Port Vale 2 (Loft 44, R. Taylor 87)
Wolves 1 (Jarvis 55)
A goal from Robert Taylor with just three minutes of the game remaining gave Port Vale a narrow win over Wolves in a competitive friendly at Vale Park.
With Carl Ikeme not being risked as he was suffering from a stiff back, Northern Ireland youth international and Academy keeper Daniel Wright made his senior debut.
The only goal attempt in the first ten minutes came from Vale skipper Tom Fraser who fired over from the edge of the area.
Dave Edwards was wide for Wolves from 20-yards after Sam Vokes had back headed Kevin Foley's lofted pass into his path, and then Ashley Hemmings was too high with another long-range effort.
Midway through the half Matt Jarvis raced down the left and crossed to Stephen Ward who had two shots blocked in quick succession. Ward was playing in a central midfield role.
Jarvis then fired straight at Vale keeper Chris Martin after taking a short pass from Elliott Bennett, before Wolves were rescued by the offside flag after Kris Taylor had headed Adam Yates' centre past Wright.
George Elokobi headed over from a short Ward cross following Bennett's corner but it was Vale that drew first blood in the 44th minute when Doug Loft ran in to power home a header after Louis Dodds had supplied the cross.
Christophe Berra headed Foley's centre high over the bar as Wanderers looked for an instant reply.
Half-Time: Port Vale 1 Wolves 0
Substitute keeper Simon Tomlinson had to paw away a powerful drive from Jarvis and then Vokes headed wide after Bennett had supplied the cross.
But Jarvis made no mistake in the 55th minute when he dispossessed John McCombe and rifled a shot into the roof of the net past the advancing Tomlinson.
There was a cheer from the near 300 away following as Michael Kightly made his first appearance since April when he came on as a substitute for Bennett.
Vale made eight changes with a little over 20 minutes remaining and one of the replacements, Robert Taylor, was only inches wide of the far post with an angled drive.
Tomlinson denied Jarvis a second goal with a brave block and then Luke Prosser cleared Ward's low cross from virtually off the line.
But seconds later play switched to the other end where Geoff Horsfield nodded a long clearance on to Robert Taylor whose left foot drive found the far corner of the net to win it for Vale.
Port Vale: Martin (Tomlinson 45), Yates (Stockley 69), K. Taylor, McCombe, Collins (Horsfield 69), Owen (Prosser 69), Dodds (Howland 69), Fraser (capt)(Griffiths 69), Loft (R. Taylor 69), Richards (Glover 69), Thompson (Sidibe 69).
Unused subs: Danny Edwards, Davidson, Richman.
Wolves: Wright, Foley, Elokobi, Dave Edwards, Berra (capt), Zubar, E. Bennett (Kightly 64), Ward, Vokes, Hemmings (Spray 35), Jarvis.
Unused subs: Batth, East, Davis, Mendez-Laing, McCone, Metcalf, Rooney, Ismail, Price.
Referee: A. Bates.
Attendance: 2,003 (279 visiting supporters).
Pictured: Elliott Bennett takes on Port Vale's Gareth Owen.
