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Bury 2 Walsall 3 - Report and pictures

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Walsall moved back into the automatic promotion places in League One following a 3-2 victory against Bury in a crazy game at Gigg Lane.

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The Saddlers romped into a 3-0 half-time lead thanks to an outstanding first-half display.

It saw them take the lead through Chris Hussey's own-goal before Tom Bradshaw and Anthony Forde found the target.

Sean O'Driscoll's side remained in total control for the opening hour, but two goals in the space of a minute from former Wolves striker Leon Clarke turned the game on its head.

But despite the Shakers throwing everything at the visitors for the last 20 minutes, Walsall managed to stand firm.

With it announced just hours before-kick off that Manchester City had recalled midfielder George Evans, O'Driscoll made three changes from the side that secured an impressive 1-1 draw at Coventry.

Switching to a 4-2-3-1 formation, Jason Demetriou, Andy Taylor and Anthony Forde came in at the expense of Liam Kinsella, Milan Lalkovic and the departed Evans who joined Walsall fans in the stands.

The changes saw Rico Henry start on the left wing, with Forde on the right and Romaine Sawyers behind Tom Bradshaw.

Romaine Sawyers

For Dave Flitcroft's Shakers, ex-Wolves striker Leon Clarke started up front.

Under a light drizzling on snow, Walsall began the game on the front foot with O'Driscoll's men enjoying a lot of possession in and around the Bury box.

But it was the Shakers who threatened first with Danny Mayor expertly switching the play to full-back Joe Riley who cut inside the box only to see his short well blocked by Taylor.

It was the Saddlers though who were dominating possession and they took the lead in the 17th minute through a comical own goal by Chris Hussey.

Taylor whipped in a delicious ball towards the back post which, with Forde loitering, Hussey looked to poke wide.

But, instead, the defender placed the ball into the bottom corner and beyond the outstretched arms of keeper Ian Lawlor.

Bury responded immediately with Andy Tutte bursting into the box and hitting a shot which was too hot for Neil Etheridge to handle – but with the shot-stopper claiming the ball at the second attempt.

Flitcroft's side had lost their last three League One fixtures, but they didn't let their heads drop and almost equalised when Mayor cut inside the box before firing well wide from 12-yards.

But it was the visitors who continued to look the more dangerous with a swift counter involving Bradshaw, Demetriou and Sawyers ending with Henry seeing a deflected effort bobble wide.

And with the clock ticking towards the half-hour mark, the Saddlers doubled their advantage.

Excellent play from Forde saw the Irishman find Bradshaw in the box with the striker then calmly firing past Lawlor for his 14th goal of the campaign.

The Shakers once again looked for an immediate response with a deep free-kick punched clear by Etheridge but only as far as Kelvin Etuhu who fired over.

With the Saddlers on top, Flitcroft made a tactical substitution in the 36th minute with full-back Riley making way for attacking midfielder John O'Sullivan who joined on loan from Blackburn yesterday.

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But O'Driscoll's side, who were passing the ball around beautifully in triangles, continued to be rampant.

And they made it 3-0 just before the break with Forde scoring an outstanding goal, all of his own making.

The Irishman picked the ball up wide on the right, tricked his way past the helpless Hussey and then cut into the box before curling an unstoppable drive into the far corner.

Flitcroft made his second substitution at the break with Danny Rose coming on for Jacob Mellis.

But for the opening 20 minutes of the half, Walsall did a fantastic job of stifling the home side with the ball spending a lot of time in midfield as neither team created an opening.

Yet incredibly, Bury brought themselves back into the game with two goals from Clarke in the space of a single minute.

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First, the striker tapped home from close range following a wonderful sweeping ball into the box by O'Sullivan.

And with the Shakers fans still celebrating, the striker finished again from close range after Etheridge could only parry Mayor's strike.

In between the goals, O'Driscoll had switched Henry for Kieron Morris with the Saddlers almost restoring their cushion when Forde charged towards goal.

But instead of the slipping in the unmarked Bradshaw, the Irishman went on his own and saw a strike blocked by a recovering Shakers defender.

All the momentum though was Flitcroft's side though and they should have pulled level.

Clarke brushed off a number of challenges to burst into the box before seeing his strike hit the post. Incredibly, Mayor then fired the loose ball over from close range.

With two minutes remaining, O'Driscoll brought on Matt Preston for Bradshaw in a bid to shore things up.

And despite Bury pumping balls into the Walsall box, the Saddlers stood firm to secure a crucial victory.