Four thoughts after the Port Vale win over Newport County
Conlon and Worrall to the fore: Rob Fielding shares his thoughts after Port Vale finally win a game – at home against Newport County.
Agree or disagree? Share your thoughts and post a comment at the end of the article.
Clarke deserves praise for tactical adaptability
In recent weeks, the new Port Vale manager has caused some bemusement with his formations and team selections. After claiming the squad is set up only to play 4-3-3 he seems to have played every formation bar that one for some weeks. In some respects, it’s understandable as it shored up Vale’s defence, but it also caused a lack of attacking threat.
So, the move to 4-3-3 for this game was welcome. Personally, I’m no great fan of the formation but it worked in the first-half of this game. Two energetic midfielders in Oyeleke and Conlon were excellently shielded by the unsung Joyce and David Worrall caused the defence all sorts of problems. Then the half-time break came.
It looked like being the same, old story – opposition making changes and Vale fading. The sight of Jake Scrimshaw scoring evoked memories of when Darrell Clarke, then the Walsall manager, produced a 4-3 win for his side with some radical changes. So, it was nice to see Clarke, now the Vale boss, react to the situation. At Walsall, John Askey was criticised for failing to counter Walsall’s changes, it was no so for Clarke on Tuesday evening. Out went the 4-3-3 and in came the 4-4-2. The tiring Oyeleke was replaced before another injury came along and the Valiants were able to ride out the Newport storm with a counter attacking game.
After some criticism of what he brings to the club, I felt this was a great example of the Vale manager thinking on his feet and he got his due rewards – a win. After some weeks of criticism in this column, it’s time to say “well done Darrell Clarke” as he played a tactical blinder on Tuesday.
The Oyeleke question
I posted on the forum this week that I didn’t think it was in Vale’s interests to offer Manny Oyeleke a new deal. Not because he isn’t a good player when fit but simply because he isn’t fit often enough. That’s not his fault – sometimes it works out that way (I’m thinking Michael Walsh or Lee Matthews here).
However, the midfielder’s performance on Tuesday evening has caused me to think again. He didn’t last the entire game and it is yet to be seen if he can manage the cycle of Saturday-Tuesday matches but when he’s on the pitch… well, what a difference he makes!
So, what to do with Oyeleke in the summer? I guess the answer, being brutally honest, is that if Vale can find someone of equal quality with a better fitness record, it may be worth letting him go. If they can’t do that, then it may well be worth keeping him as when he plays he certainly elevates the Vale team to a higher level. He just needs to be on the pitch more often to do so.
Conlon and Worrall to the fore
This was a game when key Vale players needed to bring their A game. The Valiants were desperate for a win and to do so, they needed creativity in their ranks. So, it was great to see two of the side’s most creative figures – Tom Conlon and especially David Worrall – come to the fore. Worrall was hugely influential and Vale fans must be praying he remains fit after some battering from a physical Newport side. Conlon was back to his best too. His goal was taken coolly and settled the side while his set plays were often dangerous. It will be great if the pair can now maintain that form until the end of the season.
A word on the boo boys
I would imagine that Zak Mills and Theo Robinson may be pleased that games are behind closed doors this season. It’s fair to say that the pair have received their fair share of criticism this season. Neither player was faultless on Tuesday night but they both looked to be putting in a lot of effort, which is pleasing.
Robinson’s critics will probably point out his lack of goal threat but he did have the odd half-chance and his link-up play was good. One second-half pass to send Worrall through was high quality. Darrell Clarke praised his performance and I think he’s set for a run in the side. He’s got a lot to do to win some over but regular minutes on the pitch may just turn him into the goal threat he was last season.
Mills had a game of two halves for me. In the first-half he did well in an attacking sense and linked up with Worrall to good effect. In the second-half some of the old frailties came to the fore as he was caught out of position on several occasions. However, he also looked to have gained some confidence with a run in the side and looks a better player than he did earlier in the season.
Neither player was perfect but this was certainly one of the pair’s better games.
Agree or disagree? Share your thoughts and post a comment at the end of the article.
Rich Whitehead
17th March 2021 @ 9:32 am
Pay as you play deal only for Manny next season
Ian Clarke
17th March 2021 @ 10:05 am
John Rudge used to say its players that win games not formations. The 1970 Brazilians had 3 up top, Jairzinho, Pele and Rivelino and it seemed to work okay for them. With regard to Theo Robinson and Zac Mills, what players need is regular football. The more they play hopefully the better they do. Theo Robinson did well for Colchester last season. We have to be thankful for Dave Worrall. A League 1 player playing in League 2. We can only hope the Newport victory is the start of a run of improved results. Up the Vale.
