Walsall could be set for a Troy Deeney windfall
Walsall could be set for a surprise £150,000 windfall should former favourite Troy Deeney and Watford reach the Premier League.
The Hornets travel to Leicester tonight for the first leg of their Championship play-off semi-final and the Saddlers hierarchy will be cheering them on.
That's because the Saddlers will receive a cash boost if Watford reach the top flight, thanks to the deal which took Deeney from the Banks's Stadium in August 2010.
Deeney's transfer fee was around £500,000 but the deal included a clause which would see Walsall receive £150,000 should the striker fire the Hornets to promotion in the final on May 27.
Such an unexpected cash injection would no doubt be gratefully received at the Banks's and could further boost boss Dean Smith's coffers as he looks to build on a successful season in League One.
After earning a one-year contract extension after bagging 12 goals last season, 24-year-old Deeney has been in excellent form.
Throughout the current campaign, he has scored 19 goals as the Hornets narrowly missed out on automatic promotion.
But, ironically, the striker could be deemed partly to blame for the Saddlers' money not being in the bag already.
Deeney was sent off for two bookable offences as Gianfranco Zola's side chased the victory which would have seen them take second spot and win automatic promotion on a dramatic final day of the Championship season.
Without their talisman, the Hornets slumped to a 2-1 defeat at home to Leeds United, allowing Hull City to cling on to second with a 2-2 draw against Cardiff City.
A former Villa trainee, Deeney joined the Saddlers in August 2006 and spent time on loan at Halesowen Town before making it into the first team, where he scored 27 goals in 95 appearances before making the move south.
He made headlines for the wrong reasons last June, being sentenced to 10 months in prison after pleading guilty to charges of affray. He was released last September after serving three months.
The second leg of the play-off semi-final takes place at Vicarage Road on Sunday, with the winners facing either Crystal Palace or Brighton in the final at Wembley on May 27.
