Port Vale: David Flitcroft looks set to be proven right on parting gift | OneFootball

David Flitcroft's final act at Port Vale was to appoint Darren Moore as the club's new manager, and it looks like a masterstroke.

It has been an outstanding start to life back in League Two for Port Vale.

Vale were relegated from League One last season after just two years in the third tier but they look to be in a strong position to bounce back at the first attempt this campaign.

The Valiants suffered a rare setback as they were beaten 1-0 at Gillingham last weekend but they produced the perfect response as they returned to winning ways with a 1-0 victory over bottom side Morecambe at the Mazuma Stadium on Saturday, with Ethan Chislett's 83rd-minute goal sealing all three points.

Darren Moore's side currently sit top of the League Two table and they are five points clear of second-placed Crewe Alexandra, who they host at Vale Park on Monday night.

With Vale flying high, Moore is earning plenty of plaudits for the job he is doing at the club and former Director of Football David Flitcroft deserves credit for the decision to appoint him.

David Flitcroft's Darren Moore prediction has come true

Flitcroft initially applied for the managerial role at Vale Park following the departure of John Askey in January 2021 but he was instead offered the Director of Football post by owner Carol Shanahan.

Along with manager Darrell Clarke, Flitcroft helped to build the squad that would achieve promotion from League Two in the 2021-22 season but his relationship with the fanbase soured in League One.

Flitcroft controversially sacked popular boss Clarke in April 2023, and his decision to replace him with assistant Andy Crosby proved to be even more divisive.

After a strong start to last season, the Valiants plummeted towards the relegation zone under Crosby, and he was dismissed in February, but it was Flitcroft who was the main target of the frustration of supporters, with the 50-year-old coming under fire for poor recruitment in the January transfer window.

Shanahan passionately backed Flitcroft in an open letter to the fans shortly after Crosby's exit, and she allowed him to make the next managerial appointment, with Moore taking charge just two weeks after he was sacked by Championship side Huddersfield Town.

Flitcroft was delighted by Moore's arrival, telling the club's official website: "We identified Darren as our primary target to come in as our new manager who can galvanise and energise the club. Following extensive conversations, it’s clear to the board that he has a plan of how he wants to lead the club from the very front and understands the importance of successes both on and off the pitch.

"He personifies every quality that we look for as a representative of Port Vale FC as well as possessing the management and leadership qualities that are so highly sought-after in any football club’s manager.

"I firmly believe that the appointment of Darren is an exciting one for the club and I am absolutely delighted to welcome him to Vale Park."

However, Moore endured a nightmare start to his Vale tenure as he failed to win any of his first eight games and with relegation looking an increasingly likely outcome, Flitcroft left the club by mutual consent in March.

Moore did secure back-to-back wins over Burton Albion and Bristol Rovers in the first two games after Flitcroft's departure but a run of just two points from their final seven games condemned the Valiants to the drop.

It is fair to say that supporters had reservations about Moore after he failed to keep the club in the division, but given the transformational job he has done since relegation, Flitcroft's last act as Director of Football is now looking like a masterstroke.

Darren Moore was an inspired appointment by David Flitcroft

Considering that Moore had previously managed the likes of West Bromwich Albion, Sheffield Wednesday, and Huddersfield Town, it was something of a coup for Flitcroft to convince him to make the move to Vale Park.

Moore won just two of his first 17 games as Vale manager, but in truth, the decline had set in long before he took over, and it was always going to be a challenge for him to keep the club in League One.

One of Moore's main strengths as a manager is his recruitment, and he once again proved his credentials in that department this summer, bringing in the likes of Connor Hall, Ryan Croasdale, George Byers, Jayden Stockley, Ruari Paton, and Laurent Tolaj, as well as sealing loan deals for Brandon Cover, Rico Richards, Benicio Baker-Boaitey and Antwoine Hackford.

Just as he has done at his previous clubs, Moore signed players who are capable of playing at a much higher level than the one the Valiants currently find themselves at, and he has turned a side with a losing mentality into a winning machine.

Vale made a slow start to the season as they picked up just four points from their opening four league games, but they have won nine and drawn two of their last 12 matches, and the defeat at Gillingham is the only time they have been beaten since the end of August.

The Valiants conceded an alarming 74 league goals last season but Moore has made his side much harder to beat this term and they have won 1-0 on five occasions already - a scoreline that he became renowned for during his time as Wednesday manager as he led the club to promotion from League One in the 2022-23 campaign.

Flitcroft promised that Moore would "galvanise and energise" the club, and judging by the jubilant scenes in the away end at Morecambe on Saturday after Chislett's late winner, he has brought a togetherness to Vale Park that has not been seen for some time.