THE GAME
Steve Evans managed to stop the rot in his first game as Rovers Head Coach and saw his side take a point from a 1-1 draw at Gresty Road following a run of 10 consecutive league defeats.
The recently appointed Head Coach made five changes to the side that cost Darrell Clarke his job the previous weekend, some enforced, some not.
Reduced prices for the evening saw an attendance of over 9,000 packed into The Mornflake Stadium (Gresty Road to most of us!) and they didn’t have too long to wait for goals.
The home side struck first when Reece Hutchinson play the ball in to Emre Tezgei whose first time effort from the edge of the area gave Luke Southwood no chance of saving.
That was in the ninth minute, but Rovers were back on level terms just three minutes later when skipper Alfie Kilgour’s long ball out from the back saw a mix up between former Rovers defender James Connolly and goalkeeper Sam Waller allow Callum Morton to gain possession and slot the ball home for his first Rovers goal on his first league start for the club.
On the half hour mark an off the ball incident between Clinton Mola and Adrien Thibault saw the Crewe man red carded and the Rovers player shown a card of the yellow variety.
The ten men, though, gave a good account of themselves and might have taken the lead just before the break had Luke Southwood not turned a shot from Josh March round the post. Rovers also had an opportunity in the closing stages of the half, but Morton headed just wide of the upright from a Josh McEachran cross.
After the break Luke Thomas, played in by substitute Shaq Forde, should have put Rovers ahead but his shot straight at Waller. At the other end, goalkeeper Southwood seemed fortunate not to receive a red card for handling outside the area, but the rather lenient match official Michael Barlow only showed him yellow, much to the disbelief of almost everyone in the ground. Max Sanders curled the resulting free kick (awarded for the handball by the shot stopper!) over the bar.
Jack Sparkes and Morton both saw shots blocked before Thomas blasted another effort over the bar. Kamil Conteh was unluck not to put his side ahead when he saw his shot hit the post and come back into play before being cleared while substitute Ollie Dewsbury saw his shot blocked at the expense of a corner.
Neither side could make the breakthrough on a night when a draw was probably a fair result and Rovers, with two home games over the festive period, will be looking to build on this hard earned point.
WHAT WAS SAID
‘I think we started OK. We started reasonably bright and put them under a little bit of pressure, not too much, but a little bit of pressure, and we seemed to control proceedings, but then we gave away a silly goal. I think it’s a trait that has been there, but we gave away a silly goal, and I spoke to the players long and hard about adversity in football. You can be on top in the game and concede, then you need to get back into it. So, Callum has got an opportunist goal, he takes advantage of a defensive mix up and scores, and then I think we are really good until half time. We should have been in front; there were a number of crosses from both sides of the pitch into the box, and we controlled the middle of the park.
‘I think, in the second half, we lost our way for about ten or 15 minutes. They seemed to gain control of the middle of the park, and the one thing that you have got with this Crewe side is that they are technically really good under a good, young manager. They controlled it, so we changed our shape, and that turned the game back in our favour. We’re unlucky, Kamil Conteh hits the post, and then on another day, Luke Thomas has two, possibly three. Particularly, the first one is a big, big chance. He has apologised to the boys, and I said they are there to be scored and they are there to be missed.
‘We spoke to the boys about the character. I think that they felt that maybe in the past, when they conceded a goal, that it would be it. We said that we run and we work and we fight and we scrap, and if they break and score the second, these things can happen, but I would rather fight and scrap and get back into a game, and we did. I thought the reaction was brilliant. Some of the boys on the bench and members of staff were saying ‘that’s a reaction’ and they were right to say it. It was a great reaction, and that led us to dominate for most of the first half.’ Rovers Head Coach Steve Evans
‘It’s disappointing. In the first half, we were good but still conceded a few chances, but on the whole, we were good. In the second half, we came out and didn’t have the control of the game that we wanted. It’s a point in the right direction, I think the fans will see what we were giving it at the end there, and especially throughout the game. So, disappointing, but we’ll go again.
‘We obviously had the game plan. It doesn’t go out the window, but when they go down to ten men, they’re sitting a little bit deeper. We’ve had it before and it’s a lot tougher; they’re a lower block and we’re trying to break them down, which is obviously difficult. So, we’re pushing for it and had chances, especially at the end there with a few unlucky deflections that could’ve gone in either way. At least we are creating the chances, and the goals will come.
‘We said before the game in the huddle just after the warm-up, ‘give these Gasheads a good night and one to remember. We were just saying in there that we’ve got four games in the space of ten or 12 days. It is so important we bounce back and get some momentum, and it’s huge, so who knows where it could take us.’ Rovers defender Jack Sparkes
‘I thought the players were outstanding and ran themselves into the ground. But Adrien Thibaut can’t do that and give the referee the opportunity to send him off. If it had been 11 v 11 we would have won the game.’ Crewe boss Lee Bell
