Three in frame for Port Vale manager's job

Paul Trollope won promotion from League Two with Bristol Rovers in 2007

Paul Trollope, Jim Gannon and Neil McDonald have impressed in interviews for the vacant managerial position at Port Vale, BBC Radio Stoke understands.

Trollope, 38, was sacked as manager of Bristol Rovers in December, while 42-year-old Gannon has been without a club since leaving Peterborough in April.

McDonald, 45, spent one season in charge of Carlisle and was assistant to Sam Allardyce at Blackburn Rovers.

Former manager Micky Adams left Vale on 30 December to join Sheffield United.

Caretaker managers Geoff Horsfield and Mark Grew achieved their first victory in charge of Vale, a 2-1 success against Burton Albion on Monday, to strengthen their grip on fourth position in League Two.

The Valiants had been a fixture in the automatic promotion places before heavy defeats at Gillingham and Rotherham during the festive period.

Vice-chairman Peter Jackson believes the club's position in the table will help to attract a better quality of manager to Vale Park.

Jackson told BBC Radio Stoke: "They [applicants for the job] see it as a big club, as a club that's turned around and they're very focused when they talk to us about promotion this year.

"We've got to move on and generally people are very positive about the position that the club is in. I think that's a help in recruitment.

"It's important that we get the right person but we're going as quickly as we can. We'd like to [make an appointment quickly] but it doesn't mean to say we'll do that.

"We want an experienced man who has dealt in the two lower divisions, knows the leagues, knows the players, has had success and can bring something to the club.

"We can use the model that we used with Micky Adams to help us get the right man this time."