# 2001–02 Port Vale F.C. season

The 2001–02 season was Port Vale's 90th season of football in the English Football League and second-successive season (39th overall) in the Second Division. On the pitch, Vale finished in mid-table whilst exiting both the FA Cup and the League Cup in the second round, and the Football League Trophy at the Area Quarter-finals. Behind the scenes, the club was heading for administration.

## Overview
### Second Division

The pre-season saw Brian Horton sign numerous bit-part players on free transfers: Ashley Dodd (Manchester United); Ian Armstrong (Liverpool); Phil Hardy (an eleven-year Wrexham veteran); Rae Ingram (Macclesfield Town); and Alex Gibson (Stoke City). He also signed Stephen McPhee from Coventry City, who would go on to become a key player for the club.
The season opened with six points from three games, with the sequence concluding with a 4–1 win over Peterborough United, after which Horton said that "I hope we don't start thinking every game will be a four-goal stroll because it won't be". This was followed by just one point from six games, in September, after failing to secure Paul Hall's signature, New Zealand international striker Chris Killen was signed on loan from Manchester City. Simon Osborn also joined from Wolverhampton Wanderers on a one-month contract, before he moved on to Gillingham. On 5 October, Vale won 5–0 at home to Cambridge United, with Killen scoring a brace and collecting an assist. Steve Torpey was allowed to join Scarborough on a one-month loan. Arriving in Burslem was Sean McClare, who joined on a one-month loan from Barnsley, before signing permanently when the loan deal finished. Frenchman Johan Gallon also had a trial at the club but was not offered a contract. On 21 October, Vale played rivals Stoke City, and McPhee scored for Vale, before Chris Iwelumo buried a late equaliser for the "Potters". The next month Danny Webber was taken in on loan from Manchester United.
Vale continued through the Christmas period in inconsistent form, despite the arrival of 36-year-old John Durnin. In January, Mvondo Atangana became the first Cameroonian to play for the Vale, when he joined on loan from Dundee United – he would only play two games before picking up a serious injury. Meanwhile, Richard Burgess was allowed to join Nuneaton Borough permanently. On 22 January, Vale recorded a 3–2 victory over Oldham Athletic with Marc Bridge-Wilkinson marking his return from a five-month injury layoff with the assist for McPhee's winning goal. Vale then went on a sequence of seven wins in eight games to shoot up the table, including a 1–0 win over Stoke at the Britannia Stadium thanks to a Micky Cummins header, as Horton was named Manager of the Month. The 23,019 attendance at Stoke was the highest at any match in the division during the season. In contrast, the lowest attendance figure was 2,379, who saw a 1–0 win at Cambridge United three days later. This run raised hopes of a play-off bid. It also encouraged chairman Bill Bell to offer new contracts to the management team (Horton, Grew, Foyle and Glover), as well as seven players. Horton was also awarded the Manager of the Month award for February. However, Vale finished poorly, winning just one of their final eleven games.
Vale finished in fourteenth place with 58 points, quite some distance from either the play-offs or the relegation zone. The team lost 14 of their 23 league games away from home. Stoke finished nine places and 22 points above the Vale and won promotion via the play-offs, never to meet the Vale again for the rest of the decade. McPhee hit fourteen goals to become the club's top-scorer, with Brooker and Cummins close behind in the scoring charts. Cummins was also an ever-present. Overworked goalkeeper Mark Goodlad was voted Player of the Year.
At the end of the season, numerous players were allowed to leave on free transfers: Sagi Burton (Crewe Alexandra); George O'Callaghan (Cork City); Danny Maye (Southend United); Paul Donnelly (Stone Dominoes); Steve Torpey (Prescot Cables); and Phil Hardy. Durnin also turned his hand to coaching, and was appointed as the club's under-17 coach.

### Finances

The collapse of ITV Digital cost the club £400,000 in revenue. Chairman Bill Bell announced a 30% cut in the players' wage budget at the end of the campaign. These ominous warnings belied a financial crisis that would hit the club hard the following season. In August, former chairman Jim Lloyd returned to the club as a director. The next month, Chief Executive Dave Jolley was sacked. A Charles Machin-led consortium made a £1 million bid for the club in December but was turned away by Bill Bell, who claimed that Valiant2001 "won't last three months". Later that month, former commercial director Neil Hughes was arrested for fraud allegedly stealing £20,000 from the club, but he denied the offence. The club's debt stood at £1.7 million in February. The next month, the Football Association's compliance unit began investigating the club but found no wrongdoing. The club's shirt sponsors were Tunstall Assurance.

