Last week I expressed my concerns about our ability to hit the back of the net regularly and suggested we might need to settle for a point on some of our travels ? shows how much I know, writes Walsall blogger Mark Jones.
The win at Swindon was a textbook away performance and thoroughly deserved to boot.
As Big Ron used to say we set our stall out early doors but, as no-one ever had the faintest idea what that meant, I’d say we just went on the offensive from the first whistle.
The Swindon side that impressed me so much six weeks ago just didn’t know what had hit them and we could have been three or four up by the twenty minute mark.
In amongst the comings and goings of the January Transfer Window, Kevin Betsy slipped in relatively unnoticed.
Those of us who were at the County Ground on Saturday certainly noticed Kevin though.
Quick, mobile and able to play up front with Tommy or pull out wide, Betsy has got better in every game I’ve seen him play.
Dicky Dosh is beginning to establish a reputation for being able to pull out some more than useful loan signings.
Of course, playing devil’s advocate, this may be all down to our esteemed Football Consultant rather than DD but a quick comparison of temporary signings when the bronzed bombshell was with us last time round to those made this season would suggest otherwise.
Betsy, Ricketts, Sweeney, the unlucky Dwayne Mattis or Thoragson, Gisbert Bos and Carlos Andre? No contest ? and then there’s Lee Holmes.
Holmes gives us real quality and is a class above most League One performers.
Swindon knew this, which is why they paid him the back-handed (and often two-footed) compliment of trying to kick him out of the game.
Fortunately Lee retaliated in the best way possible by adding a second goal to his top quality opener and then running the Robins ragged for the rest of the game.
And if that free kick had been scored by one of the prima donnas from the ‘big’ four bores then we’d have had it on rotation on a certain satellite channel.
Having singled out our loanees for special mentions, it’s only fair that I should praise the rest of the team too.
Every single player put in a top notch performance; Mooney, Weston, Boertien and Anthony G played with the consistency we’ve come to expect and Clayton did everything asked of him.
OK, that only amounted to a top drawer save in the last minute when the game was long won and some routine crosses but our defence is the foundation for everything we’ve achieved so far under DD and Incey is a massive player for us.
Praise too for Ian Roper who is playing as well now as he did in his heyday alongside Ada Viveash.
Sure Ropes is liable to pick up the odd booking and we can’t expect to get through the next 13 (15? 16??) games without an injury to one of the centre backs, but whoever we get in as cover will surely have to be very much third choice at the moment.
It was also good to see Alex Nicholls notch again with a real striker’s goal and surely that kind of chance will fall to Troy soon.
The only downside of the whole day was the nasty injury to Mark Bradley after he’d put in a hard working display that had included a quality assist in the decisive second goal (hands off Ranson). Hopefully the reports of his quick return will prove accurate.
So all in all it was a fine first return to the scene of one of our greatest triumphs and possibly this result could have a greater long term significance to Walsall F.C. than the one back in May.
Once again the away support for the boys was magnificent and it was great to see that nine year old boy who managed to hurdle three rows of seats to run down the front and celebrate with the players.
His dad must be so proud ? nice one son!
Walsall fans have your say below
One Comment
Saw Stefan Moore play for the reserves today. He showed one or two nice touches but perhaps he needs time to bring his fitness levels up and settle down. First impressions are that he is not as good as those that we already have. Early days I suppose, but the only problem is we want someone who can do a job now and not in a month’s time when he is fully fit. Perhaps DD sees it another way.