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United bid to kick off September with a bang by bagging the points on their visit to the Potteries on saturday, a game i believe is our toughest test thus far. I have been to Vale Park on our last 2 visits and am still to see the Gulls win. Last season we earned a 0-0 draw on a freezing night and the season before last we drew 2-2 so i am hoping it will be third time lucky. Port Vale kicked off their season with a 3-1 home defeat to Burnley in the Capital One Cup despite taking the lead through Chris Shuker in the 9th minute. They then cruised to a comfortable 3-0 home win against Barnet courtesy of Dodds, Myrie-Williams (pen) and Tom Pope.

A visit to Accrington followed and we all know what a banana skin the Crown Ground can be don't we? Vale slipped to a 2-0 defeat but only via a penalty and an inury time strike by Gray wrapped up the points for Stanley. Last time out Vale recorded an impressive 3-1 away victory at The Globe Arena against the Shrimpers; however, they left it very, very late, McCombe popping up in the last minute before Pope added a third in injury time. Still an impressive result though.

I enjoy my visits to Vale Park given it's only a short drive for me across the peaks and when you get there you can park slap bang next to the away turnstiles. There is also a bookies a few hundred yards up the road too! Happy days. Other than that there isn't a lot in the area apart from a few pubs in the Burslem area which don't look greatly inviting, if any of you know of things worthwhile to do in the vicinty if the ground then please do post on this thread. Oh and i reckon they must have the largest club shop in our league, it's feckin huge.

Vale Park itself is a bit cavernous at times as the ground barely reaches a quarter full and although we will take more fans there than Barnet did for their previous home game it will still feel empty. I'll be in there to sing my bollocks off for the 90 as per usual and i'm sure many of us will be so we'll have some atmosphere in our end at least. Vale Park was the first ground i visited as a football fan when i went with a few of my Sheffield Wednesday mates during the mid 90's. It was when Vale had the likes of Andy Porter, Dean Glover and Robbie Earle i think. Anyway there were three things i remember about the day. Firstly being hammered, secondly being dressed as a lion and thirdly buying a fanzine called the MEMOIRS OF SETH BOTTOMLEY!! That got me into fanzines and i loved buying them wherever i could. What the hell happened to CAPITAL GULLS anyway? That was immense and i'd love us to have a new fanzine. Someone start one up, i don't mind coming up with a few ideas and a few articles on a regular basis.

Anyway, back on track. Vale sit in 5th place in the fledgling table on 6 points whilst we are in 8th on 5 points but we are unbeaten. The midlands outfit will at least see out the season after administrators Begbies-Traynor gave the guarantee although their future after that is unsure. Stoke -on - Trent city council, who are one of Vale's major creditors have agreed to write off part of the debt and invited more potential investors to come forward. I hope Vale survive as they are one of the country's well established clubs and nobody outside football knows where Port Vale is!!

They have some useful players but like Bradford they always flatter to deceive and in Vale's case they are usually there or thereabouts but always end up tailing off at the business end of the season. I think they will get in the play offs this season along with ourselves and saturday will be tough as they have a good, solid squad. Pope, Myrie-Williams, Shuker, Vincent and Dodds provide goal threats and in defence they have solid John McCombe and Richard Duffy and between the sticks is former Shrew Chris Neal. They have lost Sean Rigg who went to Oxford and Marc Richards who went to Chesterfield ( poor bugger! ). Manager Micky Adams will know that we will be a tough nut to crack also and i'm expecting a cracking game.

Port Vale were the first team i saw Torquay play home and away in the same season when last season i went to the 0-0 at Vale Park and also to Plainmoor for the first time in our 2-1 win. Nowt to do with you lot i know but i'll always remember that particular statistic therefore Vale will always be part of my footballing history.

Last time out Vale beat Morecambe 3-1 and this was their line up:

1. Chris Neal (GK)
2. Richard Duffy
3. John McCombe
4. Clayton McDonald
5. Doug Loft
6. Jennison Myrie-Williams
7. Chris Shuker
8. Sam Morsy
9. Ashley Vincent
10. Louis Dodds
11. Tom Pope

SUBS: Sam Johnson (GK), Gareth Owen, Joe Davis, Rob Taylor ( on for Myrie-Williams on 69 mins ), Darren Murphy ( on for Chris Shuker on 74 mins ), Ryan Lloyd, Ben Williamson ( on for Louis Dodds on 72 mins ).

I am going for a 2-1 Gulls win and MORRIS WILL SCORE!!!! YOU MARK MY WORDS!!!!!! and also Mansell. If any of you are meeting up anywhere before the game then let me know and i'll try and make it. If not i'll see you all in the away end lads and lasses, boys and girls!! COYY!!!!!!!!

Looking forward to this one. Another away day and a Place where I havent seen us lose yet either. But Vale are in form so far this season so I expect a tough game especially since Downes is suspended so it will be interesting to see who steps in to replace him weather it be a new signing as Ling has said were on the look out for another defender still (though thats gone a bit quiet now) or weather he opts to put McKenzie or Cruise in. Other than that I'd stay unchanged from Saturday unless Stevens is fit then you'd assume he'd come in for Thompson on the wing which would be harsh given his excellent performance last Saturday against Rochdale.

Got a few friends who surport Vale so will be meeting up with them in the Smiffy Pub before the game.

I saw us win here on my one and only trip to Vale Park. I won't be going back as Burslem is a hole, one of the worst places I've seen; it gives Hele a run for its money that place!

Agree about it being a tough one, if we can come home with something it'll set us up very nicely for the Devon derby the following week.

Come on lads!

NickGull wrote:I saw us win here on my one and only trip to Vale Park. I won't be going back as Burslem is a hole, one of the worst places I've seen; it gives Hele a run for its money that place!

