Walsall forward Andy Williams hailed the character of the players after Sunday’s Emirates FA Cup victory over Stockport County and was delighted his confident approach paid off after he scored the winning goal from the penalty spot.
After Danny Johnson had given the Saddlers the lead, Michael Flynn’s men were pegged back in the 88th minute when Paddy Madden equalised but Walsall regrouped and pushed for a late winner which came through Williams’ spot kick.
The 36-year-old was pleased with the way the team responded to Stockport’s late equaliser and was more than happy to stand up and be counted and convert the penalty in the dying moments of the contest.
“I didn’t feel too bad, I think in the last game I was on penalties so I was more than confident enough to step up and take it,” he said.
“I wasn’t sure whose name was on the board when Isaac asked for it, I wasn’t sure if it should have been him but no one told me otherwise so I was more than happy to take responsibility and I stuck it away and put us in the hat.
“It shows the character and togetherness of the group and that’s what we’re building here now and it’s a pleasure to be a part of.
“It’s always tricky when you go 1-0 up in a game like that in the FA Cup, it’s hard not to sit back on it like we did but I think we defended it really well for large parts but just offered them too many chances in the end which got them back into the game but the character we showed, we had so many chances to nick the win and I think it was more than just deserved.”
Walsall’s reward for progressing to the fourth round is a home tie against Premier League side Leicester City.
It’s a tie to wet the appetite and Williams believes the match will provide a huge boost for the club.
“Massively, it’s important for clubs, especially at this level,” he commented.
“These are the sort of times where you can really bolster your budget or help the club in so many ways just to get a bit of money in the pocket and also for the fans, there’s a lot of fans at this level that will be used to watching League Two football and it’s nice for them to see a Premier League club.”
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