Raymond Walker (born 28 September 1963) is an English former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...

who played as a

midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

. He played 440 games for

Port Vale Port Vale Football Club are a professional football club based in Burslem, Stoke-on-Trent, England, which compete in . Vale are the only English Football League club not to be named after a place; their name being a reference to the valley of ...

in all competitions between 1986 and 1997, ensuring himself a place in the club's history. He was twice the club's player of the season, and was named on the

PFA Team of the Year The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's English football; the Premi ...

three times. He was

promoted Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

twice with the club and also played a part in the club's highest ever post-war finish in the

English Football League The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engl ...

. With

Aston Villa Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa P ...

in the early '80s, he joined Port Vale in 1986, after a short

loan In finance, a loan is the lending of money by one or more individuals, organizations, or other entities to other individuals, organizations, etc. The recipient (i.e., the borrower) incurs a debt and is usually liable to pay interest on that ...

spell in 1984. After eleven years at

Vale Park Vale Park is a football stadium in Stoke-on-Trent, England. It has been the home ground of Port Vale F.C. since 1950. The ground has seen its capacity go up and down, its peak being 42,000 in 1954 against Blackpool, although a club record 49, ...

he went into

non-League football Non-League football describes association football, football leagues played outside the top leagues of a country. Usually, it describes leagues which are not fully professional. The term is primarily used for football in England, where it is s ...

with

Leek Town Leek Town Football Club is an English association football, football club based in Leek, Staffordshire, Leek, Staffordshire, currently playing in the . The team, nicknamed "The Blues", play their home games at Harrison Park. The club was found ...

and Newcastle Town.

Career

Aston Villa

Walker joined

as an apprentice in July 1979, and turned professional in September 1981. He won the

FA Youth Cup The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. I ...

in 1980, when Villa defeated

Manchester City Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The two ...

3–2. He found it impossible to break into the first-team at a club that had just won the

1982 European Cup final The 1982 European Cup Final was played on 26 May 1982. Football League winners Aston Villa defeated Bundesliga winners Bayern Munich 1–0 at De Kuip in Rotterdam, Netherlands to win the European Cup for the first time, and continue the streak ...

. He did though make his First Division debut in the 1982–83 season in a 2–0 defeat at

West Ham United West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium ...

. He featured under both Tony Barton and

Graham Turner Graham John Turner (born 5 October 1947) is an English former footballer who became a manager. His son Mark was also a professional footballer. He is third behind only Alex Ferguson and Arsène Wenger in terms of most games managed. After a ...

, but never got an extended run in the team.

Port Vale

Walker was

ed to

Fourth Division Fourth or the fourth may refer to: * the ordinal form of the number 4 * ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971 * Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision * Fourth (music), a musical interval * ''The Fourth'' (1972 film), a Sovie ...

for two months at the start of the 1984–85 season. He played fifteen games for

John Rudge John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

's side, scoring his first goal in professional football on 15 September, in a 3–1 win over

Torquay United Torquay United Football Club is a professional football club based in Torquay, Devon, England. The team currently compete in the , the fifth tier of English football. They have played their home matches at Plainmoor since 1921 and are nicknamed ...

Plainmoor Plainmoor is an association football stadium located in the Plainmoor suburb of Torquay, Devon, England. Since 1921, the stadium has been the home of Torquay United Football Club, who currently compete in the National League, the fifth tier of ...

. He returned to

Villa Park Villa Park is a football stadium in Aston, Birmingham, England, with a seating capacity of 42,682. It has been the home of Premier League side Aston Villa since 1897. The ground is less than a mile from both Witton and Aston railway statio ...

but failed to established himself in the first team. He returned to Port Vale (now in the Third Division) on a permanent basis in July 1986 for a fee of £12,000, plus 50% of any future sale above that amount (a fee settled by a tribunal). He played 54 games in 1986–87, scoring five goals. He was voted

Player of the Year Several sports leagues honour their best player with an award called Player of the Year (POY) . In the United States, this type of award is usually called a Most Valuable Player award. Association football In association football, this award is he ...

by the club's supporters in 1987–88, and was also selected by the PFA for the Third Division

Team of the Year Team of the Year may refer to: * BBC Sports Personality of the Year Team Award * Canadian Press Team of the Year Award * GPA Gaelic Team of the Year *IRB International Sevens Team of the Year * IRB International Team of the Year * J.League Team of ...

. These awards were handed to him for his performances during his 53-game season, with one of his seven goals coming from a long-range effort against

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The team has playe ...

in a celebrated

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competit ...

