Analysis: Mat Sadler's Walsall goal machine continues to fire
Walsall demonstrated their ruthless streak in front of goal once again to put Grimsby Town to the sword for the second time in 2024.
Blundell Park has become a happy hunting ground for Walsall of late. They scored six in a memorable 6-1 crushing of the Mariners on New Year’s Day and emerged with another four on their latest visit.
That rout has propelled Walsall to the top of the scoring charts in League Two with a formidable tally of 23 goals. It was also the third time that Mat Sadler’s men have scored four goals in a single match this term.
The performance across the 90 demonstrated the biggest differences between this season and last.
Walsall conceded first in 19 of their 23 away fixtures during the previous campaign. In contrast, they’ve scored first in four of their opening six on the road this season.
Admittedly, Walsall looked flat for the opening 30 minutes. Grimsby dominated possession but failed to translate their bright start into clear-cut chances on Tommy Simkin’s goal.
To their credit, Walsall remained disciplined out of possession to keep Grimsby at bay despite the fact that things were yet to click for them on the ball.
Grimsby had hardly laid a glove on Walsall by the time Simkin went down just past the half-hour and Sadler utilised the stoppage in play to regroup and fire some instructions at his players.
