Port Vale 0-2 Bolton

karlypants wrote:Thank Christ for that.

Looks like 3 points on the cards now!

Shut up you Jonah!

Let's hope that Madine lasts the 90 minutes and we get the vital 3 points.

Unconvincing. Again. Plus a fine we can't afford.

I'm glad we didn't get promotion because it would forever be tainted by stupid Bolton fans shaming the club.

Can someone please explain why a grown man feels the need to run onto a pitch when a bloke he doesn't know kicks a ball into a net?

I hope the club takes a tough stance and bans everyone on the pitch (they can identify) for life.

Report: Port Vale 0-2 Bolton

IN BRIEF 


Wanderers picked up all three points and put themselves firmly in the driving seat ahead of the final day of the season with a comfortable victory over Port Vale on Saturday.

In a goalless first period, the home side were reduced to ten men just after the half hour mark after Rigino Cicilia picked up his second booking for a handball in the area.

The deadlock was then broken with 24 minutes remaining through David Wheater’s header from a Filipe Morais free-kick, with Gary Madine adding a second with seven minutes remaining when slotting home from the edge of the area.

TEAM NEWS

Wanderers made two changes to their starting XI from last time out against Bury, with Gary Madine and Jem Karacan coming into the Whites’ line-up. Jay Spearing meanwhile took the captain’s armband in the absence of the injured Darren Pratley.

Former Bolton winger Chris Eagles meanwhile lined up against his former employers for the home side.

FIRST HALF

Bolton were having to be patient inside the opening stages of the clash, with Vale defending in their numbers from the outset.

They were certainly having to bide their time, with the home side making life difficult early on with them even enjoying a handful of forays into Bolton territory.

With the game hitting the ten minute mark, Wanderers were forced onto the backfoot themselves with a succession of corners won by the Valiants.

Buoyed by their period of possession, the home side did cause a few problems for the Whites but nothing that wasn’t easily dealt with by Mark Howard and his defence.

On the counter attack meanwhile, Adam Le Fondre chased a long-ball down the right flank before finding Madine with his cross, but the big striker couldn’t hit the target from close range while he also saw a 20-yard strike narrowly clear the crossbar soon after.

It was a fairly evenly contested start at Vale Park, with neither side able to get a real foothold in the encounter.

Just after the half hour mark however, Vale were down to ten men as Cicilia was dismissed for a second bookable offence after handling the ball in the area.

It was all Wanderers after that, with Josh Vela striking a volley just wide of the mark on the stroke of half time.

Come the break however, the scores were level.

SECOND HALF

With no changes for either side, the second half got underway with Wanderers coming close inside the first minute as Madine’s header fell just off target.

The home side were struggling to contain the Whites, but on a rare foray into the Bolton box Jerome Thomas smashed an effort against the post with Howard a beaten man.

Up the other end, Karacan was causing problems for Vale and saw his cross cleared off the line with no-one available to meet it.

It was a case of all hands to the pump for ten-man Vale, with Daniel Pugh’s scorching strike flying inches wide.

Wanderers were left calling for two penalties in quick succession just before the hour mark too, with Le Fondre seemingly hauled down before the ball appeared to strike a Vale hand in the area.

Former Bolton man Eagles also saw a long-range effort fly wide of the goalmouth.

With 24 minutes remaining, the deadlock was broken as Wheater nodded home a Morais free-kick to the absolute deliria of the Bolton fans behind the goalmouth.

Following a stoppage in play due to fans invading the pitch, the game restarted.

Wanderers’ added a second meanwhile with seven minutes remaining, with Madine coolly slotting home after being found by Morais on the edge of the box.

The rest of the game passed without much of note, with Wanderers heading into the final day of the season firmly in the driving seat to secure automatic promotion back to the Sky Bet Championship.

FULL TIME

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Natasha Whittam wrote:I'm glad we didn't get promotion because it would forever be tainted by stupid Bolton fans shaming the club.

Can someone please explain why a grown man feels the need to run onto a pitch when a bloke he doesn't know kicks a ball into a net?

I hope the club takes a tough stance and bans everyone on the pitch (they can identify) for life.

Oh fuck off.

Natasha Whittam wrote:I'm glad we didn't get promotion because it would forever be tainted by stupid Bolton fans shaming the club.

Can someone please explain why a grown man feels the need to run onto a pitch when a bloke he doesn't know kicks a ball into a net?

I hope the club takes a tough stance and bans everyone on the pitch (they can identify) for life.

The problem started when the Port Vale fans decided to come onto the pitch. Can't condone Bolton fans running on the pitch but its understandable, would have been cleared off within minutes if the Vale fans hadn't come on looking for a fight.

DEANO82 wrote:
The problem started when the Port Vale fans decided to come onto the pitch. Can't condone Bolton fans running on the pitch but its understandable, would have been cleared off within minutes if the Vale fans hadn't come on looking for a fight.

So Bolton fans go on the pitch first, but you're blaming Port Vale fans?

And a genuine question here, why is it understandable to break the law just because some bloke kicks a ball into a net?

Natasha Whittam wrote:

DEANO82 wrote:
The problem started when the Port Vale fans decided to come onto the pitch. Can't condone Bolton fans running on the pitch but its understandable, would have been cleared off within minutes if the Vale fans hadn't come on looking for a fight.

So Bolton fans go on the pitch first, but you're blaming Port Vale fans?

And a genuine question here, why is it understandable to break the law just because some bloke kicks a ball into a net?

Emotions are running high. Do you remember the Hull game from 1993?

DEANO82 wrote:Emotions are running high. Do you remember the Hull game from 1993?

It wasn't illegal back then.

Natasha Whittam wrote:

DEANO82 wrote:Emotions are running high. Do you remember the Hull game from 1993?

It wasn't illegal back then.

Yes it was.

If you are under 25 this is probably the first promotion that you will have been apart of. So its understandable to get a little bit over excited.

Just because we are all getting on a bit (except you) then we have to remember what it was like for us in the good old days, before we lost our passion or became disillusioned with modern football.

Port Vale fans had no reason to come on the pitch.

Can't quite agree with the Vale fans not having a reason to come on to the field. By scoring we were confirming their relegation, and to have your nose rubbed in it on your own ground, (not to mention the chanting telling them that we are Bolton Wanderers and we are sending you down), then I can understand why they  wanted to respond.

Great finish from madine

Please don't let me down next week boys.

Relax, mate.

According to Marc "Nailed On For A Pulitzer" Iles, we got promoted today:

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Is Boggers still in the clink?

Still think it was an unconvincing performance and a bit lucky with some of the decisions and the goals. Wheater's looked like he was climbing on the CB and the goalie seemed to dive over Madine's tame shot but I guess the only thing that matters is 3 points.

There's no way that the FA could deduct points for crowd trouble is there?

wanderlust wrote:Still think it was an unconvincing performance and a bit lucky with some of the decisions and the goals. Wheater's looked like he was climbing on the CB and the goalie seemed to dive over Madine's tame shot but I guess the only thing that matters is 3 points.

There's no way that the FA could deduct points for crowd trouble is there?

Well they have never deducted points off anyone before have they? Even when Blackpool forced the abandonment of one of their matches they only got a suspended points deduction and 50 grand fine.