Crewe grind out win to keep play-offs in sight
It certainly wasn’t pretty, the win over Bradford coming just three days after the proud victory over runaway league leaders Swindon Town, but behind all the tension and the nerves shredded by the mild night under the floodlights at Gresty Road, it was 3 points.
Crewe needed nothing else but Steve Davis’ eleventh win from his 21 game long tenure and they got it, as teams like Manchester United are accustomed to, it doesn’t matter how at this time of the season, the win is the be all and end all.
If anybody was calm enough to be immune from nerves before the game, they surely had to be felt after around fifteen minutes of a scrappy opening in which neither side could ascertain any solid possession of the ball. Bradford were robust in the tackle, singling out the majestic ability of Nick Powell somewhat after his controversial showing up at Valley Parade on Boxing Day, but it was a handball which triggered a penalty concession just after the twenty minute mark. The ball pinged around the area, Adam Dugdale tried to settle it in front of goal before having it whisked away by a sly movement of the palm by Andrew Davies, referee Dean Whitestone did well to notice it and award a spot-kick that was duly dispatched by Harry Davis, emphatically considering the jitters felt around the ground and the breakthrough settled them to a degree.
It was a relief to break down the Bradford back-line that was proving stubborn in the face of the movement of Ajay Leitch-Smith and the trickery of Powell. On the flanks things were quite subdued; Byron Moore was seemingly prioritised with a defensive job on the dangerous Kyel Reid who had built a reputation on a devastating recent performance for the Bantams against Oxford, while Dan Shelley struggled to affect proceedings from his station on the left-side. Shelley, in a performance that replicated his struggle against Swindon, appeared sluggish and unwilling to go past his man, often ending his bout of possession with a dead-stop and a raking, ambitious long ball to the diminutive Leitch-Smith and so, the ball was lost easily to a taller back-line.
There was no dominant side, neither goalkeeper had a lot to do and it just heaped more uneasiness on the collective bag of nerves that is synonymous with expectation. Whistle that word quietly, after an eight game unbeaten run which has included latterly a three match winning streak, Crewe were favourites to beat a Bradford team languishing in 19th position before the ball was kicked. But it’s never as simple as that with Crewe and a new sensation of pre-match optimism is certainly an alien one given the slide down the leagues of recent years. As if such tension wasn’t enough, Crewe were unwilling to seize the initiative in the wake of Davis’ opener and, in what appears to be a signature style of Crewe’s recent run of performances, sat back to invite a degree of pressure.
Bradford were much the better side after half-time, Dean Smalley wasted a header whilst shortly after volleying over James Hanson somehow heading wide after Dave Artell missed a header, Kyel Reid dragged a shot just wide of Steve Phillips’ goal. Bradford’s front two of Hanson and Chris Dagnall were dangerous throughout in terms of movement but it’s testament to the work the back four have done with moving as a unit and the importance of cover, they appeared anaemic in the realms of true goal threat. But it still wasn’t an easy watch, the Alex back-line had been disrupted somewhat by an injury to Matt Tootle and even though loanee Jordan Brown impressed in coming on to left-back, there was a feeling that the substitution had perturbed the fluency of the team. Powell was largely on the periphery, Ajay was isolated and Crewe were lacklustre in moving the ball from the back when a counter-attack presented itself. Luke Murphy battled hard alongside Ashley Westwood in the midfield engine room, but there was no obvious out-ball when it was won, leading to a relatively basic concession of the football and the encouragement of more pressure.
As a crowd, there was an air of gratitude for every minute that ebbed away with the slender single goal lead still intact. There was no action on the Crewe bench despite Bradford’s double substitution on the 70 minute mark and they only goal threat mustered by the home side were two long range shots from Powell and Shelley that cleared the bar. Memories of Swindon on Saturday were being evoked when an element of luck was needed to avoid an implosion in the face of copious amounts of pressure as Di Canio’s men struck the woodwork twice in a one-sided last 30 minutes. But thankfully, that intense pressure never really materialised from Phil Parkinson’s men until stoppage time. A free-kick was flung into the box, confusion reigned in the Alex back four until substitute Dave Syers held off Adam Dugdale and to the tune of three thousand home fans holding their breath, turned his left-footed shot narrowly wide of the right hand post. Ref Whitestone gasped on his final whistle shorty after and the Railwayman could breathe again. The torture was over and another win had been achieved, grinded out by the satisfying notion of a 1-0 score line.
That is the only thing that mattered, behind all the concern of match-tiredness spoken of by Davis and the baffling reluctance to make use of the subs bench with that in mind, those three points had been added to the tally to make it 58 from 38 games played. “The key to everything is that the three points is vital at this stage and the lads showed some real grit to get them” was Davis’ verdict as the play-offs come within touching distance, a single win, with another eight games still to play. Relegation threatened Hereford loom next on the horizon for the Davis’ side as they aim to whittle down each game as it passes, but if they can beat league leaders Swindon, they can beat 23rd placed Hereford. Right? Unfortunately, things are never so simple with Crewe and more nerves and fingernails will be eaten before the 5th May. This play-off lark isn’t easy, but any Crewe fan wouldn’t swap it for anything else.
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By Crewe Alex blogger Adam Gray
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