Boss pleased with his side's display at Charlton...
Jon Whitney has called his Walsall squad the best he has worked with following the 1-1 draw at Charlton Athletic on Saturday.The Saddlers took the lead on the stroke of half-time at the Valley through Simeon Jackson’s seventh League One goal of the season, the 29-year-old finishing coolly inside the box from Kieron Morris’s through ball.
Tony Watt equalised for the hosts just past the hour mark to level matters, and Whitney felt his side did all they could to take three points from Charlton.
“I’m happy with my team,” said the Saddlers boss. “We’ve got an honest bunch of lads who are a great, great bunch. The best bunch I’ve ever worked with.
“We’re a bit disappointed not to beat Charlton away from home but we’re also very confident that we can go on Tuesday and get another win against Fleetwood.
“I thought the first half - and the first 20 minutes especially - was probably the best we’ve played home or away.
“I thought we were outstanding. We said that we’d need to try to get the first punch in if we can.
“We created some really good chances and probably could have had three or even four first half, but we got the one.
“They were always going to have a spell in the second half where they came into it and they scored a bit of a scrappy goal.
“I still think we had the better chances in the second half as well.
"It’s still a point away from home and I think we did everything we could to win the game.”
Whitney was left delighted with his side’s refusal to drop their heads as chances fell by the wayside – as well as the Saddlers’ excellent attacking play early on.
“We were so dominant in the first 20-25 minutes,” Whitney added.
“It’s easy to get a little bit frustrated and drop your heads because you’re not getting your rewards for your hard work.
“But we kept going, kept believing in what we do and played some really good attacking football.
“I thought our attacking play and the energy in which we broke was excellent.”