Walsall Under-18s returned to action on Tuesday afternoon as they made the trip North and faced Accrington Stanley in their final EFL Youth Alliance outing of the season.
After enduring a difficult campaign, the young Saddlers had struggled to make much of an impact upon any of the competitions they entered in 2021/22 as the club's academy went through something of a transitional period, attention turned to Stanley.
Looking to end their campaign with a win, the Reds started the game well and went on to take the lead as Rio Sawyers got on the end of Ronan Maher's well-placed free-kick, Maher continuing his superb campaign which has seen him enter a string of superb performances.
Unfortunately for the Saddlers, they weren't able to hold on to their lead as the team, which included several first-year scholars and a group of under-15s, conceded an equalising goal on the stroke of half-time, some poor defending leaving the goalkeeper stranded.
The sloppiness in the backline continued in the second forty-five as the Saddlers gave away a penalty fifteen-minutes into the half, with the home side more than happy to take advantage and with it, the lead.
There were no further goals as the Saddlers slipped to defeat once again, their position at the bottom of the table already confirmed and plenty of work to do over the summer months.
FT
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ASFC
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2-1
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WFC
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Sawyers (12')
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AT
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Stanley Sports Hub
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