Walsall boss Darrell Clarke vows to keep striving

Saturday’s 1-0 win at Port Vale means the Saddlers have now taken seven points from their last three league matches.

But Clarke conceded there is still room for improvement in several areas, not least when it comes to taking care of the ball.

The boss said: “Certainly, it wasn’t a great performance with the ball on Saturday. Some of our passes were bombs, weren’t they?

“Handle that, around the knees, it was ridiculous. We gave the ball away so many times and had to work very hard to get it back.

“We’ll keep working away, chipping away and try and improve the club. My demands are pretty high and we have to keep getting better.”

Walsall, who are scheduled to host struggling Macclesfield on Saturday, now sit 17th in the table and have pulled further away from bottom-placed Morecambe.

Clarke is delighted his players are beginning to give supporters something to cheer after a tough first half of the season.

The Saddlers, who underwent a major summer overhaul following relegation. lost six on the spin through October and early November. But they have now been beaten only once in their last eight matches, an FA Cup second round tie with League One Oxford.

“Our fans were tremendous (at Vale), they have been all season to be honest,” said Clarke.

“You’re going to get stick when you lose, we don’t cry like babies.

“Whether we win, lose or draw we like to go over there and thank the fans.

“If it’s getting dog’s abuse it’s because they’re not happy. They’ve shown that a few times this season but when you do well they’ll clap you off.

“They were clapping them off for the result, though I wouldn’t have been clapping them for the possession of the ball.

“They understand it’s a hard place to go and it’s nice to get three points.”