Tooley’s Take
Phil Tooley takes a look at the game and its context
Chesterfield 2 Crewe Alexandra 0
League Two Game #45
It’s elementary now, even an averagely educated meerkat could easily work it out. Don’t lose at The County Ground next Saturday and the team is in the play-offs. Simples.
No need to work out a whole host of ‘what ifs’ because the only other meaningful variant is equally simple, lose and it’s EFL2 again next season. Barnet, out of it, Grimsby already init. Swindon v Spireites equals Swindon or Spireites. Has to be deemed a meaningful encounter!
Seven games ago, Paul Cook’s side trailed Ian Holloway’s outfit by seven points and two places, sixth and eighth.Robins’ goal difference, nine better back then. Right now, Spireites’ goal difference is two better and points tally one better. Big, big changes. Quick changes.
Cook v Holloway head to head? Two wins to zero for the Swindon man. Cook v Swindon? One win, one draw, five losses, the draw was our first game back in the EFL, whilst Cookie’s one win was with Ipswich, a game Armando Dobra played in for The Tractor Boys.
The simplicity came purely as a result of two home wins, Grimsby Town cementing their place with a 4-0 Saturday lunchtime over Swindon, whilst Lee Bonis’s brace, one on each half, was enough to avoid any real nail-biting moments against Crewe Alexandra.
First half, solid start, a few great saves from keeper Ian Lawlor, who’s been around long enough to have played for Bury in the League. A scare when Emre Tezgel headed home but, thankfully, from an offside position, before a great dart from Dobra fed Liam Mandeville, his left footed cut back hit Dilan Markanday in, as he explained afterwards, parts that are private, great ball to Bonis (ouch), and having watched the video back several times (not seen one from behind the goal yet), I’m still not sure how Bonis flicked it in! But it went in and it was legal. Big relief.
Pretty untroubled ahead of the interval, apart from being a bit troubled because we should probably been a bit further ahead, cracking save from Mandeville’s free-kick, but then a bit of ‘revert to type’ by forgetting how to play properly at the start of the second half.
Thankfully Kyle McFadzean, fresh from a rescinded red, and his left sided centre back partner Sil Swinkels were in imperious form to keep out Tezgel (who added to his disallowed effort with a looped header onto the bar), four goals in the two games against Town earlier this season, whilst the other Alex raiders didn’t break though the lines too often to worry.
Mandeville’s precision ball through to Bonis was terrific, the Northern Irishman burst forwards, made us all think he’d over cooked it, before a lovely chip over the keeper, 2-0 to ease the nerves of a clearly tense home crowd.
Only one on-target shot from Crewe all afternoon, no problem for Ryan Boot, so few shattered nerves around the place, but there will be next week!
Not losing means that at no stage this season has the team lost back to back league matches, avoiding defeat at Swindon next week will not only ensure play-off qualification, but also mean none of our opponents will have managed a ‘win-double’ this season, and not winning a single corner kick in the Crewe game is a first for the season for Chesterfield.
It’s a long job to check out the last time it happened, so unless there’s a willing volunteer, we’ll never know! (PS, I asked my artificial intelligence buddy the question, to be told the last zero corners for Chesterfield was in a 0-0 draw at Stevenage in L2 in March 2018. Apart from the fact that in that season we lost 5-1 at Stevenage, in December 2017, I’m not sure I’m going to accept that answer as gospel!)
Will Grigg, back in the squad, Tom Pearce, back in the squad, Will Dickson, back in the squad, all augurs well for next week when a veritable Blue & White Army will make its way around the Magic Roundabout in Swindon, to the County Ground. Seven defeats for Chesterfield there in the ten visits this century, the only win in those ten being when Reece Mitchell scored, last minute, with the team’s only shot on target in 2017 when Gary Caldwell was gaffer. Our only away game at Swindon in the month of May came in 2006, Tcham N’Toya scored in a 1-1 draw, both goals in the first half. I’d take either of those scenarios at the weekend.
DJ Oldaker and Michael Olakigbe are in Swindon’s ranks, they have bagged 39 home points to our 35 away points, Holloway has led Blackpool and Crystal Palace to play-off promotions, they’ll fancy their chances, but in the last few weeks, Spireites have stuck at it, generally done what was necessary, they’ve become hard to beat and they’ve got plenty of bodies.
The very least we all anticipated at the start of this season was a place in the play-offs. That’s now within reach, the reach of the team’s own hands, so Paul Cook and his players, back up our belief and begin to blaze a trail that will light up the memories of Spireites supporters for years to come. Please.
Phil’s Positive: Good first half, no big second half worries and a run of WWWDWDW with just three concessions in that run and the team only behind for 22 minutes, and that with ten men, in ten and a half hours of football. I know it means nowt, but Swindon’s last seven: WDDWLDL, with 12 concessions, The Robins in the lead for just 82 minutes of those ten and a half hours.
Next Match: It’s the last scheduled game of the season on Saturday 2 May, 3pm kick-off, at Swindon Town in a bit of an us or them contest. Listen to the build-up on 1866 Sport from 2pm with commentary being on the subscription platform, then back on the App for After the Whistle. Hear from Danny Webb, Dilan Markanday, Kyle McFadzean and Sil Swinkels in the Crewe version of the podcast.
Chesterfield (4-2-3-1 to start): Boot; Curtis, McFadzean,Swinkels, Gordon (Donacien 81); Braybrooke (Fleck 87), Stirk; Markanday, Mandeville (Naylor 73), Dobra (Berry 81); Bonis (Grigg 81). Subs (not used); Pearce, Dickson.
Goals: Bonis 36, 68 (Chesterfield)
Referee: James Bell
Bookings: Dobra, Braybrooke (Chesterfield) , Pond (Crewe)
Attendance: 9560 (749 from Crewe)
1866 Sport Man of the Match: Lee Bonis (chosen by Jamie Hewitt)
