Southampton Tankard started his football career with
Southampton, signing
Youth Training Scheme forms in June 1985. He played in pre-season
friendly games two months after his 16th birthday. However, he struggled with his weight. After only five appearances, it was apparent he had no future at
The Dell, so he signed with
Wigan Athletic in July 1988.
Port Vale In July 1993,
John Rudge signed Tankard to
Port Vale for a £87,500 fee. Initially unpopular with the fans, he turned things around at
Vale Park after a last minute
FA Cup winner against
Huddersfield Town in the
FA Cup second round. He spent December to April of the
1993–94 season on the sidelines due to a
hamstring injury, with
Dean Stokes playing in his stead, but Tankard's performances whilst fit helped the club to
promotion out of the Third Division. Tankard was released in June 2001 after the club reneged on the offer of a new two-year
contract upon bringing in
Phil Hardy,
Alex Gibson and
Rae Ingram. years later, the club were still trying to fill the void Tankard's departure had left in the left-back role. In May 2019, he was voted into the "Ultimate Port Vale XI" by members of the
OneValeFan supporter website. In December 2025, supporters voted him onto the all-time Port Vale XI on the club's official website.
Later career He spent the
2001–02 season with
Mansfield Town, helping
Bill Dearden's "Stags" to gain the third and final automatic promotion place of the Third Division, one point ahead of
Cheltenham Town. but did not make any appearances at
Field Mill due to injury and was released in January 2003. ==Post-retirement==