Vale ease to victory
A dominant first half saw Port Vale cruise to a 3-0 victory over Northampton in npower League Two.
The hosts scored three goals inside the opening 26 minutes as they recorded a first triumph over the Cobblers in seven meetings.
Vale were bidding to set a new club record of scoring in the first 16 games of a season and woeful defending enabled them to do so as early as the fifth minute. The Northampton rearguard stood like statues as Doug Loft's corner bounced into the path of Tom Pope who headed in unchallenged from four yards.
Anthony Griffith rifled in the second with a 35-yard shot in the 20th minute which went in despite Sam Walker getting a hand to it. And a rout was on the cards when the persistent Pope headed forward to set up big defender John McCombe to prod in Vale's third from close range six minutes later.
Northampton stemmed the tide for the rest of the first half, but their dismal night was summed up three minutes after the interval when Lewis Young fired over a gaping net.
Cobblers centre-back Kelvin Langmead went closest to a consolation goal when he struck a post eight minutes from time, but Vale coasted to a victory which lifted them to fifth place in the table.
Source: DSG
Source: DSG