Late penalty miss sums up Valiants' day out in Carlisle

PORT Vale’s winning sequence came to an end at relegation-threatened Carlisle. CLIVE YOULTON continues his review of the Valiants’ season...

- CLIVE YOULTON

THAT four-game winning run encompassing Crewe, Bradford, Walsall and Bromley was vital to Port Vale when reflecting overall.

Because with four matches remaining, they were only to win one of them. Two ended in defeat.

It really had been one of those bizarre campaigns.

Boos had rung out at Vale Park on plenty of occasions, even as recently as March 25 in the 1-0 reverse against Barrow.

The team played poorly at times and got away with it. Fans had not been totally enamoured with the style of play.

But Vale were resilient and the opposition had not been very good.

"Maybe this result against Bromley will give the doubters some belief,’ uttered BBC Radio Stoke commentator Phil Bowers after the 5-0 triumph against Bromley.

Only recently had the shackles come off allowing the flair players to do their work.

Moore had been given an open cheque book the previous summer and that bold and brave decision from the owners finally looked to be paying off.

Bowers was getting excited at the possibility of seeing silverware at the end of the season.

He maintained: “A lot of Vale fans of the current generation haven't seen Vale win a league. The last time they won a title was in 1959.

So they've never seen them win a title. They've seen promotions which have been few and far between.