Five of the best: successful Port Vale returns after a loan spell

Nathan Smith

Our first choice is one of Paton’s teammates. Nathan Smith is a shining example of how a loan spell can catapult a career. Smith, locally born and with only a spell at Stafford Rangers under his belt, was thrown in at the deep end when he moved to the South West for a season to play for Torquay. The defender said the spell had a galvanising effect on his career. He told the Sentinel: “going away to Torquay was when I grew up a little bit. I moved out from home, mum wasn’t there to do the washing, cleaning and cooking.” It wasn’t just away from the pitch where he matured. Smith was a runaway success on the pitch, being a near ever-present and winning both the player of the year and the young player of the year award. When he returned to Vale Park, Smith was a different player and became a near ever-present in the Vale line-up for the next eight years.

James Plant

Another of Paton’s teammates, James Plant, also had a rapid rise after a loan spell in non-league. In January 2023, Vale loaned both Plant and Tommy McDermott to Salisbury City to gain first-team football. Of the two, McDermott was the more highly regarded having started the season for the first-team. However, it was Plant who impressed the most with two man of the match performances and his first senior goal. His form saw him recalled to the Vale squad in April. He made his first Football League appearance as a sub and that was swiftly followed by a first senior start as he propelled himself into the starting eleven.

Jordan Hugill

A striker who was working as a barman before joining the club, Jordan Hugill was propelled into the professional game on the strength of a prolific loan spell with non-league Gateshead. The powerful forward was signed as a member of Vale’s development squad and joined Gateshead on loan in September 2013. After a spell which saw him net five times in seven games he was recalled and started his first Vale game in October, scoring his first goal the following month. He only played 24 times for the club but his potential was such that Vale sold him to Preston North End for £1.8m, the second-highest sale in the club’s history.

Ryan Boot

While obviously not a runaway success at Vale Park, Ryan Boot is a good example of how to use the loan system to give a young player experience and give them a path into the first-team. The goalkeeper was sent out on no less than six loan spells before coming back to claim the goalkeeper’s jersey. Boot went out to Norton United, Newcastle Town, Macclesfield Town and three spells at Worcester City between 2013 and 2016. When he returned to the club he’d only made a single appearance for the club. However, he was picked 28 times in the 2017-18 season before being released.

Adam Yates

You should never write off Adam Yates and his determination to play for the Vale. Originally signed in 2009, he had face competition for his place throughout his Valiants career. When he first joined, he had to fight off the challenge of Sam Stockley before he even made his Vale debut. He then fought off challenges from Rob Kozluk and Antony Griffith for the right-back spot. At the start of the 2012-13 promotion season, Micky Adams signed Richard Duffy, who started the season at right-back. Yates fought his way back into the team to be first-choice as the side clinched promotion.

Yates faced a fresh challenge in 2015 when he lost out to new signing Ben Purkiss. Yates went on loan to Northampton Town and that could have been the end of his stay at Vale Park. But it was not so. He returned to Vale and did so well he earned a new contract, going on to make a further 38 appearances for the club until his retirement in 2018.