Walsall Coach Lee Grant Praises Encouraging Signs in Pre-Season Draw with Notts County
The Performance of Walsall
Lee Grant, the head coach of Walsall, has expressed satisfaction after his team's goalless draw against Notts County during their pre-season friendly. The match took place at Bescot and marked one of Walsall’s best performances in preparation for the upcoming competitive season.
The Saddlers have struggled to score goals in recent friendlies played before supporters but showed a significant improvement during this game. Key moments included Lewis Simper's close-range effort being blocked, Andrew Dallas' speculative shot narrowly missing the target, and Dallas forcing a save from Notts County’s James Belshaw early in the second half.
Grant’s Assessment of Walsall’s Performance
Grant highlighted several positive aspects of the match. He noted that Walsall played against a team from a higher league level, which is always challenging. The coach was particularly pleased with the intensity and tactical discipline shown by his players during the game.
"Lots of encouraging signs," Grant said. "We’re playing a team in the league above, which is never easy. A team that has probably taken good momentum into the season off the back of a positive ending to last."
He also praised the adaptability and variety among his attacking options, mentioning Reece Smith’s promising performance on his Bescot debut and Andrew Dallas’ threat around half-time.
Goals and Improvement Areas
While Grant was happy with the team's overall display, he acknowledged that scoring goals remains a key area for improvement. The Saddlers created several good opportunities but failed to convert them into goals.
"We think we’ve got forwards that can do lots of different things for us and offer us lots of adaptability in terms of their position and their role," Grant explained. "All of the forwards showed that today. That’s really pleasing, we want to see more of it because probably the piece that was missing today was the goal.
Grant concluded by emphasizing the need for continuous improvement: "Like anything, you have to look at how we can improve on it. We’re not also expecting this group to come together and be all singing and dancing from day one, because we’re working with a group that’s 50 per cent or maybe more, brand new.
But for sure, when we have an opportunity like today presented, we played really well, had lots of the football and created good opportunities. We want to win those sorts of games, so it's something for us to look at and work on."
