# 1999–2000 Port Vale F.C. season

The 1999–2000 season was Port Vale's 88th season of football in the English Football League, and sixth-successive season in the First Division. Vale suffered relegation in 23rd place, some thirteen points adrift of safety. They also exited the FA Cup in the Third Round and were knocked out of the League Cup in the First Round by fourth tier Chester City for the second consecutive season. The club spent nothing on transfers, but sold young players for some £1.5 million – despite this, the club was heading towards bankruptcy. The club continued to gain one generation of players at the expense of the successful '90s generation; Martin Foyle, Paul Musselwhite and Ian Bogie departing, with fresh talent such as Micky Cummins and Mark Goodlad arriving in their place.

## Overview
### First Division

The pre-season saw Brian Horton sign Jeff Minton (Brighton & Hove Albion), Tommy Widdrington (Grimsby Town), and Steve Rimmer (Manchester City) on free transfers. He also took Andy Oakes in on loan from Derby County and Matt Glennon from Bolton Wanderers as back-up goalkeepers, and striker Martin Aldridge on loan from Blackpool.
The season started with a goalless draw at Ewood Park with Blackburn Rovers, but soon went downhill with two defeats. Vale then entered inconsistent form, winning three and losing three in a run of six games. On 5 September, Vale beat Grimsby Town by three goals to one, with Bent scoring his first goal for the club. However, just two points from seven October games indicated Vale's future. Also in the month, striker Marcus Bent, signed by John Rudge nine months earlier for £375,000, was sold to Sheffield United for a bargain £300,000 and was later sold on by the "Blades" for a £1.7 million profit. The club set a record on 5 September, when just 3,737 turned up to see a 3–0 win over Grimsby Town – a division record low for a television match. The Vale ended the year in solid form, unbeaten in seven games, despite just two victories (over rivals Crewe Alexandra and against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane). In December, Carl Griffiths was sold back to former club Leyton Orient for £100,000.
In January, Horton signed defender Sagi Burton (Sheffield United) on a free transfer and signed Martin Bullock and Gareth Taylor on one-month loans from Barnsley and Manchester City respectively. Controversially, he also sold promising young defender Anthony Gardner to Tottenham Hotspur for £1 million. The next month David Healy would arrive on loan from Manchester United for the remainder of the season. Also, former international Ville Viljanen became the first Fin to play for the club when he joined from Västra Frölunda IF. In March, Horton made two key signings, bringing two young players that would be with the club for several years to come: Irish midfielder Micky Cummins (Middlesbrough) and goalkeeper Mark Goodlad (Nottingham Forest). He also sold Tony Butler to West Bromwich Albion for £140,000. During this transfer activity, Vale won just once in a sequence of seventeen games. A 2–0 win over Portsmouth on 1 April raised hopes of Vale escaping the drop, but Horton's side gained just three points in their final eight games, thus dooming Vale to third-tier football.
They finished in 23rd place with 36 points, a massive thirteen points away from the safety of West Bromwich Albion, and only ahead of Swindon Town on goals scored. With just seven victories, they had the fewest wins in the division. Tony Rougier only needed nine goals to become the club's top-scorer. The relegation meant that Brian Horton lost his 'proud record' of never being relegated as a player or as a manager.
At the end of the season numerous players were allowed to leave on free transfers: eight-year club veteran goalkeeper Paul Musselwhite (Hull City); five-year club favourite Ian Bogie (Kidderminster Harriers); Wayne Corden (Mansfield Town); Stewart Talbot (Rotherham United); Mark Snijders (AFC '34); Kevin Pilkington (Aberystwyth Town); and Steve Rimmer (Marine). Legendary striker Martin Foyle also retired after nine years as Vale's star striker. Simon Barker also retired at the age of 35. Meanwhile, the club's board increased to five members: Bill Bell (chairman), Andrew Bellfield, Paul Wright, Neil Hughes, and Charles Machin.

### Finances

The club's shirt sponsors were Tunstall Assurance.

