Crewe 1 Walsall 1 - Report and pictures
Tom Bradshaw's lucky late leveller earned Walsall a point at Crewe in League One.
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The striker's shot took a huge deflection off home defender Harry Davis to wrong-foot goalkeeper Paul Rachubka.
It cancelled out Marcus Haber's 13th minute opener for the hosts, who dominated the first-half.
The Saddlers were better in the second period but looked unlikely to score before Bradshaw's slice of fortune.
Dean Smith's men extended their unbeaten run to five games but that looked doubtful for most of the afternoon, after Haber had put the relegation-threatened hosts ahead.
Bradshaw's 18th of the season left the Saddlers not quite mathematically safe from relegation, but it would take an extraordinary set of results to now drag them back into trouble.
Crewe remain in big danger, two points above the bottom four.
With his team having scored five in a game for the first time in more than four years on Tuesday, Smith unsurprisingly kept faith with the same starting line-up which trounced Crawley.
Goalkeeper Richard O'Donnell has been one of the keys to Walsall's fine defensive performances of late and he was forced to show his reflexes in the first five minutes.
Goals: Haber 13, Bradshaw 81.
Crewe (4-3-3): Rachubka, Turton, Davis, Ray, Leigh, Grant, Atkinson (Nolan 10), Jones, Dalla Vale, Haber (Colclough 76), Ajose.
Substitutes not used: Guthrie, Cooper, Saunders, Stewart, Ikpeazu.
Walsall (4-2-3-1): O'Donnell, Purkiss, O'Connor, J Chambers, Taylor, Cain, A Chambers, Morris (Cook 65), Sawyers (Mantom 73), Hiwula, Bradshaw.
Substitutes not used: MacGillivray (GK), Downing, Grimes, Henry, Forde.
Referee: Scott Duncan (Northumberland)
Attendance: 4,664[/breakout]
A fine one-handed stop kept out Nicky Ajose's volley, after the forward had chested down Greg Leigh's cross.
The hosts were forced into an early change when midfielder Chris Atkinson suffered a nasty looking shoulder injury, which saw him replaced by Liam Nolan.
But they were soon celebrating when Haber put them ahead.
The striker should have opened the scoring seconds earlier when he crashed a shot off the bar after being sent clean through.
When Ajose returned the ball into the box, he made no mistake, heading past O'Donnell and into the bottom corner.
It was the first goal conceded by the Saddlers in more than six hours and a defence which had been watertight for four games suddenly looked anything but.
Key clearances were needed to block dangerous crosses from Oliver Turton and Lauri Dalla Valle.
Crewe's defence looked far from secure even, but the visitors often scrappy build-up play meant they failed to seriously threaten until the final minutes of the half.
Cain sent a half-volley smacking into the side netting. A collision between Adam Chambers and Harry Davis then allowed Andy Taylor to race into the box, but he dragged his shot wide of the far post.
There were appeals for a penalty at the other end when Haber appeared to be pulled back, after being sent clear once more by Ajose.
The Saddlers dominated the opening exchanges of the second half but were guilty of trying to be too clever in and around the box.
When Romaine Sawyers did have a shot, it cleared the bar by some distance and instead it was Crewe who looked more dangerous.
Ajose failed to react in time at the near post after James Jones' corner was flicked on.
The game seemed to be slipping away until, with nine minutes to go, the visitors drew level in the most fortunate of circumstances.
Crewe failed to deal with a ball into the box and Bradshaw's shot was deflected off Davis, the ball spinning into the net past a completely-deceived Rachubka.
O'Donnell saved Ajose's powerful drive as the hosts poured forward, while Saddlers substitute Jordan Cook saw a shot from distance deflected wide.
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