YOANN Arquin scored his first league goal in almost four months to save Notts County today.
The French striker came off the subs' bench at half-time and scored from close range just after the hour mark in a 1-1 draw at Walsall in League One.
The Magpies trailed 1-0 at half-time, after Saddlers' striker Will Grigg beat Notts No.1 Bartosz Bialkowski from the penalty spot on 29 minutes.
Notts gave a full debut to on-loan Leicester City striker Jacob Blyth and they were also boosted by the return of Bialkowski and captain Neal Bishop at the Bescot Stadium.
Blyth joined the Magpies' other loan striker John Cofie in attack, while Bishop joined Andre Boucaud, Jeff Hughes, Jamal Campbell-Ryce and Alan Judge in midfield.
Notts named a three-man defence of Gary Liddle, Dean Leacock and Alan Sheehan.
There were two former Magpies' players in Walsall's team – Nottingham lad Craig Westcarr, who won the League Two title at Meadow Lane in 2010, and Febian Brandy.
Westcarr was quickly involved against his old club, threading a pass through the Notts defence for Jamie Paterson to race onto on three minutes, but Liddle got back to block his shot.
Walsall then went close to scoring on six minutes.
Boucaud gave the ball away to Paterson with a sloppy pass close to the halfway line, he raced forward and passed to Grigg, who rounded Bialkowski and stroked a low shot at goal that Judge cleared off the goal-line.
While the home side looked threatening in the opening minutes, Bishop sliced a shot so badly on 11 minutes for Notts from 25 yards that it went out for a throw-in.
Defender Andy Taylor then curled a 20-yard free-kick into a wall of Notts players on 20 minutes.
The Magpies were passing the ball nicely on a terrible pitch to dominate possession, but they lacked a cutting-edge and they went 1-0 behind on 29 minutes as Grigg scored from the penalty spot.
Walsall were awarded the spot-kick after Bialkowski clattered into Paterson inside the box.
There was a short delay before Grigg took it because a flare was thrown onto the pitch close to the away end, but when he did step up he swept the ball into the bottom-right corner of the net, sending Bialkowski diving the wrong way.
Brandy then forced Bialkowski into a good save with a powerful effort from just outside the box on 33 minutes.
He then made a surging run into the penalty area three minutes later and Notts were lucky that he miscued a shot that hit Leacock and then headed the rebound tamely straight at Bialkowski.
There was one minute injury time at the end of the first half and in it Cofie fired a long-range shot wide.
Notts brought on Arquin for Blyth at the start of the second half and then recorded their first shot on target less than a minute after the restart as Campbell-Ryce cut inside from the right wing and drove a shot at goal that Walsall goalkeeper Ian McLoughlin held.
The Magpies then went close to equalising on 54 minutes as Arquin forced McLoughlin into a good save, after seizing onto a slip at the back by defender James Chambers, and Judge fired the rebound wide.
Judge spurned another good chance four minutes later, volleying over the bar from six yards, after Hughes had headed the ball down into his path from a free-kick into the box by Sheehan.
Undeterred, they kept up the pressure on the home side and it told on 65 minutes as Arquin made it 1-1, rifling past McLoughlin from seven yards after Campbell-Ryce's right-wing cross fell to him.
Having equalised, Arquin then sent Judge racing into the box with a headed flick-on two minutes later and he swept a low shot at goal that McLoughlin saved at his near post.
Notts brought on Francois Zoko for Cofie soon after and then continued to pile the pressure on their opponents.
Campbell-Ryce was looking a big threat and he tested McLoughlin with a powerful strike from 20 yards on 81 minutes.
Arquin then headed over the bar from eight yards on 86 minutes and then missed a great chance to net a winner two minutes later, heading wide at the far post from only a couple of yards out.
WALSALL: McLoughlin, J Chambers, Butler, Downing, Taylor, A Chambers, Mantom, Paterson, Brandy, Westcarr (Bowerman, 75), Grigg. Subs: Grof, Holden, Featherstone, Hemmings, Benning, Baxendale.
NOTTS: Bialkowski, Liddle, Leacock, Sheehan, Boucaud, Bishop, Hughes (Mahon, 91), Campbell-Ryce, Judge, Blyth (Arquin, 46), Cofie (Zoko, 78). Subs: Spiess, Kelly, Smith, Bencherif.
ATTENDANCE: 4,416 (613 away).