Didn’t we play yesterday?

This time of the year you hardly know what day it is, and it feels like we play matches every day. Four matches in ten days would make most teams struggle with fitness especially if you have a thin squad.
Just by looking at the schedule you understand rotation is much needed during the holiday period. We have three important points with us from Scunthorpe. That is three out of possible twelve so far.
The question is, who will start in today’s match? Our squad is thin as it is and with games coming close to each other some players have to be rested while some have to knuckle down and get through it without getting injured. On a positive note, we only have Callum Cockerill-Mollett out injured at the moment.
I’m pretty sure some will have to play through with niggles, maybe not this match but the last two matches in this period some players most certainly get through with small niggles.
Our opponents will have the same problem. That is why I think it would be wise to save one or two pacy players on the bench and throw them in with 20 minutes to go. Play them against their defenders that most certainly is tired. A mentally and physically tired opponent might be forced to make an error if put under pressure, and that could be the difference between a late winner instead of a draw or a draw instead of a defeat. The same counts for us, we need to make sure not to make silly mistakes when under pressure. The problem is our defenders make mistakes even when they have had 7 days off and are 100% fit. I can only imagine what kind of individual errors they could make when they are tired.

What is my prediction for the match against Carlisle today?
Carlisle has two wins, two draws and seven defeats away this season but Walsall isn’t much better at Bescot this season. We have two wins, four draws and five defeats at home. We are the third worst home team in the league and Carlisle is the third worst team away from home. Based on those statistics it could go either way. If we can build on the away win in our last match and take it up a notch we will take all three points. But on the other hand, we could come crashing down and end up with a defeat.
I hope we have enough quality in our squad to get back to winning at home. I have a feeling we will take this and win 2-1 but it won’t be pretty but it will be good enough. That is all that matter now. We need wins to climb that table. Goals from Sinclair and a late winner from super-sub Flash Gordon.