Swindon Town vs Port Vale Match Analysis and Prediction

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Swindon Town and Port Vale aim to move a step closer to promotion on Sunday when they meet in the first leg of their League Tow playoff semi-final at the County Ground.

Both teams only made sure of their spots in the top seven with victories on the final day of the season, which resulted in Sutton United missing out.

While most of the clubs who finished in the top seven can claim to have been in contention for automatic promotion at some stage over the past month, that cannot be the same case scenario for Swindon.

However, it is the Robins who have the momentum ahead of the playoff getting underway having recorded four successive victories in the fourth division.

The latest, which is a 3-0 victory at Walsall, ensured that they finished ahead of the unfortunate Sutton United, and Ben Garner will feel that his side are perfectly set to earn a return to League one.

They have managed to find the back of the net 15 times in six matches, the goals being shared among several defferent players with Harry McKirdy reaching 20 league goals for the season.

Ben Garner’s side also finished the regular campaign with the best attacking record in the division, but that will not necessarily concern opponents in Port Vale who recorded the fifth-best defensive return.

They have conceded seven goals in three games ahead of the final game at Exeter City, Port Vale aware that a fourth successive defeat could have led to them missing out on the playoffs.

However, the Valiants emerged from that contest with a 1-0 victory, denying Exeter the title in the process, and they will again have high belief ahead of this fixture. The last meeting between the two back in September saw Vale earn a 2-1 win.

Swindon Town vs Port Vale head to head

The two teams have previously met on 42 occasions across all competitions, where Swindon have earned 21 victories while Vale have won 12, and they have drawn in nine. Vale have scored 43 goals and conceded 70. In their last five meetings, both have won twice while they have drawn once.

Swindon Town 0-0 Port Vale 16/03/19

Port Vale 2-0 Swindon Town 29/12/19

Swindon Town 3-0 Port Vale 25/01/20

Swindon Town 1-2 Port Vale 11/09/21

Port Vale 1-3 Swindon Town 15/01/22

Swindon Town latest home form

Swindon have recently been on a relatively good run of form at home, having won each of their two most recent matches. Their last home defeat came 2-1 against Leyton Orient on April 18 in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored seven goals and conceded six.

Swindon Town 2-1 Sutton United 15/03/22

Swindon Town 0-1 Newport County 09/04/22

Swindon Town 1-2 Leyton Orient 18/04/22

Swindon Town 2-1 Forest Green Rovers 26/04/22

Swindon Town 2-1 Barrow 30/04/22

Swindon Town latest away form

Swindon Town have recently been on a good run of form on the road, having been unbeaten in their four most recent matches. Their last away defeat came 3-1 against Crawley Town on March 19 in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored 11 goals and conceded four.

Crawley Town 3-1 Swindon Town 19/03/22

Rochdale 0-0 Swindon Town 02/04/22

Harrogate Town 1-4 Swindon Town 15/04/22

Hartlepool United 0-3 Swindon Town 23/04/22

Walsall 0-3 Swindon Town 07/05/22

Port Vale latest home form

Port Vale have recently been on a poor run of form at home, having lost each of their two most recent matches. Their last home victory came 3-2 over Oldham Athletic on April 9 in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored seven goals and conceded seven.

Port Vale 0-0 Exeter City 22/03/22

Port Vale 2-0 Sutton United 26/03/22

Port Vale 3-2 Oldham Athletic 09/04/22

Port Vale 1-3 Bristol Rovers 18/04/22

Port Vale 1-2 Newport County 02/05/22

Port Vale latest away form

Port Vale have recently been on a good run of form on the road, having lost just one of their six most recent matches. They defeated Exeter City 1-0 in their last away game in the league. In their last five matches, they have scored five goals and conceded three.

Barrow 1-2 Port Vale 02/04/22

Salford City 0-1 Port Vale 05/04/22

Hartlepool United 0-1 Port Vale 15/04/22

Walsall 2-0 Port Vale 23/04/22

Exeter City 0-1 Port Vale 07/05/22

Swindon Town news

Having not picked up fresh injuries and without suspension issues ahead of Sunday’s fixture, Garner in not likely to make changes to his Swindon XI.

Garner’s side were much in control during the second half in the game against Walsall, allowing for several players to be handed rests ahead of this game.

Port Vale news

Goalkeeper Lewis Ward, who has made just nine starts this season, should retain his spot between the posts, while Ryan Edmondson is in line to retain his place in the final third.

Calvin Hussey came off injured against Exeter, but Malvind Benning will be on standby to deputise at wing-back.

Prediction and Odds

Having earned a victory against Exeter City on away territory, Port Vale will fancy their chances of another away trip with a win against the odds.

However, Swindon’s form heading into this contest cannot be ignored and we believe they will be capable of earning a win in front of their own supporters.

Odds: 1 1.80 X 2.00 2 2.26