Agree about it being a tough one, if we can come home with something it'll set us up very nicely for the Devon derby the following week.

Come on lads!

That's made my day Nick! I get stick for slagging off most other places on my away days so i'm glad there is someone else that thinks like me!
I've actually not much problem with Burslem or Vale, Fleetwood though! Urrrggghhh! That was a hellhole! Or Hele-hole

Haha. I'm usually alright, but it just seemed like it was stuck in the past, that place. Wouldn't fancy walking through it in broad daylight really!

I stuck around for a night out around Fleetwood after the game. It was quite an experience. The place needs a bit of love. Or a bomb:)

Anyway, back to topic. Wish i could make it but got to work but it will be 3 points. Simples

Cheers devonboy! ANOTHER one who slags off other towns!

I'm as fair as the next man but if the place needs a bomb, as devonboy says then i'll say so.

I'll be there, fourth trip to Vale and so far I've seen two 2-1 gulls wins, a 2-2 draw and a 0-0 draw. Both the draws were on weeknights, the wins were on saturday 3pm kick offs. I hope the pattern continues!

Tough game though, Vale seem in good form and with a few solid looking names in the team. We'll have to be at our 8th-to-74th-minute-best from Saturday to get a win here I reckon. I hope Ling sticks with Thompson rather than go for the defensive shape that Cruise provided at Fleetwood.

Saw us break the 1000 minute barrier without conceding a goal at Vale a couple of years ago, was a jolly good day. Using the Sky Sports video thing, I watched their performances so far this year.
They got done by an OG and a 94th minute breakaway at Accrington. Against Barnet, they played the worst team in the top 12 divisions. The Bees didn't have a single shot on or off target that day. That said, Vale only managed two shots on target (the second goal was a penalty, which doesn't count) which means that every single time they hit the target, they scored, that's unlikely to happen again. Given their total domination of the match, that must be a worrying statistic for the Vale faithful.

That said, their front two of Pope and Dodds do look pretty good together. They're no Bodin and Howe, but they look to be pretty good. Dodds will shoot on sight, back to goal, on the half turn volley, any time, any place. We'll need a decent replacement for Downer to get tight to him and win the ball before he has a chance to get his shot off.

Bloody horrible, oppressive away end, with their dark seats and low ceiling. They are the most effective exponents of the 'multi-ball' system that I have seen outside of the top divisions, so we'll have to keep on our toes any time the ball goes out of play.
Despite not really liking their away end, the ground itself is alright, and their fans are perfectly decent people. I seem to remember it being a bit expensive though, but that might not be right.

Anyway, looking forward to this one, since they have a good surface up their, and it should rather suit our game. They look pretty direct, not so much long ball, but like to get forward quickly, a bit like the anti-Fleetwood.

This'll be a tough game, but certainly no more difficult than Cheltenham,and it's a game from which a point would not make me happy, but three would make me delighted (if only there were a two point option!)

Matt.

That said, I have two more points which have only come to light when perusing their forum.

Firstly, having said their fans are alright, it seems that some of them have let the prestige of two wins in three games go to their heads:

Port Vale fan with surprisingly little grip on reality wrote:"2 - 4 points against Torquay and Rotherham would be great.

This is a **** poor division where anybody can beat anybody and I imagine there will be 10-12 teams in and around the top 3 and the play offs."

This is very much NOT a piss poor division, there are a number of excellent teams in it this year and it is a much stronger division than it was 5 years ago.
It's interesting that a team who has managed to spend so much money (despite getting double our crowds and charging considerably more for the privilege) that they are in administration, in a piss poor division, they have managed to finish: 9th (I've added the 10 points back on), 11th, 10th, 18th. Hardly setting the world alight...

Secondly, an appeal from the overwhelming majority of those who will be there on Saturday to the half a dozen pissed up idiots with single figure IQs. Please, no singing some old shit which doesn't make sense and isn't funny about whichever of their blokes it was who was implicated, but ultimately exonerated, in the recent rape conviction of thingybob Evans. It's not funny, no one wants to hear it and if I think it's offensive, it really much be beyond the pale.

Matt.

Some good points there Matt, i shall have to begin incorporating details like the opposition style of play and any info from their forum that they may be saying about the game in my matchday threads. The more info the better. Your point about some of their fans 'expecting' success when there is no real foundation for the expectation is totally true and some fans of these once 'bigger' clubs need to get their heads out of their arses and wake up. There are some QUALITY squads in this league and underestimating teams will see you finish 10th, 11th, 12th at best? Precisely what Vale have been doing for the last few years. The away end IS oppressive too Matt, i agree. It's dark and claustrophobic despite it being 80% empty and and on a low level.

I may not be able to go to this one, I think I'll be in London for the weekend . Nevertheless, get behind the boys lads and lasses, will be a tough game so they need all the support possible.

COYY!!

dannyrvtufc4life wrote:I may not be able to go to this one, I think I'll be in London for the weekend . Nevertheless, get behind the boys lads and lasses, will be a tough game so they need all the support possible.

COYY!!

You want to get yourself a copy of the map that Muzzy Carayol uses, Port Vale is bound to be right next to London.

Matt.

wont be there myself but have been twice last time was when we won 2-1 with leon constantine getting one of the goals and when we got back to our mini bus we were set on by the local burberry boys when triyng to get on the bus, come to think of it that happend when we were up there in the seventies, our coach got stoned but hey most of the locals were friendly, should be an intresting game on saturday will be happy with a point.

I never realised how good of a record we have at Vale Park over the last few years.

With Downes out, I am a bit worried how we'll do in defence because from what I saw last Saturday, he was epic at the back and almost earned my vote for MoTm had he not got sent off.

A point would be good for me, continues the unbeaten start against some tough opposition although can see it going 2-1 either way.