Tonight could end up being a very complicated night when it comes to qualifying in the Checkatrade Trophy Northern Group E standings.
Due to the bonus point for winning a penalty shoot-out if a game ends in a draw, that means there are a few ways that Vale could qualify.
The Valiants travel to Doncaster Rovers and Mansfield Town travel to the iPro Stadium to face Derby County.
If you are unsure of how Vale could qualify and how Bruno Ribeiro’s side could be knocked out, then here are all the permutations.
If Port Vale win tonight then they will qualify as winners of the group, as long as they better Mansfield Town’s goal difference if they win.
If Port Vale draw and win the penalty shoot-out and Mansfield Town lose to Derby County then Vale will qualify as runners-up.
If Port Vale draw and Mansfield Town and Derby County draw, with Derby winning the penalty shoot-out, then Vale will qualify as runners-up.
If Port Vale draw and Mansfield Town and Derby Country draw and Vale and Mansfield both win their penalty shoot-outs then Vale will qualify on goal difference.
If Port Vale draw 0-0 or 1-1 o and Derby County beat Mansfield Town, then Derby County will qualify ahead of Vale on goals scored.
However, if Port Vale draw by a score of 2-2 or higher and match Derby County’s goal tally then Vale will qualify (e.g: Vale draw 2-2 and Derby win 1-0 or Vale draw 3-3 and Derby win 2-1 etc)
If Port Vale draw and Mansfield Town beat Derby County then Mansfield will qualify ahead of Vale.
If Port Vale lose then they will not qualify no matter what the score is in the other game.
Good luck understanding that Valiants!