A second-half strike by Jamille Matt proved to be decisive as a below-par Valiants side lost at home. Here’s our match report…
Team news
Manager Darren Moore once again rang the changes. Jesse Debrah returned to the defence, Rakeem Harper came back into central midfield after his suspension while there was no recognised forward upfront with the front line consisting of Rico Richards, Ronan Curtis and Ethan Chislett. George Byers returned from injury to make the bench.
First-Half report
A curling effort by Rico Richards was the closest Vale came to scoring in a mostly dour first forty five minutes playing in challenging weather in Burslem.
Visitors Walsall also had chances with Stirk’s powerful drive going wide, a corner from Allen being tipped over by Ripley and a couple of efforts blocked in the box.
However, chances were mostly few and far between. The first Vale opportunity didn’t arrive until eleven minutes when Rakeem Harper drove just wide. Richards’ chance came on the half-hour mark when a lovely turn by Cover saw him play the ball to Curtis. The Irishman flicked it on to Richards who saw an opportunity but curled it wide of the post. It wouldn’t have counted anyway as the offside flag was raised.
That was it in terms of chances as it was goalless and largely uninspiring fare at the break.
Half-time: Port Vale 0-0 Walsall
Second-Half report
An early second-half goal from Walsall proved decisive as the Vale fell to defeat after a disappointing ninety minutes display.
It was a poor start to the second-half as Walsall took the lead after five minutes. Jamille Matt was allowed to turn following a corner and although his shot was parried by Ripley it crossed the line. It was almost two-nil six minutes later but Ripley redeemed himself with a solid save from Lowe.
Vale made changes but were without a second-half effort on goal as the clock ticked over to 79 minutes. Their best (and only) chance came from a Sang free-kick with Stockley turning and firing goalwards only for a goal-line clearance with Vale claiming it had crossed the line. It showed the fine lines in this game as Matt’s effort went in despite a save, while Stockley’s effort was inches away from doing the same.
However, what was disappointing was that Stockley’s effort was Vale’s only clearcut chance of the second period. Too often, Vale’s final ball was lacking and they also left gaps at the back as they pushed further and further forward. It meant the visitors were able to close the game out fairly comfortably and take back all three points.
A disappointing day, performance and result for the Valiants.
Full-time: Port Vale 0-1 Walsall
Reflections
It was a bit of a surprise to see Darren Moore start without a recognised striker. If Stockley was to drop to the bench then the obvious replacement would have seemed to have been Ruari Paton who has been champing at the bit recently. As a result of no striker, the Vale formation lost a focal point and goal threat.
The constant rotation is now the subject of much debate – are Vale better because of it and the ability to rest players – or would Vale perform better with a more settled formation? I must admit some of the decisions appear to be odd – Jack Shorrock hasn’t featured since his goal scoring turn against Crewe, for instance. Similarly, Nathan Smith, a starter on Tuesday, doesn’t make the squad. The back three, arguably better when settled, has been chopped and changed in recent games.
The substitutions today may also raise eyebrows. For the first two subs, would it have been better to have replaced Richards rather than Chislett? Should Byers have been brought on for Harper, not yet match fit, rather than the influential Croasdale? The poor weather conditions certainly didn’t help and while there will inevitably be criticism of Vale’s performance, it was noticeable that Walsall also struggled with the difference being that they found the back of the net.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t a great advert for a top of the table League Two clash and Vale now have work to do as their good run of form starts to unravel a bit.
Starting eleven ratings…
- Ripley – will be disappointed with the Walsall goal. Otherwise solid
- Sang – a mix, some lovely balls but also wasted some others, probably due to the weather
- Debrah – did well on his return. A few errors but generally coped well with Lowe
- Hall – didn’t catch the eye but was solid and dependable as usual
- Cover (replaced on 63) – a decent return and added attacking impetus on the right
- Harper (replaced on 78) – still not quite up to speed but did OK. Tired in second-half
- Croasdale (replaced on 69) – industrious and covers loads of ground, a largely unsung star
- Hart – the odd error but mainly sound and linked well with Chislett
- Richards (replaced on 78) – some nice touches but too peripheral and too much didn’t come off
- Chislett (replaced on 63) – seemed to have a roving role and once again subject of some robust challenges, didn’t influence the game enough for his liking
- Curtis – not as involved as he would have liked but showed good vision at times
Subs
- Stockley (on 63) added height and muscle and came closest to equalising
- Paton (on 63) added energy but didn’t have a clear shooting chance
- Byers (on 69) added craft but unable to influence the game in closing stages
- Hackford (on 77) added pace but also didn’t have a clear shooting chance
- John (on 77) brought on to replace a tiring Harper
Stats
Starting XI: Ripley – Sang, Debrah, Hall – Cover (Paton 63), Harper (John 77), Croasdale (Byers 67), Hart – Richards (Hackford 77), Chislett (Stockley 63), Curtis
Subs: Amos, Heneghan
Goals: none
Bookings: none
Attendance: 9,142 (2,711 visitors)
Competition: League Two
This component may not immediately update after the match has finished
What did you think of the game and the performance? Scroll down and submit a comment.