### Cup competitions

In the FA Cup, Vale lost 2–0 to Premier League club Leeds United at Elland Road to exit the competition in the Third Round. Just 11,912 turned up for the game after the Vale board refused to allow a price reduction.
In the League Cup, for the second successive season Third Division Chester City knocked the Vale out at the First Round. In the 2–1 defeat at the Deva Stadium, both sides finished the game with ten men, and as the return leg was a 4–4 draw, Chester achieved a 6–5 aggregate win.

## League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Qualification or relegation |
| 20 | Grimsby Town | 46 | 13 | 12 | 21 | 41 | 67 | −26 | 51 | |
| 21 | West Bromwich Albion | 46 | 10 | 19 | 17 | 43 | 60 | −17 | 49 | |
| 22 | Walsall (R) | 46 | 11 | 13 | 22 | 52 | 77 | −25 | 46 | Relegation to the Second Division |
| 23 | Port Vale (R) | 46 | 7 | 15 | 24 | 48 | 69 | −21 | 36 | Relegation to the Second Division |
| 24 | Swindon Town (R) | 46 | 8 | 12 | 26 | 38 | 77 | −39 | 36 | Relegation to the Second Division |

## Results

Port Vale's score comes first

### Football League First Division
#### Results by matchday

| Round | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41 | 42 | 43 | 44 | 45 | 46 |
| Ground | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | A | H |
| Result | D | L | L | W | L | W | L | L | W | L | D | L | L | D | L | L | W | D | D | W | D | D | D | L | L | D | W | D | L | L | D | L | L | L | D | L | L | W | D | L | D | L | D | L | L | L |
| Position | 12 | 18 | 23 | 19 | 20 | 13 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 21 | 23 | 21 | 24 | 24 | 20 | 19 | 20 | 18 | 19 | 18 | 20 | 21 | 21 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 | 23 |

#### Matches

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 7 August 1999 | Blackburn Rovers | A | 0–0 | 20,530 | |
| 14 August 1999 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 1–2 | 7,891 | Minton (pen) |
| 21 August 1999 | Birmingham City | A | 2–4 | 18,089 | Rougier, Naylor |
| 28 August 1999 | Tranmere Rovers | H | 1–0 | 4,657 | Naylor |
| 31 August 1999 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 2–3 | 9,502 | Minton (pen), Gardner |
| 5 September 1999 | Grimsby Town | H | 3–1 | 3,737 | Bent, Naylor, Foyle |
| 11 September 1999 | Fulham | H | 0–2 | 6,130 | |
| 18 September 1999 | Stockport County | A | 0–1 | 7,632 | |
| 25 September 1999 | Swindon Town | H | 2–0 | 4,629 | Carragher, Talia (og.) |
| 2 October 1999 | Manchester City | A | 1–2 | 31,608 | Foyle |
| 9 October 1999 | Huddersfield Town | A | 2–2 | 11,885 | Gardner, Foyle |
| 16 October 1999 | Norwich City | H | 0–1 | 5,790 | |
| 19 October 1999 | Nottingham Forest | H | 0–2 | 5,714 | |
| 23 October 1999 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 2–2 | 20,488 | Walsh, Rougier |
| 26 October 1999 | Swindon Town | A | 1–2 | 5,703 | Rougier |
| 30 October 1999 | Manchester City | H | 1–2 | 10,250 | Foyle |
| 5 November 1999 | Crewe Alexandra | H | 1–0 | 5,584 | Rougier |
| 12 November 1999 | Walsall | A | 0–0 | 6,190 | |
| 20 November 1999 | Crystal Palace | H | 2–2 | 5,170 | Rougier, Foyle |
| 23 November 1999 | Sheffield United | A | 3–2 | 8,965 | Eyre, Tankard, Gardner |
| 27 November 1999 | Charlton Athletic | A | 2–2 | 19,266 | Rougier, Foyle |
| 4 December 1999 | Blackburn Rovers | H | 0–0 | 6,084 | |
| 18 December 1999 | Portsmouth | A | 0–0 | 11,869 | |
| 28 December 1999 | Barnsley | A | 1–3 | 16,855 | Minton |
| 3 January 2000 | Ipswich Town | H | 1–2 | 6,908 | Naylor |
| 15 January 2000 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 0–0 | 10,831 | |
| 22 January 2000 | Birmingham City | H | 3–1 | 7,702 | Naylor, Widdrington (pen), Rougier |
| 5 February 2000 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 1–1 | 5,493 | Bullock |
| 8 February 2000 | Bolton Wanderers | H | 0–1 | 5,092 | |
| 12 February 2000 | Grimsby Town | A | 0–2 | 6,265 | |
| 26 February 2000 | Stockport County | H | 1–1 | 5,663 | Widdrington |
| 4 March 2000 | Fulham | A | 1–3 | 10,418 | Healy |
| 7 March 2000 | Crewe Alexandra | A | 1–2 | 8,044 | Viljanen |
| 11 March 2000 | Sheffield United | H | 2–3 | 5,484 | Healy, Rougier |
| 18 March 2000 | Crystal Palace | A | 1–1 | 18,954 | Widdrington (pen) |
| 21 March 2000 | Walsall | H | 1–2 | 5,737 | Cummins |
| 25 March 2000 | Bolton Wanderers | A | 1–2 | 12,292 | Viljanen |
| 1 April 2000 | Portsmouth | H | 2–0 | 5,426 | Viljanen, Widdrington (pen) |
| 4 April 2000 | Charlton Athletic | H | 2–2 | 4,513 | Viljanen, Burton |
| 8 April 2000 | Ipswich Town | A | 0–3 | 19,663 | |
| 15 April 2000 | Barnsley | H | 2–2 | 5,918 | Burton, Widdrington (pen) |
| 18 April 2000 | Tranmere Rovers | A | 1–2 | 5,602 | Healy |
| 22 April 2000 | Norwich City | A | 0–0 | 15,526 | |
| 24 April 2000 | Huddersfield Town | H | 1–2 | 5,828 | Naylor |
| 29 April 2000 | Nottingham Forest | A | 0–2 | 15,534 | |
| 7 May 2000 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | 0–1 | 8,525 | |

### FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R3 | 12 December 1999 | Leeds United | A | 0–2 | 11,912 | |

### League Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 1st Leg | 10 August 1999 | Chester City | A | 1–2 | 2,102 | Rougier |
| R1 2nd Leg | 24 August 1999 | Chester City | H | 4–4 | 2,625 | Naylor (2), Minton, Griffiths |

## Player statistics
### Appearances and goals

| Pos. | # | Name | Football League | Football League | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Total | Total |
| Pos. | # | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| GK | 1 | Paul Musselwhite | 30 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 32 | 0 |
| DF | 2 | Michael Walsh | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 1 |
| DF | 3 | Allen Tankard | 35 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 37 | 1 |
| MF | 4 | Dave Brammer | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 31 | 0 |
| FW | 6 | Ville Viljanen | 14 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 4 |
| DF | 7 | Alex Smith | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| MF | 8 | Micky Cummins | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 1 |
| DF | 9 | Sagi Burton | 20 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 2 |
| MF | 10 | Jeff Minton | 23 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 26 | 4 |
| MF | 11 | Tommy Widdrington | 38 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 39 | 5 |
| FW | 12 | Tony Naylor | 36 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 39 | 8 |
| GK | 13 | Kevin Pilkington | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 0 |
| MF | 14 | Richard Eyre | 30 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 33 | 1 |
| FW | 15 | Martin Foyle | 22 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 24 | 6 |
| MF | 16 | Wayne Corden | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| MF | 17 | Tony Rougier | 38 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 41 | 9 |
| MF | 18 | George O'Callaghan | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 |
| DF | 19 | Matt Carragher | 37 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 39 | 1 |
| DF | 20 | Steve Rimmer | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| DF | 21 | Liam Burns | 24 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
| MF | 22 | Neil Brisco | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 0 |
| MF | 23 | Stewart Talbot | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| FW | 24 | David Healy | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 3 |
| MF | 25 | Ian Bogie | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 | 0 |
| GK | 26 | Mark Goodlad | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| DF | 27 | Mark Snijders | 21 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22 | 0 |
| DF | 28 | Paul Donnelly | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| MF | 29 | Stewart Clitheroe | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| FW | 30 | Anthony Tarr | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MF | 31 | Paul Taylor | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GK | 32 | Chris Gowen | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Players that left the club mid-season: |||||||||||
| DF | 5 | Tony Butler | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 |
| DF | 6 | Anthony Gardner | 26 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 29 | 3 |
| FW | 8 | Marcus Bent | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| MF | 8 | Martin Bullock | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
| FW | 9 | Carl Griffiths | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 1 |
| MF | 24 | Simon Barker | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 0 |
| DF | 24 | Gareth Taylor | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| GK | 26 | Andy Oakes | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| GK | 26 | Matt Glennon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| FW | 33 | Martin Aldridge | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 |

