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 128 consecutive appearances between April 1954 and March 1957. He is also sixteenth on the all-time Football League appearance list.
Sproson remained with the club from its highest peaks in the early 1950s until the troughs of the last 1960s near the bottom of the English Football League. He served under eight managers before taking the reins 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 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". Barry Hugman's Footballers. Retrieved 9 March 2017.
^"Roy Sproson player profile". onevalefan.co.uk. 21 April 2015. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
RoySproson (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...
Sproson, English suffragette Phil Sproson (born 1959), English footballer RoySproson, English footballer Thomas Sproson, English footballer This page lists...
appearances for Port Vale. He was the nephew of Port Vale defender RoySproson and son of Jess Sproson, who played for Vale between 1940 and 1947. A strong and...
also inducted into the City of Stoke-on-Trent Hall of Fame, along with RoySproson. Pelé became a good friend of Banks and following his death the Brazilian...
RoySproson statue to be unveiled after 10-year wait". BBC News. 22 October 2012. Retrieved 24 February 2014. "Port Vale: Tributes paid to legend Roy...
£3,300, with the other £7,000 he was owed to be written off. Player RoySproson later said that "he [Matthews] trusted people who should never have been...
League and went on the FA's 1956 South African tour. Former teammate RoySproson said that: "he was everything that a manager could want in a player....
field. However, Vale's form suffered, and Lee was replaced as manager by RoySproson in January. Vale finished the campaign one place above the relegation...
recovered from injury, and featured eight times in 1977–78, as manager RoySproson was replaced by Bobby Smith, and the "Valiants" were relegated out of...
defence – along with Ray King (goalkeeper), Tommy Cheadle, Reg Potts and RoySproson – that won the league title and reached the FA Cup semi-finals. He played...
(behind only Phil Sproson and RoySproson in terms of most appearances for the club), scoring 79 goals. Former teammate RoySproson said: "I always thought...
and 1973–74. He was given a free transfer in May 1974 by new manager RoySproson, and moved on to non-League side Oswestry Town, where he also served...
Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Transfer Database Roy Tunks at Post War English & Scottish Football League A–Z Player's Transfer...
died of cancer on 14 June 1951, at the age of just 47. Port Vale legend RoySproson had Hodgson as his first boss: "Gordon Hodgson was a fair chap. He would...
in May 1966 due to a foot injury. He shared a testimonial match with RoySproson two years earlier. He made 196 appearances and scored eight goals in...
of the table and thrashed Gateshead 8–0 on Boxing Day. He put veteran RoySproson back into the defensive line, whilst up front Stan Steele 'did the work...
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