Leamington hold strong Walsall squad in tight friendly

The visitors made the relatively short trip from the Black Country with a decent contingent of supporters to boost the attendance.

On another baking hot summers day, the two sides produced a high tempo start to proceedings.

New Saddlers boss Lee Grant named seven first team players in his first half XI, while Scott Easterlow was able to name six of his new arrivals while casting his eye over a number of trialists as he looks to bring numbers up to the required level ahead of the big kick off in four weeks time.

Veteran Albert Adomah forced a save from Leamington’s trialist goalkeeper after getting through on goal, before a free kick from the same player struck the defensive wall and looped over the bar.

Archie Bunn, making his first appearance in the Walsall first team, crashed in a strike from the edge of the box that flew just past the upright.

Brakes registered their first efforts at goal just after a drinks break midway through the first half; Dexter Walters and Cameron Eubank seeing shots well blocked.

The rock hard pitch was not proving conducive to free flowing football for either side, with passes going astray.

With pre-season games all about gaining match fitness and testing out new players, formations and ideas, the conditions were always going to test the fitness levels of the players.

Groundsman Idris Elms will no doubt be praying for rainfall in the not too distant future to improve the playing surface.

Leamington were understandably having to do a great deal of defending against their League Two opponents, but were generally standing up to the task well, getting good interceptions in and limiting their higher level opponents to shots from distance.

Walsall had the ball in the net five minutes before half-time through Andrew Dallas, but it was ruled out for offside.

A ball in from the right then flashed across the Leamington goalmouth, with no red shirted player able to connect.

Walsall emerged with a fresh XI after half time containing another six or seven first teamers, who looked eager to impress.

A smart reverse pass set up a low strike inside the Leamington box on the right that was well saved by the legs of the goalkeeper, who then kept out another effort as the ball was played in low again, but with the offside flag raised it would not have counted.

Kyle Belmonte tried his luck from 30 yards after assessing his options in a rare Brakes attack, the strike straight down the throat of the trialist keeper.

Brakes made three changes on the hour, Raj Palit among them, and he swiftly got involved, tracking back to gain possession and spraying passes forward from midfield.

However, Walsall went close again with a shot that just cleared the crossbar just before the game was paused once more for a drinks break.

The visitors really should have been ahead when a slip in defence saw a Saddlers man in on goal, but he shanked his shot horribly wide.

The game became pretty scrappy in the closing stages, but this is not to demean the considerable efforts of the players, particularly those in Leamington colours who played the whole 90 minutes.

Jacob Humphries played the last quarter of the game between the posts for Leamington, and made a fine save to prevent Courtney Clarke’s low curling effort from finding the back of the net.

He then produced an even better stop to deny another effort from close range.

He looked on nervously however as another well struck drive whistled past his left hand post.

This was a good test for Leamington against higher opposition, and while they didn’t get the opportunity to show themselves as an attacking force, their defensive credentials were certainly given a stern test, which they came through pretty well.

LEAMINGTON: Trialist A (13 Jacob Humphries, 77), Trialist B, Callum Cockerill-Mollett (14 Trialist E, 46), Cameron Eubank, Trialist C, Nat Kelly (12 Jahdahn Fridye-Harper, 46), Kyle Finn (18 Raj Palit, 61), Kyle Belmonte (17 Trialist H, 77), Trialist D, Owen Farmer (16 Trialist G, 61), Dexter Walters (15 Trialist F, 61).