Walsall were back in action on Saturday afternoon as they welcomed Notts County to the Pallet-Track Bescot Stadium for a pre-season friendly.The first opening of the contest went the way of the Saddlers when recent arrival Reece Smith delivered a cross into the box where on-loan Coventry City man Isaac Moore was only able to send a header over the bar.
Just a few minutes later the visitors also saw a header go off target when Luke Ness headed into Jed Ward's side netting from a tight angle.
Straight after the attack Walsall looked to catch their opponents going back up the pitch but Lewis Simper struggled to find a teammate in space as County recovered.
Later, Isaac Moore was back in the thick of it as he managed to battle through some challenges before looking to send Andrew Dallas through on goal, sadly the pass didn't quite work as play continued.
The next attack went to the way of the visitors when Callum Roberts broke down the Walsall left, where he sent a ball across the box into the path of Emile Acquah, he looked to toe-poke the ball home but Ryan Leak was on hand to clear the danger.
Walsall continued to prod and probe for a goal, and saw Smith deliver another promising cross, but none of his teammates were able to get on the end of his delivery.
The Saddlers haven't exactly set the world alight over pre-season, with the on-going goal-drought causing concern, this looked to be made worse when Dallas required treatment on the pitch, thankfully he was able to continue, but will no doubt have had head coach Lee Grant keeping a keen eye on hi for the rest of the contest.
Walsall's backline weren't only active in the final third but also looked to contribute in attack as Mason Hancock sent a ball across the pitch to Elicha Ahui, who collected the ball before finding Dallas in space, his effort gathered by former Walsall academy prospect James Belshaw in the County goal.
Having grown into the game, Walsall's next attacking attempt saw Aaron Pressley hold the ball up for strike partner Dallas, with the former Barnsley man sending a low effort into the box where Lewis Simper saw an effort blocked.
In terms of efforts on goal, the Saddlers rounded off the half with a long-range Dallas effort that didn't trouble the 'keeper, his radar not quite ready as we close in on the new season.
Ryan Leak become the next Saddler to sample the treatment methods of the physio before the referee signalled for the half-time break.
Just a few minutes later the visitors also saw a header go off target when Luke Ness headed into Jed Ward's side netting from a tight angle.
Straight after the attack Walsall looked to catch their opponents going back up the pitch but Lewis Simper struggled to find a teammate in space as County recovered.
Later, Isaac Moore was back in the thick of it as he managed to battle through some challenges before looking to send Andrew Dallas through on goal, sadly the pass didn't quite work as play continued.
The next attack went to the way of the visitors when Callum Roberts broke down the Walsall left, where he sent a ball across the box into the path of Emile Acquah, he looked to toe-poke the ball home but Ryan Leak was on hand to clear the danger.
Walsall continued to prod and probe for a goal, and saw Smith deliver another promising cross, but none of his teammates were able to get on the end of his delivery.
The Saddlers haven't exactly set the world alight over pre-season, with the on-going goal-drought causing concern, this looked to be made worse when Dallas required treatment on the pitch, thankfully he was able to continue, but will no doubt have had head coach Lee Grant keeping a keen eye on hi for the rest of the contest.
Walsall's backline weren't only active in the final third but also looked to contribute in attack as Mason Hancock sent a ball across the pitch to Elicha Ahui, who collected the ball before finding Dallas in space, his effort gathered by former Walsall academy prospect James Belshaw in the County goal.
Having grown into the game, Walsall's next attacking attempt saw Aaron Pressley hold the ball up for strike partner Dallas, with the former Barnsley man sending a low effort into the box where Lewis Simper saw an effort blocked.
In terms of efforts on goal, the Saddlers rounded off the half with a long-range Dallas effort that didn't trouble the 'keeper, his radar not quite ready as we close in on the new season.
Ryan Leak become the next Saddler to sample the treatment methods of the physio before the referee signalled for the half-time break.
Andy Dallas continued to find space and was soon the target of a Mason Hancock cross, but wasn't able to get enough on a header that Belshaw easily gathered.
The Belshaw-Dallas battle continued moments later when the striker saw a low effort saved, the opening coming after Sven Sprangler and Lewis Simper had combined to find him in space.
Saddlers boss Lee Grant opted to make a change on the hour mark as Dallas was replaced by fellow summer signing Tai Sodje in attack.
The visitors weren't without opportunities of their own and went close to opening the scoring via former Saddler Maz Kouhyar, who forced Jed Ward into a save via a free-kick.
With less than twenty minutes of the match remaining Lee Grant once again looked towards his bench with Lewis Simper, Reece Smith, and Sven Sprangler making way for Albert Adomah, Archie Bunn, and Courtney Clarke.
Mason Hancock continued in the role of cross provider as his latest effort found the head for Tai Sodje, although the former Buxton attacker could only find the hands of Belshaw.
The forwards were going to have to find someone else to provide crosses, however, as Hancock was subsequently replaced by Vincent Harper in defence.
A few minutes later there was more action on the touchline when Elicha Ahui was replaced by Ellis Harris, who joined Under-18s teammate Archie Bunn on the pitch.
The Belshaw-Dallas battle continued moments later when the striker saw a low effort saved, the opening coming after Sven Sprangler and Lewis Simper had combined to find him in space.
Saddlers boss Lee Grant opted to make a change on the hour mark as Dallas was replaced by fellow summer signing Tai Sodje in attack.
The visitors weren't without opportunities of their own and went close to opening the scoring via former Saddler Maz Kouhyar, who forced Jed Ward into a save via a free-kick.
With less than twenty minutes of the match remaining Lee Grant once again looked towards his bench with Lewis Simper, Reece Smith, and Sven Sprangler making way for Albert Adomah, Archie Bunn, and Courtney Clarke.
Mason Hancock continued in the role of cross provider as his latest effort found the head for Tai Sodje, although the former Buxton attacker could only find the hands of Belshaw.
The forwards were going to have to find someone else to provide crosses, however, as Hancock was subsequently replaced by Vincent Harper in defence.
A few minutes later there was more action on the touchline when Elicha Ahui was replaced by Ellis Harris, who joined Under-18s teammate Archie Bunn on the pitch.
The action continued to be focused on the bench as the Saddlers' next change saw Ronan Maher take the place of Aaron Pressley, Ronan getting a few minutes as he continues to recover from an elbow injury.
A much improved, though still goalless, preformance from the Saddlers as they look ahead to Thursday evening's Carabao Cup - Round One clash with Championship side Bristol City.
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