Walsall’s live streamed Press Conference from earlier in the week has been watched by large parts of the fanbase, with many excited by the new set-up the club has. There was clarity from all three, especially about the aims of the club for next season, and the structure of recruitment.
Aims
The aims for the coming season were made abundantly clear from Leigh Pomlett. He wants Walsall to be finishing higher in the league than last season, and by a fair few places. Pomlett will not be settling for anything other than improvement, and he wants the club to get promoted. Although he understands it would be a big turnaround to do it at the first time of asking for Taylor, signs that the club is building towards it will be the minimum he will expect.
The recruitment will play a big part in this, and the message about that was clear about that too. Walsall will only be bringing in people who are good for the club. That sounds simple, but the person themselves has to be the right fit, not just the attributes on a technical side. Taylor and McDonald are good coaches, and it seems that recruitment will be based on talented people, with the right attitude, who can be coached and improved.
Although it wasn’t said, the aim for the club will be that they made the right decision to allow Darrell Clarke, and then Brian Dutton go, and reshape how things work. The changes made have freshened the club up, and not just from the previous couple of years, but from much before that. The biggest aim, is to prove it was needed, and right to change.
Structure
Taylor admits that he will be using the people around him to improve his skills as a Head Coach. The structure behind the scenes will be a unity. McDonald, Sadler, Fullarton and Maik Taylor will all be called upon by the Matt Taylor to help him in his quest for success. Taylor has shown great wisdom in admitting that he is learning, and that he can use the others at the club to build ‘His’ Walsall team and ethos.
Taylor and Fullarton seem to have already built up a good partnership, despite the short time working together. However it is the relationship with his assistant, Neil McDonald, that will really be make or break for Taylor. The No2 was described by Taylor in an interview on the clubs YouTube channel as someone who has ‘worn every football T-Shirt that’s going’. Having the awareness to acknowledge that people around him can help, will set him in a good stead.
Taylor admitted he will ‘lean on’ McDonald, which already draws comparisons to the structure in place with Dean Smith and Richard O’Kelly. The comparison is something that will be there, with the young inexperienced Head Coach, and the steady No2 helping guide.
The interview also touched on Sadler, and how he will fit into it. All fans know that this season could very well be Sadler’s last. Taylor has acknowledged this, but also seen the talent that ‘Sads’ has as a coach, and will be looking to develop this side of him too.
It seems like the structure of the club is now there. The set-up will face many ups and downs, but if they stick to their guns, Walsall may be able to turn the tide after years of decline.
Photo Credit: Walsall FC
