Crawley Town (H) League One 14th Apr, 7.45pm

[Welsh_Saddler]

So here we are on a winning run of one, with five games left this season to (a) secure our place for next season, and (b) perhaps experiment a little to try and find the elusive "Plan B". To this end we welcome Crawley Town who got the better of us 1-0 in the return fixture last October with an 89th minute free kick, which resulted in Walsall occupying bottom-but-one place in the table. Tom Bradshaw was injured that day and Jordy Hiwula hadn't arrived, so our strike force consisted of Forde and Cook. Having said that, we did have 25 goal attempts, 6 on target (against Crawley's 5 and 3) and still managed to lose. Crawley's current form:

17 Mar Port Vale (A) Won 2-3
21 Mar Leyton Orient (H) Won 1-0
28 Mar Gillingham (H) Lost 1-2
3 Apr Crewe Alexandra (A) Drew 0-0
6 Apr Oldham Athletic (H) Won 2-0
11 Apr Scunthorpe Utd (A) Lost 2-1

Crawley's main scoring threat boils down to one man - Izale Mcleod, with 20 goals so far this season. No-one else has scored more than 5, and Matt Harrold has surprisingly only netted once in 22 appearances - I seem to remember him featuring regularly when he was with Bristol Rovers. Dean Saunders is the "interim manager" while John Gregory recovers from heart surgery, and we all remember with affection the great job Saunders did at the Custard Factory.......

Dean Smith should have a full squad from which to select his team - Bradshaw appears to have been substituted tactically rather than for injury. Let's see if we can stop McLeod and pick up another 3 points - I'll go for a 2-0 win, with Bradshaw and Sawyers on the mark. :D

[SaigonSaddler]

Go for another win. 2-1, should have been 4.

[BathSaddler]

Go for another win. 2-1, should have been 4.

Two...in one game?

I'll take that and party :wink:

[SaigonSaddler]

Floodgates.

[chestersaddler]

Floodgates.

I was thinking the same. They didn't really have time to open yesterday given he timing of the goal - more ajar.

1-1 in front of 3054. Cain.

[otiswfc]

0-0 Crawley would have had someone watching us yesterday so all they will do is concentrate on stopping Bradshaw stop him and we ain't gonna score.
Att: 3150.

[Soton Saddler]

Walsall 2 - 0 Crawley

Sawyers, Bradshaw

UTS!

[BathSaddler]

0-0 or 1-1, in front of 3,237, including 60 from Crawley.

[Ancient Moaner]

Walsall 2 Crawley 0

Wilson & Lightbourne.........if only, remember when we could score 8 goals at home? (even though it was against Torquay!)

3016..... Bradshaw, and that new signing Bradshaw to score the goals........

Two wins in a row? Have I lost all sense of reality, or have I caught the 'optimism bug' off the likes of Saigon & the similar legion of relentlessly 'rose tinted' unswervingly buoyant souls out there?

[Noggin]

Don't ask me why, I can't explain it.

Walsall 3 Crawley 0

[SaigonSaddler]

Walsall 2 Crawley 0

Wilson & Lightbourne.........if only, remember when we could score 8 goals at home? (even though it was against Torquay!)

3016..... Bradshaw, and that new signing Bradshaw to score the goals........

Two wins in a row? Have I lost all sense of reality, or have I caught the 'optimism bug' off the likes of Saigon & the similar legion of relentlessly 'rose tinted' unswervingly buoyant souls out there?

Floodgates. :wink:

[tinned]

It's going to be 3, 4 or 5 - 0 tomorrow according to Mr Cook.

[clawtheolder]

It's going to be 3, 4 or 5 - 0 tomorrow according to Mr Cook.

Who have signed then?

[mosaddler]

end to end game which will end all square 0-0

:lol:

[Guest]

Yes, the floodgates may have opened slightly - but there has been time to have had them fixed.

