Walsall show benefits of break

Swindon 0 Walsall 3

If there was ever a compelling argument for the implementation of a mid-season break in the football calendar, this display from Walsall was it, writes Sean Calvert.

Having been forced to put their feet up last weekend due to Bristol Rovers' continuing involvement in the FA Cup, the Saddlers came out of the blocks at the County Ground at frightening speed and with a level of freshness and commitment that Robins manager Maurice Malpas could only lament after the match.

Several Saddlers players and the manager himself had gone on record during the week to suggest that the temporary curtailment in their campaign might turn out to be of benefit to them and they were spot on in that prediction.

The 11-day absence from League One action meant that the likes of Tommy Mooney and Darren Wrack could return to the side fully refreshed and their experience is vital to the Saddlers in many ways.

Mooney's presence and goal threat up front is much missed when he is unable to take to the field and Wrack's experience and vocal prompting in the middle of the park is extremely beneficial to the younger players around him, such as Mark Bradley, who had a fine match before becoming the victim of a poor late tackle from the frustrated Swindon striker Simon Cox.

The vice-captain's influence allowed Bradley to impose himself on this match from the first kick of the game when he was involved in the move that led to Walsall netting within the first 60 seconds.

Although for reasons best known to himself, the referee's assistant decided to flag for offside to cancel out the goal – but Walsall had laid down a signal of their intent from which Swindon never really recovered.

The scoreline in the end did not flatter the Saddlers one bit and in truth they could have had one or two more, such was their dominance and it has to be said the feeble display of the home side.

Walsall, as convincingly as they won, rarely had to get out of third gear to do it and they will probably play better than this and lose between now and the end of the season, but it could also be argued that Swindon performed as well as they were allowed to by the endeavour and skill of the Saddlers.

This victory raised them to fifth in the League One table and they will be looking to use the momentum of this result to take maximum points from their next three matches, which are on paper eminently winnable, against Luton, Northampton and Brighton.

They may need to have points from those fixtures in the bank before they visit the City Ground and Elland Road in consecutive weeks immediately afterwards.

There will almost certainly be new faces in the squad before they embark upon that series of fixtures, as a striker and centre-half are being actively sought by Money, but on the evidence of Saturday they will have to wait their turn in line to get themselves a shirt.

After suffering the disappointment of having what appeared to be a perfectly lawful goal disallowed before many of the spectators had recovered from the disorientation of negotiating the bizarre 'Magic Roundabout' outside the ground to take their seats, the Saddlers set about their task with vigour.

Kevin Betsy and Mooney renewed a strike partnership last seen on occasion at Wycombe Wanderers and combined to great effect, causing Hasney Aljofree and Jerel Ifil all sorts of problems.

Betsy in particular was prominent in the early stages and it was an ill-judged tackle on the versatile Bristol City loanee that led to the Saddlers opening goal.

The quality of Lee Holmes' contributions from set-pieces has been a key component in Walsall's continued presence in and around the top six in recent times and his left-footed effort was as good as anything you will see in the Premier League, as he left Paul Smith in the Swindon goal grasping at thin air in the 11th minute.

The fact that they had effectively conceded twice in the first 11 minutes and failed to construct anything of any note themselves effectively knocked the stuffing out of Swindon and the game was over as a contest when Holmes added a second just before the hour mark.

In truth, one goal would probably have been enough for Walsall, such was the insipid display from their hosts, who had trudged down the tunnel at half-time with their supporters' boos of derision ringing loudly in their ears.

They at least showed a modicum of resolve in the second period, but it came in the form of petulant lunges, borne out of frustration with the lack of cohesion in their own performance.

It was on one of these occasions that referee Ward was called upon to sprint fully 50 yards to separate an impassioned Miguel Comminges from Mooney in an incident that saw both players booked.

The flare-up momentarily brought the crowd and Swindon to life, but Richard Money took the sting out of the situation by having the luxury of removing Mooney from the action to keep him in prime condition for next week's trip to Luton.

Mooney's replacement, Alex Nicholls, showed his growing effectiveness from the bench late on in games by capitalising on a rebound after Smith had saved well from Betsy to add the third, which saw a mini-exodus from the disgruntled hordes of the County Ground faithful, who had seen more than enough for one day.

The Walsall fans just behind the dugouts on the other hand displayed their joy by way of saluting Money in song.

And on this display it is a sight that will be witnessed and heard with more regularity as the promotion campaign gains momentum.