Port Vale face a tough task when they welcome top of the table Swindon Town to Vale Park today as they look to round off the year and the decade with a win. The Valiants will be hoping to keep their form against teams above them in the table going against the Robins. You can find all of the key information regarding the game, below.
Fixture: Port Vale vs Swindon Town
Competition: Sky Bet League Two
Date: Sunday 29th December 2019
Kick-Off: 3:00 pm
Venue: Vale Park
Referee: Scott Oldham
Port Vale
Manager: John Askey
Form: LLDDD
Top Goal Scorer: Jake Taylor (5 goals)
The Vale will be hoping they can pick up their first win in the league this month, after three draws on the bounce, including last minute heartbreak at Mansfield Town last time out.
The Valiants remain just five points outside of the play-off positions as they continue to navigate through the hectic Christmas and New Year period, and will feel confident going into the match having picked up 15 points from a possible 24 against the teams above them in the table, with only one defeat in that time.
John Askey is still without Adam Crookes and Manny Oyeleke, with Shaun Brisley and Jake Taylor also remaining doubtful, but there is good news for the gaffer as Tom Conlon returns to contention from his suspension.
“All of the other teams [above us] that we’ve played, it’s brought out the best in us, so hopefully that’ll be the case on Sunday.”
John Askey, Port Vale Manager
Swindon Town
Manager: Richie Wellens
Form: WWWDW
Top Goal Scorer(s): Eoin Doyle (22 goals)
The Robins are currently flying high in the league, sat three points clear and unbeaten in their last 10 league games as they strive towards promotion to League One.
The heart of their success has come via the incredible goal scoring of Eoin Doyle, who has found the back of the net in his last 11 league games, the first player to do so in England’s top four leagues since Jamie Vardy in 2015. Doyle’s fellow attacker Jerry Yates has also had a prolific season so far, scoring 10 goals himself.
Nicky Ajose, Charlie Colkett and Franky Dabo all look set to return to action after missing the Robins’ last fixture, whilst Ben Gladwin and Lloyd Jones are also back in contention. However, Yaser Kasim, Jordan Stewart and Jermaine Hylton all are doubts after picking up an illness.
One to watch: Eoin Doyle
The experienced Irish forward spent the early years of his career in Ireland, representing sides like Shelbounre and Sligo Rovers before joining Scottish side Hibernian in 2011.
After two years in Scotland he moved to England where he represented Chesterfield, before he earnt a move to Cardiff City. After struggling for game time he was loaned out to Preston North End where he shone and gained a permanent swap.
His next moves were to Portsmouth and Oldham Athletic on loan, before signing for Bradford City in 2018.
After one season with the Bantams, Doyle was loaned to Swindon where he has taken the league by storm, and if he scores against the Vale will set a new consecutive scoring record of 12 games for the Robins.
Talk:
John Askey: “It’ll be a good test for us and hopefully we can get a result as we’ve done against the other top teams.”
Richie Wellens: "It’s a gruelling schedule, and we’ve made a good start.”
Coverage:
iFollow The Vale will be providing full 90-minute commentary from the match, whilst the Port Vale Twitter and Facebook feeds will be providing live updates for the entirety.
There will also be the build-up to the game with the official Snapchat and Instagram accounts: officialpvfc
Reaction will be available on the official website post-match, as well as on YouTube, iFollow and social media.