Yates has played 36 games in his first season with Port Vale

Defender Adam Yates has told Port Vale to concentrate on winning against Shrewsbury and not wait for news of the results of their rivals on Saturday.

Vale are two points behind seventh-placed Dagenham & Redbridge and must win to stand any chance of making it into the League Two play-offs.

"We've got to concentrate on our own game first because we know we've got to win," Yates, 26, told BBC Radio Stoke.

"If we don't win that game. There's no point looking at the other results."

Vale have flirted with the play-off places for most of the campaign, and moved into the top seven for the first time with victory over champions Notts County on 24 April.

However, a 4-0 defeat at promoted Bournemouth on Saturday has meant Vale's destiny is no longer in their own hands.

"If you had offered us this position at the start of this season, we would have snapped your hands off, especially with what's happened at this club in the past few years," continued Yates.

"It's disappointing that we're relying on other teams but at least there's still a chance of getting in there."

Rotherham and Aldershot have already guaranteed their places in the play-offs, with Vale, Dagenham, Morecambe, Bury, Chesterfield and Northampton fighting for the other two spots on the final day of the season.

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version