A dream start to the season as the Railwaymen again run out 2-1 victors over a full strength Sheffield United thanks to a brace from second half substitute Ryan Lowe, that sees Steve Davis` men into the hat for the second round draw for the EFL Cup on Wednesday night.
On another night though it could have been so different. After two one on ones in the opening minutes that were very well saved by The Alex number one Ben Garrett, new signing Leon Clarke got his goal to announce himself to the Bramall Lane faithful when he latched onto a low cross from 10 yards out despite the best efforts of the despairing centre back Ben Nugent. It was very much a case of same old same old in the Alex backline after that as the back four were harassed by the Red and Whites of United, but they were however kept at bay by a mixture of poor finishing from the big man Clarke and then a Garratt save from point blank range from Matt Done who really should of, as his name suggests, done better from 6 yards out.
After the quarter of the hour mark, the Alex began to work themselves back into the tie, as they themselves began to pile the pressure on the home side. After some good work to get past two United defenders it was George Cooper that saw his shot from outside the area roll agonisingly past George Long`s left hand post as he froze stranded on his line. This effort was met with a roar from the 189 travelling away supporters. The Garratt-Clarke battle continued as the striker found himself free 5 yards out but the ball was smothered bravely by Garrett as he flew down to his right to meet the ball just as Clarke was about to pull the trigger for 2-0. And It was Cooper again on 33 minutes who was providing a host of problems for Chris Wilder`s side as some nice passing and exchange play saw the goal open up for Coops 20 yards out, but he could only strike the ball just over the bar.
Just a minute before half time George Ray got off lucky as his weak back pass fell to Clarke once again who couldn`t steer around an alert Ben Garratt who forced the forward into a miss. However Ray could have instantly gone from villain to hero after a George Cooper free-kick fell to the tall centre back but he couldn`t quite stab it into the net as Long made a smart save to keep the hosts in front going into the break.
Defender Perry NG came on at half time to replace the hurting Billy Bingham after he sustained a knock on his ankle in the first half meaning a switch in roles for Ollie Turton as he moved into midfield.
The Alex continued to ride their luck as Billy Sharpe squandered yet another chance for the hosts after the break. However after this the pendulum began to swing back in favour of the away side. Spurred on by their away support and Steve Davis, Crewe were tirelessly chasing every ball and putting bodies on the line as they defended resolutely and attacked fluently. The game really started to open up for The Alex when wonder boy Alex Kiwomya replaced Charlie Kirk just before the 60 minute mark, with his first touch being a cheeky nutmeg past the on looking Sheffield defender. His pace was causing all kinds of problems and when club captain Ryan Lowe entered the play with 20 minutes to go the Alex support could sense a goal coming. And that they did get, as on the 89th minute a James Jones corner fell nicely to the 37 year old who kindly obliged after a mix up at the back and whacked the ball home to send the away fans into raptures of celebration and forcing extra time.
It was Lowe again who finished well from a Ben Nugent flick down after another Jones free kick to put Crewe 2-1 up in the 100th minute which put Crewe in the hat for the second round draw. However, this was only after a fine stretching save from Ben Garratt who tipped a 25 yard pile driver onto the bar that was again to be hit when Mark Duffy`s strike from outside to box thankfully fell on the right side of the line from an Alex perspective.
The Alex held out however and received a wave of applause from the away fans. Highlight of the night came from Zoumana Bakayogo who led a rendition of the Icelandic warrior chant at full time.
Don`t quite think is has the same effect with 189 Crewe fans mind you?
As a result of this fantastic win, Crewe will now travel to Blackburn Rovers in the second round. The tie will be played in the week commencing 22nd August.
