Heading into the match on the back of their recent Central League Cup defeat to Rotherham United, the Saddlers; second string were looking to make more inroads in the league, as they took on Stanley at the Wham Stadium.
With the first-team taking on Bradford City later in the evening, development phase coach Ben King named an inexperienced team with Joe Willis, who is currently on loan with Bromsgrove Sporting, joining his younger colleagues in the squad.
ACCRINGTON STANLEY TEAM
Isherwood; Rodgers, Sykes, Procter, Perritt, Martin, Mansell, Longelo, Patrick, Nolan, Morgan
Substitutes: Hood; Hardy, Woods, Adekoya, Poilly
Substitutes: Hood; Hardy, Woods, Adekoya, Poilly
WALSALL TEAM
Jackson; Simcox, Baldwin, Sawyers, Angafor, Worley, Maher, Cristofaro, Onabirekhanlen, Willis, Derry
Substitutes: Hedge; Taylor, Shaw, Edwards
Substitutes: Hedge; Taylor, Shaw, Edwards
Accrington, who named former Saddlers winger Jack Nolan amongst their ranks, enjoyed a strong start to the game, with Nolan being part of a group of players looking to get forward and attack during the opening stages.
Ross Sykes was the first Stanley man to try his luck as on goal as he rose highest to meet Dan Martin's whipped corner ball, only to see his header drift just wide of the Walsall goal.
Nolan then got himself back in the action; first with a deflected free-kick which resulted in an eventually cleared corner, then via a volley which had Tommy Jackson scrambling but eventually went wide of goal.
The first goal of the game arrived after thirty-two minutes of play as Harry Perritt and Lewis Mansell combined for the latter to slot the ball past Jackson in the Walsall goal. Mansell making no mistake after having a goal ruled out for offside just moments earlier.
Not long after Perritt had forced Jackson into a fine save, the home side doubled their advantage via a familiar face as Jack Nolan put Stanley into a bigger lead as he sent the ball home via a long-range effort which caught Jackson off guard and gave the Saddlers an uphill task for the second forty-five.
HT
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ASFC
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2-0
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WFC
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Stanley were soon back into their attacking rhythm and added a third and fourth goal mere minutes into the second-half.
The first goal arrived courtesy of Jack Nolan, the former Saddler showing great finishing as he slotted the ball home. Nolan also played a part in Accrington's fourth as he was able to evade his man before putting midfielder Martin in on goal, a great start to the half for the home side.
The home side's fifth goal arrived at the hour mark as the ever-present Nolan fired a ball into the area, where it was met by Perritt headed home. A disappointing spell for the inexperienced Saddlers.
Despite their hosts' dominance, the Saddlers were able to make the odd venture towards the other half of the pitch, with Stanley stopper Liam Isherwood doing well to deny Walsall substitute Lucas Edwards.
Unfortunately for the Saddlers, their attacking endeavours were in vain as Accrington were soon able to add a sixth with Ross Sykes putting the ball into the back of the net from distance. A disappointing goal to concede for Jackson, as the youngster had produced a fine save to deny Josh Woods just moments earlier.
The home side's seventh goal arrived around four minutes after their sixth as Sykes once again got the batter of the Saddlers backline to further increase his team's lead, with plenty of time remaining for yet more goals.
Despite the time for more goals, there were none as Stanley shuffled the pack and the Saddlers' defence held out on what was a disappointing awayday at the Wham.
FT
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ASFC
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7-0
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WFC
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Mansell (32') Nolan (42', 47') Martin (49') Perritt (60') Sykes (66', 70')
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AT
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Wham Stadium
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