Port Vale: Former chairman Bill Bell dies, aged 81

Former Port Vale chairman Bill Bell has died following a long illness.

Bell, 81, who was chairman between 1987 and 2002, was instrumental in the redevelopment of Vale Park.

He spent the majority of his 15 years at the helm at Vale working alongside long-serving manager John Rudge, who was boss from 1983 to 1999, during the club's most successful post-war era.

The Port Vale squad will wear black armbands for this Saturday's home League Two fixture against Morecambe.

"We're lowering the flags to half-mast as a sign of respect and we'll have a minute's silence," said Vale owner Paul Wildes on Twitter.