Walsall comment: Matt Taylor gone and no room for error with next appointment
This should be a time for introspection for plenty of people at Walsall – mistakes have been made and Matt Taylor has lost his job.
The young, ambitious head coach who was supposed to be at the forefront of an exciting new era is gone after just eight months. Clearly, things have gone wrong.
Promotion, or at least competing for it, was what chairman Leigh Pomlett spoke about last summer – and even alluded to on a few occasions afterwards.
But instead, the Saddlers are only four points above the drop zone and in serious danger of dropping out of the Football League for the first time in their history.
That's down to collective failures across the board, not just the shortcomings of Taylor.
Of course, Taylor played his part in Walsall's slide towards the bottom of League Two.
He is the one who picks the team and after seven straight defeats, the last coming at 10-man basement boys Scunthorpe United on Tuesday, his position had become untenable.
The performances had been shambolic for far too long, and the downright disastrous Iron loss was the last straw. The situation had reached the point of no return.
However, it would be completely unfair to solely point the finger at the 40-year-old.
Taylor made errors along the way – sticking to a 4-2-3-1 formation for as long as he did, and leaving the passionate Liam Kinsella out of the team for a significant spell springing to mind.
Such events, though, were always going to happen given that it was his first proper senior role. He was quite literally learning on the job.
A factor that very much appears to have contributed to the Saddlers' downfall and Taylor's dismissal is the recruitment, overseen by technical director Jamie Fullarton.
Naturally, when making 13 new signings over the close season, not all of them are going to be a resounding success.
But you would still hope for more to turn out well than not and, really, you can count on one hand those who have been truly worth their salt.
Walsall's transfer dealings in January did Taylor no favours either.
Having lost both Otis Khan and Kieran Phillips, while also being dealt the bitter blow of another injury setback to Rory Holden, the Saddlers went out and got striker Devante Rodney – who Fullarton managed at Halifax Town – from Port Vale.
On the face of it, it was an exciting signing and, in fairness, he has the potential to be a fine player down the line.
But, crucially, he came in carrying an injury.
Taylor needed an immediate boost in a bid to stop the rot but could not call on Rodney for either of the losses to Northampton Town or Scunthorpe, and had to chuck winger Tyrese Shade up front for the latter.
Some of the players, too, need to thoroughly reflect on the work, or lack of it, they have done.
As said before, a lot of them have played at higher levels, or at least previously competed at the right end of this division, but they have fallen short time and time again. They need to take accountability for their actions.
Now, attention will naturally turn to who might replace Taylor.
At this stage, it is unclear whether the Saddlers will go for a similar head coach – someone youthful who is looking to work his way up – or for more of a firefighter, so to speak, with the primary aim being to get out of the sheer mess they are in.
Either way, you could easily argue this is the biggest appointment of the club's existence.
Fullarton has been tasked with finding the right person and, make no mistake, the pressure is on the Scot.
Pomlett, too, has to do everything in his power to ensure they get this right as his reign as chairman is undoubtedly going through its most rocky spell yet.
He says he is sure that 'the good times will come back', but the three bosses he has had so far – for various reasons – have not worked out. That trend cannot carry on.
One crumb of positivity is that Walsall have 17 matches left this season. There is time to pull clear of trouble.
But in the here and now, they are firmly in a relegation battle, and they simply have to get this next appointment spot on.
Getting a tune out of the squad is easier said than done. But it must be done else the Saddlers will end up in non-league and there, the club's prospects would look very bleak indeed.
So, over to you Walsall.
There is no room for error with this next appointment.
The mistakes must not be repeated as this really is as big as it gets.
