27/01/2024 – Match Reports

Mens 3’s vs Triton 3s -2-2 draw

Crewe Vagrants were back at home for a local derby match against a very strong Triton 3s squad. A quick team talk reminded Crewe how Triton played earlier in the season and how they’d pressed quickly in the middle. Right from the first whistle, the Vagrants were off to a quick attack, which ultimately led to a near miss. Triton brought the ball up field to the Crewe Vagrant 25 yard line. Triton had a series of long corners from which they eventually scored. Crewe Vagrants were one goal down within the first 20 minutes of play. Some back and forth play occurred in the middle of the pitch until Crewe Vagrants were back on the attack. A well-played out routine ended when Dave Freeman was in front of goal and perfectly slotted the ball into row Z! Fortunately, Dave took a good chance later in the half to level the score. However, to finish the half, Triton quickly scored again to make it 2-1 by the half time whistle. Certainly, a difficult game for Crewe Vagrants but not impossible to come back from. A tough second half started with fresh legs brought onto the pitch, this gave Crewe Vagrants the upper hand with a quick attack to start the half, though unfortunately no goal came from it. Later, Triton broke through the Crewe press and were on the break, but a good save from goalkeeper Evan Bowyer kept Crewe in the game. With the final few minutes approaching, Crewe needed a goal to secure a point for the game, and a short corner was won in the last 40seconds of play. The ball was injected and a shot was blocked at the top of the D, yet quick reactions from Crewe led to a last minute equaliser by Ben Jarvis to draw the game. With the full-time whistle gone, one point was brought home for Crewe. Man of the match was rewarded for Andrew Howard.

Ladies 1s v Deeside Ladies 2s – 1-1 draw

Keen to build on a strong performance the previous week, in the cold and dark of Wilmslow, Crewe took the game to a stubborn Deeside team. Despite some early chances the score remained at nil nil until Suzi Lawrence drove forward from the Crewe defence to slam the ball through the Deeside keeper and into the goal. Deeside equalised when a forward was able to collect a rebound off Crewe keeper Alison Smith to send their second shot past the retreated defenders. 1-1 at half time. Crewe dominated the second half, searching for a winner. PoM Jenny ‘on a totally unrelated note’ Evan’s created a number of opportunities for the forwards to score with her sexy passes evading the Deeside defence. With almost the last play of the game, Crewe had a great chance to get a deserved win, but a goal line clearance from a Deeside defender forced the draw. Final score 1-1.

Deeside M3s vs CVHC M2s 0-0 draw

Crewe Mens 2s had their tails up after a convincing win over local rivals Knutsford 1s the previous week, looking to start a run of wins in a very tight league. The game started well for Crewe with good ball possession and any offensive play by Deeside being broken down quickly by a stalwart back line shepherded by VC Stu Raw. The channels were well populated by the omnipresent half backs Rob Featherstone and Chris Sorenson as Crewe looked to get the forwards in to the game in high positions. A short corner was awarded to Crewe which was well executed by coach Nathan Watson in a straight drag shot only to be stopped on the line by a Deeside defender’s (foot) stick preventing Crewe getting the early advantage. Crewe continued to press with great creative runs from Harvey Briggs-Maikin and Ollie Nixon with the Deeside keeper denying the dynamic duo of Andy ‘Ash’ Ashworth and Bruce ‘Skip’ Forster on a number of occasions in open play. Deeside had plenty of responses in their armoury but like Crewe, failed to convert in to good chances in front of goal, talisman goalkeeper Harry Guest keeping everything out of the Crewe net. A moment of despair then occurred when Crewe piled on the pressure in a very busy D where the ball was played in from the right, deflected up in to the D only to be faced by Ash who side wiped it in to the goal at chest height. Crewe were on the edge of celebration only for the umpire to blow for an earlier foul in Crewe’s favour – go figure! Undeterred Crewe kept fighting on but with a point secured at the end it felt more like 2 points easily lost with many lessons taken away; all pointed out in a ‘firm but fair’ diagnosis of the match from coach, Nathan Watson at the end. Mid-table with still lots to play for. We go again.

Ladies 2s v Lymm 3s – 2-1 win

This week the second team knew they had a tough game ahead, facing Lymm 3s. This was a 2nd/3rd place clash with the top spot within reach. The previous match saw a scorching hot summer day, with end to end play unfortunately ending in a 1-0 loss for Crewe. Determined that history would not repeat itself, this cold late afternoon fixture saw the 2s ready to take control of the game. Or at least that’s what they thought.
After some defensive confusion Lymm managed to score in under 2minutes. However, not wanting to let the goal define the game, every member of the team worked hard to stick to their principles, with good basics and short sharp passing.
The first half didn’t truly showcase what the team was capable of and the players knew this going into the break. With some good communication between the team, positive encouragement and important words from the coach, the twos had a much better second half. A quick chance of short corner routine saw Katie Gibbs Blythe expertly send the ball into the goal for Crewe. Another short corner saw Lymm’s number 1 runner expertly dodged by Katherine Smith for her to send the perfect ball for Jiaying Lin to slap it through the keeper’s legs. 2-1 to Crewe. It was all about smart play and retaining possession. There were some hairy moments in the closing stages of the game but Crewe held on for a well-deserved win. This leaves the ladies 2s second in the league, hot on the heels of Deeside Ramblers who are just 3 points ahead. Onto Wilmslow next week.

Mens 1s v Keswick 1s – 6-3 win

Crewe Vagrants Men’s 1s travelled to Keswick for their furthest away game of the season. Their leggy journey showed as Keswick opened the scoring within the first 5 minutes. Crewe eventually got themselves into the swing of things with Graeme Wolfenden notching another short corner to his tally for the season. Crewe quickly gained the lead through Dan Budden picking up on a loose ball in the Keswick D. Wolfenden followed suit having found himself in the D with just the keeper to beat. As he chucked himself to the floor to flick the ball around the keeper to extend Crewe’s lead. That lead was soon reduced to one as Keswick scored just before the break. A sloppy first half saw Crewe the happier of the two going into the break with a 3-2 lead.

A few stern words at half time worked for Crewe. Chris Regan joined in with the fun by scoring from his first attempt form a short corner. Short corners were firing on all cylinders for Crewe, as Tom Davies found Jack Townsend free on the back post to slot home to increase their lead to 5-2. However, Keswick thought back hard to score their third. Some great play down the right hand side by Ollie Miller and Jack Townsend exemplified Crewe second half performance, as they found Keelan Sherwani to score a first time deflection that saw the Keswick keeper helpless.

Final score: Keswick 3 – 6 Crewe Vagrants

Mens 4s v Wilmslow Development – 10-0 win

Crewe Development v Knutsford 3s – 2-1 win