da realbet：
da brwin： The step up from League Two to League One is tough, we have gathered that by now, as Crawley, Swindon and Shrewsbury slowly adapt to the higher standard of opposition.
However it is Crewe who have had the sharpest growing pains with three defeats out of 5 games played piercing any bubble of optimism that may have been created by the 5-0 thrashing of Hartlepool in the curtain-raising Capital One Cup tie, a competition Crewe now sit out of following a 2-0 defeat away at West Ham.
That cup elimination however, should be the least of the worries in South Cheshire, for it was a decent performance against Premier League opposition that ultimately proved too resourceful and experienced in the comfort of their own impressive surroundings.
The three league performances over the past week and half will provide Steve Davis with the most food for thought, as they have given a tough insight into the harsh realities of League One; the 2-1 defeat at home to Notts County, the barely deserved 2-1 win away at Scunthorpe and the demoralising 5-1 dismantling away at Brentford have been the fiery baptism into a campaign that could possibly be a long one unless lessons are quickly learned going into the month of September.
The victory over Scunthorpe at Glanford Park was a rather fortunate smash and grab routine, Luke Murphy’s late winner coming after the home side had struck the woodwork on a couple of occasions and the defence had showed the same signs of shakiness that were apparent on the opening day against a Notts County side that possessed the ruthlessness to punish them, Scunthorpe did not and Crewe, most notably main offender Mark Ellis who allowed Jimmy Ryan through to be denied by the post, were allowed to leave Lincolnshire with their three points of the season and a relieving opportunity to build on it.
Their comprehensive failure to do so was apparent at Griffin Park on Saturday when ex-player Clayton Donaldson, there was a clear air of inevitably about his contribution, and Farim El Alagui ripped a Crewe performance, the standard of which Steve Davis described as the worst of his 10 month tenure, to shreds, sparking a dramatic re-think of the initial approach Davis and the Crewe management team have made to this division.
Changes were made for the trip to West Ham on Tuesday and they had to be, especially at the back; Kelvin Mellor made his long-awaited return to the first team in place of a dropped Adam Dugdale who has looked lost in the early embers of this season, Harry Davis moved to centre-half and it made for a more resilient performance at the back; Mark Ellis looking particularly impressive but still, in a trait that encapsulated the whole back four for Modibo Maiga’s second goal, has a penchant for switching off at times, a trait that will have to be quickly vanished should Crewe thrive to make a success of their domestic form.
To continue the upheaval, Abdul Osman lost his place in central midfield with loanee Harry Bunn coming in to start on the left, and Max Clayton was restored to the starting XI in place of Mathias Pogba, the scorer of Crewe’s solitary goal at Brentford, in attack. As a result, the forward line looked a lot more balanced and there were more assuredness on the ball, something that had suddenly gone missing from the Crewe make-up, a characteristic the side have always prided themselves on. It was just the final ball and a lack of composure in the final third that hindered Crewe before the gulf in class tolled with Nicky Maynard again being the curse of the ex-player before Maiga’s knife in the coffin. A training match had then broke out, any competitiveness had been drained away, but enough positives could have been drawn before then, in time for a game with manager-less Coventry at Gresty Road on Saturday, the opening game of a month that could even out the rocky turbulence experienced in the opening stages of this League One journey.
One other thing will occupy Steve Davis’ thinking before a possibly pivotal game with Coventry that will be the first of two vital home games, will be the concrete interest of Swansea in midfielder Ashley Westwood, a national newspaper reporting the Welsh club could stretch to £2 million after an initial £500,000 bid was turned down. At the age of 22, with four years of service at Gresty Road to his name, one would not begrudge him a lucrative move, but with a distinct lack of quality to replace him with very little room for manoeuvre in the final dregs of the transfer window due to shut on Friday, Crewe fans will be desperate, with no particular financial pressure to sell, that Westwood is free to take his place in the Alex line up for Saturday afternoon’s date with the struggling Sky Blues.
The possibility of losing midfield lynchpin Westwood would only be the latest mark in a troubling introduction to this season, but he could just as easily be playing a role throughout September to help Crewe out of this slumber. The trip to West Ham showed some bright glimpses of light peering through the woodwork on the horizon, but a degree of faith will have to be put in the manager to implement the changes that were deemed necessary in the aftermath of the Brentford demolition.
Faith in Steve Davis shouldn’t be hard to find, for it was his miraculous influence that got Crewe to League One and to an extent, one may possibly argue they shouldn’t be here. However, now is the time to prove they are here to stay.
You can follow me on Twitter @AdamGray1250
[ad_pod id=’writer-2′ align=’right’]