Scott Laird with the only goal at Vale Park...
Saddlers boss Jon Whitney felt we fully deserved our 1-0 victory at Port Vale.Scott Laird scored the only goal on 27 minutes, when he coolly slotted past Valiants keeper Jak Alnwick at his near post.
Simeon Jackson, Flo Cuvelier and Amadou Bakayoko also had chances in a dominant first-half performance from the Saddlers.
And although Vale improved after the break, Neil Etheridge was rarely troubled as Whitney’s men held on for all three points.
“I thought it was well deserved,” said Whitney. “It would have been nice to get a second to kill it off, and you’re always going to come under pressure late on when they throw bodies forward.
“But defensively, to a man, we were excellent, which is a really nice position to be in because it means we’ve got a team performance.
“On the back of Bradford, it was important that we kicked on again and we did that today. Right from the start, I thought our game plan worked and the players stuck to their responsibilities.”
Laird’s 27th-minute strike was his third goal in Walsall colours, and Whitney was full of praise for the composure he showed when one-on-one with the keeper.
“He’s got a calm head on his shoulders, he’s got experience and that’s why he’s got a few goals,” Whitney added.
“He deserves that – and he’ll get his pound off his nan again! It was nice for him but it was a team effort.
“Some of the shifts the lads put in - Simeon and Ama up top occupied them really well, Jimmy and Matty were excellent. Right through the team, we showed some great energy.”