Next Match – Port Vale (H)
Bath City will meet Port Vale for the first time this weekend.
The Valiants will visit Twerton Park on the way back from a pre-season stopover at Cardiff City. They’ve had a busy schedule, already playing five friendlies to largely help integrate academy players and trialists. Four of those games have been against non-league sides, recording wins at Newcastle Town and Kidsgrove Athletic before drawing with Rushall Olympic behind closed doors.
A side mainly containing academy players lost at Leek Town with a more recognised squad losing away to Coventry City last weekend. That was also behind closed doors at Loughborough University Stadium.
Vale were relegated back to League Two last season after two years in the third tier. Darren Moore, who knows Jerry Gill from their days at Birmingham City and West Bromwich Albion respectively, took over from Andy Crosby in February but couldn’t turn their fortunes around with 11 defeats in the final 17 games.
Having spent his entire career in the EFL, Moore didn’t feature as a player at Twerton Park. Centre-back Jesse Debrah figured in a 3-2 loss and 4-1 win at the venue for Dulwich Hamlet in 2020. Ryan Loft scored at Twerton two years ago in a friendly for Bristol Rovers but has just left for Cambridge United.
He’s one of seven to depart Vale Park with 11 joining, including Swiss front man Lorent Tolaj. The 22-year-old has stepped up from National League Aldershot Town, where he scored 25 goals in all competitions last season.
One of Bath City’s strikers, Cody Cooke, will be looking for his first run-out after picking up a calf strain. Manager Jerry Gill said after last week’s defeat to Bristol Rovers that he and Jack Batten, recovering from a perforated eardrum, could feature for the first time this pre-season. The game is City’s third and final against league opposition this summer. They have three friendlies remaining afterwards before opening the league season at Boreham Wood on 10 August.
While Port Vale have never faced Bath City, including friendlies, they have played at Twerton Park. During Bristol Rovers’ exile between 1986-1996, Vale visited eight times. The most stand-out was in May 1989, a Division Three (now League One) play-off final 1st leg. The tie ended 1-1 in front of 9,042 spectators with Vale winning the second leg 1-0 to clinch promotion to the second tier for the first time since 1957. This was the last year the play-off finals were played over two games, 1990 saw the introduction of Wembley hosting a one-off game.
Vale last played at Twerton Park in August 1994, winning 3-1 in a Coca-Cola Cup 1st round 1st leg tie.
The most stand-out player to represent both clubs is Chris Banks. A former teammate of Gill, Banks spent six years with Vale in the 1980s before a successful five years with Bath City, figuring in the FA Cup 3rd Round 0-0 draw at Stoke City in 1994. He later spent three years at physio for Vale before retiring in 2022.
Tickets for this pre-season friendly are available here. Discounts available for purchasing before 23.45pm on Friday 19 July.
