Port Vale Rivalry

Interesting to hear fans views who and why they dislike other teams and understandable why they do, for me it was always Shrewsbury, went there many times and it always seemed lively and hateful from both sets of fans especially in the local pubs that were around the old ground, but I’ve always had a real dislike for Crewe with their crumbling tat ground and fans. Like others I was there that rainy night when they hammered us and Colin Methven ended up with his legs platted from being twisted and turned all night and their fans taking the piss and goading us as we left. It’s still a place I look forward to going even though our success there is minimal.

I guess its dependent on during what era each individual has supported the club. Plus other factors

When I was watching us home and away every week, the main rivalry from the Potteries was Sjoke. They hated us. Port Vale were particularly poor during the Graydon era and at one point they only bought around 500, just after being beaten by Canvey Island in the FA Cup, we didnt hear a peep out of them all game. Yet Sjoke games required riot Police :rofl: having said that, I always hear of some form of trouble at our games in Burslem, but I think that is just generally par for the course there :rofl:

For me Shrewsbury, Northampton, Sjoke and the Nottingham sides were always tasty. Our local rivals like Vile and The Dingles, we can have a snigger when they lose, but its not really an active rivalry if your not playing each other.

Forest still really dislike us, one of their recent podcasts was titled ‘THE MODERN DAY WALSALL’ referring to their inability to beat Bournemouth I think it was. Anybody looking now would be gobsmacked Forest would have any annoying history against little old Walsall.

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Only for the first hour, until their fans set off back home. :laughing:

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I think you are correct. My first 18 years following Walsall we played Crewe only once, the Buckley promotion season. Then at the end of the 80s we started playing them often, even being together in the Championship/LeagueOne/whatever it was called, and I’m not sure we’ve gone longer than three seasons without playing them in the last 35 years. I can’t think of Crewe as a rival though, an annoyance, yes, but not really a rival.

Chestyfeels was the sheer quantity of playing them I think. We even managed three F A Cup games against them one season. I think only our few years of success around the Millennium and their recent years in non-league kept us apart for long. But they were waiting for us when we were relegated in 2004, and we were waiting for them when they made it back from the depths of the National League. It must be love. :heart_eyes: :revolving_hearts: :cupid:

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One of my earlier memories of Chesterfield, I think it was an FA Cup game but I may be wrong on that. Steve Baines was the ref, and Kenny Mower scored the winner with their defender smashing it off his knees and it went in. I remember that day the fans went a bit more crazy than usual when we scored, similar to when Childs scored v Shrewsbury rather than the usual celebration. I asked my Dad why and he said “It’s Chesterfield”

I also don’t consider Crewe a rival, but I don’t think I will ever get over that playoff game, I think that and the defeat to Bristol City in the second leg of the playoff game is the sickest I have ever felt after a football match.

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Always hated Vale since my 1st visit to the Wembley of the North as a kid in late 70s when it was made very clear to me how much the locals disliked us. The police escort from the special train to the ground was like a war zone :flushed: :rofl:. Lots of them charging the escort, the escort charging back, but i remember one Walsall fan who was obviously determined to get out of the escort and go for a pint. The Vale fans were so gobsmacked that they parted like the Red Sea, although lord knows what happened in the pub :flushed: :rofl:
Short stocky bloke, still see him at away matches now although he has obviously calmed down a lot as he has progressed into his older years.

Always hated Shreswbury, which only increased when my parents moved to Shropshire and the memories of marrying my witch of an ex wife in Shrewsbury Castle. Many personal reasons not to like them but i really disliked them to start with :rofl: As others have said, Chesterfield and Hereford were always lively back in the day :rofl::rofl:

For some years in 80s and championship years we came into contact more with the Dingles, Blues, Albion etc and had fun with Stoke at times. I hate the Dingles (doesnt everyone?) Dont like Stoke. Couldnt really give a monkeys about Blues or Albion same as they dont give a monkeys about us

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Be easier to list teams I don’t mind, as I generally hate everyone for one reason or another.

As for Vale saying we’ve made up some sort of rivalry since DC went there, must be some young kid.

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Been to Vale lots of times, never had a problem, of course it gets a bit rowdy sometimes and I suppose there have been scuffles here and there but always a good atmosphere win or lose.

I’d forgotten we played Chesterfield in the F A Cup a couple of times in the 80s, I was only thinking of 76-77 when we played them three times.
Baines wouldn’t have been the ref though, but he might have played in one or both of the matches as he was playing for them then.
It was 84-85 when we won 1-0 and Mower got the only goal, and two years later we beat them either 2-0 or 2-1 and Mower scored again. He was prolific, that lad. :grin:

Changing the subject slightly, Baines was a good ref, I thought, he let the game flow.

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Any update on ticket sales?

When I first started watching Walsall, Vale were not really on the radar as much, they were in the first division under Rudge with the likes of Tony Naylor and Gareth Ainsworth standing out for them. I remember the vale section in Simon Inlgis’s 1995 grounds book specifically mentioned that Vale hated us though. But we have played them on a regular basis for quite a few years now so its more of a thing now.

Never knew Chesterfield was a thing in the past?

Didn’t we win at Chesterfield once despite having 2 players sent off? Early 80s?

When did they last play Stoke in the league, 01/02 season? Always avoided each other in the cups since.

So natural they’d gravitate towards local teams in their own division.

I would personally say they should be more at Crewe’s throats as they’ve tended to follow each other around the divisions in the last 30 years and ten miles or so between the two but guess it’s like us and Burton a bit?

The attendances don’t really reflect the rivalry though. Just checked the game back end of 16/17 when a win would’ve sent Vale down on the night and it was 4,266! On Boxing day up there it was 5k.

Will be nearer 10k on Saturday I assume.

Oct or Nov 1980, Ian Paul and Steve Waddington off.

2004

https://www.11v11.com/matches/stoke-city-v-walsall-31-january-2004-18562/#google_vignette

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And Vale? :wink:

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I think he meant Vale and Stoke.
That one you’ve linked was another Magic Moment from Andy Pettersen. :roll_eyes: A shot looked to be going over, he jumped up and took the weight off it and it dropped behind him and over the line. What a plonker. :rofl:
Kris Taylor scoring on his debut.

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I agree with that Blazing, I lived in Pelsall too and it was a right Villa ghetto!

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Was that the game when we had a goal disallowed near the end, was going in and Jorge knocked it in, in an offside position?

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My apologies, I thought you meant our last league game against Stoke. :zipper_mouth_face: