Simon Mills (footballer)

Last updated

Simon Mills
Personal information
Full name Simon Ashley Mills [1]
Date of birth (1964-08-16) 16 August 1964 (age 60) [1]
Place of birth Sheffield, England [1]
Height 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) [2]
Position(s) Right-back; midfielder
Youth career
Sheffield Wednesday
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
1982–1985 Sheffield Wednesday 5 (0)
1985–1987 York City 99 (4)
1987–1994 Port Vale 184 (8)
1994–1995 Boston United 42 (1)
Matlock Town
Total330+(13+)
International career
1983 England Youth 5 (0)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Simon Ashley Mills (born 16 August 1964) is an English former footballer who played as a defender; he was described by Jeff Kent as "skilful and adaptable". [1] He made 288 league appearances in a ten-year career in the Football League.

Contents

He began his career with local club Sheffield Wednesday in 1982 before moving on to York City three years later. Voted Clubman of the Year in 1986, he was sold on to Port Vale for £35,000 in December 1987. He helped the "Valiants" to win promotion out of the Third Division via the play-offs in 1989 before injuries forced him to leave the professional game in May 1994. He later attempted comebacks with Boston United and Matlock Town.

Career

Sheffield Wednesday

Born in Sheffield, West Riding of Yorkshire, Mills started his career with Sheffield Wednesday in 1982. He was capped five times at England Youth level. [3] However, he failed to earn a first-team spot at Hillsborough, particularly following the "Owls" ascent to the First Division in 1983–84 under Howard Wilkinson's stewardship. He felt that he did not suit Wilkinson's style of football. [4]

York City

Mills moved on to York City in June 1985 after manager Denis Smith spotted him playing reserve team football. [4] The "Minstermen" finished seventh in the Third Division in 1985–86, and Mills was voted Clubman of the Year. [4] However, a decline at Bootham Crescent saw the club slip to 20th in 1986–87, and Smith was replaced by Bobby Saxton. Mills was sold to John Rudge's Port Vale for £35,000 in December 1987. [1] York went on to finish in the relegation places in 1987–88.

Port Vale

Unable to fit him into the side due to the form of Ray Walker and others, Rudge converted Mills from a midfielder to a right-back. [5] He made 19 Third Division appearances in 1987–88, scoring five goals, including one in a 3–2 comeback win over former club York. [1] [4] He played 55 games in the 1988–89 promotion season, playing in partnership first with fellow centre-backs Phil Sproson and Bob Hazell (who both struggled with injuries) and later Gary West and Dean Glover (who were signed mid-season), alongside full-backs Alan Webb and Darren Hughes, in front of goalkeeper Mark Grew. [1] This proved to be the most successful defence in the division, conceding just 48 goals in 46 league games. [1] However, a third-place finish meant that they had to overcome Bristol Rovers 2–1 over two legs in the play-off final, with Robbie Earle hitting both goals. [1] Mills missed just one Second Division game in 1989–90, forming a formidable defensive partnership with Glover. [1]

He played 45 games in 1990–91, as Vale retained their second-tier status. [1] He played 40 games in the 1991–92 relegation season, scoring twice, and helped the club to win the TNT Tournament in the summer. [1] However, in autumn 1992 he developed knee cartilage trouble and underwent a series of unsuccessful operations, limiting him to just three league appearances in 1992–93. [6] He commentated for BBC Radio Stoke at the 1993 Football League Trophy final. [6] He was given a free transfer in May 1994. [1]

Later career

After retiring as a professional, he later attempted a comeback with Northern Premier League Premier Division sides Boston United and Matlock Town. [1]

Style of play

Mills was a hard-working player who played at both right-back and midfield. [7] He was an excellent set piece taker and part of Port Vale's "MBE" corner kick routine: Mills to Darren Beckford to Robbie Earle. [8] [7] In May 2019, he was voted into the "Ultimate Port Vale XI" as a right-back by members of the OneValeFan supporter website. [9]

Later life

Mills became a drayman at a Sheffield brewery after leaving football and attempted to start a business selling second-hand fishing gear. [10] [6]

Career statistics

Source: [11] [12] [13]

