EYE ON THE OPPOSITION | Exeter City (H)

EYE ON THE OPPOSITION | Exeter City (H)

Vale prepare to face fellow promoted side Exeter City for the third this season as Vale Park plays host once again on Saturday afternoon.

The visitors are without a win in their last two matches and currently sit in 12th place in League One, the position the Valiants could climb to with a win.

Darrell Clarke will be hoping to see a response from his side on Saturday after we fell to defeat against Barnsley in midweek, leaving us 15th in the third tier.

Before the two sides clash once again at the weekend, here is what you need to know about the Devonshire side.

ONE TO WATCH: Sam Nombe

The man to look out for when we face the Grecians on Saturday afternoon is their prolific forward, Sam Nombe, who has netted 11 goals in League One so far this term.

The 24-year-old is into his second season at Exeter, and after a successful first campaign for the club in which he helped the side gain promotion to the third tier of English football, he has adapted to League One extremely well.

Nombe is an academy product of Milton Keynes Dons, starting his young career in Buckinghamshire back in 2017.

Exeter’s number 10 played a total of 41 appearances for the Dons but spent the majority of his time at the club out on loan at the likes of Oxford City, Maidenhead United, and Luton Town.

City made the move for the London-born attacker in the summer of 2021, and he has proved a brilliant signing with 33 goal involvements in 66 matches during his time in Devon.

THE MAN AT THE HELM: Gary Caldwell

The Grecians made the appointment of former Scottish international, Gary Caldwell, in October 2022.

Caldwell had been out of management for three years before the call came from Exeter, with his last role in coaching coming in 2019, as boss at Partick Thistle.

The Scotsman had an impressive playing career before his move into the dugout, playing over 400 appearances as a Centre-Back.

Standing at 5 foot 11, Caldwell was very good at the back and played at many top clubs including, Newcastle United, Derby County, Celtic, and Wigan Athletic.

His most successful years came at his last two clubs as he won two Scottish league titles at Celtic, before winning an FA Cup during his five years at the Latics.

Caldwell also made 55 appearances for his native Scotland, scoring two goals in his 11-year stint in blue, a brilliant achievement for the proud Scot.

After retiring as a player in 2015, the 40-year-old joined the coaching staff at Wigan before being appointed manager in April of the same year.

Caldwell had a strong first full season in management, guiding the Latics to the League One title and to the Championship after relegation the previous season.

The 40-year-old left the club the season after and was appointed as the main man at Chesterfield in 2017, before spending time as a boss in Scotland with Partick Thistle a year later.

HEAD-TO-HEAD LAST FIVE:

Vale wins: 2

Draws: 1

Exeter wins: 2

It’s honours even between the two sides in recent times, with both teams winning two of their last five clashes.

We have faced the side from Devon twice so far this season, and unfortunately, it is the Grecians who have come out on top in both, but Clarke will be hoping his side can change those statistics on Saturday.