League Two Insight: Walsall

FACT FILE

Team Name: Walsall Football Club

Nickname: The Saddlers

Year Founded: 1888

Stadium: Poundland Bescot Stadium

Capacity: 11,300

2023/24 SEASON

Walsall’s 2023/24 season was very inconsistent. Mat Sadler’s side rarely put together a run of from to take them towards a play-off spot. They failed to progress past the first round of the Carabao Cup and group stage of the EFL Trophy. However, they did make the third round of the FA Cup – before falling to eventual Championship play-off winners Southampton. In December and February, the West Midlands side strung a few wins together as they started to look up the table. Unfortunately for Walsall, they only won three more times in their last 11 games to ruin any chances of the play-off. The Saddlers would ultimately have to settle for 11th place in League Two.

MANAGER

Mat Sadler made almost 600 appearances during his 20-year playing career, most known for his four-year stint at Shrewsbury Town. He also had two spells at Walsall from 2011 until 2012 and 2019 until 2022. Upon retirement, the former defender began his coaching career. In April 2023, Sadler became interim manager of Walsall after Michael Flynn’s departure. He was appointed permanent manager at the end of the 2022/23 camapign.

KEY PLAYER

Danny Johnson is an important figure in Walsall’s squad with a knack of knowing where the goal is. The striker has struggled with a couple of injuries recently and will be looking to be fit and firing for the new season.

Last season in numbers:

Appearances – 28

Goals – 6

Assists – 2

Yellow Cards – 1

Red Cards – 0

Minutes Played – 1,218

PLAYED FOR BOTH

In the summer of 2011, Craig Westcarr joined Chesterfield from fellow League One side Notts County. The striker scored 11 goals in 43 appearances in his first season at the club – including the clincher in the Johnstone’s Pain Trophy final at Wembley Stadium. The Spireites suffered relegation at the end of the 2011/12 campaign. Westcarr saw his game time diminish in the following season, and he secured a loan move to League One Walsall.

After impressing during his loan spell, playing 24 times and bagging five goals, Walsall signed the forward permanently ahead of the 2013/14 season. He scored an impressive 17 goals in 48 games. Westcarr left the club at the end of the campaign to join Portsmouth.

HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD

P 7     W 31     D 28     L 35

Since AFC Wimbledon reached the Football League, they have only had seven meetings with the Spireites. The six league fixtures ended with two wins for either side and two draws – both of the Blues wins came in 2013. Chesterfield has the slight edge in the head-to-head record thanks to the FA Cup victory in 2022.

PREVIOUS GAME

The two sides last met in March 2017 with Walsall aiming for a play-off place and Chesterfield sliding towards relegation from League One. The fixture was a close one with both teams creating chances. However, in the second half a corner was flicked onto the back post and Scott Laird tapped home from point-blank range.

Walsall photo courtesy of Paul Currie/Shutterstock