We travel to Leyton Orient tomorrow. Let’s take a look back at some previous meetings in London.
Past five games against the O’s: DWLDW
Sky Bet League Two, Brisbane Road, Saturday 20th February 2021, Leyton Orient 1-1 Port Vale
Curtis Guthrie was close to scoring his first Port Vale goal on eight minutes but his glancing header just went wide of goal. Vale had another chance on the quarter-hour mark, Alex Hurst was unmarked in the area but his effort was saved by the feet of Lawrence Vigouroux in goal.
The hosts looked dangerous from set-pieces with Dan Happe getting his head on the ball but sent it way over the bar with 17 minutes played. Vale had the majority of the ball in the first 25 minutes but couldn’t make it pay. David Worrall snuck in at the back post to reach Hurst’s ball into the box but couldn’t direct his header on target from a tight angle.
Brown had little to do in the first half-hour but he was tested for the first time on 36 minutes by a shot from Jobi McAnuff which was hit straight at the Vale stopper as he comfortably claimed the ball.
The Valiants were certainly spurred on by Darrell Clarke’s halftime team talk. They pressed at every opportunity in the opening two minutes of the second half and forced a mistake from the Orient backline as Devante Rodney nipped in and helped the ball onto Worrall inside the area who out strengthened his man and caressed the ball low into the opposite corner to give Vale a deserved lead on 47 minutes.
Guthrie had a good opportunity to extend the lead with a header at the back post but was blocked which forced the ball out for a corner just two minutes after the opener. The corner was cleared, only as far as Tom Conlon who tried his luck from outside the area but had his shot blocked. After a positive spell in possession, the home side grabbed an equaliser on 63 minutes through Dan Kemp who opened his body up and slotted the ball into the net from inside the box.
A minute later Rodney lined up a shot to try and give Vale the lead back but his shot was well blocked by Adam Thompson. 65 minutes on the clock and Orient were close to making it 2-1 as a fortunate deflection led the ball to fall into the path of Danny Johnson but he scuffed his shot well wide from three yards out.
A corner for the O’s on 68 minutes which Thompson managed to get to but his header sailed over the bar. A minute later Rodney almost gave the lead back to Vale but his header crashed against the crossbar and out for a goal kick. Johnson should have scored after 70 minutes but was denied by brilliant last ditched defending. The initial shot was saved by Brown and the second blocked off the line by Mustapha Olagunju before being cleared by Nathan Smith. Inside the final ten minutes a great save by Scott Brown secured a point for Vale in London.
Leyton Orient: Vigourox, Cisse, Happe, McAnuff, Wilkinson, Kemp (80' Abrhams), Brophy, Akinola, Freeman, Thompson, Johnson
Unused Subs: Sargeant, Widdowson, Coulson, Dayton, Turley, Young
Port Vale: Brown, Gibbons, Crookes, Joyce, Smith, Worrall (57' Oyeleke), Conlon, Guthrie, Rodney, Hurst (90' Montano), Olagunju (75' Legge)
Unused Subs: Cullen, Taylor, Scott, Swan
Classic Fixture
League One, Brisbane Road, Easter Monday 4th April 1994, Leyton Orient 2-3 Port Vale
Vale were in 4th place in the table but hadn’t won for three games whereas Orient had fallen to mid-table after a seven-game winless run. Martin Foyle put Vale ahead in the 20th minute only for Martin Thomas to level twelve minutes later. Foyle restored Vale’s lead three minutes before the interval.
Orient equalised again in the 55th minute through Mark Cooper. Foyle completed his hat trick though to win it for Vale in the 78th minute. The result began a run of eight wins in nine games that took Vale to automatic promotion. The Orient side contained former Vale striker Colin West, future midfielder Ian Bogie and sub Chris Turner, who later became Vale’s commercial manager.
Leyton Orient – Newall, Ryan, Ludden, Hackett, Austin, Bellamy, Thomas, Barnett, West, Cooper, Bogie
Subs not used – Okai, Turner
Vale – Musselwhite, Aspin, Stokes, Porter, Swan, Glover, Kent, Foyle, Allon (Lowe), Cross, Taylor
Sub not used - Wood
Att. 3,412