EXETER CITY'S ONLY FLAW. TOO MUCH RELIANCE ON DEFENCE.

Saturday, September 7th 1946.

PORT VALE 1 (Jones)
EXETER CITY 2 (Regan, Ebdon)
Half time Port Vale 1 City 1.

Port Vale:- Heppell; Smith, Butler; Hallam, Griffiths, Cooper; Allen, Lyman, Pointon, Jones, Bellis.
Referee:- Mr W.T.Strainge, of Bristol.
City: Hoyle; Thompson, Blood; Fellowes, Hanford, Walker; Wardle, Hydes, Ebdon, Hammond, Regan.

Attendance 10,000.

There was only one flaw about the City's splendid victory over Port Vale, and that was a tendancy to rely too much on the team's stout hearted defence in the last half hour. In this way the initiative passed to the home side and enabled them to maintain a noticeable territorial advantage. The City won, and won well, but against a side like Port Vale things might have worked out differently. As long as they played attacking football Exeter looked by far the better team. There was a match-winning quality about their play in the first half when Hydes schemed many clever openings and Regan and Wardle responded with snappy raids along both wings. Regan's early goal was neutralised just before the interval when a centre from Bellis was handled by Hanford and Jones netted from the penalty kick. The final goal came just after the interval when the determined Ebdon sidestepped two defenders, manoeuvred an opening and drove the ball low into the net past Heppell. Thompson was a tower of strength in the last 20 minutes when Exeter's goal was under siege.

Southern League 
Exeter City Reserves v Colchester 

At St James's Park Exeter City Reserves beat Colchester United in a Southern League match by three goals to one.