Fourth Round upset. He handed in a

transfer Transfer may refer to: Arts and media * ''Transfer'' (2010 film), a German science-fiction movie directed by Damir Lukacevic and starring Zana Marjanović * ''Transfer'' (1966 film), a short film * ''Transfer'' (journal), in management studies ...

request in June 1988, following rumours that the club had turned down an offer of £150,000 from

; his request was rejected – much to the disappointment of

Stoke City Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Sto ...

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...

Mick Mills Michael Dennis Mills MBE (born 4 January 1949) is an English former footballer who played for Ipswich Town, Southampton and Stoke City. He managed Stoke City, Colchester United and Birmingham City. During his career he achieved Ipswich Town's ...

. Rudge claimed that Walker and

Robbie Earle Robert Fitzgerald Earle MBE (born 27 January 1965) is an English-born Jamaican former international footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He played 578 league games in senior club football, scoring 136 goals. A former youth player ...

had one of the best-ever midfield partnerships at the Vale. The pair helped the club win

promotion Promotion may refer to: Marketing * Promotion (marketing), one of the four marketing mix elements, comprising any type of marketing communication used to inform or persuade target audiences of the relative merits of a product, service, brand or i ...

in 1988–89, both men being key players in the 1989 play-off final. Walker was also selected in the PFA Team of the Year for a second-successive season, scoring six goals in 56 appearances. Despite this, he said "Wait until next year. I had a bad season!" He helped the club to survive and prosper in the

Second Division In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...

, and recovered from injury to post 47 appearances in 1989–90. He only scored the one goal, though it came at a crucial time, helping the "Valiants" to record a 3–2 victory over top-flight

Derby County Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group. Founded in 1884 ...

Pride Park Pride Park is a business park on the outskirts of the city centre of Derby, England. Developed in the 1990s, It covers 80 hectares of former industrial land between the River Derwent and railway lines. Pride Park Stadium and Derby Arena are bo ...

in the FA Cup. He was installed as the club's

penalty Penalty or The Penalty may refer to: Sports * Penalty (golf) * Penalty (gridiron football) * Penalty (ice hockey) * Penalty (rugby) * Penalty (rugby union) * Penalty kick (association football) * Penalty shoot-out (association football) * Penalt ...

-taker in 1990–91, and five of his seven goals came from the spot. His performances over his fifty games resulted in him being awarded the club's Player of the Year award once again in 1991, with only David Harris before him having been handed that honour twice. He was sidelined for five months with ligament damage in September 1991, and his absence during the 1991–92 was notable, and was a factor in the club being

relegated In sports leagues, promotion and relegation is a process where teams are transferred between multiple divisions based on their performance for the completed season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are often called open leagues. ...

, with Vale finishing just five points from safety. He recovered to make 27 appearances over the course of the season, his two goals from coming from the spot. Walker was involved in the TNT Tournament win in summer 1992. He picked up a knee injury in April 1993 and although his performances

1992–93 Year 199 ( CXCIX) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was sometimes known as year 952 ''Ab urbe condita''. The denomination 199 for this year has been used since th ...

saw him selected for that seasons PFA

side of the year, he had to undergo a

cruciate ligament Cruciate ligaments (also cruciform ligaments) are pairs of ligaments arranged like a letter X. They occur in several joints of the body, such as the knee joint and the atlanto-axial joint. In a fashion similar to the cords in a toy Jacob's ...

operation in September 1993, which caused him to miss most of the 1993–94 season. At the end of the campaign though, Vale were promoted into the First Division as Second Division runners-up. He spent a brief five game loan period with Second Division

Cambridge United Cambridge United Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of Cambridge, England. They compete in EFL League one , the 3rd tier of the English football league system. The club is based at the Abbey Stadium on N ...

in September 1994, but managed to win his place back at

upon his return. However, he was struck down by another knee injury in March 1995, at which point

Ian Bogie Ian Bogie (born 6 December 1967) is a former footballer, and former manager of Gateshead and Stockport County. He spent two decades as a professional player, from 1985 up until 2001 he was playing in the English Football League, where he made ...

was signed as his replacement. Walker scored two goals in 47 games in the 1995–96 season, both goals coming in a 4–3 win over

Crystal Palace Crystal Palace may refer to: Places Canada * Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick * Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario * Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition buildin ...

in an FA Cup third round

replay Replay may refer to: * Replay (sports), a replayed match between two sport teams Technology * Game replay, a recording of a game session. * Instant replay, in motion pictures and television, a showing again of part of a film * Replay Professional, ...

