Following Saturday's 1-0 win over neighbours Crewe Alexandra, John Askey has praised the work ethic of his Port Vale side as they battled until the very last minute to secure the result.

It's fair to say Askey's side put in one of their performances of the season on Saturday afternoon as their 1-0 win ensured Vale completed the league double over Crewe for the first time in 20 years.

Vale started on the front-foot and dominated the chances created for the majority. Tom Conlon had a couple of chances saved before Nathan Smith had a powerful header cleared off the line. 

With just under 20 minutes to play, Tom Pope was introduced to the game and in typical fashion, provided the winner. Cristian Montano's driven cross found the captain inside the box who made no mistake to swivel and bury into the far post.

Looking back on the victory, Askey has hailed his team's determination to get a result.

He said: "Throughout the team - it starts at the top with Ricky working hard along with the wide-men.

"That enables us to clean sheets. With such a young back four, we've done tremendous again and it was a great team effort.

"All credit to every single one of them. Luke (Hannant) came on early and put in a real good shift and he could've had a couple of goals."

Now sitting a full 10 points clear of the relegation zone, the gaffer has admitted the feeling in the changing rooms is better than ever.

Following the Crewe result, Vale have lost just one of their last seven outtings, including three wins in their last five. 

Askey has reflected on his time in charge at Vale Park, laying out the stark contrast in emotion from his first few weeks in charge, to now.

He said: "When I came in, the club had a low feeling. We lost the first three or four and it was hard to pick everybody up.

"Now, everybody's on the ceiling. It's a complete change; a complete turnaround and I think everybody at the moment is enjoying it.

"It changed when we played Cheltenham. We had a good look at it, we showed the videos and then we had 11 vs 11 on the Tuesday. I think then everybody realised, if you work hard and close people down, then it's very difficult to play."