Kevin Finney

Kevin Finney

Personal information
Full name	Kevin Finney [1]
Date of birth	(1969-10-19) 19 October 1969 (age 54) [1]
Place of birth	Newcastle-under-Lyme, England [1]
Height	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) [2]
Position(s)	Midfielder
Youth career
	Port Vale
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1987–1991	Port Vale	37	(1)
1991–1993	Lincoln City	37	(2)
1993–1994	Leek Town	9	(1)
	Stafford Rangers
Total		83+	(4+)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Kevin Finney (born 19 October 1969) is an English former footballer who played as a midfielder for Port Vale, Lincoln City, Leek Town, and Stafford Rangers.

Career

Finney came up through the Port Vale youth team to sign as a professional in May 1987. ^[1] He featured 22 times in the 1987–88 campaign, and scored the only goal of the game against Macclesfield Town to book the "Valiants" an FA Cup tie with First Division giants Tottenham Hotspur. ^[1] This goal was reported to have kept manager John Rudge in his job, who went on to become the club's most successful ever manager. ^[3] However, Rudge used Finney mainly as a substitute in 17 games in the 1988–89 season. ^[1] He scored his first league goal on the last day of the Third Division season: a 2–1 win over Fulham at Craven Cottage on 13 May. ^[1] He appeared as a substitute for Andy Porter in the 1–0 win over Bristol Rovers at Vale Park on 3 June, in the second leg of the play-off final. ^[1] However, his first-team opportunities became more limited in the Second Division, and he featured just nine times in the 1989–90 season. ^[1] He appeared just once, in the League Cup, in the 1990–91 campaign, and was handed a free transfer to Steve Thompson's Lincoln City in May 1991. ^[1] The "Imps" posted a tenth-place finish in the Fourth Division in 1991–92, before finishing outside the play-offs on goal difference in 1992–93. He scored two goals in 37 league appearances during his two seasons at Sincil Bank. Finney then moved into non-League football and featured in the Northern Premier League with Leek Town and in the Conference with Stafford Rangers.

Career statistics

Source: ^{[4] [5]}

Club	Season	Division	League		FA Cup		Other		Total
			Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Port Vale	1987–88	Third Division	15	0	4	1	3	0	22	1
	1988–89	Third Division	14	1	0	0	3	0	17	1
	1989–90	Second Division	8	0	0	0	1	0	9	0
	1990–91	Second Division	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0
	Total		37	1	4	1	8	0	49	2
Lincoln City	1991–92	Fourth Division	23	2	1	0	5	0	29	2
	1992–93	Third Division	14	0	0	0	4	1	18	1
	Total		46	2	5	0	13	1	64	3
Leek Town	1993–94	Northern Premier League Premier Division	9	1	4	0	4	0	17	1

Honours

Port Vale

• Football League Third Division play-offs: 1989 ^[6]

References

1. Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 101. ISBN   0-9529152-0-0.
2. Rollin, Jack, ed. (1990). Rothmans football yearbook, 1990-91. [Place of publication not identified] : Queen anne Press. ISBN   978-0-356-17911-7 . Retrieved 27 November 2022.
3. Baggaley, Mike (6 November 2016). "Port Vale COMMENT: Remie Streete goal may buy Bruno Ribeiro time". Stoke Sentinel. Retrieved 7 November 2016.
4. Kevin Finney at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
5. "PlayerStats - LeekTownSE". leektown.net. Retrieved 11 April 2022.
6. Kent, Jeff (1989). Port Vale Promotion Chronicle 1988-1989: Back to Where We Once Belonged!. Witan Books. ISBN   0-9508981-3-9.