Not as good since going back to 5-3-2 with players we have surely better to play 4-3-3. Any 3 from 4 in midfield from Croasdale,Harper,Byers and obviously when fit Garrity. Play with any 2 strikers and one winger. If we play with 5 at the back then go 5-3-2 but only against the better sides Keep a settled side and stop all the chopping and changing. Showing inferior teams too much respect.
Atrocious performance to mirror the conditions. We have been awful in truth since gillingham. Moore has I’ve said before not got a clue and again proves why I’m not a fan…no striker and 3 on the bench. We have been playing poor for a few weeks now and have scraped some points from this poor run. Good to see Byers back but the subs made today the wrong personnel taken off. Defeat at Bromley and Moore is under pressure in my view.
Awful result and no striker at the start. Strange lineup and no cohesion. Too many changes every game and no pace in the side.
Pathetic, Kier Moore is selling a car it is a new idea, it has no steering wheel it’s a bit like having no striker on a football team, Well Carol you will not listen this manager has not got a clue about tactics, he’s worse than Flitcroft, there was eleven individuals on that pitch all gutless and spineless, perhaps it was to cold for them to try and play football, they are a mid table side at best and that’s were they will finish with Moore in charge.I don’t expect them to win every game but I expect a bit of guts and pride, the Walsall player s were even taking the mick out of them on the pitch.They were lucky with Cheltenham and Crewe, it ran out against Walsall, Where is the team spirit.
Awful result Stockley on the bench and lineup a right pigs ear. We could now be slowly dropping down the table. Too many match by match changes so no wonder we are now on the slide. I wonder why it is taking so long for Garrity back to fitness or is he on his way out in January.
Criticism is valid regarding the starting line up surely you start with your strongest 11 with a forward line to take the game on. Very disappointing performance emphasised by a mediocre midfield with stronger players on the bench. We have a strong squad overall but the manager needs to realise his best 11 to start games.
It was a tight first half where we coped well with the awful conditions…but the wheels well and truly fell apart at the start of the second..we didn’t have the system or abilities to break Walsall down and in some cases the desire. I really don’t wish to criticise the manager but the constant numerous changes will be his downfall. From a players point of view it must be difficult to achieve any kind of relationships within the team..Happy to be where we are but we haven’t played well since Wimbledon and we need to improve quickly.
Starting a vital home game without one recognized striker, I just don’t get it. The result says it all.
Awful performance my heart sank when I saw the team sheet. Walsall deserved to win they had done their homework on the Vale and adapted better to the conditions, however, they didn’t really have to do much against a very poor Vale side. The Vale gave away the top spot with barely a whimper, this was a match which required players who really really knew what it meant to put on the Vale shirt, it wasn’t a match to start with loanees.
Today Darren Moore and the players let down the club and the fans.
The Vales poor run of form since the end of October has let the chasing pack of promotion hopefuls catch up it is up to the manager now to sort things out and get the team winning again. This is a critical time for the club we don’t want to see the promotion campaign fizzle out in 2025, just when the club is about to celebrate 150 years since it was founded.
I continue to have faith in Darren Moore and the players to get us back to winning ways I just hope that players on the fringe of the team don’t start to look in the January transfer window at clubs who could give them more game time. UTV
I’ve made no secret that I think DM is one of Vales worst ever managers of all time. With the 4 changes for the Cheltenham game, 6 for today’s game, plus the maximum 5 substitutions in each game that’s 20 playing changes and 20 tactical changes in 2 games, is it any wonder players are not playing to their abilities. These constant changes stink of a man devoid of any tactical ideas of what he’s do. The warnings were starring the Shanahan’s in the face last season with a disastrous 4 wins in over 40 games, yet they trust him with a massive spending budget. The purchasing of Tolay and Paton for large sums of money are nothing short of disastrous, and Moores refusal to play them highlights this. Sadly we are stuck with Moore as Carol proved with her ridiculous loyalty to Flitcroft, she is very reluctant to admit to her mistakes. For the squad we have any decent manager would walk through this league where half the teams in it would struggle to survive both on and off the pitch in the national league. It is now 1 win out of 7 games in a season littered with lucky one goal victories.
Very frustrating to watch. How do you win football matches without a recognised centre forward? Passing the ball around at the back was asking for trouble in those conditions.
Having said that I still believe we have got the best squad in the league by a mile and I didn’t rate Walsall at all!
Pathetic. No back no bone. Mid table if that at moment
I agree with you Andy I don’t rate Walsall either, so we’re does that leave Vale, WHAT DOES IT POINT TOO, a duff manager, where was Shorrock, the guy who scored the brilliant goal for us against Crewe ,, even Smith in a game like this, you need guts and guile,before the Cheltenham game they had 8 days away from any games, what did the manager do to prepare for the Walsall game NOTHING, I don’t know how they train at the Vale but they were knackered at half time, I will say it again, Darren Moore is a nice man BUT he is NO FOOTBALL MANAGER,Carol would not listen about Flitcroft she will not listen about Moore, I personally have had enough watching the same crap, and listening to poor excuses.We are relying on Garrity, we he’s injured the team goes to pot.
What’s with all this “he’s a nice man” stuff?
I v said before I don’t like DM don’t think he is a good manager but given him a chance. All this chopping and changing no good.think we will just make top 7 if we are lucky