Walsall will return to cup action next week as they take on near rivals Shrewsbury Town in their first of three Vertu Trophy — Southern Group C games.Drawn alongside Shrewsbury, Northampton Town and Chelsea U21s, the Saddlers will be hoping to make some progress in a competition that saw them visit Wembley Stadium back in 2015.
The first round of games in Southern Group C got underway on Tuesday evening as the Shrews welcomed Chelsea to the Croud Meadow, and saw the home side earn their first win of the new campaign in any competition.
Since being relegated from League One last season, the Shrews has endured a difficult start to life in the fourth tier, losing four and drawing one of their five league games, as well as crashing out of the Carabao Cup at the first time of asking.
Falling behind to Shim Mheuka's 10th-minutes goal, Shrewsbury went on to score via Tommy McDermott (14'), John Marquis (65'), and Will Boyle (72'), to secure their place at the top of the group ahead of next week's game.