Chartered Surveyors Stoke Staffordshire

Approximate Population: 239,700

Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, is home to two professional football teams. The club bearing the area’s name are Stoke City, who were formed in 1863 and are the second oldest professional football club in England. They currently play at the Britannia Stadium in Trentham, which has been their home since 1997 when they relocated from the Victoria Ground in Stoke.

They were among the 12 founder members of the Football League in 1888, but did not win their first (and, to date, only) major trophy until 1972, when they lifted the Football League Cup. In 1985, they were relegated from the First Division and began a 23-year exile from the top flight of English football (including two short spells in the league’s third tier) which did not end until they won promotion in 2008, by which time the First Division had become the Premier League.

Arguably the club’s most famous player of all time was Stanley Matthews, who is perhaps the best known sportsperson from the city. He played football for Stoke City and Blackpool where he played in what became known as the Matthews Final and managed Port Vale from 1965-1968. He was the first active footballer to receive a Knighthood. The “wizard of dribble”, as he became known, made 54 appearances for his country, scoring 11 times. There are two statues of Matthews in the city; one in Hanley, and one at the Britannia Stadium.
Vale Park, home of Port Vale.

The city’s other professional football club are Port Vale, who were formed in 1876 and play at Vale Park in the Burslem area. They joined the Football League in 1892 but were forced to resign from it in 1907 due to financial problems, only to return in 1919. Their highest league position came in 1931 when they finished fifth in the Football League Second Division. Unlike Stoke City, their local rivals in the Potteries derby, they have never played top division football. They currently play in League Two (fourth tier). Individuals of note include: John Rudge (who managed the club for 16 years from 1983-1999), and Roy Sproson, (who made a record 837 appearances for the club from 1950 until 1972, and was later their manager).