Quick Facts
Biography
John Cunliffe (4 February 1930 – 15 November 1975) was an English footballer who played on the left wing. He made 309 appearances in the Football League, scoring 55 goals.
Signed to Port Vale for almost the whole of the 1950s, he was on the wing for one of the most exciting periods of the club's history, with Vale Park still freshly built. He helped the club to the Third Division North title in 1953–54 and the Fourth Division title in 1958–59. In September 1959 he crossed the city to play one season with Stoke City. He then became a non-league player with Macclesfield Town, Stafford Rangers and Buxton.
Playing career
Cunliffe joined Gordon Hodgson's Port Vale in December 1950, and went on to feature in eight Third Division South games in 1950–51. He scored his first goal in the Football League on 30 April 1951, in a 2–0 win over Exeter City at Vale Park. He played 11 games in 1951–52 and 19 games in 1952–53, as new boss Freddie Steele took the "Valiants" to second in the Third Division North.
Vale went on to win the Third Division North title and reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup in 1953–54; Cunliffe was a mainstay in the team, bagging nine goals in 50 appearances. In the Fifth Round of the competition, he was said to have outplayed Blackpool's Stanley Matthews. He scored five goals in 43 games in 1954–55, including goals in both FA Cup encounters with West Ham United. He hit seven goals in 41 games in 1955–56 and six goals in 33 games in 1956–57. However the club suffered relegation out of the Second Division under new manager Norman Low. He scored four goals in 45 matches in the 1957–58 season, as Vale registered a 15th-place finish in the Third Division South. Cunliffe missed only one match of the Fourth Division winning 1958–59 season, and found the net 15 times.
He transferred to rivals Stoke City, along with £2,000, in exchange for Peter Ford and Harry Oscroft in September 1959. He scored three goals in 25 Second Division games for the "Potters" in 1959–60, before he was allowed to leave the Victoria Ground by manager Frank Taylor. He signed with Macclesfield Town, scoring 34 goals in 98 Cheshire County League games for Frank Bowyer's "Silkmen". He later played for Stafford Rangers and Buxton.
Style of play
A skilled left winger adept at taking on defenders, his finishing was poor.
Career statistics
- Sourced from John Cunliffe profile at the English National Football Archive (subscription required)
| Club | Season | Division | League | FA Cup | Other | Total | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | |||
| Port Vale | 1950–51 | Third Division South | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 1 |
| 1951–52 | Third Division South | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 2 | |
| 1952–53 | Third Division North | 19 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 4 | |
| 1953–54 | Third Division North | 42 | 8 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 9 | |
| 1954–55 | Second Division | 40 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 43 | 7 | |
| 1955–56 | Second Division | 39 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 7 | |
| 1956–57 | Second Division | 31 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 6 | |
| 1957–58 | Third Division South | 42 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 4 | |
| 1958–59 | Fourth Division | 45 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 46 | 15 | |
| 1959–60 | Third Division | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | |
| Total | 283 | 52 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 302 | 55 | ||
| Stoke City | 1959–60 | Second Division | 25 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 3 |
| Macclesfield Town | 1960–61 | Cheshire County League | 34 | 12 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 42 | 15 |
| 1961–62 | Cheshire County League | 32 | 13 | 2 | 2 | 7 | 3 | 41 | 18 | |
| 1962–63 | Cheshire County League | 32 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 38 | 9 | |
| Total | 98 | 34 | 10 | 5 | 13 | 3 | 121 | 42 | ||
| Career Total | 406 | 89 | 31 | 8 | 13 | 3 | 450 | 100 | ||
Honours
- Football League Third Division North runner-up: 1952–53
- Football League Third Division North winner: 1953–54
- Football League Fourth Division winner: 1958–59