A third match in succession at Vale Park is approaching with Cheltenham Town travelling to Burslem on Saturday for Sky Bet League One action.
The Robins have not had the best of starts to the season, with only one league win under their belts, but they do come into this one off the back of a 2-1 victory in the Papa John’s Trophy away at MK Dons.
Vale also won in the Papa John’s Trophy in the past week, with a 1-0 home victory over Stockport County, but after falling to a narrow defeat to Portsmouth last week they will be looking to return to winning ways in the league.
In this article, we take a look into the Gloucestershire side and what we can expect from them at the weekend.
STAR PLAYER: Alfie May
Cheltenham’s prize possession is striker Alfie May who scored 23 goals in the third tier for them last season, helping ensure a comfortable 15th placed finish for the Robins.
The 29-year-old started his career moving around clubs in non-league football before getting his big break in 2016, signing for Doncaster Rovers.
The forward from Gravesend spent three years in Yorkshire, becoming a part of the side that gained promotion to Sky Bet League One in his first season.
May then signed for the Gloucestershire outfit in January 2020, scoring six goals for the club in his first campaign.
In the years that have followed, May has kicked on year by year, even netting against Premier League giants Manchester City back in January 2021.
However, his 2021/22 campaign was the most impressive of his footballing career so far, with his 23 goals putting him third in the third tier scoring charts, with the forward even netting four in a 5-5 draw against Wycombe Wanderers.
Despite such an impressive season last year, his current campaign hasn’t quite caught fire yet, with the striker netting just once so far, and Darrell Clarke will want to keep it that way after this weekend with the striker needing just one more to become the Robins all-time EFL top scorer.
THE MAN AT THE HELM: Wade Elliott
The Robins lost former boss Michael Duff to fellow Sky Bet League One side Barnsley over the summer, and the man that came in to replace him was Wade Elliott.
Elliot, who played in the Premier League with Burnley, took over in June making it his first permanent managerial role in professional football.
The 43-year-old was promoted to head coach from within the club having joined Cheltenham as a coach in 2020, having previously coached at academy teams within Bristol City, Forest Green Rovers, and Stoke City.
Before he got into coaching, Elliott had a long and impressive career as a midfielder in professional football.
After rising through the ranks in the well-acclaimed Southampton academy, he started his senior career at non-league Bashley.
Next in line early in his playing career was Bournemouth, and then five years later a move to Burnley came along, perhaps the team where his best days came.
He famously scored a brilliant curling effort in the 2009 Championship play-off final against Sheffield United, the only goal of the game, to secure the Lancashire sides' promotion to the Premier League.
Periods at Birmingham City and Bristol City then came and went at the end of his playing days, before his coaching days began in 2015.
STADIUM: Whaddon Road (Completely-Suzuki Stadium)
Cheltenham’s ground has been their home since 1932, but the stadium was also briefly Gloucester City’s home between 2010-2017.
Completely-Suzuki Stadium was built back in 1927 and it has a capacity of 7.066, one of the smallest in the division.
On the stadium's 70th anniversary the Robins managed to gain promotion to the third tier for the very first time, celebrating the big occasion in style.
HEAD-TO-HEAD LAST FIVE:
Vale wins: 2
Draws: 2
Cheltenham wins: 1
Contests between these two sides have been close in recent years with the Valiants just about edging it with two wins to one.
The most recent fixture between Vale and Cheltenham at Vale Park ended in a 2-1 victory for the home side in 2020.