Walsall v Tranmere - Match Preview

Saturday’s 2-1 win over Forest Green was the club’s first in 15 games and the first for Dutton in 14 matches as head coach.

It was a long overdue victory for the Saddlers who have started to pull away from relegation trouble after becoming much harder to beat.

Now, Clarke wants his fellow players to build off that first win when they face Tranmere Rovers tonight, and repay Dutton for his difficult start as boss.

Clarke said: “I think the players will agree with me, that since he’s come in we’ve let him down. He gets the flak from it.

“It doesn’t matter who is in charge sometimes if the players aren’t performing.

“He’s had to drag us through some deep times and that win is for him.

“We’ve let him down and although the performances have got better the results haven’t come.

“Now the result has come and long may it continue.

“We’re getting more resilient and we pride ourselves on that.

“We’re not safe mathematically so all we can do is focus on the next game and try and win it.

“It’s not been the greatest season or where we want to be but we are in this situation and we need to get ourselves out of it.

“The players haven’t done the gaffer justice since he came in.

“He gave us a fresh way of playing and it was down to the boys to expand on it and enjoy it. It didn’t go to play and now we owe him.”

Tranmere arrive at the Banks’s Stadium still chasing automatic promotion but without a win in five games.

Walsall put in perhaps their best performance of the season when they beat them 3-1 earlier in the season and with the Forest Green win under their belts Clarke is aiming for a confident display.

Clarke added: “The win meant a lot to the lads so the boys will be full of confidence.

“We have another game to go and win now and get as far away from the bottom as we can.

“We’re going to be full of beans after a win and we have nothing to fear in this league.

“We beat them at their gaff and they’re up there fighting for automatic promotion, so we need to put another performance on and see where it gets us.

“It’s going to be a tough game, like every game in this division.

“We’ll have a game plan and work on it to try to win the game.”

The Walsall win has edged them closer to safety with games running out for those at the foot of the table.

Although Dutton is pleased to see safety on the horizon, he is keen to stay focused on the task in hand tonight.

He said: “We’re not far away now, there’s light at the end of the tunnel.

“We’re not there and we can’t get complacent, but we can see the finishing line in sight.

“We’d be foolish not to try and take that confidence and momentum into the Tranmere fixture.

“Hopefully the players will play with more freedom and expression but ultimately we won’t know until the ref blows the whistle.

“Tranmere might have dipped in form but have loads of EFL experience. I’m expecting the best Tranmere coming to town.

“We approach it the same we do for every match and will set up to win the game.

“Obviously we have to respect Tranmere because they’re a top calibre opposition, but we try and win the game and get on the front foot.

“Hopefully a win gives us more confidence and belief and relieves us of a bit of tension.

“It will be a nice achievement to do the double over Tranmere, a massive achievement.

“Every game is different. They have different personnel from last time we played them.

“It’s a nice carrot for the lads to do the double over a top team like Tranmere.”

Rory Holden was the Saddlers’ star man on Saturday in his first start since returning from injury and the attacking midfielder is expected to play again tonight.

Manager Dutton was full of praise for the 23-year-old who is a crucial part of Walsall’s attack.

“He’s so, so bright,” Dutton said.

“He’s not a player you need to coach, you just put him out on the football pitch and he makes good decisions. He is a breath of fresh air and someone the team has been crying out for - a leader, a creative spirit.

“If I went into the transfer market and I had to sign an attacking midfielder the first name on the list would be Rory Holden and I’d be willing to pay whatever it takes to get him at the football club.

“You see the difference between him in your team and starting a match and when he isn’t starting, he improves it vastly.”

Holden went down with an apparent knock towards the end of the game on Saturday and came off, but Dutton has revealed that he is fully fit.

Hayden White, however, did come off with a small issue and is being assessed.

Dutton added: “Hayden felt something but it wasn’t severe. We bring him off as a precaution.

“Hopefully he’ll be fine, we’ll assess him.”

Caolan Lavery and Dan Scarr are still expected to miss out with injury, while Stuart Sinclair is fighting to be fit.

Liam Roberts has not been fit to play for the last two games but has made the bench as the back-up goalkeeper. He is expected to play that same role again.