### Cup competitions

In the FA Cup, Vale avoided losing to a non-League club for the second successive season by beating Aylesbury United 3–0 at Vale Park. They had been held by the "Ducks" 0–0 at half-time, and the non-League side seemed to have taken the lead on 52 minutes until captain Scott Honeyball's headed goal was disallowed for an infringement; Burgess then put the Vale ahead two minutes later before Cummins and Brooker made the game safe. They exited at the second round after a 3–0 defeat to Cardiff City at Ninian Park.
In the League Cup, for the second consecutive season, Vale faced Third Division Chesterfield in the first round, this time, however, the two-legged format was scrapped in favour of a standard knock-out tournament structure. Vale progressed with a 2–1 win thanks to a brace from McPhee. It was a bad-tempered affair, with three sendings-off. Facing Premier League Charlton Athletic at The Valley in the second round, Alan Curbishley's men eliminated the Vale with a 2–0 win.
In the Football League Trophy, Vale advanced past Carlisle United and Rochdale to reach the Area Quarter-finals. where they faced Hull City at Boothferry Park. The "Tigers" eliminated the "Valiants" with a 2–1 win.

## League table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 12 | Tranmere Rovers | 46 | 16 | 15 | 15 | 63 | 60 | +3 | 63 |
| 13 | Swindon Town | 46 | 15 | 14 | 17 | 46 | 56 | −10 | 59 |
| 14 | Port Vale | 46 | 16 | 10 | 20 | 51 | 62 | −11 | 58 |
| 15 | Colchester United | 46 | 15 | 12 | 19 | 65 | 76 | −11 | 57 |
| 16 | Blackpool | 46 | 14 | 14 | 18 | 66 | 69 | −3 | 56 |

## Results

Port Vale's score comes first

### Football League Second 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 | H | A | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | H | A | A | H | A | H | A | H |
| Result | W | L | W | L | L | D | L | L | L | W | L | W | D | D | L | W | W | L | D | D | D | L | L | W | W | L | L | W | W | W | D | W | W | W | W | L | L | L | D | L | D | W | L | D | L | L |
| Position | 3 | 10 | 6 | 11 | 13 | 15 | 15 | 19 | 19 | 18 | 19 | 16 | 18 | 17 | 18 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 19 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 17 | 16 | 14 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 14 |