ClubSeasonDivisionLeagueFA CupOtherTotal
AppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Sheffield Wednesday 1982–83 Second Division 10100020
1983–84 Second Division20000020
1984–85 First Division 20000020
Total50100060
York City 1985–86 Third Division 3616040461
1986–87 Third Division4513161543
1987–88 Third Division1824141264
Total9941321421268
Port Vale 1987–88 Third Division1950000195
1988–89 Third Division4303090550
1989–90 Second Division4513060541
1990–91 Second Division4101030450
1991–92 Second Division3321060402
1992–93 Second Division30101050
Total1848902502188
Boston United 1994–95 Northern Premier League
Premier Division		3613040431
1995–96 Northern Premier League
Premier Division		60102090
Total4214060521
Career total3301327245240217

Honours

Port Vale

Individual

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Port Vale F.C.</span> Association football club in Stoke-on-Trent, England

Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in EFL League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Vale are named after the valley of ports on the Trent and Mersey Canal. They have never played top-flight football, and hold the record for the most seasons in the English Football League (113) without reaching the first tier. After playing at the Athletic Ground in Cobridge and The Old Recreation Ground in Hanley, the club returned to Burslem when Vale Park was opened in 1950. Outside the ground is a statue of Roy Sproson, who played 842 competitive games for the club. The club's traditional rivals are Stoke City, and games between the two are known as the Potteries derby.

Robert Fitzgerald Earle MBE is an English-born Jamaican former international footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He played 578 league games in senior club football, scoring 136 goals.

John Robert Rudge is an English former professional football player and manager who is the president of EFL League Two club Port Vale.

Darren Richard Lorenzo Beckford is an English former professional footballer who played as a forward. His younger brother Jason also played professional football.

Ronald Futcher is an English former footballer who played as a centre-forward. He was the fourth-highest career scorer of the North American Soccer League and made over 400 appearances in total for nine different English Football League clubs. He was noted for his aerial ability and solid ball control.

Robert Joseph Hazell is a former professional footballer who made 266 league appearances in a 12-year career in the English Football League between 1977 and 1989. Born in Jamaica, he represented England at under-21 level. His nephew is the former Oldham Athletic defender Reuben Hazell, and his son Rohan was a non-League player.

Robert Newton is an English footballer. Newton played as a striker for several clubs in the lower divisions of the English Football League during the 1970s and 1980s. He is most notable for his first five-year spell at Hartlepool United between 1977 and 1982, where he wrote himself into club history with his 48 goals in 150 league games. Popular with Hartlepool supporters, he was later voted as the club's 'Player of the 1980s'.

Raymond Walker is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He played 440 games for Port Vale in all competitions between 1986 and 1997, ensuring himself a place in the club's history. He was twice the club's player of the season. He was named on the PFA Team of the Year three times. He was promoted twice with the club and also played a part in the club's highest-ever post-war finish in the English Football League. With Aston Villa in the early '80s, he joined Port Vale in 1986, after a short loan spell in 1984. After eleven years at Vale Park, he went into non-League football with Leek Town and Newcastle Town.

John Ridley was an English footballer. A versatile player able to play as a defender or midfielder, he had a twelve-year professional career in the English Football League, playing for Port Vale and Chesterfield, as well as Leicester City. He also played for non-League Stafford Rangers and the American side Fort Lauderdale Strikers.

Andrew Mark Jones is a former Wales international footballer. A striker, he won six caps at international level and scored one goal. In domestic football, he made 336 league and cup appearances in the English Football League and scored 116 goals.

Russell Bromage is an English former footballer who played as a wing-back. In a fourteen-year career in the Football League he made 400 league appearances, scoring 14 goals.

Phillip Jess Sproson is an English former footballer who played as a central defender. He played in 500 matches for Port Vale and scored 41 goals ; this places him second in the list of appearances for Port Vale. He was the nephew of Port Vale defender Roy Sproson and son of Jess Sproson, who played for Vale between 1940 and 1947.

David Sidney Riley is an English former footballer who played as a midfielder and striker, making 190 league appearances in a nine-year career in the Football League, scoring 40 goals.

Darren John Hughes is an English former footballer. A left-back noted for his pace, he made 388 league and cup appearances for six clubs over a fourteen-year career in the English Football League.

