Saddlers must show steel to beat Blades

Walsall can't go back in time but they are out to right the wrongs of the past.

The Saddlers have suffered so many 'what if' moments this season as they sit in the League One drop zone.

Their generosity with points has been well documented but there's one game which rankles the most.

They blew a 2-0 lead at Sheffield United in August to lose 3-2 in just their third game of the season and now welcome the second-placed Blades to the Banks's Stadium tonight. Will Grigg and Kevan Hurst had fired them ahead in a dominant performance before 15 mad minutes saw Matt Lowton, Lee Williamson and Richard Cresswell's penalty win it for United.

Players have referred to the game since, admitting they missed a golden chance to start the season flying.

It doesn't go as far as revenge – that's too strong a word – but the Saddlers want to exorcise their Bramall Lane ghosts, said former Blade Hurst.

"Sometimes people have asked me if it was the turning point of the season. I don't know if it was or not but we definitely need to give them a bit of payback," said the winger, who made five appearances for United after starting as a trainee.

"A lot of people look at it because the performance was excellent and the result was disappointing. It left a few of the boys down. If we had got a victory then confidence would have been high. The way we played we deserved to win the game and it was that bit of concentration we lacked. If you look at the games we've drawn and take all of those, take the goal we conceded out and the points then we wouldn't be where we are. It's not that we can't get the points, it's just the lack of concentration to keep them."

Saturday's 1-1 draw at Leyton Orient dropped the Saddlers back into the bottom four after Scunthorpe's 4-1 win over Wycombe.

Yeovil also picked up a vital 2-1 victory over Brentford as Oliver Lancashire's header rescued a vital point in injury time.

And Hurst admitted while the Saddlers must focus on themselves they are aware of results when they come off the pitch.

"You're competitive and want to know what's happening," he said. "But it's like the gaffer says, you control the controllables and if we do that we'll be fine. You're still looking because that's the nature of the game.

"If you go on the last few games we are (the form team) but the games have gone now, we have to focus on the games coming up."

The Saddlers could remain unchanged from the weekend draw at Leyton Orient.

Adam Chambers is still a doubt with an ankle injury.

Walsall are aiming to make it five games unbeaten – their best run of the season – and Hurst insisted their form has come from improved communication.

"I'm not sure why it's clicked but there have been a few fresh faces in. Olly (Lancashire) has come in and done well, Taunds (Richard Taundry) has done really well at right-back and the back four is solid," he said.

"The communication is a lot better. We're a young team and people don't realise that sometimes.

"I'm 26 and I'm about the fourth oldest here. When you look at that it's a young team and the communication side of the game is massive.

"As a young player it's not always in your make-up but being a little bit older it's coming into my game a bit more."

United travel in the middle of a defensive crisis. They could be without Lecsinel Jean-Francois and Marcus Williams.

Definitely missing are suspended duo Matt Lowton and Harry Maguire.