Walsall
32 goal attempts
4 on target
0 goals

Crawley
1 shot
1 on target
1 goal

[tipton saddler]

So they stop Bradshaw we dont score, we stop McLoed they dont score. Another bore draw on the cards in my head...heart says 1-0 Bradshaw though which should see us pretty much safe as long as we pick up the inevitable couple of 0-0's in the last few games.

[Tom_1992]

Will be surprised if Mcleod doesn't grab himself a goal, probably via a penalty after a dive, but hopefully we can score a couple tonight so it won't matter!

I'm going 2-1 Bradshaw and Morris.

3,245 with no more than 50 from Crawley, they took 37 to Port Vale the other week. :shock:

[tipton saddler]

37!!! Christ that is beyond piss poor support. Whats the betting they still make more noise than us lmao.

[PT]

37 is awful. But as we've discussed elsewhere, there are a few clubs currently disguised as league clubs but not quite getting away with.

Tricky being a Walsall fan to know what a true footballing meritocracy looks like, but is it really better for the football league to have a spectacle with only 37 away fans rather than the 600 a Bristol Rovers would bring or even a 300 Stockport would bring? But then being a Walsall fan, we like to see clubs suffer for their financial mis-management so inevitably some traditional league clubs end up falling from grace to be replaced by some young up and comers who are financed by some young up and comers.

My rather controversial solution would be that it reverted to only one up and one down from the league with a second place being decided by the old re-election method that served Walsall so well over the years. Would certainly mean some protection for some old favourites and the clubs with bigger fan bases. But why shouldn't there be some protection or slight favouritism for clubs who have graced the league for over a century and who's existence as a league club is woven within the fabric of their community to a degree where more than 37 are inclined to travel to watch them? Makes it a bit harder, but not impossible for a Crawley.

Oh, and 1-0

[Tom_1992]

There's a table someone has drawn up of all the away followings in the league on one of the football league forums. Our away following hasn't been great numbers wise, but I bet we make more noise than most! And sorry Crawley, they took 38 not 37 to Port Vale!

[tipton saddler]

37 is awful. But as we've discussed elsewhere, there are a few clubs currently disguised as league clubs but not quite getting away with.

Tricky being a Walsall fan to know what a true footballing meritocracy looks like, but is it really better for the football league to have a spectacle with only 37 away fans rather than the 600 a Bristol Rovers would bring or even a 300 Stockport would bring? But then being a Walsall fan, we like to see clubs suffer for their financial mis-management so inevitably some traditional league clubs end up falling from grace to be replaced by some young up and comers who are financed by some young up and comers.

My rather controversial solution would be that it reverted to only one up and one down from the league with a second place being decided by the old re-election method that served Walsall so well over the years. Would certainly mean some protection for some old favourites and the clubs with bigger fan bases. But why shouldn't there be some protection or slight favouritism for clubs who have graced the league for over a century and who's existence as a league club is woven within the fabric of their community to a degree where more than 37 are inclined to travel to watch them? Makes it a bit harder, but not impossible for a Crawley.

Oh, and 1-0

Agree with everything you said ther PT even the score tonight :mrgreen:

[kshammer]

2-0. Bradshaw and Sawyers.

All set for the game and get struck down with food poisoning and so can't go. :(

[cumbria-saddler]

3-1 tonight.... Bradshaw, Mantom and Grimes

[Super Gabor]

Did someone mention Izale McLeod?

Oh no. I have visions of him doing Tom Daley impressions in our penalty box this evening.

Cheating Scunthorpe.

[Andy_Petterson]

Home win

Smith in

[Rushall Saddler]

One change.

Cook out, Hiwula in.

2-1 win.

Hiwula and Bradshaw. Tomlin.

[SaddlerCrewe]

Crewe leading at Peterborough after 2 minutes, puts them on 50 points (We have 52) as it stands

[MILO5]

Notts Co and Colchester both one down

[Super Gabor]

Goal. Hiwula. Get in

[SaddlerCrewe]

Hiwula :)