The ‘Carefree’ campaign under Jan Sorensen that thrilled Walsall fans
The late Jan Sorensen spent just one season at Walsall but as he promised at his unveiling, “it was far from boring”.
The 1997-98 season saw Walsall narrowly miss out on Wembley in the Auto Windscreens Shield. It also included a 7-0 thrashing of Macclesfield Town, giant-killings over Nottingham Forest and Sheffield United in the League Cup and a trip to Manchester United at Old Trafford in the FA Cup, which ended 5-1 to the soon-to-be treble winners.
And who can forget Roger Boli’s overhead kick from Jeff Peron’s pinpoint cross? The first of his famous treble against Southend United, ranked by many as the best goal ever witnessed at the Bescot.
If it was fun to watch then, it was a dream for those who played under him, as former Walsall man Chris Marsh recalled.
“It was a carefree era,” Marsh reflects. “His methods were different, compared to Chris Nicholl. We always used to go out and play.
“They were crazy times. It was a fun time and he was a big character, a lovely man.
“Even Sir Alex Ferguson said he loved how we went to Old Trafford and just played. We didn’t go there to defend and it sums Jan up.
