Walsall head coach left 'fuming' after Hartlepool United snatch late draw

The Saddlers looked to have done enough when scoring three times at the Suit Direct Stadium.

Tom Knowles and Isaac Hutchinson gave Flynn’s side a commanding lead before Dan Kemp was able to reduce the deficit from the penalty spot.

But any hope for John Askey on his first game in charge appeared to have fallen by the wayside when Matt Stevens restored Walsall’s two-goal lead with just 18 minutes to go.

Hartlepool were given a second lifeline, however, when referee Darren Drysdale awarded another penalty after Oliver Finney was tripped by Liam Kinsella.

Kemp stepped up to convert once again in the 90th minute but it still felt like a case of too little too late for Pools before Jennings was able to head home his first goal for the club in the 92nd minute to rescue an unlikely point and leave Flynn seething.

“I’ve had a few kicks in the teeth in football, it happens, but I really can’t get my head around that,” Flynn told the Saddlers’ club website.

“Uncharacteristically, three of my senior players made mistakes.

“There’s no need to pull a shirt in the box. Kins knows better, get goal side. And Donovan, play the elements, just put the ball out. I couldn’t care if he smashed me in the face with it, just put it off the pitch.”

A frustrated Flynn added: “To give away those goals was an absolute disgrace and I’m fuming.

“We should have scored six. We should have been three up in 15 minutes. We scored three good goals. They haven’t scored one good goal. It was poor defensively from us.

“[Defensively] we’ve been outstanding all season then the irony is we score three and the defence goes missing - they’ve taken the plaudits this season, today they need to take the criticism.

“I can’t believe I’m stood in front of you and we haven’t won this game because we were by far the better team, we should have been out of sight.

“Even conceding one I wasn’t happy with, but to concede three? I don’t think we’ve conceded three all season so I’m not happy.”