The Valiants score twice in the second half and continue their unbeaten league season.
After seven minutes, Leek had the first chance of the game when the Leek striker nipped in behind the Vale defence but Connie Watts saved the resulting shot.
Ten minutes later, Olivia Grocott’s dribble into the box was almost rewarded when she cut in on her right foot to beat the defender, but dragged her shot wide.
A big opportunity to find the opener arose in the 21st minute as Macy Isherwood slotted the ball through to Grocott in the box but her first-time effort was pushed behind for a corner.
A deep freekick before the half-hour mark was sent in by Leek but the resulting effort was blazed over the bar from within the penalty area.
Five minutes before the end of the first half, Isherwood’s pass into Sian McHugh on the penalty spot invited a first-time shot which was blocked, but Grocott retained possession of the ball, but her shot was straight at the keeper.
A great opportunity, three minutes after the break, came when McHugh’s ball into the path of Anna O’Leary had her bursting through on goal with just the keeper to beat but her shot was blocked by the Leek keeper.
The deadlock was finally broken, in the 57th minute, as Grocott’s cross from the right byline was met by Elissa Dockerty unmarked in the six-yard box and she made no mistake of the finish, heading the Valiants home from short range.
We were pushing for a second and at the hour mark it nearly happened, as chaos in the box saw Tara Harrison’s and McHugh’s efforts on goal blocked after Mollie Prime’s persistent drive into the box played the ball across the face of goal.
There was a chance for Leek to equalise, in the 70th minute, when their left winger poked the ball around Daisy Anderson-Wright with only the keeper to overcome but their effort was tame and easily collected by Watts.
There was an audacious effort from outside the Leek 18-yard box, in the 81st minute, as Sophie Garratt shifted the ball onto her right foot and fired towards the top left corner of the goal before the keeper managed to tip the ball onto the frame of the goal.
Six minutes before the end, the Valiants sealed all three points when Prime’s dangerous in-swinging corner was misjudged by the keeper and McHugh was on the end of it to head the ball into the empty net.
The Valiants fought hard to earn all three points on a day of wet and windy conditions and results in other fixtures put them just one point behind league leader AFC Telford United, with two games in hand.
Port Vale | Connie Watts, Daisy Anderson-Wright, Jess Smith, Naomi Sale-Hancock (79’ Meg Baldwin), Sian McHugh, Mollie Prime, Sophie Garratt, Olivia Grocott (85’ Macy Isherwood), Macy Isherwood (46’ Elissa Dockerty), Lucy Moss (43’ Anna O’Leary), Erin Moreton-Powell (43’ Tara Harrison).
