Jon Whitney pleased with Walsall despite West Brom defeat

The Saddlers slipped to a 2-1 loss against the Baggies in a keenly contested friendly at the Banks’s Stadium.

Whitney’s men dominated the first half but fell behind to a Sean Donnellan goal shortly after the interval.

Amadou Bakyoko pulled Walsall level with a little over 10 minutes to play.

But a wonderful finish from Hal Robson Kanu, on the stroke of full-time, won the tie for the Baggies.

Overall though, Whitney was pleased with how his team is progressing – with the League One season just 10 days away.

“If I was told I would be going into Lincoln with an almost fully-fit squad I would have been pleased with that,” the boss said.

“When you look at our levels, West Brom are known for their fitness and their defensive shape and discipline but I felt we matched them which is very pleasing for myself and my staff.

“It was a very useful exercise. I thought we looked strong and finished the stronger team. I know they scored late on but it was against the run of play.

“Once we got going we turned the screw a bit. Some of the play was fantastic. And the defender, from the front, was very good.

“The application was first class for this stage of pre-season and all the stuff we are doing in training is coming into play.

“It was pleasing. We had a few kicks. We had to look after Luke (Leahy) at half-time. Joe (Edwards) got a stamp on his foot. But they are fine. We will brush them down and be fine for the weekend.”

Whitney was also pleased with his new centre-back pairing of James Wilson and Jon Guthrie.

“The partnership they are forming is really pleasing,” he added.

“We looked at them when doing our recruitment because we thought they would give us balance.

“They give us a presence, they compete for first balls and they are also a threat from set-pieces.

“I am very pleased for them but right throughout the team I thought the application was great.”