Port Vale v Stevenage

[valefan16]

A much less stressful affair than it could of been, Vale will be looking to get to the 50 point mark against a seemingly hot and cold Stevenage.

Stevenage seem to have a couple of stinkers then a couple of good results, whilst Vale's superb form of late hit a pot hole with a horror showing at Exeter.

Vale can be mathematically safe if they win regardless of other results, or if Notts and Yeovil lose they are safe regardless.

Vale will be 99.999999% safe if Yeovil lose and Notts Draw with the huge gulf in goal difference also.

Stevenage must win to keep their faint Play off hopes alive.

Expecting maybe a couple of changes here after the last game to freshen things up a bit, Joyce I think will return and expect Pope also may come in from the start.

Oddly we have never beaten Stevenage in a League Tie but have never lost a cup tie (3 attempts) to them!

Think we will nick it 2-1 Pope x 2, either way hopefully safety is secured and no lingering doubts can remain.

 

[valefan16]

And on the beach first half that, starred well but a shocking goal to concede from our own corner and with the early lead you know then what’s coming from Stevenage as with every visit chucking themselves on the deck and taking an age over every goal kick etc.

 

[kieran_vale]

Sounds like we are just letting our standards slip a bit last couple of games now we are safe. Probably a win really it's only 1-0.

 

[valefan16]

Sounds like we are just letting our standards slip a bit last couple of games now we are safe. Probably a win really it's only 1-0.

Started well enough but as usual a goal kills us.

Stevenage even still have the Westley quarter time out injury!

 

[leedsvaliant]

Bloody hell. Stevenage dig the depths of timewasting. It's like westley is back.

 

[valefan16]

Bloody hell. Stevenage dig the depths of timewasting. It's like westley is back.

Thankfully their quarter time second half episode bit them on the arse as we didn’t give them the ball back and scored!

Should of equalised seconds later, now posting on here as they have yet another “injury”

 

[kieran_vale]

Nice finish by Montano apparently. Slight opening for Vale so hopefully have a big push for the next 20 minutes.

 

[leedsvaliant]

Absolutely disgraceful tactics. Deserved to not get the ball back. We have another one down now for 5 minutes. Yawn.

 

[valefan16]

Nice finish by Montano apparently. Slight opening for Vale so hopefully have a big push for the next 20 minutes.

Still waiting.... think he’s alive and ready for the miracle recovery. Their physio must be Jesus.

 

[leedsvaliant]

Oh god it's going to get worse now. Are we going to see another 'injury '

 

[valefan16]

Oh god it's going to get worse now. Are we going to see another 'injury '

Terrible goal again. Scored both times they’ve had a chance this half.

 

[valefan16]

Don’t quite know how we lost that 4-1 to be honest but three decent strikes. Shame it will be remembered more for the absolutely outrageous anti football tactics I’ve seen since Stevenage in the L1 season. Horrible that a club feels the need to do it all the time.

Safe anyway and good to see a couple of fringe lads, Elliott looks decent when he came on.

 

[kieran_vale]

Don’t quite know how we lost that 4-1 to be honest but three decent strikes. Shame it will be remembered more for the absolutely outrageous anti football tactics I’ve seen since Stevenage in the L1 season. Horrible that a club feels the need to do it all the time.

Safe anyway and good to see a couple of fringe lads, Elliott looks decent when he came on.

Aye main thing is we've secured our league status. Rewind two months and not going to lie I thought we were fucked so to do it with games to spare am more than good with that. Just want us to put in a good performance at MK on Monday purely as I live down there and will be the last Vale game I see this season. Guess all eyes on the off-field stuff now not for the first time with this club.

 

[Buxton Vale]

weird scoreline. We didn't play well, but should have got a point. I thought Elliot was impressive when he came on. I've not seen time-wasting like that for years, and what a tinpot club, when you are knocking on the door of the play-offs on a holiday weekend and can't even manage to bring 100 fans with you.

 

[valefan16]

Tom Pope with a brutal interview about Stevenages antics! Rather retire than do that.

 

[darren gregory]

Stevenage were vile, however that has opened a few eyes after our good run.

Yet again after good form by him Smith is completely owned by a big striker.
Guthrie made him look a twat all game long.
Whitfield was dreadful maybe that's why he hasn't been having a sniff for weeks.

Not sure the reverting to the so called Popeball suited us at all but he earned a start.
Going forward we have to have a plan B .

Never a 4-1 the 2 late goals flattered them, horrible team, horrible tactics, gamesmanship from about the 5th minute.
Hopefully they will sneak 7th and go up

 

[valefan16]

We actually worked the keeper more than most I thought especially when Elliott came on; third is a killer as they barely got out their half before that in the second half, have to see it again but looked miles offside?

Got to be smarter against teams on the break to get caught like that three times. They’d have hacked us down if the boot was on the other foot.

Safety is the key issue and that’s sorted at least.

 

[Buxton Vale]

I thought the 3rd was offside, but the linesman on that side may as well have sat in the stands. Totally useless.

 

[leedsvaliant]

Never a 4-1 game, although we were poor first half, but not for the first time we've been beaten by a thoroughly average side who somehow find themselves on the edge of the playoffs. God this league is cack!

I genuinely think if we'd have got rid of aspin earlier we'd be up there and we've got a pretty shite team. Tells you everything you need to know about this league.

What is it with Stevenage? It doesn't matter if they change manager or players, they still resort to the same awful timewasting tactics. It was a new low today and they look like they expect to get a few yellow cards by the way they consistently stop and start the game.

The sooner these no mark non league teams go the way of rushden and diamonds the better, especially if that's how they intend to win football matches. Horrible club with terrible support. Leek town would have brought more.

