Dean Holden: Walsall are better than this

Yet the veteran stopper knows they need to prove it.

As the Saddlers go in search of a first League win of the season at home to struggling Colchester tomorrow, Holden believes there is more than they have shown in five previous games.

But the no-nonsense centre-back knows his opinions will count for nothing as long as the winless run continues.

"We have some good players in the squad, but it's difficult to stand there after a game and say what a great squad we have because you have to go out and prove that between 3pm and 5pm. And we have not done it," said Holden.

"We want to get back to winning ways and we want to put the smiles back on fans' faces.

"I don't think the fans enjoyed watching us on Saturday at Scunthorpe as much as the lads did not enjoy playing the game.

"Results have not been great, but some performances have been really good at times.

"We just have to get our performance right and there is nothing you can do about decisions or anything like that.

"If you get the performance right results come on the back of that, so we just have to focus on our performances, on defending better and working better as a team going the other way."

Holden, 34, looks set to start tomorrow in place of the injured James Chambers after replacing him early on in last weekend's 2-1 defeat at Glanford Park.

The Saddlers also lost Ashley Grimes before half-time, meaning recent signing Mathieu Manset had to play a full 90 minutes despite being short of match fitness after arriving into the season.

Holden, however, is refusing to look for excuses and expects Manset to improve as he adapts to life with the Saddlers.

"Fitness is not an excuse I would use," said the former Oldham and Shrewsbury man. "But it always takes time for new players to come in and gel.

"Mathieu has probably not had much of a pre-season, so he will feel the benefit of that game.

"Mathieu came in pre-season and showed what he can do. He obviously needs a bit of fitness and that will come in the next few weeks or months.

"He gives us something different up there and adds to a good set of strikers."

The Saddlers are looking to end a run of just two wins in 23 League games dating back to their poor end to last season.

But Holden has rejected suggestions that a downbeat start to the current season is a hangover from the last campaign.

He said: "I would not say so. There are six new players in the team, that is more than half the team who weren't here last year, so why would there be a hangover? I just think it is about building performances and then building results off the back of that.

"It is always difficult when you are not winning games because people question you. But if you love that type of challenge – which I do – it is a great challenge in front of us.

"This has been our first week without a Tuesday game. We have not been able to train as much as we would have liked recently.

"We will be out there trying to put things right as quickly as we can."

Chambers' injury will see Holden given the chance to forge a centre-back partnership with 22-year-old Paul Downing.

"We will build a relationship," he said. "We will analyse the things which went wrong last weekend.

"Hard work is always the best way. Is there anything else?"