Tuesday night League One action
Walsall................................................3
Oldham Athletic.........................0
TEN-MAN Latics suffered a fourth defeat in five games as they were well beaten at the Banks’s Stadium on Tuesday night.
First-half goals from Troy Deeney and Steve Jones gave the hosts victory against an Oldham side handicapped by the 43rd-minute dismissal of Lee Hills.
The on-loan full-back was shown a straight red card by referee Andy Woolmer for a challenge on Jones that was so late it should have been shown post-watershed.
Jones was to have his revenge within three minutes, adding to Deeney’s 20th-minute opener.
Latics boss Dave Penney had made two changes from the side which drew with Colchester United last weekend.
Ryan Brooke made his first senior start at the ground where he netted his maiden goal, while Dean Furman returned from suspension in midfield.
Although Athletic opened brightly, they went behind when ex-Latics loanee Darren Byfield’s cross looped over Darryl Flahavan for Deeney to score from close range.
Following Hills’ dismissal, Jones exacted maximum revenge by doubling his side’s lead, beating Flahavan and substitute Joe Jacobson to the ball and chipping home the second.
If that was bad, things got worse for Oldham as Reuben Hazell failed to appear at the start of the second half.
With Kelvin Lomax playing as an emergency centre-back, Athletic struggled to make much headway going forward.
Deeney wrapped up the scoring with 10 minutes left, controlling a ball which got caught in the wind before firing past Flahavan.
Although there was still time for Joe Colbeck to head against the Walsall bar, Athletic were comfortably second best.
LATICS TEAM (4-4-2): Flahaven, Holdsworth, Gregan, Hazell (Lomax 47), Hills, Smalley (Parker 66), Whitaker, Furman, Colbeck, Brooke, Blackman (Jacobson 46).
Subs not used: Brill, Lee, Stephens, Black.
WALSALL (4-4-2): Ince, Weston, Smith, Hughes, Sansara, Jones (Till 86), Bradley, O'Keefe, Richards, Byfield (Parkin 82), Deeney (Nicholls 86).
Subs not used: Westlake, Adkins, McDonald, Gilmartin.