Andrew Gray
17th March 2021 @ 10:22 am
A crucial win last night but the likes of
Manny, Mills and Legge need to be replaced this summer and that’s just for starters. It’s obvious that the squad is no where near good enough and players who only manage ten games a season are not worth keeping. It’s a shame if your body is not up to the rigours of professional football but Vale can’t afford to carry one.
Bertie Wooster
17th March 2021 @ 10:37 am
It will be interesting to see what difference the new fitness regime makes to players like Oyeleke and Amoo. Both are good players at this level when they are on the pitch. But if it makes no difference we certainly need to look at pay per play options.
Kev sherwin
17th March 2021 @ 10:45 am
Thought it was good to see some confidence in the players in that first half performance, being brave on the ball and not just banging hopeful balls up field, second half was always going to be different ,newport are 4th in the league for a reason ,but they had a bit of luck with the deflection leading to the goal but we showed some spirit in coming back and getting in front ,and then managing the game out at the end by keeping possession in their half late on ,so all in all a decent display ,I think Clarke seems to know what he’s doing and if he can see us over the line this season I think we are in good hands
Bob Norbury
17th March 2021 @ 1:21 pm
I think that what Clarke has hinted at about the backroom medical and fitness staff at Vale is probably true. Too many injury prone and incapable of playing 90 mins players in the squad. It was probably not their fault and by the recent adverts for medical and physio staff I would imagine that we now know where the problems were.
Also, I think that there are now more football knowledgeable people on the management side and this move was probably necessary because there were few there when Smurfwaite was the owner. Carol obviously spotted this and decided to do something about it.
Come on the Vale let’s now set about getting safe and looking forward to next season.
Mogger
17th March 2021 @ 5:31 pm
First of all congratulations to the team .l have being one of many critics over the past couple of months that have slagged the vale to peace’s and one win still doesn’t go far enough to make me happy.what it does show is that the vale have no backup players who can come in and do a job when our best players are out injured.Just goes to show when monty and co are missing how the team falls apart but a real good effort last night more to follow .who knows
Walklad
17th March 2021 @ 7:47 pm
Keep Manny ….too good a player
Worrall, Conlon and Legge. Are the star players
Robinson (and most of the other strikers on the books to be fair) offer no or little goal threat
Need to work on keeping players fit and being able to sustain first half closing down
Need better full back cover for Gibbo and Monty
Need another defensive midfield player
Need a smaller (better quality) squad
Need to develop young players like Guthrie and Taylor
…… these are my thoughts
Geoff Ainsworth
18th March 2021 @ 12:45 pm
after seeing Vales great battling display Tuesday when they played good football and were all working for one another I thought and wondered when was the last time I had seen them play that well . Then i remembered Vales game at Bolton ,December 5th 3 months ago . The team that day was ,Brown Mills Fitzpatrick Legge Smith Conlon Joyce Oyeleke Rodney Worral Montano. Vale tore them to shreds, they couldnt cope with Worral or Monty who had a better game than Worral as he was allowed to play more of a left half/left wing position. The only weakness’s were the two fullbacks. So if we could play the other nine until the end of the season , plus two better full backs . We need two better fullbacks for next season as we have no decent fullbacks on the books unless Gibbo and Monty are going to be fit, but I would still prefer to see Monty in a more attacking role.
Brian Emery
18th March 2021 @ 2:20 pm
Sorry Rob but sometimes your comments are unbelievable saying the manager wants praising for his flexability is laughable, It has take him 8 games to play 4/3/3 a system that suits the players and not try to make the players fit the system. 4/3/3 is as good as any other system if the players play it properly as it can become 4/5/1 when defending and give you an extra attacker when pressing, also it means the two attacking midfielders can support the centre forward if used correctly and the two wide men tuck in.. As for Manny well I do agree with you on that point but we do have Jake Taylor who will only get better with games. But as for the manager he knew which system the players were suited to when he came in and should have played 4/3/3 from the start and when we were safe he could have experimented with other formations. He has done nothing but run the players down when he should have been trying to instill some confidence he has done his best to destroy it. He said he is not here to mollycoddle players and he is a long way off earning mine and many other supporters respect. His attitude towards the players his inability to see our best formation and his general bemeanour tell me he is not the brightest star in the sky, i believe until proved wrong (and I hope I am) hei is a bad appointment.
Rob Fielding
18th March 2021 @ 2:43 pm
Sorry, I think you missed the point Brian. I was commenting on how he was willing to change the formation in the second-half to counter Newport’s change. I remember John Askey was heavily criticised for sticking with the same formation when Walsall came back against us and I thought it was worth pointing out that the current manager was able to “think on his feet” and change it mid-game. He’s still got a lot to prove but I think that praise when praise is due and he deserves some credit for that.