PLAY-OFF FINAL LIVE: Mansfield Town v Port Vale build-up and live blog
The Mansfield Chad’s John Lomas and Mark Duffy will be at the game and you can follow events throughout the afternoon on our live match blog below, which will get under way at 2.30pm, with the match kicking off at 4pm.
In the meantime, we’ll post stories, interviews and any other relevant news about the final on the blog, so keep an eye on it in the build-up to the game. The most recent posts will appear at the top.
PLAY-OFF FINAL LIVE BLOG: Mansfield Town v Port Vale
Key Events
- LATEST: Mansfield 0-2 Port Vale - Stags down to ten men after 35 minutes.
- Stags team: Bishop, McLaughlin, Hewitt, Murphy, Bowery, Hawkins, Perch (c), Quinn, Oates, O’Toole, Longstaff. Subs: Clarke, Maris, Wallace, Stirk, Lapslie, Akins, Stech (GK)
- Port Vale: Stone, Gibbons, Smith, Hall, Benning, Worrall, Garrity, Pett (c), Taylor, Harratt, Wilson. Subs: Covolan, Martin, Charsley, Proctor, Robinson, Amoo, Edmondson.
- Kick-off at Wembley is 4pm
- Thousands of Stags fans have made the journey south
- Match is also live on Sky Sports
So close for Stags as a free-kick from McLaughlin out wide isn’t cleared and Rhys Oates’ shot is cleared off the line by Connor Hall...by millimetres. A bit of encouragement for Stags - set pieces could be crucial to them.
‘35 RED CARD
Mansfield’s Ollie Hawkins, booked just moments ago for an off the ball incident, now sees red after bringing down James Wilson on the half way line. A pretty daft challenge to make when you’ve just been booked, and he’s gone.
That mountain just got a bit higher.
Vale again find space out wide as Benning has most of Wembley to play with down the left before firing in a shot which Bishop parries away.
Not seeing enough from Stags here. Their only chance was gifted to them but they’ve otherwise created very little, then been exposed in wide areas several times and conceded twice.
A huge mountain to climb but there’s time. Next goal is massive.
24’ GOAL - MANSFIELD 0-2 PORT VALE
Bad to worse. Vale break down the right, a deep cross finds Garrity who hits the crossbar with a looping header and James Wilson is there to nod in the rebound.
Stags have been stunned by this.
Vale attack again as James Gibbons breaks into the penalty area but blazes high over the top.
Stags need to settle again here as they’ve been at sixes and sevens in the last couple of minutes.
20’ GOAL - MANSFIELD TOWN 0-1 PORT VALE
After coming so close to scoring moments earlier, Vale now do take the lead as the ball finds Mal Benning out on the left and his low cross is met by Harratt with a diving header and the ball finds the corner of the net.
Vale are inches away from an opener as Stags lose possession in midfield and the ball breaks to Kian Harratt whose strike from the edge of the box hits the inside of the post and is cleared.
Stags have had the slightly better start here, at least in terms of attacking threat and should have scored through Murphy with a gift of a chance.
Longstaff is everywhere and a real nuisance. He’s a big player for Stags today.