 

[valefan16]

According to Pope they were actually opening discussing who’s turn it was to go down and at one point one player refused as he’d ‘already been down once’

 

[leedsvaliant]

According to Pope they were actually opening discussing who’s turn it was to go down and at one point one player refused as he’d ‘already been down once’

Absolutely disgraceful if so and action should be taken against them, but sod all will happen and they'll keep getting away with it. No wonder they're in a shout for the playoffs if they're going to cheat.

 

[leedsvaliant]

Popes interview in full. Disgrace of a club https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/port-vale-tom-pope-stevenage-2779865

 

[valefan16]

Popes interview in full. Disgrace of a club https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/port-vale-tom-pope-stevenage-2779865

Annoying thing is they were good enough/our defence was bad enough that it wasn’t needed.

 

[Captain]

We do it every game, it’s nothing special to Vale and if that’s a fired up Tom Pope desperate to put one over on us I feel sorry for you every other week because he was totally anonymous today aside from moaning about us.

I don’t really care about the timewasting, in all honesty I’d prefer if we didn’t, but I’d take a result like today and the negative reaction instead of the relentless beatings under Gary Smith when we were fair and a bunch of pushovers. The better sides punish us for time wasting anyway, Vale weren’t capable on the day, been a number of occasions we’ve lost points in the dying minutes of stoppage time, so it does come back to bite us on the backside sometimes.

As for the game, thought we played well first half, bar the early header never felt too threatened by Vale and whilst we didn’t offer much always felt we were in relative control of the game. Was concerned we’d sit too deep second half and welcome Vale on to us so was grateful for the second goal. Vale then had a period of period of pressure, scored and then began to threaten a leveller, the Iontton head injury (genuine) broke the momentum Vale had built up, we regrouped and were comfortable after that, the third goal killed the game and the late goal was the icing on the cake.

Not sure I’d classify timewasting as cheating but if it is, today was a day the cheats prospered and I loved every fucking minute of it.

 

[Buxton Vale]

wow a Stevenage fan. I didnt even know that they were a thing.

 

[leedsvaliant]

We do it every game, it’s nothing special to Vale and if that’s a fired up Tom Pope desperate to put one over on us I feel sorry for you every other week because he was totally anonymous today aside from moaning about us.

I don’t really care about the timewasting, in all honesty I’d prefer if we didn’t, but I’d take a result like today and the negative reaction instead of the relentless beatings under Gary Smith when we were fair and a bunch of pushovers. The better sides punish us for time wasting anyway, Vale weren’t capable on the day, been a number of occasions we’ve lost points in the dying minutes of stoppage time, so it does come back to bite us on the backside sometimes.

As for the game, thought we played well first half, bar the early header never felt too threatened by Vale and whilst we didn’t offer much always felt we were in relative control of the game. Was concerned we’d sit too deep second half and welcome Vale on to us so was grateful for the second goal. Vale then had a period of period of pressure, scored and then began to threaten a leveller, the Iontton head injury (genuine) broke the momentum Vale had built up, we regrouped and were comfortable after that, the third goal killed the game and the late goal was the icing on the cake.

Not sure I’d classify timewasting as cheating but if it is, today was a day the cheats prospered and I loved every fucking minute of it.

And that is why Stevenage will continue to get away with it. Their fan doesn't care. Surely you should feel some shame for winning through cheating. Taking it in turns to go down injured...fuck me that's a new low.

 

[leedsvaliant]

And how can you not class timewasting as cheating? It's the purest form. It's basically killing any momentum of the opposition team and also the amount of wasted time is never added on at the end. Should have been about 15 mins extra time at least.

What I will say is today we weren't good enough, but were we given the opportunity?

 

[valefan16]

And how can you not class timewasting as cheating? It's the purest form. It's basically killing any momentum of the opposition team and also the amount of wasted time is never added on at the end. Should have been about 15 mins extra time at least.

What I will say is today we weren't good enough, but were we given the opportunity?

We lost due to defensive errors. Stevanage weren’t great but ruthless first is a terrible pass from Joyce then we don’t deal with him running all that way.

Second was atrocious, three or four errors there.

Third similar to the second.

Forth games Legge I think caught cold trying to deal with a bouncing ball.

Shouldn’t be conceding those really and in fairness we were below the levels of recent weeks, changes didn’t help and possibly after the efforts to get clear it’s caught up with us. We desperately miss Manny too.

Stevenage fans are all over Twitter, odd bunch remember Tommy Fraser calling them a cocky club from the top down after our FA Cup tie in 2009 when they were National League, think they even started sorting their arrangements for the second round before the replay because they’d not lost at home for a year (we won 1-0) but I guess they just see it as the Norm. That’s football to them as that’s what they will know.

Faking injury for a team talk is stupid but the EFL should crack down on it, tell the referees not to stop the game, we played on and scored from it as we’d had enough by then.

Seen their fans moaning about us chanting cheat at their lad who actually had a cut on his head when he got up. Were scum etc... now there’s a story about a Boy and Wolf....

 

[leedsvaliant]

Yep it's a really poor show when a genuine injury is not believed because of the woeful tactics otherwise. It's a complete sham.

Typical non league tinpot outfit who will win at all costs. It's a blight on our game, but once their bubble bursts they'll be back with the rushden and diamonds of this world and then they can timewaste all they want.

I feel genuinely sad that proper football clubs like Notts county are losing their place in the league to teams like this.

 

[Dan Phillips]

Darren's at it again. Do you even face the pitch?

Smith had a more than reasonable game. It was Legge that was poor, and Crookes and Clark were both appalling.