After victory in Gloucestershire on New Year’s Day, Vale will be back on Saturday as they face Cheltenham Town at the Completely-Suzuki Stadium.
The Robins have been on a poor run in the league of late, losing all four of their last league games, and they currently sit 18th in the division.
Their last outing in League One was an eventful one away at the leaders, Plymouth Argyle, and unfortunately for the Gloucestershire side, they came out on the wrong end of a 4-2 scoreline.
Vale’s most recent match was also an action-packed affair, with the Valiants suffering a late comeback to the hands of Deby County at Vale Park.
We have enjoyed a solid return to the third division so far this campaign, and we sit comfortably in 14th position with games in hand over the sides above us.
Before the clash on Saturday, here is what you need to know about Cheltenham.
STAR PLAYER: Alfie May
Cheltenham’s prize possession is striker Alfie May who scored 23 goals in the third tier for them last season, helping ensure a comfortable 15th-placed finish for the Robins.
May is the Robins’ all-time EFL top scorer with 46 goals, with the striker netting nine so far this campaign, including four goals in four games so far in 2023.
The 29-year-old started his career moving around clubs in non-league football before getting his big break in 2016, signing for Doncaster Rovers.
The forward from Gravesend spent three years in Yorkshire, becoming a part of the side that gained promotion to Sky Bet League One in his first season.
May then signed for the Gloucestershire outfit in January 2020, scoring six goals for the club in his first campaign.
In the years that have followed, May has kicked on year by year, even netting against Premier League giants Manchester City back in January 2021.
However, his 2021/22 campaign was the most impressive of his footballing career so far, with his 23 goals putting him third in the third-tier scoring charts, with the forward even netting four in a 5-5 draw against Wycombe Wanderers.
May will certainly be a player Darrell Clarke’s side will be looking to stop if we want to claim all three points in Gloucestershire.
THE MAN AT THE HELM: Wade Elliott
Wade Elliott is enjoying his first season in the dugout at Cheltenham so far, and so far, the campaign has been up and down for his side.
Elliot, who played in the Premier League with Burnley, took over last June making it his first permanent managerial role in professional football.
The 43-year-old was promoted to Head Coach from within the club having joined Cheltenham as a coach in 2020, having previously coached at academy teams within Bristol City, Forest Green Rovers, and Stoke City.
Before he got into coaching, Elliott had a long and impressive career as a midfielder in professional football.
After rising through the ranks in the well-acclaimed Southampton academy, he started his senior career at non-league Bashley.
Next in line early in his playing career was Bournemouth, and then five years later a move to Burnley came along, perhaps the team where his best days came.
He famously scored a brilliant curling effort in the 2009 Championship play-off final against Sheffield United, the game's only goal, to secure the Lancashire sides promotion to the Premier League.
Periods at Birmingham City and Bristol City then came and went at the end of his playing days, before his coaching days began in 2015.
STADIUM: Whaddon Road (Completely-Suzuki Stadium)
Cheltenham’s ground has been their home since 1932, but the stadium was also briefly Gloucester City’s home between 2010-2017.
Completely-Suzuki Stadium was built back in 1927 and it has a capacity of 7.066, one of the smallest in the division.
On the stadium's 70th anniversary, the Robins managed to gain promotion to the third tier for the very first time, celebrating the big occasion in style.
HEAD-TO-HEAD LAST FIVE:
Vale wins: 1
Draws: 3
Cheltenham wins: 1
It’s honours even between the two sides in their last five meetings, with both teams winning one match a piece.
Vale’s last victory against the Robins came at Vale Park back in 2020 with Leon Legge and David Worral netting the goals on that day.