'My child will miss Walsall's big day like I did'

BBC News

25-05-2025

Walsall's appearance in Monday's play-off final has stirred memories for fans of their previous success in dramatic circumstances in a similar game.But 24 years after Darren Byfield scored the extra-time winner against Reading, one supporter said he was too young to appreciate it - and now his own child is of a similar age. "When I was two, my dad went to Cardiff when we won at Cardiff," Conner Fitzpatrick said."So it's all gonna be an experience for me and... my baby will be [16 months] and she'll be watching it at home with the mother. She'll see it and I'll be there and hopefully we go up."
It was a similar experience in 2001 when Mr Fitzpatrick's father went to the match, leaving him at home with his mother."I've been waiting a long, long time. I've had years of crying and not going up and that, but I'm here now and I'm proud to be a Saddlers fan," he said.
While glory in Wales 24 years ago led to playing in football's second tier, the pain for Walsall supporters since has included relegation three years later.They have more recently been playing down in the fourth division of the English game for six seasons and go into Monday's big match against AFC Wimbledon after blowing a massive 15-point lead ahead of the play-off places in January.Farewell automatic promotion hopes.Now, though, another fan, Brandie Wilkes, said she was "so excited" - summing up a rapid change in mood.Following regrets over losing top-scorer Nathan Lowe, long spells without wins and finishing only fourth in League Two, the focus now is on Monday's other route to promotion - and victories in both semi-final games have created momentum.
"I've bought bows [to wear] and everything and I'm 18," Ms Wilkes revealed."I'm just there for the vibes... I feel proud for my area." Of squandering their huge lead, Alan Edwards joked: "We only gave them the 12 points because we're gentlemen [aren't we], give the others a chance?" More than 72,000 watched when Walsall played their only other game at Wembley in 137 years, losing the 2015 EFL Trophy final.But Bill Tennant said of the forthcoming occasion: "I go every week when England play down there, so I'm not excited... I've been more times with England than with Walsall."Veteran Albert Adomah, with a shirt number and age of 37, set up both goals in the semi-final home win and caught the eye on close-up TV replays with his trickery.
Mr Tennant said: "We've got all these top players and we've got Adomah on the wing flicking it round everybody. It's sorted. "We get all these [fans of] clubs moaning at us, saying 'you had all these points'. Yeah, we had all them points, but then we lost Lowey."
Asked what promotion would mean, Barry Hill felt it would be a "tremendous lift, a lift for the town"."I wasn't confident to even get into the play-off [final]... but suddenly [we've] pulled it together."Dave Slawson said: "On the day I think if we play well, we should do it... Come on the Saddlers."
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