Morecambe 0-1 Port Vale – late Chislett goal earns Vale an away win

Vale left it late but a late goal from midfielder Ethan Chislett saw them take home three points from Morecambe. Here’s our match report…

Team news

Darren Moore brought back playmaker Ethan Chislett and also recalled Ruari Paton upfront. Conor Grant retained hs place as left wingback while fit again Sam Hart was on the bench alongside long-serving defender Nathan Smith. There was no place in the squad for Jesse Debrah,

First-Half

Ruari Paton found the back of the net but it was ruled out for a foul as it finished goalless at the break.

Vale had enjoyed periods of possession and several decent chances but needed to be wary of a Morecambe side who also had several good chances of their own.

Vale’s first opportunity came for Chislett but Morecambe had a great chance to open the scoring. Cover lost the ball and Tollitt met Lewis’ cross but put it over.

Vale responded with a period of pressure. Cover broke into the box but was well tackled then there was a good chance for Stockley from a cross by Grant but he headed over. The striker had another chance but he couldn’t get on to the end of a low pass by Paton. Paton himself them missed a glorious opportunity on 23 minutes when he shot wide when Cover had found him unmarked in the box.

There were protests from the home fans on 26 minutes and Tom White shot wide from another home attack. There was then controversy on the half-hour mark when Paton fired home only for the goal to be disallowed, presumably for a foul. Vale nearly had another glorious chance when Stockley put Cover clear but he mis-controlled. It meant it was all-square at the break.

Half-time: Morecambe 0-0 Port Vale

Second-Half

A mostly dour second forty five minutes burst into life in the last ten minutes as the hosts had a goal disallowed and Ethan Chislett netted a late winner.

It was mostly poor quality fare in the second-half with little of note occurring until the 80th minute.

The game then burst into life as the hosts had a goal disallowed for offside and that spurred Vale into action. Sam Hart had a close range effort blocked before Vale took the lead late on. A Vale corner on 82 minutes finally provided the breakthrough. From Benicio’s corner, Stockley flicked the ball on and Chislett was on hand from close range to score in front of the Vale fans. That proved to be the defining moment as Vale’s defence held firm to record a clean sheet.

It was a scrappy win and Vale had left it late but it could prove to be a vital three points for Darren Moore’s side.

Full-time: Morecambe 0-1 Port Vale

Reflections

So let’s cover the most important things first. It’s an away win, a clean sheet and three points. All of those are good as far as the Valiants are concerned. However, it was a scrappy game and it’s certain that Darren Moore will find areas that need improvement. In particular, it was disappointing to see Vale let the game drift for large periods of the second-half. This was the bottom placed team they were facing and the opportunity was there to take the game by the scruff of the neck. Moore will want more creativity, better decisions and perhaps more determination to dominate from his side. Having said that, these victories are where promotion runs are made and another 1-0 away win has strengthened Vale’s position at the top of the table. Perhaps the three points are the only important thing after all?

Stats

Starting XI: Port Vale: Ripley – Sang, Heneghan, Hall – Cover (Smith), Croasdale, Chislett (Hall), Grant (Hart) – Paton (Richards), Stockley, Curtis (Benecio)

Subs: Amos, Tolaj, Lowe

Goals: Chislett (83)

Bookings: Chislett, Benicio

Attendance: 4,150 (1,389 visitors)

Competition: League Two

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