Following on from their home defeat to Notts County, Walsall made the trip to Peterborough for what turned out to be Chris Hutchings last game in charge. He simply had to go. The only surprise for the long suffering fans is that the axe didn't swing sooner.
Walsall actually started the game at London Road quite brightly. The Saddlers took a deserved lead on ten minutes following a cross from Rueben Reid which found the head of Alex Nicholls who made no mistake. Four minutes later there was a chance for Reid to increase Walsall's lead when a ball from Nicholls found him in a good position but he shot just wide. In the 23rd minute Steve Jones found Nicholls with a cross but the young striker headed over.
Gradually The Posh found their feet and got back into the game on 35 minutes when Oliver Lancashire failed to hold the challenge of Craig Mackail-Smith who blasted in. On 51 minutes the same striker looked certain to score but blasted at the side netting.
Walsall had a few chances at the other end when Reid again set up Nicholls but he struck the ball too tamely at the home keeper Joe Lewis. Paul Marshall then did likewise and Nicholls had another chance with a header. Mackail-Smith got his second thanks to a Grant Mc Cann cross and those of us who made the trip knew that was the end of the game as a contest.
Nathaniel Mendz Laing rounded keeper Jonny Brain but looked yards offside. Aaron Lescott was booked for protesting and assistant manager Martin O'Connor was banished to the stands for having his say. When Ryan Bennett hit Peterborough's fourth just before the end the calls for Hutch's head got louder. The manager made a point of shaking hands with all his players at the final whistle on the pitch. He must have feared the axe after another inept performance and with Walsall eight points away from safety at this point in the season its going to take the new man, whoever he may be, a monumental effort to re-address the situation, it would appear.
