Port Vale missed out on the chance to go top of the League One table for the first time since August 2006 as they were beaten 3-2 by fellow Staffordshire side Burton Albion.
The last time Vale were top of this division was back on the 19th August 2006 when they won 3-2 at home to Chesterfield thanks to two goals from Leon Constantine and one from George Pilkington. Back then Steve McClaren had just started his ill-fated spell as England manager and, the number one song in the UK was Hips Don’t Lie by Shakira.
On the other hand, Burton have had a wretched start to the season having only picked up two points from their opening seven league games. They also went out of the League Cup at home to Championship side Leicester City in Round One.
Despite a good start from the Vale, it was the visitors who drew first blood on 11 minutes when a throw-in found Tom Hamer, he put the ball on a plate for an unmarked Beryly Lubala to head the ball past Connor Ripley. It was his first goal for the visitors and the Brewers’ 800th EFL goal since joining the Football League in 2009.
After the goal, Andy Crosby will be pleased with how his team performed to get back into the game as they piled the pressure on the Burton defence. Ben Garrity was the first to go close when a loose ball was played to him just outside the area. The midfielder set himself before driving a shot at Max Crocombe who turned the effort away for a corner. From the resulting set-piece, Vale captain Nathan Smith headed wide at the far post.
Port Vale really should have been level on the half-hour mark when Ollie Arblaster twisted and turned his way into the penalty area before setting up James Wilson. The former Manchester United forward got a first-time shot away but, it was to smack the base of the post when many inside Vale Park thought he had equalised.
The Vale were finally level just five minutes before the halftime break when Wilson played an exquisite pass to Connor Grant on the other side of the pitch. The former Everton youngster saw his first attempt at a cross blocked. However, the loose ball fell to him and this time he found Garrity who headed home for his second goal in a week and, showed why Crosby chose to start him following his heroics at the weekend.
After the break, the opening exchanges mirrored what took place in the first half with Vale creating the first chance in the second 45 minutes with Alfie Devine going close. However, Burton restored their lead on 50 minutes when a Joe Powell corner caused chaos in the Vale penalty area. It eventually fell to Steve Seddon who prodded the ball past Ripley from around four yards out.
Burton had the wind in their sails and, they got a third on the hour mark when Vale left wing-back Alex Iacovitti got caught out of position on the halfway line as he went for the ball. It broke to Kwadwo Baah who sped towards the Vale penalty area and, he muscled his way past Smith before crashing the ball into the far corner of the goal to give the visitors a bit of breathing space.
As the game ticked towards its conclusion, Port Vale continued to throw everything at Burton. They won a free kick with nine minutes left on the clock as Garrity was brought down by Hamer just outside the area. Funso Ojo stepped up and he put his effort towards the top left-hand corner of the goal but, he was denied by a flying save from Crocombe who got across the goal to turn the effort around the post.
Vale did pull a goal back with four minutes left of normal time to go when a goalmouth scramble wasn’t cleared, and the ball fell to Arblaster who blasted the ball into the net to give the 5,700 or so Vale fans inside the ground a glimmer of hope because eight added minutes were about to appear on the 4th official’s board.
The Valiant’s best chance to make it 3-3 came in the final minute of injury time when Mitch Clark found Wilson. He put his volley straight at Crocombe who smothered the shot with his body to maintain his team’s slender lead.
It’s a result that sees Vale slip down to 3rd place as Portsmouth won 3-2 at Barnsley to move into pole position. However, Port Vale are level on points with the South Coast side and, could go top if they get a result at Cambridge United on Saturday and, if Portsmouth lose at home to Lincoln City and Exeter are defeated at Oxford United.
Port Vale: Ripley, Balmer (Cass, 63), Smith, Iacovitti (Plant, 76), Sang (Clark, 64), Grant, Ojo, Arblaster, Garrity, Devine (Massey, 64) and Wilson.
Unused subs: Leutwiler, Loft and Lowe.
Burton Albion: Crocombe, Seddon, Oshilaja, Hughes, Powell, Moon, Beryly Lubala, Helm (Sweeney 90+4), Carayol (Caprice, 72), Baah (Harper, 76) and Hamer.
Unused subs: Blackman, Gordon, Walker and Gilligan.
Attendance: 5,993 (286 away fans).
