Walsall 1-1 Southend: Aramide Oteh salvages hosts late point

Aramide Oteh’s 94th-minute penalty rescued Walsall a vital point in their quest for League One survival after a 1-1 draw with fellow strugglers Southend.

Southend had looked to be heading out of the relegation zone after Simon Cox's 15th league goal of the season gave them the lead, but Oteh's late equaliser gave Walsall a share of the spoils to end a run of six successive league defeats.

Both sides remain in the bottom four. After a tentative start to proceedings, it was Walsall who created the first clear-cut opportunity when Luke Leahy's inswinging cross was headed narrowly wide by Andy Cook.

Southend grew into the game and it took a brave goalkeeping from Chris Dunn to deny the unmarked Harry Bunn from breaking the deadlock.

The visitors' persistent pressure bore fruit in the 43rd minute when Cox capitalised on a loose header from Connor Johnson before excellently rounding Dunn and slotting the ball into an empty net.

Elvis Bwomono squandered a golden opportunity to consolidate Southend's lead as the full-back raced into the Walsall penalty area but dragged his shot wide of the post.

And that missed chance proved to be vital as Oteh was bundled over in the area by Michael Turner and the 20-year-old buried his penalty into the bottom left corner.

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