Jon Brady's Valiants see off an in-form Bolton Wanderers in a 1-0 win at Vale Park.
George Hall latched onto the end of a sublime Jaheim Headley pass and dispatched past Bonham to give the Valiants all three points.
It was an electric opening minute for the Vale as Bolton’s skipper Eion Toal floundered around with the ball on the left before George Hall swooped in and drove the ball into the Bolton box. His pass met the feet of Martin Sherif but the forward failed to control the touch and was cleared away.
After a break in play, due to a Bolton injury, we would once again trouble the visitors. Jaheim Headley soared from the halfway line past three Bolton players before being taken down by Jordi Osei-Tutu, who received a justified yellow card.
With just ten minutes left of the first half, the Valiants would draw first blood. A fantastic ball from Jaheim Headley was picked up well by George Hall and he raced past the lone Bolton defender, slotting it past Jack Bonham to give the Valiants a much-deserved lead.
On the cusp of half-time, we would have one more opportunity on goal. Jaheim Headley, who consistently caused problems for the visitors for most of the first half, curled a ball into the Bolton area and the deflection fell into the path of Rhys Walters; his effort rolled wide of the post.
We started the second half much the same way as the first in terms of energy, as we continued to take the game straight to Bolton. George Hall did brilliantly as he took the ball forward and passed it across to Sherif, who waited just on the edge of the box. Both of Sherif’s efforts were blocked before going out for a corner.
It continued to be one-way traffic in favour of us in the closing minutes of normal time, as substitutes Ethon Archer and Ben Waine proved to be a thorn in the sides of the Bolton defence since coming into the game. Both players chased down every loose ball in hopes of forcing an error from Wanderers.
Ben Waine nearly gave the Vale faithful a late second goal to celebrate as the 24-year-old took his time between two Bolton defenders before he pulled away from both players and fired at Jack Bonham, who fully extended himself to avoid conceding a second goal.
Port Vale Starting XI: Joe Gauci, Jaheim Headley (Tyler Magloire 85’), Connor Hall, Jordan Gabriel, Ben Garrity© (Ben Waine 69’), Rhys Walters, Funso Ojo, Liam Gordon, Martin Sherif (Jordan Shipley 78’), Eli Campbell, George Hall (Ethon Archer 84’).
Unused Subs: Ben Amos, Andre Gray, Onel Hernandez
Bolton Wanderers Starting XI: Jack Bonham, Chris Forino, Xavier Simons (John McAtee 61’), George Johnston, Johnny Kenny, Sam Dalby, Jordi Osei-Tutu (Mason Burstow 74’), Rob Apter (Max Conway 46’), Eion Toal© (Cyrus Christie 74’), Ethan Erhahon (Josh Sheehan 61’), Kyle Dempsey.
Unused Subs: David Harrington, Thierry Gale
Written By: Joseph Gill, University of Derby
