PROCTOR: VALE HAVE BIG BELIEF
Striker insists late first-leg goal can provide momentum shift in battle to reach Wembley final
PORT Vale’s experienced striker Jamie Proctor says the team will be looking to take their strong finish at the County Ground into Thursday’s League Two play-off second leg in Burslem as they try to overturn Swindon’s 2-1 advantage.
Vale are one game away from the Wembley final on Saturday, May 28, but have to overcome a Swindon side who will be looking to build on their home win on Sunday.
Darrell Clarke’s side looked in trouble when former Vale forward Harry Mckirdy’s goals put Swindon 2-0 up but James Wilson’s goal seven minutes from time has left the tie in the balance.
Proctor said: “It is massive. We will always believe in ourselves no matter what, but the fact of the matter is there is a one-goal deficit instead of a two. So, that is going to help us and it will maybe affect the Swindon lads.
“We have been in positions before, 2-0 up and you do feel comfortable, then that one goal just changes it.
But it is all to play for. We will be looking forward to Thursday, resting up now, working on things that didn’t go too well and be ready to go on Thursday night.”
Proctor says it was important Vale didn’t panic after going 2-0 down at the
County Ground because there was still a long way to go in the tie.
He said: “I said before the game, and at half-time, you can quite easily get carried away – for example at 2-0 down you can go chasing and chasing, and go 3-0 or 4-0 down. Then, after the game, you think ‘why didn’t we just stay in it?’
“If it is a one-off game then you have to chase but we have another 90 minutes. It is as simple as that. It is the number one message, there is another 90 minutes, don’t go chasing.
“Luckily enough for us we didn’t do that too much, we managed to stay in the game because there were periods where we were under the cosh. But I think we finished strongly.
“We will now use that belief and I will be spreading that message, as will everybody else that, look, we have more than enough to produce on Thursday and get the result we need.”
Proctor, main picture, is hoping to be able to play a part on Thursday despite a hip injury that meant he was only used as a substitute for the final 30 minutes on Sunday. The former Bradford City, Bolton Wanderers and Rotherham United striker, who has scored 13 goals this season, made an impact off the bench as he set up strike-partner Wilson, inset, to score. Proctor added: “Over the past couple of weeks it has been touch and go whether I will be out there and available.
“So, I have had to manage where I am at in terms of that. I had to have an injection to try to settle things down and ultimately get me through these two games. “Two games in four days after an injection, and not really training, is tough. So, we had to make the call on the right way to get through it. Hopefully come Thursday I will be ready to go and we will see what we go with.”
The second leg of the other League Two play-off semi-final takes place tomorrow night. Mansfield Town take a 2-1 advantage to Northampton Town, who missed out on automatic promotion on the final day of the season.