Dutton mixes things around as Saddlers earn a point on the road

In an entertaining match, Stevenage were held to a 1-1 draw against the visiting Walsall, who are still adapting to life under Brian Dutton.

The game was eventful, with big moments and talking points throughout. Walsall continued to try out a mixture of tactics, as Brian Dutton finds his and his teams style, forcing Stevenage to adapt too.

Walsall finding formation

Dutton has not been afraid to change it up for the Saddlers, and since taking over as Head Coach on Monday, has already set himself big targets, and shown a desire to grasp the opportunity that has presented itself.

Walsall started the game with a back three, with Cameron Norman and Max Melbourne playing as wing-backs. However, going forward, the midfield and attack had a different approach. Walsall started with two central midfielders, and three up top. The wingers were tucking in centrally, and allowing the wing-backs to press on.

Walsall took the lead in 14 seconds when Stevenage keeper, Jason Cumming, spent too long on the ball and Caolan Lavery slid in to block his clearance. The ball ended up in the top corner, giving Walsall a dream start.

Despite the early lead, the system meant the Saddlers were struggling to create, with Brian Dutton admitting post match that his “tactics weren’t helping the lads out there”.

Apart from the goal, Stevenage were dominating the play in the first half, with the Saddlers creating very little. Wes McDonald and Emmanuel Osadebe were very ineffective on the wings, and this meant that Boro were picking the ball up high up the pitch, and pushing from there.

Later in the half, Dutton switched things up, to a 4-1-4-1, which helped his side stop Stevenage creating, and force some openings themselves. This worked well, until Liam Kinsella’s red card, 10 minutes into the second half. The tackle was hard, and although he won the ball, the ref deemed it enough for a red card.

This forced Dutton to make another change, to a 4-4-1. The Saddlers defended resolutely, and although they did concede, they were good value for their point. Brian Dutton has work to do with the team, and with a game coming on Wednesday, he will be looking at continuing work on formations, to keep the opposition guessing.

Stand-out performances

Stevenage had several good chances throughout the game, and forced Liam Roberts into some high quality saves. Roberts made three key saves, including a spectacular save from an Elliot List header.

List was Stevenage’s best player, and was constantly pressuring the Saddlers defence. He scored a brilliant goal to earn Boro a point. List controlled a long ball, and twisted and turned to create some space. He then drilled a left footed effort into the bottom corner, which was well deserved.

Stevenage were controlling the midfield, thanks to the experienced Chris Lines. Lines was dominant, and dictated the play. His physicality was proving too much for what was a lightweight Saddlers midfield.

Mr Versatility

Cameron Norman covered every blade of grass for Walsall yesterday. He has been key for Brian Dutton, and the way he wants to change up the play. He started the game as a wing-back, then moved to a holding midfielder, before ending the game on the right wing.

Norman’s fitness means that he can adapt to any role. As a defender, he is strong, good at winning the ball back, and has a good pass too. He has only played in the holding midfield role twice, but the same skill-set helped to strengthen Walsall’s midfield, which isn’t particularly tall.

This season, Norman has been creating, with dangerous crosses, and link up play, which meant when Walsall needed him further forward, he was able to still play to a good standard. This is something that Dutton will be utilising, to keep the opposition guessing, and to allow him to mix it up during the game.

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