Danny Pugh scored his first goal of the season on Saturday afternoon as the Valiants fell to defeat away to Lincoln City.
After going a goal behind early in the first half, the midfielder found an equaliser with a neatly struck volley just before half-time, but he admits it means nothing as Vale failed to secure any points.
Although it wasn’t a significant strike, Pugh knows that Neil Aspin’s men must score goals from all over the pitch if they want to climb the Sky Bet League Two table.
“I think we can all need to contribute goals and not just rely on the lads up front,” Pugh said.
“Whether that’s the midfielders, the defensive players coming up for set pieces or whatever, we all need to be chipping in with them.
“We finished the stronger of the two teams in the first half and for the last fifteen or twenty minutes, we looked like we were going to score.
“We were pleased to go in level, but obviously everyone is disappointed with how the second half went.”
Goals from Michael Bostwick and Luke Waterfall sealed Vale’s fate after the restart and it proved to be a frustrating afternoon for Pugh and the rest of the team.
As captain of the side, the 35-year-old felt Vale responded well to falling behind, but they didn’t capitalise during the second 45 minutes.
He said: “We wanted to get something out of the game and managed to get back into it, so to come out and concede two goals like we did was very disappointing.
“I think we responded well to going behind and we grew into the game as the first half progressed, but we’ve come back out and conceded two poor goals from our point of view.
“We had a couple of chances and some half-chances as well, but I don’t think we created enough second half,” said Pugh.
“There were a few opportunities, but we didn’t do enough to win the game.”
Vale now have a break from league action as they host Yeovil Town in the FA Cup Second Round on Saturday afternoon.
Having played the Glovers already this season in Sky Bet League Two, Pugh is expecting another difficult test, but he sees it as a chance to regain some form following two straight defeats.
He said: “We’re looking forward to the game, the bread and butter is the league and we want to get points on the board, but the cup game will be good.
“Again, it’s going to be a tough game. We know that it won’t be easy, but it’s one we go in with confidence and hopefully we can get the win.”