THE MONTH of February kicked off with the visit of runaway League leaders, Leicester City.
The Saddlers' groundstaff worked wonders to actually get the game on following heavy snowfall, but it was The Foxes who found themselves in control for most of the game.
Former Walsall youngster, Matty Fryatt opened the scoring for the visitors on 12 minutes, whilst Andy King doubled the advantage before half-time.
Further goals from Tom Cleverley and Steve Howard made the game safe before Dwayne Mattis pulled a goal back.
A long trip up to Hartlepool United followed as sleet and a chilly north sea wind greeted the kick-off.
Walsall began the game with real purpose and it was no surprise when Troy Deeney opened the scoring early on.
The home side were given a lifeline courtesy of a bizarre own goal by Anthony Gerrard before getting their noses in front just past the hour-mark when Joel Porter was alert to a poor kick from Clayton Ince and made no mistake.
Chris Hutchings' side refused to let their heads drop and came back strongly to snatch an equaliser with just eight minutes to go as substitute, Sam Williams headed home for his first club for the club following his loan switch from Aston Villa.
Another long jaunt followed just three days later with Carlisle the destination this time.
Paul Thirlwell opened the scoring out of the blue for the home side and an evenly-matched contest followed as both sides battled well on a chilly evening.
The introduction of Michael Ricketts and Sam Williams during the second half gave The Saddlers the spark that was needed and a strong finish saw Ricketts convert a penalty with six minutes to go to bring home a deserved share of the spoils.
A return to home soil on Valentine's Day saw Colchester United provide the opposition with Saddlers' legend, James Walker in goal for the opposition.
A 17th minute goal from Michael Ricketts set the tone for an impressive performance as Walsall ran out worthy winners.
The in-form Troy Deeney made the game safe with a second goal just before the break.
Next up was the relatively short trip to Northampton Town where an evenly-matched contest saw the home side miss a couple of good chances before The Saddlers ended strongly to take maximum points courtesy of late goals from skipper, Stephen Hughes and Jabo Ibehre.
It was a workmanlike display from Chris Hutchings' side who extended their unbeaten run to four games.
The month ended with a home game against Yeovil Town and yielded a third successive 2-0 win.
Walsall were the better side for long periods and deservedly took the lead early in the second half through hot-shot Troy Deeney.
Alex Nicholls made the game safe on 76 minutes as we ended the month on a real high.
