Walsall returned from their summer break to earn a 1-1 draw with Port Vale at Vale Park in their opening game of the season. The Saddlers got off to something of a shaky start finding it difficult to settle. The defence was missing Andy Butler's organisation skills and were undone by a rather soft goal which saw Tom Pope left with the easy task of a simple tap-in. the Saddlers had Tom Bradshaw , Ashley Grimes and James O'Connor making their debuts and the players were backed by 1,145 travelling fans.
Dean Smith's half time team talk must have worked because his players were much improved in the second half. Tom Bradshaw put Walsall on level terms on the hour mark with a well taken goal. Another summer signing, midfielder Billy Clifford from Chelsea, came on as substitute and looked quite promising. A point was a fair result and a platform to build on for the next two league games which are at home.
