Ground has been broken and work started on a statue to celebrate former Port Vale manager and current Club President, John Rudge.
The statue, which is set to be unveiled in October, is a two-year project in the making, with Port Vale Supporters’ Club raising a total of £100,000, towards the sculpture which will be placed on a plinth on Vale Park’s Hamil Road Fan Zone.
John Rudge managed the Burslem-based club for 843 games from 1983 to 1999, putting Port Vale and Staffordshire firmly on the map as he took the club to the highest league position in their history. His sides famously beat the likes of Tottenham Hotspur and FA Cup Holders Everton and for the first time in their history made them competitive - and at times above - neighbouring rivals Stoke City.
The unveiling of the bronze statue will take place on Monday 21st October - Rudge’s 80th birthday - open to all supporters from 2pm on the Hamil Road Fan Zone at Vale Park.
The brick-based plinth will be built by Stoke-based Lench Building Contractors, who have started work ready for the statue to be placed in the coming weeks.
John Rudge said:
“It is an honour for supporters to have raised this amount of money for a statue. I’m overwhelmed by the generosity of supporters.”
Port Vale Supporters’ Club Chair, Mark Porter, said:
“Today is a proud day - it’s the start of the plinth building where the John Rudge Statue will stand, and it feels like a huge achievement to have got as far as this. Port Vale supporters look back on John’s time as manager with such joy and this is a fitting tribute to a great man.”
Sculptor, Michael Talbot, said:
“It has been a pleasure to work with John over the last year during the preparation and sculpting of this statue. Today’s groundbreaking is a momentous day, as it takes us one step further to erecting the statue and towards the
unveiling in October.”
Port Vale Chief Executive, Matt Hancock, said:
“This feels like the start of something special. Rudgey is synonymous with Port Vale, with Stoke-on-Trent as a city and with the football world as a whole. Anywhere you go, John gets spoken about; he’s such a humble, kind and
normal man. If anyone deserves a statue, it’s John.”
Supporters can still enter a raffle for a 15-inch maquette of John Rudge worth £5,000, with tickets available here at just £5 per ticket.
The raffle will be drawn at the home game against Swindon Town on Saturday 28th September 2024.
