13 minutes ago, Tim vlf said:

saw the training this week  scored for fun !  matchdays   rubbish !!!! fffs why !???? conna understand why we are so shiiiiiiiiiiiiite  matchdays ???

Because we’re playing against our own defenders in training. Just an idea.

27 minutes ago, JoeB2 said:

She’s damaging us by relegating us every time we get to the third tier. These relegations are largely through very avoidable poor decisions.

Relegation is quite obviously damaging. No discussion to be had.

Relegations happen in football. They’re not necessarily damaging, more disappointing.

Smurf was damaging the club. There’s your difference. No discussion to be had

So the positives, and there's not many, for once we didn't throw the towel in when we went one down. There was no lack of effort today. A lack of quality yes but not effort. The other positive were the fans who all deserve much more than what's being served up in front of them. 

Despite the effort, we have the goal threat of a drunk toddler. One weak header on target was all we had to show for the endeavour. Frustratingly again the opposition were nothing special but atm they don't have to be. One goal is enough because we just don't score. Darren has gone from making too many subs to today not enough and the last minute subs were utterly pointless. 

Moore's refusal to acknowledge the fans again is nothing short of cowardly. He's straight at the front fist pumping when the going is good and yes he's going to get stick but have the balls to front it up rather than leave your players to it.

Unfortunately I can't see him going soon. He's too well in with Carol and for some reason, she can't see what we all can.

17 minutes ago, Biddulph_PV said:

Joe, we’re down. We’ve got 14 points from 18 games. We need to win 12 from 28. That’s basically all our remaining home games. The last one was a comprehensive defeat to one of THE worst L1 sides (other than us) I’ve ever seen. It ain’t happening. Barrow here we come.

Those are chilling statistics.

Do you think someone from the club hierarchy could come and explain how they think that, with this manager and his L1 record to date, we are going to get out of this mess?

I don’t think so - for the simple reason they do not understand football and how it works. We are in a spiral of decline and only radical change is going to give us any chance of pulling out of it.

We’re still only 3 points from 20th and there’s still time but not if the brass necks at the club continue to deny reality.

Time for action - Now! 

Edited November 29, 2025Nov 29 by CambridgeDon

The inevitable defeat. 

Very tough being a Vale Fan at the moment. 

 

 

 

3 minutes ago, valiant steve said:

Very tough being a Vale Fan

FTFY. 

The solution to our lack of goals seems pretty clear and obvious to me. Ditch the three centre backs in favour of a 442 or 433. 

3 minutes ago, PV1993 said:

Relegations happen in football. They’re not necessarily damaging, more disappointing.

Smurf was damaging the club. There’s your difference. No discussion to be had

Fans are what make any football club and to not listen to what a majority the fan base can see not once but twice in the space of 2 years is very damaging. 
fans start to lose all hope an faith,  honesty in anything she says, example” I’ve made mistakes” yes an your not learning from them. 
very grateful for everything she’s done for the football club but on the football perspective she’s well out of her depth and does need a real football man to come in alongside her an run that side of the business because this is yet more proof in the pudding exact same mistakes from 2 years ago nothing has been learnt. 

I think the start of the season was a blip. Appointing Darren Moore as the manager of Port Vale was a disgusting act. If the club can't identify a sensible replacement then they should contact me and I will help them for no fee.

Just now, Rory said:

I think the start of the season was a blip. Appointing Darren Moore as the manager of Port Vale was a disgusting act. If the club can't identify a sensible replacement then they should contact me and I will help them for no fee.

Hope your football manager CV is good. 😊 

2 minutes ago, valiant steve said:

The solution to our lack of goals seems pretty clear and obvious to me. Ditch the three centre backs in favour of a 442 or 433. 

With the current injuries, who are the two full backs ? Big problem there whatever formation

26 minutes ago, Tim vlf said:

saw the training this week  scored for fun !  matchdays   rubbish !!!! fffs why !???? conna understand why we are so shiiiiiiiiiiiiite  matchdays ???

Because they are playing against our defence?

1 hour ago, philpvfc said:

I want Carol running the club but she needs a quality DOF who can make the right decisions.

Now here’s the problem. Who is going to make the decision on who will be the DoF. We need the person we dont trust with footballing decisions to make a good decision on an important footballing appointment (Rember the last one she appointed was flitcroft). Its valeception. 

2 minutes ago, NW9Valiant said:

Hope your football manager CV is good. 😊 

I don't have the time for silly games.

1 hour ago, JoeB2 said:

The bar can’t be Smurthwaite. The bar is competency. We’re miles short.

Joe, I respect and admire your posts on here generally, and you've written some humdingers in the last few years, but I think you're being a bit harsh on Carol, and you do seem to want to close down responses when you make comments like "no discussion to be had".  Isn't that the whole point of this forum? You seem to be implying that you're obviously right and don't want anyone suggesting otherwise.  We're all guilty of that at times, but we all agree Carol has been good for the club, (why use the term goddess? Trying to criticise those people who praise her efforts?). We all agree that her investment and faith has been let down this season by the manager and the players - and yes, it was her call to appoint that manager, and of course relegation would be a bad thing, but...

I think with a lot of comments on here, angry though we all are at what is/isn't happening on the pitch, we fans need to pause before we lash out for this week's scapegoat. No-one will be more aggrieved than Carol at what is going on after all she has done - they are her millions after all -  but perhaps she just needs help in the longer term to avoid repeating the mistakes? 

To use the sort of language some people are using on here seems a bit extreme. We're all upset, but a bit of perspective and calm maybe? Carol will be bankrolling the January window, the new manager as and when, and a lot more besides to try and keep the club moving forward. Yes, she may be regretting her decision to appoint Moore for 5 years now, but hindsight is a wonderful thing isn't it?  I don't lay this entirely at her door, she must be in mental anguish right now at what is going on. A lot of people on here were pleased at Moore's appointment and particularly his connections on the game when he was appointed. It's a shame it hasn't worked out at this level. We may be relegated, we've bounced back before. Life goes on.

I agree the bar could never be Smurthwaite, who wasn't a football man, and in it for himself. Carol is light years from him as a person who genuinely cares. Her understanding of football maybe isn't as strong as her understanding of how to run a business, but give her a break. We need someone in alongside her to advise on the football side, and quickly. And for all we know, that may already be happening, since something has to give - we can't go on like this.  I think Moore isn't the answer for this division with this squad. Carol thought he was. Snapping at her for that mistake and not sacking him immediately seems a bit pointless now really, even if it helps get something off our collective chest. I hope she'll change it, maybe things are already afoot, we don't know. But for me, Carol still has enough credit in the bank to deserve being treated with dignity.

Grim times aren't they though? I'm pretty despondent this evening at the state we are in. Yes, relegation is damaging, but there is still plenty of discussion to be had.

 

Edited November 29, 2025Nov 29 by Lornelounger