Walsall manager Jon Whitney has spoken to club journalists following Saturday afternoon's pre-season defeat to Solihull Moors and has admitted that there are lessons to be learned ahead of the 2017/18 campaign but also praised his side as they came through the game unscathed.
46-year-old Whitney, who was speaking via Saddlers.co.uk, said; "It was all about getting minutes into the lads and 45 minutes under their belts. Today was all about coming off the back of Cassius. We worked them hard yesterday and we knew they’d be a bit leggy.
"We worked them hard yesterday – we got around 6-7,000 metres into them – and we’ve got through today without any soft tissue injuries. There were some pluses and it was great for the new lads to get their first game in front of the fans – it gave them a look at the four new signings.
"For the young lads, it shows them the standard. This is conference level and maybe that’s the level we’ll be looking to put them some of them out at. It’s a learning curve for some of them. We got done from set-pieces in the second half and there was a bit of naivety from some of the younger players, mistakes, but that’s what it’s for.
"We came through it unscathed and we’ve got the new lads blooded in now. We can learn from that, start to analyse it and break it down into areas we can improve on, try to develop partnerships. As we go through the next few games, we’ll look to play a more experienced and settled team."