Walsall Football Club

The winner plays Dean Smith's Brentford...

OVERVIEW:
Dean Smith’s Brentford await the winners of Tuesday’s second-round replay. Smith, and his assistant Richard O’Kelly, joined the Championship club from Walsall a fortnight ago, leaving coaches Jon Whitney, John Ward and Neil Cutler in temporary charge. The caretaker trio oversaw a 1-1 draw in the initial second-round tie against Chesterfield, who are also without a manager. The Spireites beat Walsall 2-1 in the league meeting at the Banks's in October, but have lost five of their last six matches in all competitions.

LEAGUE STANDINGS:
Walsall: 3rd – P20 W11 D6 L3 F35 A19 PTS39
Chesterfield: 17th – P21 W7 D2 L12 F25 A36 PTS23

LAST FIVE COMPETITIVE MATCHES: (Most recent match first)
Walsall: DWWLD
Chesterfield: LDLLL

LAST TIME OUT:
Saturday, 5th December – Chesterfield 1-1 Walsall – FA Cup Second Round
The Saddlers’ league fixture at Fleetwood on Saturday was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch, meaning our last match was the initial tie against Chesterfield. Richard Wood's own goal gave Walsall a first-half lead but Sam Morsy's late equaliser forced a replay.
Team:Etheridge, Demetriou, O’Connor, Downing, Henry, Chambers, Evans (Mantom 77’), Lalkovic (Bakayoko 85’), Sawyers, Morris (Forde 61’), Cook.

Saturday, 12th December – Bury 1-0 Chesterfield – League One
Danny Mayor’s second-half strike earned Bury all three points and condemned Chesterfield to a fifth consecutive league defeat.
Team:Lee, Hird, Evatt, Raglan, Talbot, Morsy, O’Neil (O’Shea 45’), Donohue (Gardner 45’), Banks, Ebanks-Blake, Dieseruvwe (Simons 68’).

HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD:
Chesterfield wins: 30
Walsall wins: 32
Draws: 28

CHESTERFIELD CARETAKER MANAGER:
Mark Smith – The 55-year-old was placed in caretaker charge following Dean Saunders’ exit at the end of November. Smith, who is Chesterfield’s academy manager, has also had caretaker spells at Notts County and Sheffield Wednesday. He spent ten years as a player with the Owls, winning two promotions, and was named their Player of the Year in 1981.

CHESTERFIELD STAR MAN:
Sam Morsy – Chesterfield's captain was credited with the equalising goal against Walsall in the initial tie. The highly-rated midfielder joined the Spireites from Port Vale in June 2013 and helped them win the League Two title in his debut season, being named Player of the Year. The 24-year-old has made over 100 appearances for the Derbyshire outfit.

VIEW FROM THE CHESTERFIELD CAMP:
Mark Smith (after Saturday's defeat at Bury) – “Our luck will change, I don’t think there’s that much wrong with this team. We probably lack a bit of confidence, but I think we gained some after last week’s performance (against Walsall) and for at least the last hour of today’s game, you’ve got to go away thinking we’re not too far away.”

WALSALL TEAM NEWS:
Top-scorer Tom Bradshaw (ankle) is a doubt. Midfielder Isaiah Osbourne (knee) is a long-term absentee.

REFEREE:
Charles Breakspear.

STAT OF THE DAY:
Walsall have scored the opening goal in 71% of their league and cup matches this season (17/26). We are yet to lose after scoring the opening goal (W11 D6 L0).

TUESDAY’S FA CUP REPLAYS: (7.45pm unless stated)
Hartlepool vs. Salford City
Scunthorpe vs. Leyton Orient
Shrewsbury vs. Grimsby