Match report based on Saddlersworld commentary. Report may not reflect actual game.
Three minutes of stoppage time and a couple of heart-stoppers from Ince drew the curtain on this otherwise dull encounter on the South Coast.
Walsall lined up in a 451 formation, hoping to emulate the success off recent road trips, but failed to gain the traction from kick-off that they needed. At the 19 minute mark, in the first real chance of the game, Kuffour gave Bournemouth a lead they barely deserved, after Gerrard and Fox got confused as to who was covering who, allowing a cross to find Kuffour, who gave Ince no chance at close range.
Walsall’s game was based on two wide men, Sonko and Demontagnac, but too often they found themselves compressed in the middle of the park, and this, coupled with the respect given to a poor Bournemouth team, meant that for large parts of the game we were starved of possession, and had no outlet when we did find the ball.
The game meandered along as Dicky Dosh turned to hisbench to get things moving our way, with Hall replacing Sonko and then Deeney for Dobson and McDermott for Demontagnac. We finally started playing at around the 80 minute mark, with two up front and some decent possession. The goal came after Deeney(?) started a lively run, and had his attempted shot/cross fall to McDermott. He managed to lay the ball off to Wrack, whose shot hit the onion bag for a share of the spoils.
It sounds as though this was a very poor performance, but at a desperate Bournemouth it may have been arrogant to expect them to hand over all 3 points. Maybe if the Saddlers learn to go in for the tackle, and play to the width of the pitch, they’ll have better luck next time.
