The 2013–14 season was Port Vale's 102nd season of football in the English Football League, and first season back in League One, following their promotion from League Two. Avoiding relegation was the aim set in pre-season, as the club had one of the lowest six budgets in the division.
The club enjoyed kind draws and a good run in the FA Cup, reaching the fourth round, where they were knocked out by Brighton & Hove Albion. They exited the League Cup in the first round, with Walsall the victors. They reached the second round of the Football League Trophy, losing out to Rochdale. The club overstretched itself financially, meaning that as they lay outside the play-offs in January manager Micky Adams could only sign largely untried youngsters on loan whilst releasing higher paid players either on free transfers or on loan. Their promotion push fell away, but they ended the season in ninth place – far exceeding their original aim.
Despite steady progress on the pitch, avoidable issues off the pitch continued to plague the club. Micky Adams was not offered a new contract until right at the end of the season, meaning that the season ended with the manager and most of the playing staff out of contract. The club also hit the headlines in April after Daniel Jones was sacked for attacking captain Doug Loft during a training ground session.
Overview
League One Manager Micky Adams' first signing of the season was winger Kaid Mohamed, who stepped up to League One from League Two play-off semi-finalists Cheltenham Town; he was seen as a replacement for departing left-winger Ashley Vincent. Also joining the club were Preston North End defender Chris Robertson, Southend United forward Gavin Tomlin, and Sheffield Wednesday central midfielder Chris Lines. Liam Dickinson joined the Vale on trial for the second summer in a row, and again left without a contract after failing to prove his fitness. Adams, known for his gruelingly tough pre-season workouts, did not disappoint and left his players exhausted following their trip to Ireland. Following the trip, Anthony Griffith re-joined the club after securing his exit from League One rivals Leyton Orient. Mathias Kouo-Doumbé, Paul Reid and Ben Parker joined the club on trial, as Vale desperately needed more defensive cover. However, the sixth signing of the summer was revealed as former Stoke City left-back Carl Dickinson, who secured his release form Watford in order to join the Vale. Chairman Norman Smurthwaite then told fans that there were to be no new signings as the club's wage bill was now up to 60 per cent of turnover – the maximum allowed under the Football League's new Financial Fair Play rule. When asked what he though about Port Vale being one of the bookmakers favourites for relegation, Adams mused that "you never see a bookie on a bike do you? They’ve always got Jags and Mercs".
Vale opened the season with a credible 1–1 draw at home to Brentford; the "Bees" were tipped to gain promotion after losing last season's play-off final, but failed to make the most of the numerous chances they created at Vale Park. Vale then travelled away from home with a defensive mindset and narrowly lost 1–0 at Colchester United. Adams admitted that he picked the wrong side and formation, and that his players also seemed to lack "enthusiasm" in the game. He made changes to his team and tactics – reverting to 4–4–2 – for the visit of newly promoted Bradford City, and Vale secured a deserved 2–1 victory. The win was however, marred by racist chanting by a small section of supporters on the Railway Paddock; the club was later given a warning by the FA for the incident. Vale then travelled to Oldham Athletic and were well beaten 3–1 after Lee Hughes missed a 37th-minute penalty when the scores were level at 1–1. They ended the month with another defeat, as Wolverhampton Wanderers left Burslem with a 3–1 win, the one positive being Tom Pope getting off the mark with a last-minute consolation. Further crowd problems emerged as 23 fans were arrested after violence erupted after the game.
Pope continued his scoring run, as an injury-time goal earned the Vale a 1–0 win at struggling Carlisle United. This proved to be the last match for "Cumbrians" boss Greg Abbott, who was sacked two days later. Vale then were beaten 3–2 by Leyton Orient, who recorded their sixth-successive league victory. Despite the result, fans were pleased with the team's performance against the league leaders. Another tough match followed with Coventry City, and supporters were treated to an entertaining game that saw the Valiants twice come from behind to record a 3–2 victory. Immediately following the game Rob Page was put in temporary charge of first-team affairs at Vale Park after Adams decided to take time off work to have hip replacement surgery. His first game in charge was a 1–0 victory at Tranmere Rovers, with Chris Lines' well taken free kick being enough to win the three points. Page also took charge of the 1–1 home draw with Bristol City and admitted the players performed well below their best. Adams returned on crutches for the home encounter with high-flying Peterborough United and tried a new diamond formation in midfield; the tactic brought a good performance out of the side, but a late strike for "Posh" left Vale with a 1–0 defeat. The next game was against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane, and Adams was again disappointed at his boyhood club as Vale were beaten 2–1, with Daniel Jones sent off for two yellow cards after just 20 minutes. After the match Adams showed concern over the lack of club discipline on display as Myrie-Williams publicly argued with Adams after being substituted and Pope and Robertson had a heated discussion on the pitch. He had no complaints though when Vale came back from Crawley Town with a 3–0 victory; Jordan Hugill, fresh from a loan spell with Gateshead, made an impressive debut up front with Ben Williamson. The same eleven players started the following game at home to Gillingham, and came from 1–0 down at half-time to win 2–1 after the introduction of Tom Pope.
