As part of the build-up to our 150th anniversary fixture on 4th January, we encouraged you to vote for your all-time Port Vale XI!
With a number of club legends expected to attend our milestone fixture against Barnsley next weekend, there’s no better time to take a trip down memory lane.
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Here’s who you voted into the star-studded side...
Goalkeeper - Paul Musselwhite
Record-breaking stopper Musselwhite was our most expensive goalkeeping signing at a mere £17,000 and also holds the record for goalkeeping appearances in a Vale shirt.
Signed from Scunthorpe United in 1992, he was a regular during the John Rudge era, starting in goal for the Autoglass Trophy win and also helping the club to promotion in 1993/94.
Right-back – Simon Mills
A real fan favourite and yet another superb signing by long-serving manager Rudge, Mills was signed from York City in 1987 for £35,000.
Originally a central midfielder, he excelled after converting to a new role, forming part of the ‘MBE’ corner routine regularly seen in the late ‘80s.
Centre-back – Dean Glover
A cultured central defender, signed from Middlesbrough in 1989 for a then-club-record £200,000.
Also converted from midfield, the ball-playing defender formed a formidable partnership with Neil Aspin and was a key part of the 1993/1994 promotion side. He later had spells as both caretaker manager and full-time manager.
Centre-back – Neil Aspin
‘Aspo’ was signed from Leeds United by manager John Rudge in 1989. The long-serving defender and former captain played over 300 games and was named as Player of the Season on two separate occasions.
After beginning his managerial career in non-league, he returned to the club as first-team manager in 2017.
Left-back – Allen Tankard
The long-serving left-back was signed for £80,000 from Wigan Athletic in 1993, and made the left-back position his own after settling into the side.
In 2000/01, he was deployed more in midfield and scored five goals that season.
Right midfield – Gareth Ainsworth
The popular, free-scoring winger arrived at Vale Park following the departure of winger Jon McCarthy, for a club record fee of £500,000.
He scored on his Vale home debut and also twice on his final home appearance, leaving after one season for a club record £2m, to top-flight Wimbledon.
Central midfield – Robbie Earle
Locally-born midfielder Earle has been voted the greatest player in the club’s history.
Originally a striker, he made his debut in 1982 and scored 19 goals from midfield during the 1985/86 promotion season. He also played a major part in our 1988/89 promotion, again weighing in with 19 goals, including both in the Play-Off Final against Bristol Rovers.
Like Ainsworth, Earle was snapped up by top-flight Wimbledon, and subsequently scored for Jamaica at the World Cup.
Central midfield – Ray Walker
Known as the ‘Hoddle of the lower leagues’, the cultured midfielder was signed for just £12,000 from Aston Villa in 1986 after an earlier loan spell in 1984.
A set-piece expert and two-time Player of the Season, Walker briefly shot to national fame with a stunning goal that helped to knock Tottenham Hotspur out of the FA Cup.
Left midfield – Steve Guppy
A gifted left-winger who joined the Vale from Newcastle United for £250,000 in 1997.
He and fellow wingman Jon McCarthy were crucial players in FA Cup win over Everton, taking the club to the Anglo-Italian Cup final and our highest league position for 50 years.
Guppy was eventually sold to Leicester City and went on to play for England.
Striker – Tom Pope
Vale born and bred, ‘Popey’ enjoyed a mercurial rise in 2012, finishing as the league’s top scorer with 33 goals and being named League Two Player of the Season.
In the summer of 2017, he rejoined the Vale for a third spell and was crowned the club’s Player of the Season for a record third time.
He later reached the milestone of 100 goals for the club and, in 2019/20, became our record post-war scorer.
Striker – Martin Foyle
Foyle is the third-highest scorer in Vale history, with 108 goals.
Signed for a then-club-record fee of £375,000 from Oxford United in 1991, he was our leading scorer in 1991/92, 1993/94 and 1998/99, also being voted Player of the Season on two occasions.
Foyle was a member of the Autoglass Trophy-winning side and the 1993/94 promotion winning team, and also scored famous FA Cup goals against Stoke City and Liverpool before going on to manage the club.