Colin Tartt is an English former footballer. A midfielder, he made 478 league appearances in a 13-year career in the Football League.

John Joseph Jeffers was an English footballer who played as a left-winger. He scored 18 goals in 297 league and cup appearances in a 12-year career in the Football League.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1989 Football League Third Division play-off final</span> Association football match

The 1989 Football League Third Division play-off final was a two-legged football match played on 31 May and 3 June 1989, between Port Vale and Bristol Rovers to determine the third and final team to gain promotion from the Third Division to the Second Division. The top two teams of the 1988–89 Football League Third Division season gained automatic promotion to the Second Division, while those placed from third to sixth place in the table took part in play-offs; the winners of these semi-finals competed for the final place for the 1989–90 season in the Second Division. From 1990 onwards, play-off finals would be one-legged affairs decided at Wembley Stadium or an appropriate neutral stadium.

John Lawrence Froggatt is an English former footballer and manager. A forward, he scored 45 goals in 215 league games in seven seasons in the Football League.

The 1987–88 season was Port Vale's 76th season of football in the English Football League, and second-successive season in the Third Division. John Rudge's side started the season well, but then suffered following the sale of star striker Andy Jones. Just as Rudge seemed to be struggling, the Vale earned a memorable 2–1 victory over top-flight Tottenham Hotspur at Vale Park in the FA Cup Fourth Round. They exited the competition at the next stage at the hands of Watford, following a replay. Vale's league form also improved, as they finished in eleventh place, helped by midfielders Ray Walker and Robbie Earle, defenders Phil Sproson and Bob Hazell, and goalkeeper Mark Grew. Darren Beckford and David Riley were joint-top-scorers with ten goals each. Vale exited the League Cup and the Associate Members' Cup at the first round.

The 1988–89 season was Port Vale's 77th season of football in the English Football League, and third-successive season in the Third Division. They achieved promotion to the Second Division with a 2–1 aggregate win over Bristol Rovers in the two-legged play-off final. This came after a long season in which Vale, who suffered an injury crisis in the second half of the season, were just pipped to the second automatic promotion spot by Sheffield United. The club also reached the third round of the FA Cup, the Second Round of the League Cup, and the preliminary round of the Associate Members' Cup. John Rudge's main stars were top-scorer Darren Beckford, strike partner Ron Futcher, defender Simon Mills, midfielders Ray Walker and Robbie Earle, and Player of the Year Mark Grew. Returning star Andy Jones was disappointing in his loan spell, but Andy Porter and Dean Glover both made their débuts in what was Phil Sproson's last season at the club.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 200. ISBN   0-9529152-0-0.
  2. ↑ "Simon Mills". adrianbullock.com. Retrieved 18 October 2016.
  3. ↑ "England Matches - Youth/Under-18's 1980-90". www.englandfootballonline.com. Retrieved 14 October 2024.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "The Simon Mills Interview (Part 1)". The Vale Park Beano. 82.
  5. ↑ Earle, Robbie (20 September 2012). "Micky Adams must take credit for building an attacking squad". The Sentinel . Retrieved 20 September 2012.
  6. 1 2 3 "The Simon Mills Interview (Part 2)". The Vale Park Beano. 83.
  7. 1 2 "Cult Hero 05: Simon Mills". onevalefan.co.uk. 29 January 2012. Retrieved 1 June 2020.
  8. ↑ Baggaley, Michael (5 October 2013). "Chris Lines in good company when it comes to taking free-kicks". The Sentinel . Retrieved 6 October 2013.
  9. ↑ Fielding, Rob (26 May 2019). "This is the OVF viewers all-time Port Vale XI". onevalefan.co.uk. Retrieved 4 June 2020.
  10. ↑ "Vale heroes completed mission thanks to MBE". The Sentinel. 30 October 2009. Retrieved 31 October 2009.
  11. ↑ Simon Mills at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
  12. ↑ "Statistics Season 1994/95". bufc.drfox.org.uk. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  13. ↑ "Statistics Season 1995/96". bufc.drfox.org.uk. Retrieved 15 February 2023.
  14. ↑ Kent, Jeff (1989). Port Vale Promotion Chronicle 1988-1989: Back to Where We Once Belonged!. Witan Books. ISBN   0-9508981-3-9.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.