'A breath of fresh air' - Pattison on boss Byfield
· Yahoo Sports
Walsall midfielder Alex Pattison says head coach Darren Byfield and his coaching staff have been "a breath of fresh air" since taking over and restoring confidence in the squad as they try to clinch a play-off spot in League Two.
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Byfield initially stepped up to replace the sacked Mat Sadler on an interim basis two weeks ago, before getting the job until the end of the season seven days later - and has steered the Saddlers to two wins and a draw in the three games.
Saturday's victory over struggling Newport County - sealed by Pattison's stoppage-time 20-yarder - was Walsall's first at home since 26 December and kept them just two points outside the top seven.
Pattison said Byfield and his coaches, who include returning former Wolves boss Terry Connor, have made a big impact on everyone.
"Obviously it's not nice to see a manager get sacked and obviously you feel part responsible. The performances weren't great," he told BBC Radio WM.
"But one thing I would say is that Daz and TC have been a breath of fresh air as well. Daz just came in and implemented his ideas. They've worked brilliantly the past three weeks."
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Byfield has tweaked the formation - from a back three to a more attack-minded 4-3-3 system - and Pattison said that has helped the team express themselves more easily.
"He's just full of positivity and gives us that freedom to go out and play, change the shape around," he said.
"They've [Byfield and Connor] been absolutely brilliant getting the confidence back in the group and just giving everyone that freedom to go out and express themselves, which I think we have done.
"He wants you to go out and attack, probably play a bit more out from the back, which we have done.
"We're just probably playing with the shackles off a bit and creating a lot more chances than probably we had done the previous games. He's just been brilliant."
'We need to believe we can win every game'
With seven games to go for Walsall, making the play-offs for the second season in a row is very much within range.
The Saddlers take on only two teams currently above them - fifth-placed Swindon Town, nine points ahead, and clear leaders Bromley - during the run-in with the Ravens odds-on to already be promoted by the time they meet Walsall on the final day.
"We need to kick on now. The table's tight. We've still got it all to play for," Pattison said.
"We need to go into every game believing we can win and to focus on maintaining the performance levels we've showed the past three games.
"If we do then we'll give ourselves a great opportunity at being where we want to be come the end of the season."