Port Vale make the short trip to Gresty Road this weekend as they face Crewe Alexandra in Sky Bet League Two action and Neil Aspin believes the fans will be vital to the side’s performance this weekend.
It will be the first time Vale have returned to Gresty Road since that 2-2 draw and the boss is confident that the 2300 Vale fans in attendance this weekend will be right behind the boys for the entire 90 minutes.
He said: “Our fans have been very good. I was even looking through some older programmes from way back and our core of supporters have been very good considering what they’ve had to witness and endure over the last few seasons.
“They’ve been really good with sticking by the team. They’ve supported us really well during the home games this season including the Newport County game that we lost – they really got behind the team.
“All they want is to get a team that will do them justice and I’m not one to make promises, but the minimum should be that players give 100 percent and they can come off holding their heads high regardless of the result.”
Following the departure of assistant coach Gary Brabin, the boss has confirmed that the players have trained well during the week despite the loss of a key figure within the club.
Having left a gap within the coaching team, the boss has praised Danny Pugh after taking up the coaching responsibility within the side and believes he can be a huge benefit to the squad for the rest of the season.
“Danny is a good person to be stepping into Brabs’ shoes, certainly in the short-term.
"He’s a link with the dressing room, he’s a current player – he’s obviously younger than myself, Noges and Brabs so he might see things differently and that’s what you want.
“He has enough experience and he’s a good professional, so his opinion will be important – it’ll give us a different voice and a different perspective on things.”