#### Matches

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 11 August 2001 | Notts County | H | 4–2 | 6,076 | O'Callaghan (2), McPhee, Dodd |
| 18 August 2001 | Brentford | A | 0–2 | 4,561 | |
| 25 August 2001 | Peterborough United | H | 4–1 | 4,925 | Hardy, Cummins, Brooker, McPhee |
| 27 August 2001 | Colchester United | A | 0–2 | 3,611 | |
| 1 September 2001 | Reading | H | 0–2 | 5,196 | |
| 8 September 2001 | Bristol City | A | 1–1 | 12,560 | O'Callaghan |
| 15 September 2001 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 1–4 | 9,295 | Brooker |
| 18 September 2001 | Swindon Town | H | 0–2 | 3,737 | |
| 22 September 2001 | Northampton Town | H | 0–1 | 4,419 | |
| 25 September 2001 | Wrexham | A | 3–1 | 3,091 | McPhee (2), Killen |
| 29 September 2001 | Wycombe Wanderers | A | 1–3 | 5,714 | Killen |
| 5 October 2001 | Cambridge United | H | 5–0 | 4,119 | Killen (2), Cummins, Armstrong, Brooker |
| 13 October 2001 | Chesterfield | A | 1–1 | 4,348 | Brooker |
| 21 October 2001 | Stoke City | H | 1–1 | 10,344 | McPhee |
| 24 October 2001 | Cardiff City | H | 0–2 | 4,552 | |
| 27 October 2001 | Wigan Athletic | A | 1–0 | 5,634 | Killen |
| 3 November 2001 | Bury | H | 1–0 | 4,688 | Killen |
| 10 November 2001 | Brighton & Hove Albion | A | 0–1 | 6,648 | |
| 20 November 2001 | Bournemouth | A | 0–0 | 4,428 | |
| 24 November 2001 | Huddersfield Town | H | 1–1 | 5,026 | Cummins |
| 1 December 2001 | Blackpool | H | 1–1 | 5,390 | Cummins |
| 15 December 2001 | Tranmere Rovers | A | 1–3 | 7,859 | Cummins |
| 21 December 2001 | Oldham Athletic | A | 0–2 | 4,317 | |
| 26 December 2001 | Bristol City | H | 1–0 | 5,682 | McPhee |
| 29 December 2001 | Colchester United | H | 3–1 | 4,444 | Armstrong, Rowland, Brooker |
| 1 January 2002 | Reading | A | 0–2 | 10,743 | |
| 8 January 2002 | Peterborough United | A | 0–3 | 3,747 | |
| 12 January 2002 | Brentford | H | 2–1 | 4,588 | McPhee (pen), Armstrong |
| 19 January 2002 | Notts County | A | 3–1 | 6,006 | Brooker (2), McPhee (pen) |
| 22 January 2002 | Oldham Athletic | H | 3–2 | 4,408 | McClare, Brooker, McPhee |
| 2 February 2002 | Wycombe Wanderers | H | 1–1 | 4,737 | Durnin |
| 10 February 2002 | Stoke City | A | 1–0 | 23,019 | Cummins |
| 13 February 2002 | Cambridge United | A | 1–0 | 2,379 | McPhee |
| 16 February 2002 | Chesterfield | H | 4–1 | 5,529 | Cummins (2), Bridge-Wilkinson (2) |
| 23 February 2002 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 1–0 | 6,228 | Bridge-Wilkinson |
| 26 February 2002 | Northampton Town | A | 0–1 | 5,155 | |
| 2 March 2002 | Swindon Town | A | 0–3 | 5,867 | |
| 5 March 2002 | Wrexham | H | 1–3 | 4,436 | McPhee |
| 9 March 2002 | Tranmere Rovers | H | 1–1 | 4,630 | Bridge-Wilkinson |
| 16 March 2002 | Blackpool | A | 0–4 | 7,811 | |
| 23 March 2002 | Bury | A | 1–1 | 3,700 | Bridge-Wilkinson |
| 30 March 2002 | Wigan Athletic | H | 1–0 | 4,359 | Brooker |
| 1 April 2002 | Cardiff City | A | 0–1 | 15,556 | |
| 6 April 2002 | Bournemouth | H | 0–0 | 3,514 | |
| 13 April 2002 | Huddersfield Town | A | 1–2 | 12,270 | Bridge-Wilkinson |
| 20 April 2002 | Brighton & Hove Albion | H | 0–1 | 8,812 | |

### FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 | 17 November 2001 | Aylesbury United | H | 3–0 | 4,956 | Burgess, Cummins, Brooker |
| R2 | 8 December 2001 | Cardiff City | A | 0–3 | 9,650 | |

### League Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 | 21 August 2001 | Chesterfield | H | 2–1 | 2,723 | McPhee (2) |
| R2 | 12 September 2001 | Charlton Athletic | A | 0–2 | 7,247 | |

### Football League Trophy

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 | 16 October 2001 | Carlisle United | H | 2–1 | 2,664 | Armstrong, Brooker |
| R2 | 30 October 2001 | Rochdale | A | 2–1 | 1,639 | Burton (pen), Armstrong |
| RQF | 4 December 2001 | Hull City | A | 1–2 | 5,326 | McPhee |

## Player statistics
### Appearances and goals

| Pos. | # | Name | Football League | Football League | FA Cup | FA Cup | League Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Football League Trophy | Total | Total |
| Pos. | # | Name | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| GK | 1 | Mark Goodlad | 43 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 50 | 0 |
| DF | 2 | Matt Carragher | 41 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 47 | 0 |
| DF | 3 | Phil Hardy | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 1 |
| MF | 4 | Sean McClare | 23 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 25 | 1 |
| DF | 5 | Michael Walsh | 28 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 29 | 0 |
| DF | 6 | Sagi Burton | 37 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 42 | 1 |
| MF | 7 | Neil Brisco | 37 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 43 | 0 |
| MF | 8 | Micky Cummins | 46 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 53 | 9 |
| FW | 9 | Steve Brooker | 41 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 48 | 11 |
| FW | 10 | Stephen McPhee | 44 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 51 | 14 |
| MF | 11 | Marc Bridge-Wilkinson | 19 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 6 |
| GK | 12 | Dean Delany | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| GK | 13 | Chris Gowan | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | 14 | Rae Ingram | 22 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 28 | 0 |
| MF | 16 | Ashley Dodd | 9 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 13 | 1 |
| MF | 17 | Ian Armstrong | 31 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 34 | 5 |
| MF | 18 | George O'Callaghan | 11 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 3 |
| DF | 19 | Alex Gibson | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| DF | 20 | Paul Donnelly | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| DF | 21 | Liam Burns | 34 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 39 | 0 |
| DF | 22 | Paul Taylor | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| DF | 23 | Steve Rowland | 25 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 29 | 1 |
| MF | 24 | Ben Simpson | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| MF | 25 | Danny Maye | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| FW | 26 | Billy Paynter | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| FW | 27 | Steve Torpey | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| MF | 28 | Chris Birchall | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| MF | 30 | John Durnin | 19 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 1 |
| Players that left the club mid-season: |||||||||||||
| MF | 4 | Simon Osborn | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 |
| FW | 15 | Richard Burgess | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 |
| FW | 15 | Mvondo Atangana | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| FW | 29 | Chris Killen | 9 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 6 |
| FW | 29 | Danny Webber | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| DF | 30 | Paul Byrne | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |

