Salford City 0-2 Port Vale – Paton and Diamond provide cutting edge in Trophy win

It took recent signing Diamond Edwards just five minutes to open his Vale account as the Valiants defeated Salford for a second time this season.

Team news

Just four of the side which took on Tranmere were retained in the starting eleven. Midfielder George Byers made his first start as a Vale player alongside Jayden Stockley, whose previous appearance had been as a substitute on Saturday. Recent signing Edwards was named on a strong Vale bench.

First-half

Vale had the ball in the net twice through Jayden Stockley and Kyle John but both were disallowed as it finished all-square after the first 45 minutes.

There was an early scare for Vale when Amos came off his line but his clearance was blocked. The Valiants then threatened when Dipepa was set free by Hall and his cross shot was saved. Lund then had a header over for the home side before a period of pressure for the Valiants.

Firstly, Chislett shot just wide after being fed by Stockley and then Chislett’s free-kick caused havok and a defender deflected it wide. Then from the resulting corner, Chislett fed Lowe whose pass found Stockley’s head. The tall forward found the net only to be greeted by the offside flag.

There was a blow for the visitors when Connor Hall was forced off injured. Vale had further chances with the side looking dangerous from corners but they were unable to find the net. There was almost calamity for Vale when Amos played a suicidal ball to Hart. The ball broke to a Salford player in the box but he couldn’t convert. Vale then had the ball in the net a second time as good play by Dipepa played in John to score only for the referee to blow for a foul.

Half-time: Salford City 0-0 Port Vale

Second-half

There was a dream debut for Diamond Edwards as he scored just minutes after taking to the pitch. Ruari Paton then wrapped the game up for Vale with a cool finish late on.

The Valiants made a half-time change bringing on Edwards for Chislett. The new signing was immediately involved in the action and gave the visitors the lead on 50 minutes. Good play from Dipepa set James Plant free and he found Edwards in the box. The forward beat several challenges before his deflected effort found the net. It was almost 2-0 moments later when Stockley’s cross just evaded an unmarked Dipepa.

The home side almost equalised when Jon Taylor’s effort struck the post on 56 minutes but Vale survived. Jayden Stockley was then denied for a second time as his superb header on the hour mark was chalked off for offside. As the game opened up, Vale were grateful for a good challenge from Debrah to deny another chance. At the other end, there was a flash of skill from Edwards as he created a chance which was parried by the keeper.

Dipepa was replaced by Paton after an injury and the Irishman’s excellent finish on 71 minutes doubled the visitors’ lead. It was a cool finish from the summer signing and his second goal of the season. Paton could even have had a second but his late one-on-one was saved by the keeper.

Nevertheless, those two goals were enough to seal the game as Vale’s defence kept their third clean sheet of the season and the side got a winning start to their Trophy campaign.

Full-time: Salford City 0-2 Port Vale

Final thoughts:

I’m sure Darren Moore will probably be more pleased about getting minutes into some key players and a third clean sheet of the season rather than the actual result. Byers and Stockley are likely to be important this season and will have benefitted from their minutes on the pitch. Vale’s squad depth is clear by how strong the starting eleven looked despite seven changes. Edwards and Paton will both have their confidence boosted by their goals while the downside will be the injuries to Connor Hall and Baylee Dipepa, which are hopefully minor.

Pick of the players: I thought Jayden Stockley was easily the Vale’s best player while he was on the pitch. He provided some good link-up play and had two efforts disallowed. I also thought Baylee Dipepa looked bright as did Kyle John and James Plant, the latter more so in the second-half. It was a quiet debut for George Byers, which is perhaps understandable after missing a period out injured. There’s clearly more to come from him. Meanwhile, subs Diamond Edwards and Ruari Paton both made a difference with their goals.

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