Tamworth 2 Walsall 3 - Report
Dylan Thomas scored an 89th-minute winner for Walsall as they edged to a 3-2 victory over Tamworth at the Lamb.
Kyle Finn dispatched a tidy finish into the bottom corner to open the scoring on 40 minutes, before Jamie Jellis found the top corner from distance against his former club to level the contest after the break.
Trialist D bent a stunning free-kick into the top corner to propel Walsall into the lead with 77 minutes on the clock but a Tamworth trialist equalised six minutes from time with a low drive from the edge of the box.
17-year-old Thomas delivered the decider at the death as he got in front of his marker to turn home a low cross from Trialist B.
Jellis captained a very young Walsall team on his Tamworth return, as Harry Williams, Evan Weir and Ronan Maher made up the rest of the senior contingent.
Walsall also fielded four trialists, three of which featured in the previous outing at Villa, but it was always Tamworth who were threatening to find the breakthrough.
Kyle Finn posed the biggest danger for the hosts and his floated free-kick set-up a crashing header from former Walsall man Callum Cockerill-Mollett which was tipped over the crossbar by Trialist A.
Finn broke the deadlock five minutes before half-time as he skipped away from the Walsall defence to latch onto a cushioned header and dispatch a confident finish past the onrushing Walsall goalkeeper.
Tamworth almost doubled their advantage on the cusp of half-time. Finn produced yet another inviting delivery but Jamie Willet's downward header was expertly tipped around the post by Trialist A.
Walsall were much improved after the break and Jellis levelled proceedings nine minutes after the restart with a long-range strike. The midfielder picked the ball up unmarked on the right and cut inside to unleash a curling effort into the far top corner from outside the box.
Trialist C had squandered two golden chances either side of Jellis' leveller when he headed Evan Weir's cross wide at the near post and failed to find the target again from Trialist B's swinging ball.
Walsall took the lead when Trialist D curled a beautiful free-kick over the wall and beyond the reach of Tamworth goalkeeper Leon Phillips as it nestled into the top corner.
But Tamworth responded seven minutes when a trialist emerged from the bench to smash a low finish into the bottom corner, but Thomas decided the contest in the dying stages when he converted a low cross from Trialist B.
Teams
Walsall (3-5-2): Trialist A; Wilkes, Williams, Weir; Thomas, Jellis (Preece 61), Bennett (Wragg 30), Maher (Oben 80), Trialist B; Trialist C, Trialist D.
Not used: Kilroy, Pawlowski, Beckford, Makavore, Leydon.
Referee: Rob Ellis
Attendance: 1,462