### Top scorers

| Place | Position | Nation | Number | Name | First Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Total |
| 1 | MF | Trinidad | 17 | Tony Rougier | 8 | 0 | 1 | 9 |
| 2 | FW | England | 12 | Tony Naylor | 6 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| 3 | FW | England | 15 | Martin Foyle | 6 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 4 | MF | England | 11 | Tommy Widdrington | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| – | FW | Finland | 6 | Ville Viljanen | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 6 | MF | England | 10 | Jeff Minton | 3 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| 7 | DF | England} | 6 | Anthony Gardner | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| – | FW | Northern Ireland | 24 | David Healy | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 9 | DF | Saint Kitts | 9 | Sagi Burton | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 10 | MF | England | 14 | Richard Eyre | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | DF | England | 3 | Allen Tankard | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | DF | England | 19 | Matt Carragher | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | FW | England | 8 | Marcus Bent | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | DF | England | 2 | Michael Walsh | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | MF | England | 8 | Martin Bullock | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | MF | Ireland | 8 | Micky Cummins | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | FW | England | 9 | Carl Griffiths | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| – | | – | – | Own goals | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | | | | TOTALS | 48 | 0 | 5 | 53 |

## Transfers
### Transfers in

| Date from | Position | Name | From | Fee |
| June 1999 | MF | Jeff Minton | Brighton & Hove Albion | Free transfer |
| June 1999 | DF | Steve Rimmer | Manchester City | Free transfer |
| June 1999 | MF | Tommy Widdrington | Grimsby Town | Free transfer |
| January 2000 | DF | Sagi Burton | Sheffield United | Free transfer |
| February 2000 | FW | Ville Viljanen | Västra Frölunda IF | Free transfer |
| March 2000 | MF | Micky Cummins | Middlesbrough | Free transfer |
| March 2000 | GK | Mark Goodlad | Nottingham Forest | Free transfer |

### Transfers out

| Date from | Position | Name | To | Fee |
| October 1999 | FW | Marcus Bent | Sheffield United | £375,000 |
| December 1999 | FW | Carl Griffiths | Leyton Orient | £100,000 |
| January 2000 | DF | Anthony Gardner | Tottenham Hotspur | £1 million |
| March 2000 | DF | Tony Butler | West Bromwich Albion | £140,000 |
| April 2000 | MF | Ian Bogie | Kidderminster Harriers | Free transfer |
| May 2000 | MF | Simon Barker | Retired | Retired |
| May 2000 | DF | Steve Rimmer | Marine | Released |
| July 2000 | MF | Stewart Talbot | Rotherham United | Free transfer |
| Summer 2000 | MF | Wayne Corden | Mansfield Town | Free transfer |
| Summer 2000 | FW | Martin Foyle | Retired | Retired |
| Summer 2000 | GK | Paul Musselwhite | Sheffield Wednesday | Free transfer |
| Summer 2000 | GK | Kevin Pilkington | Aberystwyth Town | Free transfer |
| Summer 2000 | DF | Mark Snijders | AFC '34 | Released |
| 11 August 2000 | MF | Tony Rougier | Reading | £325,000 |

### Loans in

| Date from | Position | Name | From | Date to |
| 20 August 1999 | GK | Andy Oakes | Derby County | 10 September 1999 |
| 10 September 1999 | GK | Matt Glennon | Bolton Wanderers | 20 October 1999 |
| 27 September 1999 | FW | Martin Aldridge | Blackpool | 27 October 1999 |
| 11 January 2000 | MF | Martin Bullock | Barnsley | 28 February 2000 |
| 19 January 2000 | FW | Gareth Taylor | Manchester City | 16 February 2000 |
| 19 February 2000 | MF | David Healy | Manchester United | 8 May 2000 |