EXETER CITY 2, PORT VALE 1 

By DEREK LEAN

EXETER City will be content with their Easter pickings which brought them a useful little nest egg of four points from the two holiday games.

Even so this win over injury-hit Port Vale proved to be a little more trouble- some than should have been the case.

Exeter dominated play in the first half and could have built up a bigger interval lead which would have relieved some of the worries that were to develop later.

The result of not adding to the Trevor Morgan goal in that first period - it was his ninth of the season was that Port Vale threa- tened to get back into the game in the second.

Exeter 'keeper Lee Smelt had to pull off two superb saves to foil Port Vale who were missing nine men through injury and illness and were in fact down to their last 12 fit players. In the 75th minute Exeter scored again to put the issue beyond doubt but Port Vale still managed to spring a late surprise and score. Generally Exeter looked the better side in a match in which the gale force wind made control difficult and as it turned out both sides showed their best form when playing against that swirling wind.

Exeter boss Jim Iley summed up: "I was pleased with the overall perfor- mance because Port Vale t are not a bad side. But I was disappointed at conced- ing that late goal because the game should have been all over then.

"In the first half we scored a great goal and could have had one or two more. Kevin Smith was very unlucky but the ball would not run for him," said Пley.

Exeter really should have earned a better reward for their first half efforts but a combination of a couple of misses and two brave saves from Vale 'keeper Chris Pearce meant that their hopes of building a bigger interval lead were dashed.

There was no doubt they were in control, with Port Vale's attacking movements of any true danger being few and far between. Exeter wère in early action as Kevin Smith swung over cross and a Martin Ling's header went over the bar.

In the 13th minute Exeter went ahead through a crisply constructed and clinically finished move. Jim McNichol sprayed a pass wide to central defender Nick Marker on the right. He hit a cross low and hard into the middle and Morgan volleyed it smartly into the corner of the net.

A minute later McNichol almost set up another as he sent Morgan away. The City striker stroked a beautiful through pass to Smith but Pearce did well to smother the shot. Exeter kept up pressure that with diving a header from Smith going over the top and Danny O'Shea driving a shot wide. They should have gone two ahead when Ling dispossessed defender Russel Bromage and got in his cross but Smith's volley went just outside the upright.

Exeter went through a tough time at the start of the second half and Port Vale manager John Rudge reckoned that if his men had scored then they could have won the match. Twice it looked as if they would score as both Robbie Earl and Derek Monaghan fired in pile drivers but each time Smelt made superb saves.

Exeter weathered that and in the 75th storm and in minute went two up. A Phil King free-kick was pulled down by Morgan and played back to McNichol, who rifled the ball into the net.

That virtually sewed the match up but in the 89th minute Port Vale did earn some reward for their efforts. A Wayne Ebanks cross from the right found a big gap in the defence and dangerman Earl slipped
through to score.

Attendance 2.427.