GARRITY: VALIANTS MUST BOUNCE BACK QUICKLY
THEY were dismal, but at least Port Vale’s players aren’t deluded about their performance against Walsall.
Tuesday’s 1-0 home defeat was comfortably the Vale’s worst performance of the season and was labelled ‘embarrassing’ by manager Darrell Clarke.
He was followed into the press room by midfielder Ben Garrity who was equally honest about the performance.
He said: “It was poor really from every one of us.
“In the first half we were nowhere near it. First, second balls, and then when we did have the ball we were crap with it, every single one of us.
“I am gutted really considering how good we were on Saturday, even though we lost. This was just a bad, bad game.”
So, Vale have until 3pm on Saturday, when they kick off at home to Hartlepool, to get back to form. They had played well for long spells at Oldham on Saturday only to lose 3-2 because of defensive mistakes, but there had been no warning they would be outplayed and outfought in this manner by the Saddlers.
That made it a tough night for the 4,700 Vale fans in attendance, not forgetting their manager who was taunted throughout by the 1,500 travelling supporters having left Walsall for Burslem in February.
Garrity added: “There is nothing worse than losing. He has a bit of personal reasons, he was there wasn’t he? But we want to win every game.
“If you come off the pitch and have played well and lose then fair enough. But we were nowhere near good enough. We were awful.
“Everyone is gutted but we can’t get too down on ourselves, we have to go again on Saturday.”
Walsall head coach Matt Taylor said his team were well worth the victory secured by Brendan Kiernan’s 29thminute goal. Vale had Tom Conlon sent off on 73 minutes but were chasing the game by then.
Taylor told his club’s website: I’m really pleased and proud of the team.
“I thought tonight we found a way to win the game. It was always going to
be a difficult fixture but the team were so physically dominant in the way that they picked up the balls and in their running, their effort and their desire.
“I asked them for that and to a man, each one of them gave me that so it gives you a platform, it gives you something to work towards then improving in terms of on the ball. I thought every player tonight who got on to the pitch really made a big contribution.”
He added: “The players did the ugly side of the game really well and they completed our non-negotiables as a football club.
“I will accept, I will go with and I have always said it, that they will make mistakes on the ball. But what they did tonight was they trod on the opposition physically and I think when you have got that in a group of men, that when they take to the football pitch, you have got a chance of winning the game.”