Club Staff
- Jun 20
- 1 min read

Former Crawley forward adds firepower to the Stones

Well-travelled forward Sam Ashford becomes the fifth permanent signing of the summer, and the third today, after putting pen to paper on an initial one-year deal.

Ashford helped Cliftonville qualify for this season's UEFA Conference League, scored in and won the Irish Cup and fired Ayr United to a second-place finish second in the Scottish Championship.

He played and scored for Crawley in League Two, has vast experience of playing in the National League South and spent time on loan at Woking with Max Kretzschmar and Jack Cook in 2021. Ashford arrives at The Vale in the prime of his career at 28.

"Sam is a forward who has versatility coupled with a huge desire to score goals and will add to our attacking options," said manager Matt Taylor. "He has experience of the Football League and we are looking forward to helping him achieve his aims for the season."