Picture gallery and full analysis of Walsall 1 Charlton 1
Expressandstar.com bring you a full picture gallery and match analysis from the Banks's Stadium as Walsall hold high-flying Charlton to a draw in League One.
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'Can we play you every week?' goes the famed terrace chant. But, in Walsall's case, maybe facing the league leaders again wouldn't be such a bad idea.
Underdogs to the last, the Saddlers revel in the minnows tag which has earned their best results of the season.
Their fortitude has so often been a bright light in a season which has slipped into the shadows.
Saturday's 1-1 draw with League One table-toppers Charlton was another perfect example of the Saddlers' penchant for the dramatic.
Denying the Addicks a ninth straight win added to their repertoire after Preston were tamed, Milton Keynes Dons scared and Huddersfield and Sheffield United almost embarrassed on their own patch.
But that bravery has only been shown in the face of adversity, when the chips are down. It's time to bring the big performances to the smaller teams.
Lose at rock-bottom Chesterfield on Saturday – or against Dagenham & Redbridge in tomorrow's FA Cup clash – and the plaudits earned from the Addicks will evaporate.
The squad know that though. It's not a mental block which stops them from dispatching their lesser rivals – the problem is no-one knows what it is.
Yeovil, Brentford, Bury and Oldham have all stolen points at the Banks's Stadium and now the Saddlers must now come good on the pre-game promises against the 'smaller' teams.
Saturday's point was a bonus, like when you find £10 in your back pocket. You didn't expect it but it's a nice surprise.
The weekend's trip to the B2net Stadium is the cash you knew you had. Lose it and you're pretty disappointed but keep it, doubling your money with a win, and you are quids in.
Defeat would bring uncomfortable questions because, undoubtedly, it is bigger than the Charlton game – even if a draw against the Addicks extended the unbeaten run to four games.
It might be just two wins in 19 games but the Saddlers are threatening to find a degree of momentum they haven't had since August.
Recently they have been stilted, shackled by the pressure to perform as they try to rid themselves of a wretched run.
They have missed the freedom which made them so stirring last season and indeed at the start of this. Rediscovering it is key.
There is no such thing as pressure-free football but if Walsall want to survive they must forget their limitations.
Jamie Paterson's recall helped give life to the team with the effervescent teen so often the spark while Manny Smith and Oliver Lancashire provided the base.
It was a big call to keep skipper Andy Butler on the bench – the first time in his Walsall career when the captain has been fully fit – but Smith and Lancashire repaid the manager's faith.
Boss Dean Smith stuck to his principles and there is no reason to recall the talismanic captain when the duo – to call them understudies would be disrespectful – are performing.
Smith has been hitting the form which interested Championship sides two years ago, while Lancashire has justified his inclusion.
The former Southampton defender has suffered from inconsistencies since his 2010 arrival but, while he must build on the last three games, is reaping the benefits of specialised coaching from Chris Nicholl.
The physical pair are a work in progress but the Saddlers need not worry when Butler is out.
Lancashire even bagged a rare, inadvertent, assist when he diverted Mat Sadler's drive into Jon Macken's path to open the scoring 35 minutes in.
It rocked the leaders after an even opening and Yann Kermorgant's headed equaliser seconds before the break demonstrated their quality.
Danny Hollands should have given them the lead after the interval but headed straight at goalkeeper Jimmy Walker, after Kermorgant's knock-down found him free.
But the Saddlers are a different animal against the top teams and continued to upset the Addicks. Only Darel Russell's goal-line intervention stopped Sadler bagging the winner.
The blow was Sadler's late red card – Walsall's second in two games and seventh of the term – meaning he misses tomorrow's FA Cup game.
But it was a minor indiscretion on the day. Hogan Ephraim's last-minute header skipped off a post after Richard Taundry survived late handball claims but defeat would have been unjust.
If only the Saddlers could play Charlton every week.
Follow Walsall correspondent Nick Mashiter on Twitter @nickmashiter.
