Colchester 1 P Vale 2

[TheDerbyValiant]

Well done Lads, onwards and upwards

[PVFC Billy]

For me Colin Daniel should start matches. No one raved when we signed him but he seems the most potent of our strikers.!!!

[cpade]

Shame that so few travelled to see the victory...

 

Probably just responding to smurfs request not to put money in other clubs coffers :)

[CambridgeDon]

Just got back after a sketchy drive from Essex. Excellent team performance with some very good individual performances. It was the complete opposite of last season: good team selection, good tactical approach and excellent, well-timed substitutions. We grew in confidence after the second goal and could well have had three before they scored a late goal to put us under severe pressure in the last 15 minutes or so. The 5 minutes added time was excruciating with everything including the kitchen sink coming in at us. So well done RP and the lads. This will do us a world of good and sets us up nicely for the prima donnas from MK Franchise.

 

PS a special word for Chris Neal whose penalty save was the turning point in the match. We were in line with the penalty area and it seemed a really soft decision with a player going down easily in a forest of legs after what seemed like a cross from an off-side position. Well done the goalie :)

[FATBOYSTEVE]

Well done Vale and all the backroom staff.

 

3 points and up to 14th now.

 

We are now on the move up the league. Players are now starting to play with confidence.

 

Good result away for a change things may be improving well done Smurf for putting ya money where ya mouth is and creating competition for places so the non performers can be replaced for once

[bycars bootboy]

superb performance , big shout out to neal again who is a really top keeper looks back to his best. many had this down for a cert Colchester win good to b a coupon buster today lol :)

 

on a side note someone mentioned preston getting stuffed. fact is garner cant get away with doing the same crap every week and that's their game so meh :)

 

happy days

 

Cert Colchester win,dont think so.

[Beza]

Just got back after a sketchy drive from Essex. Excellent team performance with some very good individual performances. It was the complete opposite of last season: good team selection, good tactical approach and excellent, well-timed substitutions. We grew in confidence after the second goal and could well have had three before they scored a late goal to put us under severe pressure in the last 15 minutes or so. The 5 minutes added time was excruciating with everything including the kitchen sink coming in at us. So well done RP and the lads. This will do us a world of good and sets us up nicely for the prima donnas from MK Franchise.

 

PS a special word for Chris Neal whose penalty save was the turning point in the match. We were in line with the penalty area and it seemed a really soft decision with a player going down easily in a forest of legs after what seemed like a cross from an off-side position. Well done the goalie :)

good on yer Cambridge thanks for your honest opinion sounds like the lads put a good shift in today. Onwards and upwards.

[Like Vale I Do]

Going be a tough game against Rochdale, what a win for them today.

 

Yeah it will be, will you bother turn up for that one then

[The French Connection]

Great to see such an upbeat thread with everyone talking football!

[Jacko51]

We played today apart from the panic stations in the last 10 minutes. No weak links at all - even N'Guessan put in a shift although he clearly needs more match time before he gets fully fit. O'Connor was excellent although I could have throttled him for getting booked in added time for mouthing off - even though he had a point! He will now miss next week.

[Robbie Earle's Perm]

Cracking result, well done boys.

 

Neal really is a cracking keeper.

[Robbie Earle's Perm]

We played today apart from the panic stations in the last 10 minutes. No weak links at all - even N'Guessan put in a shift although he clearly needs more match time before he gets fully fit. O'Connor was excellent although I could have throttled him for getting booked in added time for mouthing off - even though he had a point! He will now miss next week.

 

On a positive note at least he misses a cup game rather than a league game.

[valiant_593]

Yeah it will be, will you bother turn up for that one then

 

Ey? I've missed 3 home games this season and 4 away games thanks. Considering I don't live in the area due to university and have a lack of money as I'm a student I don't think that's too bad going? Just so you know it takes about 2 hours to get to vale every home game and then 2 hours back and away games obviously much more.....

[TJHValiant]

Just got back in from the game, which I was very lucky to see as I'd been down in Essex for a family wedding.

 

Superb performance overall with some very pleasing performances from players who I'd felt the jury was still out on. On today, I can't see a future for Dicko at the club as the defence simply functions so much better without him. McGivern was really getting forward and able to express himself, which seemed difficult for him with Dicko. I wish we'd keep Remie Streete for the whole season, he is a brilliant footballer, who never made a mistake the whole game, never seemed out of position either. He will have a career at the very highest level and has quality written all over him.

 

Colin Daniel made some amazing runs and his goal was like Marshall's, a quick fire blast inside the box that no keeper could deal with. Neil made some superb saves, especially during the end when we sat back and let them have a run at our penalty area, which is simply stupid.

 

The first half was dire, mainly because Colchester tried to dictate play, but wasted it with some awful misses. We grew on confidence off the back of how bad they were and after the penalty miss, we started to go for it.

 

This is the real story of the match, in that the period leading up-to the two goals saw us look very dangerous with Lines, Birchall pushing up to provide Yates and Marshall with routes for delivery into the box. Strangely, both strikers N'Guessan and Williamson looked redundant with Williamson looking to be lacking his trademark pace in getting onto some great chances from counter attacks.

 

After the two goals we defended well but I felt we always seemed to be hanging on. Fortunately the defence looked well organised in the current set-up but I would definitely say that a lack of willingness from the midfield to hold the ball rather than hoof or lose possession is our biggest problem. I saw no reason why we could not just keep pressing for a third goal as we seemed more effective when doing this and Colchester simply never seemed capable of getting a shot on target. Another major contribution to the loss of possession was the ball distribution of Neal, that was simply dreadful. He kicked it out to nearly anyone but a Vale player.

 

Yet we struggled to keep possession and gave them numerous chances to get something from the game. It was a great performance based on Vale standards away this season but I can't see a promotion push based on this, although we should stay up with ease.

[Santa]

PS a special word for Chris Neal whose penalty save was the turning point in the match. We were in line with the penalty area and it seemed a really soft decision with a player going down easily in a forest of legs after what seemed like a cross from an off-side position. Well done the goalie :)

Seen the goals on TV, I couldn't see an offside in the build up to the penalty incident, and their player looked like he was sandwiched by Duffy & McGivern.

 

Their keeper might be a bit disappointed he got done on his near post a couple of times.

 

Streete also got caught ball watching when it got headed back across goal for Sears to score.