | Peake |
Replay | 26 September 1898 | Burton Wanderers | A | 4–0 | 4,000 | Peake, Evans, Spilsbury, Simpson |
SF | 21 November 1898 | Walsall | H | 1–1 | 2,000 | Peake |
Replay | 26 December 1898 | Walsall | A | 0–4 | 7,000 |
Player statistics
Appearances
Pos. | Name | League | FA Cup | Other | Total | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
GK | Herbert Birchenough | 33 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 44 | 0 |
DF | S.E. Bayley | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
DF | Jim Beech | 31 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 40 | 4 |
DF | Lucien Boullemier | 34 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 45 | 0 |
DF | John Bowman | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
DF | Tommy Clare | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 16 | 0 |
DF | George Hulme | 8 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 13 | 0 |
DF | Tom McFarlane | 22 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 27 | 0 |
DF | Henry Platt | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
DF | Thomas Spilsbury | 15 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 21 | 1 |
DF | Frank Stokes | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
MF | Billy Heames | 33 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 43 | 1 |
MF | Charles Hodgkinson | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
MF | Ted McDonald | 30 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 39 | 7 |
FW | Danny Simpson | 17 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 22 | 7 |
FW | George Price | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
FW | James Peake | 22 | 11 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 28 | 17 |
FW | Frank Mitchell | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 8 | 2 |
FW | Tommy Lander | 16 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 22 | 0 |
FW | Howard Harvey | 32 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 3 | 41 | 13 |
FW | Dick Evans | 23 | 10 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 30 | 13 |
FW | R.H. Capener | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
FW | Fred Belfield | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
FW | Ernest Beckett | 21 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 26 | 9 |
Top scorers
Place | Position | Nation | Name | Second Division | FA Cup | Other | Total |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | FW | James Peake | 11 | 3 | 3 | 17 | |
2 | FW | England | Howard Harvey | 9 | 1 | 3 | 13 |
– | FW | England | Dick Evans | 10 | 2 | 1 | 13 |
4 | FW | Ernest Beckett | 9 | 0 | 0 | 9 | |
5 | MF | England | Ted McDonald | 4 | 0 | 3 | 7 |
– | FW | England | Danny Simpson | 5 | 1 | 1 | 7 |
7 | DF | Jim Beech | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | |
8 | FW | Frank Mitchell | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
9 | MF | England | Billy Heames | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
– | FW | England | Fred Belfield | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
– | FW | England | George Price | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
– | DF | England | Thomas Spilsbury | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
– | – | – | Rush | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
– | – | – | Unknown | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
TOTALS | 56 | 8 | 14 | 78 |
Transfers
Transfers in
Date from | Position | Nationality | Name | From | Fee | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
June 1898 | FW | Howard Harvey | Aston Villa | £50 | [4] | |
Summer 1898 | DF | Tommy Clare | Manchester City | Free transfer | [4] | |
August 1898 | FW | Ernest Beckett | Newcastle Swifts | Free transfer | [4] | |
August 1898 | DF | Tom McFarlane | Hibernian | Free transfer | [4] | |
October 1898 | DF | Frank Stokes) | Burslem Park | Free transfer | [4] | |
February 1899 | DF | John Bowman | Burslem Park | Free transfer | [4] |
Transfers out
Date from | Position | Nationality | Name | To | Fee | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Summer 1899 | FW | James Peake | Millwall Athletic | Free transfer | [4] | |
Summer 1899 | FW | Ernest Beckett | Released | [4] | ||
Summer 1899 | MF | Fred Belfield | Released | [4] | ||
Summer 1899 | DF | John Bowman | Stoke | Free transfer | [4] | |
Summer 1899 | FW | R.H. Capener | Released | [4] | ||
Summer 1899 | FW | Dick Evans | Reading | Free transfer | [4] | |
Summer 1899 | MF | Charles Hodgkinson | Released | [4] | ||
Summer 1899 | DF | George Hulme | Released | [4] | ||
Summer 1899 | FW | Frank Mitchell | Released | [4] | ||
Summer 1899 | DF | Henry Platt | Released | [4] | ||
Summer 1899 | MF | Jos Randles | Retired | [4] |
References
- Specific
- Kent, Jeff (1990). "The Hopeless Struggle (1898-1907)". The Valiants' Years: The Story Of Port Vale. Witan Books. pp. 50–70. ISBN 0-9508981-4-7.
- "Vale revel in FA Cup glory". The Sentinel. 29 November 2012. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
- Port Vale 1898–1899 : Results & Fixtures Archived 19 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine. Statto Organisation. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
- Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0.
- General
- Kent, Jeff (1993). The Port Vale Record 1879-1993. Witan Books. ISBN 0-9508981-9-8.