Don't forget to join us across our social media channels where we'll bring you all the matchday build-up, in-game updates, and post-match reaction as Walsall look to earn a somewhat unexpected win.
WALSALL NEWS, VIEWS & TEAM NEWS
After their midweek draw with Forest Green Rovers in the EFL Trophy, Walsall return to league action this weekend and go in search of their first win in three league games.
With last Saturday's painful four-nil defeat to then-bottom-of-the-table Sutton United still fresh in their minds, the players should have plenty of desire to put things right against the third-placed Gills.
There isn't much to be said for the Saddlers as of late, wasted opportunities and defensive errors unsurprisingly come at a cost, with the team currently sitting toward the bottom of the table, a far cry from where we'd have hoped to have seen the team, given the fairly successful Transfer Window.
Whatever happens this weekend, the players, staff, and boardroom simply must do better. On-field results and boardroom efforts must be amplified else the team will surely spend yet another season in the fourth tier...
After Rollin Menayese and Brandon Comley made their return to the matchday squad in midweek, Walsall's injury list is beginning to shorten with Priestley Farquharson (Achilles) and Jack Earing (knee) being the only first-team absentees.
Defender Liam Gordon will miss out as he is back out on international duty with Guyana.
OPPOSITION NEWS
Opponents Gillingham sit third in the table ahead of kick-off and, despite losing just two of their last six league games, recently sacked manager Neil Harris as their owners believe the team could be doing even better under the right man.
Though were not yet calling for change in the dugout in WS1, it's encouraging to see a boardroom willing to act in what they see as the best for the club, especially given the level of investment they've sunk into the club over recent months.
Whether their decision turns out to be charmed or cursed remains to be seen, but after years of seeing our boardroom sit in silence as the club slips ever further toward a seemingly inevitable place in the National League, we'd welcome that level of leadership.
MATCH FACTS
Walsall have kept a clean sheet in their last three matches against Gillingham in all competitions, and are undefeated in their last five matches against the Gills in all competitions.
Walsall Head Coach Mat Sadler is under increasing pressure as the Saddlers have secured just one win in their last six games, which leaves them 17th in League Two ahead of kick-off.
Gillingham have won once in their last five games since Neil Harris was removed as manager.
FORM IN FIVE
Here is how the Saddlers and their opponents Gillingham have fared in their last five Sky Bet League Two games.
WALSALL
|
GILLINGHAM |
LLWDL
| WLDLW
|
HEAD-TO-HEAD
The Saddlers and Gills have met on 178 occasions, and it's Gillingham that hold a minor Head-to-Head lead with forty-seven wins compared to the Saddlers' forty-six.
There have also been twenty-five draws between the two sides, with their first meeting taking place on Saturday, 24th September 1927 as they met in a Division Three (South) match which was played in front of some 6,923 Fellows Park fans, and ended in a 7-4 win for the Saddlers.
THE LAST TIME WE MET
The most recent meeting between the Saddlers and Gills was a League Two match that took place at the Poundland Bescot Stadium on Saturday, 18th March of this year and saw Walsall win two-nil.
Second-half goals from Isaac Hutchinson and Conor Wilkinson were enough to secure the points for the Saddlers.
MATCH OFFICIALS
The EFL has confirmed that Charles Breakspear who is based in Surrey, will be the man in the middle, whilst Alex Gray and Gareth Viccars have been named assistant referees. Marvyn Amphlett will act as Fourth Official.
GAMES OFFICIATED
|
10
|
YELLOW
CARDS |
RED
CARDS |
47
| 3
|
PENALTIES AWARDED
|
7
|
CATCH THE MATCH
If you're not planning on going to the game you can catch the match via the club's in-house service - iFollow Walsall - which takes you through the highs and lows of every Saddlers game.
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