Two minute guide to: Crawley Town v Port Vale
It’s Port Vale’s opening game of the season and here’s our brief guide to the action…
Essentials
Last time we met
Match details?
- Football League Two
- Saturday 5 August, 15:00
- Broadfield Stadium, Crawley
What’s the ground like?
A relatively new stadium which was opened in 1997 it holds 5,996 with 3,295 seats. Away fans are housed in a covered terrace with a small number of seats also available in the main stand.
Team news
What will the Vale look like?
Winger Cristian Montano has been ruled out alongside fellow summer signing Tyrone Barnett. There is also a question mark over keeper Rob Lainton’s participation but Anthony Kay, Marcus Harness, Michael Tonge , Gavin Gunning, Lawrie Wilson and Graham Kelly are in contention to start while Tom Pope should return upfront alongside another newcomer Rekeil Pyke. There may also be a place in the squad for last-minute loan signing Ben Whitfield.
What about the opposition?
The likes of Panutche Camara, Mark Randall, Moussa Sanoh and Thomas Verheydt will be hopeful of making their Crawley bows after signing in the summer, as will the loanee pair of Cedric Evina and Dennon Lewis.
Boss watch
Harry Kewell
The former Australian International had a glittering playing career with the likes of Leeds United and Liverpool but this is his first managerial post after being recruited in the summer. However, Kewell has had a spell as Watford U23 coach.
Stats and facts
Overall record
- Port Vale wins: 3
- Crawley wins: 2
- Draws: 1
Last time we…
lost at Crawley was back in 2012. Since then, Vale have won both of their visits to Town’s stadium.
Connections
Played for both…
Striker Tyrone Barnett will miss out on the chance to face his former club because of injury. Other players to appear for both sides include forward Gavin Tomlin, striker Guy Madjo and winger Abdulai Bell-Baggie.
Trivia
Short stay
Sean O’Driscoll had a controversial spell as Crawley manager in 2012. O’Driscoll joined in May 2012 but left in July 2012 to become Nottingham Forest manager without managing a single competitive game.
A brief history
Founded in 1894, it took Crawley until 2004 to reach the National League. However, they won promotion to the Football League just seven years later.
Tom Pope
“It’s all about rolling your sleeves up and digging in and I think we have the kind of characters to do that…”
Harry Kewell
“I really enjoyed my time with Watford U23’s and I see the other side of the game now, and it feels like it is exactly what I set out to do in my career…”
While you are here…
This website has a limited number of places available for local sponsors at prices that should suit every budget. OVF has a history of using local sponsorship over the year and we are both grateful to everyone who has been a sponsor on this site and also happy to provide awareness of local businesses to our wide readership. There is more information here and if you’re interested, please get in touch with [email protected]