. He played in the 1996 Anglo-Italian Cup final, as Vale lost 5–2 to

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of t ...

. He made 19 appearances in 1996–97, as Vale posted their highest ever post-

WW2 World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

finish (eighth place in the second tier). He then left the club in May 1997. His many years with the "Valiants" entitled him to a

testimonial game A testimonial match or testimonial game, often referred to simply as a testimonial, is a practice in some sports, particularly in association football in the United Kingdom and South America, where a club has a match to honour a player for servic ...

, which finished as an 8–6 defeat to

Leicester City Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the Nation ...

. Known by the nickname 'Razor', he played a total of 440 league and cup games for the club, scoring 43 goals.

Later career

After leaving Port Vale Walker spent time as a player-

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Co ...

with

Conference A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main ...

new boys

, including a five-game spell as

caretaker manager In association footballing terms, a caretaker manager or interim manager is somebody who takes temporary charge of the management of a football team, usually when the regular manager is dismissed or leaves for a different club. However, a caret ...

from 17 March 1998. He played a total of 45 games in the 1997–98 season. Later that year he became

player-manager A player-coach (also playing coach, captain-coach, or player-manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. A player-coach may be a head coach or an assistant coach. They may make changes to the sq ...

North West Counties League The North West Counties Football League is a football league in the North West of England. Since 2019–20, the league has covered the Isle of Man, Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Merseyside, Cumbria, northern Staffordshire, northern ...

side Newcastle Town, where he remained until leaving to join the

Crewe Alexandra Crewe Alexandra Football Club is an English professional association football club based in the town of Crewe, Cheshire, that competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. Nicknamed 'The Railwaymen' because of ...

academy in 2001. The "Castle" finished fourth in Division One in 1998–99, second in 1999–2000 and ninth in 2000–01. They also reached the semi-finals of the

FA Vase The Football Association Challenge Vase, usually referred to as the FA Vase, is an annual football competition for teams playing in Steps 5 and 6 of the English National League System (or equivalently, tier 9 or 10 of the overall English footb ...

in 1999–2000.

Style of play

Known as the " Hoddle of the lower leagues", Walker was an expert

passer ''Passer'' is a genus of sparrows, also known as the true sparrows. The genus contains 28 species and includes the house sparrow and the Eurasian tree sparrow, two of the most common birds in the world. They are small birds with thick bills for ...

. He boasted all the qualities of a top-flight

, except pace. In May 2019, he was voted into the "Ultimate Port Vale XI" by members of the ''OneValeFan'' supporter website.

Post-retirement

As of June 2011, Walker was working as Football in the Community Officer for

Career statistics

Honours

Aston Villa Youth *

: 1979–80 Port Vale *

Football League Third Division The Football League Third Division was the third tier of the English football league system in 1920–21 and again from 1958 until 1992. When the FA Premier League was formed, the division become the fourth tier level. In 2004, following th ...

play-offs The playoffs, play-offs, postseason or finals of a sports league are a competition played after the regular season by the top competitors to determine the league champion or a similar accolade. Depending on the league, the playoffs may be eithe ...

1989 File:1989 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Cypress structure collapses as a result of the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, killing motorists below; The proposal document for the World Wide Web is submitted; The Exxon Valdez oil tanker ru ...

Football League Second Division The Football League Second Division was the second level division in the English football league system between 1892 and 1992. Following the foundation of the FA Premier League, the Football League divisions were renumbered and the third t ...

second-place promotion: 1993–94 *

Anglo-Italian Cup The Anglo-Italian Cup ( it, Coppa Anglo-Italiana, also known as the Anglo-Italian Inter-League Clubs Competition and from 1976 to 1986 as the Alitalia Challenge Cup, Talbot Challenge Cup or Gigi Peronace Memorial) is a defunct European football c ...

runner-up: 1995–96 Individual *PFA Team of the Year: 1987–88 Third Division, 1988–89 Third Division, 1992–93 Second Division * Port Vale Player of the Year: 1998–88, 1990–91

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Ray Footballers from North Shields English men's footballers England men's youth international footballers Men's association football midfielders Aston Villa F.C. players Port Vale F.C. players Cambridge United F.C. players Newcastle Town F.C. players Leek Town F.C. players English Football League players National League (English football) players Men's association football player-managers English football managers Leek Town F.C. managers Newcastle Town F.C. managers National League (English football) managers Association football coaches Crewe Alexandra F.C. non-playing staff 1963 births Living people