It was the comeback which got them all talking.

No, not Dean Cox, whose return to the Albion team at Walsall made plenty of headlines.

Instead it was recalled Joel Lynch who really caught the eye as Albion weathered a storm to unseat the Saddlers.

Cox did fine, no doubt about that, putting a slow start behind him to whip in two superb right-wing crosses after the break which could easily have led to a goal apiece for Nicky Forster and Glenn Murray However Lynch, making his first League One start since the defeat at Yeovil which brought 2007 to an end, was arguably man-of-the-match in the middle of defence as Albion re-ignited their play-off hopes.

Tommy Elphick chipped in admirably too, especially after the shock of seeing his header fly just past his own post early in the second half seemed to inspire him to greater heights.

It was quite a night for Albion as they ended their away woes.

But, as their fans cheered them off, the players left the field punching the air and Dean Wilkins wore a broad smile at a job well done, a connoisseur of defensive play was quietly adding his own nod of approval for the two boys at the back.

As a powerful, old school centre back, Chris Nicholl won 51 caps for Northern Ireland, playing a big role for the 1982 team which reached the later stages of the World Cup.

He played almost 500 games for Aston Villa and Southampton and also turned out for Luton and as player-coach at Grimsby Town.

Now 62 and doing media work in the Midlands, he will not have seen too much of Lynch.

But his assessment after the game was intriguing and much of it will have tallied with what people who have seen Lynch countless times might have said.

Nicholl admitted: "I was impressed by Lynch. He showed good speed and really good determination the air.

"He won most things in the air, he attacked the ball very well.

"He did his covering job very well too. I thought in the first half he was the best player.

"He used the ball very well nearly all the time. He wants to play. I thought he looked exceptional."

Asked if there was anything he was not so keen on, Nicholl revealed a true defender's prerogative This, remember was the man who scored with an astonishing 35-yard drive in a League Cup final replay for Villa against Everton.

However, he clearly likes his defenders to do their attacking work where there is no danger to their own side.

He said: "I like the way Lynch moves but he has almost got too much ability and he almost overplays at times.

"He's a little bit too confident-looking. I prefer people who stick to their jobs as centre backs.

"He looks like he will take a risk. But I thought he was outstanding.

"The other lad, Elphick, was more dominant in the second half and played very well then.

"I thought they worked well together."

Together the centre backs snuffed out Tommy Mooney, a man who can cause problems at League One level.

Such was their stranglehold on Stefan Moore, Walsall manager Richard Money had to offer supportive words to the ex-Villa striker in that lively press briefing he offered after the game.

Nicholl said: "Mooney is usually a handful for most centre backs but he didn't get much out of them today. I was impressed with them."