00:00Hi Sadler's fans, fantastic result for Walsall, a first clean sheet on home soil in 2025 of a 1-0 victory over Salford City and I'm joined by Harley Sheldon.
00:17Thoughts on the win, lots of positives.
00:20Yeah, a lot of positives and I thought that was a standard setting performance.
00:23It was a lot better than Grooms Beyond Tuesday and I can't really nitpick too much.
00:29I thought everyone was pretty solid, there was a few kind of niggles here and there but generally I thought that was a really good performance.
00:35Yeah, exactly that, lots of positives.
00:38I'll start with Harrison Burke who defended extremely well but 13 goals for Chester last season.
00:45We've been sort of hoping and waiting for him to showcase his goal scoring expertise in Walsall colours
00:52and it was a thumping header from the Walsall centre-back to get off the mark for the club.
00:56A great corner delivery by Jamie Jealous and it was a deserved lead, you know, Walsall made a bright start, didn't they?
01:03Yeah, they did and it felt like from the get-go one team wanted to win it more, there was more desire shown from us,
01:10especially in the first half, there was a lot of intensity which I think is something that we kind of brought back today.
01:16I thought it was a really good performance in that sense and I thought the substitutions were made at the right times to freshen things up
01:22because the start of the second half was a bit stale, it was a bit flat and the substitutes picked the intensity back up
01:29and then I thought the new lads from Finnegan and Carnu really helped steady the game and offer something really kind of interesting going forward.
01:38Yeah, exactly that and, you know, I think even the team selection that maybe we had sort of what I myself did,
01:44had reservations over maybe Warrington being preferred to Brandon Comley and Albert Odoma being given the nod and attack,
01:51but in terms of the way the game was managed and sort of the starters and finishes approach, you know,
01:56it was a very well managed 90 minutes by Matt Sadler, but in terms of those that came on, you know,
02:04Daniel Carnu was a menace really with his pace in behind, he had two chances to score, came really close,
02:11two good saves actually by this old goalkeeper Matthew Young, who, you know, we spoke afterwards,
02:17had a really good performance in between the sticks for the visitors, but, you know,
02:22I guess the only criticism really is that it wasn't more.
02:25Yeah, I think that there was definitely a few opportunities, I think Carnu had two great chances
02:29and Presley also had a really good opportunity to score, I think it probably should have been two or three nil, really,
02:37but look, you take the one nil, it's a win at the end of the day and it was a convincing win,
02:42which is the most important thing.
02:43I think the fact that we looked like scoring multiple goals is almost as important as the fact
02:48that we, you know, we almost did score that amount of goals and that's a promising sign for me.
02:54Yeah, exactly, and, you know, that clean sheet on home soil, we've been kind of,
02:57that's been extending and extending as the year's gone on, so it's a good one to get that in the bag
03:03and you mentioned there with Presley, I guess really, you know, it wasn't his day in front of goal,
03:07but in terms of serving as a focal point and the work that he puts in,
03:10it looks like a really shrewd time in from Walsall.
03:13Yeah, I think aerially he is a massive upgrade on Jamil Matt in terms of what he can bring to the team,
03:19I think that's one of the kind of, Jamis, one of his issues has been that kind of the last six months to a year,
03:23maybe it's that he's struggled a little bit physically, he's getting a bit older,
03:27he's not quite got the leap on him, I think Presley really kind of brought that to the forefront,
03:31I think he needs a little bit of work on sorting his feet out, there are a few times where you want him to get that shot off
03:35and he doesn't quite get it sorted, but you can see what he's trying to do and what he offers physically and aerially
03:42is very important to how Walsall want to attack.
03:45And, you know, myself and you in the press box were kind of marvelling at a few of Ryan Finnegan's touches,
03:51there was one in particular where he sort of hooked the ball over his man and then even went for a few step-overs
03:57and, you know, you mentioned to me after the final whistle that really that probably has propelled him into possibly the starting XI for the next game maybe.
04:07Yeah, I think he should start, but I also thought that he was really strong defensively as well,
04:13he was nicking the ball off players' feet and progressing it really well, which is something I think the Wolves will have lacked,
04:17is that ball carrier in the midfield, someone who can transition from defensive positions to getting the ball forward into an attacking area.
04:25I thought he did that really well and he seems to be quite silky in one of those attacking areas too, like you've said.
04:32I think he's a very, very good sign-in and I think he does have to, you know, get starts now.
04:38And another one who really impressed today was Aidan Flint.
04:42I mean, in terms of the ratings, he's usually ranking very high at the top at the moment.
04:47In his early Walsall performances and, you know, commanding force, his experience has been a vital addition to the back line.
04:56And, you know, I was mentioning during the game about his head of clearances, you know, at times last season,
05:02David at Cagbre kind of had a tendency to maybe head the ball back into danger, into, you know, the opponent's feet.
05:07And he's got the foresight to pick out a man or head it into, you know, a useful area whenever he seems to be going up for the ball.
05:17So he's not only winning it in the air, he's distributing it well as well.
05:21And, you know, he's been absolutely fantastic.
05:22And you look at those young centre-backs next to him, Evan Weir and Harrison Burke, to have someone like Flint in the middle there is crucial.
05:29Yeah, I think you know it again with Flint now, don't you?
05:32After a few games, I think we can see that he's a leader on the pitch.
05:36Really, he's fantastic.
05:38And I think that point you bring about kind of when he clears the ball, he's clearing it into the right spaces.
05:42I think that's massive for us.
05:44We've had players who, over the years, will win those headers.
05:47But when they do, it'll go out of play for a throw-in.
05:50It'll go into an opposition's feet.
05:51It'll go into a place where it makes us vulnerable.
05:53Well, he seems to have that ability to look around him before the ball comes into him and know where to place it.
06:01And I think he's offering such a threat from set pieces as well.
06:04You know, he probably could have had a goal today if things had gone for him.
06:08Yet he had one that kind of was just curled away from goal.
06:11I think he's a really good player to have around the place.
06:14And I think he's going to be important in what Walsall do going forward.
06:18And that's everything from here.
06:19So it's 1-0.
06:21I'm starting to ache a little bit now.
06:23But obviously, speaking to Matt Sadler very shortly.
06:27So we should get an update on Mason Hancock and his injury.
06:31So stay tuned across the site on the Express and Stone.
06:34Obviously, the analysis will be coming over the next 24 to 48 hours.
06:39Enjoy the rest of your weekend, Sadlers fans.
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