Mat Sadler: Walsall performance unacceptable
Mat Sadler has labelled Walsall's 4-0 drubbing against Sutton United as unacceptable.
Sutton started the afternoon rock bottom of League Two, but condemned Walsall to their heaviest defeat of the campaign.
Omari Patrick's free-kick got the ball rolling for Sutton, before Harry Smith added a second inside 12 minutes.
Joe Riley then put through his own net, and Smith bagged his brace before the break.
Sadler admitted it was his toughest half-time and full-time team talk yet, and that his team were punished in the first half.
"It was a difficult half-time and full-time team talk because naturally you are very angry but I don't think anything has ever been resolved by blaring down at somebody," Sadler observed.
"What was quite clear, and we made it crystal clear, was that can never happen again. It was unacceptable. They are proud people in there and they are a very good group.
"I don't think any of them saw that coming today and we weren't able to get ourselves out of the mode of what they were doing to us in that first half. And we got punished for it."
Walsall failed to deal with Sutton's physicality and aerial prowess, and were undone on a number of occasions by the long throw.
Sadler believes Walsall's failure to defend their penalty area was a key factor behind the heavy defeat.
"For 45 minutes, we couldn't defend our penalty area. It was clear for everyone to see," he admitted.
"We were prepared for what we expected to happen in the game. It did and we couldn't handle it.
"The first goal is from the free-kick but then that came from the long throw. Then the second goal came directly from the long throw, and the third is a free-kick.
"So, we couldn't deal with their set plays at all in the game. I don't think there is anything football wise, or tactically wise that we can really talk about.
"It was just purely that we couldn't defend our penalty area against some big lads. That was it in a nutshell. It's an experience that I don't intend on happening ever again"
Sadler also revealed that Freddie Draper was left on the bench due to a hamstring injury, and was not prepared to risk him.
"Freddie is feeling his hamstring. We had to do that, and we couldn't risk him because there is a long season ahead," he confirmed.
"We went for what we thought was a team that could win the game. A team that could compete with the challenges put in front of us, and we didn't do that."
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