Mat Sadler praises Walsall character after comeback win

Walsall fell behind on 21 minutes when James Bessey-Saldanha opened fire from range to find the top corner.

But Walsall responded with an equaliser from Douglas James-Taylor, before Tom Knowles' delightful strike gave them the lead after the break.

And Sadler was delighted with his side's response after eighth tier Sheppey stunned them in the first half.

"I think they did exactly what we asked them to do, and we got the shock of our lives amongst it all," Sadler observed.

"It would've been really easy for that to be the catalyst of something that it never needed to be.

"We've got a great group there. I thought the athleticism of us in the end coupled with the quality proved to be the difference.

"I was really pleased with everything they did and I thought they were really professional."

Sheppey goalkeeper Aidan Prall produced a string of saves to keep the score down, but Ross Tierney and Isaac Hutchinson wrapped up the win to send Walsall into the next round.

Sadler believes Walsall grew in confidence as the game developed, and were clinical at the key moments to get the win over the line.

"Their goalkeeper had a fantastic match, and I think he got man of the match, and rightly so," he said.

"On another night, a few more of those go in. We want to be clinical and we were once the game grew on.

"We had to show that and I am really pleased. Now, I am looking forward to who we get in the next round."