Win is relief for Walsall

It might have been the springboard for a brighter future or another false dawn. No-one was too bothered, writes Steve Madeley.

When Paul Hall’s most dramatic of winners hit the net on at Victoria Park the wider implications were given precious little thought.

The only context that mattered to Richard Money and Walsall on Saturday was the upheaval of the previous seven days - and the need for ‘the three Rs’.

Money needed a reaction to the dismal showing a week earlier, respite from turmoil in the camp, and ideally a result.

He and his players achieved the perfect treble, and for a couple of days at least life at the Banks’s Stadium will seem a whole lot easier.

Money has been keen to stress in recent weeks that the Saddlers’ future is bright, yet the present has become stickier with each day.

And, in the build-up to this re-match with last season’s title rivals, it appeared that his worries might balloon to a whole new level.

As if results were not reason enough for concern, the manager was forced to cut his losses with one of his key summer signings while sending for help to bolster his backroom team.

We now know he was also required to work around a messy contract dispute that robbed him, temporarily at least, of one of his other most experienced heads.

With events threatening to overtake the club, what Money needed in the north east was a silver lining; a performance to lift the gloom, to stem the drain of confidence and to raise the spirits of a club on a downer.

The manager got his oasis, and quite a bit extra.

Minus Danny Sonner and Martin Butler, this was the Saddlers’ best performance since their return to League One.

It lacked the swashbuckling charges of the fruitless game-chases at Leyton Orient and Gillingham but it was a damned-sight less open.

It was a shade less solid than the home stalemate with Port Vale, but it had a great deal more zest and spark.

It was far from perfect but it was as near as new-look Walsall have come so far to blending crisp football and solidity into an effective cocktail.

And after a week Money must have feared would never end, this high-energy, in-your-face display of complete commitment was precisely what the doctor ordered.

For one thing, Sonner was not missed, although most supporters who watched him in both Saddlers spells will hardly be surprised to hear he did not leave behind a yawning midfield chasm.

In fact the vacancy that was created by his decision to throw in the towel was filled more than adequately by Dwayne Mattis, whose high-octane debut following his arrival on loan from Barnsley set the tone for the whole side.

His ability cover the ground, close down quickly and make life generally uncomfortable for the high-flying Pools gave Walsall an ingredient they have needed all season.

And the rest of the side, galvanised no doubt by the week’s events, followed suit.

Tommy Mooney’s scoring instincts abandonned him, Troy Deeney barely had a sniff in front of goal and Eddy Sonko and Ishmel Demontagnac seldom tore past defenders.

But all four deserved their share of the standing ovation the team received at the final whistle.

Because, as one member of the travelling party said at pitchside afterwards, Walsall ‘got amongst’ their opponents for the first time since August, and the difference was clear to see.

They made life tough for the team they pipped to the League Two title in May, and when they had the ball they moved it quickly, simply and with purpose.

The shortage goals, and the absence of personnel likely to deliver them prolifically, remains the biggest single worry for Saddlers supporters.

But superb displays from Scott Dann and Anthony Gerrard and some heroics from Clayton Ince meant one was always likely to be enough on Saturday.

The first-half was almost devoid of clearcut chances, although Deeney went closest with a shot from just inside the box that hit Mooney on the loan and bounced behind for a goal-kick.

Some impressive organisation and discipline from the Saddlers kept the home side generally at arm’s length with long-distance efforts the only moments of promise for Pools.

When they did break down their visitors it was Darren Wrack, restored to the right-back role at Rhys Weston’s expense, who halted the progress of Joel Porter, albeit at the cost of a yellow card.

And Walsall could have been ahead at the interval but Mooney could only head Wrack’s cross straight at keeper Jan Budtz.

The second half followed a similar pattern with defences on top, preventing some neat midfield play being converted into scoring chances.

That was until Pools substitute Tony Sweeney tried his luck from outside the box with a shot that was heading for the bottom corner until Ince pushed it brilliantly around the post.

When Mooney headed an even better chance, this time from Sonko’s cross, into Budtz’s hands it looked like Walsall would collect a creditable point.

But in the final minute Mooney lifted a ball over Godwin Antwi’s head, the Pools defender was caught flat-footed and substitute Hall raced clear before sending the coolest of finishes past the keeper.

Hall’s winner was late, but not late enough to deny the 200-strong travelling contingent their moment of musical glory.

Stoppage time was played out to a chorus of ‘1-0 to the champions’, directed as Pools supporters still smarting from the final day of last season.

It was predictable enough, but enjoyable nonetheless.

For one weekend at least, the fun was back in Walsall.