Walsall too strong for Stoke City

Walsalls Pedro Matias (centre) celebrates his second

Division Two play-off semi-final, 2nd leg

Walsall 4-2 Stoke City (agg: 4-2)

Walsall produced a stunning second-half performance to book their their place in the Second Division play-off final.

The Saddlers scored three goals in 15 second-half minutes to overwhelm a Stoke side who had taken the lead through Graham Kavanagh's superb strike.

But the turning point came at the end of the first half when Tom Bennett's inswinging corner was misjudged by Stoke goalkeeper Gavin Ward, who somehow let the ball slip through his grasp and into the back of the net.

Walsall never looked back.

Stoke almost grabbed the lead in the 13th minute.

Scrambled clear

Paul Hall curled over a centre from the right and Pedro Matias headed against the far post before the ball was scrambled clear.

It was Gudjon Thordarson's side who silenced the vociferous home support with a well-worked goal in the 31st minute.

Rikhadur Dadason directed his header into the path of Kavanagh, who showed superb technique to crash home an unstoppable volley.

But while Walker could do nothing to prevent Kavanagh's brilliant opener, Ward was at fault for Bennett's 42nd-minute equaliser.

Walsall went in front just two minutes after the restart.

Increased lead

The influential Matias beat the offside trap before firing home from a tight angle.

The Saddlers increased their lead just three minutes later when Dean Keates' free-kick from the left beat everybody - including Ward.

Matias scored his second in the 61st minute when Wayne Thomas' attempted clearance rebounded off the Spanish star and into the net.

Stoke scored a late consolation through substitute Peter Thorne but it proved too little too late for Thordarson's shell-shocked troops.

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Walsall: Walker, Brightwell, Aranalde, Tillson, Barras, Hall, Bennett, Keates, Matias, Leitao, Goodman. Subs: Bukran, Gadsby, Emberson, Angell, Byfield.

Stoke: Ward, Clarke, Mohan, Kippe, Dorigo, Gunnarsson, Thomas, Kavanagh, O'Connor, Dadason, Gudjonsson. Subs: Risom, Thorne, Muggleton, Thordarson, Cooke.

Referee: E Wolstenholme (Blackburn).