Mat Sadler exclusive: Walsall head coach on rebuilding and challenging again after League Two play-off heartbreak

Walsall were 12 points clear at the top of League Two at close of play on New Year’s Day, 14 unbeaten and in the midst of what would be a nine-match winning streak.

Promotion looked as close to certain as could be.

But just three wins from the final 21 meant they not only finished seven points behind champions Doncaster, but one point off automatic promotion. That was before they lost 1-0 to AFC Wimbledon in the play-off final at Wembley.

For Mat Sadler, a break would have been warranted.

“If it was, I didn’t do that!” he quips, in an exclusive interview with Sky Sports. “I was very happy to keep working. I could see exactly how I wanted everything to look.”

He was a busy man in the summer; there were eight new permanent signings and seven loan arrivals, with two players sold and eight released.

Perhaps that is why there has been no hangover.

“I was speaking to Jamille Matt recently about how we left this building on May 27 and, by June 25, the whole thing had changed and people walked into what felt like a different dressing room altogether,” Sadler admits.

Even though they have only taken one point from the last three, 14 games in, Walsall are top of Sky Bet League Two.

They have 26 points – the same amount they had at this stage last season. Not that Sadler is interested. “That’s for other people to talk about.”

But he knows they have not reached their ceiling yet.

“It’s exciting because I know what a young and hungry group we are,” he says.

“There’s some definite experience in the squad, which is brilliant to have, but there’s so many guys I see that just are itching to do better and work harder.

“From my perspective, this is a very, very new group that are loving being together and are having some really good experiences together – but want more.

“We want to keep improving, we want to keep adding different ways of affecting games together. We’re still learning from so many of the group still and we believe there’s loads more to come from the group.”

“You can talk loads, but most importantly, we just know we have to work hard and allow those relationships to form.”

A quirk of another bright Walsall start can be found with a brief delve into the numbers.

The Saddlers have recorded the lowest average possession in League Two, taken the fewest touches and completed the fewest passes. Only one team in the top half has scored fewer than their 19 goals so far.

It is a prime example of just why statistics cannot always be taken at face value, which he spoke about in an interview with Sky Sports’ Adam Bate earlier this year.

“We’re very organised, very energetic in the way that we play, very disciplined in our shape and athletic on the transition,” Sadler adds, when asked to explain the numbers to a layman.

“Those stats after 14 games are interesting, and it’ll probably be an interesting one to cover after maybe 30 games, when it’s really settled into a pattern.”

Sadler played over 100 times for Walsall across two spells before he was given the manager’s job on a permanent basis in May 2023.

He feels, as much as supporters do, what has become a desperation to get out of the fourth tier and play in League One for the first time since 2018/19.

“We’ve just got an incredible army of supporters that follow this football club. They’re just desperate for their team to have some better times, which I’m also desperate to bring to the club,” he adds.

“That is probably what keeps me awake at night, to keep working hard, to keep striving and to keep ensuring we bring a positivity to the place because the supporters bring that and have such a massive, massive impact on us.”

Sadler’s managerial career is still very much in its infancy. He only made his last appearance as a player on May 7 2022.

But as much as last season’s conclusion will have hurt, does he feel in any way grateful to have been presented with such a situation so early on?

” I suppose it depends if I learn – I’ll tell you the answer on May 2!

“I was presented with loads of challenges as a player, which are very similar to the ones as a manager. I draw on all of those experiences that I’ve had in 20-odd years of being involved in football.

“The biggest thing is just to try and work hard, be true to who you are, try and remain connected to the players.
“As long as everyone’s pulling in the same direction, then things will work out. We’ve got an identity, a very clear one, and we’re all aligned on that.

“So many things are vital to components of a good team, but underpinning all of that is the environment. Everyone brings an amazing energy and atmosphere to this place and a culture that we want to improve.

“Throughout all of that, the good times and the bad times, as long as we stick together and keep looking forward, that’s the magic.”