Going in to the game Port Vale needed just a point to avoid relegation but it was all to play for, for Huddersfield with their Division Two status hanging by a thread.
Early play was scrappy and fast paced but it was Brian Horton's men who managed to creep ahead in the 18th minute. Matthew Carragher nodded down the ball in the heart of the box, with Ian Armstrong waiting to volley past Philip Senior and into his bottom left corner from eight yards.
The Valiants added to their score in the 31st minute with Mark Goodlad claiming an assist when his long ball from the dack fooled defender Jon Worthington, allowing Adrian Littlejohn fire the ball through Senior and in to the back of the net.
The game was far from decided and seconds before half time a corner from the right by substitute Kevin Sharp found Jason Gavin at the back post and he sent the ball looping over Goodlad and into the top right corner of his goal.
Vale put the game beyond Huddersfield's reach in the 59th minute when Armstrong broke from the half way line, dazzling the Terriers back three with quick feet before finding space to shoot past Senior from 20 yards out.
The Valiants hadn't finished and when Thomas Heary fouled Stephen Brooker on the edge of the area in the 82nd minute, subsequently receiving a red card, Sam Collins stepped up to blast the ball in to Senior's top right corner.
Five minutes later Jon Stead brought down John Durnin in almost the same position but it was Phil Charnock who stepped up this time to curl the ball into the back of the net.
Victorious manager Brian Horton said: "If we'd have lost then we would have been put in it against Bristol next week.
"Out of nineteen years in football this has got to have been my hardest, I'll have to change it around for next week but we'll try to play the same, I don't believe in sitting back just because its the last game of the season."