Allen Tankard
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Allen John Tankard | ||
| Date of birth | 21 May 1969 | ||
| Place of birth | Islington, England | ||
| Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||
| Playing position | Left-back | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1987–1988 | Southampton | 5 | (0) |
| 1988–1993 | Wigan Athletic | 209 | (4) |
| 1993–2001 | Port Vale | 275 | (11) |
| 2001–2003 | Mansfield Town | 30 | (2) |
| Total | 519 | (17) | |
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). |
|||
Allen John Tankard (born 21 March 1969) is an English former footballer. Noted for his eight years with Port Vale, overall he played 519 games in the Football League.
Contents |
[edit] Playing career
Tankard started his football career with Southampton, however after only five appearances it was apparent he had no future at the club and so signed with Wigan Athletic in 1988. He spent 5 years at Wigan, making over 200 appearances.
In July 1993, John Rudge signed Tankard to Port Vale for a £87,500 fee. Initially unpopular with the Vale Park fans, he turned things around after a last minute FA Cup winner against Huddersfield Town in the second round.[1] He spent December to April of the 1993-94 season on the sidelines due to a hamstring injury, but his performances whilst fit helped the club to promotion from the Third Division. He played regular football in the 1994-95 and 1995-96 seasons until being sidelined again in March 1996 due to another hamstring injury.[2]
Following his recovery he spent the 1996-97 and 1997-98 seasons as one of the first names on the team sheet. His reputation was somewhat sullied in an FA Cup third round game on 14 January 1998, blasting his penalty over the bar in the penalty shootout with Arsenal, it was the final kick of the 4-3 defeat (the game had finished 1-1 in normal time).[3] Recovering from their lacklustre third round performance, Arsenal would later go on to win the competition. During the 1998-99 and 1999-2000 seasons, Tankard was a key part of a Vale team struggling in England's second tier.
He remained loyal to the Burslem club following Rudge's departure and the club's relegation to the Second Division at the turn of the century. During the 2000-01 season he once again played around 40 competitive games for the Valiants. Despite playing every game of that seasons Football League Trophy run, he was an unused substitute for the final at the Millennium Stadium.[4]
Tankard was released in May 2001. In all he had made 324 first team appearances for the club, scoring 13 goals. Once of the club's most consistent performers,[5] years later the club were still trying to fill the void Tankard's departure had left in the left-back role.[6]
He spent the 2001-02 season with Mansfield Town,[7] helping them to gain the third and final automatic promotion place of the Third Division, one point ahead of Cheltenham Town. He was contracted with the club for the 2002-03 season,[8] but did not make any appearances.
[edit] Post-retirement
Since retiring from the game, Tankard took up work in Mow Cop at a minibus and coach hire company. He now co-owns the company with his wife Julie called CMP minibusses. They have a son, Charlie Matthew Tankard, born in 2000.
[edit] Honours
- with Port Vale
- Football League Third Division runner-up: 1993-94
- Anglo-Italian Cup runner-up: 1995-96
- Football League Trophy winner: 2001
- with Mansfield Town
- Football League Third Division 3rd place promotion winner: 2001-02
[edit] References
- ^ Shaw, Phil (4 December 1993). "Tankard raises cheers for Vale". The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/tankard-raises-cheers-for-vale-1465276.html. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
- ^ Kent, Jeff (1996). Port Vale Personalities. Witan Books. p. 286. ISBN 0-9529152-0-0. http://www.amazon.ca/Port-Vale-Personalities-Jeff-Kent/dp/0952915200.
- ^ "Penalty heartache for Port Vale". BBC Sport. January 14, 1998. http://212.58.226.17:8080/1/low/sport/football/47572.stm. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
- ^ "Port Vale's route to Cardiff". BBC Sport. 18 April 2001. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/1281326.stm. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
- ^ "Port Vale pen pictures". BBC Sport. 18 April 2001. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/1282030.stm. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
- ^ "Vale to unleash teenager". BBC Sport. 1 August 2003. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/p/port_vale/3116383.stm. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
- ^ "Tankard's the toast of Field Mill". BBC Sport. 20 July 2001. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/k/kidderminster_harriers/1449136.stm. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
- ^ "Tankard cheers Mansfield". BBC Sport. 12 June 2002. http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/m/mansfield_town/2041524.stm. Retrieved 2009-06-29.
