Bolton Wanderers 2-0 Port Vale: Valiants relegated from League One
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Darren Moore took over at Port Vale in February but they have won only twice during his 16 games in charge
Port Vale have been relegated from League One following a 2-0 defeat at promotion hopefuls Bolton Wanderers.
Aaron Collins and substitute Cameron Jerome kept Bolton's hopes of automatic promotion alive with second-half goals.
Ian Evatt's side missed a succession of chances and hit the woodwork three times before Collins broke the deadlock after 72 minutes.
A rising right foot shot brought Collins' sixth goal in five games and his eighth since joining the Trotters in January. Veteran Jerome added a second in stoppage time.
Bolton must beat play-off rivals Peterborough on the final day of the season and hope Derby slip up against relegated Carlisle, with a favourable goal swing, to stand a chance of going up.
In contrast, Vale will return to the fourth tier, two years after gaining promotion.
Darren Moore's side have won only 10 of their 45 games, achieving five of those victories in the first six weeks of the season.
'Fighting chance evaporated'
Back-to-back wins in March gave Vale what Moore described as a "fighting chance" of staying up.
But the feel-good factor quickly evaporated. They failed to score in their following three matches, picking up just one point in the process, and defeats in the subsequent three games have sealed their fate.
Less than a year ago, Moore's stock was high. His departure from Sheffield Wednesday raised eyebrows, coming just weeks after he had led the club to promotion to the Championship. He then lasted just five months at Huddersfield before being sacked.
In mid-February, he took over at Vale, signing a five-and-a-half-year contract following the sacking of Andy Crosby, who left with the club two points above the relegation zone and with games in hand.
Hopes were high of an improvement under Moore, but instead things got worse. They have lost 11 of his 16 matches in charge, with those two wins in March their only victories so far.
Despite reaching the quarter-finals of the Carabao Cup, it has been a miserable season for Vale and they have seemed to be in freefall for some time.
Fans have been increasingly frustrated and much of their anger was aimed at David Flitcroft, who left the club last month after three years as director of football.
Match details supplied by PA Media.