Alan Bloor

Stoke City

Bloor played centre-half for Stoke-on-Trent schoolboys and won youth caps with England. He started his career with Stoke City in 1960 on his 17th birthday. He made his first-team debut on 19 September 1961, playing alongside Eric Skeels in a 1–0 defeat by Brighton & Hove Albion at the Victoria Ground. He played a total of six Second Division games in 1961–62, but did not take to the field in another competitive fixture until the 1964–65 season; he played 15 First Division during the campaign, and scored his first senior goal in a 1–1 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford on 23 January. He played 36 games in 1965–66 and 32 games in 1966–67. He was loaned out to Stoke's sister club Cleveland Stokers in 1967 and played 11 United Soccer Association games. Bloor hit four goals in 43 appearances in 1967–68 and helped the "Potters" to finish three points above the relegation zone. He played 35 games in 1968–69, as Stoke again finished three points above the drop zone. He made 43 appearances in the 1969–70 season and 48 appearances in the 1970–71 season. He played 63 games in the 1971–72 season, including 11 League Cup games. He was a member of 1972 League Cup winning side that beat Chelsea 2–1 at Wembley to claim the club's first major trophy; he was part of a four-man defence along with John Marsh, Mike Pejic, and Denis Smith, playing in front of goalkeeper Gordon Banks. Bloor played 33 games in 1972–73 and 31 games in 1973–74, helping the "Potters" to win…

Bloor was a fearsome defender and a "voracious tackler". He played alongside Denis Smith for much of his Stoke career. He used his intelligence to read the game and clean up any mistakes the more aggressive Smith made.

Bloor was appointed the caretaker manager of Port Vale in August 1979 following the departure of Dennis Butler and was appointed to the position on a full-time basis the following month. He sold Ken Todd to Portsmouth for £20,000, cancelled Ged Stenson's contract, and spent £30,000 on Crewe Alexandra defender Paul Bowles. Losing five of their seven games in October, the "Valiants" drifted to third-from-bottom. Vale went undefeated in the league in November, but Bloor unexpectedly resigned in December 1979, saying he did not 'have what it takes'. Coach Gordon Banks was also dismissed. He blamed the players for his downfall, claiming they did not like hard work.

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Managerial statistics