Jon Whitney 'flipped' for Walsall's victory
Interim boss Jon Whitney was delighted after 'flipping' his tactics to see his Walsall players grind out a battling 1-0 win at Fleetwood.
The Cod Army were unbeaten at home in 2016, but Tom Bradshaw's 17th goal of the season saw the Saddlers battle to a 1-0 victory at Highbury Stadium.
It was a result that means Whitney has won both his games in charge, since replacing the sacked Sean O'Driscoll with Walsall now level on points in League One with second-placed Wigan.
And the 45-year-old was pleased to see his side's battling qualities in a different display to the 4-1 win at Chesterfield.
Whitney said: "Whenever I have been involved in promotion there are games you are going to have to grind out.
"We have come out on top in a hard-fought game with a fantastic 1-0 away win."
The match saw Steven Pressley's side enjoy the lion's share of possession in the opening 45 minutes.
But the Saddlers were much improved after the break as Whitney switched from 3-5-2 to a 4-1-4-1 formation.
Whitney continued: "Our secret is that we can change formation. We challenge the players all the time in training. We test them, we out number them and we want them to adapt.
"If things aren't quite going to plan, change it – flip it yourself."
The clash was settled with two moments of real quality with Bradshaw strike nestling into the top corner and goalkeeper Neil Etheridge producing an outstanding save in stoppage time.
Whitney added: "The goal was fantastic. It was a fantastic flick from Sam Mantom and a wonderful finish.
"We make sure we tell the players to showcase their talents and do something different because there is such strong security behind them. Neil has made an incredible save."
