Opposed roles are horrible. I'll not play another game like that if I can help it, especially in a game with multiple attacks. There's such a thing as too many dice being rolled.
I say bring back saving throws, they make more sense to me. I'd even be more favorable to AC as a save than opposed rolls or everything's an attack roll.
Ask yourself this: if you swing a sword at a brick wall you're going to hit it. Why? Not because of your excellent skill but because the damn thing can't move. If you swing a sword at another person, you're only going to miss if they get out of the way, your skill only matters if they try to get out of the way. It makes more sense for the defender to roll than the attacker.