Accrington v Port Vale preview – can Valiants find form against struggling Stanley?
After that awful performance against Cambridge United, Darrell Clarke’s men will be looking to bounce back.
Match Info
Venue: Wham stadium
Date: 8th April, 3pm
Competition: League One
Predict the score
Preamble
After a dreadful performance on Saturday, the Valiants need to placate some angry fans with a much better performance. Manager Darrell Clarke has hinted at some changes as he assesses which players he wants to retain for next season.
Pre-match comments
It is two games in four days and they come thick and fast. It’s about who can recover right, who can prepare right, a bit of momentum in them games and you start steam rolling forward again. It’s really important now for us to go away, prep and plan properly for this weekend – it could set us in good stead for the end of the season.
Port Vale defender Nathan Smith
A lot of the players have had ample opportunities and some are falling well short of the standards that I require and the team require, so they have seven games to try to show they can turn that around as individuals and collectively as a group
Port Vale manager Darrell Clarke
Port Vale team news
So where do the Valiants go after that Cambridge performance? Darrell Clarke has hinted at changes but he could be restricted by injuries in key positions. For instance, youngsters Sammy Robinson and loanee Aaron Donnelly struggled in the back three but with Lewis Cass and Dan Jones both injured there’s a lack of options to make changes in the defence. Elsewhere, Ben Garrity remains on the long-term injured list but it seems that places in midfield and attack are up for grabs.
With that in mind, it’s likely that only ever-consistent pair Nathan Smith and Tom Pett (pictured) are guaranteed a starting place and we’ll have to wait and see for the rest of the Vale starting eleven.
Opposition team news
Injury-hit Stanley are missing a number of players with Seamus Conneely, Jay Rich-Baghuelou, Joe Pritchard, Ryan Astley, Liam Coyle, Alhagi Touray Sisay and David Morgan all out for this game.
Form guide
It’s the clash of two badly out-of-form sides on Bank Holiday Friday. Accrington are six games since their last win and failed to score in their last two home fixtures.
Port Vale: L-D-L-D-W
Accrington: L-L-L-L-D
Man in charge
Long-serving John Coleman is in his second spell as Accrington manager having rejoined the side in 2014. He was previously in charge for thirteen years from 1999 to 2012. Coleman has now been in charge for a frankly mind-blowing 1,047 games with a near 40% win ratio. It’s a highly impressive record.
Familiar faces
Defender Mitch Clark will need little introduction to Vale fans after spending three loan spells with the Valiants. Clark made a total of 106 appearances for the club. The former Aston Villa full-back joined Accrington in 2021 and has now made 70 appearances for the club.
Vintage connections
Scott Brown, no, not that one, the midfielder, has made appearances for both sides. The midfielder first joined Vale on loan from Cheltenham Town in 2008. The move was then made permanent by Vale manager Dean Glover in 2009. He was released at the end of the 2009-2010 season having made 18 appearances and scoring once.
It wasn’t until 2016 that the then 31 year-old Brown joined Accrington. His spell there was arguably much more enjoyable than that at Vale Park as he made 106 appearances and celebrated promotion to League One in 2018.
Brown is pictured signing for Harrogate Town.
Through the years…
The two sides first met way back in 1929 when it finished in a 5-2 win for the Valiants. However, after a game in 1959 it would be nearly fifty years before the sides would meet again – that game coming in 2008. It ended in a 2-0 loss for the Valiants.
Last time we met…
The two sides met at Vale Park earlier this season in a game marred by some awful refereeing as a Nathan Smith “goal” was not given in favour of a penalty to the Valiants. It ended 1-1 on the night with David Worrall on target for the Valiants and Harvey Rodgers seeing red for the visitors.
Overall record
13 Port Vale wins
6 draws
8 Port Vale losses
A brief history of…
The current club was formed in 1968, two years after the collapse of the original Accrington Stanley, which played in the Football League from 1921 to 1962. The club win three promotions over the course of seven seasons under the stewardship of John Coleman to gain a place in the Football League in 2006.
Were you paying attention?
Our traditional quiz…
- Who is the current Accrington manager?
- What was the score the last time the two teams met?
- In which year were the club formed?
- Which former Vale loan defender is in the Accrington squad?
Answers below (no cheating)…
Quiz answers…
- John Coleman
- Port Vale 1-1 Accrington Stanley
- 1968
- Mitch Clark