Mansfield manager Nigel Clough hailed their 4-0 drubbing of 10-man Port Vale as the perfect start to 2021 as the Stags finally recorded a first home win of the League Two season.

An Ollie Clarke opener after just 45 seconds and a Jordan Bowery hat-trick earned the hosts their first back-to-back league wins for almost 15 months and a first home league win since February 15.

“That was the perfect way to start the new year,” said Clough.

“It was important to get our first back-to-back league wins for 14 months.

“It was a big three points for us today and the manner in which we did it.

“I think that’s been coming for two or three weeks. We have been missing chances, so it’s nice to get the goals and goals of that quality today.

“For Jordan to get a hat-trick – and that’s five in three games now – he will be brimming with confidence.

“The only thing he needed to add to his game was goals and he’s doing that now.

“He wasn’t playing earlier in the season, but since I came in he’s played almost every minute of every game and he is a great outlet for us.”

Skipper Clarke scored his first Mansfield goal as he forced home the follow-up after Scott Brown had turned Harry Charsley’s shot against a post.

Bowery made it 2-0 after 32 minutes after a George Maris cross broke for him.

Leon Legge’s second yellow card saw him dismissed in the 47th minute and Bowery netted again from the spot in the 77th after Scott Burgess had felled Charsley.

He completed his first senior hat-trick with a fine finish in off the far post from a Clarke pass three minutes later and there was still time for substitute Tyrese Sinclair to put another penalty wide after Nathan Smith had brought him down.

A sixth game without a win left Vale boss John Askey facing further questions about his future.

He said: “There will be speculation – it’s just stating the obvious. It’s not my decision.

“All I can do is my best and keep trying to push the players as much as I can.

“We’ve had a lot of things to deal with, but at the end of the day it’s about results. Performances like this are nowhere near good enough.

“That was a huge disappointment. To be a goal down within a minute – we just didn’t start.

“You’ve got to compete from the first minute and we didn’t. Then you just have an uphill task.

“Being 2-0 down we made changes at half-time to try to go for it. But somehow we contrived to lose it and Leon Legge has got himself sent off again.

“The subs all made a difference, but when you are down to 10 men there is only so much you can do.”