Striker Carl Asaba ended his lengthy goal drought in style as Stoke edged a
see-saw battle against Walsall at the Britannia Stadium.
Having struggled for form this season, the former Sheffield United
front-runner went into this fixture having not found the net in 15 attempts.
But in a game packed with excitement he brought that run emphatically to an
end with a goal either side of the interval to add to Darel Russell's early
strike.
Stoke went into the game without six first-teamers. Striker Ade Akinbiyi was
suspended along with Richard Johnson, Marcus Hall, John Eustace and Wayne Thomas
while defender Clint Hill missed out through illness.
But Walsall manger Colin Lee also had his problems as first-choice goalkeeper
Jimmy Walker was ruled out by a ban along with Ian Roper, Simon Osborn and
Stefan Oakes.
With so many regulars absent, the signs seemed to point towards a disjointed
affair but both sides started well enough.
With just a few minutes gone the Potters survived a scare when a mis-placed
backpass almost caused a problem for goalkeeper Neil Cutler.
But having cleared the danger, the hosts piled forward and after eight minutes
they forged ahead when a quick throw-in from Clive Clarke set away Gifton
Noel-Williams and he squared for Russell to thump home.
Having seized the lead, Stoke pressed on and a few minutes later Russell went
close again with another powerful drive.
But sensing things were in danger of running away from them, Walsall suddenly
increased the pace and after 13 minutes they were back on level terms.
The home side were guilty of ball-watching as Paul Merson picked up possession
in midfield and, after he had exchanged passes with Vinny Samways, they were
made to pay in style as a cultured chip over the defence from the ex-Arsenal
playmaker allowed Jorge Leitao to head home.
Deservedly back in the game, Walsall continued to press and soon after Kris
Taylor's curling effort forced Cutler to punch clear.
However, as the momentum swung again it was Stoke who regained the lead after
37 minutes when Asaba latched onto Kris Commons' pass to sweep the ball home.
Against the run of play the Potters had seized control and within a few
minutes they could have extended that advantage when Asaba again fired close.
But the Saddlers continued to plug away and three minutes before the break
they gained their reward as Gary Birch crossed for Taylor to guide the ball
home.
After the frenetic tempo of the first period, both sides would have been
looking to stamp a degree of control on proceedings after the break but there
was no let-up in the drama.
Within six minutes of the restart Merson slipped away from his marker and
thumped a thunderous 30-yarder against the woodwork.
However, at the other end Noel-Williams continued to torment the Saddlers
defence with his pace and after 55 minutes he burst down the flank before
crossing magnificently for Asaba to score.
Stoke were now beginning to enjoy more of the ball and after Commons had
drilled wide from the edge of the area, they almost increased their advantage
when Sebastian Svard's curling shot forced Samways to hack clear.
Yet despite going onto dominate possession, the Potters could not find another
path to goal and in the end they were thankful to a last-ditch save from Cutler
to keep out Leitao's late strike.
Teams
Stoke: Cutler, Halls (Wilson 81), Clarke, Williams, Taggart, Neal (Wilkinson 80), Hoekstra (Commons 34), Russell, Svard, Asaba, Noel-Williams.
Subs Not Used: Foster, Greenacre.
Booked: Asaba.
Goals: Russell 8, Asaba 37, 56.
Walsall: Petterson, Bazeley, Aranalde, Carbon, Ritchie, Wrack, Samways (Lawrence 83), Kris Taylor (Wales 74), Merson, Birch, Leitao.
Subs Not Used: Matias, Wright, Stanley.
Booked: Ritchie, Wrack.
Goals: Leitao 14, Kris Taylor 42.
Att: 18,035
Ref: P Armstrong (Berkshire).
E-mail Article 
Print-Friendly
Subscribe to RSS Feed 
Post to del.icio.us
Facebook