The 1920–21 season was Port Vale's second consecutive season of football (15th overall) in the English Football League. Having finished a respectable 13th the previous year, the club hoped to push on under the guidance of manager Joe Schofield. The Vale opened the season with four wins from their opening six games and sat third in the table in early September, raising hopes of a promotion push. However, inconsistent results through the autumn saw them fall away from the top of the table, though they remained clear of relegation danger.

The club made headlines in February when top-scorer Bobby Blood was sold to West Bromwich Albion for a club record £4,000 fee, a decision that caused anger among supporters. Blood had already scored 18 goals by that point in the season, and his departure preceded a poor run of form which saw Vale lose seven of their next eight league games. Fan unrest grew, and a group of directors resigned in protest over the sale, accusing the board of placing financial concerns above footballing ambition.

Despite the disruption, the club narrowly avoided relegation, finishing 17th in the 22-team Second Division with 36 points, three points above the drop zone. Blood remained the club's top scorer with 20 goals in all competitions, highlighting the impact of his mid-season departure. In his absence, the likes of Tom Page and Billy Briscoe were unable to provide the same goal threat, and the team managed only six wins from their final 22 league games.

Port Vale also had little success in cup competitions. They failed to qualify for the FA Cup, losing 1–0 away at Clapton Orient. In the North Staffordshire Infirmary Cup, they were beaten 3–1 by Potteries derby rivals Stoke at the Old Recreation Ground. Though the season ended in frustration, the board defended their decisions by pointing to financial necessity, and the club looked to regroup for the following year.

Overview

Second Division During the pre-season, manager-secretary Joe Schofield stated that: "the future policy of Port Vale is to go ahead". He duly signed experienced full-back Bob Pursell, brother of Peter, from Liverpool. The capacity of the Old Recreation Ground was increased to 30,000; mainly due to the fundraising activities of the Supporters' Club. Of the 1919–20 squad, only William Aitken was let go, for a fee of £2,500 to Newcastle United. That money helped to pay for £400 Tom Page from St Mirren, and right-half Freddy Price from Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The season started positively enough; a 2–0 win over new club Leeds United helped to establish a start of six points from the opening six games. On 25 September, the "Valiants" delighted their fans by recording their first league victory over rivals Stoke in 'a stirring duel' which ended 2–1. The following week they achieved the double over Stoke by recording a 1–0 victory at the Victoria Ground. This encouraged fans to travel in their numbers to see the team beat Nottingham Forest 4–1 at the City Ground. Injuries to Price and Brough then saw the team slump, and this continued when new signing, Manchester City goalkeeper Walter Smith was arrested for assault on the day of his debut. The arrest is likely to account for a majority of the six goals he conceded that day at South Shields. The side recovered to record heavy victories over Hull City and Stockport County, with Bobby Blood scoring six of Vale's ten goals in the two games. Vale lost both their games to Bristol City, though Blood demonstrated his fearsome shooting power by blasting a penalty kick at City's keeper Frank Vallis, who saved the penalty to keep a clean sheet but broke his wrist in the process of saving the shot.

Blood was sold to West Bromwich Albion for £4,000 in February – then a club record for both clubs. The effect on the pitch was telling, as Vale went on to record just two wins in their remaining 16 games, with a meagre six goals scored. One of the victories was a 'flash in the pan' win over FA Cup semi-finalists Cardiff City. Cardiff fielded a weakened team and watched in bewilderment as Page scored the winning goal from the penalty spot, stubbing his foot in the process.

At the end of the season, Vale finished six points ahead of relegated Stockport County but 22 points behind the promotion places. Only a handful of teams had lost fewer away matches than Vale. However, Vale boasted fewer home wins than any other club in the league, and even with Blood in the side, the club struggled to find goals.

A core of six players formed the spine of the team: Peter and Bob Pursell, with Tom Lyons in defence; Joe Brough at half-back; with Billy Briscoe and Tom Page in forward positions. Page contributed to the goals tally, but Blood was the sole hope in front of goal, racking up 20 goals in 25 league games before his transfer. In addition to the Pursell brothers, Harry and John Johnstone also made sporadic appearances; in one match, both the Pursell brothers and the Johnstone brothers took to the field.

Finances The issue of finance reared its head in September with an appeal for greater support from chairman Frank Huntbach. The chairman emphasised the club's potential and pleaded for the remaining £4,500 worth of shares to be snapped up. The Pursell brothers were so affected by the speech that they bought £5 worth of shares. The club later received a £70 boost when supporters bought copies of "The Port Vale War-Cry", though more significant was the elevated noise level as supporters sang the cry throughout matches. Vale's weather-conscious supporters would turn up in their number during sunshine but were somewhat unreliable during the winter. The club were desperate to increase ground capacity but was already facing worrying financial times despite the club debt falling to £800. Though the sale of Blood raised considerable funds, fans were outraged, especially as Schofield and the directors refused to comment. Blood was told by the club that either "[he] went or the club". At the end of the season, a £1,187 profit was recorded.

Cup competitions The club failed to qualify for the FA Cup, losing their qualification match with league rivals Clapton Orient. The North Staffordshire Infirmary Cup went to Stoke, who claimed victory with a 5–3 win at the Old Recreation Ground.

Results

Football League Second Division

League table

Results by matchday

Matches

FA Cup

North Staffordshire Infirmary Cup

Squad statistics Appearances and goals Key to positions: GK – Goalkeeper; FB – Full back; HB – Half back; FW – Forward

|colspan="14"|Players who featured but departed the club during the season:

Top scorers PlacePositionNationNameSecond DivisionFA CupInfirmary CupTotal1FWBobby Blood2000202FWTom Page90093FWBilly Briscoe30254FWBilly Fitchford30035FWJames Wootton20026HBErnest Perry1001–HBTom Holford1001–HBJoe Brough1001–HBFreddy Price1001–FWHarry Johnstone1001–FWAlbert Hayes0011–FWFrank Cartledge1001–––Own goals0000TOTALS430346

Transfers

Transfers in Date from Position Nationality Name From Fee Ref. May 1920 FB Len Birks Butt Lane Star Free transfer June 1920 FW Albert Hayes Liverpool Badgers Free transfer June 1920 FW Tom Page St Mirren £400 July 1920 HB Frank Simon Crewe Alexandra Free transfer August 1920 HB Freddy Price Wolverhampton Wanderers Free transfer September 1920 HB Arthur Poole Mossley Free transfer October 1920 GK Walter Smith Manchester City 'modest' November 1920 FW Frank Cartledge Ravensdale Mission Free transfer December 1920 FW Frank Newman Aston Villa Free transfer February 1921 FW William Wilson Portsmouth Free transfer March 1921 FW Andrew Livingston Bathgate Free transfer

Transfers out Date from Position Nationality Name To Fee Ref. February 1921 FW Bobby Blood West Bromwich Albion £4,000 May 1921 FB Percy Ellis Walsall Released Summer 1921 GK Jonathan Hammond Released Summer 1921 FW James Hill Shrewsbury Town Released Summer 1921 FW Andrew Livingston Vale of Leven Released Summer 1921 HB Arthur McGarry Reading Released Summer 1921 FW Frank Newman Exeter City Released Summer 1921 HB Ernest Perry Bradford City Free transfer Summer 1921 HB Arthur Poole Released Summer 1921 HB Freddy Price Newport County Released Summer 1921 FW William Wilson Walsall Released

References Specific

General