Vale will have to conquer another potentially tricky away day if they are to bounce back from Wednesday night’s defeat to Gala Fairydean Rovers.

Edinburgh University were also victims of that result with Gala jumping above them in the Lowland League table and they now find themselves in 13th. But as we so often see, and Wednesday night was the prime example of this, most teams can beat each other on their day.

Last weekend, as Vale were crashing out of the South Challenge Cup, Uni were advancing to the next round with a 1-0 win over Wigtown and Bladnoch. That result continued a winning streak which now spans three matches following successes over Selkirk and Preston Athletic.

In contrast, Vale have lost their last two and they will be looking to get back on track in their quest for a top half finish. Allowing a slump to continue would put them in danger of being sucked into the bottom section in a league where every point is a prisoner.

Speaking before the Gala defeat, Chris Anderson said: “We are away at Gala then Edinburgh University – if we win both we will be pushing for a top six finish, if we get beat in both we are looking over our shoulder.

“These two games could well determine how our season will go.

“I have been pleased with our league form but we need that to continue into these two big games.

And afterwards he added: “We lost a bit of momentum in the second half and we suffered for it.

“We are without two or three important players and it was clearly noticeable. We lacked that bit of punch in the final third and it was a disappointing night for us.”

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