......on the road......
No.22 - Walsall
- Journey there? Left Wrexham in the car at 1pm, arriving in Walsall at 2.20pm.
- The town? We parked the car at the ground and went for a walk around it before going in, so I didn’t see the town.
- Ground? Built in 1990, the Bescot stadium is a small purpose-built out-of-town stadium with a 9,000 capacity. You are very close to the pitch wherever you go and the visitors are allocated a seated section behind the goal.
- Admission price? £14/£10 concessions.
- The game? A game of two halves. In the first half Wrexham were poor defending, with not much attacking, and Walsall were creating a lot of chances and scored twice - both by Tom Bennett. In the second half Wrexham defended better and attacked - creating more chances and securing a three-goal comeback with Trundle scoring on his starting debut. Nine minutes later, Russell equalised with a 25-yard screamer after a pitch- length run by Gibson to set him up. A through ball by Barrett in injury time set Lee Trundle on a 50-yard run and shot, to be denied by a defender's clearance; Trundle then set up Faulconbridge’s winner for his seventh goal of the season.
- Our fans? Very loud and very well behaved, creating a brilliant atmosphere in a compact ground.
- Their fans? Second in the league and didn’t cheer much in the first half. Most missed Faulconbridge’s winner, leaving before the end to beat the traffic… expecting a draw!
- Post-match goings on? A celebration in the ground before walking back to the car for the…
- Journey back? I ate a packed lunch while listening to the moaning Saddlers fans on BBC WM on the radio. Arrived back in Wrexham at 6.20pm.1
DAVID JENNINGS