Olivia Grocott netted a late winner as the Valiants defeated in-form AFC Telford United at home.
It took until the 19th minute for the first opportunity of the match, when Telford’s left winger was through on goal but tracking the run was Jess Smith and with help from keeper Connie Watts, they prevented Telford from finding the opener.
Sophie Garratt worked a short corner with Mollie Prime, in the 23rd minute, when she received the ball back to take on her defender and had her shot deflected behind for a corner.
The first goal of the game came from Grocott two minutes later as she was played in behind the Telford defence and made no mistake of the finish to give Vale the lead.
There was a lovely switch of play by Garratt, in the 35th minute, to find Cassie Davies down the left flank with only the keeper to beat, however she was flagged for being offside.
The Valiants played out the first half and came into the dressing room a goal ahead.
Twelve minutes into the second half Prime delivered into the six-yard area and between the two Telford defenders rushing back to goal, Macy Isherwood popped up to smash home the Valliant’s second of the afternoon.
The pressure from Telford ramped up and two blocks from Jess Smith within her 18-yard box, in the 61st minute, stopped Telford from getting one back.
It seemed that the Valiants were about to get a third and put the contest to bed, seven minutes later, as Elissa Dockerty clipped the ball into the box towards Isherwood unmarked, but she miscued her header as Telford cleared the ball away.
In the 70th minute, Smith denied a certain goal as she cleared the ball off the goal line to keep the Vale’s lead at two.
However, a minute later an error at the back as Naomi Sale-Hancock’s back pass to Watts was off the mark and the ball was turned into the Vale goal to halve the deficit.
Substitution, Tara Harrison, had an audacious effort from distance with a first-time shot just going wide off the post, in the 79th minute.
There was concern for captain Sian McHugh, a minute later, when she went down from an awkward fall that ended her afternoon, as she came off injured.
It was heartbreak, three minutes from time when the Valiants did not clear from a Telford corner, and it fell to an unmarked Telford player on the penalty spot, and they found the back of the net.
However, there was late drama, in stoppage time as Grocott was fouled in the box and won a penalty to give the Valiants a chance of securing all three points.
Grocott then stepped up to take it with her shot being saved but she was quickest to the rebound and fired home to win the game for the Valiants.
With emotions high, a Telford player was shown a red card by the referee after a reckless challenge on Daisy Anderson-Wright, in the seventh minute of stoppage time.
Port Vale | Connie Watts, Daisy Anderson-Wright, Jess Smith, Naomi Sale-Hancock, Sian McHugh (83’ Anna O’Leary), Mollie Prime, Sophie Garratt, Olivia Grocott (46’ Elissa Dockerty), Cassie Davies (73’ Tara Harrison), Macy Isherwood (73’ Olivia Grocott), Lucy Moss
Unused Subs: Erin Moreton-Powell, Freya Jackson