LOTS OF LEARNING FOR MOORE AFTER HIS REIGN OPENS WITH DEFEAT

IT was another bad day for Port Vale as they were beaten at Cheltenham. MICHAEL BAGGALEY looks at the talking points...

THE VERDICT Honestly? I thought 3-2 flattered Vale. The first half was an even contest but the hosts dominated the second half and Vale’s second goal, to go 2-1 up, was against the run of play. They should have still got at least a point from that position, but were a bit unlucky with the call for a corner which led to the second equaliser, albeit scored by a brilliant strike from Shepherd. Worse was to come when they switched off defensively for Ferry’s winner. But it’s not as though Cheltenham’s goals came out of the blue, they had Vale penned in for long periods of the second half. Vale didn’t lack fight or commitment though. In that respect, this performance was much better than the 3-0 defeat at Fleetwood a fortnight ago in their last away game.

I think it would be a bit insulting to Darren Moore to suggest this will have shown him the size of the task he faces. He’ll have had a good idea anyway having done his research before he took the job.

But 90 minutes on the touchline will have told him more about a team that’s now taken just two points from seven games.

CREDIT TO CHELTENHAM

Defeat to another team in the bottom four is never great but I don’t think we can bracket this one along with the losses at Carlisle and Fleetwood when Vale were beaten at sides in awful form. Cheltenham are only in the relegation zone because they took just one point from their opening nine games before Darrell Clarke was appointed. He’s done a remarkable job since then and their results under him would easily have them in the top half of the table. They were pretty direct but I absolutely don’t mean that in a sniffy, I couldn’t watch that every week kind of way. They looked well organised, got the ball into the box, created chances and this was their third win on the spin.

In fact, while Cheltenham have won three in a week, Vale have won three in five months.

I’m sure Vale fans will be wishing Clarke well, so long as the Robins don’t stay up at Vale’s expense. Let’s see but at the moment, if you had to pick one of these two sides to survive, it wouldn’t be Vale.

DARREN MOORE AND GALVANISING THE FANS

We don’t need proof the new manager has lifted the support but it was evident anyway as early as 1.30pm when he disembarked from the coach to cheers from a group of Vale fans waiting the other side of the barrier. ‘Darren Moore’s black and white army’ was belted out from the away end before kick-off as the travelling support of 826 did their best to help their side over the line.