A tricky fixture away at Swindon Town opened the month of November, and Vale came from 3–0 down to make it 3–2 before they collapsed again and left the field on the wrong end of a 5–2 beating; this was the third game in a row at County Ground where Vale conceded at least five goals. Having failed to hold down a first-team place, especially with the tactical move away from wingers, Kaid Mohamed joined former club AFC Wimbledon on loan. They returned to form though in Burslem, recording a 3–1 victory over nearby Shrewsbury Town, and Adams said that the club had "unearthed a gem" after Hugill added Vale's third goal. The first big derby game against Crewe Alexandra came the following week, and the "Railwaymen" took the lead after 35 minutes only for Rob Taylor to mark his first appearance of the season by scoring the equalizing goal; Myrie-Williams scored the winning goal on 83 minutes which put Vale within one point of the play-offs whilst keeping Crewe second from bottom. However, Vale fans were disappointed to see Preston North End win 2–0 at Vale Park despite playing with only ten men from the 12th minute of the game; it later transpired that the referee had sent off the wrong man, and that Neil Kilkenny was dismissed for striking Anthony Griffith when in fact the culprit was eventual double goalscorer Joe Garner. On 29 November, goalkeeper Chris Neal injured his wrist and 21-year-old back-up 'keeper Sam Johnson was handed his league debut the following day away at Walsall. Johnson impressed and managed to keep a clean sheet as the "Valiants" recorded their first win at Walsall in 66 years.
Vale were heading for an eighth win in ten games when they took the lead at home to Stevenage on 14 December, but they conceded two goals in two minutes just before half-time and had to rely on a last-minute Tom Pope head to salvage a point. After the match Tom Pope bemoaned Stevenage's negative tactics. Vale then went down 3–0 at Milton Keynes Dons, with Adams describing the team as looking "like that last turkey on the shelf on Christmas Eve". They returned to winning ways with a 2–1 home victory over struggling Notts County, both Myre-Williams' and Tomlin's goals coming from the penalty spot. Vale ended the year just one place and two points outside the play-offs by beating sixth place Rotherham United 2–0 in a physical battle at Vale Park.
Vale opened 2014 with a difficult fixture away at fourth-placed Preston North End and were beaten 3–2 despite staging a late comeback when they went 3–0 down. Lee Hughes was allowed to join Forest Green Rovers on a free transfer after the 37-year-old stated that he wanted to play as much first-team football as possible before his retirement. On 7 January, Adams signed 19-year-old defender Jack Grimmer on loan from Premier League side Fulham; he stated, "We have a lot of experienced defenders making mistakes and we have been looking to strengthen in that area for a while." He made his debut against Brentford four days later alongside Joe Davis, who was also making his first appearance of the season following a loan spell with Luton Town, and the young pair impressed despite Vale losing 2–0 to the league leaders. Adams further strengthened the team by signing Belgian midfielder Florent Cuvelier on loan from Sheffield United. However, Cuvelier was ruled out for the rest of the season after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) just 36 minutes into his debut – a 1–0 home win over Oldham, the only goal of the game being scored by Grimmer. Another midfielder, Billy Knott, was then signed on loan from Premier League side Sunderland.
Vale opened February by losing 3–2 to Gillingham, with forward Adebayo Akinfenwa proving to be a thorn in the club's side again as he grabbed two of the goals. Micky Adams apologized to the fans for the performance. Vale then blew a 2–0 half-time lead over Swindon to lose the game 3–2 – the third game in a row where they conceded three goals. Following this Adams decided to change his tactics to a more defensive approach. Vale then had the chance to close the gap on the play-offs with a mid-week tie at home to Colchester, and a brace from Doug Loft took them 2–0 up shortly after half-time, a lead which young centre-backs Davis and Grimmer managed to defend without too many worrying moments. Another clean sheet followed with the same defensive partnership, though Vale failed to break down a determined Shrewsbury defence in blustery conditions. A trip to Valley Parade followed, and Bradford stole all three points with a stoppage time goal. The "A500 derby" followed, and a negative Vale line-up allowed Crewe the opening goal on 15 minutes; despite Adams making a double substitution on 32 minutes Vale were second best for the rest of the game and went on to lose 3–1.