Tom Bradshaw a boss' dream at Walsall
Manager Dean Smith today hailed Tom Bradshaw as a "manager's dream" and compared his top scorer to former Walsall favourite Will Grigg.
Bradshaw marked his return from a hamstring injury by netting his fifth goal of the season in Saturday's impressive 3-0 win over Doncaster Rovers.
And Smith reckons the 22-year-old's current form has echoes of that found by Grigg two years ago, when the Northern Irishman went on to score 20 goals in the season.
He said: "Tom is a terrific player and will get better.He reminds me of the form Will Grigg was in when he was here.
"He occupies two centre-backs – in fact at times he occupies the whole back four with his energetic running and was a big loss for the couple of games when he was out injured.
"I can't speak highly enough of him. He is a manager's dream in his attitude, application and professionalism. Everything about him is really good."
Smith felt there were numerous positives to take from Saturday's victory, not least the continued easing of his injury worries which saw a surprise place on the bench for summer signing Jordan Cook.
The forward had been out since pre-season with an ankle injury and the Saddlers boss now feels there is genuine competition for places.
Smith said: "I don't know if it had an effect on the 11 players who were playing but I could look over my shoulder and I had a really good subs bench to choose from.
"The players know they have got to play really well to keep their shirts. I had hoped to be in this position from the start of the season but we have had a lot of injuries.
"I have let the players know that when they are in the team they have to keep the shirt because there are some good players who want to get in that team."
