Sam Hornby credits Walsall staff for his excellent penalty record
Walsall goalkeeper Sam Hornby insists there is "no secret" behind his penalty-stopping heroics as he prepares to fight for the No 1 spot at Bescot.
The 30-year-old is set to battle it out with Watford loanee Myles Roberts, who joined the club on Monday.
Tommy Simkin, who registered 16 goals in 47 matches for Walsall last term, returned to his parent club Stoke City at the end of the season.
Fresh from signing a new two-year deal, Hornby joined the Saddlers in the summer of 2024 after a successful trial and made 12 appearances across all competitions.
He became popular for his shot-stopping heroics from the spot, especially in the shoot-out wins over Birmingham City and Reading in the EFL Trophy last term.
"I played for another club in pre-season [in 2024] and I don't think I got near five of them in a Charity Cup match, so I was questioning when it went to penalties against the Blues in the EFL Trophy," Hornby joked.
The numbers behind Hornby's penalty record
After a 1-1 draw at Birmingham, Hornby saved penalties to hand the Saddlers an extra point in their opening group game.
In the round of 16, he upstaged himself with a hat-trick of stops against Reading to send Walsall through to the next round.
In total, Hornby saved five of the 12 penalties that he faced during his maiden campaign, but diplomatically opted to praise those behind the scenes.
"I'd like to say there is a secret, but that's credit to the analysts and [goalkeeper coach] Dan Still," he continued.
"There's no secret. It's research done in the background and we get given it. We have a discussion, watch it on tele and then see where we thinks fit.
"So I'll praise the staff that people don't see out on the pitch."
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