The Wednesday Report

Before I get onto the Saddlers, I would like to flag up a controversial issue, something that has been bugging me for ages. Yes, that`s right, the red card. Referees love to flash their red cards like it`s some sort of ‘bling thing` that 30,000 people need to see to go ‘oooo` and ‘aaahhh.` Or more realistically they say?. well can`t really repeat what people do say. I looked up this seasons stats for red cards, as you do, and I have found that on average this season, so far I add, in the Premiership and the Football League, six red cards PER MATCH are being shown so far, SIX. That`s incredible! Mind you, it was four per match last season, but still at this stage. It would certainly explain why the FA has suspended 46 players in English football for red cards this weekend, including Wayne Rooney and Paul Scholes. It makes me sick. I saw those red cards that Rooney and Scholes received in the Amsterdam Tournament and I was shocked and appalled at that useless and incompetent refereeing. Rooney was sent off for something that wasn`t even deemed a ‘slap` in my eyes, but it was deemed violent conduct and a three match ban. Meanwhile, Paul Scholes was sent off for a second yellow card, after he had challenged from behind. Fair enough, if it was a competitive match, but it wasn`t. In a friendly you tell the manager to fetch the player off. The Scholes red card was sad for him, as here is a man who is back from a serious injury that has kept him out for most of last season and now he`s back, he needs to get speed. He was sent off for a mistimed and unintentional challenge because he was out of practise. Is this right? No, and it is more ridiculous than a chocolate teapot. Plus, Scholes has a three match ban and you should only get a one match ban for two yellow cards. Huh?

Now onto the real talking points. Wow, yet another impressive 1-0 win over impressive Darlington, and now for the mighty Barnet, away, which is nice. Should be another three points then. Erm? well no actually. Let me tell you about their result at Cardiff in the Carling Cup First Round. A 2-0 win in the Welsh capital meant that Barnet are a team to be cautious about and it proves there will be no easy away games in League Two. Oh dear! Should be a good game then. We will be favourites going into the game, and rightly so, as we are second in the table. However, when your mother told you the story between the hare and the tortoise, she was looking a football games like this and going, “erm Houston, we have more than just a problem, we have a potential banana skin the size of Durham in our way, what do we do?” We need to be careful; the players need to be professional and this will test ‘Dickie Dosh as a manager. This brings me onto my last topic.

Players. Yes, I talked about Chris Westwood and the right back situation and I said we needed another full back, and I still stick by this. We really do need a right back. Craig Pead is a ‘born-again` midfielder, while Chris Westwood is a centre back. Simple, well no, it never is with Walsall these days or with any football club at that. I looked at our squad list to check for other full backs, and except for Mark Wright (a very pacy winger, that`s all he is, just pacy), there is no body at all. This worries me as a fan, as Westwood appears to be a weakness at full back and if ‘Champions,` or even the ‘P` word, is to be associated with Walsall Football Club, then the situation must be sorted by 5pm tomorrow. Also, there is talk of the Gaffer trying to bring in another striker, and with ex-Claude-knows-how-many-clubs-he-has-been-at-but-Leeds-being-one-of-them striker Clive Wijnhard is on trial at Walsall and played in the 2-1 reserves defeat to Birmingham City. Sources say that he had a couple of good touches, but who knows a contract will be pushed in front of his face with a spare pen, just in case. Let`s wait and see what ‘Dickie` does with his ‘Dosh` (love that gag).

Lastly, great news about ‘Wracky` and Nicholls, as we will need them back for the big push. Wrack to fill in at right full back? Hmm, who knows? I don`t.