Cup football continues for the Vale as we travel to Bolton Wanderers for our Round of 32 clash in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy.
The Valiants come into the game off the back of a 1-1 draw at Stevenage in the Emirates FA Cup second round. The hosts took the lead in the second half Jamie Reid latched onto a through ball and slotted home to open the scoring in the 69th minute.
Ten minutes later, Vale were gifted the opportunity to level the scores when Uche Ikpeazu was fouled in the area and the referee showed no hesitation when pointing to the penalty spot. Funso Ojo took responsibility and dispatched his spot kick into the bottom corner to level the scores and send the tie to a replay at Vale Park.
Crosby’s Comments
Here’s what the gaffer had to say following Saturday’s draw:
“I thought it was the least we deserved. Delighted with lots of aspects, they make you defend your box, they make you defend balls down the side, they make you head it and land on second balls, and I thought we did that really well. They score by picking up a second ball and we get ran off inside.
"I’m really proud of the response. I thought there were some real good moments of what we tried to do, we had to come here and play our game and control the ball which will enable us to control the game and try to minimise the effect of their spells”
The Story So Far
The Valiants finished second in group B of the Bristol Street Motors trophy, after picking up five points from three games. We started out with a 1-0 over Crewe Alexandra way back in September. Ben Garrity’s first half volley was enough to separate the sides at Vale Park.
Next up, Vale faced Newcastle United U21s. The Vale took the lead in the 17th minute when Jesse Debrah bundled home from close range. This looked to be the winning goal until The Magpies levelled in the 90th minute through Ellis Stanton’s long-range strike. With the game ending in a draw, the game went to spot kicks and it was the Vale who picked up an extra point after winning 3-2 on penalties.
The final group game was against Wrexham and it was the Vale who took the lead when Josh Thomas found the net in the 31st minute. The young Vale side were holding firm and it was only until the hosts bought on their more experienced players that the game changed. Wrexham levelled through Paul Mullin in the 70th minute before James McLean scored the winning goal seven minutes from time.
The Opposition
Bolton Wanderers currently sit in second place in Skybet League One and are currently unbeaten since Saturday 7th October. They come into the game off the back of a 5-1 victory against Harrogate Town in the First Round of the Emirates FA Cup. Jon Dadi Bodvarsson scored a hat trick and Dan Nlundulu scored a brace to help the Trotters progress into the next round.
Bolton won every game of their Bristol Street Motors group, scoring 13 goals and conceding just once in what was an emphatic campaign. Their standout result came against Manchester United U21 where they won 8-1 at the Toughsheet Community Stadium. They also beat Stockport County 2-0 and Salford City 3-0.
Player to Watch - Jon Dadi Bodvarsson
The Bolton forward comes into the game off the back of a 35-minute hat-trick in his sides 5-1 FA Cup victory against Harrogate Town at the weekend. The Icelandic forward had played every game for Bolton in their Bristol Street Motors campaign so far, scoring three goals. He scored a brace in their final group game when they beat Stockport County 2-0 at Edgeley Park.
Another player to keep an eye out for is former Valiant, Will Forrester. He set up one of Bardvarsson’s goals at the weekend in what was his 14th start for the club. Forrester has played two of Bolton’s three Bristol Street Motors games this season and he picked up an assist in their dominant 8-1 win against Manchester United’s U21s.
Fixture throwback
Bolton Wanderers 3-6 Port Vale, Saturday 5th December.
It’s exactly three years since the Vale last won at Bolton Wanderers and what a win it was! The sides met during the infamous “COVID season” and the game was played behind closed doors which was the only negative on what an exceptional afternoon for the Vale.
Manny Oyeleke gave Vale an early lead when he turned home Christian Montano’s cross after six minutes. Vale’s lead was doubled three minutes later when Leon Legge headed home David Worrall’s deep cross. The frantic start to the game continued when the hosts pulled one back in the 11th minute through Gethin Jones. Just before half time Vale regained their two-goal advantage when Tom Conlon dispatched a penalty in the 42nd minute.
The Vale started the second half on the front foot and immediately made the scores 4-1 when Montano calmly dinked the keeper after being played through on goal. The Vale were flying and added a fifth goal in the 50th minute when David Worrall thundered home a low near post effort. Nathan Smith then rounded off the scoring for the Vale in the 62nd minute with a header at the back post. At 6-1 the game was over. However, Bolton didn’t give up and added consolation goals from Eion Doyle and Lloyd Isgove to make the score line a bit more respectable
Man in the Middle
Matt Corlett will take charge of tomorrow's Bristol Street Motors match against Bolton Wanderers.
Kevin Mulraine and Callum Jones will be assisting him and Andrew Miller will be on hand as fourth official.