Tranmere 1-3 Walsall – Player ratings

Jack Rose - 7

The goalkeeper recovered well from his mistake in midweek and was solid. He was not at fault for the goal and did not have much to do.

Cameron Norman - 7

The right-back is an essential cog in the Walsall machine, offensively and defensively. Perhaps he could have got forward more, but a good performance nonetheless.

Dan Scarr - 8

His first goal of the season and a battling, mature performance. One of Scarr’s best games this season.

James Clarke - 8

The skipper dealt with James Vaughan well and refused to be bullied. He possesses strength, pace and excellent positional awareness. Very close to a 9 rating.

Zak Jules - 9

In this writer’s opinion, a big shout for man-of-the-match. Jules was a colossus in defence and intelligent in attack. A superb performance.

Rory Holden - 8

An afternoon’s work that deserved a goal, Holden was brilliant. Intelligent on the ball, a lovely touch and unlucky not to score. His finishing was a little bit lacklustre in the opening minutes of the game.

Alfie bates - 8

In recent weeks Bates has become a reliable anchor in the midfield, sitting deepest and distributing the ball nicely. In this game he also got stuck in, very impressive for a young player.

Liam Kinsella - 7

The academy product does all the dirty work, and he does it well. Another playing adding consistency to his game but he often goes under the radar for the work he does. Another essential cog in the team.

Emmanuel Osadebe - 7

Following a slightly quiet first half, Osadebe was much more involved in the second. Again, perhaps unlucky not score. The talent is there and he has had good games in a Walsall shirt – more to come.

Wes McDonald - 9

Brilliant. There’s not enough superlatives. A first half assist followed by a second half wonder-strike, McDonald thrived. This is the standard he set last season and it has not been shown this year, until now. He needs to keep that up.

Elijah Adebayo - 8

The striker was expertly cunning to get his goal, with intelligent movement. Throughout the game he was a handful, as usual. Superb yet again and his mission is to keep adding the goals as the performances are there.

Substitutes

Josh Gordon (for Adebayo, 85), Stuart Sinclair (for Osadebe, 89), Jake Scrimshaw (for McDonald, 91).

Subs not used: Roberts, White, Guthrie, Lavery.