Mat Sadler: First goal key in Walsall win as boss hails squad's attitude

Five second half goals delivered a thriller as the Magpies were seen off 3-2 by a deserving Walsall, for whom Taylor Allen, George Hall and Nathan Lowe were on target.

The Saddlers led 2-0 and 3-1 and at neither stage looked like the visitors would equalise in a clash between the second and fifth-placed sides ahead of kick-off.

Walsall looked set to climb to the top of League Two but for Port Vale's last-gasp equaliser elsewhere - but Walsall's commendable response from Saturday's FA Cup exit to Charlton is the perfect way to set up Saturday's mouth-watering top-of-the-table clash at Vale Park, where the visitors will be backed by at least 2,700 travelling fans.

"It was a good game! The first goal was always going to be really important, it opened up the way that Notts County play, they have a really good style, they're patient on the ball, wait for you to try to jump and create overloads wide," Sadler said. "They did that once in the first half to hurt us.

"We had some good opportunities, they got good blocks in and we didn't quite take our chances.

"In the second half we had to show a different side, weathered a bit of a storm - which you will get in every game - and the first goal was really important. It sped up their play, made them move the ball quicker which helped us pick it off a few times."

Notts started the second half brightly following a limited first half and went close on a couple of occasions before Walsall rallied during a team talk while goalkeeper Tommy Simkin received treatment.

Defender Allen broke the deadlock netting directly from a corner before on-loan Blues midfielder Hall slotted in with a fine finish for the second. Veteran David McGoldrick's penalty halved the deficit before impressive top scorer Lowe bagged a deserved goal for Walsall's third. The Magpies' Jack Hinchy struck what proved a consolation in stoppage time - though Simkin did make a stunning acrobatic save to keep out Nick Tsaroulla at the death.

The Walsall boss added:  "I thought our out-of-possession work was outstanding. I thought we worked incredibly hard, Hally, Charlie (Lakin), Ryan (Stirk), as well as the strikers Jamma (Matt), Lowey and Albert (Adomah) put in incredible work for the team. The defenders had to be really smart against proper forwards and attackers.

"It was a good performance, a little bit jittery at the end, probably gave it what the game deserved because it was such a good game. Tommy's save at the end finished it off as a spectacle. A cracking game, not one if you've got a dodgy ticker! It was end-to-end and fast faced."