TWO GOALS in as many minutes midway through the second half condemned The Saddlers to a disappointing 2-0 home defeat at the hands of Oldham Athletic.

After a pretty even opening ten minutes in which the Walsall back three looked solid, it was the visitors who had the first effort at goal as Paul Warne fired just over.

Anthony Gerrard did well to get himself oit of trouble on 12 minutes before releasing Andrew Barrowman with a measured pass. Barrowman managed to force a corner which was delivered too close to the giant frame of Lee Grant in the Latics' goal.

There was a booking for Ian Roper just past the quarter-hour mark when his robust, but mis-timed challenge halted the progress of Warne who looked to break away down the right after a Walsall attack had broken down.

Within a minute, Grant Smith's effort from just inside the penalty area was blocked after some good battling from Dean Keates. The loose ball set the visitors away on another break-away that ended with Luke Beckett's shot having the sting took out of it by Pablo Mills as Andy Oakes gathered low to his left.

A long range effort from Michael Leary forced Grant into making a save with 28 minutes on the clock after an Oldham free-kick at the other end had seen Oakes punch to the edge of the area where Latics' youngster, Chris Taylor fired over.

With ten minutes to go until half-time, the ball was driven goalwards by Richie Welllens after a corner had come back out to him and Roper was forced to head clear in front of goal.

The game was in real need of a lift as the half came to a close and it almost came when Kevin James flashed the ball invitingly across goal, but Barrowman just missed out getting on the end of it.

The second period started with a free-kick in a dangerous position for The Saddlers after Smith was sent tumbling just outside the area. James stepped up to take and managed to curl the ball over the wall but agonisingly wide of the mark with Grant struggling to get across his goal.

Mick Halsall's side were looking to give the fans something to shout about in the early exchanges of the second half. Barrowman was replaced by new loan capture, Scott Fitzgerald just before the hour-mark.

The Latics went close on 61 minutes when a deep cross into the danger zone found Richard Butcher at the far post but he fired over.

A powerful drive through a crowd of players from Gerrard produced an excellent save from Grant who got down low to push the ball out for a corner which ultimately came to nothing.

As time went on it was looking increasingly likely that the game would end in a draw, but on 71 minutes the visitors took the lead when Beckett, so often the scurge of The Saddlers, looked sharp to win the ball inside the area before evading the attentions of the advancing Oakes and tucking the ball home.

Almost straight away Oldham doubled their advantage when a quickly-taken free-kick caught Walsall napping  and as the ball was attempted to be cleared, it struck Warne from close range and found its way into the net.

Smith was replaced by youngster Ishmel Demontagnac in the wake of the goal, but the two-goal blitz killed off The Saddlers' challenge and we looked like a deflated team in the closing stages.

An impressive attempt from distance by the hard-working Keates dipped just over before a mis-understanding between Grant and his defence almost let in Fitzgerald, but the luck - and indeed all three points - were on the Latics' side.

PHOTOS: David Linney Photography.

DON'T always agree with the sponsors? Think that the fans should be able to pick a Man Of The Match as well? Well we've got the just the thing!

Between now and the end of the season, you can text us with your Supporters Man-Of-The-Match for EVERY remaining Walsall home game!

All you have to do is text WALS, followed by the squad number of your selected player to 88442. At the end of the game, we'll sift through all the entries and announce the winner right here on www.saddlers.co.uk.

And that's not all, every entrant will be put into a prize draw to win two tickets for an upcoming Walsall FC home game or two tickets to one of the many events taking place at Bescot Stadium!

Voting lines close 90 minutes after the final whistle. Texts cost £1.00 plus your standard network fee and remember to always ask the bill payers permission before texting in. Vodafone, T-Mobile, 02 and Orange customers can all participate in SMS competitions. However, the service is currently not available to Virgin or 3 customers. No purchase necessary.

To enter, simply text WALS plus the keyword of your chosen answer to 88442. So, to vote for Andy Oakes, text WALS 1 to 88442 and so on. A representative of Walsall FC will notify the winners.