### Top scorers

| Place | Position | Nation | Number | Name | Second Division | FA Cup | League Cup | Football League Trophy | Total |
| 1 | FW | Scotland | 10 | Stephen McPhee | 11 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 14 |
| 2 | FW | England | 9 | Steve Brooker | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| 3 | MF | Ireland | 8 | Micky Cummins | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 4 | FW | New Zealand | 29 | Chris Killen | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| – | FW | England | # | Marc Bridge-Wilkinson | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| 6 | MF | England | 17 | Ian Armstrong | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| 7 | MF | Ireland | 18 | George O'Callaghan | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| 8 | DF | Wales | 232 | Steve Rowland | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | DF | Ireland | 3 | Phil Hardy | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | MF | England | 4 | Sean McClare | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | MF | England | 30 | John Durnin | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | MF | England | 16 | Ashley Dodd | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | DF | Saint Kitts | 6 | Sagi Burton | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| – | FW | England | 15 | Richard Burgess | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| – | | – | – | Own goals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| | | | | TOTALS | 51 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 61 |

## Transfers
### Transfers in

| Date from | Position | Name | From | Fee |
| May 2001 | MF | Ashley Dodd | Manchester United | Free transfer |
| June 2001 | DF | Alex Gibson | Stoke City | Free transfer |
| June 2001 | DF | Phil Hardy | Wrexham | Free transfer |
| June 2001 | DF | Rae Ingram | Macclesfield Town | Free transfer |
| July 2001 | FW | Stephen McPhee | Coventry City | Free transfer |
| August 2001 | FW | Steve Torpey | Liverpool | Free transfer |
| Summer 2001 | MF | Ian Armstrong | Liverpool | Free transfer |
| September 2001 | MF | Simon Osborn | Wolverhampton Wanderers | Free transfer |
| 29 November 2001 | MF | Sean McClare | Barnsley | Free transfer |
| December 2001 | MF | John Durnin | Rhyl | Free transfer |

### Transfers out

| Date from | Position | Name | To | Fee |
| October 2001 | MF | Simon Osborn | Gillingham | Free transfer |
| January 2002 | FW | Richard Burgess | Nuneaton Borough | Free transfer |
| April 2002 | MF | Ashley Dodd | Moor Green | Free transfer |
| April 2002 | DF | Phil Hardy | | Released |
| May 2002 | MF | George O'Callaghan | Cork City | Free transfer |
| May 2002 | FW | Steve Torpey | Prescot Cables | Free transfer |
| June 2002 | MF | Danny Maye | Southend United | Free transfer |
| July 2002 | DF | Paul Donnelly | Stone Dominoes | Free transfer |
| July 2002 | DF | Alex Gibson | Stafford Rangers | Free transfer |
| August 2002 | DF | Sagi Burton | Crewe Alexandra | Free transfer |

### Loans in

| Date from | Position | Name | From | Date to |
| 23 September 2001 | FW | Chris Killen | Manchester City | 23 November 2001 |
| 19 October 2001 | MF | Sean McClare | Barnsley | 28 November 2001 |
| 23 November 2001 | FW | Danny Webber | Manchester United | 31 December 2001 |
| 18 January 2002 | FW | Mvondo Atangana | Dundee United | 18 February 2002 |

### Loans out

| Date from | Position | Nationality | Name | To | Date to | Ref. |
| 15 October 2001 | FW | | Steve Torpey | Scarborough | 15 November 2001 | |