Analysis of Millwall 2 Walsall 1

The Saddlers stuck their head out of the trench on Saturday for long enough to see the prizes on offer. The play-offs are in sight, but the Saddlers must cross the no man's land they currently occupy to reach them.

They are better than mid-table but not yet good enough for the top six and are trying to shake the League One limbo which has enveloped them over the past two years.

Four or five giant leaps forward have been followed by two steps back recently and conventional wisdom suggests the Saddlers are in their rightful place, soldiering on just above mid-table.

But, while they lacked the composure necessary to tame Millwall, there was enough evidence to suggest they can sustain a play-off challenge. They have the determination and just need to find that killer instinct which has been lacking at vital times.

Of the nine teams above them they have only beaten Huddersfield, with Bristol Rovers still to play – a stat which must change in the coming weeks with Rovers, Norwich and Charlton on the horizon.

Their latest attempt was a missed opportunity. Injury-ravaged Millwall were there for the taking but were worthy winners despite the Saddlers taking the lead.

The Lions may have won but there was little genuine class on show – League One in a nutshell – which gives the Saddlers hope. It is an average division stacked with mediocre teams and only a smattering of real contenders.

It was evident in London on Saturday where Walsall fell short, agonisingly so, against another of their play-off rivals. The euphoria of Manny Smith's first career goal gave way to a backs-to-the-wall display which failed to keep the Lions at bay.

Twice in the second half the hosts found space to punish slack defending. Like Southampton before them, Millwall put the Saddlers to the sword and showed them what they must become to maintain their play-off charge.

Reaching the top six now would be a huge achievement and a massive shot in the arm but in reality it would mean nothing. If, come May 8, the Saddlers are there then that's the time for celebration and mutual back slapping.

They have done exceptionally well to keep in touch and now must move up a notch to finally break through. But they must beware of a Christmas malaise. So much progress has been made in the 11 months since Chris Hutchings took the reins it would be unfortunate to see the Saddlers playing catch-up again.

Two defeats on the spin against sides who will reach the upper echelons come May have tempered expectations after a run which spawned genuine top six hope. That hope and expectation remains but must be strengthened before the year is out.

Struggling Leyton Orient visit the Banks's Stadium on Saturday for a game which takes on great significance ahead of the Boxing Day trip to Bristol Rovers and the visit of Norwich two days later.

Three points against the O's would put the Saddlers back into the equation after they slipped to 10th – four points adrift of the play-offs – following defeat at the New Den. Four points is hardly insurmountable but it is vital they start clawing back the deficit immediately.

They could be back to within a point of the leading pack at 5pm on Saturday which would set up the Christmas double header nicely. Naturally a win against Millwall would have done so too, but the Saddlers returned home knowing exactly where they must improve.

Hutchings was honest about his side's failings but it had all started so well for his troops, despite missing the suspended Troy Deeney and injured top scorer Steve Jones.

Peter Till – making his first start since the win at Wycombe in October – swung in an eighth-minute corner and Smith met it with a first-time volley which flew past goalkeeper David Forde.

Poetic justice for the defender who was knocked unconscious by Forde's flailing knee in April but if the Saddlers hoped it would be a sucker punch they were left disappointed.

For the opening 25 minutes they were in charge and ex-Lion Darren Byfield should have doubled the lead when he burst through only to allow Forde to make a smothering stop. At 2-0 the Lions, with the fans against them, would have fallen. Instead they grew in confidence and bossed the rest of the game.

The hosts began to pin the Saddlers back without carving out any real chances. Danny Schofield and Ashley Grimes found Clayton Ince's palms as Walsall struggled to prevent the deluge of attacks.

Millwall bombed forward but the Saddlers' back four remained unmoved. The worry was how the visitors could hold out if the pattern of the game continued. Once they cleared one Lions attack another would mount as the visitors struggled to keep the ball up top.

Grimes blazed over from close range ahead of the interval and the one-way traffic continued after the break when Alan Dunne's piledriver whistled inches wide.

The Saddlers' resistance gave way just before the hour, when Grimes set up Steve Morison to burst past Mark Hughes and level. It had been coming and the Lions went for the kill, hitting the winner on 76 minutes when one-time Walsall target Jason Price sent Morison clear and he found the top corner.

There was little the visitors could do to fight back and, in injury time, Lewis Grabban should have done better than to drag his shot wide.

By Nick Mashiter