Athletic pulled off a rare home win on Tuesday against strugglers Walsall but they had to thank keeper Alex Cisak who made amends for an earlier blunder by saving a dramatic last minute penalty kick. The match was watched by a very low 2,583 spectators who went home relieved with the three badly needed points being secure. The Latics looked to have the game won at half time as they went in two goals to the good and after dominating the play. The first goal came in the second minute from a Filipe Morais strike after some clever wing play from youngster Keanu Marsh-Brown who put in a storming performance and Robbie Simpson volleyed home the second in the 30th minute.
A relieved Paul Dickov commented, “We don’t like making things easy for ourselves. That was a performance without the captain, the vice-captain and arguably your most consistent player (Dean Furman, Zander Diamond and James Wesolowski). We had two central midfielders out, Zander out and with Robbie Simpson only having trained a little bit on the morning of the game. Take that into account and it is a great three points. “
“Alex doesn’t need me to tell him he made a mistake for the first goal. But it isn’t just Alex, it runs through the team and it is about concentration levels when you are ahead. Whether two-up or two-down, you have to do the right things that win you football matches. We stopped doing them. Keanu is quick, but I still think there is more to come from him. I think he is quicker than that and better than that. You have to remember, that is the kid’s first start and first 90 minutes this season. There is a lot more to come. His decision-making can be better, when to keep and when to release the ball. But he is a big talent. If we can keep him on the straight and narrow, then he has a big future ahead of him.”
“We all know Chris likes to beat players and put crosses in, but he was very disciplined – and that comes with experience. He was one of the senior boys out there, particularly in midfield with it being Keanu’s first start of the season. The maturity he showed was fantastic. Tarkowski is growing every game and I just wish he would have a bit more belief in himself. He is in the team because he deserves to be and he will stay in the team. He won everything in the air and is a good footballer for a big lad. He and Jean-Yves (Mvoto) were solid.”