Express & Star

Chris Marsh: Late goals are a bad habit Walsall must break

With the start to the season Walsall have had, it’s only right we start this column on a positive note.

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I was a little bit fearful for us heading into the match at Oxford.

After the loss to Doncaster, we were back on the road.

And I’m surprised just how badly Karl Robinson’s side has started the season – I still think they have enough about them to be in mid-table.

But the lads responded to the defeat against Donny magnificently.

They put in a really professional display and thoroughly deserved to come away with all three points.

It was important because it was our first chance to see how they would react to a league defeat.

And now they have got the victory, it will increase the belief inside the dressing room even more.

It’s strange the feelings that build in a team that’s doing well.

I was part of four teams that won promotion. And with each one, there was this inner belief that we wouldn’t go on losing run stretching two, three or four games.

Believe it or not, it’s the same when you’re at the other end of the table.

I’ve been involved in three relegations and there are times when you just don’t believe you’re going to win.

You can be playing well but you just can’t get over the line.

I’ve been in sides where we were coming off every week and thinking ‘how have we lost that?’

But we were losing and that’s all that mattered.

It says a lot about the charterer and the hunger of this team that they did bounce back so well.

The only downside was that they again conceded a late goal – and it is becoming an issue.

Walsall have now conceded late against Gillingham, AFC Wimbledon, Macclesfield, Burton, Doncaster and Oxford already this season.

It’s not a fitness issue, because the preparation nowadays is exceptional.

It’s a mentality thing and Keatesy needs to find a way to cut it out – because eventually, it will come back to bite us.

When Chris Nicholl first took over, we were conceding late goals left, right and centre.

But he soon put a stop to that.

He gathered us around and told us that more goals are conceded in the last 10 minutes of matches than during any other stage of a game.

He told us if we conceded late again we could say farewell to our days off.

And not only would we be saying goodbye to them, but we’d also be in the next day and running. Endless running like we used to do in pre-season.

It was horrible. And it didn’t matter where we played on a Tuesday – it could have been John O’ Groats away – if we conceded late, we were in at 9am on our day off.

I can honestly say, for the rest of that season, if we conceded late it was because the opposition scored a worldie.

Chris had got into our heads.

We didn’t want to be in and running on our day off.

But we also didn’t want to have to deal with him because he would rip our heads off.

If we conceded late, it would have been better to skip a shower and the bus and hitch-hike a lift home.

What Nicholl did was enough to keep us on our toes.

And that is what Keates will be looking to do now.

Of course, you can always concede a goal – a ricochet could put the ball anywhere.

But most of the goals Walsall have conceded late will be because they have switched off – and eventually, it will come back to bite them.

Look at the Oxford game on Saturday, Walsall’s overall performance thoroughly deserved the three points.

But they let in a late goal.

And then in stoppage time, the ref had a call to make regarding an Oxford penalty.

He got it right, but what if he hadn’t?

There is no way Walsall should have left the Kassam Stadium with just a point.

It’s like a boxer dominating for nine and a half rounds then in the last minute he gets caught with a punch and is knocked out.

Maybe Keatsy could fine the players £50 if they concede late again and give the money to charity.

I don’t know what he will do, but he will definitely be working on something because this bad habit will ultimately cost us points when games are tight.