Walsall 3 Colchester 0 - Report

Khan came up with two goals before providing the assist for Jack Earing’s header, with Matt Taylor’s lot finding their shooting boots.

The Saddlers had gone six home games without victory while a frustrating combination of missing chances and letting in sloppy goals had regularly let them down.

But you could not fault them in this one. Their three goals were wonderfully crafted and when put under pressure for a period of the second half, they held firm.

Khan opened the scoring as he got on the end of Brendan Kiernan’s sublime cross, opening his Walsall account in the process. He would then hammer in a second before the break.

The away side made a better start to the second period and were unlucky not to pull a goal back as Junior Tchamadeu hit the woodwork.

But the Saddlers made sure of the win as Earing, teed up by Khan, nodded home.

This was a welcome victory in front of old boss Chris Nicholl, who was the club’s guest for the day. He suffers from dementia and lives with his family in Southampton, but waved to fans on the pitch at half-time.

An excellent afternoon for Walsall, who sit 12th in League Two and five points outside the play-offs.

Fingers crossed, they can build on it at Swindon Town next weekend.

Report

Walsall held a memorial service outside the ground before the game for all the supporters lost through the pandemic, with boss Taylor paying his respects.

On the pitch, there were four changes from the 1-1 draw with Crawley. Skipper Joss Labadie, as expected, was absent after going off in that game with a groin problem.

But he was joined on the sidelines by Manny Monthe and Conor Wilkinson while Kieran Phillips dropped to the bench.

Liam Kinsella, Ash Taylor, George Miller and Khan came in for the Saddlers.

Colchester's experienced line-up, meanwhile, included ex-West Ham striker Freddie Sears and former Bournemouth full-back Charlie Daniels.

Walsall made an encouraging start to the clash, with Khan busy down the right flank.

He won a free-kick on the edge of the area and decided to take it – his curling effort headed behind for a corner by Colchester centre-half Luke Chambers.

The Saddlers, while not creating a clear-cut chance, mostly kept the visitors penned in for the opening quarter of an hour. They were pressing well.

The U's were not offering much at all and soon enough, Walsall took the lead.

Kiernan drove to the byline and fizzed a delightful ball into the corridor of uncertainty, where fellow winger Khan gratefully tapped it home. A welcome shift from the long-running trend of missing golden opportunities.

Colchester would give the home side a couple of scares as Luke Hannant headed into the arms of Carl Rushworth.

Miller – trying to defend a set piece – then inadvertently headed the ball towards his own goal, forcing Rushworth into a sharp reaction save.

The Saddlers on the whole, though, remained in the ascendancy.

A beautifully-worked move saw Stephen Ward and Kiernan combine to set up Earing, whose effort was blocked.

And while that passage of play did not quite come off for Walsall, the next one did.

Ward, having more of an attacking influence than in previous weeks, sent over a cross from the left flank. The ball would then fall at the feet of Khan, who emphatically drilled it beyond helpless Colchester keeper Jake Turner.

The Saddlers could have gone into the break with a third had it not been for a loose touch from Miller, after he was slipped in by Emmanuel Osadebe.

They could reflect on a fine first 45 minutes, and the message from head coach Taylor would simply have been to continue as they were.

A lovely moment at the interval saw former promotion-winning manager Nicholl take to the pitch and wave to supporters.

As the second period got going, Walsall benefitted from a huge slice of luck. Tchamadeu's shot squirmed underneath Rushworth but, somehow, did not go in.

The ball cannoned off the far post and back into Rushworth's arms, very much suggesting this would be the Saddlers' day.

The U's carried on applying pressure as Hannant's shot sailed narrowly wide. Sears was also denied by Rushworth from an acute angle.

But, ultimately, the hosts would weather that spell and put the result beyond any doubt with a fantastic third.

Miller dropped deep, lifted his head and spotted the run of Khan. He then cushioned the ball into the path of Earing, who nodded it underneath Turner.

Another silky move almost brought a fourth as substitute Phillips crossed to Miller, whose header was tipped over by Turner.

The final few minutes then saw Shay Willock make his league debut as the Saddlers strolled to victory.

A thoroughly-deserved three points and Taylor will be delighted.

Teams

Walsall (4-2-3-1): Rushworth; White, Menayese, Taylor, Ward (c); Kinsella, Earing; Khan, Osadebe (Phillips, 74), Kiernan (Perry, 78), Miller (Willock, 85)

Subs not used: Rose (gk), Leak, Sadler, Mills

Goals: Khan (21, 32), Earing (66)

Colchester (4-2-3-1): Turner; Tchamadeu, Chambers, Smith (c), Daniels; Wiredu, Skuse; Hannant (Dobra, 67), Judge (McCouldky, 67), Jasper; Sears

Subs not used: Gerken (gk), Eastman, Coxe, Thomas, Cooper

Attendance: 4,065 (150 Colchester fans)

Referee: Martin Coy