Former Sheffield Wednesday Darren Moore has brought two former Owls figures into his Port Vale backroom team.
Moore, 49, landed the Port Vale job last month, following his exit from Huddersfield Town.
Following promotion from League One with Sheffield Wednesday last season, and then his controversial exit from the club, Moore would bide his time before returning to the dugout with Huddersfield.
Though in 23 games as Terriers boss, Moore won just three games, with Town loitering above the drop zone throughout his tenure.
He’s since landed a five-and-a-half year deal with the Valiants. Though in four games, Moore is winless; losing his opening three games but drawing the last.
Darren Moore hires former Sheffield Wednesday pair at Port Vale
Ahead of what will be a tough trip to Derby County in League One this afternoon, More has completed his Port Vale backroom team.
The club have announced that former Sheffield Wednesday assistant Wayne Jacobs has once again become Moore’s assistant; Jacobs has worked as Moore’s no.2 at West Brom and Sheffield Wednesday.
Moore has also brought in former Sheffield Wednesday first-team coach Jamie Smith in the same role, whilst also adding Lee Bradbury and Gary Walsh.
Currently, Port Vale sit in 22nd place of the League One table and are four points adrift with 13 games of the season left to play.
The Valiants are winless in their last 10 games and have won just one of their last 13 in League One.
Moore can turn the tide at Port Vale
Credit must go to Moore for not wasting time after his Huddersfield exit and jumping straight back into the dugout with Vale.
It’s an incredibly difficult job he’s taken on, and after a poor start, matters may only get tougher as Vale vie to break out of the bottom four before the end of the season.
There’s still plenty of time to save their season and with a backroom team that Moore knows and trusts now in place, it’ll certainly bolster those survival credentials.
But whether or not Moore has the players capable of staying up remains to be seen.
Going forward though, with Moore on a long-term contract, there could be a brighter future on the horizon for the Valiants.
Moore has proved himself in the lower tiers of the Football League in the past with Doncaster Rovers, and if Vale do go down then they’ll have a steady pair of hands to guide them back up.
And Moore has that promotion experience with Sheffield Wednesday too, so in the long run it could prove to be a very shrewd appointment for the club.
Right now though it’s difficult, and a trip to Pride Park makes matter no easier.