Game 35 - The Valiants (H)

Team: Port Vale

Date: 02/03/19

Where: Meadow Lane

What line-up should Neal Ardley opt for? What will be the key areas for the Magpies to get a victory? What do you think the final score will be?

Have your say below, join in with the Pride of Nottingham match discussion.

Please bring back 3 points this time, although a point and a draw would at least bring us closer.

Big game, a fair amount of pressure and I have no idea at the moment how to call this game. Port Vale seem one of those teams who do well and play poorly in others.

I know off the field it’s glum but the team just have to carry on and see what happens. It’s an absolutely HUGE game, we’ve already given points to Macc, Yeovil, Cambridge etc. We cannot let Port Vale go 8 points clear of us. I think if we lose we really will need a miracle to stay up.

Vale are in real trouble though, they’ve only scored 2 goals in their last 8 games. Before the window we struggled against teams like them but we’ve got more character now and they’ve got a chance to rectify that in this game. (And in the ‘6 pointers’ just around the corner).

I’ve seen some Vale fans on twitter doing a prediction league thing from the Staffordshire Post (or whatever it’s called there) points wise most have got Vale in the low 40s and still to stay up. Maybe that sacred 48/49 won’t be the finish line this year… Assuming we’re still around to get there…

I’ll go for a 2-0 win for us. Gomis and Mackail-Smith for us.

Here’s to hoping come Saturday evening the gap is down to 2 points.

i think we just need to make meadow lane loud for the right reasons, encourage instead of getting on the backs of players for a mistake. accept it and move on.

port vale could come to us playing some good football but its down to the lads to stop this from happening, if hemmings, stead or whoever knock on their door i am sure things will be okay.

I have a good feeling Notts will win 2-1, take the 3 points and run.

Id accept 2-1

A win would come at a good time, breaking up the 2 defeats would be important to fighting relegation.

I think it will be a long and slow game, I just wished Notts could kill off home games early.

1-1 draw would be my prediction.

I wonder what the line up will be tomorrow, i hope its back to the winning side we did well with for that short spell.

If Notts lose, they will be doomed and it will be the result.

Possibly the final nail in the coffin as the away form is terrible, hopefully a 2-0 win is possible but watch it end 0-0.

Win lose or draw tomorrow I’m afraid it’s too late. A good result will only prolong the inevitable in my opinion. I have been positive all season thinking that things are bound to turn around but it’s been a continuation of bad fortune and poor performance which has brought us to the point of no return.

of course there will be blind faith and false optimism but this is one great escape too many.

I am nervous about the game, the belief of winning games has gone as quickly as it came back. Neal Ardley has done well with fixing some of the issues in the team but there's no fight if they concede.

The defending has improved, a bit.

2-2 is my prediction, knowing Notts they'll lose.

The players need to work harder and ensure they get the win, it doesn't matter about the performance but it does matter that we take all three points.

They sure do, we really need the 3 points and to make player moral better.

The performance is important but it's not the main thing.

Playing well breeds confidence and the scoring issue might be down to the way Notts plays, I just hope tomorrow the win comes our way. A dull draw or loss wouldn't be enough and now is -the time to fight. 2-0 is the prediction I will go with, Stead and Doyle to score.

If Notts focused on passing and slowing down the game calmly, I would be confident that a win would be on the cards.

Prediction? I have no idea.

today is a must win game, i just hope notts manages to attack and create good chances. im feeling confident for once.

1-0 win for notts.

We've got to win, don't care how. All we can do is win, win and win again and hope that it'll be enough. Anything else is overanalysing things.

Now that was absolutely dire.  I give up on this lot, they clearly have, we are down. 

At least it wasnt a loss, 1 point is better than none. if its enough is a different story.

Dire!

By the sounds of it, the game was just terrible. At least the score wasnt so terrible and no goals conceded.

its not a bad draw, notts just never got going but defended quite well. schofield kept notts in the game, he was class today. the save from the free kick was top draw.

The fault today is the in-game tactics and midfield.

If there was more effort and smarter play from the midfield, Notts would have controlled the game. Port Vale looked useless in midfield, however they took  control and looked better as a result of that.

If Notts kept the ball down, passes it around and made good runs - it would have completely been a different game.

There was little to no service for the strikers.

Jon Stead should have been the first off, we needed pace and although Virgil Gomis was very poor. He did force the play, issue again was the fact that too many players played below average. Ryan Schpfield did well, most of his kicking was fine. Very few times did anyone other than CMS or Stead try to get it down.