Port Vale: Valiants fail to see off ten-man Northampton (PICS)

PORT Vale needed a dose of David Haye's killer instinct on Saturday as 10-man Northampton clung on to the ropes to claim a hard-fought goalless draw, writes Steve Shaw.

Haye comfortably retained his WBA heavyweight boxing crown with a third-round stoppage over Audley Harrison in their 'Battle of Britain' in Manchester.

But earlier in the day Micky Adams's men were unable to land a knockout blow at Sixfields, despite enjoying a one-man advantage during the second period.

The game's major talking point arrived a minute into first-half injury time.

Berkshire referee Iain Williamson enraged the home crowd by showing Abdul Osman a red card for his late lunge on fellow midfielder Anthony Griffith, which ended with the Vale man being substituted with a shin injury.

Vale went on the offensive after the break as they attempted to break down Northampton's stubborn resistance.

Their best chances arrived towards the end as Cobblers keeper Chris Dunn produced heroics, while substitute Louis Dodds hit the crossbar.

And while Vale continue to struggle in front of goal, they at least showed enough attacking intent to suggest they are ready to turn the corner.

Adams can also rely on a defence which has conceded just three goals in their last seven games.

But during the same run, Vale have hit the net only four times and have been forced to settle for six draws.

Leading scorer Marc Richards, who has netted eight of Vale's 19 league goals, returned to face his former club on Saturday after recovering from a knee injury.

And Adams refused to point the finger at Richards and his strike partner Justin Richards for Vale's recent goal shortage.

"I've told the lads it's not just about Marc and Justin Richards in terms of scoring goals," said Adams.

"We have to find other avenues – how many goals have my wingers and midfielders scored?

"Are we getting our set-piece deliveries right and if we are, how many goals are my centre-backs getting?

"Full-backs have a responsibility to get forward, so can they add to the tally?"

Vale's attacking options were restricted in the build-up when loan attacker Jake Speight was ruled out with a calf injury.

Adams opted to pair Marc Richards up front with Sean Rigg as Justin Richards dropped to the bench after failing to score in his previous 12 games.

Defender Lee Collins (shin splints) was missing, but centre-back John McCombe marked his 100th appearance for the club by helping Vale to a 10th clean sheet of the campaign.

The first half was a story of missed half-chances before Osman received his marching orders.

Griffith's exit meant Justin Richards emerged at the start of the second half, with Rigg dropping into midfield.

Further half-chances came and went before Vale centre-back Gareth Owen executed a perfectly-timed challenge to deny Billy McKay a clear path to goal.

The resulting corner eventually dropped to defender Dean Beckwith but Owen got in the way of his well-struck volley.

Dunn came to the fore on 72 minutes by turning around Doug Loft's rasping long-range drive.

And the Cobblers keeper came to his side's rescue again on 80 minutes when the energetic Loft sent Justin Richards clear.

The down-on-his-luck striker bore down on goal, but Dunn came storming off his line to block.

Soon after, Dunn's opposite number Stuart Tomlinson did well to push away a stinging Michael Jacobs effort.

Vale continued to push forward and came within inches of securing the points three minutes into injury-time when Dodds's sizzling 20-yard drive came crashing back off the woodwork.

And there was still time for Marc Richards to fire in a powerful drive from similar range.

But rather fittingly, Dunn tipped over his effort to ensure the Cobblers remained off the canvas.

Adams remained upbeat after the game and was pleased to hand Lewis Haldane his first start of the campaign following the 25-year-old's recovery from a persistent ankle injury.

Haldane had returned to action as a second-half substitute at Dartford seven days earlier.

Meanwhile, fellow winger Rob Taylor also returned to the fold from the bench after shrugging off a hamstring injury.

"I thought Lewis looked sharp for the hour he was on," said Adams.

"Add that to the 45 minutes he played at Dartford and that will help him on his road to recovery.

"There were a lot of positives to come out of the game, especially as players are coming back into the fold.

"When they went down to 10 men we knew they would put people behind the ball.

"So you have to work diligently and while you don't leave yourself too open at the back, you have to find avenues to break down the opposition.

"We got into some great areas, especially in the final 20 minutes when perhaps Northampton were slightly tired."