Roy Sproson

Roy Sproson

Roy Sproson statue outside Vale Park
Personal information
Full name	Roy Sproson
Date of birth	(1930-09-23)23 September 1930
Place of birth	Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England
Date of death	24 January 1997(1997-01-24) (aged 66)
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Playing position	Left-half/left-back/centre-half
Youth career
	Trent Vale
	Stoke City
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1949–1972	Port Vale	760	(30)
Total		760	(30)
Teams managed
1974–1977	Port Vale
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only.

Roy Sproson (23 September 1930 – 24 January 1997) was an English footballer and football manager for Port Vale. A one-club man, he holds the all-time appearance record for Vale, making 837 starts (and 5 substitute appearances) for Vale between 1950 and 1972. This includes a run of 128 consecutive appearances between April 1954 and March 1957. He is also fourteenth on the all time Football League appearance list.

Sproson is a Port Vale legend, sticking with the club from its highest peaks in the early 1950s until the troughs of the last 1960s near the bottom of the Football League. He served under eight managers before taking the reins himself between 1974 and 1977. A relic of a bygone era when it was common for players to only play for a few clubs throughout their entire careers, his record for the club is unlikely ever to be equalled or bettered. He finished with around 350 more appearances for the club than his closest rival, and teammate of fifteen years, Harry Poole.

Roy Sproson was born above a greengrocer's shop at 3 Slater Street, Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent on 23 September 1930. Legend has it he was named after the local featherweight boxer Roy Berrisford, after his father returned home from witnessing a Berrisford victory to find his wife had given birth in his absence. The family later moved to Trent Vale, where a young Sproson played football for the Trent Vale Lifeboys, winning the Sentinel Shield with a 5–0 win over Port Vale.

Sproson played for Stoke City at an amateur level for twelve months in the late 1940s. He was courted by teams such as Aston Villa, West Ham United and Bolton Wanderers. His father wished him to follow in his footsteps and sign for Stoke City. The Stoke manager Bob McGrory promised him a contract after Sproson finished his National service, but after brother Jess introduced him to Port Vale manager Gordon Hodgson, he signed with the Vale for £3 a week while he served his National service. In July 1949 Sproson's time with the Royal Air Force had finished and he signed with Port Vale as a professional. However he had to wait until 11 November 1950 for his debut, in a 1–1 draw with Gillingham at Priestfield. He started the last five games of the season after sharing the No. 6 jersey with Jimmy Todd and Bill McGarry.