Goals from Dejaune Brown and Rhys Walters were not enough as Vale were beaten at Bloomfield Road. Here’s our match report.
Team News
Port Vale manager Jon Brady made two changes bringing back defender Connor Hall and forward Dejaune Brown into his starting line-up. Jaheim Headley and Ben Waine were the players to drop out. Tyler Magloire played with a protective mask after sustaining a broken nose at the weekend. Funso Ojo was named as skipper for the night.
There was a boost on the bench with club captain Ben Garrity deemed fit to be in the matchday squad. Garrity was joined by the likes of Andre Gray and George Hall.
Connor Hall – back in the eleven
First-half
An early goal saw Vale take a shock first-half lead at Bloomfield Road.
The Valiants got off to a dream start with Dejaune Brown netting after just ninety seconds. Liam Gordon broke through the defence, his shot was blocked as was Sherif’s follow-up before Brown slotted the ball home from close range. There was another chance three minutes later as Shipley drove forward but his shot went wide. The early goal had given Vale confidence with the home fans on Blackpool’s back.
There was a second attempt by Shipley on 14 minutes and this time his shot forced a save. Blackpool’s first attempt saw Josh Bowler blaze well over on 17 minutes. The same player was closer two minutes later with another drive which was just wide. There was a third chance on 27 minutes but Honeyman’s shot was well wide when well placed.
Vale countered with another strong run by Liam Gordon on 28 minutes but he was tackled just as he looked to find Sherif in the box. Connor Hall was next to impress with a superbly timed sliding challenge in the box to deny Randall. Rhys Walters then neatly tidied up another Blackpool attack. The home side were dominating possession but Vale were remaining calm and doing well at the back.
However, Vale did ride their luck on two occasions. Firstly a deflected drive beat Gauci but struck the post on 40 minutes. It was the closest Vale had come to conceding. Then Magloire appeared to pull a Blackpool player down when through on goal but it was missed by the officials.
So, it wasn’t a vintage performance but the Valiants were ahead at the break.
Half-time: Blackpool 0-1 Port Vale
Dejaune Brown – struck early
Second-half
A highly entertaining half for the neutral saw the game ebb and flow before Blackpool took control to earn all three points.
The home side countered with an early goal of their own in the second period. Bowler caused problems on the flank and when he delivered his cross, Ennis got ahead of Magloire to score the equaliser just a minute into the second-half.
There was good defending by Gabriel to prevent a second Blackpool goal on 56 minutes. However, the move should never have happened as the ref completely failed to notice a tug on Brown’s shirt.
Vale then regained the lead when Shipley broke well on the left and his cross was swept in by Walters for his first senior goal. On the hour mark, Vale were back ahead. They almost conceded immediately when the ball appeared to strike Gordon’s arm in the box but no penalty was given.
On 68 minutes, Garrity and Gray entered the fray for Shipley and Brown. It was a welcome return for the Vale skipper. However, three minutes later Blackpool equalised when Bloxham was allowed to pass and Fletcher netted from close range. The momentum was now with the hosts. As a result, Vale made a triple change on 78 minutes with Hernandez, George Hall and Headley coming on.
However, the hosts went ahead for the first time in the game when Husbands scored from a deflected drive on 80 minutes. There was a late appeal for a penalty when Gray looked to be held in the box but it wasn’t given and Vale ended the night pointless.
Full-time: Blackpool 3-2 Port Vale
Rhys Walters – restored lead
Analysis and Opinion
The match
Vale got off to an excellent start and did well to control the first-half. However, they will be livid at conceding a goal so early in the second period. They did well to re-take the lead but poor defending allowed the home side to equalise. Once the second Blackpool goal went in, Vale were struggling and it seemed inevitable that the home side would score again. This may have been partially down to Vale’s injury and fatigue problems with Brady making five changes to replace his tiring players.
The players
Liam Gordon enjoyed another decent performance and was well supported by Connor Hall. Joe Gauci wasn’t at fault for the goals. Magloire looked somewhat shaky at times. Upfront, Sherif failed to hold the ball up but made a nuisance of himself and Brown looked lively on his recall. In midfield, Shipley had one of his better Vale games but the star man for me was Walters who was back to his best.
Star player
Rhys Walters
Summing up in a sentence
Port Vale lose out in topsy turvy game.
Match stats
Team: Gauci – Magloire, Campbell, C.Hall – Gabriel, Shipley (Garrity), Walters (G.Hall), Ojo, Gordon (Headley) – Brown (Gray), Sherif (Hernandez)
Subs: Amos, Archer
Yellows: Sherif, Gordon, Magloire
Reds: none
Goals: Brown (2), Walters (59)
Attendance:
Season stats
Your thoughts…
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Can’t use pitch as excuse this time ..defending on 2 goals shocking
More disappointment as games slowly wind down to seemingly inevitable relegation. No doubt the number and intensity of games played recently impacts fitness levels, not helped by recent signings who’ve barely played football months. Nonetheless, losing so narrowly to another struggling team is an opportunity lost to close down the season on a higher note. The last time I saw Vale play at Blackpool was late 1988 during John Rudge’s promotion season, when Vale also lost 2-3 capitulating to a Blackpool fight back after Vale’s two Ron Futcher goals. Memorable and happier days.
Five goal thriller? we gifted them theirs,deffending was awful,i fear for this lot next season,brady has done nothing to convince me, that he is the one,to take us forward,to be honest nothing has changed since DM got his cards,the players,the football,are and is the worst i have seen for a long long time, this is a national league set up and thats where we will end up,with THIS SHOWER
What happened to Shorrock and Lomax-they are better options than some of those currently playing.Is there a youth policy because we hear nothing about it these days.